| Posters Loom Large in Dour Pakistani Poll Campaign
LAHORESecurity fears may have kept Pakistani politicians off the streets, but their faces can be seen every way one turns in the city of Lahore. With days to go before the Feb. 18 poll for new national and provincial assemblies there doesn't appear to be any room left for more posters in a city regarded as the nerve centre of Pakistani politics. They peer down from giant posters plastered on buildings and billboards and from banners hanging on lamp posts in the capital of Punjab, the province where half of Pakistan's 160 million people live and from where half of the parliament will be elected. Yet printers in the narrow streets of small workshops say business is way down compared with past campaigns, even as their presses pump out a blizzard of posters as parties make a final push to sway a public that opinion polls show is tired of President Pervez Musharraf and the politicians who surround him.
Teen who beat homeless man nets jail sentence
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - The last of three young men who beat a homeless man who bought them beer has been sentenced. Officials said 16-year-old Shawn Soldier Glancy of Portland will serve 70 months after pleading guilty Friday in Clackamas County Circuit Court to an assault charge. Prosecutors said 43-year-old Andrew Gonzalez made a beer run for Glancy and two other underage young men. In return, prosecutors said, they planned to kill Gonzalez for the thrill of it and then steal his backpack and bicycle. But a homeless woman camped nearby at a boat ramp along the Willamette River scared them off by yelling that the police were coming. Authorities said Gonzalez barely survived the beating and stabbing he took. A 17-year-old from Gresham and a 20-year-old transient have also pleaded guilty.
10 Was graffiti sign to blame for child's tram accident?
A signpost that is high in the air (presumably to prevent it being vandalised ironically) was probably out of his field of vision. If he couldn't hear or see a tram approaching he can't have been paying attention to anything around him. Forgetting the child for the moment, my feelings go out to the driver, who is probably badly affected by this incident - more so if it turns out to be fatal. .
Song Yankun, 43, teacher
I do what I can for the environment. I take my own cutlery to my work canteen rather than using disposable chopsticks, which uses lots of wood. I recycle plastic bags by using them for rubbish and try to take my own bag when shopping. I'm glad the government brought in its new policy. [China has pledged to ban flimsy plastic bags from June.] When I go shopping, I don't really think about the environment. I am more concerned with food safety. For me, though, the two biggest environmental worries are water and air pollution. When I was a child we lived in the hutong alleyways and heated our home with coal. I had no idea that it was dirty. But now, we have different standards and more knowledge about the health impact. When I was a child we drank water straight from the tap. Now my children have bottled water only.
Carbondale council to discuss goals for new year
CARBONDALE — In their first meeting of 2008, members of the Carbondale City Council will be discussing what they hope to achieve with the budget in the coming fiscal year.A seven-page brief drafted by city staff entitled, "Review of Community Goals for the Fiscal Year 2009 Budget" will frame the council’s discussion.Items mentioned in the review range from the abstract, such as promoting "a sense of community pride for accomplishments and progress during the year," to the specific, in fixing crumbling sidewalks and water lines.The total city budget for fiscal year 2008 was about $42.9 million, an increase of $880,000 over the year before.Councilman Chris Wissmann, who has warned in the past that increasing costs might mean the city will have to abandon its zero-dollar property tax assessment, said Saturday he was unsure of what to expect as far as what can be accomplished in the FY 2009 budget."There are some water line replacements on Pecan Street, where the water mains have broken on a regular basis … sidewalks are ongoing, and bicycle paths," he said, highlighting a few bricks-and-mortar projects.
Get the family moving with free fitness activities
One of the best gifts you can give yourself and those you love doesn't have to cost a dime. It's fitness – yours and theirs. There are quite a few supervised and friendly opportunities to get active while learning skills and bonding with family and friends, old and new. .
July 2007
So, for that matter, does The Standard-Times of New Bedford, whose deep reporting on yesterday's proceedings shows that this fight is a long way from being over. First, consider this, from Steve Decosta's story: After casting their votes on the agreement and before the final tally was announced, the body, on a hand vote, ironically rejected a nonbinding question to approve casino gambling in town. Only about half the voters remained on the high school athletic field for that tally."I don't think that's a true indication of how people feel, because so many people had left," said Marsha Brunelle, selectmen chairwoman.Asked if that outcome tainted the vote on the agreement, Mr. Marshall [Glenn Marshall, the Wampanoag chief] said: "It's the end of a hot day, people get tired, people leave. The true number is the one that got counted."But casino opponents would not minimize their victory."That's the root question," said Jacqueline Tolosko, president of the anti-casino group Casinofacts.
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