Current News (Part 4)

[TDWoj]

Not many real heroes left....

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PM pays respects to war hero 'Smoky' Smith

CTV.ca News Staff

Canadians and dignitaries are paying their final respects to Ernest Alvia "Smoky" Smith -- Canada's last surviving recipient of the Victoria Cross.

Prime Minister Paul Martin and Gov. Gen. Adrienne Clarkson have paid their final respects to the war hero. They led the parade of dignitaries past Smith's coffin, which is lying in state in the foyer of the House of Commons for a day-long vigil.

Canada is holding a series of ceremonies this week for Smith, who died at his home in Vancouver on Aug. 3 at the age of 91.

Flags on Canadian government buildings will fly at half-mast today, and books of condolences have been set up on Parliament Hill and at the Canadian War Museum.

Smith's remains will lie in state at his regiment on Friday. A full military funeral will be held the next day.

Smith's remains were carried into the Parliament Building by sergeants from the Seaforth Highlanders, his old regiment.

The B.C. native served with the Seaforth Highlanders during the Second World War, and earned recognition for his exploits one night in Italy, in October 1944.

On a road beside the Savio River, in plain sight of the enemy, Smith fired at a German tank and disabled it. Ten German soldiers jumped off the tank and charged at him. Smith shot and killed four of them at point blank range and drove the others back.

Another tank opened fire and more enemy soldiers closed in on Smith. He held his position in a ditch, however, while protecting a fallen comrade with a Tommy gun. The enemy soldiers soon withdrew.

Smith dismissed his heroics as a pragmatic response to the situation: It was either kill or be killed.

"If you're not afraid, there's something wrong with you," he said. "But if you've got to, just do it."

Britain awards the Victoria Cross for bravery, valour, self-sacrifice or extreme devotion to duty in the presence of the enemy. Only 94 Canadians have won this recognition.

Smith was born in New Westminster, British Columbia, on May 3, 1914. He was known as a spirited man who enjoyed a good cigar and a well-aged scotch. He was nicknamed Smoky in school because of his running ability.

In addition to being awarded the Victoria Cross, Smith was also appointed a member of the Order of Canada in 1995.

Last fall, Italians and Canadians gathered at the walls of an 800-year-old castle in Cesena, Italy, to honour Smith for his actions. Officials unveiled a plaque commemorating his exploits.

 

[Littledragon]

Dragnet out for fugitive and wife.

(CNN) -- A statewide manhunt was under way Tuesday in Tennessee for an escaped prisoner and his wife, a former prison nurse, after she sprung him from his armed escort in a hail of gunfire outside a courthouse in Kingston, authorities said.

One guard was shot and died from his wounds.

Kingston Police Chief Jim Washam said authorities were looking for George C. Hyatte, 34, and his wife, Jennifer Lyn Hyatte, 31. One or both may be wounded, he said.

Washam described George Hyatte as African-American, 5 feet 5 and 140 pounds, with black hair, brown eyes and tattoos on his upper body. His wife is white, 5 feet 4 and 142 pounds, with red hair and hazel eyes, he said.

"We'll bring these people to justice just as soon as we can," Washam said.

The incident began about 10 a.m. as guards escorted Hyatte in handcuffs and leg irons from the Roane Country Courthouse following a proceeding on an armed robbery charge, authorities said.

As the armed corrections officers prepared to put Hyatte into a waiting van, "a dark-colored SUV appeared behind the van," Washam said. "Mr. Hyatte hollered, 'Shoot 'em!'

"She opened fire on the officers, hitting one in the abdomen," he said.

The other officer fired a shot, but the SUV sped off, stopping only to pick up Hyatte, who had run to another part of the parking lot, a witness said.

Guard Wayne Morgan, 56, was taken by helicopter to the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville, where he died at 11:10 a.m., said a hospital spokeswoman.

A 28-year veteran of the Tennessee Department of Corrections, Morgan was married and had two children, said Amanda Sluss, a department spokeswoman.

He worked for the transportation team at the Brushy Mountain Correctional Complex in Morgan County, where Hyatte was incarcerated.

Police found the abandoned blue Ford Explorer with blood on the driver's side about a quarter mile from the courthouse, Washam said.

The two "apparently then got in another vehicle," he said. Police were searching for a gold Chevrolet van witnesses said had been parked overnight near where the SUV was found.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation described the vehicle as a late-model Chevrolet Venture van, gold with black trim.

The TBI said the couple could be headed to Hendersonville, 120 miles from Kingston, where George Hyatte used to live.

Jennifer Hyatte was fired in August 2004 from her job as a contract licensed practical nurse at Northwest Correctional Complex in Tiptonville for having an inappropriate relationship with Hyatte, said Darrell Alley, a Tennessee Department of Corrections spokesman.

Alley said she was caught smuggling food from a restaurant into the prison and acknowledged to officials that it was for Hyatte. At the time, they were not married and she called herself Jennifer Forsyth, Alley said.

Hyatte escaped from county jail twice before, said Sheryl Jordan, chief deputy court clerk for Rhea County, 70 miles from Kingston. The first escape was in 1998; the second in 2002, she said.

Hyatte has been convicted of aggravated assault, aggravated burglary and burglary in the third degree, felonies dating to 1989. He was sentenced in 1998 to 36 months for the first of his prior escapes.

He began serving his latest sentence at the end of 2002 and was to have been released in July 2036.

Proper protocol was followed for handling a prisoner with his escape record, Sluss said. Hyatte was accompanied by two armed officers, and he was wearing handcuffs, a waist chain and leg irons, she said.

Craig Gray told CNN affiliate WBIR-TV that he was leaving the courthouse with his 5-year-old daughter when he saw a prisoner being loaded into a van in the courthouse parking lot.

At that point, a Ford Explorer drove up, a woman at the wheel, he said.

"The Explorer pulled up, slung the door open and started firing," Gray said. "The other officer jumped in the van and come out the passenger side door and returned fire. She took off."

The SUV drove to a distant end of the lot, where the prisoner ran to meet her. "She picked him up over there and they took off," Gray said.

"This hasn't happened before," said Scott Stout, public information officer for Roane County Emergency Management Agency, referring to Kingston, a town of about 6,000 residents 32 miles west of Knoxville in eastern Tennessee.

The courthouse was locked down briefly, then reopened. Area schools remained locked down.

Besides the TBI, Kingston police were being helped by the FBI, a Knox County SWAT team and the Oak Ridge Police Department.

 

[Littledragon]

IAEA seeks solution to Iran issue.

VIENNA, Austria (CNN) -- The International Atomic Energy Agency is expected to press Iran on Wednesday to reverse its decision to resume a uranium conversion program.

Iran restarted uranium conversion -- a step on the way to enrichment -- at its Isfahan nuclear facility Monday, saying it is for peaceful purposes only.

Iran has insisted it has the right to have a nuclear fuel recycling program in its quest for greater reliance on nuclear energy.

Western nations, however, fear this same uranium enrichment program could also be used by Iran as a front to develop atomic weapons.

The IAEA's board of governors met in Vienna on Tuesday and were expected to meet again Wednesday.

The IAEA indicated its board would ask Iran to rescind its decision on resuming its uranium conversion program.

If Iran declines, it could be referred to the U.N. Security Council for sanctions.

Iran will get access on Wednesday to sealed parts of its uranium conversion plant at Isfahan, allowing Tehran to move closer to resuming production of enriched uranium, Reuters reported.

According to the Islamic Republic News Agency, new Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan in a phone call that Iran is willing to continue negotiations on its nuclear program.

But Ahmadinejad rejected a European Union proposal to settle the dispute as "an affront to the Iranian nation."

U.S. President George W. Bush, at his ranch in Texas, said Ahmadinejad's willingness to come back to the table is "a positive sign," but warned that the United States is "deeply suspicious" of Iran's goals.

Last week, European Union negotiators offered Iran a package of proposals for long-term support of its civilian nuclear program in exchange for guarantees not to develop atomic weapons. (Full story)

A government spokesman said Saturday that Iran would reject the offer. "We do not humble ourselves in the poisoned atmosphere created by foreign sources," said Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid-Reza Asefi. (Full story)

Cyrus Naseri, Iran's delegate to the IAEA, told reporters Tuesday that an Iranian settlement proposal is still on the table for European consideration.

Iran resumed uranium conversion at the Isfahan nuclear facility Monday. (Full story)

It did so without breaking any U.N. seals at the plant. But in order to run the whole plant -- which turns uranium concentrate into a gas that can then be enriched into reactor or bomb fuel -- some seals must be removed, Reuters reported.

Mohammad Saeedi, a senior member of Iran's delegation at the IAEA meeting in Vienna, told Reuters: "The agency has promised us it will remove the (IAEA) seals by noon (0730 GMT) on Wednesday because the installation of (surveillance) cameras has been completed."

IAEA Director-General Mohamed ElBaradei said he hopes the dispute between Iran and the EU is "simply a hiccup, not a permanent rupture." He urged all parties to exercise maximum restraint.

As the 35-member IAEA board met, the Russian Federation joined other European nations to call on Iran to resume suspension of the program.

Russia, a member of the board of governors, signed a deal with Iran in February to transfer nuclear fuel to Iran's $800 million power plant reactor in the southern city of Bushehr and move the spent fuel back to Russia.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he is convinced Iran is not developing nuclear weapons. (Full story)

Britain, France and Germany -- the so-called EU-3 -- have led attempts to negotiate a solution with Iran. The United States, which has no diplomatic relations with the Islamic republic, has remained largely in the background.

"Our strategy has been all along to work with Germany, France and Great Britain in terms of sending a strong signal and message to Iran," Bush, who once branded Iran as part of an "axis of evil" along with North Korea and Saddam Hussein's Iraq, said on Tuesday.

"Today it looked like that the new Iranian leader has heard that message," he said.

The bottom line, the American leader said, is that "we don't want the Iranians to have nuclear weapons."

'Ready for talks'
Naseri, speaking in Vienna, scoffed at the U.S. insistence that Iran should not have nuclear weapons.

"The United States is the sole nuclear weapons state which had the guts to drop the bomb and kill and maim and turn into ashes millions in a split second," he said, referring the atomic bombs that destroyed two cities in Japan and helped end World War II 60 years ago this month. (Full story)

"The United States is in no position whatsoever to tell anyone or preach what they should or should not with their nuclear program."

IRNA, the Iranian state-run news agency, quoted Ahmadinejad as telling Annan that Iran is "ready for talks, and negotiations have never been interrupted on our part. We are willing to continue with negotiations within the framework of IAEA regulations and safeguard agreement."

"Iranian officials gave two years for confidence building, and it seems such an approach has enhanced the level of expectations of the EU party," Ahmadinejad said.

"The EU party expects Iran to accept violation of its national rights. No Iranian national accepts such an injustice."

"However, we are ready to proceed with talks. Of course, I will put forward initiatives in this respect after forming my Cabinet," he said.

He complained to Annan that the European proposal "does not look like a proposal at all. It is an insult to the Iranian nation. They have talked in a way as if the Iranian nation was suffering from backwardness, and the time was 100 years ago, and our country was their colony."

The secretary-general's office confirmed that the two had spoken and said Annan echoed ElBaradei's urging of restraint.

Under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, signatory nations -- which include Iran -- are allowed to develop nuclear power with monitoring by the IAEA.

The agency says that it is making progress but that Iran's past lack of candor about its program has left some doubt about its current work.

Ahmadinejad told Annan that Iran was operating in complete compliance with IAEA regulations.

Russia joined the Europeans and Americans in urging Iran to reverse course.

"It would be a wise decision to immediately stop the work begun on uranium conversion and continue Iran's close cooperation with the IAEA in removing the questions that still remain about the Iranian nuclear program," foreign ministry spokesman Mikhail Kamynin said during a news conference, as translated by the ministry on the Web site.

The IAEA board met Tuesday to receive a report from its monitors on the restarting of Iran's fuel conversion at the Isfahan power plant in central Iran.

Sources told CNN that a report may emerge Thursday again calling on Iran to rethink its enrichment program.

Amid heavy international pressure, Iran agreed in November to suspend the production of enriched uranium, which can be used as fuel for nuclear power plants or, in higher concentrations, in nuclear weapons. (Full story)

 

[Littledragon]

Huge rally against Iraq war.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Crowds opposed to the war in Iraq surged past the White House on Saturday, shouting "Peace now" in the largest anti-war protest in the nation's capital since the U.S. invasion.

The rally stretched through the day and into the night, a marathon of music, speechmaking and dissent on the National Mall.

Police Chief Charles H. Ramsey, noting that organizers had hoped to draw 100,000 people, said, "I think they probably hit that."

Speakers from the stage attacked President Bush's policies head on, but he was not at the White House to hear it. He spent the day in Colorado and Texas, monitoring hurricane recovery.

In the crowd: young activists, nuns whose anti-war activism dates to Vietnam, parents mourning their children in uniform lost in Iraq, and uncountable families motivated for the first time to protest.

Connie McCroskey, 58, came from Des Moines, Iowa, with two of her daughters, both in their 20s, for the family's first demonstration. McCroskey, whose father fought in World War II, said she never would have dared protest during the Vietnam War.

"Today, I had some courage," she said.

While united against the war, political beliefs varied. Paul Rutherford, 60, of Vandalia, Michigan, said he is a Republican who supported Bush in the last election and still does -- except for the war.

"President Bush needs to admit he made a mistake in the war and bring the troops home, and let's move on," Rutherford said.

His wife, Judy, 58, called the removal of Saddam Hussein "a noble mission" but said U.S. troops should have left when claims that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction proved unfounded.

"We found that there were none and yet we still stay there and innocent people are dying daily," she said.

"Bush Lied, Thousands Died," said one sign. "End the Occupation," said another. More than 1,900 members of the U.S. armed forces have died since the beginning of the war in March 2003.

A few hundred people in a counter demonstration in support of Bush's Iraq policy lined the protest route near the FBI building. The two groups shouted at each other, a police line keeping them apart. Organizers of a pro-military rally Sunday hoped for 10,000 people.

Ramsey said the day's protest unfolded peacefully under the heavy police presence. "They're vocal but not violent," he said.

Arthur Pollock, 47, of Cecil County, Maryland, said he was against the war from the beginning. He wants the soldiers out, but not all at once.

"They've got to leave slowly," said Pollock, attending his first protest. "It will be utter chaos in that country if we pull them out all at once."

Folk singer Joan Baez marched with the protesters and later serenaded them at a concert at the foot of the Washington Monument. An icon of the 1960s Vietnam War protests, she said Iraq is already a mess and the troops need to come home immediately. "There is chaos. There's bloodshed. There's carnage."

The protest in the capital showcased a series of demonstrations in foreign and other U.S. cities.

A crowd in London, estimated by police at 10,000, marched in support of withdrawing British troops from Iraq. Highlighting the need to get out, protesters said, were violent clashes between insurgents and British troops in the southern Iraq city of Basra.

In Rome, dozens of protesters held up banners and peace flags outside the U.S. Embassy and covered a sidewalk with messages and flowers in honor of those killed in Iraq.

Cindy Sheehan, the California mother who drew thousands of demonstrators to her 26-day vigil outside Bush's Texas ranch last month, won a roar of approval when she took the stage in Washington. Her 24-year-old son, Casey, was killed in Iraq last year.

"Shame on you," Sheehan admonished, directing that portion of her remarks to members of Congress who backed Bush on the war. "How many more of other people's children are you willing to sacrifice?

She led the crowd in chanting, "Not one more."

Separately, hundreds of opponents of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund danced to the beat of drums in the Dupont Circle part of the city before marching toward the White House to join the anti-war protesters.

Supporters of Bush's policy in Iraq assembled in smaller numbers to get their voice heard in the day's anti-war din. About 150 of them rallied at the U.S. Navy Memorial.

Gary Qualls, 48, of Temple, Texas, whose Marine reservist son, Louis, died last year in the insurgent stronghold of Fallujah, asked: "If you bring them home now, who's going to be responsible for all the atrocities that are fixing to happen over there? Cindy Sheehan?"

 

[katw_03]

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Crowds opposed to the war in Iraq surged past the White House on Saturday, shouting "Peace now" in the largest anti-war protest in the nation's capital since the U.S. invasion.

The rally stretched through the day and into the night, a marathon of music, speechmaking and dissent on the National Mall.

Police Chief Charles H. Ramsey, noting that organizers had hoped to draw 100,000 people, said, "I think they probably hit that."

Speakers from the stage attacked President Bush's policies head on, but he was not at the White House to hear it. He spent the day in Colorado and Texas, monitoring hurricane recovery.

In the crowd: young activists, nuns whose anti-war activism dates to Vietnam, parents mourning their children in uniform lost in Iraq, and uncountable families motivated for the first time to protest.

Connie McCroskey, 58, came from Des Moines, Iowa, with two of her daughters, both in their 20s, for the family's first demonstration. McCroskey, whose father fought in World War II, said she never would have dared protest during the Vietnam War.

"Today, I had some courage," she said.

While united against the war, political beliefs varied. Paul Rutherford, 60, of Vandalia, Michigan, said he is a Republican who supported Bush in the last election and still does -- except for the war.

"President Bush needs to admit he made a mistake in the war and bring the troops home, and let's move on," Rutherford said.

His wife, Judy, 58, called the removal of Saddam Hussein "a noble mission" but said U.S. troops should have left when claims that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction proved unfounded.

"We found that there were none and yet we still stay there and innocent people are dying daily," she said.

"Bush Lied, Thousands Died," said one sign. "End the Occupation," said another. More than 1,900 members of the U.S. armed forces have died since the beginning of the war in March 2003.

A few hundred people in a counter demonstration in support of Bush's Iraq policy lined the protest route near the FBI building. The two groups shouted at each other, a police line keeping them apart. Organizers of a pro-military rally Sunday hoped for 10,000 people.

Ramsey said the day's protest unfolded peacefully under the heavy police presence. "They're vocal but not violent," he said.

Arthur Pollock, 47, of Cecil County, Maryland, said he was against the war from the beginning. He wants the soldiers out, but not all at once.

"They've got to leave slowly," said Pollock, attending his first protest. "It will be utter chaos in that country if we pull them out all at once."

Folk singer Joan Baez marched with the protesters and later serenaded them at a concert at the foot of the Washington Monument. An icon of the 1960s Vietnam War protests, she said Iraq is already a mess and the troops need to come home immediately. "There is chaos. There's bloodshed. There's carnage."

The protest in the capital showcased a series of demonstrations in foreign and other U.S. cities.

A crowd in London, estimated by police at 10,000, marched in support of withdrawing British troops from Iraq. Highlighting the need to get out, protesters said, were violent clashes between insurgents and British troops in the southern Iraq city of Basra.

In Rome, dozens of protesters held up banners and peace flags outside the U.S. Embassy and covered a sidewalk with messages and flowers in honor of those killed in Iraq.

Cindy Sheehan, the California mother who drew thousands of demonstrators to her 26-day vigil outside Bush's Texas ranch last month, won a roar of approval when she took the stage in Washington. Her 24-year-old son, Casey, was killed in Iraq last year.

"Shame on you," Sheehan admonished, directing that portion of her remarks to members of Congress who backed Bush on the war. "How many more of other people's children are you willing to sacrifice?

She led the crowd in chanting, "Not one more."

Separately, hundreds of opponents of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund danced to the beat of drums in the Dupont Circle part of the city before marching toward the White House to join the anti-war protesters.

Supporters of Bush's policy in Iraq assembled in smaller numbers to get their voice heard in the day's anti-war din. About 150 of them rallied at the U.S. Navy Memorial.

Gary Qualls, 48, of Temple, Texas, whose Marine reservist son, Louis, died last year in the insurgent stronghold of Fallujah, asked: "If you bring them home now, who's going to be responsible for all the atrocities that are fixing to happen over there? Cindy Sheehan?"

When will it ever end? How many have to die? What is the purpose, to help
people that don't even want us in their country....Give me a break
And to those who will respond, What if it were YOUR child who died senselessly? It would be different then. It gives me chills just to think
where we, as a nation, will be a year from now.

 

[Littledragon]

I totally agree with you Kat!

Here is an article from another side view of the war:

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Support for U.S. troops fighting abroad mixed with anger toward anti-war demonstrators at home as hundreds of people, far fewer than organizers had expected, rallied Sunday on the National Mall just a day after tens of thousands protested against the war in Iraq.

"No matter what your ideals are, our sons and daughters are fighting for our freedom," said Marilyn Faatz, who drove from New Jersey to attend the rally. "We are making a mockery out of this. And we need to stand united, but we are not."

About 400 people gathered near a stage on an eastern segment of the mall, a large patchwork American flag serving as a backdrop. Amid banners and signs proclaiming support for U.S. troops, several speakers hailed the effort to bring democracy to Iraq and Afghanistan and denounced those who protest it.

Many demonstrators focused their ire at Cindy Sheehan, the California woman whose protest near President Bush's Texas home last summer galvanized the anti-war movement.

Sheehan was among the speakers at Saturday's rally near the Washington Monument on the western part of the mall, an event that attracted an estimated 100,000 people. (Full story)

"The group who spoke here the other day did not represent the American ideals of freedom, liberty and spreading that around the world," Sen. Jeff Sessions, an Alabama Republican, told the crowd. "I frankly don't know what they represent, other than to blame America first."

One sign on the mall read "Cindy Sheehan doesn't speak for me" and another "Arrest the traitors"; it listed Sheehan's name first among several people who have spoken against the war.

Melody Vigna, 44, of Linden, California, said she wants nothing to do with Sheehan and others at nearby Camp Casey, an anti-war site set up to honor her son, Casey, who was killed in Iraq.

"Our troops are over there fighting for our rights, and if she was in one of those countries she would not be able to do that," Vigna said.

The husband of Sherri Francescon, 24, of Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, serves in the Marine Corps in Iraq. One of the many military wives who spoke during the rally, Francescon said that the anti-war demonstration had left her frustrated.

"I know how much my husband does and how hard he works, and I feel like they don't even recognize that and give him the respect he deserves," Francescon said. "I want him to know and I want his unit to know that America is behind them; Cindy doesn't speak for us, and that we believe in what they are doing."

Organizers of Sunday's demonstration acknowledged that their rally would be much smaller than the anti-war protest but had hoped that as many as 20,000 people would turn out.

On Saturday, demonstrators opposed to the war in Iraq surged past the White House in the largest anti-war protest in the nation's capital since the U.S. invasion in March 2003. The rally stretched through the night, a marathon of music, speechmaking and dissent on the mall.

National polls have found steadily declining support for the war in Iraq, with a majority of Americans now believing the war was a mistake.

In an AP-Ipsos poll this month, only 37 percent approved or leaned toward approval of how Bush has handled the situation in Iraq; strong disapproval outweighed strong approval by 2-1, 46 percent to 22 percent.

 

[Littledragon]

Bush prepared to tap oil reserve.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Bush said Monday that the government is prepared to again tap into the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to alleviate any new pain at the pump caused by Hurricane Rita's assault on the center of the nation's energy industry.

He also implied he will likely name a federal czar-like official to oversee the reconstruction of the Gulf Coast from the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina. But he said that local officials must first produce a vision for how they want their rebuilt communities to look.

"I'm considering how best to balance the need for local vision and federal involvement," he said. "The vision and the element of reconstruction is just beginning and there may be a need for an interface with a particular person to help to make sure that the vision becomes reality."

Sen. David Vitter, R-Louisiana, said Monday he had urged the president to place "a strong federal leader on the Katrina reconstruction effort" beyond the short-term relief effort. Such a "reconstruction czar" would also need to make sure there were no improprieties in awarding the lucrative reconstruction contracts, Vitter said.

"If the American people lose confidence in this effort, Louisiana and the victims of the storm are going to suffer, so we have to have those protections in place," Vitter said in an interview on NBC's "Today" show.

With early indicators offering reason for optimism and a speedy recovery, Bush nonetheless warned Americans to expect some effect on energy supplies.

"A lot of our production comes from the Gulf and when you have a Hurricane Katrina followed by a Hurricane Rita, it's natural, unfortunately, that it's going to affect supplies," Bush said after a briefing at the Energy Department. (Watch Bush's comments -- 3:39)

"It's important for our people to know that we understand the situation and we're willing to use the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to mitigate any shortfall in crude oil that could affect our consumers."

Bush also expressed concern that the storm could cause disruptions in getting gasoline to market. As a result, he urged people in the area to curtail any nonessential travel and asked federal employees to carpool as much as possible.

"The storms have shown how fragile the balance is between supply and demand in America," he said.

He said he was returning to the hurricane-affected region on Tuesday, traveling to Beaumont and Port Arthur, Texas -- two of the harder-hit areas. In a three-day trip he concluded on Sunday, the president did not have direct contact with areas or people affected by the storm, spending the entire weekend getting briefings from military and other federal officials in Colorado, Texas and Louisiana.

The nation's four Strategic Petroleum Reserve sites on the Gulf Coast, two underground caverns in Texas and two in Louisiana, hold nearly 700 million barrels of oil. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the federal government provided several refineries with oil from the reserve to make up for supply losses.

Oil prices slid Monday, as markets reacted to reports of relatively light damage to crucial U.S. petroleum processing zones in Texas.

But 16 Texas oil refineries remained shut down after the storm, and crews found significant damage to at least one in the Port Arthur area, said Energy Department spokesman Craig Stevens.

Bush declined to shed more light on a politically sensitive idea he has been gentle pushing for more than a week -- making the military the lead agency in charge in the event of a catastrophic natural disaster or terrorist attack. Congress would have to change law for that to happen.

Under existing law, a state's governor is chiefly responsible for disaster response, including control over the state's National Guard. In a crisis, the Guard would be working with active duty troops. The Homeland Security Department and the Federal Emergency Management Agency response to requests to states, and if federal troops are brought in to help, they do so in support of FEMA.

"I want there to be robust discussion," Bush said.

The issue balances the need for an adequate response to disasters against trampling on states' rights.

A key economic Bush aide -- Ben Bernanke, chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers -- said Sunday that hundreds of thousands of jobs were at risk if the storm stunted oil production -- even though early assessments show little damage to most refineries.

Government officials, meanwhile, were satisfied with the response to Rita, including better stockpiling of supplies, early evacuations and more military muscle than deployed four weeks ago against Hurricane Katrina.

 

[Littledragon]

California Wildfires!

SIMI VALLEY, California (CNN) -- Cooler temperatures and calmer winds on Friday helped firefighters get a better handle on the massive wildfire raging in Southern California.

Fueled by dry conditions, the blaze has scorched 20,655 acres northwest of downtown Los Angeles, authorities said.

Firefighters have contained about 20 percent of the blaze. Temperatures dropped overnight and the wind calmed and changed direction to draw more humid air off the Pacific Ocean.

Some 3,000 firefighters from across the state are carving out a 15-mile fire line. Flare-ups that could threaten structures are still possible.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger was expected to view the fire zone from a helicopter later Friday, the Ventura County Fire Department's Web site said.

About 1,500 people were evacuated from the path of the Chatsworth/Topanga fire, according to a statement posted on Ventura County's Web site.

Over 100 people slept Thursday night in Red Cross shelters in Los Angeles County and at least one district closed its schools Friday.

Although structures are still threatened, nearly 2,000 homes have been saved through the efforts of firefighters from five departments -- Ventura County, Los Angeles County, Los Angeles City, the California Department of Forestry and the National Park Service.

So far, the blaze has destroyed three homes, a detached garage, a storage building and an unknown structure, officials in Los Angeles and Ventura counties said.

The cost of the destruction was estimated at more than $2.8 million.

The fire was still threatening the suburban communities of Simi Valley to the north and Thousand Oaks to the west, said Kevin Nestor, a battalion chief for the Ventura County Fire Department.

Officials are still concerned that the fire could jump U.S. 101, endangering Malibu on the coast and other areas where thousands of upscale properties are located.

The fire started Wednesday afternoon near Chatsworth, northwest of Los Angeles, and was quickly spread by the Santa Ana winds from the northwest.

Los Angeles County and Ventura County have declared a state of local disaster to formalize aid with other agencies and to help recuperate the costs of fighting the massive fire.

The fire doubled in size overnight Thursday, to 7,000 acres, and then more than doubled to its current size later in the day after global positioning system units flying over the fire obtained an updated number of acres burned.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

 

[Littledragon]

Jailed reporter reaches deal in CIA leak probe.

(CNN) -- After spending 12 weeks in jail for refusing to name a source, The New York Times reporter Judith Miller testified Friday before a federal grand jury looking into a CIA leak case after her source gave her permission.

Miller said she agreed to testify before the grand jury only after she received a personal letter and telephone call from her source, Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff, and a promise from the special investigator that her testimony would be limited to her communication between her and her source.

Libby made a telephone call to Miller in prison September 19 to personally free her from the pledge of confidentiality, a move that contributed to her release, Libby's attorney, Joseph Tate of Philadelphia, told CNN.

"These were not form waivers," Miller said after leaving federal court in Washington. "They were not discussions among lawyers." (Watch Miller's statement -- 5:43| Text)

"I testified as soon as I could," she said. "I knew what my conscience would allow."

Miller did not identify the source.

"I am hopeful that my very long stay in jail will serve to strengthen the bond between reporters and their sources," Miller said.

She did not discuss her testimony before the grand jury.

New York Times publisher Arthur Sulzberger Jr. said the newspaper supported Miller's decision to testify.

"We are very pleased that she has finally received a direct and uncoerced waiver, by phone and in writing, releasing her from any claim of confidentiality and enabling her to testify," he said in a statement.

Miller was released from a federal facility in Alexandria, Virginia, about 4 p.m. after a contempt order against her was vacated by a federal judge, a source with detailed knowledge of her case told CNN.

Had refused to testify
The chain of events that led to the contempt charges against Miller began in July 2003, when syndicated columnist Robert Novak, who is also a CNN contributor, identified Valerie Plame as a CIA operative in his column. He cited unidentified senior administration sources for the information.

Plame's husband is Joe Wilson, a former U.S. ambassador to Iraq. Wilson charged that his wife's name was leaked to retaliate against him after he disputed Bush administration statements that Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein had tried to purchase uranium in Africa.

Because federal law makes it a crime to deliberately reveal the identity of a CIA operative, the Justice Department launched an investigation, headed by Patrick Fitzgerald, the U.S. attorney in Chicago.

As part of his probe, Fitzgerald subpoenaed a number of journalists to testify about their sources, including Miller. Despite the fact that she never actually wrote a story on Plame or Wilson, Miller refused to testify about sources she developed during her reporting, and she was jailed for contempt in July.

She could have been held in jail until October, when the grand jury's term will expire.

New York Times Executive Editor Bill Keller said that until recently, Miller had received "only a generic waiver" of her confidentiality promise, "and she believed she had ample reason to doubt it had been freely given."

"In recent days, several important things have changed that convinced Judy that she was released from her obligation," Keller said in a statement. He did not provide details of what those changes were.

Miller said in her statement that she would not comment until after she testifies before the grand jury.

'Why didn't someone call us?'
After news broke Thursday of Miller's release from prison, Tate said Libby signed a waiver of confidentiality more than a year ago and that Tate followed up with a phone call to Abrams assuring him Libby's waiver was voluntary.

But Tate said Miller's attorney, Bob Bennett, told him over the Labor Day weekend that Miller did not accept that waiver because "it came from lawyers."

Tate said he wondered "why didn't someone call us 80 days ago" -- before Miller entered prison.

Tate said Libby has testified before the grand jury about his "conversations with Judy Miller and everyone else."

While it was unclear what Libby said in his testimony, Tate said Libby "did not know the name Valerie Plame until he read it in Robert Novak's article."

Tate also mentioned two Washington Post reporters, Glenn Kessler and Walter Pincus. He said both men have testified that they did not talk to Libby about the case.

 

[Littledragon]

Bali terrorist blasts kill at least 36.

(CNN) -- Terrorists brought death to Indonesia's Bali paradise for the second time in three years Saturday, as blasts killed at least 36 people at two resort spots.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono condemned Saturday's bombings as an act of terrorism. There were no immediate claims of responsibility.

But terrorism expert Rohan Gunaratna told CNN that the attacks had the hallmarks of Jemaah Islamiyah -- a Southeast Asian terrorist group with ties to al Qaeda.

"There is no other group with this level of capability," he said.

In addition to the 36 fatalities, hospital officials said 103 people were wounded. A hospital emergency room where victims were treated resembled a war zone, journalist Sean Mulcahy told CNN. (Watch chaotic aftermath of Bali blasts -- 1:30)

The series of blasts began in the resort area of Jimbaran Bay, where there were two explosions at about 8 p.m. Saturday night (8 a.m. ET). They were followed minutes later by one or more blasts at Kuta, 30 kilometers away.

"The ground is just covered in blood, people walking around with arms missing," said Mulcahy, who, at the time of the blasts, happened to be next door to a restaurant that was hit in the town of Kuta.

The attack came almost exactly three years after terrorists bombed Kuta nightclubs on October 12, 2002 -- killing 202 people.

"People were just starting to build up confidence again, and to have this happen was devastating for the locals. But I think it's the nail in the coffin for people coming to this place," Mulcahy said.

Video of the scene in Kuta showed glass windows of several upscale stores shattered, glass littering the street, and the awning of Raja's noodle house blown askew.

Maria Bakkalapulo, a journalist who arrived at Kuta about an hour after the blasts, said it appeared a bomb detonated inside Raja's, which "was pretty much gutted."

According to unconfirmed reports, a second bomb detonated on the restaurant's second floor, Bakkalapulo said.

The 2002 bombings were blamed on Jemaah Islamiyah (JI).

Four key militants involved in the 2002 attack have been sentenced -- three to death -- while dozens of others have also been convicted.

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan joined Yudhoyono in condemning the latest attacks in Bali, as did other world leaders.

The White House issued a statement Saturday offering sympathy to victims, "their families and the people of Bali who have suffered meaningless violence before. "We also express our solidarity with the government of Indonesia and convey our readiness to assist in any way."

Australian Prime Minister John Howard told the Nine television network on Sunday morning that he was horrified and deeply saddened by the attacks, which he characterized as an attempt to undermine democracy in Indonesia.

He said Australia was offering medical evacuation facilities to Indonesia for anybody wounded in the blasts.

Kuta and Jimbaran -- the other resort spot targeted -- were "chock-a-block" with tourists celebrating a holiday weekend, Mulcahy said.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Marty Natalegawa said reports indicate the blasts appeared to have occurred only minutes apart.

In the Jimbaran attack, two explosions tore through a long row of outdoor tables at a beachfront cafe where tourists often gather to watch the sun set, Mulcahy said. The blast sites were about 40 meters apart, he said.

Ketut Suartana, 33, told Reuters he was eating when the first Jimbaran bomb exploded.

"We were eating and suddenly it just went dark," Suartana said from a hospital bed, where he was treated for scratches on his face and chest. "I tried to run but I kept falling over. Then the second blast happened. People were in panic. I just tried to save myself."

Mulcahy -- who felt the blast while inside a restaurant next to Raja's -- had plans to dine with friends at Jimbaran, but the streets were backed up with heavy traffic so they headed to Kuta, instead.

"Had we gone to Jimbaran, we would more than likely be dead," Mulcahy said.

The attack left tourists filled with "fear and terror," and they are fleeing their hotels in Bali with suitcases in hand, Mulcahy said.

"I imagine they'll put on extra flights to cope with the amount of people that are leaving," he said.

Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer told Australia's ABC radio that a 16-year-old Australian boy was among those killed, and there were "grave fears" for two other Australians.

Downer said it appeared most of those killed were Indonesian. He said 17 Australians were among the injured. Local media reports also said several foreigners are among those wounded.

So far 15 bodies had been identified, according to Reuters news agency, quoting hospital officials. It said among the dead were 12 Indonesians, including a six-year-old boy, two Australians and a Japanese national. The wounded included 17 Australians, six South Koreans, three Americans, three Japanese and one Briton.

Downer said Australia was sending a response team to Bali, and Australian Federal Police were ready to work with their Indonesian colleagues in investigating the attacks.

Warnings of terrorism
Shortly after Saturday's blast, Yudhoyono addressed the nation on state television, expressing his concern and condemning what he called a terrorist attack.

"These were clearly acts of terrorism because the victims were indiscriminately chosen and the targets were public areas. As president and on behalf of the Republic of Indonesia, I strongly condemn these inhuman acts," the leader said.

Yudhoyono said he had received intelligence information in July about terrorist elements in Malaysia and Philippines planning to target Indonesia, and had increased security in Jakarta and Bali as a precaution.

Recently, Yudhoyono issued a warning that terrorist cells inside the country were still active, despite hundreds of arrests.

Several other governments, including the United States, had warned about a high terrorist threat to foreigners in Indonesia ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which begins next week.

A report issued in early September warned that Osama bin Laden and his top lieutenant, Ayman al-Zawahiri, may be planning a series of attacks in October, dubbed "The Great Ramadan Offensive."

On Friday the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta reiterated its warning of last May that the threat of terrorism is high and Americans there should be vigilant.

"Attacks could occur at any time and could be directed against any location, including those frequented by foreigners and identifiably American or other western facilities or businesses in Indonesia," the message said.

The island of Bali -- a popular spot for international tourists -- is a Hindu enclave in Indonesia, which has the highest Muslim population of any nation in the world.

The Australian government warned immediately after the Saturday night blasts that the possibility of further explosions could not be ruled out. It urged Australians in Bali to remain in their hotels.

Aside from the 2002 Bali attack, there have been a number of other terrorist incidents in Indonesia in recent years.

The Australian embassy in Jakarta was bombed in September 2004 in an attack that left 10 people dead, while in August 2003, 12 people were killed after a suicide bomber struck the J.W. Marriott hotel in Jakarta. Both attacks were blamed on JI.

Australia and the United States consider Indonesian cleric Abu Bakar Ba'asyir to be the spiritual head of JI.

In March this year, Ba'asyir was sentenced to 30 months in jail for involvement in the 2002 Bali nightclub bombings, but was cleared of all other terror-related charges, including those related to the Marriott Hotel bombing.

 

[ORANGATUANG]

Just an update Littledragon there are 4 aussies dead now...and two more aussies are on the critical list..One of the Aussies that died was an woman whom had an heart attack from the shock of the blasts she still is an victim
An freind said today that the only way that we can get rid of this scum whom love killing is to find out where there camps are and bomb the sh.it out of them ..like that is going to happen NOT...Its an sad world ...



Today marked 3 years since the (first) Bali bombings..In which 88 of us aussies died...there has been alot of church services around our country and Bali in rememberance..My home city of Adelaide next week are going to do some exercises in terrosist attacks...better to be prepared just in case...because we dont know how this sick animals work...like the other day down my way an house was raided and inside was bomb making materail...not far from me its just abit scary but i aint moving ..