"A Lion Has Fallen"

Culture-Niger: Archaeological Treasures
May Soon Become a Thing of the Past
There's no doubting that authorities in Niger have a host of problems to grapple with. United Nations estimates put the number of people living beneath the poverty line in this country in the region of 60 percent - while life expectancy stands at about 46 years.

Which Way Farming - 15 Years On?
EVEN though the issue of land reform has of late created uncertainty among mostly commercial farmers, farming during the past 15 years has been characterised by the removal of the red line, opening up of new markets and the establishment of local slaughter facilities.

Congo plans to clamp down on "blood" mineral
Congo, which has logged success in stemming the flow of "blood" diamonds fuelling conflict, said on Wednesday it plans to extend the campaign to high-tech mineral coltan, mined by rebels in the east of the country.

Will Muhoozi replace Museveni as in Togo?
Togo's dictator of 38 years Gnassingbe Eyadema pulled off one last act of political chicanery on the weekend. He waited when the Speaker of Parliament Fambare Natchaba Ouattara was travelling abroad, then died.

Islam will remain main source for legislation in Sudan
Sudanese President Omar al-Beshir said Wednesday that Islam will continue to be the main source of legislation in Sudan even after the peace deal with the mainly animist and Christian southern rebels. He made the comments while addressing a crowd in al-Suqi in central Sudan, the official Sudan News Agency reported.

Navy releases tsunami images
UK scientists have released images of the ocean floor near the epicentre of December's giant Asian earthquake. (image)

Clarity Marks Cuban Electoral Process
The update of Primary Electoral Registers, which will be published in all constituencies from February 15th to March 17, will guarantee maximum transparency in current Cuban elections. Over 78,550 Cubans freely worked on the registers that will be placed in drug stores, shops, supermarkets, doctors offices and public areas, to allow people to verify if their names are included, and in case of error, to request a change, says Granma daily latest edition.

Three More Bugs Found In Firefox And Mozilla
Fixes have been implemented, but they haven't been rolled into a patch or a new version that can be downloaded and used without recompiling the code.

Ann Coulter Sticks Her Entire Leg in Her Mouth
Ann Coulter is a loudmouth ignoramus who spouts her outrageous nationalist inaccuracies on American television with little challenge from the empty talking heads who interview her. But she finally found someone to stand up to her, in Canada--and she was exposed for the arrogant fool she is. Interviewed by the Canadian Broadcasting Company's Bob McKeown for the investigative TV broadcast "The Fifth Estate," which devoted an hour-long January 26 special to how U.S. media have been highjacked by conservative bullies, Coulter was berating Canada for not sending troops to Iraq when she displayed her empty-headedness in the following exchange:

Bush: Holding Three Jobs 'Uniquely American'
Last Friday when promoting social security reform with 'regular' citizens in Omaha, Nebraska, President Bush walked into an awkward unscripted moment in which he stated that carrying three jobs at a time is 'uniquely American.'

Typical Israeli timeline:
Peace summit arranged in Egypt between Sharon and Abbas. On the morning of February 7, a day before the summit is to start, Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz told Israel Army Radio that he had received intelligence warnings that some militants, including Hezbollah, may try to disrupt the summit ...

US nuclear upgrade may violate test ban
As it accuses Iran of trying to develop nuclear weapons, America is preparing to upgrade and renew parts of its own ageing nuclear arsenal. Critics believe the upgrades could lead the US to breach the treaty banning the testing of nuclear weapons.

Copyright Issues Block Broadcast of Award-Winning
Civil Rights Documentary "Eyes on the Prize"
"This is analogous to stopping the circulation of all the books about Martin Luther King, stopping the circulation of all the books about Malcolm X," said Lawrence Guyot, a prominent civil rights leader with the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party. "I would call upon everyone who has access to 'Eyes on the Prize' to openly violate any and all laws regarding its showing." We talk to Guyot about a national grassroots effort to screen "Eyes on the Prize" today.

Mumia Abu Jamal Remembers Ossie Davis: "A Lion Has Fallen"
Ossie Davis, our own black shining star. A lion has fallen. Ossie Davis, the deep voiced, proud and majestic man who has performed on stage, film, television and community centers, has passed from this life at the age of 87 years, leaving behind him the radiant and talented Ruby Dee, his co-star on life's broad stage, and millions of mourners the world over.

Ossie Davis Protesting the Iraq War:
"I Choose to Live for Brotherhood and Not For Folly"

D.C. Planning for Bio-terrorism Lab Within City
The D.C. government is partnering with the Federal government to build a level-3 bio-terrorism lab within the city, WTOP Radio has learned.

The Censorship of Ward Churchill and Dancehall Reggae Music
Dancehall Reggae and many of its most prolific and articulate artists have as of late been treated the same as Ward Churchill, and have been censored and attacked for their "insensitive" comments. The reason for the censorship of the Reggae artists was ostensibly the anti-gay content in some of their work but since when have the powers that be cared so much about gays. The reason for the censorship of Dancehall Reggae artists is actually the outspoken radical antiwar content of their music which is spreading a popular radical message to the youth in Europe and the US through a popular musical medium that is "insensitive" to say the least toward US aggression and propaganda.