Why Chávez Was Re-elected - honest opinion from New York Times

By MARK WEISBROT
Published: October 9, 2012

WASHINGTON — For most people who have heard or read about Hugo Chávez in the international media, his reelection on Sunday as president of Venezuela by a convincing margin might be puzzling.

Almost all of the news we hear about him is bad: He picks fights with the United States and sides with “enemies” such as Iran; he is a “dictator” or “strongman” who has squandered the nation’s oil wealth; the Venezuelan economy is plagued by shortages and is usually on the brink of collapse.

Workable Solutions Focus of Renewable Energy Meet in Sabah

Members of the Murut indigenous group in Sabah working
on installing a micro hydro turbine in Borneo.

KOTA KINABALU, MALAYSIA (8th Oct 2012): Community-based solutions and cost effective, reliable models for generating renewable electricity are among features of a regional assembly in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo, that will do its part in creating a sustainable energy secure future for the planet.

The five-day Southeast Asia Renewable Energy People’s Assembly (SEAREPA) that starts on Oct 29 at the Rainforest Discovery Centre in Sandakan will also explore an array of renewable energy technologies and methodologies.

Migrants, church may end BN’s Borneo vote bank

KOTA KINABALU: Housewife Fawziah Abdul wants to thank former Malaysian Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohammad for making her a citizen 10 years after she illegally slipped into Borneo from the southern Philippines in search of a better life.

The 50-year-old lives on the outskirts of Kota Kinabalu, the capital of Malaysia’s Sabah state, where her tin-roofed shack jostles for space with more than 1,000 others in a slum where children play beside heaps of rubbish.

She is hopeful that her three children will get a new home and identity cards if she votes for the government again.

‘BN govt does not care for Sabah’

Former deputy minister Lajim Ukin told Parliament of the
failures of the BN government to Sabah voters.

Source

KUALA LUMPUR: Former Umno deputy minister Lajim Ukin told parliament that the Barisan Nasional government has no time for Sabah. He said this was despite the state’s loyalty to the federal government all these years.

Lajim, who is Beaufort MP, also indicated his support for the opposition after he had remained quiet over his political leanings since he quit the government, applauding Pakatan Rakyat’s promise to raise oil royalty payments to 20%.

Sabah is rich in oil and contributes some RM22 billion of oil revenue annually but enjoys a mere 5% return in royalty while government allocations to the state, one of the poorest in the country, is said to be comparatively low.

‘Sell us your heirloom’ call slammed

Heritage Sabah has slammed Sabah Museum over its latest
call which the NGO claims encouraged looting.

KOTA KINABALU: Heritage Sabah has shot down a call by Sabah Museum to Sabahans to sell their heirlooms to the museum as a way of sharing their stories.

The NGO founder-cum-spokesman Richard Sokial cautioned that while the museum’s intention may be good, the social implications are that one’s heritage is for sale.

The outcome of such a move could also encourage looting of their ancestors’ graves for profit, he said.

Survey a ploy to discredit Musa, claims Salleh

Sabah Legislative Assembly Speaker, Salleh Said Keruak

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Umno deputy chief Salleh Said Keruak today hit out at a survey on Sabah which he claimed was the work of certain people who want to discredit Chief Minister Musa Aman and see him toppled.

He said that the poll was commissioned by those with an agenda and was aimed at demoralising Musa and the Barisan Nasional machinery.

Salleh was commenting on an online news report which claimed that voter satisfaction of Musa in the state has dropped significantly.

The report quoted the survey carried out by the Merdeka Centre for Opinion Research. According to the poll, voter satisfaction towards the chief minister had nose-dived from 60% in November 2009 to 45% in September 2012.

Does Nazri want to turn Sabah into a Filindo state?

By Daniel John Jambun

Daniel John Jambun

Daniel John JambunThe comment by Datuk Nazri Aziz that the immigrants in Sabah are under control and are not a threat to the state is another proof that the Federal Government is not interested to solve this mother of all problem. What is painful about this comment is that we can smell a dirty rat, a mala fide (bad intention) and the underlying reality that the Federal Government is actually supporting the presence of illegal immigrants in Sabah as part of some sinister plan to continue changing the demography of the state.

What he said was outrageous and unacceptable and should have been condemned by everyone and every party, including the leaders and parties of the Barisan Nasional. Unfortunately only PBS, through its Secretary General, Datuk Henrynus Amin was daring enough to protest, saying Nazri “was politically insensitive to grassroots sentiment in Sabah, especially their fears and concern for the future wellbeing posed by the huge presence of illegal immigrants” and that the statement fuelled “speculations in the streets as the genuine commitment of the Barisan Nasional Government to resolve the perennial problem of illegal immigrants in the state.” He demanded that the minister clarify and correct his statement. The response is still total silence.

How has Venezuela changed since Hugo Chavez took power?

Indicator 1999 2010 2011 Source Population growth (annual%) 1.9 1.5 World Bank Population, total 23,867,000 29,278,000 World Bank GDP per capita (current US$) 4,105 10,810 World Bank Unemployment, total (% of total labor force)        14.5 World Bank Colombian refugees (and people in refugee-like situations) in Venezuela 50 201,941 UNHCR Mortality rate, infant (per 1,000 live births)        20 13 World Bank Households (% of total declared) Extreme poverty - second half 19.3 7 Instituto Nacional de Estadística, INE Population (% of total declared) Extreme poverty-second half 23.4 8.5 Instituto Nacional de Estadística, INE OPEC Net Oil Export Revenues, Nominal (billion $) 14.4 60 OPEC, EIA Inflation, average consumer prices (Percent change) 23.57 28.187 26.09 IMF Intentional homicide, number per 100,000 5,968 13,080 UNODC Intentional homicide, rate per 100,000 25 45.1 UNODC

It has been 14 years since Venezuela's president won his first election. How has the country changed since Hugo Chavez took power? • Explore the interactive • More data journalism and data visualisations from the Guardian Key indicators that show how Venezuela has changed since Hugo Chavez first assumed office. Click on the image for the full size graphic Venezuela is getting ready for Sunday's elections when current President Hugo Chavez will face his main challenger, Henrique Capriles. If Chavez wins the vote he will gain another six years in office. The election also brings a variety of issues to light that have caused unease for Venezuela. Jonathan Watts in Caracas writes:     On a global level, Sunday's election is about who controls and distributes one of the world's biggest recoverable oil reserves. For ideologues, it is a frontline battle between Bolivarian socialism and neoliberalism. But for most Venezuelan voters, it is about safety, fairness and a character who arguably inspires more love and hate than almost any other politician in the world. But how have things changed since Hugo Chavez won his first election 14 years ago? By looking at key indicators we can see that poverty levels and illiteracy have fallen but violent crime and inflation has increased.

The rigid taining of Chinese athletes

By MATT BLAKE

PUBLISHED: 14:44 GMT, 1 August 2012 | UPDATED: 16:41 GMT, 1 August 2012

Her face etched with pain, a child trains for Olympic glory while her gymnastics trainer stands on her legs.

Hard training: Her face etched with pain, a child trains for Olympic glory while her gymnastics trainer stands on her legs.

The cartoon space rockets and animal astronauts on her tiny red leotard are a stark and powerful reminder of this little girl's tender age as she trains as hard as any adult athlete in the Western world.

Unhappy Muslims.....interesting observation

Now we know why they go around killing, bombing, burning and destroying indiscriminately ! "forgive them father for they know not what they do !"

Why are Muslims so backward and powerless?

Dr Farrukh Saleem

The writer is the Pakistani Executive Director of the Centre for Research and Security Studies, a think tank established in 2007 and an Islamabad-based freelance columnist.

We Muslims must wonder why is that only Muslim States like Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya are being attacked by the Christian West.

Why do we get pushed around by them with the former President of the US George Bush calling it a crusade?