Unpublished documents produced by the European Union commission that investigated the conflict between Georgia and Moscow assign much of the blame to Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili. But the Kremlin and Ossetian militias are also partly responsible.

From her office on Avenue de la Paix, Swiss diplomat Heidi Tagliavini, 58, looks out onto the botanical gardens in peaceful Geneva. The view offers a welcome respite from the stacks of documents on her desk, which deal exclusively with war and war blame. They contain the responses, from the conflicting parties in the Caucasus region -- Russia, Georgia, South Ossetia and Abkhazia -- to a European Union investigative commission conducting a probe of the cause of the five-day war last August. The documents also include reports on the EU commission's trips to Moscow, the Georgian capital Tbilisi and the capitals of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, dossiers assembled by experts and the transcripts of interviews of diplomats, military officials and civilian victims of the war.

The United Nations war crimes tribunal in The Hague has put on trial its former spokeswoman Florence Hartmann, who is charged with contempt of court.

The tribunal accuses the Frenchwoman of revealing confidential information following the trial of the late Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic.

The charges relate to a book written by Ms Hartmann and published in 2007.

They carry a maximum sentence of seven years in jail and a 100,000-euro (£85,000) fine. She denies the charges.

Georgian police used their truncheons to disperse a group of about 50 protestors in central Tsibili, according to a Reuters photographer, breaking up a demonstration demanding the release of several opposition activists detained last week.

REUTERS - Masked police beat dozens of opposition protesters in the Georgian capital on Monday, a Reuters photographer said, in the latest flare-up during a weeks-long street campaign against the president.

 

Dozens of black-clad men armed with truncheons emerged from the main police station in Tbilisi to confront a protest of about 50 people demanding the release of several opposition activists detained last week.

 

Tensions were running high in the former Soviet republic, where President Mikheil Saakashvili has resisted more than two months of protests and roadblocks in Tbilisi. Protesters want him to quit over his record on democracy and last year's disastrous war with Russia.

 

It will be similar in scope and make-up to the Franks Inquiry that examined the Falklands conflict in 1982.

Mr Brown announced the move in a statement at the House of Commons on Monday afternoon saying the scope and length of the inquiry would be unprecedented.

As expected (see Elections re-shape party alliances), the Socialist group in the European Parliament has agreed to re-brand in a move to welcome the main Italian's opposition party, the Partito Democratico (PD). In the past legislature, the Partido Democratico was split between the PES and the ALDE, putting the Italian Democrats in an uncomfortable position.

Renaming the "Party of European Socialists" as the "Alliance of Socialists and Democrats" (ASDE) was not an easy task due to the opposition of several socialist MEPs, scared of losing the socialist essence of the second largest group of the Parliament. However, the poor election result of the Socialists across Europe made the re-branding a less bitter pill to swallow and the Socialists were finally pleased to welcome their new fellow-members.

It seems that there could be a contest for the office of President of the European Commission, whether the Swedes like it or not. It's not that Barroso is particularly loved by the Swedes or that he would be an asset to the EU as Commission President with a renewed mandate, but that Council wrangling could undermine the effectiveness of the Swedish European Council presidency and generally make life harder for everyone.


However, there's news that ALDE, the Greens and the PES are considering proposing the Liberal Guy Verhofstadt has stirred some debate on the EU Blogosphere (see Stephen Spillane, Julien Frisch and Jon Worth).

Does Verhofstadt have much chance? Stephen has pointed out that the Traffic Light Coalition of Socialists, Liberals and Greens only has 294 seats, which is well short of the majority required, 369. There's also the problem that the coalition would be hard to maintain - especially since in order for Verhofstadt to have any chance, the appointment of the Commission President needs to be delayed. The cohesiveness of each group is questionable: the PES have 41 votes whose national parties back Barroso, and the PES as a party has little power to wield over these MEPs. The Liberals may be split in opposing Barroso, and the temptation of Commission portfolios could outweigh the desire to have one of their own heading the Commission - a temptation that is likely to increase in force as time drags on and the weakness of the coalition becomes more apparent. The Greens are the most cohesive group here.

Food For Thought: Gordon Brown as the EU's First Full-Time President?

José Manuel Barroso is all but certain to be reappointed as European Commission president.  But who will get the other plum European Union jobs that will soon be up for grabs?

The most startling suggestion I have heard in recent days - and it came from a high-ranking EU diplomat - is that the EU's first ever full-time president could be none other than Prime Minister Gordon Brown of the UK.  The thinking here is that, because the job will require its holder to represent the EU on the world stage, it would suit Brown well.  He has oodles of experience and excellent connections at the highest level, starting with President Barack Obama.

(...)

ony Blair's name has been mentioned numerous times in connection with the EU presidency job.  But there has always been the nagging feeling in Brussels that his candidacy would be blocked by a country nursing a grudge against him (such as Belgium).  At the same time, quite a few policymakers recognise that the scale of the security and economic challenges facing the EU is such that the first president needs to be a person of true international stature.

Angela Merkel or Nicolas Sarkozy, the German chancellor and French president, would fit the bill, but neither is remotely interested.  It would be nice to think of an Italian in the job, but something tells me that the EU isn't about to entrust its fate to Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.  That leaves the UK - and the clergyman's son from Glasgow.

The UK media sure seem keen to have a British Preident for Europe.

In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes

Data released on Monday show the global recession has claimed 1.22 million jobs across the 16-nation eurozone in the first quarter of 2009. 

The figures, published by the European Union's statistics office, Eurostat, represent the biggest quarterly jump in job losses since record-keeping began in 1995. Some 526,000 jobs were cut in the last quarter of 2008, reducing the total number of those in work across the zone to 146.2 million.

It is the third consecutive quarter in which the eurozone shed more jobs than it created, and Howard Archer, economist with IHS Global Insight, says the trend looks set to continue.

"Latest data and survey evidence point to serious weakness in eurozone labor markets in the second quarter," he says.

The key to forcing usury provisions back down the greedy banks throats is to define just how the usury level gets established. The problem with the usury loans back in the late 1970s/early 1980s was that the usury interest rate level was set at or very near the Fed's own overnight lending rate as it was fighting incipient hyperinflation. Hence, it was easy for the banks to argue that the usury laws were counter-productive. The banks couldn't lend any money under those circumstances.

What we need is a hard rule setting the spread between some well-defined interest base which is actually outside the control of any individual bank, like the prime rate or LIBOR or some other similar rate. Then the banks get to play within a band "...not to exceed..." whatever the law defines. We can let the economists recommend just what that level should be, although I can't possibly imagine that it should exceed 15%. Once the principle is established, then we can argue about the specific interest spread. It just can't be infinite, which is what we have now.

Of course, on that basis, the banks shouldn't be charging any more than about 15% right now, which I'm sure would melt their collective crystalline hearts. They're getting fiat money for nought and charging 30% on it. Even a deaf, dumb and blind pig should be able to make money under those conditions. VizierVic June 11, 2009 - 6:29pm

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has endorsed the creation of a Palestinian state for the first time, saying such an entity would have to be demilitarized. 

In a key, televised address outlining his government's policy toward the Middle East peace process, Netanyahu said that Palestinians must recognize that Israel is the legitimate nation-state of the Jewish people

"The heart of the (Middle East) conflict has always been the Arabs' refusal to accept the existence of the Jewish state," Netanyahu said. "The withdrawals that Israel has carried out in the past have not changed this reality."

"The territory in Palestinian hands must be demilitarised -- in other words, without an army, without control of airspace and with effective security safeguards."

"If we receive this ... demilitarisation and the security arrangements required by Israel, and if the Palestinians recognise Israel as the nation state of the Jewish people, we will be prepared for a true peace agreement, to reach a solution of a demilitarised Palestinian state alongside the Jewish state," he said.

Thousands of Iranians took to the streets in Tehran to protest the results of Friday's presidential election. The opposition may abhor re-elected President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, but Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei is also a target -- the result of a growing split in Iranian society.

The success of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was never predicated on his authority as a religious scholar. There are a number of Shiite clerics who are superior to him in the pecking order. Charisma is also not a characteristic frequently associated with Iran's religious leader.

 Rather, Khamenei's power stems largely from his skills as a strategist. Since his election as the almost untouchable leader of the Islamic republic in 1989, Khamenei has proven remarkably adept at courting his political opponents, thereby avoiding open conflict. Few pursued consensus as arduously as Khamenei.

In recent years, however, as this consensus has become more virtual than real, the position of Iran's leader has been eroded. Indeed, the current street battles are symptomatic of that erosion. Tears in the country's religious establishment have become ever more visible in Iran's recent past, the gap between the country's rich and poor has widened, and the chasm between the Western-oriented youth and the religious fanatics has deepened. Indeed, the current crisis could very well spell the beginning of the end for the Khamenei system.

At least seven foreign hostages seized in Yemen, including at least one child, have been found dead, officials say.

They are thought to be from a group of nine foreigners, three of them children, who were kidnapped last week in a mountainous northern area.

The group comprised seven Germans, a British national and a South Korean.

One report says all nine hostages have been killed - but the deaths have not been confirmed by officials in Berlin, London and Seoul.

Exceptional Op-Ed in the NY Times today.

Obama's discourse is addressed to 'Islam', as if an idea, a concept, a belief, could hear him. As if these were not necessarily mediated by the people who hold these views, ideas, concepts or beliefs. As Soheib Bencheikh, former Great Mufti of Marseilles now director of the Institute of High Islamic Studies in Marseilles, used to say: 'I have never seen a Qur'an walking in the street.' ...

here is the place for secularists in Obama's discourse? For their democratic right to vote laws rather than be imposed laws in the name of God? For their human right to believe or not to believe, to practice or not to practice? They simply do not exist. They are ignored. They are made invisible. They are made 'Muslims'. Not just by our oppressive undemocratic governments - by Obama too. And when he talks of his own fellow citizens, these '7 million American Muslims', did he ask them what their faith was, or is he assuming faith on geographical origin?

In this religious straight jacket, women's rights are limited to their right to education - and Obama distances himself from arrogant westerners by making it clear that women's covering is not seen by him as an obstacle to their emancipation. Especially, if it is 'their choice'. Meanwhile, Iran is next door, with its morality police that jails women whose hair slips out of the said-covering in the name of religious laws. And what about Afghanistan or Algeria where women were abducted, tortured, raped, mutilated, burnt alive, killed for not covering?[3]

* It is not just a matter of feeling blue, "Q&A with Barack Obama," Relevant Magazine, 7 July 2008: scrubbed

cached

My only point is this -- historically I have been a strong believer in a women's right to choose . . . I have consistently been saying that you have to have a health exception on many significant restrictions or bans on abortions, including late-term abortions . . . It can be defined through physical health. It can be defined by serious clinical mental health diseases. It is not just a matter of feeling blue. I don't think that's how pro-choice folks have interpreted it. I don't think that's how the courts have interpreted it and I think that's important to emphasize and understand.

cached:

I think it's entirely appropriate for states to restrict or even prohibit late-term abortions as long as there is a strict, well-defined exception for the health of the mother. Now, I don't think that "mental distress" qualifies as the health of the mother. I think it has to be a serious physical issue that arises in pregnancy, where there are real, significant problems to the mother carrying that child to term. Otherwise, as long as there is such a medical exception in place, I think we can prohibit late-term abortions. ... I think we know that abortions rise when unwanted pregnancies rise. So, if we are continuing what has been a promising trend in the reduction of teen pregnancies, through education and abstinence education giving good information to teenagers. That is important--emphasizing the sacredness of sexual behavior to our children. I think that's something that we can encourage. I think encouraging adoptions in a significant way.

Why I grind my teeth in my sleep.

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

In the past Ghana has enjoyed a strong relationship with the US ever since the first American Peace Corps volunteers came to Ghana in 1961, the same year that President John F. Kennedy created the US Agency for International Development (USAID) to assist the developing world (aside from a blip in the mid-1980s during the Soussoudis spy affair). Indeed, the setting up of the US Department of State's Bureau of African Affairs in 1958 was largely informed by Ghana becoming the first black African nation to gain independence the previous year. But for the next three decades, Africa was little more than a geo-political lebensraum for proxy campaigns of the Cold War. It was not until March 1978 that sub-Saharan Africa witnessed its first ever state visit by an American president, Jimmy Carter, who first met President Olusegun Obasanjo in Lagos, Nigeria, and then President William Tolbert in Monrovia, Liberia, a country the United States established diplomatic relations with 147 years ago for obvious reasons. ...

Top on the list is the United States' military and energy security agenda. Before the 9/11 bombing in 2001, conventional thinking in Washington perceived no vital strategic interests for the US in sub-Saharan Africa. But this has changed. Today we can see a significant shift away from America's traditional geopolitical calculations regarding oil production and supply. The US's National Intelligence Council (NIC) estimates that by 2015, 25 per cent of American oil imports will come from West Africa, compared to 16 per cent today - an estimate even considered as too conservative in some quarters. Already West Africa supplies as much oil to the US as Saudi Arabia. Furthermore, our oil is light and sweet, making it easier and cheaper to refine than Persian oil. Plus its offshore location reduces transportation costs and minimises risk of political violence and terrorist attacks. ...

The United States, in typical Dick Cheney oilthink, sees the Gulf of Guinea as offering the opportunity to break with the old politics which saw the US at the mercy of the geostrategic pressure of unstable or unfriendly oil-producing states in the `old' Gulf (Persian Gulf) and Venezuela.

Why I grind my teeth when I sleep.

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

Swarms of snakes are attacking people and cattle in southern Iraq as the Euphrates and Tigris rivers dry up and the reptiles lose their natural habitat among the reed beds.

"People are terrified and are leaving their homes," says Jabar Mustafa, a medical administrator, who works in a hospital in the southern province of Dhi Qar. "We knew these snakes before, but now they are coming in huge numbers. They are attacking buffalo and cattle as well as people." Doctors in the area say six people have been killed and 13 poisoned.

In Chabaysh, a town on the Euphrates close to the southern marshland of Hawr al-Hammar, farmers have set up an overnight operations room to prevent the snakes attacking their cattle.

Firefighters are battling wildfires in the centre of Greece that have burnt through forest, farmland and vineyards and threatened homes.

The outbreak on Saturday, several kilometres from the city of Thebes, is being fought on four fronts and caused black smoke to be seen in the sky for miles.

Farmers and residents were told to evacuate the area, although no casualties were immediately reported.

The fires were pushed towards the town of Ritsona, north of Athens, the capital, by strong winds.

Visitors to Spain's beaches have been warned of an influx of stinging jellyfish off the Mediterranean coast this summer.

Holidaymakers are being warned to be vigilant when they take to the water and beware of the stinging menace in the shallows.

For the first time in a decade the potentially deadly Portuguese Man o' War, which are not strictly jellyfish but floating colonies of microscopic hydrozoans, has been spotted close to the beaches of the Costa del Sol.

The fall of the Iron Curtain should have united two towns, but Italian Gorizia and Slovenia's Nova Gorica continue to snub one another with great distinction. While Nova enjoys an economic boom, old Gorizia tearily remembers the rare old times.

The enormous car park is almost completely deserted. It has enough space for hundreds of cars, but only a few stray vehicles are parked under the pale light of the street lamps. And save a handful of guests at the nearby pizzeria, there isn't a soul in sight.

A cab? The waiter frowns as though he'd been asked an utterly absurd question. "After eight you can't get a taxi anywhere in Gorizia." Gorizia has called it a day.

"Give it a try over on the Slovenian side, they work round the clock in Nova Gorica," he adds as an afterthought, and points to the sheltered border crossing, which everyone here calls Casa Rossa. "Look: that's where the first shots of the Balkan Wars were fired in June 1991."

Italy is facing a subversive plot by forces determined to impose an unelected leader on the country, according to Silvio Berlusconi.

In a speech to a business lobby group, the embattled Prime Minister said that he believed a "palace coup" was being planned to oust him.

"There is a campaign of scandals against me. It is a subversive plan because its aim is to bring down a Prime Minister and to put in his place another not elected by Italians. If that is not subversion, tell me what is."

Although Mr Berlusconi did not identify the alleged plotters, Francesco Cossiga, a former Italian President and Prime Minister, said that those behind the scheme planned to install Mario Draghi, the governor of the Bank of Italy, as the head of a caretaker government of national unity. Mr Draghi, the head of the central bank for the last three and a half years, declined to comment.

The story of the brilliant but unstable Joe Meek. Telstar was his big hit, but there's lots more....

Telstar may have survived all these years because it is such riveting material. Meek is brilliantly portrayed by O'Neill, showing all the authority of an actor who knows his character inside out.
And what a character he was. As Moran puts it: "When people ask me about Telstar and I say, 'it's about a gay, speed-addicted, devil-worshipping, tone-deaf Gloucester farmhand who built a little recording studio over a shop, and made one of the biggest-selling records of all time', then I've got their attention. You can't not be intrigued by this guy."

All the above is true, but it didn't stop there. Meek was indeed a practising homosexual (at a time when it was illegal to be so). He was fascinated by the works of satanist Aleister Crowley. And he had a weakness for amphetamines.

But he was also psychologically unstable; delightful company one minute, uncontrollably furious the next. There were traces of paranoia in his personality; he was convinced people were out to steal his innovative recording ideas.

His life ended in a savage manner in 1967, when he was just 37. At his studio on north London's Holloway Road, he shot dead his landlady (who ran the leather goods store below), then turned the gun on himself.