ECM World Watch

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June 16, 2011 (San Diego’s East County)--ECM World Watch helps you be an informed citizen about important issues globally and nationally. As part of our commitment to reflecting all voices and views, we include links to a wide variety of news sources representing a broad spectrum of political, religious, and social views.


 

Top global and national news stories include:

 

U.S.


• Tax cuts aren’t always appetizing (American Progress)
• Senate report examines U.S. efforts in Afghanistan (NPR)
• FDA warns against high doses of cholesterol drug (NPR)
• Hispanics nationwide: a snapshot (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• GPS users fear getting lost in wireless expansion (NPR)
• Facebook rolls out facial recognition feature (NPR)
• Terrorism case exposes gaps in refugee screening (NPR)
• Pakinstan reportedly arrests suspected CIA informants (NPR)
• U.S. probes if Pakistan colluded with militants (NPR)
• Gates rebukes Europe for lacking commitment in NATO (Christian Science Monitor)

 

WORLD

 

• Defiant Iran plans big rise in nuclear enrichment (Reuters)
• Qaeda’s Zawahiri says U.S. facing Muslim rebellion (Reuters)
• China floods kill 52, force 100,000 to evacuate (Reuters)
• Amnesty condemns sharp rise in Saudi beheadings (Jerusalem Post)
• German pins down E.Coli: “It’s the bean sprouts” (Reuters)
• Concerns over Democracy dominate as Turkey votes (Reuters)
• Death toll in Haiti’s mudslides rises to 23 (Reuters)
• U.S. Navy intercepted North Korean trip (Reuters)
• Africa and the Internet: A 21st Century human rights issue? (Christian Science Monitor)
• Mexican judge orders release of ex-mayor of Tijuana (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Lebanese PM forms cabinet 5 months after taking office (Jerusalem Post)
• Germany recognizes Libya’s rebel leadership (Reuters)
• Syria’s regime cracks down hard. But is the military on board? (Christian Science Monitor)
• Yemen says makes arrests in attempt on Saleh’s life( (Reuters)
• Powerful quake again hits New Zealand’s Christchurch (Reuters)
• Japan says eight nuclear workers over-exposed to radiation (Reuters)
• Arab spring leaves Egypt in an economic slump (NPR)
• Iran to launch monkey into space (Jerusalem Post)
• Libyan rebels reject elections offer (Al Jazeera)
• Iraq’s Mehdi army faces splits, wary of return to war (Reuters)
• Militants launch cross-border attack into Pakistan (Reuters)
• Mexican police capture suspected teenage assassins (Reuters)

 

 

 

  

 

U.S.

 

TAX CUTS AREN'T ALWAYS APPETIZING

June 14, 2011 (Washington, D.C.) --An infographic from Melissa Boteach shows that one day’s worth of millionaire tax cuts could spare low-income seniors and local food banks from drastic cuts. http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2011/06/millionairetaxcutsinfogra...
Infographic: One Day’s Worth of Millionaire Tax Cuts Would Feed Needy Families for a Year

 

SENATE REPORT EXAMINES U.S. EFFORTS IN AFGHANISTAN

 

June 8, 2011 (NPR) -- Democrats on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee are offering a sobering critique of U.S. nation-building in Afghanistan. A report out Wednesday, after a two year investigation, finds that the billions of dollars spent on developing areas cleared of the Taliban have had only limited success.
http://www.npr.org/2011/06/08/137053360/senate-report-examines-u-s-effor...


FDA WARNS AGAINST HIGH DOSES OF CHOLESTEROL DRUG

 

June 9, 2011 (NPR) -- The Food and Drug Administration is warning that a popular cholesterol drug can cause muscle damage at high doses. The FDA is telling patients to see their doctor if they're taking the highest dose of Zocor, known generically as simvastatin. http://www.npr.org/2011/06/09/137074756/fda-warns-against-high-doses-of-...

 

HISPANICS NATIONWIDE: A SNAPSHOT

 

June 7, 2011 (San Diego Union Tribune) --Nationwide, the Hispanic population grew four times faster than the total population between 2000 and 2010. The most recent release by the U.S. Census Bureau provides a more in-depth look at the national Hispanic population trends. The report, which mainly provides national data, does include a city-by-city ranking that shows San Diego has the ninth largest population of Hispanics in the country. The city does not make the Top 10 list of areas with the highest percentage of Hispanics. Hispanics make up nearly 29 percent of San Diego city's 1.3 million residents. Nationwide, they make up 16 percent of the total population, or 308.7 million.
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/jun/07/hispanics-nationwide-a-sn...

 

 

GPS USERS FEAR GETTING LOST IN WIRELESS EXPANSION

June 13, 2011 (NPR Programs: All Things Considered) -- A multibillion-dollar proposal to provide broadband Internet access via satellites is raising concerns for GPS users, including aviators and emergency responders. They say the new service's signal will interfere with their devices. http://www.npr.org/2011/06/13/137105443/gps-users-fear-getting-lost-in-w...

 

 

FACEBOOK ROLLS OUT FACIAL RECOGNITION FEATURE

 

June 13, 2011 (NPR Programs: All Things Considered) -- Robert Siegel interviews Sharon Gaudin, senior writer for Computerworld, about Facebook's facial recognition technology. The social network has been rolling out a new automatic feature that helps users tag their friends and family in photos they upload to the site. Privacy advocates argue the new tool should be opt-in rather than opt-out — and have raised concerns about what Facebook might do with the biometric data. http://www.npr.org/2011/06/13/137158163/facebook-rolls-out-facial-recogn...

 

TERRORISM CASE EXPOSES GAPS IN REFUGEE SCREENING

 

June 8, 2011 (NPR) -- Two Iraqi men accused of trying to send missiles to al-Qaida came to the U.S. as part of a program to resettle thousands of refugees. When one of those men applied to the program, Homeland Security officials didn't know the military had lifted his fingerprints from a bomb designed to hurt U.S. troops in Iraq.
http://www.npr.org/2011/06/08/137033910/terrorism-case-exposes-gaps-in-r...

 

PAKISTAN REPORTEDLY ARRESTS SUSPECTED CIA INFORMANTS

 

June 15, 2011 (NPR : All Things Considered) -- Robert Siegel talks to NPR's Rachel Martin about the arrest of five suspected informants by Pakistan — on accusations they helped the CIA monitor Osama bin Laden's hideaway in the weeks before he was shot dead in a U.S. raid. http://www.npr.org/2011/06/15/137205523/pakistan-reportedly-arrests-susp...

 

U.S. PROBES IF PAKISTAN COLLUDED WITH MILITANTS

 

June 13, 2011 (NPR) -- U.S. officials are confronting Pakistan's intelligence officials over evidence that Pakistani security officials are giving militants a heads up when they're facilities are about to be raided. http://www.npr.org/2011/06/13/137146200/u-s-pakistan-work-to-improve-rel...


GATES REBUKES EUROPE FOR LACKING COMMITMENT TO NATO

 

June 10, 2011 (Christian Science Monitor | World) -- Secretary of Defense Gates said today in Brussels that NATO isn't pulling its weight in Afghanistan and Libya. Without more support from Europe, he said, NATO's future is 'dim if not dismal.' http://www.csmonitor.com/World/terrorism-security/2011/0610/Gates-rebuke...|+World%29

WORLD

 


DEFIANT IRAN PLANS BIG RISE IN NUCLEAR ENRICHMENT

 

June 8, 2011 TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran will shift its production of higher grade uranium to an underground bunker and triple its production capacity, it said on Wednesday in a defiant response to accusations it is trying to produce atomic bombs.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/08/us-iran-nuclear-enrichment-idU...

 

QAEDA'S ZAWAHIRI SAYS U.S. FACING MUSLIM REBELLION

June 8, 2011 CAIRO (Reuters) - Al-Qaeda's second-in-command Ayman al-Zawahri said the United States faced a Muslim rebellion following the death of Osama bin Laden, according to a video recording posted on YouTube and monitored on Wednesday.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/08/us-binladen-zawahri-idUSTRE757...

 

CHINA FLOODS KILL 52, FORCE 100,000 TO EVACUATE

 

June 8, 2011 BEIJING (Reuters) - Heavy rain drenched a drought-ravaged swathe of southern and eastern China, killing 52 people and forcing more than 100,000 to evacuate, state media reported on Wednesday.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/08/us-china-weather-idUSTRE7572L6...


AMNESTY CONDEMNS SHARP RISE IN SAUDI BEHEADINGS

 

June 10, 2011 (JPost.com) At least 32 civilians dead in demonstrations across Syria.
Refugees stream into Turkey while witnesses report helicopter gunships firing machine guns on pro-democracy protests in country's north; UN says Assad refusing to take phone calls from Ban Ki-Moon. http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/jun/10/amnesty-condemns-sharp-ri...

 

 

GERMANY PINS DOWN E. COLI: "IT'S THE BEAN SPROUTS

 

June 10, 2011 (Reuters: World News) Germany pins down E.coli: "It's the bean sprouts"
Germany said on Friday that deadly E.coli bacteria that have killed 31 people and hit farmers across Europe almost certainly came from contaminated bean sprouts grown at an organic farm in northern Germany.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/10/us-ecoli-idUSTRE7591HW20110610...

 

 

CONCERNS OVER DEMOCRACY DOMINATE AS TURKEY VOTES

 

June 10, 2011 (Reuters: Istanbul) --Concerns over democracy dominate as Turkey votes. The last time Turks voted in a general election in 2007, opponents feared the socially conservative ruling party was turning Turkey into an Iran-style Islamic state. http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/10/us-turkey-elections-democracy-...

 

 

IRAQ MILITIA CLAIMS ATTACK ON U.S. TROOPS

 

June 10, 2011 (Reuters: Baghdad) -- A Shi'ite militia group in Iraq on Friday claimed a rocket attack this week on a Baghdad base which killed five U.S. soldiers, a strike that revived security concerns as U.S. forces prepare to pull out at the end of the year. http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/10/us-iraq-usa-violence-idUSTRE75...

 

DEATH TOLL IN HAITI'S MUDSLIDES RISES TO 23

June 8, 2011 PORT-AU-PRINCE (Reuters) - The death toll from days of heavy rains that triggered flooding and mudslides in earthquake-ravaged Haiti has climbed to 23, an official said on Wednesday. http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/08/us-haiti-storm-idUSTRE7575ZO20...

 

U.S. NAVY INTERCEPTED NORTH KOREAN TRIP

 

June 13, 2011 (Reuters: Washington) - - The U.S. Navy intercepted a North Korean ship suspected of carrying missile parts to Myanmar two weeks ago, media reports and a U.S. official said on Monday. http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/14/us-korea-north-usa-ship-idUSTR...

AFRICA AND THE INTERNET: A 21ST CENTURY HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUE?

June 13, 2011 (Christian Science Monitor | World) -- African leaders could allow freedom of expression, or they could mimic the Chinese model of building a 'Great Firewall of China' to shut down Internet systems that allow critical thinking. http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Africa/Africa-Monitor/2011/0613/Africa-an...|+World%29

 

MEXICAN JUDGE ORDERS RELEASE OF EX-MAYOR OF TIJUANA

 

June 14, 2011 (San Diego Union-Tribune)--It was an eventful Tuesday for Jorge Hank Rhon, the former Tijuana mayor and gambling tycoon arrested this month and charged with illegal weapons possession.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/jun/14/mexican-judge-orders-rele...

 

LEBANESE PM FORMS CABINET 5 MONTHS AFTER TAKING OFFICE

 

June 13, 2011 ( Jerusalem Post.com - Middle East News) -- Hezbollah-led coalition has majority in new cabinet; PM Najib Mikati says new gov't committed to "liberating lands under Israeli occupation." http://www.jpost.com/MiddleEast/Article.aspx?id=224813&R=R3


GERMANY RECOGNIZES LIBYA'S REBEL LEADERSHIP

 

June 13, 2011 (Reuters: BENGHAZI, Libya) - Germany recognized Libya's rebel council as the legitimate representative of the Libyan people on Monday, giving heavyweight support to the leaders poised to run the country if Muammar Gaddafi falls. http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/13/us-libya-idUSTRE7270JP20110613...

 

SYRIA'S REGIME CRACKS DOWN HARD. BUT IS THE MILITARY ON BOARD?

 

June 12, 2011 (Christian Science Monitor | World) -- Syrian troops are attacking the northern town of Jisr al-Shughur, which has a history of rebellion against the regime. Increasingly, however, there are reports of dissent within the military. http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2011/0612/Syria-s-regime-crac...|+World%29

 

 

YEMEN SAYS MAKES ARREST IN ATTEMPT ON SALEH'S LIFE

 

June 13, 2011 ( Reuters: SANAA ) -- Yemen said on Monday it arrested several people for attempting to kill President Ali Abdullah Saleh, whose unresolved political fate has brought the impoverished neighbor of rich Gulf states to the brink of civil war. http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/13/us-yemen-idUSTRE73L1PP20110613...

 

 

POWERFUL QUAKES AGAIN HIT NEW ZEALAND'S CHRISTCHURCH

 

June 13, 2011 (Reuters WELLINGTON) -- A series of powerful tremors rattled the quake-prone New Zealand city of Christchurch on Monday, destroying buildings and sending boulders tumbling down hillsides nearly four months after a quake killed 181 people. http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/13/us-newzealand-quake-idUSTRE75C...


JAPAN SAYS EIGHT NUCLEAR WORKERS OVER-EXPOSED TO RADIATION

June 13, 2011 (Reuters TOKYO) - At least eight workers trying to bring Japan's crippled nuclear power plant under control have been exposed to more radiation than allowed under new safety standards, government officials said on Monday. http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/13/us-japan-nuclear-workers-idUST...


ARAB SPRING LEAVES EGYPT IN AN ECNOMIC SLUMP

 

June 12, 2011 (NPR) -- Following the revolution that ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak earlier this year, the country's economy is sagging — tourism has plummeted, unemployment is soaring and poverty is spreading. "I have three kids, and I can't even provide enough food for them," one street vendor says. http://www.npr.org/2011/06/13/137008515/arab-spring-leaves-egypt-in-an-e...

IRAN TO LAUNCH MONKEY INTO SPACE

June 17, 2011 (Jerusalem Post) -- Iranian Space Agency plans to launch rocket this summer with monkey on board; plans to send man to space in near future. http://www.jpost.com/MiddleEast/Article.aspx?id=225332&R=R3

 

LIBYAN REBELS REJECT ELECTIONS OFFER

 

June 16, 2011 (Al Jazeera) -- Libya's Muammar Gaddafi is willing to hold elections and step aside if he lost, his son has said, an offer quickly dismissed on Thursday by rebels and US officials.
The rebel leadership in the eastern stronghold of Benghazi described the offer as "wasting our time".
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2011/06/201161621397118437.html

 

 

IRAQ'S MEHDI ARMY FACES SPLITS, WARY OF RETURN TO WAR

 

June 16, 2011 (Reuters: BAGHDAD) -- Iraq's anti-U.S. cleric Moqtada al-Sadr is reviving fears of sectarian violence with a warning he will unleash his Shi'ite Mehdi Army militia again if U.S. forces stay in the country beyond a year-end deadline. http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/16/us-iraq-security-mehdi-idUSTRE...

 

 

SPECIAL REPORT: SOLIDARITY IN THE ARAB SPRING

 

June 16, 2011 (Reuters: WARSAW)- - Lech Walesa chuckles as he recounts a conversation he had in April with reformers in Tunisia, cradle of the Arab Spring. http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/16/us-arabspring-east-idUSTRE75F2...

MILITANTS LAUNCH CROSS-BORDER ATTACK INTO PAKISTAN

 

June 16, 2011 Reuters: PESHAWAR, Pakistan )-- About 250 militants staged a cross-border raid from Afghanistan into a pro-government Pakistani village on Thursday, security officials and residents said, apparently part of a new Pakistani Taliban campaign of large-scale attacks. http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/16/us-pakistan-violence-idUSTRE75...

 

MEXICAN POLICE CAPTURE SUSPECTED TEENAGE ASSASSINS

 

June 15, 2011 (Reuters SAN CRISTOBAL DE LA BARRANCA, Mexico ) -- Mexican police captured a group of suspected teenage assassins linked to the violent Zetas drug cartel, including two 16-year-old girls, authorities said on Wednesday. http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/15/us-mexico-assassins-idUSTRE75E...

 

 


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