Sunday, July 13, 2008

At least 16 soldiers and militants — possibly more — were killed in Pakistan Saturday during an ambush by the Taliban. According to the Pakistan Television Corporation, hundreds of militants stormed a convoy of Pakistani paramilitary forces. An unknown number of civilians were reported to be among the dead. This comes one day after militants took 29 security personal hostage, threatening to kill them if seven of their allies were not released from jail.

According to the chief of the Interior Ministry, Rehman Malik, the paramilitary forces had been deployed to the area in search of 19 kidnapped government officials. “I strongly condemn the killing of Frontier Constabulary personnel and salute them for their courage and valour,” said Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani.

Sunday, April 24, 2011

The California Controller’s office reports that eleven state agencies have given US$13.3 million in pay and travel advances that have not been collected.

Governor Jerry Brown issued an executive order to recover uncollected loans by the agencies. A press release from the governor’s office states, “The Governor’s Executive Order seeks to recover taxpayer dollars by directing state agencies and departments to clear salary and travel advances within 30 days through an expense claim.” Any outstanding balance will be deducted from employees’ paychecks under the governor’s order after the 30 days.

Under California state law, state employees are permitted to receive advances for hardship, travel, and other circumstances. These advances cannot be collected by agencies after three years without the employee’s consent.

State Controller John Chiang said in a statement, “The state’s poor debt collection and accounting practices are fleecing public coffers at a time when vital public programs are being decimated by unprecedented budget cuts.” Chiang’s office expects there will be more money unaccounted for, including some from the California Highway Patrol (CHP). California state law mandates that anyone convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol is required to pay for the investigation. The CHP has not collected this money.

The California Department of Transportation, also called Caltrans, has the largest debt of the eleven agencies: $3.2 million. Cal Fire, or the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, “had an outstanding balance of $1.44 million as of June 30, 2008. An overwhelming portion of that balance was related to employee salary and travel advances,” according to a controller’s office audit.

Chiang’s office had informed former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger there were outstanding debts, but Schwarzenegger’s administration did not take action.

All eleven agencies have agreed to hand over any delinquent accounts to the controller’s office, who will collect these debts.

Friday, March 29, 2019Toronto Comicon 2019 returned to its titular city from March 15 to 17, as one of the largest pop culture events in Canada. The popular event featured celebrity guests like actors Dan Fogler, Ron Perlman, John De Lancie, John Rhys-Davies, and Jaleel White, as well as comic artists, authors, and professional cosplayers. The event included a large show floor with hundreds of retailers and artists promoting their creations. Wikinews’ Nicholas Moreau attended the event, taking photos of the various sights.

John Rhys-Davies broke news when he revealed that a Sliders reboot is being considered. “Jerry [O’Connell] and I are talking to NBC at the moment. The basic problem is that no one knows who owns the rights”. Their legal department had apparently been looking into the matter for two months, as of the convention weekend. Emma Caufield talked of being cast in an NBC television pilot while a recurring guest actor on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Faced with loosing the character of Anya Jenkins, the producers finally committed to making her a regular. “It was a good day,” she recalls.

Special effects costumer Ian Campbell, whose screen credits include Star Trek: Discovery, had a booth at the convention displaying his prop replicas and cosplay items. Amidst the bustle of activity, Campbell was working on a Thanos helmet sculpt. After the convention, he told Wikinews that “it can be tough to maintain focus with so many people streaming past and along questions, but sculpting in front of a crowd at conventions is great because it allows people to see the process that goes into what I do […] it also can serve as inspiration to other to pursue their own artistic endeavors.”

Lisa Mancini has been cosplaying for two years, her “passion” for the hobby “stemmed through my love for Halloween.” She typically chooses “to portray beloved characters from childhood or strong females. I also enjoy a good gender bent cosplay to ensure a touch of uniqueness!”

Mancini told Wikinews after the event that the best part of cosplay is “bringing a character to life.” One of the characters she took on this year was Squirrel Girl, a Marvel Comics character. Mancini has been described by the Daily Hive as a “squirrel whisperer”, for the close affinity some of the animals have for her.

Stephanie Chapman has knit a variety of knit outfits, an uncommon technique for cosplay. Prompted by Ron Perlman’s visit, she wore a costume based on Hellboy character Abe Sapien, which lacks the eyeholes of her normal masks. With “Abe, I wanted to go for accuracy over comfort,” Chapman told Wikinews, a choice leaving her largely helpless without a handler. The costume “is very warm […] so I have to stay hydrated and try to keep as calm as possible. It’s just really hard to stay calm when I meet someone like Ron Perlman”. With the combination of excitement and “the stress I’m putting on my body”, she shared that she was prone to meltdown in suit.

Thursday, June 12, 2008

A large forest fire that started on Monday, June 9 is still out of control in the municipality of Froland in southern Norway. The fire is the largest forest fire to occur in Norway since World War II.

The fire has spread extensively and it is estimated that approximately 2,500 acres of forest have been damaged. Approximately 15 cabins are reported to have burned to the ground, but as of yet, no permanent dwellings or farms have been damaged. However, many inhabitants have been evacuated due to the fire threatening their homes, including the entire villages of Mykland and Belland. There have also been some power outages due to power lines being damaged.

Approximately 140 persons, including fire-fighters from several fire departments, and personnel from the Civil Defence and the Home Guard are working to curtail the fire. Four fire helicopters have been deployed. The fire fighting is focused on areas where the fire threatens buildings.

Extremely dry weather, and difficult wind conditions, have caused severe difficulties in fighting the fire. Fire-fighters first had hope of gaining control on the morning of Thursday, June 12, but the wind changed direction during the day, causing a large extension of the fire. There is some hope that the weekend will bring some rain; however, this will likely not be enough to stop the fire. It could take several weeks before the fire is completely extinguished.

Tuesday, September 6, 2005

In a press release issued Saturday, September 3rd, 2005, Democratic Senator Mary L. Landrieu of Louisiana claims that President Bush staged a photo opportunity, at the breached 17th Street levee, by having equipment quickly moved into the background during the event. Senator Landrieu says the equipment was dispersed elsewhere the next day, but did not provide details.

Landrieu says in her press release, ” … we witnessed a hastily prepared stage set for a Presidential photo opportunity; and the desperately needed resources we saw were this morning reduced to a single, lonely piece of equipment. The good and decent people of southeast Louisiana and the Gulf Coast — black and white, rich and poor, young and old — deserve far better from their national government …”

The President and Senator Landrieu toured the 17th Street levee on Friday, and held the photo-op. Senator Landrieu said she believed the repair effort was legitimate, at that time. Less than 24 hours later, she discovered only “one lonely crane” working on the site, while giving an aerial tour for ABC’s This Week with George Stephanopoulos. A video of her tearful comments, during that tour, has been circulating around the internet (WMV).

Senator Landrieu made no specific accusations about the photo-op during the ABC tour. However, neither does her press release describe any measures taken to verify that equipment was in-fact pulled from other projects for the purpose of the photo-op, nor where the equipment is now. The canal wall breach, near Hammond Highway, was later shown Sunday on CBS’ 60 Minutes with dump trucks and a power shovel building a single-lane pathway across the gap. The breach was closed Monday.

Senator Landrieu was herself criticized by Anderson Cooper (CNN) on Thursday, after she responded to a question by rattling off a list of “thank yous” to other politicians (WMV, transcript). Democratic pundits have excused such detachment as an attempt to gain more federal assistance during the tragedy. Senator Landrieu’s press release partially confirms this interpretation by attempting to simultaneously ask the president for more aid, while accusing him of misusing existing resources.

Although press reports mentioned the 17th Street Canal breach was blocked by the use of metal sheets, sandbags, and dumped fill, details were not available. On Wednesday September 7 it was reported that earlier metal girders, often used for retaining walls, had been hung down from the north side of the Hammond Highway bridge so as to form a metal wall which blocked the canal from the lake. After the breach had been closed, by sandbags and fill delivered by dump truck, the metal wall was opened to allow draining of the city through the canal.

Obviously placing the metal wall required an assortment of equipment which was no longer needed after it was in place. The wall was only visible from the bridge and most dry land as a few feet of metal along the bridge railing. It is not known if Senator Landrieu noticed this work of engineering, nor if she had been briefed as to what was being done.

However, photos of work at the site were later found which showed a lot of activity Sept 4, after Landrieu said the equipment was not there. However, the sheet piling wall in the photo was reported to have been completed September 2. Information of the schedule of similar work at the London Avenue breach has not been found.

Saturday, March 13, 2010

A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck Chile on Thursday, just 21 minutes before the country’s new president, Sebastián Piñera, was due to be sworn in. This earthquake comes several days after a heavy 8.8 magnitude earthquake shook the country, the strongest one in almost half a century.

According to the US Geological Survey, the quake’s epicentre was 135 kilometres (85 miles) south of Valparaiso, where the presidential inauguration took place, and 145 kilometres (90 miles) southwest of capital Santiago. Later, it was reported that the epicenter was offshore Pichilemu, a coastal town in the O’Higgins Region.

The Miami Herald reports that the temblor was among seven aftershocks. There were no reports of damage, injuries, or deaths, although some residents rushed outside after the tremors.

According to reports by the Associated Press, the Chilean navy called for a tsunami alert and encouraged residents living along shorelines to move to higher ground; however, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center commented that “a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami is not expected.”

Saturday, March 4, 2006

Eleven-year-old Iranian refugee boy, Shayan Badraie, who suffered psychological injuries during his time spent inside Australia’s immigration detention centres, will receive a Federal Government payout of AU$400,000 in compensation. The government will also pay his family’s legal bill of more than $1 million.

Between 2000 and 2002 the Badraie family were incarcerated behind the razorwire of the (now mothballed) Woomera Detention Facility, a remote desert camp in outback South Australia – and later sent to the Villawood Detention Centre in Sydney. In 2001, video footage of his condition was smuggled out of Villawood, inciting national debate over Prime Minister John Howard’s controversial policy of detaining children.

Badraie’s family lawyer, Rebecca Gilsenan, said the family are “looking forward to living a normal life in the community. The settlement will enable the treatment he needs to somehow rectify the damage done in the detention centres. The fact the Government has settled the case indicates a serious concern on their part they were going to be found guilty of negligence,” Gilsenan told reporters.

Shayan, his father and stepmother arrived in Australia in 2000, and were sent immediately to the notorious Woomera desert camp. During his 17 months incarceration, Shayan stopped drinking, eating and speaking.

“He witnessed a series of incredibly traumatic and violent events, the sort of events no adult or no child should be exposed to,” Gilsenan said. “Within a year of being detained at the detention centre… he had developed psychiatric illness to the point of diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder and later depression,” she said.

The court heard evidence from former senior immigration official Philippa Godwin that detention could damage the mental health of refugees – directly contradicting the Government’s claims the centres were safe. Opposition immigration spokesman Tony Burke said: “Children should never have been put in detention and money will never undo the damage and pain.”

The Department of Immigration said the agreement was “no admission of guilt”. Immigration Minister Amanda Vanstone says she does not believe a $400,000 is a backdown. Vanstone said an offer was made to the Badraie family’s lawyer some time ago but they turned it down.

Compared with similar countries, Australia has some of the toughest policies in the world against refugee arrivals. Policies include immediate mandatory detention of boat arrivals, the detention of workers and students who overstay their visas are sent to detention camps under harsh conditions. Immigration detainees often languish in limbo with some up to six years while their cases are being heard. These camps have been condemned by many international human rights groups.

Greens senator Kerry Nettle says “hundreds of children have been mentally scarred by their time in immigration detention and further claims are planned.” She blames the Federal Government’s policy of mandatory detention.

“The Government has accepted the responsibility for the health consequences of their policy of mandatory detention,” Senator Nettle said. “There is a raft of children, we are talking hundreds of children, and adults, who have had their mental health significantly impacted by the policy of mandatory detention.”

She rejected that the Federal Government deserve congratulations over settlement: “To have gone through these proceedings, and spent the amount of money they have spent, to put Shayan’s mother in the witness box for two weeks, is not an indication of a willingness and public accountability by the Government to accept responsibility for their actions,” Senator Nettle said.

Lawyer Rebecca Gilsenan says the landmark case may pave the way for more litigation by other refugee families. It is the first time the Department has conceded that a child has been psychologically harmed in its detention.

Gilsenan says the outcome sets a precedent for other detainees. “The problems that Shayan experienced were systemic problems rather than ones that were just specific to him, although the particular treatment that he received was disgraceful,” she said. “So it’s quite possible that there are other children or even adults out there who lived in a similar environment during that time in immigration detention and possibly have similar problems.”

She says she hopes the systemic problems highlighted in the case will now be addressed. “I can only hope that the Government takes notice of this and doesn’t continue to spend taxpayer money on having to compensate people for treating them in a disgraceful way in immigration detention.”