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October 30, 2007 | Stuff

Posted by Becky @ 10:14 pm | 2 Comments

State Department grants*** Blackwater immunity

Blackwater,Death,Defense industry,Ethics,FEMA,George Bush,Iraq,Military,MSM,PR,U.S. government

But it apparently didn’t tell FBI agents before sending them to Baghdad to investigate the Sept. 16, 2007, incident that left 17 Iraqis dead.

The investigative misstep comes in the wake of already-strained relations between the United States and Iraq, which is demanding the right to launch its own prosecution of the Blackwater bodyguards.

Misstep?Â The U.S. State Department can’t seem to get a grasp on oversight. The U.S. embassy offers to pay Iraqi families $12,500 for eachÂ Blackwater victim.Â Who’s running this joint? FEMA?

Blackwater spokeswoman Anne Tyrrell declined comment about the U.S. investigation.

Well. Duh.

It’s not clear why the Diplomatic Security investigators agreed to give immunity to the bodyguards, or who authorized doing so.

Of course not.

Bureau of Diplomatic Security chief Richard GriffinÂ last week announced his resignation, effective Thursday. Senior State Department officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, have said his departure was directly related to his oversight of Blackwater contractors.

But Blackwater branches out and expands its contracts, even though it was accused of stealing Iraqi airplanes, smuggling and illegally selling weapons, almost killing a U.S. soldier and evading taxes.

Last week, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice ordered a series of measures to boost government oversight of the private guards who protect American diplomats in Iraq. They include increased monitoring and explicit rules on when and how they can use deadly force.

Right. Cultural awareness training. Yeah. That’ll fix it. Heckuva job, Condi.

At least the immunity explains why Blackwater CEO Erik Prince “welcomes extra oversight,” has employed aÂ new PR campaign and blitzedÂ (blizted with Blizter … get it?) the media,Â chatting with everyone but Letterman, and asked reporters to contact Congress on Blackwater’s behalf. Sort of his own little “bring ’em on” statement.

***Oh, wait. Blackwater always had immunity.

Dig this.

Oh, that Bush.Â He’s such a kidder.

Need more laughs?

We believe that Iraq as a market will continue to grow for some time due to the outsourcing by the US government in terms of convoy logistics, in terms of guarding, that will continue. The fact that there are obviously huge oil reserves in Iraq and international companies will go back in once the security situation stabilises a bit more. — Patrick Toyne-Sewell, ArmorGroup International, The Independent, Oct. 24, 2007

Here are some of the companies with government contracts in Iraq:

Posted by Becky @ 3:11 pm | Comments

FEMA: Heckuva Job Brownie 2.0

October 27, 2007 | California fires,Ethics,FEMA,Media,PR,U.S. government

The Federal Emergency Management Agency talked about the California fires to fake reporters at a fake press conference in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, and it was presented as real in mainstream media. Harvey E. Johnson Jr., deputy administrator and chief operating officer of FEMA answered questions from his public-relations staff, Cindy Taylor (communications deputy director), Michael WidomskiÂ (program operations), John P.Â PhilbinÂ (director, Office of External Affairs) and possibly Ali Kirin (press aide). Think Progress has the video from FOX News.

Anyone get fired? Suspended? Fined? Put in a corner?

Actually, Philbin was moving up and out — as the new head of public affairs at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. Sweet.

The Department of Homeland Security was shocked — shocked! — at FEMA’s behavior.

“This is inexcusable and offensive, and stunts like this will not be tolerated or repeated,” said spokeswoman [i.e., PR] Laura Keehner. “It was a lapse of judgment, and we find it offensive, and it won’t happen again.”

The White House yawned.

“It is not a practice that we would employ here at the White House,” said Press Secretary Dana Perino, mentioning three times that it was an “error in judgment.” “It’s not something I would have condoned, and they, I’m sure, will not do it again.”

All-righty then.Â

Oh, and speaking of Brownie, guess what he’s up to now. He’s giving interviews and advice about disaster preparedness for Cotton Companies.

I know. Crazy, isn’t it? I would have thought he’d go back to horses. Or branched out into fashion. But, gee, maybe he reallyÂ knows what he’s talking about. The Oklahoman thinks so. CNN (and Wolf!) thinks so. Wow. Thumbs up, Brownie.

Hat tip: Matthew

Posted by Becky @ 10:32 pm | 4 Comments

Dad2twins, meet the daddy bloggers

Blogging,Dad2twins

Daddy bloggers, meet Lance of Dad2twins. Give him a beer and show him around the place, will you? Thanks!

Posted by Becky @ 3:56 pm | 10 Comments

Ecuador refuses to renew U.S. base lease

Ecuador,Military,MSM

To hear mainstream media tell it, you’d think he wants a military base in Miami:

“Ecuador wants military base in Miami,” The New Zealand Herald, Oct. 23, 2007

“Correa suggests base in Miami,” The Washington Times, Oct. 23, 2007

Did they miss the point?

Correa has refused to renew Washington’s lease on the Manta air base, set to expire in 2009. U.S. officials say it is vital for counter-narcotics surveillance operations on Pacific drug-running routes.

“We’ll renew the base on one condition: that they let us put a base in Miami — an Ecuadorean base,” Correa said in an interview during a trip to Italy. “If there’s no problem having foreign soldiers on a country’s soil, surely they’ll let us have an Ecuadorean base in the United States.”

Posted by Becky @ 10:04 am | 2 Comments

Debates set for presidential candidates

October 21, 2007 | 2008 campaign,Debates

Sept. 26, 2008 — Presidential debate focused on foreign policy and national security at University of Mississippi, Oxford, Miss., 9 p.m. (Eastern), moderated by Jim Lehrer. According to the Commission on Presidential Debates, it will go on as planned.

Oct. 2, 2008 — Vice presidential debate at Washington University in St. Louis, Mo., 9 p.m. (Eastern), moderated by Gwen Ifill. Debate ticket lottery registration ends at noon on Friday, Sept. 26.

Oct. 7, 2008 — Presidential debate in a town hall format at Belmont University, Nashville, Tenn., 9 p.m. (Eastern), moderated by Tom Brokaw.

Oct. 15, 2008 —Presidential debate focused on domestic and economic issues at Hofsta University, Hempstead, N.Y., 9 p.m. (Eastern), moderated by Bob Schieffer. Debate ticket lottery registration for students ends at noon on Friday, Oct. 3.

Other debate schedules

Wikipedia (Democrats)

Wikipedia (Republicans)

You Decide 2008

Past debates

July 23, 2007 — Democrats debated at the Citadel in Charleston, S.C., at 7 p.m. (EDT) on Monday, July 23, 2007. CNN and YouTube aired the debate, moderated by Anderson Cooper and sponsored by the South Carolina Democratic Party. CNN editors chose questions from videos posted on YouTube by viewers July 14-22.

Aug. 5, 2007 –Â RepublicansÂ debated at Drake University‘s Sheslow Auditorium in Des Moines on Sunday, Aug. 5, 2007,Â as a special edition of This Week with George StephanopoulosÂ (whoÂ moderated) on ABC.Â David Yepsen, political columnist for The Des Moines RegisterÂ also asked questions. Tickets were available only to university students, faculty and staff. Doing it the YouTube way? (Shh! Don’t tell the candidates. They might not show up.) Stephanopoulos asked viewers for video questions.

Aug. 7, 2007 — Democrats will debate Tuesday, Aug. 7, 2007, at 6 p.m. (CDT) — broadcast live on MSNBC and XM Radio — at the AFL-CIO Presidential Candidates Forum at Soldier Field in Chicago. Gates open at 4 p.m. Everyone will be seated by 5:30 p.m. Host: Keith Olbermann, live broadcast of Countdown with Keith Olberman, 7:30-8 p.m. Tickets are available only for union members and their families. Contact your local union or the Chicago Federation of Labor at (312) 222-1000 for ticket information. Members outside Chicago can request tickets by calling (202) 637-5297 or e-mailing kbauer@aflcio.org. Submit questions for candidates here.

Aug. 9, 2007 — DemocratsÂ debated on Thursday, Aug. 9, 2007, in Los Angeles at 6 p.m. PDT (9 p.m. EDT) on the Logo network and the Logo Web site.Â Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese, Melissa Etheridge and Jonathan Capehart were panelists. Margaret CarlsonÂ moderated.

Aug. 19, 2007 — Democrats debated at Drake University‘s Sheslow Auditorium in Des Moines on Sunday, Aug. 19, 2007, at 8 a.m. (CDT) as a special edition of This Week with George Stephanopoulos (who moderated) on ABC. David Yepsen, political columnist for The Des Moines Register also asked questions. Tickets were available only to university students, faculty and staff. The debate was sponsored by the Iowa Democratic Party and sanctioned by the Democratic National Committee. See a transcript here or here. See ABC video here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here. Watch and rate video questions here.

Sept. 5, 2007 — Republicans debated Wednesday, Sept. 5, 2007, at 9 p.m. (EDT) at the University of New Hampshire‘s Whittemore Center in Durham, N.H. Sponsored by the New Hampshire Republican Party, the debate aired on FOX News. Deadline for press credentials was Aug. 24.

Sept. 9, 2007 — Democrats debated Sunday, Sept. 9, 2007, at 6:30 p.m. (EDT) at BankUnited Center at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Fla. It aired on Univision, RadioCadena and Univision.com. Univision’s news anchors Jorge Ramos and Maria Elena Salinas moderated. The debate focused on topics of particular importance to the U.S. Hispanic community, including education, economy, Latin American foreign policy, immigration and health care. All questions were asked in Spanish and translated to English for candidates. The candidates answered in English, and their answers were translated into Spanish. Tickets were available only to students, faculty and staff, and the debate was sold out.

While most coverage of the debate was fairly bland (as expected), Marc Cooper offered an interesting critiqueÂ on Huffington Post.

Sept. 12, 2007 — DemocratsÂ will take part in a “presidential candidate mashup,” sponsored by Huffington Post, Slate and Yahoo! and moderated by Charlie Rose, on Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2007. Slatedescribes a mashup as “a new kind of campaign forum that will put you in charge of shaping exactly what kind of viewing experience you want to have — from the questions that are asked to the way you can pick and choose the issues you want to hear about and the candidates you want to hear from.” Rose will ask each of the candidates questions sent in by viewers. The videos will be coded and put online.

Submit questions to Huffington Post by sending a comment here. Include “Question for a Candidate” at the top of the comment. Submit questions to Slate to questionthecandidates@slate.com. Vote on topics at Yahoo! here. Facebook and MySpace will have platforms for submitting questions.

~~Sept. 16, 2007 —~~ ~~Republicans~~ ~~were set to debate Sunday, Sept. 16, 2007, at 6:30 p.m. (EDT). According to the~~ ~~Miami Herald, however, it has been canceled after only one Republican candidate (Sen.~~ ~~John McCain, R-Ariz.) agreed to participate.~~

Sept. 17, 2007 — Some RepublicansÂ debated Monday, Sept. 17, 2007, at 7:30 p.m. (EDT) at the Broward Center for Performing ArtsÂ in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Organized by the Values Voter organization, itÂ aired live on Sky Angel andÂ aired later on the Inspiration Network, the DayStar Television Network, God TV and TBN Nejat TV. ItÂ streamed live on Values Voter Debate,Â American Family Association Online and radio and aired on VCY America.

Joseph Farah of WorldNetDailyÂ moderated. According to WorldNetDaily,Â questionsÂ came from Paul Weyrich, founder and president of the Free Congress Foundation; Phyllis Schlafly, founder and president of Eagle Forum; Don Wildmon, founder and chairman of the American Family Association; Judge Roy Moore, a WND columnist with the Foundation for Moral Law; Rick Scarborough of Vision America; and Mat Staver of Liberty Council. Viewers could send questions to f2ainfo@f2a.org.

Republicans slated to participate: Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., Mike Huckabee, Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, and John Cox. Rudy Giuliani, Mitt Romney, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Fred Thompson declined to participate. Democratic candidates declined to participate in a separate debate.

Sept. 20, 2007 — DemocratsÂ answered questions about long-term financial security and health care on Thursday, Sept. 20, 2007, at the Adler Theatre in Davenport, Iowa. Sponsored by Iowa AARP and its advocacy program, Divided We Fail, the forumÂ aired live on Iowa Public Television and PBS stations across the country at 7 p.m. (CDT). PBS correspondent and anchor Judy WoodruffÂ moderated. To register for tickets, call AARP at 877-926-8300 or write iaaarp@aarp.org. Iowans were invited to e-mail questions by Sept. 1 to mfetterhoff@aarp.org.

Candidates planning to participate were Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., and Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., John Edwards and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson. Debate organizers did not invite Dennis Kucinich and Mike Gravel to the forum. Read coverage here.

Sept. 23, 2007 — DemocratsÂ debated Sunday, Sept. 23, 2007, at Detroit’s Fox Theater. Sponsored by the Congressional Black Caucus, itÂ aired on Fox News. Obama and Clinton, so far, refuse to participate.

The CBC and Fox News have not set a date and place for a Republican debate.

I don’t see coverage for this debate anywhere. Did it happen?

Sept. 26, 2007 —DemocratsÂ debated Wednesday, Sept. 26, 2007, at Spaulding Auditorium of the Hopkins Center at Dartmouth College in Hanover, N.H. ItÂ aired on MSNBC, New England Cable News, NBC News and NH Public Radio. Co-sponsors were the Democratic National Committee and the New Hampshire Democratic Party. Tim Russert, NBC’s Washington Bureau Chief and host of Meet the Press,”Â moderated. Deadline for ticket-lottery applications was 5 p.m., Wednesday, Sept. 5, 2007. Tickets were available only to student, faculty or staff of the college or permanent residents of New Hampshire.

Transcript here. Video here.

Sept. 27, 2007 — Republicans debated at the All American Presidential Forums on PBS on Thursday, Sept. 27, 2007, at 9 p.m. (EDT) at Morgan State University in Baltimore. Tavis Smiley moderated. The transcript is here. Watch or listen online here.

(Democrats debated June 28, 2007, at Howard University in Washington, D.C. Find the transcript here.)

Oct. 9, 2007 — RepublicansÂ debated on economic issues on Tuesday, Oct. 9, 2007, at the Ford Community and Performing Arts Centerin Dearborn, Mich. Sponsored by CNBC, MSNBC, The Wall Street Journal, the City of Dearborn, the University of Michigan-Dearborn and the Michigan GOP, the debateÂ aired live on CNBC at 4 p.m. EDT. MSNBCÂ rebroadcasted at 9 p.m.

Transcript here. Video here.

~~Oct. 14, 2007 —~~ ~~Republicans~~ ~~will debate in Manchester, N.H., sponsored by ABC News, WMUR-TV, and the New Hampshire Union Leader.~~ Canceled.

Oct. 20, 2007 — Democrats will debate in Manchester, N.H., sponsored by ABC News, WMUR-TV, and the New Hampshire Union Leader. Canceled.

Oct. 21, 2007 — Republicans debated on Sunday, Oct. 21, 2007, at 8 p.m. (EDT) at the Rosen Shingle Creek Hotel in Orlando, Fla. Sponsored by the Republican Party of Florida and FOX News. Information about press credentials is here.

Summary by FactCheck.

Oct. 25, 2007 — Two Republicans, Gov. Mike Huckabee and Sen. John McCain, answered questions about long-term financial security and health care on Thursday, Oct. 25, 2007, at 7 p.m. (CDT) at the Orpheum Theater in Sioux City, Iowa. Sponsored by Iowa AARP and its advocacy program, Divided We Fail, the forum aired live on Iowa Public Television and PBS stations across the country.

Dean Borg, host of IPT’s “Iowa Press,” moderated the 90-minute discussion solely focused on health care and financial security. ~~PBS correspondent and anchor Judy Woodruff moderated.~~ Sioux City Journal Editorial Page Editor Mike Gors and audience members also asked questions. AARP President Erik Olsen, AARP members and volunteers from five states traveled to Sioux City to attend the forum.

To register for tickets, call AARP at 877-926-8300 or write iaaarp@aarp.org. Iowans could e-mail questions by Sept. 1 to mfetterhoff@aarp.org.

View video here. GOP candidates: Prevention is health key, Bret Hayworth, The Globe Gazette, Oct. 25, 2007. More covereage here.

Oct. 30, 2007 — Democrats (except Mike Gravel) will debate at the Drexel University Main Building Auditorium in Philadelphia from 9 to 11 p.m. (EDT) on Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2007. Mike Gravel has been excluded from the debates because he did not meet fundraising and polling requirements. He’s not happy about it:

NBC’s decision is proof that our corporate media do not want a genuine debate over our impending war with Iran. … The fact that NBC is owned by General Electric, one of the world’s leading military contractors, is frightening and certainly smacks of censorship directed at the most outspoken critic of the influence that the military-industrial complex holds over this great nation. In the past decade, GE has benefited financially from the global war on terrorism and currently holds almost $2 billion in military contracts.

But wait. He’s got someone willing to pay his way into the debate. Gregory Chase offered NBC $1 million to include Gravel. Will it work? Stay tuned.

Sponsored by the Pennsylvania Democratic Party and the Democratic National Committee the debate will air live on MSNBC and be aired again on Telemundo. Brian Williams will moderate, and Tim Russert will ask questions. Deadline for press credentials was Friday, Oct. 19, 2007, at 6 p.m.

***POSTPONED*** — Republicans were scheduled to debate Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2007, at Iowa State University‘s Stephens Auditorium in Ames, Iowa, on MSNBC and MSNBC.com, but it has been postponed. More details to come.

Nov. 9, 2007 — Economic advisers for presidential candidates discussed economic issues in a debate at 9 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 9, 2007, at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. Sponsored by the National Association for Business Economics and the National Economists Club, David Wessel of The Wall Street Journal asked questions, and Judy Woodruff of The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer moderated. The event was open to NABE and NEC members and to credentialed journalists from business and financial media outlets. Registration was free, but space was limited, and advance registration was required. Registration deadline was Nov. 1.

Nov. 15, 2007 — Democrats debated Thursday, Nov. 15, 2007, at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, sponsored by the Nevada Democratic Party and CNN. Deadline to request tickets was Nov. 2.

Nov. 28, 2007 — The CNN/YouTube debate for Republicans, which had been postponed, was held Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2007, at 7 p.m. (EDT), at the Mahaffey Theater in St. Petersburg, Fla. Anderson Cooper moderated. The debate, sponsored by the Republican Party of Florida, aired live on CNN and CNN en EspaÃ±ol. Viewers posted video questions on YouTube until Nov. 25, 2007.

Dec. 1, 2007 — Democrats and Republicans were invited to participate in Heartland Candidate Forum at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 1, 2007, at Hy-Vee Conference Center in Des Moines. Sponsored by more than 24 community organizations (Common Cause, Center for Community Change, Iowa CCI, Iowa Conference of the United Methodist Church, Working Families Win, Gamaliel Foundation, National Training & Information Center, Progressive Coalition of Central Iowa, among others), the forum covered health care, jobs, immigration, farming and the environment, housing and “clean elections.”

To attend, contact Common Cause at iowa@commoncause.org with the subject “Heartland Forum” and include name, address, telephone number, e-mail address and number of tickets requested. Or register here. Sign up for updates here. Deadline for press credentials was Nov. 27.

Coverage here, here and here.

Dec. 1, 2007 — Democrats will debate at The Iowa Black & Brown Presidential Forum at 8 p.m. (EST) on Saturday, Dec. 1, 2007, at North High Schoolin Des Moines. Moderators: Michele Norris and Ray Suarez. HDNet live coverage will start at 7:30 p.m. (EST) with preview discussion featuring Mary Campos, Wayne Ford and Dan Rather. They will have a post-forum discussion afterward.

Dec. 4, 2007 — Democrats will debate at 2 p.m. (EST) on Monday, Dec. 3, 2007, at the State Historical Society of Iowa in Des Moines. Sponsored by National Public Radio and Iowa Public Radio, the debate will air on NPR stations, Sirius Satellite Radio, American Forces Radio and NPR.org. Steve Inskeep, Michele Norris and Robert Siegel will moderate, and all candidates are expected to attend. Because of the high level of security required, the State of Iowa Historical Building will be closed to the public. Apply for press credentials here.

~~Republicans were scheduled for a similar debate on Dec. 3, 2007, but it is being rescheduled.~~

Dec. 4, 2007 — Republicans were scheduled to debate Thursday, Dec. 4, 2007, at Hy-Vee Conference Centerin Des Moines, but it was canceled Nov. 15 because of lack of participation. Sponsored by the Republican Party of Iowa, it was to air on FOX News.

Dec. 9, 2007 — Republicans debated at 7 p.m. (EST) on Sunday, Dec. 9, 2007, BankUnited Center at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Fla. The debate was originally scheduled for Sept. 16 but was canceled after only one Republican candidate agreed to participate. It aired on Univision, RadioCadena and Univision.com. Univision’s news anchors Jorge Ramos and Maria Elena Salinas moderated. Questions were asked in Spanish and translated to English for candidates. The candidates answered in English, and their answers were translated into Spanish.

Dec. 10, 2007 — Democrats debated in Los Angeles, sponsored by the DNC.

Dec. 12, 2007 — Republicans debated at 2 p.m. (EST) on Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2007, at Iowa Public Television’s Maytag Auditorium in Johnston, Iowa. Sponsored by The Des Moines Register and Iowa Public Television, the debate aired on IPTV and aired again later.

Dec. 13, 2007 — Democrats debated at 2 p.m. (EST) on Thursday, Dec. 13, 2007, at Iowa Public Television’s Maytag Auditorium in Johnston, Iowa. Sponsored by The Des Moines Register and Iowa Public Television, the debate aired on IPTV and aired again later. Submit questions or ask about tickets here.

Coverage here.

This was canceled. Dec. 17, 2007 — Democrats will debate Monday, Dec. 17, 2007, at the John F. Kennedy Library and Museum in Boston. Sponsored by Politico, it will air on CNN.

Jan. 1-2, 2008 — MySpace held online presidential town hall forums. Coverage here.

Jan. 10, 2008 — Republicans on FOX News, moderated by Brit Hume at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center in Myrtle Beach, S.C. Transcript here. More coverage here.

Jan. 15, 2008 — Democrats debated Tuesday, Jan. 15, 2008, at 9 p.m. (EST) in Las Vegas and aired on MSNBC on television and online. Submit questions here. Or here. Brian Williams moderated. Tim Russert and Natalie Morales also asked questions. Sponsors: NBC News, the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, 100 Black Men of America, IMPACTO, the African American Democratic Leadership Council and the College of Southern Nevada.

Jan. 21, 2008 — Democrats debated Monday, Jan. 21, 2008, at 8 p.m. (EST) at the Palace Theatre in Myrtle Beach, S.C. Sponsored by the Congressional Black Caucus Institute and the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce, the debate aired on CNN. Wolf Blitzer moderated. Joe Johns and Suzanne Malveaux asked questions.

Jan. 30, 2008 — Republicans debated in California. Sponsored by CNN, Los Angeles Times and Politico. Coverage here.

Jan. 31, 2008 — Democrats will debate in California. Sponsored by CNN and the Los Angeles Times.

Feb. 21, 2008 — Democrats, sponsored by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, Feb. 21, 2008, in Carson City, Nevada.

Feb. 28, 2008 — MSNBC hosts back to back forums on energy for presidential candidates from both parties, Houston.

(Originally posted: July 2007)

Posted by Becky @ 12:05 am | 7 Comments

Blogkeeping: The Great Blogroll Opt-Out

October 19, 2007 | Blogging

I’m finally getting around to my blogroll. Just because I like to read you doesn’t mean you like to read me. So if you’re on my blogroll and you don’t want to be, just send me an e-mail, and I’ll take care of it. Just like the telemarketers, eh? On the other hand, if you’re not there (yet) and want to be (hey, it could happen), let me know.

Posted by Becky @ 5:25 pm | 2 Comments

Doing some blogkeeping

October 18, 2007 | Blogging

I still haven’t figured out how to put my categories in alphabetical order. But, then, I just recently figured out how to change the date and time on a post.

P.S. Does anyone know how to drive Technorati stuff? My “top tags” disappeared a couple of weeks ago, and I can’t figure out how to get them back. I’ve asked around, but nobody seems to know.

Posted by Becky @ 5:22 pm | Comments

Freelance journalist killed in Iraq

October 16, 2007 | Death,Iraq,Journalism

Freelance journalist Dhi Abdul-Razak al-Dibo, 32, was shot dead near Kirkuk on Monday, less than 24 hours after a Washington Post correspondent was killed in Baghdad.

According to Reporters sans frontiÃ¨res (Reporters Without Borders): at least 54 journalists and media assistants have been killed in Iraq since the start of the year;Â 10 worked for foreign news media (Radio Free Europe, Newsweek, ABC, APTN, Reuters, The New York Times and The Washington Post); and 203 media workers have been killed and 83 kidnapped (14Â apparently still being held) in Iraq since 2003.

The Freedom Forum Journalists Memorial has a working list, Journalists in Peril.

Posted by Becky @ 9:07 am | Comments

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