Pakistan suicide bombs kill 80 to avenge bin Laden

HABQADAR, Pakistan – A pair of Taliban suicide bombers attacked paramilitary police recruits eagerly heading home for a break after months of training, killing 80 people Friday in the first act of retaliation for the U.S. raid that killed Osama bin Laden.

In claiming responsibility, the al-Qaida linked militant group cited anger at Pakistan’s military for failing to stop the American incursion on their soil.

Photo credit: Associated Press

The blasts in the northwest were a reminder of the savagery of Islamist insurgents in Pakistan. Tensions also have risen between the U.S. and Islamabad over allegations that some elements of Pakistani security forces had been harboring bin Laden, who died in a May 2 raid in Abbottabad, a garrison town about three hours’ drive from the scene of the bombing.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110513/ap_on_re_as/as_pakistan

12 Hours to Stop Uganda’s Gay Death Penalty

David Kato

In 12 hours, the Ugandan Parliament may vote on a brutal new law that carries the death penalty for homosexuality. Thousands of Ugandans could face execution — just for being gay.

We’ve helped stop this bill before, and we can do it again. After a massive global outcry last year, Ugandan President Museveni blocked the bill’s progress. But political unrest is mounting in Uganda, and religious extremists in Parliament are hoping confusion and violence in the streets will distract the international community from a second push to pass this hate-filled law. We can show them that the world is still watching. If we block the vote for two more days until Parliament closes, the bill will expire forever.

We have no time to lose. Almost half a million of us have already joined the call — let’s get to one million voices against Uganda’s gay death penalty in the next 12 hours — click here to take action, then forward this email to everyone:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/uganda_stop_homophobia_petition/?vl

Being gay in Uganda is already dangerous and terrifying. They are regularly harassed and beaten, and just months ago, gay rights activist, David Kato (pictured above), was brutally murdered in his own home. Now LGBT Ugandans are threatened by this draconian law which imposes life imprisonment for people convicted of same-sex relations and the death penalty for “serial offenders”. Even NGOs working to prevent the spread of HIV can be imprisoned for “promoting homosexuality” under this hate-filled law.

Right now, Uganda is in political turmoil — in the wake of the Arab spring, people across the country are taking to the streets, protesting high food and gas prices. President Museveni has responded by violently cracking down on the opposition. This upheaval has provided religious extremists in Parliament the perfect chance to slip in the shelved anti-gay bill just days before Parliament closes and all proposed laws are wiped from the books.

President Museveni backed away from this bill last year after international pressure threatened Uganda’s aid and support. With violent protests sweeping the streets, his government is more vulnerable than ever. Let’s build a million strong petition to stop the gay death penalty bill again and save lives. We only have 12 hours — sign below, then tell friends and family:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/uganda_stop_homophobia_petition/?vl

Earlier this year, we stood in solidarity with Uganda’s equality movement to show that every human life, no matter what creed, nationality or sexual orientation, is equally precious. Our international petition condemning the gay death penalty law was delivered to Parliament – spurring a global news story and enough pressure to block the bill for months. When a tabloid newspaper published 100 names, pictures and addresses, of suspected gays and those identified were threatened, Avaaz supported a legal case against the paper and we won! Together we have stood up, time and time again, for Uganda’s gay community — now they need us more than ever.

With hope and determination,

Emma, Iain, Alice, Morgan, Brianna and the rest of the Avaaz team

SOURCES:

Ugandan lawmakers hold hearings on anti-gay bill
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article

Uganda gay activist Kasha Jacqueline Nabagesera hailed
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-13278374

Pulling Out All the Stops to Push an Antigay Bill
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/14/world/africa/14uganda.html

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bin Laden Son Says Sea Burial Demeans Family, According to Group

World News Report

LONDON — A statement purporting to come from a son of Osama bin Laden denounced the al-Qaeda leader’s killing as “criminal” and said his burial at sea had humiliated the family, an online monitoring service said.

The statement, attributed to Omar bin Laden, bin Laden’s fourth-eldest son, said the al-Qaeda chief’s children reserved the right to take legal action in the United States and internationally to “determine the true fate of our vanished father,” the SITE Intelligence Group said.

There was no independent confirmation of the authenticity of the letter, published on the Web site of Islamist ideologue Abu Walid al-Masri, although several specialists on militant propaganda said the text appeared genuine.

Omar bin Laden

Omar bin Laden, who has been based in the Persian Gulf region in recent years, did not immediately respond to e-mailed and telephoned requests for comment.

The letter said, in part: “We hold the American President Obama legally responsible to clarify the fate of our father, Osama bin Laden, for it is unacceptable, humanely and religiously, to dispose of a person with such importance and status among his people, by throwing his body into the sea in that way, which demeans and humiliates his family and his supporters and which challenges religious provisions and feelings of hundreds of millions of Muslims.”

Some Muslims have voiced misgivings about the way U.S. forces killed bin Laden in a raid in Pakistan early this month and disposed of his body in the northern Arabian Sea. Many have described the sea burial as a violation of Islamic custom.

The letter said the U.S. administration had offered no proof to support its account of the mission. It also alleged that the goal of the raid had been to kill and not to arrest, adding that afterward the American commandos had “rushed to dispose of the body.”

Questions have multiplied since the White House said the al-Qaeda leader was unarmed when U.S. helicopter-borne commandos raided the villa where he was hiding in the city of Abbottabad.

World News: Al Qaeda calls bin Laden’s death a “curse” on Americans

Al Qaeda statement on bin Laden’s death —

The statement, which congratulates the “Islamic Nation on the martyrdom of their devoted son Osama,” repeated themes and threats made over the years in al Qaeda statements, before and after the September 11, 2001, attacks.

“The blood of the mujahed sheikh, Osama bin Laden, may God have mercy on him, is very dear to us and more precious to us and to every Muslim from being shed in vain,” the statement said. A mujahed is defined as a Muslim engaged in what he considers to be jihad.

“This blood will be a curse that will chase the Americans and their agents, a curse that will pursue them inside and outside their country, and soon — with God’s help — we pray that their happiness turns into sorrow and may their blood mix with their tears and let Sheikh Osama’s resonate again.”

Al Qaeda frequently cites the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in its pronouncements, and it did so again, saying America “will neither enjoy nor live in security until our people in Palestine live it and enjoy it.”

“The soldiers of Islam in groups and as individuals will continue to plan and plot without any fatigue, boredom, despair, surrender or indifference until you receive from them a cunning misfortune that will gray the hair of the child even before he gets old,” the statement said.

Pakistanis were urged to revolt and “rise up,” cleansing the “disgrace that was brought upon them by a handful of traitors and thieves” and “their country from the filth of the Americans who have wreaked havoc in the land.”

The statement surfaced as protesters packed the streets of Abbottabad — where bin Laden was shot and killed — in a rally organized by Jamrat-E-Islami, Pakistan’s largest Islamist party. The demonstrators denounced the U.S. and Pakistani governments.

CIA: Waterboarding helped track bin Laden

An al-Qaida suspect who was subjected to harsh interrogation techniques at a secret CIA prison in early 2004 provided his interrogators with a clue – the norm de guerre of a mysterious courier – that ultimately proved crucial to finding and killing Osama bin Laden. Officials said Wednesday.

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The CIA had approved use of sleep deprivation, slapping, nudity,water dousing and other coercive techniques at the now closed CIA “black site” in Poland where the Pakistani born detainee, Hassan Ghul, was held, according to a 2005 Justice Department memo.

Hawaiian Airlines Turns in Profit despite Rising Fuel

Email pr@eotmradio.com or call 213-290-3573

By: Issie Sandberg

Despite the increase in fuel costs over the past year, Hawaiian Airlines was still able to turn a profit. The rise in fuel prices is hitting everyone hard in the United States as they fill up at the pump. For the average person the $1.00+ increase in the price of gas is equal to an extra $40 per month for a small car to $80 or more for larger vehicles and SUV’s. Now imagine that same dollar per gallon added to the hundreds of thousands of gallons of fuel used by major airlines like Hawaiian. For every penny change in the cost of a gallon of jet fuel, Hawaiian’s income can change by as much as $1.6 million.

By hedging their fuel costs, which is essentially locking in the price of fuel for a period of time by committing to a purchase agreement, Hawaiian was able to save about eight and a half million in fuel costs. It’s a little like locking in a mortgage rate for a fixed amount of time. If rates go up, you win. If they go down, you miss out.

While it can be a bit of a gamble, when it works, like it has recently for Hawaiian, and like it did for Southwest Airlines when prices skyrocketed in 2008-2009, it can put an airline in a much more advantageous position over its competition.

As fuel prices rise for a competitor they are forced to raise fares, while those who locked in their prices for fuel can keep fares low. If fuel costs drop, of course, the exact opposite can happen.

For Hawaiian Airlines the strategy paid off giving them a net income of $855,000 for the last quarter. At the same time, the five largest U.S. carriers lost over a billion dollars combined.

Resurrection Sunday

Resurrection Sunday – What is the significance of this celebrated Easter holiday? Why is it important to Christianity and those who believe in Jesus?

Please leave comments below.

Japan Reactor

By: Political Reporter Tanya Blake

U.S. nuclear advocates try to limit political impact of Japan reactor crisis

Nuclear power advocates are waging an intense lobbying campaign on Capitol Hill this week in an attempt to limit the political fallout from the reactor crisis in Japan — which threatens to undermine already shaky plans for expanded nuclear capacity in the United States.

Lobbyists with the Nuclear Energy Institute and some of the United States’ largest energy firms, including Exelon Corp  of Chicago, are holding meetings with key lawmakers and standing-room-only briefings for staffers in an attempt to tamp down talk of restrictions in response to the Japanese disaster.

In California: Waiting On The Tsunami

The mood in California today has been foreboding for most. With all mainstream news channels reporting on the  8.9 earthquake that struck northern Japan in the wee hours of the morning, devastating so many lives.

Today’s occurrence is the most severe earthquake to hit Japan in recorded history and 1,000 times more powerful than the earthquake that struck Haiti last year. The West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Centers issued a warning for California because of fears of a tsunami traveling east.

Scientists reported that the Tsunami was due to hit the California coast around 8:30 a.m.

A little past 8:45 a.m. reports that northern California, particularly the area around Santa Cruz, had experienced damage to boats, marines and coastal roads. San Francisco area beaches had been closed as a precaution. In Southern California, news reports out of Ventura County said water had receded — one sign of an impending tsunami — and the waves were bigger than normal. But, overall, the damage was light. The ocean could be hazardous for up to 12 hours, but there seemed to be a lack of fear in California. The Santa Monica beach and beaches in Los Angeles County remained open. Representatives from federal agencies gave warnings, but, of course, the cautions didn’t discourage beach-goes and surfers who were getting an early start on the weekend.

With all the unrest from the earthquake and tsunami in Japan you would think it would keep surfers out of the water and away from the waves for at least a day. That was not the case, surfers were spotted out as early as 5:30am.

Devastation in Japan – Scientific Breakdown

The 03/11/2011 earthquake (preliminary magnitude 8.9) near the east coast of Honshu, Japan, occurred as a result of thrust faulting on or near the subduction zone interface plate boundary between the Pacific and North America plates. At the latitude of this earthquake, the Pacific plate moves approximately westwards with respect to the North America plate at a velocity of 83 mm/yr. The Pacific plate thrusts underneath Japan at the Japan Trench, and dips to the west beneath Eurasia. The location, depth, and focal mechanism of the March 11 earthquake are consistent with the event having occurred as thrust faulting associated with subduction along this plate boundary. Note that some authors divide this region into several microplates that together define the relative motions between the larger Pacific, North America and Eurasia plates; these include the Okhotsk and Amur microplates that are respectively part of North America and Eurasia.

The March 11 earthquake was preceded by a series of large foreshocks over the previous two days, beginning on March 9th with an M 7.2 event approximately 40 km from the March 11 earthquake, and continuing with a further 3 earthquakes greater than M 6 on the same day.

The Japan Trench subduction zone has hosted 9 events of magnitude 7 or greater since 1973. The largest of these was an M 7.8 earthquake approximately 260 km to the north of the March 11 event, in December 1994, which caused 3 fatalities and almost 700 injuries. In June of 1978, an M 7.7 earthquake 35 km to the southwest caused 22 fatalities and over 400 injuries.

This information is brought to you via

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eqinthenews/2011/usc0001xgp/#summary