US Friend Returns to Power in Italy

ROME (AP) - Media billionaire Silvio Berlusconi won a decisive victory Monday in Italy's parliamentary election, setting the colorful conservative and staunch U.S. ally on course to his third stint as premier.

The victory in voting Sunday and Monday by parties supporting the 71-year-old Berlusconi avenged his loss two years ago to a center-left coalition.

"I'm moved. I feel a great responsibility," he said in a phone call to RAI public television while monitoring election results at his villa outside Milan. Italian news agencies said he had a private dinner with key aides.

Berlusconi capitalized on discontent over Italy's stagnating economy and the unpopularity of Romano Prodi's government.

"I think it was a vote against the performance of the Prodi government in the last two years," said Franco Pavoncello, a political science professor at Rome's John Cabot University. "Berlusconi won because he has a strong coalition and because people feel that on the other side, the government is going to take them nowhere."

This was Berlusconi's fifth consecutive national election campaign since 1994, when he stepped into politics from his media empire, currently estimated to be worth $9.4 billion. He has fended off challenges to his leadership by conservative allies, withstood accusations of conflict of interest and survived criminal trials linked to his business dealings.

During his last time as premier, Berlusconi served a record-setting five years until his 2006 defeat. He made notable international gaffes as well as unpopular decisions at home, such as sending 3,000 soldiers to Iraq despite widespread opposition among Italians.

The Iraq contingent was withdrawn after his 2006 ballot loss, and he has ruled out sending any more troops there. But his friendship with the United States is not in doubt.

Berlusconi once said he agreed with the United States regardless of Washington's position. He calls President Bush a friend, and his return to power is likely to make relations with Washington warmer, no matter who becomes the next American president.

The outgoing government had colder relations with Washington. Prodi never went to the White House, although he did talk with Bush in Rome and at international summits.

Berlusconi has also affirmed himself as one of Israel's closest friends in Europe.

On Monday, he said he would make his first foreign trip as the new premier by visiting Israel to mark the Jewish state's 60th anniversary. He said it would be a show of support for "the only real democracy in the Middle East."

Berlusconi's party and its allies won strong victories in both houses of parliament despite a strong final sprint by his main rival, Walter Veltroni, who ran a campaign that could have come out of Barack Obama's playbook, with calls to "Vote for change" and supporters armed with "We can!" banners.

In the 315-member Senate, Berlusconi was projected to control 167 seats to Veltroni's 137. In the lower house, his conservative bloc led with 46 percent of the votes to 39 percent.

A movement led by comedian-turned-moralizer Beppe Grillo tried to get Italians to boycott the vote. But turnout in the politically polarized nation reached 80 percent, nearly as much as the 84 percent in the last national ballot in 2006, according to data from the Interior Ministry.

Berlusconi got a big boost from the strong showing by the Northern League, a key ally that won about 6 percent of the vote, according to projections. The party has strong regional identification and people in Italy's wealthy north also were angered by Prodi's tax increases and the downgrading of Milan's Malpensa airport from its role as a hub.

A laundry list of problems await Berlusconi, from cleaning piles of trash off the streets of Naples, which he indicated is his top priority, to improving an economy that has underperformed fellow EU nations for years.

The International Monetary Fund predicts the Italian economy, the world's seven largest, will grow 0.3 percent this year, compared with a 1.4 percent average for the whole group of 15 EU nations that use the euro currency.

Economists say Italy needs to make structural reforms, such as streamlining government decision-making and cutting costs.

There is also criticism of the election law, which is widely blamed for political instability by giving disproportionate power to small parties - a problem that brought down Romano Prodi's government and forced elections three years ahead of schedule.

In his postelection comments, Berlusconi said he was open to working with the opposition, and pledged to fight tax evasion, reform the justice system and reduce government debt.
---
Associated Press writer Ariel David contributed to this report.

An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge

LikeTelevision Embed Movies and TV Shows

An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge. This film by Robert Enrico is adapted from the story written by Ambrose Bierce. The short film does an excellent job of telling this great tale, about a man accused of trying to sabotage a bridge during the American civil war. As the story begins, the man is about to be executed - by hanging from Owl Creek Bridge. We enter the man's mind, as he imagines that the rope breaks - and he narrowly escapes the onslaught of bullets from the Union soldiers. Then he runs through an arched forest canopy - trying to return to his wife and child, who are waiting for him at his home. Most of the story takes place, during that brief few seconds, as he falls from his gallows - to the moment when his neck snaps. An incredible journey of mind.... look out, there's a sign post up ahead! Yep, this short film was also an episode of The Twilight Zone, with Rod Serling. It was the only episode that was not produced by the great writing team that made the show. As a episode 142 of The Twilight Zone, it aired 28 February, 1964.

This film has won many awards, including - A First Prize Winner at the 1962 Cannes Film Festival and in 1964 - an Oscar for Best Short Subject, Live Action Subjects. Roger Jaquet stars as the convicted man who imagines his escape. This is a very powerful short film(28 min), and well worth your time!

Bandidas - Cinema Trailer

Salma or Penelope? Oh... Which one to choose!

John Adams - Trailer (HBO)

Fantastic Cinema!!!

Space Shuttle Lands in Cape Town

The American Space Shuttle makes an unexpected landing in Cape Town.

John McCain - Journey To Freedom

March is a memorable time for the Americans who were released from captivity in North Vietnam during the month back in 1973. The pathway to freedom began in February, as the war in Vietnam was concluding for America.

John McCain, one of those American heroes, returned to freedom on March 15th, 1973, released from Hanoi that day along with other very happy American Prisoners of War. His journey home was the continuation of a remarkable story with chapters yet to be written. Having survived life-threatening and disabling injuries, along with the brutality of the POW experience, John had steadfastly resisted communist efforts to exploit him and his fellow POWs. John's homecoming began a new phase of his life. His courageous service and his political career are well known today, and now he is the presumptive nominee for the Republican Party to be the next President of the United States.

We are but representatives of over eighty former POWs who shared those heady days of freedom and those years of captivity and suffering with John McCain. Collectively, we are proudly doing all we can to help our dear friend, John McCain, become our next commander in chief. We are campaigning with him, helping him raise money, speaking on his behalf and, in constant conversations, promoting his candidacy among our friends and family all over the country. We are doing so because we believe in John McCain.

Our convictions about John's character were born in the crucible of adversity. We have witnessed his courage, integrity, character and intellect. We know and respect his sense of honor and his tenacity in the face of grave danger and prolonged hardship. These qualities, combined with his life experiences, make John ready for the enormous challenges facing the leader of our country. No one -- no one -- is more qualified to be president, to lead our country, to protect our nation and our children and grandchildren. We know him. We know his strengths, his love of country and his commitment to serve it. He has been severely tested, and we have witnessed him under pressure. We trust his judgment and his ability to lead our country in these difficult times.

We are joined in that trust by over 130 retired Flag and General officers who are members of Senator McCain's Military Advisory Council. They know and have worked with John McCain over the past three decades dealing with major national security challenges. They know leadership and they know danger and challenges. They know experience. They know quality. And they chose John McCain for president.

Please join us in this effort by clicking here to watch a video to remember this memorable day in John McCain's life.

We must elect a leader who is ready on day one for these difficult and dangerous times. We need a leader who will insist that we win in the struggle against radical Islam. John is committed to let our troops win! We need a leader who will take on the big problems that most politicians seek to avoid. Leaders take on the tough issues. John McCain is that sort of leader. He knows the American spirit -- he has lived it like no other candidate. He knows we can do better and that America's best days are ahead.

Sincerely,

Commander Everett Alvarez, USN (Ret.)
POW for 8 1/2 years

Colonel Bud Day, USAF (Ret.)
Medal of Honor
POW Over 5 Years

Rear Admiral Robert Shumaker, USN (Ret.)
POW for 8 years

Colonel Leo Thorsness, USAF (Ret.)
Medal of Honor
POW for 6 years

Commander Paul Galanti, USN (Ret.)
POW for over 6 1/2 Years

Captain Mike Cronin, USN (Ret.)
POW for over 6 years

Major General John Borling, USAF (Ret.)
POW for over 6 1/2 years

Captain Richard Stratton, USN (Ret.)
POW for over 6 years

Lt Colonel Orson Swindle, USMC (Ret.)
POW for over 6 years.

Weather Channel Founder: Sue Al Gore for Fraud

Friday , March 14, 2008

The founder of the Weather Channel wants to sue Al Gore for fraud, hoping a legal debate will settle the global-warming debate once and for all.

John Coleman, who founded the cable network in 1982, suggests suing for fraud proponents of global warming, including Al Gore, and companies that sell carbon credits.

"Is he committing financial fraud? That is the question," Coleman said.

"Since we can't get a debate, I thought perhaps if we had a legal challenge and went into a court of law, where it was our scientists and their scientists, and all the legal proceedings with the discovery and all their documents from both sides and scientific testimony from both sides, we could finally get a good solid debate on the issue," Coleman said. "I'm confident that the advocates of 'no significant effect from carbon dioxide' would win the case."

Coleman says his side of the global-warming debate is being buried in mainstream media circles.

"As you look at the atmosphere over the last 25 years, there's been perhaps a degree of warming, perhaps probably a whole lot less than that, and the last year has been so cold that that's been erased," he said.

"I think if we continue the cooling trend a couple of more years, the general public will at last begin to realize that they've been scammed on this global-warming thing."

• Click here to visit FOXNews.com's Natural Science Center.

Coleman spoke to FOXNews.com after his appearance last week at the 2008 International Conference on Climate Change in New York, where he called global warming a scam and lambasted the cable network he helped create.

"You want to tune to the Weather Channel and have them tell you how to live your life?" Coleman said. "Come on."

He laments the network's decision to focus on traffic and lifestyle reports over the weather.

"It's very clear that they don't realize that weather is the most significant impact in every human being's daily life, and good, solid, up-to-the-minute weather information and meaningful forecasts presented in such a way that people find them understandable and enjoyable can have a significant impact," he said.

"The more you cloud that up with other baloney, the weaker the product," he said.

Coleman has long been a skeptic of global warming, and carbon dioxide is the linchpin to his argument.

"Does carbon dioxide cause a warming of the atmosphere? The proponents of global warming pin their whole piece on that," he said.

The compound carbon dioxide makes up only 38 out of every 100,000 particles in the atmosphere, he said.

"That's about twice as what there were in the atmosphere in the time we started burning fossil fuels, so it's gone up, but it's still a tiny compound," Coleman said. "So how can that tiny trace compound have such a significant effect on temperature?

"My position is it can't," he continued. "It doesn't, and the whole case for global warming is based on a fallacy."

• Click here for John Coleman's briefs on global warming.

Copyright 2008 FOX News Network, LLC. All rights reserved.

E-Trade: Bobo the Clown

When you make a little extra coin - spend it on whatever you like!!!

E-Trade: Barfing Baby

This has got to be the neatest commercial!

Official Gmail Blog: 2 hidden ways to get more from your Gmail address

Official Gmail Blog: 2 hidden ways to get more from your Gmail address


I recently discovered some little-known ways to use your Gmail address that can give you greater control over your inbox and save you some time and headache. When you choose a Gmail address, you actually get more than just "yourusername@gmail.com." Here are two different ways you can modify your Gmail address and still get your mail:

* Append a plus ("+") sign and any combination of words or numbers after your email address. For example, if your name was hikingfan@gmail.com, you could send mail to hikingfan+friends@gmail.com or hikingfan+mailinglists@gmail.com.
* Insert one or several dots (".") anywhere in your email address. Gmail doesn't recognize periods as characters in addresses -- we just ignore them. For example, you could tell people your address was hikingfan@gmail.com, hiking.fan@gmail.com or hi.kin.g.fan@gmail.com. (We understand that there has been some confusion about this in the past, but to settle it once and for all, you can indeed receive mail at all the variations with dots.)

For me, the real value in being able to manipulate your email address is that it makes it really easy to filter on those variants. For example you could use hikingfan+bank@gmail.com when you sign up for online banking and then set up a filter to automatically star, archive or label emails addressed to hikingfan+bank. You can also use this when you register for a service and think they might share your information. For example, I added "+donation" when I gave money to a political organization once, and now when I see emails from other groups to that address, I know how they got it. Solution: filtered to auto-delete.

Staying to Help in Iraq

We have finally reached a point where humanitarian assistance, from us and others, can have an impact.

By Angelina Jolie
Thursday, February 28, 2008; 1:15 PM
The Washington Post

The request is familiar to American ears: "Bring them home."

But in Iraq, where I've just met with American and Iraqi leaders, the phrase carries a different meaning. It does not refer to the departure of U.S. troops, but to the return of the millions of innocent Iraqis who have been driven out of their homes and, in many cases, out of the country.

In the six months since my previous visit to Iraq with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, this humanitarian crisis has not improved. However, during the last week, the United States, UNHCR and the Iraqi government have begun to work together in new and important ways.

We still don't know exactly how many Iraqis have fled their homes, where they've all gone, or how they're managing to survive. Here is what we do know: More than 2 million people are refugees inside their own country -- without homes, jobs and, to a terrible degree, without medicine, food or clean water. Ethnic cleansing and other acts of unspeakable violence have driven them into a vast and very dangerous no-man's land. Many of the survivors huddle in mosques, in abandoned buildings with no electricity, in tents or in one-room huts made of straw and mud. Fifty-eight percent of these internally displaced people are younger than 12 years old.

An additional 2.5 million Iraqis have sought refuge outside Iraq, mainly in Syria and Jordan. But those host countries have reached their limits. Overwhelmed by the refugees they already have, these countries have essentially closed their borders until the international community provides support.

I'm not a security expert, but it doesn't take one to see that Syria and Jordan are carrying an unsustainable burden. They have been excellent hosts, but we can't expect them to care for millions of poor Iraqis indefinitely and without assistance from the U.S. or others. One-sixth of Jordan's population today is Iraqi refugees. The large burden is already causing tension internally.

The Iraqi families I've met on my trips to the region are proud and resilient. They don't want anything from us other than the chance to return to their homes -- or, where those homes have been bombed to the ground or occupied by squatters, to build new ones and get back to their lives. One thing is certain: It will be quite a while before Iraq is ready to absorb more than 4 million refugees and displaced people. But it is not too early to start working on solutions. And last week, there were signs of progress.

In Baghdad, I spoke with Army Gen. David Petraeus about UNHCR's need for security information and protection for its staff as they re-enter Iraq, and I am pleased that he has offered that support. General Petraeus also told me he would support new efforts to address the humanitarian crisis "to the maximum extent possible" -- which leaves me hopeful that more progress can be made.

UNHCR is certainly committed to that. Last week while in Iraq, High Commissioner António Guterres pledged to increase UNHCR's presence there and to work closely with the Iraqi government, both in assessing the conditions required for return and in providing humanitarian relief.

During my trip I also met with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who has announced the creation of a new committee to oversee issues related to internally displaced people, and a pledge of $40 million to support the effort.

My visit left me even more deeply convinced that we not only have a moral obligation to help displaced Iraqi families, but also a serious, long-term, national security interest in ending this crisis.

Today's humanitarian crisis in Iraq -- and the potential consequences for our national security -- are great. Can the United States afford to gamble that 4 million or more poor and displaced people, in the heart of Middle East, won't explode in violent desperation, sending the whole region into further disorder?

What we cannot afford, in my view, is to squander the progress that has been made. In fact, we should step up our financial and material assistance. UNHCR has appealed for $261 million this year to provide for refugees and internally displaced persons. That is not a small amount of money -- but it is less than the U.S. spends each day to fight the war in Iraq. I would like to call on each of the presidential candidates and congressional leaders to announce a comprehensive refugee plan with a specific timeline and budget as part of their Iraq strategy.

As for the question of whether the surge is working, I can only state what I witnessed: U.N. staff and those of non-governmental organizations seem to feel they have the right set of circumstances to attempt to scale up their programs. And when I asked the troops if they wanted to go home as soon as possible, they said that they miss home but feel invested in Iraq. They have lost many friends and want to be a part of the humanitarian progress they now feel is possible.

It seems to me that now is the moment to address the humanitarian side of this situation. Without the right support, we could miss an opportunity to do some of the good we always stated we intended to do.

Angelina Jolie, an actor, is a UNHCR goodwill ambassador.

Attacks in Baghdad fall 80 percent

Sat, 16 Feb 2008

By Aws Qusay

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Attacks by insurgents and rival sectarian militias have fallen up to 80 percent in Baghdad and concrete blast walls that divide the capital could soon be removed, a senior Iraqi military official said on Saturday.

Lieutenant-General Abboud Qanbar said the success of a year-long clampdown named "Operation Imposing Law" had reined in the savage violence between majority Shi'ites and minority Sunni Arabs dominant under Saddam Hussein.

"In a time when you could hear nothing but explosions, gunfire and the screams of mothers and fathers and sons, and see bodies that were burned and dismembered, the people of Baghdad were awaiting Operation Imposing Law," Qanbar told reporters.

Qanbar pointed to the number of dead bodies turning up on the capital's streets as an indicator of success.

In the six weeks to the end of 2006, an average of 43 bodies were found dumped in the city each day as fierce sectarian fighting threatened to turn into full-scale civil war.

That figure fell to four a day in 2008, in the period up to February 12, said Qanbar, who heads the Baghdad security operation.

"Various enemy activities" had fallen by between 75 and 80 percent since the security plan was implemented, he said.

To demonstrate how life had improved, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki toured parts of the city on Saturday, visiting Iraqi forces and checkpoints.

"He wanted ... to send a message to the terrorists that security in Baghdad is prevailing now," one official said.

Central to the success has been the erection of 12-foot (3.5-meter) high concrete walls that snake across the city.

The walls were designed to stop car bombings blamed on al Qaeda that turned markets and open areas into killing fields.

Qanbar said he hoped the walls could be taken down "in the coming months" and predicted the improved situation in Baghdad would translate to greater security elsewhere.

The U.S. military says attacks have fallen across Iraq by 60 percent since June on the back of security clampdowns and the deployment of 30,000 extra American troops.

FRAGILE RELATIONSHIP

Vital to the fall in violence was also a decision by Sunni Arab tribal leaders to turn against Sunni Islamist al Qaeda in late 2006 and form neighborhood security units, which man checkpoints and provide tips on militant hideouts.

However, their relationship with Iraqi authorities remains tense. The Shi'ite-led government is wary of the units, called "concerned local citizens" (CLCs) by the U.S. military and whose ranks includes former Sunni Arab insurgents.

"Everyone should know, that the official security forces represent the country. And it is the one side that has the right to bear arms and impose security," Qanbar said.

In a sign of the tensions, one CLC group said it was suspending its activities after three members were killed in an incident near the town of Jurf al-Sukr, south of Baghdad.

The unit blamed American soldiers for Friday's deaths. The U.S. military said attack helicopters had responded with rockets after security forces came under small-arms fire. It said the incident was under investigation but gave no further details.

The CLCs number some 80,000 mainly Sunni Arabs. Qanbar said Baghdad was working on compensating victims of mistakes by the Iraqi army and multi-national forces in Iraq.

While Iraqi and U.S. officials laud the security gains, humanitarian groups say it is still too early to encourage around 2 million refugees who fled Iraq to return home.

"The plight of Iraqi refugees will end with national reconciliation," the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres, told reporters during a visit to Baghdad.

(Additional reporting by Michael Holden, Mohammed Abbas and Ahmed Rasheed, Writing by Mohammed Abbas: Editing by Robert Woodward)

© Reuters 2007. All rights reserved.

Juanita du Plessis - Boerejol

The title in English simply means: "no less than, one big South African party"!

The Wall Street Journal on Obamanomics

by Stephen Moore of The Wall Street Journal

Moore: "[Obama is] talking about a series of tax rate increases. So he would increase the capital gains and the dividends tax and the income tax. And one thing that is going to be problematic I think for some people is he also wants to get rid of what's called the cap on the payroll tax." (The Wall Street Journal Website, www.wsj.com, Accessed 2/13/08)

Moore: "Whereas the Republicans want to increase private investment, he's talking about increasing government spending and he's calling that investment too, so it would be a multi-billion dollar increase in the size of government." (The Wall Street Journal Website, www.wsj.com, Accessed 2/13/08)

Moore: "[Obama] doesn't believe that raising tax rates is going to hurt the economy and if he becomes President ... tax rates will go up almost across the board." (The Wall Street Journal Website, www.wsj.com, Accessed 2/13/08)

Republican For A Reason

The Republican National Committee's newest web video, reminding us all why we are Republican - and proud Americans.

WANTED: Boots and Shovel

I believe strongly that 98.3% of the democrat presidential candidates are shovelling manure at us once again!

Cheney Daughter Backs Romney

MIAMI (AP) - Liz Cheney, one of Vice President Dick Cheney's daughters, has signed onto Mitt Romney's presidential campaign as a senior foreign policy adviser. Cheney most recently worked in the State Department handling Middle East affairs.

While her father and President Bush have both vowed to remain neutral as their fellow Republicans battle it out for the GOP nomination, the endorsement is likely to be well received among conservatives who comprise a critical primary voting bloc in both Florida, which votes Tuesday, and the 20-odd states voting Feb. 5.

Romney has also enjoyed the support of aides with ties to the Bush family, including top assistants to former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and former President George H.W. Bush.

Liz Cheney, 41, is the elder of Dick and Lynne Cheney's two daughters.

Liz Cheney, the mother of five children, said in a statement: "Throughout his campaign, (Romney) has distinguished himself as a leader who can guide our country with a clear vision for overcoming the threats we face today. ... I look forward to working with Governor Romney because he is the leader our country needs."

Romney said Liz Cheney brings the campaign "years of experience helping to formulate America's foreign policy and to advance democracy and reform in the Middle East."

Liz Cheney previously supported former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson, who dropped out of the race last week.

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press.

America's Marines

Speed Racer Cinema Trailer

Good memories, good times. Has it been 40 years? Speed Racer was famous around the world! Coming to a cinema near you, 2008.

Evel Knievel Dies at 69...

Duma - Trailer

Great Cinema!!! Great Cheetah!!!

None Dare Call it 'Victory'

None Dare Call it 'Victory'
By Cal Thomas
Thursday, 22 November, 2007

"The security improvements in most (Baghdad) neighborhoods are real. Days now pass without a car bomb. The number of bodies appearing in Baghdad's streets has plummeted to about five a day, from as many as 35 eight months ago, and suicide bombings across Iraq fell to 16 in October, half the number of last summer and down sharply from a recent peak of 59 in March."

I am not reading this in a pro-Bush administration publication, but on the front page of the Nov. 20 edition of The New York Times, a newspaper that is editorially opposed to the war and the Bush administration and has mostly carried gloomy stories leading many to think America has lost it.

The previous day, The Washington Post editorialized, "The evidence is now overwhelming that the 'surge' of U.S. military forces in Iraq this year has been, in purely military terms, a remarkable success. By every metric used to measure the war - total attacks, U.S. casualties, Iraqi casualties, suicide bombings, roadside bombs - there has been an enormous improvement since January."

In a "normal" war, this would be cause for national celebration, but this is not a normal war. Leaders of the Democratic Party are unwilling to celebrate because they have invested all their political capital in the notion that America isn't winning, can't win and must not win. If voters were to embrace victory and not defeat, they would likely reject the Democratic presidential nominee, if only for demonstrating poor judgment.

Democrats in Congress and on the campaign trail are retreating to a fallback position that no political progress is being made. That, too, may turn out not to be the case. On Oct. 22, a reconciliation meeting took place in Baghdad between prominent Sunni and Shia sheiks. According to Colonel Jon Lehr, commander, 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, who moderated the meeting, the two sheiks pledged to put aside their differences for the good of the community.

The same New York Times report appears to confirm that reconciliation might not be unobtainable: "for the first time in nearly two years, people are moving with freedom around much of (Baghdad) while there (are) still no-go zones, more Iraqis now drive between Sunni and Shiite areas for work, shopping or school, a few even after dark. In the most stable neighborhoods of Baghdad, some secular women are also dressing as they wish. Wedding bands are playing in public again."

There is still a very long way to go. Press reports indicate al-Qaida forces have moved to Northern Iraq where they are setting off improvised explosive devices and engaging in suicide bombings, but American and Iraqi forces have them on the run. Securing Iraq's capital city would be both a substantive and symbolic success.

Broadcast television has mostly ignored the Iraq story in recent weeks. Tyndall Weekly, part of ADT Research, which monitors the Top 10 stories covered by broadcast news, found that Iraq had dropped off the list for several weeks in September and October, reappearing as number six in the week ending Nov. 2.

Can the Democrats come back from their embrace of defeat to change the subject? It isn't likely, as Republicans will most assuredly question their poor judgment and "cheerleading" for the enemy. Republicans will rightly ask whether Democrats should be trusted to make correct judgments about the wider war on terrorism if they made the wrong judgment on Iraq, an important component of that war.

Democrats continue to be politically vulnerable on national security. An Iraq victory or even major progress toward victory could become a winning issue for Republicans. Not known for quoting approvingly from the mainstream media, Republicans might willingly do so in the case of The New York Times, the Washington Post and this morsel from Newsweek foreign correspondent Rod Nordland: "For the first time returning to Baghdad after an absence of four months, I can actually say that things do seem to have gotten better, and in ways that may even be durable."

The Pentagon labeled America's response to the 9/11 attacks "Enduring Freedom." There's a way to go yet, but this moniker might turn out to have been prophetic.

Cal Thomas is co-author (with Bob Beckel) of the forthcoming book, "Common Ground: How to Stop the Partisan War That is Destroying America"

Proudly South African

By Die Melktert Kommissie

When You Say Nothing At All...

By Alison Krauss. It speaks for itself...

Google Talk soon to work with AIM

Google Talk soon to work with AIM by ZDNet's Garett Rogers -- Trusted Testers have been working hard testing AIM interoperability in their Gmail accounts according to Ionut from Google Operating System. This anonymous source provided him screenshots of the new feature in action. By the look of it, your AIM contacts are mixed into the list of using Google Talk users and identified by the little [...]

Vodacom Rugby Ad

A cellular/mobile provider's ad supporting the Springbok's, South Africa's rugby team. You need to have watched a South African cinema called "The Gods Must Be Crazy" to really enjoy it. Very funny.

Another Mobile Photograph

Here's a photo of me walking away... Obviously after doing the bulk of the work that evening!!! Baggy trousers, untucked shirt... What a bum!!! Photo courtesy of Jenstar and her new Samsung Gleam photo mobile with wireless service via Verizon...

Rugby World Cup 2007 Preview

Former Met Boss Slams McCann Investigation

Former Metropolitan Police chief Lord Stevens also said there is no
evidence to suggest the couple murdered their daughter Madeleine.

Writing in the News of the World, Lord Stevens lambasted the "sheer
inadequacy" of the Portuguese police investigation, which he said has
failed to produce any hard evidence.

He added there was "absolutely no chance" the parents of Madeleine
McCann would have faced charges for their daughter's murder in Britain.

"It would be an outrageous miscarriage of justice if they were charged
with her murder in this country," Lord Stevens said.

"I've been a detective at the most senior level for 30 years and have
never seen such a witch-hunt, or one based on such flimsy evidence."

Lord Stevens, who retired as Metropolitan Police commissioner in 2005,
said Portuguese police should have immediately treated the McCanns as
the prime suspects.

"That police error has become their tragedy now," he added. "If they had
been properly investigated back then they may well have been cleared."

During his five-year term as Met Police commissioner, Lord Stevens
headed inquiries into the circumstances surrounding the death of Diana,
Princess of Wales, and alleged football bungs.

He was widely credited with transforming morale at Scotland Yard
following the the Macpherson report into the Stephen Lawrence murder.

Comrades Ultramarathon

The Comrades Marathon is the world's oldest and largest ultramarathon run over a distance of approximately 90 km (55.9 mi) between the capital of the KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa, Pietermaritzburg, and the coastal city of Durban. The direction of the race alternates each year between the up run starting from Durban and the down run starting from Pietermaritzburg.

The race was the idea of World War I veteran Vic Clapham, to commemorate the South African soldiers killed during the war. It was run for the first time on 24 May 1921 (Empire Day), and except for a break during World War II, it has been run every year since.

From 1962 to 1994 the race was run on Republic Day, 31 May. After this public holiday was scrapped in 1995 by the post-apartheid South African Government, the race date was changed to Youth Day on 16 June. However, in 2007 the race organisers (controversially) bowed to political pressure from the ANC Youth League, who felt that the race diverted attention from the significance of Youth Day, and changed the race date to Sunday 17 June for 2007.

The 2007 event was the 82nd running.

The field size ranges between 10,000 and 13,000 runners each year, with a record field in 2000 of over 23,000 runners. This makes it the world's largest ultra-marathon.

South Africa is also home to the world's largest individually timed cycle race, the Cape Argus Cycle Race, and the world's largest open water swim, the Midmar Mile.