Saturday, December 13, 2008

Eeyore's News and View

'Iran wants to devour the Arab world'
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak spoke out against Iran during a meeting with members of the Egyptian ruling party, according to a report in the Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Jarida on Thursday, cited by Israel Radio.

Mubarak accused the Islamic Republic of trying to subsume its Muslim neighbors, telling the forum that "the Persians are trying to devour the Arab states."
Mubarak's comments came after the Egyptian leader recalled the country's diplomatic envoy from the Iranian capital earlier this week following an increase in tension between the two countries.
Recent strain between Cairo and Teheran has grown as several demonstrations in Iran called for the hanging of the Egyptian
leader. The Iranian FARS news service reported that participants in recent student demonstrations outside the Egyptian diplomatic mission in Teheran also chanted "Death to Israel" and "Death to America" and burned an Israeli flag.
On Wednesday the Egyptian ministry was quoted as criticizing some Iranian newspapers that have repeatedly insulted Egyptian policies and leadership recently. Teheran media, for example, broadcast incitement against Cairo's policy allegedly preventing aid from reaching Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Manila reports Ebola virus in pigs
By Roel Landingin in Manila
Published: December 11 2008 20:24 Last updated: December 11 2008 20:24
Philippine officials tucked into servings of lechon, the popular dish of roasted whole pig, in front of television cameras on Thursday to reassure the public of the safety of the national staple meat after the discovery among hogs near Manila of a strain of the Ebola virus.
Arthur Yap, agriculture secretary, and Francisco Duque, health secretary, said the Ebola Reston virus, which had never been found in pigs before, presented a low health risk for humans and was different from the deadly African variety.
The World Health Organisation was reported to be looking into whether there was any chance humans could have become infected.
The outbreak could deal a blow to Philippine plans to build a pork export industry. The government halted an inaugural shipment of frozen pork to Singapore and quarantined three swine farms.
Pork vendors in public markets in Manila sought to assure buyers that their products had passed government inspection and met safety standards.
“December is the month when we sell the most pork at relatively higher price,” said Evelyn Reyes, who operates a small pork stall in Quezon City. “I really hope the government does a good work of calming people’s fears about the Ebola virus.”
Pork accounts for more than half of the average 61g of meat consumed daily by each Filipino.
The virus was first discovered in 1989 in macaque monkeys imported from the Philippines by a laboratory in Reston, Virginia. Scientists are trying to determine how the virus spread to pigs.
Seems everyone wants to riot now, some want to riot because there is not bailout some want to riot is a bail out. Should be interesting.
GOP Senator Warns of 'Riots' if Automakers Are Bailed Out Sen. Jim DeMint says unfair union influence and the bailout culture will anger many Americans. By Jeff Poor Business & Media Institute12/11/2008 1:28:37 PM

Time and again we’ve heard about the lost jobs and economic impact of failing to bail out the beleaguered American auto manufacturers. But little mention has been made of the consequences of going through with the bailout, and how such an action would be viewed by other Americans.

In an interview following
a Dec. 10 press conference where he and four other senators aired their opposition to the proposed bailout deal struck by congressional leaders and the White House (and approved by the U.S. House of Representatives 237-170 that evening), Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., warned that the perception that some industries are being bailed out and some aren’t could lead to violence.

“We’re going to have riots. There are already people rioting because they’re losing their jobs when everybody else is being bailed out. The fairness of it becomes more and more evident as we go along. The auto companies may be hurting,” he said, but “there are very few companies that aren’t hurting and they’re going to hurt. We don’t have enough money to bail everyone out.”

DeMint blamed the unions for pushing this issue as far as it has gotten. The senator said the notion that reorganization under bankruptcy would not work was generated by the unions for fear of losing their power.

“The primary driver behind this is the unions, because bankruptcy allows the auto companies to basically restructure all their contracts in a way that a bankruptcy judge says will make them sustainable,” DeMint said. “And if they do that, then essentially the unions lose all their leverage. It’s the unions that have brought them to the brink. So definitely, I think the reason they want a political solution and a car czar is because a car czar can protect the unions through this whole process at the expense of the taxpayer.”

The result of the bailout culture that now exists on Capitol Hill will be incredibly high rates of inflation down the road as the economy picks back up and prices reflect the amount of new money circulating through the economy.

“There is no question this will result in inflation,” DeMint said. “The amount of money we’ve borrowed, the amount of money we’ve printed has put us in a more dangerous situation than we’ve ever been in as a country. We may not see the inflation as long as the economy is slow. But, I’ve talked to some economic experts and once the economy starts picking up with so much money in the money supply and so much debt, we’re likely to see very high interest rates and very high inflation rates.”

DeMint went as far as to say that General Motors (NYSE:
GM), one of the big three auto manufacturers lobbying for bailout money, was better off than the nation that’s debating whether to rescue it..

“If you look at where we’re going, we’re not on a sustainable course as a country,” DeMint said. “Frankly, GM is in a better financial situation than we are as a country. The only difference is we can print money. But as other countries around the world lose confidence in the value of a dollar – that’s going to come home very shortly.”
Inventor builds She-3PO robot
By CAROLINE IGGULDEN
SHE is the perfect wife, with the body of a Page 3 pin-up and housekeeping skills that put TV’s Kim and Aggie to shame.
Her name is Aiko, she can even read a map, and will never, ever, nag.
Sounds too good to be true, doesn’t she fellas? And she is.
Aiko is actually a robot, a fantasy brought to life by inventor Le Trung.

So touching ... Aiko reacts to gentle contact wit her inventor Barcroft
Devoted Aiko — “in her 20s” — has a stunning 32-23-33 figure, pretty face and shiny hair.
She is always happy to clean the house for “husband” Le, help with his accounts or get him a drink.
Computer ace Le, 33, from Ontario, Canada, has spent two years and £14,000 building his dream girl.
He had planned to make an android to care for the elderly.
But his project — inspired by sci-fi robots like Star Wars’s C3PO — strayed off-course.

Inspiration ... Star Warsrobot C3-PO
Le said: “Aiko is what happens when science meets beauty.”
Robo-wife Aiko starts the day by reading Le the main newspaper headlines.
The couple often go for a drive in the countryside, where Aiko proves a whizz at directions.
And they always sit down for dinner together in the evening, although Aiko doesn’t have much of an appetite.
Le says his relationship with Aiko hasn’t strayed into the bedroom, but a few “tweaks” could turn her into a sexual partner.
Le said: “Her software could be redesigned to simulate her having an orgasm.”
Aiko can already react to being tickled or touched. She also recognises faces and speaks 13,000 sentences.
Now Le is seeking a sponsor to help him overcome the robot-maker’s biggest challenge — making Aiko walk like a human.
Once Aiko has been perfected, Le hopes to sell clones for use as home-helps.
He said: “Aiko doesn’t need holidays, food or rest, and will work almost 24 hours a day. She is the perfect woman.”
Aiko sparks mixed reactions in public.
Le said: “Women usually try to talk to her. But men always want to touch her, and if they do it the wrong way she slaps them.”

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