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PORTSMOUTH, Ohio: Democratic White House front-runner
Barack Obama warned against “fear or panic” and called for quick
action on the Wall Street bailout after world stocks went into
free-fall. The Illinois senator sought to show leadership in the eye
of a widening financial storm and shrugged off a searing character
attack by Republican rival John McCain that showed no sign of
halting his momentum. Obama made a fresh appeal for calm following
another brutal day on Wall Street, which triggered global stock
market contagion, inflicting massive losses on Asian and European
investments soon after those markets opened. “Now is not the time
for fear or panic, now is the time for resolve, for leadership,”
Obama Thursday told thousands of people packed into an outdoor rally
during a two-day bus tour of critical Midwestern swing state Ohio.
--AFP
WAUKESHA, Wisconsin: Shouts of
“terrorist” and “treason” aimed at Barack Obama have echoed
around Republican rallies, whipping up into alarming, hate-filled
frenzies against the Democratic White House hopeful. Republican
presidential nominee John McCain has taken to asking, “Who is the
real Barack Obama?” at rallies this week, leading one supporter in
Pennsylvania, a blue-collar battleground state to shout back, “he
is a bomb.” Before the rally, local Republican leader Bill Platt
warmed up the crowd by several times referring to “Barack Hussein
Obama,” focusing on the Illinois senator’s middle name, trying
to highlight his differences with other Americans. The stream of
vicious attacks against Obama, who has left McCain trailing in the
polls, were ramped up at the weekend by Republican vice presidential
candidate Sarah Palin who accused the Chicago senator of “palling
around with terrorists” (see related story on page A1.
--AFP
BANGKOK: Leaders of Thai
anti-government protests were swiftly granted bail Friday after
surrendering to police but have vowed new rallies, raising fears of
mounting turmoil days after deadly street clashes. Seven People’s
Alliance for Democracy (PAD) leaders turned themselves in on arrest
warrants for illegal assembly and inciting unrest and were released
after two hours of questioning. Senior PAD leader Sondhi Limthongkul,
one of those who surrendered, before heading to a protest camp at
the premier’s offices, had on Thursday called on cheering crowds
at the Government House compound to march to the national police
headquarters in Bangkok on October 13 to protest a recent crackdown.
Thousands of protesters on Tuesday marched on parliament to stop a
speech by Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat, prompting clashes with
police which left two dead and hundreds injured.
--AFP
BANGKOK: A bus carrying dozens of
college students on Friday crashed in central Thailand, killing at
least 24 people aboard. The accident happened at3:30 a.m. local time
in central province of Prachin Buri, according to Bangkok Post’s
website. Local police said the bus was carrying more than 50
students of the Khonkaen College of Agriculture and Technology on an
educational tour at the province. However, the bus, which was
believed to be running at a high speed, went out of the route and
crashed. A total of 24 persons, including the driver and 23
students, were found dead at the scene. Some 30 others injured were
taken to nearby hospitals.
--Xinhua
TAIPEI: Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou
on Friday urged confidence in the economy and pledged to promote
peace with China as the island marked its first national day under
his government. “We are facing an unprecedented global financial
crisis and the government will actively handle the situation while
promoting cross-strait peace and international friendship,” Ma
said in his national day speech. The President Friday has vowed to
build a “clean and able” government to win the respect and
recognition of China and the international community.
--AFP
YANGON: Myanmar authorities have
banned the import and distribution of nine Chinese dairy products
found to be contaminated with the toxic industrial chemical
melamine, state media reported Friday. The ban comes after the
country’s food and drug watchdog destroyed 16 tons of imported
Chinese baby formula and authorities urged people not use Chinese
milk and dairy products because of the tainted milk scandal.
Myanmar’s military government found the nine brands to be
“contaminated with melamine that is unfit for human
consumption,” the New Light of Myanmar newspaper said.
--AFP
SYDNEY: Pregnancy has long been
blamed for addling women’s minds but new work by Australian
researchers finds this idea may be nothing more than an old wives’
tale. A study by the Australian National University’s center for
mental health research found that there is no evidence to suggest
that impending motherhood affects a woman’s cognitive ability. The
research is based on analysis of interviews with 2,500 women aged
between 20 and 24 first undertaken in 1999 and again later in 2003
and 2007. It found that the 76 women who were pregnant during the
second or third interviews scored no differently on logic and memory
tests than previously.
--AFP
SEOUL: The United States is close
to removing North Korea from its terrorism blacklist in the hope of
saving a crumbling nuclear disarmament deal, according to reports
Friday. Pyongyang, meanwhile, ramped up the pressure by barring UN
inspectors from its nuclear complex and warning Seoul of possible
naval clashes along their disputed sea border. The reports said
Washington, which sent its chief negotiator Christopher Hill to
Pyongyang last week, is nearing agreement with the hard-line
communist state on inspection procedures for its nuclear plants.
--AFP
BEIJING: China’s State Council
issued a series of quality control regulations for dairy products on
Thursday. The move was prompted by the country’s contaminated milk
scandal. The regulations tighten control of how milk-yielding
animals are bred, how raw milk is purchased and the production and
sales of dairy food. The regulations state that quality watchdogs
will now be required to carry out regular inspections of dairy
products. Health authorities under the State Council will now be
responsible for setting up national safety standards for dairy
foods. Meanwhile, police in Hebei province arrested a suspect who
produced the largest amount of “protein powder” with the
chemical melamine and caught eight other persons who bought the
powder, local authorities said on Friday.
--Xinhua
BEIJING: The world’s tallest
man, China’s Bao Xishun, has become a father but his normal-sized
son could have trouble filling his Dad’s big shoes. Bao, who
stands 2.36 meters (7’9”) tall, and his wife, Xia Shujun,
celebrated the birth of the boy last week in the northern province
of Hebei, Xinhua news agency said. The baby, named “Tianyou,”
weighed in at 4.2 kilograms and was 22 inches long, slightly taller
than most Chinese newborns, it said.
--AFP
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