US Government Doing Iraqi Arms Business With Alleged Corrupt Jordanian

The businessman named by US authorities as being in partnership with British politician George Galloway in the Iraq oil-for-food scandal has a major arms contract with the US military in Iraq which was approved by the US government.

Fawaz Zureikat was named alongside Galloway as being a beneficiary of Saddams oil smuggling operations while sanctions were in force against Iraq. Galloway called the subsequent US investigation "cavalier with justice" and making "schoolboy" errors.

Zureikats company, Middle East Advanced Semi-conductors, has been working with the US Army through US firm Transcrypt in Iraq since January 2004, selling highly sensitive military encryption chips, used by the US and the Iraqis.

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Koran Desecration at Guantanamo Began in 2002 Says Red Cross

In a rare break of protocol, a report by The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has been made public which details how the organisation told US authorities of detainee allegations of Koran misuse from early 2002 to mid 2003.

It says that they believe action was taken by the Americans after mid 2003 because reports of desecration of the holy Islamic book ceased after that. ICRC representatives have frequently visited the camp since it was established in early 2002.

Coincidentally, a memo released on January 19, 2003 by the Defence Department gave guidelines as to how the Koran should be handled and inspected at Guantanamo, including places where it should not be placed including toilets and floor.

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Hardcore Porn Star to Dine With President Bush

Porn star Mary Carey, along with Kick Ass Pictures president Mark Kulkis, is to attend a National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) dinner with George Bush and presidential advisor Karl Rove on on June 14.

"I’m especially looking forward to meeting Karl Rove," Carey said. "Smart men like him are so sexy. I know that he’s against gay marriage, but I think I can convince him that a little girl-on-girl action now and then isn’t so bad!"

Her boss Mark Kulkis, in addition to being the head of a company which produces hardcore adult videos guaranteeing "No Fake Boobs & No Condoms", is also an Honorary Chairman on the NRCC’s Business Advisory Council.

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Sniffer Dogs to be Retrained After Practicing on Talcum Powder Instead of Cocaine

Police in the Australian state of Victoria are conducting an investigation after it was discovered that sniffer dogs had been trained on talcum powder samples, with the original cocaine samples having been omitted due to an administrative error.

"I'm sure our dogs have got very soft, nice smelling noses at the moment, but they are in fact trained in detecting talcum powder so that means that they will have to be re-trained in detecting cocaine." said Police Assistant Commissioner Paul Evans.

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Car-Sized Giant Armadillo Fossil Found in South America

The fossilised remains of a giant armadillo have been found in Cusco, southern Peru. It is a glyptodon, an Ice Age species which is comparative in size to a Volkswagen Beetle.

The fossil is said to be almost complete, with a 2 metre long body, 1.1 metres wide and 1 metre high. This armadillo variant is believed to have lived from approximately 2 million years ago until about 10,000 to 15,000 years BC.

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US Air Force asks Bush to Approve Space Weapons

The United States Air Force is asking for presidential approval to its plan to lock down space as the next frontier of attack from its enemies, despite warnings that such a move may trigger an arms race in space.

The US has signed no treaties or declarations preventing it from putting into orbit any weapons other than those of mass destruction. Away from public debate, space weapons have been developed already and they now await their deployment.

Pete Teets, former acting secretary of the Air Force said "We haven't reached the point of strafing and bombing from space. Nonetheless, we are thinking about those possibilities." Donald H. Rumsfeld headed a 2001 commission preparing the ground.

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UK Politician Blasts US Senate Hearing Over its "Cavalier" Justice

George Galloway, the British member of parliament accused by a US senate committee of financially profiting from the Iraq oil-for-food programme, blasted the same committee in a hearing in Washington for using forged evidence and claims against him.

He went on to contrast his two visits to Saddams Iraq to those made by Donald Rumsfeld. He stated "The difference is Donald Rumsfeld met him to sell him guns and maps...I met him to try to bring about an end to sanctions, suffering and war."

Galloway also argued that the real sanction-breakers were the American companies aided by the US government. He also said that his record of opposition to the Saddam regime was better than that of the US and UK administrations.

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US Media Control?? Pffffffffff!!! As if!

US National ID Card Act to be Made Law Today

When the Senate approved a Bill calling for $82 billion in funds for Iraq and tsunami relief, it also approved the Real ID Act which in effect will see the introduction of a hi-tech national identity card system, possibly within months.

Opposition to the Act, which many say was unfairly introduced under the cover of the war fund request, is considerable, with about 600 different organizations opposing the plan, not least because there was no public debate prior to its approval.

Tim Sparapani, a legislative council for privacy rights with the ACLU, said that no politician would have voted down the Real ID proposition for fear of upsetting the main priority of the bill which was the Iraq war and tsunami relief funds.

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US Senate Report Accuses Politicians of Iraq Corruption

A report just released by the US Senate claims that two politicians, one British and the other French, acted as middlemen for Saddam Hussein while the oil-for-food programme was running and were rewarded with profits from oil sales.

No evidence is given in the report of the two accused actually receiving any money and George Galloway, a staunch anti-Iraq war supporter and former Labour MP in the Blair government, denies all allegations of wrong-doing.

Galloway, who last week won a parliamentary seat in the national elections on an anti-war ticket, said "These are the same false allegations which are still the subject of a libel action with the Daily Telegraph - so far I'm £1.6m up".

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Jesus Christ Finds Trouble in West Virginia

When Jesus Christ moved out to West Virginia to enjoy a slower lifestyle, he didn't realise how much trouble a name can get you into. Mr Christ, previously known as Peter Robert Phillips Jr, is fighting the authorities over a driver's licence.

Despite owning his own property, U.S. passport, Social Security card and Washington driver's licence - all under the name of Jesus Christ - West Virginia refuses to issue him their own license unless he can verify his name.

An application for an official name change was refused, with the courts judge saying "taking the name of Jesus Christ may provoke a violent reaction or may significantly offend people." Christ insists his name change was as an expression of love.

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US Couple Offer Their Baby as Advertising Space

In a long line of unusual forms of advertising space which has included foreheads and shaved heads, parents from Winnipeg are offering up their baby as the next big marketing medium.

Johnathan, the babys father, said "People, often........wear clothing with logo advertisements on it as it is. They don't get paid a dime. Maybe they should."

An advertisement they placed on eBay says "We are constantly stopped on the street......by total strangers who want to see our little girl. Every single one of them is a potential customer that could be exposed to a company's message."

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Genetic Scientists Concerned About Threat from Biological Hackers

Genetic research and technology is in its infancy, currently at the equivalent stage of computer development as producing biological 1940's AND, NAND, and NOR gates, but already concerns are being expressed at the potential for outside viral threats.

The power of the scientists is growing and so is the potential threat. In 2002 researchers recreated the polio virus after downloading genome database information from the internet. Future malicious coders could make such a creation even more potent.

One fear is that rogue scientists will target a single genetic pattern, a concern voiced by the British Medical Association in October 2004. Genome information may eventually proliferate as it has with international nuclear and chemical weapons.

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Warnings Given Over Fake 'Tony Blair' Emails

Recipients of emails with the subject line "BBC: Tony Blair email account hacked!" should avoid going any further. Visitors to the destination website, which they expect to contain screenshots of the UK leaders email account, are soon disappointed.

A trojan is installed on the victims computer, which in turn installs further malicious software which steals passwords and sensitive information from the host. The trojans include PWSAgent-A, JDownL-A, Viper-A, Viperjs-A and the Dumaru-BE variants.

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Islamic Academic Calls for Radical Muslim Reform

Irshad Manji, a writer and broadcaster based in Canada and once described as Osama bin Laden's worst nightmare, has called for a movement of reform concerning Islamic attitudes towards human rights, women and pluralist societies.

She says "Through our screaming self-pity and conspicuous silences, we Muslims are conspiring against ourselves. We're in crisis and we are dragging the rest of the world with us. If ever there was a moment for an Islamic reformation, it is now."

Ms Manji wrote a best-selling book entitled The Trouble with Islam: A Call for Honesty and Change and she has been praised by many established figures with an interest in such matters, including Oprah Winfrey, Ms magazine and the Jakarta Post.

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Vatican Cardinal Spared Prison Sentence in Environment Pollution Case

A Vatican cardinal, along with a senior Vatican Radio official, were given a 10 day jail sentence, immediately suspended, after being found guilty by a Rome court of polluting the environment with electromagnetic waves from a transmission tower.

Cardinal Roberto Tucci and the Rev. Pasquale Borgomeo were accused of transmitting excessive electromagnetic emissions in the Rome suburb of Cesano and therefore damaging the health of the residents living there.

The transmissions were so strong that the radio broadcasts could be heard from lamps due to electromagnetic disturbances. Present at the verdict was the mother of a child leukemia victim who "shouted out of emotion when the verdict was read out".

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Mumbling Mayor Buys Domain Names as an Election Precaution

'Mumbling' Mayor Thomas Menino of Boston has bought up a clutch of domain names which could have been used against him in the up-coming election campaign. Menino has a reputation for mumbling his way through speeches.

To be on the safe side, the Mayor bought meninomumbles.com, mumblesmenino.org and mumblesmeninoformayor.net along with others. "We bought both positive and negative domain names." his campaign manager said.

"I've done pretty well for a guy who mumbles. We're not in a speech class. It's not a debating society." said Mumbles, otherwise known as Mayor Menino.

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New York Conference Voices Concerns About Religions Role in US Politics

A conference held by academics at the City University of New York has voiced concerns over "the real agenda of the religious far right" and the threat posed by theocracy - meaning a regime where clergy monopolize power and impose divine dictates.

Joan Bokaer of TheocracyWatch.org said "There's something strange about the folks running our country", while others attacked evangelical Protestants and the religious rights alleged attempts at installing their own brand of judiciary.

The Rev. Bob Edgar, general secretary of the National Council of Churches, expressed concern too. "This may be the darkest time in our history. Our very liberties are at stake." Conservatives have reacted angrily at what they call liberal "hysteria".

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NASA to be Sued for Planned Comet Destruction

An astrologer is planning to sue NASA over its planned mission to blow a crater in the Tempel 1 comet. The claimant, Russian Marina Bai, says that such an act will "disrupt the natural balance of the universe" and wants $300 million in damages.

The $279 million project involves launching a spacecraft called Deep Impact in January which will intercept the comet and release a 370-kilogram self-guided impactor which is expected to make a football stadium-sized crater in its target.

The astrologers lawyer says "My client believes that the NASA project infringes upon her spiritual and life values as well as the natural life of the cosmos and would disrupt the natural balance of forces in the universe."

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Report Accuses British American Tobacco of Lies and Deceit

A report commissioned by a group of organisations, including Friends of the Earth (FoE), Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) and Christian Aid, uses the words of British American Tabacco (BAT) itself, gleaned from internal memos, emails and letters.

In the report, BAT is accused of supporting AIDS prevention in Africa in order to win favour with politicians there and to 'relegate' its own product as a leading health issue. Also, it is said BAT attempted to undermine nicotine addiction research.

BAT products are estimated to cause three-quarters of a million deaths per year while at the same time the company makes £2.7 ($5.1) billion a year in clear profit.

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Britneys Pregnancy Test Stick Sold by Hotel

The positively-indicating pregnancy test stick used by Britney Federline (formerly Spears) has been recovered from the waste bin of her hotel room and sold on auction website GoldenPalace.com.

The successful bidders were radio network Hot 89-9, who said "We saw an opportunity to offer a bit of pop culture history to our listeners, and we jumped at it. It meant that we could also find a creative new way to support two great charities."

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New Bible Fragment Reveals the Number of the Beast is Really 616

A fragment of the original Book of Revelation, written in Greek and dating back to the third century, has been deciphered using a revolutionary technique (SN reported) and has found that the number of the beast is not 666 but is in fact 616.

Refering to the writing, Professor David Parker, of the University of Birmingham says "This is an example of gematria, where numbers are based on the numerical values of letters in people's names."

"Early Christians would use numbers to hide the identity of people who they were attacking: 616 refers to the Emperor Caligula." he added. The number 666 is often refered to in sermons by fundamentalist Christians concerning the apocalypse.

They (the Christian fundamentalists) and satanists responded coolly to the new "Revelation". Peter Gilmore, High Priest of the Church of Satan, based in New York, said: "By using 666 we're using something that the Christians fear. Mind you, if they do switch to 616 being the number of the beast then we'll start using that."

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