SYDNEY: Australian employment staged a surprisingly strong revival in June while the jobless rate ticked down toward three-decade lows, keeping alive the risk that a drum-tight labour market could fuel inflationary pressures. The Australian dollar jumped half a U.S. cent after the government reported employment rose by a net 29,800 in June, easily beating forecasts of a 10,000 gain. That made up for a revised 25,600 drop in MayWednesday, July 9, 2008
Australia jobs rebound, unemployment dips anew
SYDNEY: Australian employment staged a surprisingly strong revival in June while the jobless rate ticked down toward three-decade lows, keeping alive the risk that a drum-tight labour market could fuel inflationary pressures. The Australian dollar jumped half a U.S. cent after the government reported employment rose by a net 29,800 in June, easily beating forecasts of a 10,000 gain. That made up for a revised 25,600 drop in May
Media free again in Parliament
KUALA LUMPUR: Members of the media are free to move around again in the Parliament lobby, after the barricades that were set up to confine them in a corner were removed Wednesday. Reporters,...
Tibet to Re-open to Foreign Tourism
Fires in Tibet capital, Lhasa after protests, 14 Mar 2008China says it will reopen Tibet to foreign tourists, after closing it during...Chinese riot policemen aboard a truck patrol in front of the Potala palace in Lhasa on June 20. Tibet will reopen to foreign tourists on June 25, China's state-run Xinhua news agency has said, quoting a tourism...
by Dan Martin 18 minutes ago BEIJING(AFP) - China will allow foreign tourists back into Tibet from Wednesday, state-run Xinhua news agency reported, lifting a ban imposed after it cracked down on anti-Chinese...
China Loosens Olympics Reporting Rules
Foreign television broadcasters have reached an accord with Chinese authorities to allow live news coverage during the Beijing Olympics -- including from Tiananmen Square -- settling one of the major remaining roadblocks to the Games that will begin in just a month. TV companies, some of which have spent hundreds of millions of dollars on the rights to broadcast the Olympics, had been in a stalemate with Beijing officials since May over the ability to report live via satellite outside
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Vidya patch up with Sarkar
Vidya Balan and Pradeep Sarkar recently patched up their differences. The two were not on talking terms after Vidya refused to do Sarkar’s Laaga Chunri Mein Daag (the role went to Rani Mukerji).Ellen Gray: Holly Hunter thrilled to return as boundary-pushing cop in'Saving Grace'
By Ellen Gray Philadelphia Daily News Daily News TV Critic SAVING GRACE. 10 p.m. Monday, TNT. THE PHRASE "passion project" gets thrown around a lot in Hollywood, but in television, where even the brightest ideas can lose luster in the grind of a weekly series, passion like Holly Hunter's can be hard to sustain. But as the Academy Award-winning actress ("The Piano") returns to TNT next week for Season 2 of "Saving Grace," an offbeat drama
Drew, Justin call it quits
Los Angeles - Drew Barrymore and Justin Long have split up. The couple - who had known each other for seven years before they co-starred in romantic comedy He's Just Not That Into You - had been dating since August 2007. Drew's representative said: "I can confirm the split with no additional comment." However, the couple are said to be determined not to let the split ruin their long-term friendship. A source close to the couple revealed: "They are still friends, and will always be friends."
Sir Ben Kingsley a Beatle would-have-been?
LOS ANGELES, California—Imagine Sir Ben Kingsley as a Beatle. It was one of those might-have-beens for the knighted actor. 'I was offered a contract by Dick James who recorded all the Beatles' early discs,' the Oscar-winning thespian said in a recent interview. 'It was an extraordinary meeting. Dick was quite insistent because he heard me play the guitar and sing onstage in London, as did the boys, John (Lennon) and Ringo (Starr). It was quite difficult for me to decide which way to go.
New & recent releases
In this photo provided by Universal, Selma Blair and Ron Perlman star in " Hellboy II: The Golden Army." (AP Photo/Universal, Egon Endenyi) NEW RELEASES LOVE STORY 2050 A Bollywood musical. 150 minutes.Unrated. THE RAPE OF EUROPA *** 1/2 Writer-directors Richard Berge, Bonni Cohen and Nicole Newnham focus on Adolf Hitler's plan to loot the nations of Europe, destroy art that displeased him and enshrine the rest in his boyhood town of Linz, where he planned the largest artMonday, July 7, 2008
African refugees find strength in numbers
he leafy trees around the apartment complex are only used for shade and social gatherings. There are no terrified civilians cowering behind them, dodging gunfire. Teenage girls can walk down the street during the day and not fret about being raped. Mothers can send their sons to school without fear that they will be kidnapped and trained to be soldiers. And so, on this peaceful street near downtown Lexington, a careful optimistic spirit seems to be spreading among African refugees from places
How one cultural vision has lessons for the whole world
The British Museum is now our top attraction. If only others would shrug off their deadening ways and follow its lead According to its director, Neil MacGregor, the monstrous iron gates of the British Museum have only twice in its history had to be closed to the public. The first time was in 1848, for fear of angry Chartist radicals. And the second was earlier this year, as thousands queued for the museum's Terracotta Army exhibition.
Hendrix photographer captures diversity of Islamic culture
One of the world's most celebrated rock photographers has launched a collection of work showcasing the diversity and beauty of the Islamic world. Peter Sanders, who made his name photographing famous rock and roll icons of the 1960s, has launched "In the Shade of the Tree", documenting the author's travels around the Muslim world. The book illustrates Sanders four decades of travels to experience the wonders of the Islamic world.
Rare hawk disappearing from Everglades
A graceful bird is disappearing from the place that gave it name, a victim of both nature and human meddling with the water flow in the Everglades. It's never a good sign when an animal disappears from the place that gave it its name. That's what is happening to the Everglades snail kite, an endangered hawk whose numbers are in free fall from the compounded impacts of back-to-back droughts and a long-controversial water management scheme intended to protect another equally at-risk bird.
Bird watchers as far as Britain flock to Alaska
These are just two of the many sea birds bird watchers come to the Bering Sea island to see . ST. PAUL ISLAND, Alaska -- British birder Annie Andreae bristles at being called a "twitcher" - friendly slang in England for someone who will drop everything at the drop of a hat to get a glimpse at a must-see bird. "I'm not a twitcher. I just like watching them
Seeking pollinators in wings
With domesticated bees on the decline, scientists are studying whether native species could keep the nation's crops going. By Sandy Bauers Inquirer Staff Writer On a sunny morning, amid 35 acres of Montgomery County farmland lush with tomato, bean, basil and cantaloupe, Neal Williams affixes a yellow flower to a stick and steps gingerly through the watermelon vines, intent on catching a bee. The flower hasn't been pollinated yet - it's been covered since dawn by a cap of bridal veilWhy Canada Is the Best Haven from Climate Change
A group of islands with the potential to develop into a tourist paradise has been named as the country least equipped to withstand the effects of climate change. The Comoros Islands in the Indian Ocean, between Mozambique and Madagascar, are a small nation of sparkling blue lagoons and picture-postcard beaches. But the country is politically unstable and a report published today says it is the world's most vulnerable country to the future impacts of global warming such as increased stormsOrganic chickens 'less flavoursome', researchers say
It will undoubtedly ruffle a few feathers among campaigning celebrity chefs. But according to a new scientific study, organically reared chickens are not as flavoursome as intensively farmed birds. The findings fly in the face of claims by campaigners who argue that consumers should opt for chickens which are allowed to roam outdoors. They say this environment makes for a naturally tastier option on the dinner table and justifies the more expensive price tag
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Orangutans facing extinction in Asia, new study shows
Endangered orangutans could become the first great ape to become extinct if urgent action isn’t taken to protect the species from human encroachment in Southeast Asia, a new study says. The number of orangutans in Indonesia and Malaysia has declined sharply since 2004, mostly because of illegal logging and the expansion of palm oil plantations, said Serge Wich, a scientist at the Great Ape Trust in the US state of Iowa, yesterday
Ice caps melting
The North Pole will be ice-free this summer "for the first time in human history," wrote Steve Connor in The Independent. Or so the experts at the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) in Boulder, Colorado predict. This sounds very frightening, so let's look at the facts about polar sea ice. As usual, there are a couple of huge problems with the reports. Firstly, the story is neither alarming nor uniqueCHANGING ENVIRONMENT--Dealing with disaster / Biofuel-material cultivation grows
This is the second installment in a three-part series focusing on global environmental problems expected to be taken up at the G-8 meeting. A 1,000-hectare plantation 20 times the size of Tokyo Disneyland stretches out over hilly terrain in Hluti, Swaziland, a tiny landlocked country in the southeast of the African continent. Planted there is Jatropha curcas, a biofuel material that forms stripe patterns along contours of the land.FREDERICK THURBER: Why White Mountain wildflowers matter
THE INDOMITABLE Bill Viall of Providence recently led me and our sons up Mount Lafayette, in the Franconia Range of New Hampshire. Along the way I dawdled along, botanizing and birding and generally making a pest of myself in Bill's fast-moving party. A thunderstorm caught us near tree line on the Old Bridle Path so we sprinted to the Appalachian Mountain Club's Greenleaf Hut to dry off and regroup. As I came sloshing in the door, I said excitedly, "Bill, I just saw some alpine flowers.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
NEW YORK -- Sea coral is blessed with wonderful colors, an intricate design and memories of the lapping...
Maybe the Rolling Stones just don't speak enough Spanish. Despite months of rumours that the Stones were set to sign with concert promoter Live Nation, it seems that the next artist to ink a mega-million deal is an act of a more sultry, hip-wriggling kind. Colombian pop star Shakira finalised a $70 million (£35 million) deal last week, according to the New York Post, to be announced withinSea lovers say coral is too precious to wear
NEW YORK -- Sea coral is blessed with wonderful colors, an intricate design and memories of the lapping..., Maria Sharapova gets back to what she does best... scoring fashion winners
After a disastrous Wimbledon defeat, Maria Sharapova turned her hand to the fashion game in Paris yesterday. The 21-year-old, who opted for 'menswear' shorts on the court last week, this time decided on a very feminine look for her appearance at a Valentino catwalk show. She turned heads as she arrived at the Place Vendome in a glamorous coat, pencil skirt and towering heels before taking her front-row seat in anticipation of the show. Scroll down for more Bouncing back: Glamorous Maria...La Moss smoulders in new Parisian photo shoot
Kate Moss proved she still has a certain je ne sais quoi in a new photo shoot set in Paris. The 33-year-old teams up with emerging French actor Gaspard Ulliel, who is ten years her junior, in the latest campaign for luxury label Longchamp. The supermodel was named the face of the brand in 2005, just months her front page drug scandal threatened to ruin her career. French twist: Kate Moss stars in a new campaign for luxury label Longchamp Smoldering:Model du jour Agyness Deyn ordered up kisses and hugs during a romantic lunch with her rocker boyfriend Albert Hammond Jr. in New York yesterday. The 25-year-old and the Strokes guitarist could barely
EU orders seal fur ban
Clothing made from seal fur is to be banned throughout the European Union. Although white pelts from baby seals were banned in 1986, fashion houses still use skins from older animals to make bootsHundreds of anti-seal hunt demonstrators held a protest outside European Union headquarters in Brussels on Tuesday, demanding that the 27-nation bloc impose a total ban on...
Activists attempting to shut down Canada's seal hunt are organizing a major demonstration in front of the European Union's headquarters in Brussels on Canada Day. But a spokesman for the groups said...
Friday, July 4, 2008
Jennifer Garner's Big Oops: Actress Locks Two-Year-Old Daughter in Car
Actress Jennifer Garner accidentally locked her keys in her Lexus SUV while shopping this week in Brentwood, Calif., with daughter Violet. The real problem for...A mother daughter bonding day went awry for Hollywood star Jennifer Garner after she locked her car keys in her Lexus, along with her two-year-old daughter Violet. The actress was sent into a quite panic after
Ben Affleck proved he was a doting dad when he sported a name badge for his daughter's first day at pre-school. The 35-year-old was glowing with fatherly pride as he accompanied wife Jennifer
Within spitting distance of the Calgary International Airport, at an anonymous conference hall, Oscar-winner Ben Affleck moved listeners to tears as he talked about his experiences in Africa
Reese is Hollywood's top-earning actress
Hollywood actress Reese Witherspoon officially ended her seven-year marriage with actor Ryan Phillippe on June 12. The couple finalized their divorce this week with court...
Reese Witherspoon has sealed another deal: her divorce from fellow actor Ryan Phillippe. Documents filed Thursday in Los Angeles show the pair have resolved the remaining issues of their split
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Naomi Watts pregnant with her second child... as best friend Nicole Kidman prepares to go ...
Hollywood actress Naomi Watts is pregnant with her second child - just 10 months after giving birth to her son Alexander. The Kent-born King Kong star, 39, is four months pregnant with her second baby with actor partner Liev Schreiber, MailOnline has learned. Naomi's pregnancy news is ironic as her best friend Nicole Kidman is awaiting the birth of her first child with husband Keith Urban any day now. Baby news: Naomi Watts and Liev Schreiber, pictured while the actress was pregnant with...
Shilpa Shetty helps to raise 63,000 pounds for charity
Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty won the Global diversity Award 2008 here for making a significant contribution to the public appreciation and understanding of diversity. She also helped the organisers to raise 63,000 pounds for a charity - the Silver Star Appeal - that runs mobile diabetes assessment units. Stepping in to galvanise the charity auction,Saif-Bebo’s love life up on the net
The love life of Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor, in all its rosy detail including personal information and private photographs, is all over the virtual world.
Rekha and I working together: Big B
Bollywood icon Amitabh Bachchan has rubbished reports that he is teaming up with Rekha in the Disney
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Music Release: Singh is Kinng
Bollywood actors Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif pose with the music album of Bollywood movie Singh is Kinng during the album's launch in Mumbai on June 26, 2008. The movie is scheduled to be released in August
Preview: Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na
Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na is the tale of Jai and Aditi - a match made in pastry shop at heaven
Promotion Story 2050
Bollywood actors Priyanka Chopra and Harman Baweja smile during the promotional event of their forthcoming movie Love Story 2050 in Mumbai
Romancing cotton
Models present designers Meera and Muzaffer Alli's Kotware studio collection during a fashion show "Romance of cotton" in New Delhi
Sao Paulo Fashion Week
A model wears a creation by Colcci during the Sao Paulo Fashion Week in Sao Paulo
Haute couture autumn-winter 2008-2009
A model presents a creation as part of British designer John Galliano's Haute Couture Autumn-Winter 2008-2009 fashion show for French fashion house Dior in Paris
Amitabh Bachchan and Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia
Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan holds a book as flutist Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia smiles during a book launch in Mumbai July 1, 2008. "Woodwinds of Change", a biography, by Surjit Singh was launched on Chaurasia's 70th birth anniversary
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Protocol of first Contact with some other E.T.
he whole world is waiting on the most relevant matter on this Globe: The first verbal contact between VIP of our Planet Earth with some other E.T. on a Planet in the Universe. Since I predicted on the point the downfall of World's Stock Exchanges, you may believe me that I am the prophet of God, the real one, to know exactly when the first verbal contact with E.T. (Extra Terrestrials) would take place. It will be in OCTOBER 2008.
Some Geneva Chaps, friends of SETI-Institute in California will, on September 11, 2008, have radio-wave contacts with the VIP from the planet "GWPUT 899" - and on October 11, 2008, as usual in this world - after the "Scientists", some political and religious VIP from EARTH will have the first intergalactic interview, radio-phoned for 6,5 billion of blinded admirers of false importance - like follows:
GW Bush: "Hey, guys up there, we are here. Let's learn some about our lovely Earth. We are the kings in the Universe and very happy to see you. How are you, how big is your Bubble?"
VIP WG Hsub: "Well, friends, the durchmess of our planet is XDEL Miles (sic) and the surface something more. We have wiped out all poor here, by starvation, civil wars, some bombs and Buenos cellars, and now, we the rich VIP can fuck around and play golf and tennis the whole year long and be extremely happy in complete dullness..."
Dick Cheney: "What is your system of economics and oil wells? We have here beautiful systems of Chicago Economics, oil stealing in Iraq and Iran, soft money in heaps in the pockets of the privileged skunks, but unfortunately, the poor and middle class are still alive, but we are on best ways to wipe..."
Kcid Yenech: "Hey friend, I am responsible of the sand here. First our money systems asked for pearls as money, but we found out that sand is much cheaper and now we can buy anything with billions of sand-amounts, we want, all companies of the enemies of your system and send them in some camps, you may know..."
NASA spacecraft finds ice on Mars
NASA spacecraft finds ice on Mars Martian ice melts in this combination photo taken by NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander's Surface Stereo Imager on June 15 and 18, 2008, in this handout image released by NASA June 20, 2008. REUTERS/NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University/Handout By Dan Whitcomb LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The Mars Phoenix Lander has found ice on the surface of the Red Planet, triumphant NASA scientists said on Thursday, a key discovery for the spacecraft as it...
Record tourism could harm Easter Island statues
Chile (AP) -- It's earth's most remote inhabited land, a South Pacific speck of volcanic rock so isolated the locals call it "Te Pito O Te Henua," or "The Navel of the World." But Easter Island is a bellybutton experiencing a tourist boom -- and some are worried the onslaught of outsiders could take a toll on the very things they come to see, the gigantic stone heads known as Moais....
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