Officials Praise Cabbie's Plan for China's Water

Chinese officials say a Beijing cab driver’s proposal on how to increase natural rainfall in north China is on the right track. Environmental officials solicited public proposals on what went wrong with China’s once-abundant water supply. Liu Zhenxiang’s theory, which Chinadialogue.net says is borne out by science, is that a lack of groundwater means not enough water evaporates to bring rain. China’s reservoirs are a recipe for disaster, he argues, because they trap water rather than letting it flow naturally in rivers. Not only have residents over-exploited their groundwater, Liu said, but planners have been controlling it with destructive artificial river canals and wetlands have been lost to development.

Pentagon Delayed Bomb-Proof Cars

Roadside bombs are the No. 1 killer of U.S. troops in Iraq, but the No. 1 security solution — obtaining a fleet of Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles, or MRAPs, to protect against such explosives — was pushed aside by Pentagon officials until early this year, reports USA Today. The Marines requested the first 27 MRAPs in December 2003, followed by commanders and the Pentagon’s own staff. But military brass repeatedly shelved the appeals for the larger and heavier vehicles, preferring to add armor to Humvees at a lesser cost.

Iraqi Politicians Fear U.S. Pullout

While Congress debates (or refuses to debate) a withdrawal timeline for Iraq, most Sunni and Shia Arab parties in the Iraqi parliament are getting nervous at the prospect of losing the protective presence of U.S. troops. A Sunni-led group called the Iraqi Accord Front has reversed its earlier position, which was for an immediate U.S. withdrawal. Leaving now, the group says, would shift power to “outlaws” and send Iraq “back to the middle ages.” [The Associated Press reported today that the “Accordance Front” has since announced its withdrawal from the Iraqi government over failure to disband militias and other security measures.]
Only parliament members allied with Muqtada al-Sadr still advocate for an immediate pull-out, which some analysts attribute to the fact that Sadr’s allies have enough power to overwhelm the weak Iraqi Army and take over. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki seems to disagree with officials in parliament, saying last month that U.S. troops could leave “any time.”

Oil Spills Are Commonplace, Decried, and Tolerated

Far from isolated mega-catastrophes — such as the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster in Alaska’s Prince William Sound — oil spills occur routinely around the world, causing environmental and economic damage, provoking investigations by regional governments, and often leaving the victims unsatisfied. Entering the words “oil spill” in the Google News search engine returned more than 2,500 distinct articles published in the last 30 days on the topic. At the top of the news right now is the 100-foot fountain of petroleum that smothered the Canadian town of Burnaby this week, after a pipeline was pierced by a road-excavation crew. Fifty homes were evacuated and the contamination spread to the nearby Burrard Inlet, a harbor and wetlands ecosystem home to a variety of marine wildlife, including four species of salmon. Experts told the Canadian Press that the cleanup will cost millions, and that the toxic effects of petroleum in soil, sand and water could last for decades.

Mommy, I Got the Safe-Sex Merit Badge!

The U.K.-based Girl Guides are raising a few eyebrows, and acknowledging the realities of modern life, by initiating a new program of sex education, debt management, and such basics of today’s home life as “flat-pack” furniture assembly. The decision follows a survey of Girl Guides in the United Kingdom to determine the priorities of a century-old organization that once caused a scandal by encouraging young women to go camping and join sports teams.

Source:
“Guides keen to be prepared — for safe sex and living with debt”
The Times (U.K.), July 25, 2007

Copyright Expires on British Invasion

The United Kingdom has denied efforts by Paul McCartney and other figures from music history to extend the copyright from 50 to 70 years on their early hits. This includes the Beatles classic “Please Please Me,” among others. In contrast, the estates of U.K. novelists enjoy copyright protection for 70 years beyond the author’s death. In the United States, performers retain copyright on their work for 95 years past the original release of a recording. Source:
“U.K. won’t extend copyright on rockers’ old hits”
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, July 24, 2007

A Farewell to Arms

Gun sales and stockpiles may be booming worldwide, but in Colombia an unusual ceremony saw the destruction of 13,778 handguns, machine guns, rifles and mortars. The weapons were melted down as part of International Gun Destruction Day, and will be used to make school chairs and a memorial for victims of gun violence there. According to Inter Press Service, Colombia has one of the highest homicide rates in the world, and 70 percent of those murders were committed with mostly illegal firearms in 2005. Most of the guns destroyed were taken from gangsters and militias, officials said — while the rest were legally owned, and turned in voluntarily by their owners. In addition to Colombia, International Gun Destruction Day was also observed by Ukraine, Sri Lanka and Albania.

Democratic Congress: A High Pork Diet

A report from the Center for Investigative Reporting exposes the hypocrisy of Democratic claims that the $463.5-billion spending bill they passed in February was “earmark-free,” or free of any specific pork-barrel project money for their home states. But within days of the bill passing, Democrats deluged federal agencies to fund their pet projects directly, according to the report. In fact, documents show that agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Commerce received 122 spending requests from 52 senators and 205 representatives in January through April — exactly when Democrats were reaping the publicity benefits of their “earmark-free” appropriations policy. Congressmen say these requests differ from earmarks because agencies can “just say no,” but experts say the agencies, already dependent on Congress to fund their budgets, are likely to feel pressure to accede to them. Source:
“Lawmakers try to save their earmarks”
Los Angeles Times, July 10, 2007

Mexican Drug Sting Bites Back

A drug bust that netted $205 million gave Mexican President Felipe Calderon bragging rights back in March, but has since turned into a PR nightmare. Zhenli Ye Gon, a Chinese immigrant and Mexican national, was accused of importing tons of methamphetamine ingredients, but turned the tables by claiming that the money was actually illegal campaign cash, and that Calderon’s operatives threatened to kill him if he didn’t hide it during last year’s election. Noticias de Oaxaca reports that his alleged ties to Calderon’s ruling National Action Party and the Mexican military have put all concerned on the defensive, and that the $205 million is now considered emblematic of government collusion with drug barons. While Mexico’s opposition parties have called for an investigation, Ye Gon is a free man in New York City, having fled the country after being tipped off, allegedly by complicit police officers, about an impending raid on his home. The DEA, meanwhile, won’t arrest or extradite him, saying they don’t have the proper “paperwork.”

Asia’s Plague of Cars

In spite of Asia’s renown for producing the most advanced, gas-efficient cars on the planet, the growing popularity of car travel in China, Japan, Vietnam and their neighbors has led to serious air pollution and heath effects. Pollution kills 750,000 people in China every year, according to previously unreleased World Bank statistics, the Telegraph reports. At least 500,000 of those mortalities are due to outdoor air pollution, a fact the Chinese government sought to keep secret, fearing “social instability” were it known. Cars are a major culprit, and the situation has grown so dire that Xu Zongheng, mayor of Shenzhen, recently started asking its ten million residents not to buy any more cars. In Japan, a group of 522 asthma sufferers won a settlement in a landmark suit against the government and seven carmakers.