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Fatah on shaky ground

RAMALLAH, WEST BANK — Routed in the Gaza Strip, the Fatah party of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is fractured and adrift at a moment when it is viewed by the outside world as the best hope for blunting the militant Hamas movement in the West Bank. Once dominant in Palestinian affairs, the organization long led by the late Yasser Arafat is beset by a weak and aging leadership, internal schisms and a widespread reputation among Palestinians as corrupt, ineffectual and out of touch. Those troubles have some Palestinians wondering whether Fatah is more likely to lose the West Bank than to recapture the Gaza Strip from Hamas. The crisis facing Fatah has deepened since Hamas crushed its forces in Gaza last month, leaving Fatah's authority limited to the West Bank. The United States, Israel and European allies have promised to bolster Abbas, a relative moderate, and his party as a way to isolate Hamas. Fatah ruled unchallenged under Arafat, but was sent reeling after his d
iamlucky13 writes "In January of 2004, the NASA's Stardust mission made a flyby of comet Wild-2, taking images and collecting samples from its tail that have since been returned to earth in a detachable capsule. On July 4, 2005, Deep Impact smashed a 350 kg projectile traveling 37,000 km/h into comet Tempel 1 as part of its studies of that object. With both craft in good shape at the end of their missions, NASA has been considering additional tasks for the probes. These plans have now been confirmed with a variety of tasks costing an estimated 15% what a new mission would. Among the new duties will be a revisit of Tempel 1, a flyby of comet Boethin, and transit studies of known extra-solar planets. --s ource-slashdot --

ESET releases online virus Scan.

ESET, a global provider of antivirus software, today announced a release of its new online scanning service. Powered by award-winning ESET NOD32 Antivirus software, ESET Online Scanner is a free Web-based service that enables computer users to perform a comprehensive system scan to check for and clean viruses, spyware, and other malware—without uninstalling their existing antivirus solution.

Panic Over Failing QuikSCAT Satellite Overblown

Panic Over Failing QuikSCAT Satellite Overblown | | from the glad-that's-all-worked-out dept. | | posted by samzenpus on Thursday July 05, @07:59 (Space) | | http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/07/05/0414204 | +--------------------------------------------------------------------+ daeg writes "We previously [0]read and discussed about the aging QuikSCAT weather satellite used to help predict tropical storms. It turns out that [1]the panic is likely overblown and the loss of the satellite won't have any dramatic effects on forecasting at all. Some in the National Hurricane Center are now [2]calling for Director Proenza's resignation over this and his overall handling of the center." Discuss this story at: http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=07/07/05/0414204 Links: 0. http://politics.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/06/16/182240&tid=160 1. http://www.wunderground.com/blog/JeffM

free will and personal choice

Intoxicate me, my cigarette And give me a scornful air, I want to stay cold and silent While hearing sweet confessions. These lyrics from Lucianne Boyer's 1930 song "Dans la Fumée" demonstrate not only the psychological power of the cigarette, but also its role as a cultural icon. A poster featuring Madame Boyer's troubled visage can be found in one of this city's quirkier museums, the six-year-old Musée du Fumeur. Actually a storefront with a couple of tiny rooms in the back, the 650-square-foot space was formerly a butcher shop -- which you'll be reminded of as you breathe in wafts of roasting chicken from the store nearby. Ironically, you won't be graced with the aroma of cigarette smoke until you step outdoors. ( Wall Street Journal article )

Cheney in Power Grab

Vice President Dick Cheney has asserted his office is not a part of the executive branch of the U.S. government, and therefore not bound by a presidential order governing the protection of classified information by government agencies, according to a new letter from Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., to Cheney. Bill Leonard, head of the government's Information Security Oversight Office (ISOO), told Waxman's staff that Cheney's office has refused to provide his staff with details regarding classified documents or submit to a routine inspection as required by presidential order, according to Waxman. In pointed letters released today by Waxman, ISOO's Leonard twice questioned Cheney's office on its assertion it was exempt from the rules. He received no reply, but the vice president later tried to get rid of Leonard's office entirely, according to Waxman. Leonard did not immediately respond to requests for comment. In a statement e-mailed to the Blotter on ABCNews.com, C

Lack Of Accountability-Libby Pays The Man

Sentence commuted, convicted felon scoots to take care of 250K fine JULY 5--On the same day that President George W. Bush wiped away his 30-month prison sentence, convicted former White House aide Lewis "Scooter" Libby purchased a $250,400 cashier's check to cover fines imposed by the federal judge whose sentence was gutted by the presidential commutation. A copy of the July 2 cashier's check (which you can find below) was docketed today in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C.. In April, a jury convicted Libby of perjury and obstruction of justice in connection with the investigation of the leak of the identity of former CIA agent Valerie Plame. Libby's Bank of America check satisifies a $250,000 fine imposed by Judge Reggie Walton and also covers an additional $400 "special assessment." Supporters of Libby, who served as Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff, stressed that while Bush's action kept Libby from a prison cell, the onerous s

Synopsys on the EU State of the Union

The unnatural division of Europe is now consigned to the past We, the citizens of the European Union, have united for the better We preserve in the European Union the identities and diverse traditions of its member states We are united in our aim of placing the EU on a renewed common basis before the European Parliament elections in 2009 -- source

Plants are Family Oriented

according to a recent study, Biologists have found that plants are able to recognize their own relatives. "Researchers at McMaster University have found that plants get fiercely competitive when forced to share their pot with strangers of the same species, but they're accommodating when potted with their siblings. [...] Though they lack cognition and memory, the study shows plants are capable of complex social behaviours such as altruism towards relatives, says Dudley. Like humans, the most interesting behaviours occur beneath the surface."