This page features brief excerpts of stories published by the mainstream
media and, less frequently, blogs, alternative media, and even obviously
biased sources. The excerpts are taken directly from the websites cited in
each source note. Quotation marks are not used.
Source: Daily Mail (UK)
Sep 1, 2009
A statue commemorating British Empire soldiers singing one of the most famous songs of the First World War has been attacked in northern France.
The £20,000 ‘Mademoiselle from Armentières’ monument was unveiled in the town less than a year ago as a moving tribute to the thousands who died during the 1914-18 conflict.
It depicted four Tommies - including an Englishman, Scot, Australian and Indian - supporting the legendary ‘Mademoiselle’ on a plinth.
But tod
Source: BBC
Sep 1, 2009
The great-great-granddaughter of Charles Darwin has set sail from Devon to recreate the journey which inspired his theory of evolution.
Darwin's original five-year voyage of discovery on HMS Beagle began in 1831 from Plymouth Sound.
Biologist and botanist Sarah Darwin, 44, will retrace her forefather's footsteps.
Ms Darwin said she had been looking forward to the journey for many months, not only to see many of the things which influenced her great-great-
Source: BBC
Sep 1, 2009
Russia is marking the fifth anniversary of the Beslan siege in which more than 330 people died after a school was seized by Chechen rebels.
The rebels, who held more than 1,000 people hostage, demanded the withdrawal of Russian troops from Chechnya.
The siege ended three days later when security forces stormed the building. Those killed in the ensuing battle included 186 children.
Five years on, the people of Beslan are still haunted by what happened ther
Source: BBC
Sep 1, 2009
In the past, most people who went to Angola were searching for oil, diamonds or landmines.
Now, the country is also proving a big draw for fossil hunters - known in the scientific community as palaeontologists - who have described Angola as a "museum in the ground".
Angola was closed off for many years because of its three-decade long civil war, which only ended in 2002, so few scientists have had the chance to visit.Those get
Source: BBC
Sep 1, 2009
Libya has started a week of massive celebrations to mark 40 years since the coup that brought Colonel Muammar Gaddafi to power.
Jets have been flying over the capital Tripoli to prepare for a military parade which is due to start shortly.
Hundreds of dancers and musicians will put on a show charting Libya's history, followed by a firework display.
Several African and Arab leaders are attending the celebrations but Western leaders are staying away.
Source: BBC
Sep 1, 2009
Polish President Lech Kaczynski has voiced his anger at the Soviet role in World War II at commemorations marking the beginning of the global conflict.
In front of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and other world leaders, Mr Kaczynski said the 1939 Nazi-Soviet non-aggression pact had divided Europe.
At an earlier event in the port city of Gdansk, he had described Russia's actions as a "stab in the back".
Mr Putin said all pacts with the Naz
Source: Telegraph (UK)
Sep 1, 2009
The dignity of ceremonies to mark the 70th anniversary of the outbreak of the Second World War in Poland is being marred by furious spats between Russia and Eastern European states over their respective wartime roles.
As world leaders gather in the Polish city of Gdansk today to commemorate the first shots of the conflict, Poles are fuming over what they perceive as an insulting Russian propaganda campaign targeting their nation.
In the days leading up to anniversary,
Source: Telegraph (UK)
Sep 1, 2009
Polish leaders have marked the 70th anniversary of the Second World War in a dawn ceremony on the Baltic peninsula where the conflict began.
Later in the day, European and American officials are due to meet in Gdansk for other ceremonies to pay tribute to the tens of millions who lost their lives in the conflict.
At the Westerplatte peninsula, the site of Nazi Germany's opening assault on Poland, Polish political and religious leaders recalled the sacrifices their cou
Source: Times Online (UK)
Sep 1, 2009
They are elderly now, many of them stooped and white of hair, but as they queued patiently outside St Paul’s Cathedral today, luggage labels attached dutifully to the lapels of their coats, for a moment the years fell away and they were not their old selves any more, but a generation of children about to be evacuated from London as the world stood on the brink of war.
Perhaps an outsider would not have noticed. But the broadcaster Michael Aspel, who was among those gathered for the
Source: Foxnews
Sep 1, 2009
The health of the Lockerbie bomber, who has terminal prostate cancer, has swiftly deteriorated since his release from a Scottish prison less than two weeks ago, a senior Libyan official said Tuesday.
The head of the Libyan State Information Agency, Majid al-Dursi, said Abdel Baset al-Megrahi is in the hospital and described him as "very sick."
There was no way to independently verify his health, and it was not clear how long he has to live. Scottish officials
Source: The Times (UK)
Sep 1, 2009
Libya is set to flaunt the Lockerbie bomber’s release at the climax of today’s celebrations marking Colonel Muammar Qaddafi's 40 years in power.
The Times of London gained access last night to the dress rehearsal of a spectacular two-hour show which extols Colonel Qaddafi for reviving his country and restoring Arab pride. As the finale approaches, the screen at the back of the giant stage in Tripoli’s Green Square shows Abdul Baset Ali al-Megrahi stepping off the plane which brought
Source: CNN
Sep 1, 2009
Tom Ridge, the first U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, denied Tuesday that he attacked former colleagues Donald Rumsfeld and John Ashcroft in his controversial new book.
Ridge called them "people whose opinions I respect immensely" on CNN's "American Morning."
He made headlines recently by saying he fought their proposal to raise the U.S. terror threat level in the run-up to the 2004 presidential elections.
Source: CNN
Sep 1, 2009
As the Tea Party Express rolls out of Las Vegas, there is at least one person who may be glad to see it go: Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.
"There's been kind of an underground gathering of opponents of Harry Reid," said Mark Williams, one of the organizers of the cross country conservative caravan that is making its way towards Washington.
Williams says that dislike of the Nevada Democrat is one of the key factors that is driving people to come out to the
Source: BBC
Sep 1, 2009
Terminally ill Libyan Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi was freed on 20 August.
The Holyrood documents are expected to include details of a meeting in Greenock Prison between Megrahi and Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill.
Westminster sources indicated on Monday the UK government would publish all correspondence with Scottish ministers.
The sources say the communications indicate there was no discussion of compassionate release of prisoners and support the UK gov
Source: Catholic News Service
Aug 31, 2009
WARSAW, Poland (CNS) -- A German cardinal said his country will not achieve full reconciliation with neighboring Poland until both nations recognize the grievances of millions of civilians who lost everything in deportations during and after World War II.
"We should remember the present generation doesn't carry the blame for these events, but bears responsibility for them," said Berlin Cardinal Georg Sterzinsky.
"The challenge of approaching others withou
Source: Fox News
Aug 31, 2009
Federal authorities have stripped an American of his citizenship and are now trying to deport him for allegedly helping Nazis in his native country.
The Justice Department initiated removal proceedings against John Kalymon of Troy, Mich., based on his participation in violent acts of persecution while serving as an armed member of the Nazi-sponsored Ukrainian police during World War II, a Justice Department press release said.
Specifically, the Justice Department filed
Source: Yahoo News
Aug 31, 2009
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Josef Stalin was in the dock on Monday when a Russian court held a preliminary hearing in a libel case brought by his grandson over a newspaper story which said the tyrant had ordered the killings of Soviet citizens.
Rights groups say the case shows a creeping attempt in modern Russia to paint a more benevolent picture of the Soviet Union's most feared leader, under whose rule millions perished.
Stalin's grandson, Yevgeny Dzhugashvili, is seeking 9.5
Source: telegraph.co.uk
Aug 31, 2009
The Bridge on the River Kwai – the monument to the suffering of Allied troops in Japanese hands – has been overshadowed by a controversial new Buddhist statue.
A 55ft statue of Guanyin, the goddess of mercy, has been built next to the bridge as part of a religious retreat.
Local conservationists described it as "visual pollution", saying that it endangered the symbolism of the site, which is in the western Thai town of Kanchanaburi.
The bridge sym
Source: NYT
Aug 31, 2009
WASHINGTON — Seven months after taking office, Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. is reshaping the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division by pushing it back into some of the most important areas of American political life, including voting rights, housing, employment, bank lending practices and redistricting after the 2010 census.
As part of this shift, the Obama administration is planning a major revival of high-impact civil rights enforcement against policies, in areas rangin
Source: BBC
Aug 31, 2009
Gaza's ruling Islamist movement Hamas has resisted suggestions that Palestinian children should be taught about the Holocaust in UN-run schools.
The head of its education committee in Gaza, Abdul Rahman el-Jamal, told the BBC that the Holocaust was a "big lie".
He said that to teach it would be to "grant a big favour" to Israel, which has been fighting Hamas for years.
The UN, which runs most Gazan schools, recently asked local groups
