Al-Jazeera English to air in San Francisco

Al-Jazeera English, corporate cousin to the Arabic-language network, is nearly 3 years old and available in 100 countries but only a smattering of U.S. homes - until Monday, when San Francisco's Link TV will begin carrying "World News," its 30-minute daily news program.

The move not only gives Al-Jazeera English a foot in the door to the 31 million U.S. homes that Link TV reaches, but it is symbolic of a growing thaw in the post-9/11 feelings toward the Arab and Muslim worlds since President Obama's election, observers say.

In his latest outreach, Obama will give a speech in Cairo next week in which he said he will outline how "the United States can change for the better its relationship with the Muslim world. That will require a recognition on both the part of the United States as well as many majority Muslim countries about each other, a better sense of understanding."

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Silencing Palestinians in Israel

JERUSALEM, May 27 (UPI) -- The Israeli Knesset Wednesday approved a preliminary reading of a bill that would outlaw calls for the end of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state.
The measure, approved 47-37, was sponsored by Habayit Hayehudi party MK Zevulun Orlev and calls for the year-long imprisonment of anyone making public comments that would "cause an act of hatred, scorn or disloyalty to the state," The Jerusalem Post reported.
The bill came hard on the heels of another measure proposed this week by Yisrael Beiteinu MK Alex Miller that seeks to outlaw commemorating Israel's Independence Day as a day of mourning, as many Palestinians and some Israeli Arabs do now.
That bill moves Israel to an "apartheid state," an Arab member of Knesset declared Sunday, saying it is "is no less severe than the laws enacted by the Third Reich."

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Ahmadinejad: Ballots and Missiles

The competition in the Iranian presidential election is heating up, or so it seemed until recently on Iranian government-sponsored television. Unlike the previous election, the challengers to incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad are well-known heavyweights who include former Prime Minister Mir-Mossein Moussavi, former Majlis (Parliament) speaker Mehdi Karroubi, and Secretary of the Expediency Council Mohsen Rezaie; the candidates had been getting regular coverage on their opposing policies, with each making his case for the presidency.

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A Picture's Worth a Thousand Words

Following his meeting with US President Barack Obama at the White House, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave a special briefing to Israeli reporters, and told them that the president planned to formulate a new Middle East peace initiative which would be presented soon.
The prime minister termed the plan "interesting," and said that it would involve not just the Palestinians and Israelis, but also a number of moderate Arab states.

Yup...another NEW peace initiative...and Palestinians are very thrilled with the Israeli occupation!

Iraq: 6 Years in 6 weeks

It has been six years since the US led invasion of Iraq began. Those years have brought both hope and joy as well as death, destruction and despair for many Iraqis.

Regardless of which angle you look at the country from, it is obvious that the people of Iraq have paid a heavy price for their so-called freedom during the last six years.

In a special series of films, Witness highlights some of the untold stories of the ordinary people trapped in the middle of the crisis. SIX YEARS IN IRAQ recounts stories of pain and horror but also stories of courage and hope.

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Mousawa: An Alternative to a Two-State Solution

For the past 10 years, the "two-state solution" has been the mantra of the United States, and of most countries involved in bringing a lasting peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians. But now, Netanyahu is calling for what he says is a fresh approach to peace with the Palestinians.
"The fresh approach that I suggest is pursuing a triple track toward peace between Israel and the Palestinians: a political track, a security track and an economic track," said the prime minister via satellite to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) annual conference in Washington.
Mr. Netanyahu made no mention of a two-state solution.

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Why I'm Squeamish Around Religious Fanatics?

We are financing evangelism in Afghanistan. Apparently, the US military has confiscated Bibles that Christian US soldiers in Afghanistan had apparently intended to give to local Muslims, a military spokesman has said. Al Jazeera broadcast footage that showed troops preparing to convert Afghans to their faith. Now you know why I am squeamish around religious fanatics: Jews, Christians, and Muslims!

Pacman destroys Hitman

Ricky “The Hitman” Hatton was totally annihilated by Manny "Pacman" Pacquia. The fight lasted a mere 2 rounds when Hatton was floored only 7 seconds from the end of the round. He could not get up. Actually, I have concerns that this might have been a damaging punch with lasting effects.

The fight was predictable. I mean, Hatton has tasted canvas for the first time when Floyd Mayweather Jr. knocked him out in the same arena last year. Pacquiao is faster than Mayweather and packs more power behind his punches. The payday $12 Million each...not bad for 6 minutes of work!

The New Terror in the Middle East: SWINE

A spokesman for the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt calls swine flu "more serious than a hydrogen bomb" during a symposium on the health scare. Egypt's parliament votes to "cull pigs immediately and one parliamentarian proposes criminalizing hog farming.
The United Arab Emirates bans the import of pork products as a precautionary measure and several supermarkets in the sheikhdom yank them off the shelves. Meanwhile, an Israeli health official calls for world health officials to change the name of the"Swine Flu" to "Mexican Flu," since Mexico is where the new flu allegedly originated and pigs are offensive to both Jews and Muslims. That, however, did not sit well with Mexico's ambassador to Israel.
There is hysteria about swine flu in the Middle East, yet only two confirmed cases were found in the entire region: in Israel.
For the past three days, swine flu has become the lead story on many Arab and Israeli networks. Reports about attacks in Iraq and other hot spots seem to have all but vanished for the time being. The new terror in the Middle East is swine.
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What If He Was An Arab?

A judge ordered a 20-day psychiatric evaluation for an Israeli who is accused of rushing the cockpit of a plane en route from New York to Tel Aviv. The man, Itay Atmor, 22, forced the plane to make an emergency landing in Boston after he allegedly tampered with a keypad that locked the cockpit door of the Delta Air Lines flight. Imagine if this man was an Arab...what would have happened to him? Psychiatric evaluation? No way!

How much coverage did this story get in the US media?

Had he been an Arab or a Muslim FOX News would have had a field day with the story, but no he is Israeli, and must be harmless...just psychologically disturbed...he was homesick!

BTW, did anyone report that Atmor had served three years in an elite Israeli army unit?

That's Why I Don't Eat Ham

I've always thought pigs were cute...from a distance. I don't pet them, and I certainly don't eat them. I don't know how bad this swine flu epidemic is, but Dr. Sanjay Gupta has been freaking me out. After watching him on CNN today reporting from Mexico, I've decided to ban burritos from my table.

Anyway, Middle Eastern media is also obsessed with this story, more than I remember them being during the SARS epidemic. Why are they worried about swine disease when they hardly eat pig?

Here is the weirdest story of all: The outbreak of swine flu should be renamed "Mexican" influenza in deference to Muslim and Jewish sensitivities over pork, said an Israeli health official Monday.
Deputy Health Minister Yakov Litzman said the reference to pigs is offensive to both religions and "we should call this Mexican flu and not swine flu," he told a news conference at a hospital in central Israel.

Pakistan: Who's To Blame?

Speaking at the National Assembly, Pakistan's Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani said that the military could stop the Taliban and that the country's nuclear weapons were safe.
"Does this parliament not have moral courage to stop them?" he asked.
Pakistan is on a precipice. The Swat Valley, once called the Switzerland of Pakistan for its great natural beauty, is now the Taliban's battle ground for Islamic fundamentalism where harsh Islamic (shari'a) law is imposed on the population and fully sanctioned by the Pakistani government. In recent days, armed Taliban fighters have set up checkpoints and occupied mosques in the Buner region just 60 miles from Islamabad, declaring Islamic law before retreating after striking a deal with the government.
Will Pakistan eventually fall to the Taliban?

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Like Father, Like Son

The United States awarded contracts worth more than two million dollars to sons and allies of PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, Reuters revealed on Wednesday. The American government, apparently embarrassed by the disclosure, withheld some details on the grounds of privacy and fears that would leave the people vulnerable to terrorists.The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) said that family ties were not a factor in awarding the contracts, which included deals to repair roads and for mounting public relations campaigns to polish up America’s image. Other contracts were for advertising and promotions to help the Fatah party headed by Mahmoud Abbas, in the 2006 legislative election. Hamas surprised American experts and won a majority in the voting that the U.S. promoted as the introduction of democracy in the P.A. Abbas’s son Yasser, who owns the Falcon Electro Mechanical Contracting Company and Sky Advertising Company, won U.S. contracts through “full and open” bidding, USAID said. His brother Tarak is general manager of the advertising firm. Reuters pointed out that joblessness is the PA has doubled since the Oslo War, also known as the Second Intifada, began in 2000. It said the dealings with the Abbas family constitute a sensitive issue because of the hundreds of millions of dollars that the U.S. has pumped into the PA.

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Could This Be Treason?

Rep. Jane Harman is asking the Justice Department to release its transcripts of wiretapped telephone conversations she reportedly had with a suspected Israeli agent in 2005 or 2006, according to the Wall Street Journal.
It had been reported several years ago that federal investigators looked into the California Democrat's discussions with the suspected Israeli agent. But yesterday, Congressional Quarterly's Jeff Stein published significant new details, including the allegation that the conversations secretly captured by NSA wiretaps were "directed at alleged Israel covert action operations in Washington."

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