Jenjie

Particularly as they're checked every morning & evening.

Powerpoint may suck, but alot of the 'funny' pictures that get sent around use Powerpoint

nice to know that our taxes are being used to fund someone's addiction to porn lines

Two satellite phones stolen in Iraq cost the Foreign Office almost £600,000 in bills, a spending watchdog says. It took about 18 months before the phones were cut off, despite a junior staff member in the Foreign Office telephony unit querying the huge bills. The National Audit Office said neither senior staff nor the Iraq Policy Unit bothered to look into it and continued to pay the itemised monthly bills. One bill included calls to a South Pacific number totalling £289,991. Those calls were made to a £5.95 per minute number in the Wallis and Futuna Islands. Action was finally taken after the service provider also queried the level of calls. The phones were among 10 sent to Iraq in 2003, but an internal Foreign Office inquiry failed to establish exactly when or where they were stolen from. It concluded that they had probably never been issued officially and "it was likely that they had been stolen early in 2004 from the stock of phones held in Baghdad or Basra". One phone stopped working in March 2005 and the other three months later. The bill also included calls on a third phone which was rented in 2004 and switched off one month after it was stolen. http://www.bbc.co.uk

City estate agents got quite excited recently when American hip-hop artist Sean "P. Diddy" Combs checked out a £25 million (about $45.5 million) house in London's Holland Park area. But P. Diddy isn't the center of a brand-new trend. U.S. celebrities have been swapping Los Angeles' 90210 and New York's 10013 for NW3 and other hip British postcodes for decades. For many it's just not a zealous embrace of strange accents, Barbour jackets and real ale--it's about status. "U.S. celebrities get kudos in their social circles for owning a London property," says Tom Tangney, associate at property agent Knight Frank. Tangney has helped half-a-dozen American personalities find houses in the U.K. "They also like the U.K. and London for its centrality. It's a very easy position on the globe to travel to and from." Marriages, movies and a hankering for anonymity have also motivated many A-listers to buy property across the pond. Gwyneth Paltrow and Gwen Stefani, having succumbed to the charms of British rockers, can quite happily walk dogs and babies out in full view in north London's leafy suburbs. Not all American stars get left alone, though; the country's voracious paparazzi probably hounded Angelina Jolie out of the sleepy town of Fulmer, Buckinghamshire--she sold her English farmhouse there earlier this year. Still, Paltrow has no plans to leave, she says how much she likes the U.K. because the "English are so amusing at dinner parties." They may be chuckling about the steadily increasing value of their houses--a perennial obsession in Britain. In the first half of this year, prices rose by 4.5%, according to the Halifax Building Society. "You go to Paris for the food, Italy for the fashion and London to invest your money--especially in property," says Trevor Abrahamson, from Glentree Estates who helped Tom Cruise rent and look at houses for purchase when the superstar was in London for the Mission Impossible movies. "It is still recognized that U.K. houses are a good investment, so there is a natural gravitation towards here," he says. "They also like the British lifestyle and being squire of the manor." Madonna is a prime example, with her lordly £9 million ($17 million) Wiltshire shooting estate. Meanwhile, Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones have constructed a mansion overlooking Swansea Bay in her home country, Wales. But not everyone takes the price tags, some as long as telephone numbers, lying down. Madonna has openly complained about the inflated value of British property, and while U.K.-based model Caprice Bourret has a sizeable portfolio in her native America, she has no plans to go back trans-Atlantic. "My God, the house prices in the U.K., particularly the southeast, are mad," Caprice told a British celebrity columnist. "I could never start a portfolio here. I mean, you pay out £1 million and all you get is a shack. It's lunacy." High-profile entertainers, however, don't necessarily go for the big, established trophy houses that the capital has in abundance. "There is a lot of soulless formality in many areas of London, yet Primrose and Notting Hill are more quirky," says Jonathan Hewlett, of Savills estate agents. "Old money is centered in old, traditional areas, such as such as Mayfair, Belgravia and Hampstead. New money has more eclectic taste." London's hills--both Notting and Primrose--north of the River Thames, have both become honey pots for celebrities both British and American. Liam Gallagher, Ewan McGregor, Sean Bean and Jude Law all call the latter mentioned area home. Seven years ago, the film Notting Hill spurred interest in London's more diverse quarters. In one scene Hugh Grant, as a bumbling poor bookstore owner, tries to break up with movie star Julia Roberts with the explanation: "I live in Notting Hill, you live in Beverly Hills." It was a metaphor for the difference in house prices, class and status that each neighborhood represented…oh, how times have changed. Gwyneth Paltrow Location: Belsize Park, North London Approximate value: £3.2 million ($5.8 million) Paltrow and her husband Chris Martin, lead singer of Coldplay, live in a five-bedroom townhouse near Primrose Hill Park. It is in a conservation area, which means the properties have to be preserved, and boasts a 100 foot-long garden. The house is apparently haunted by a classical musician who died in the master bedroom more than 100 years ago.

First, there was "Paul is dead." Then, there was "Elvis lives." Now, it's "Where's Suri?" Suri Holmes Cruise is now joining the ranks of Paul McCartney and Elvis Presley as the subject of wild and widespread conspiracy theories, with speculation having reached a fever pitch about whether this 3-month-old baby actually exists. Tongues started wagging well before Suri's much-debated birth, when bloggers, along with the rest of the world, started to question the veracity of everything from daddy's fertility to mommy's state of mind to the effects of Scientology on their offspring. Throughout it all, Tom Cruise has been enthusiastic to the point of scariness, Katie Holmes has been strangely silent - and the rumors have continued to multiply like bad sequels. Then came Suri's birth on April 18, after which Cruise made several beaming speeches about his daughter's health and beauty and then ... nothing. Neither Cruise nor Holmes has been much in the spotlight since, and pictures of the baby have yet to be splashed across every magazine, as has the offspring of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt. We've already seen Moses (Martin, son of Gwyneth Paltrow), Kingston (Rossdale, Gwen Stefani's son) and Grier (Henchy, Brook Shields' daughter who was born the same day as Suri). Of course, a new-kid-clam-up isn't new to Cruise, who successfully kept his two kids with former wife Nicole Kidman out of the limelight for years. Still, given the inordinately public nature of the Cruise-Holmes courtship, there's nothing left to say but, "What gives?" Here's a roundup of what other celebrity watchers are saying and blogging: - Us Weekly: This magazine has been featuring a countdown on its Web site, tallying the days and minutes that we've been living a Suri-less existence. The rumor is that no one was willing to meet the alleged $3 million starting price for photos. - Pink Is The New Blog: This blogger said Holmes had been faking the appearance of pregnancy via a large pillow or, perhaps, a beach ball. - Perez Hilton: This saucy blog muses that Holmes has been brainwashed and kept prisoner by Cruise and his Scientology buddies. It also said that her baby is an alien. - Jossip: The word here is that Suri is as fake as George Hamilton's tan, and that if she really does exist, Cruise is the father as much as Michael Jackson begat his little Prince. - D-Listed: This potty-mouthed blogger believes that Suri is a figment of Cruise's imagination or is actually just a Starbucks cup - the only thing Holmes has been seen cradling. http://www.courierpress.com

where did you see that he was a smoker? they didn't mention it in the news reports I saw on Mon

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour has warned that war crimes may have been committed in the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. BBC News website World Affairs correspondent Paul Reynolds examines the issues. What international law applies in this conflict? Although this is not a war between states, and only Israel is a party to the Geneva Conventions, it is generally reckoned that the conventions and other humanitarian law should apply. And that in any case what is known as "Common Article 3" of the 1949 Conventions, which outlaw attacks on civilians, should be followed. Strictly speaking this article covers an internal conflict where one party is not the government but again most lawyers say it should apply in this case. Its main provision aims at protecting civilians. "Persons taking no active part in the hostilities... shall in all cases be treated humanely," it says. Is Israel committing war crimes by causing civilian casualties? The 1949 Geneva Conventions aimed to end attacks purely or mainly against civilians, a tactic used heavily in World War II. Article 51 of the First Protocol to the 1949 agreements states: "The civilian population as such, as well as individual civilians, shall not be the object of attack." Article 52 adds: "Attacks shall be limited strictly to military objectives..." Therefore, there is a war crime if civilians are specifically attacked as civilians. However, it is different if they are killed as a result of a strike against a military or a "dual-use" target. Precautions to minimise casualties should be taken and one argument is about whether such precautions have been sufficient. Indiscriminate attacks that target a wide area just to hit a few objectives or which hit military and civilian targets "without distinction" are outlawed by Article 51. Israel however is not a party to the First Protocol though many experts and states say that this should apply in any case. And it remains a standard by which actions can be measured. What about "dual-use" targets? This is a more complex area in which the target might have dual use. For example, are airports, roads, bridges and power stations military targets or are they civilian? And what about houses and apartments claimed by the attacking side to be used by fighters yet with civilians in or near them? Article 52 tried to resolve this: "Military objectives are limited to those objects which by their nature, location, purpose or use make an effective contribution to military action..." Precautions should be taken. And if there is doubt, the decision should be that the target is civilian. The question is whether the target is making an "effective" military contribution. If it is a justified attack, then the killing of civilians as a result is not a war crime. However, there might be a case if it can be shown that the attack in fact became principally or largely one in which civilians turned out to be the targets and that the attacker should have known that. The use of civilians as "human shields" to try to prevent attacks on military assets is also prohibited. What about Hezbollah's attacks on Israel? Hezbollah is sending rockets into Israeli populated areas without accurate guidance systems and is therefore reckoned to be attacking civilians. According to Human Rights Watch: "Deliberately attacking civilians is in all circumstances prohibited and a war crime." And Hezbollah's capture of the two Israeli soldiers? The "taking of hostages" is prohibited under Common Article 3. This applies to both sides. Israel has taken Hezbollah hostages in the past. What defines "proportionality"? International law recognises that a state cannot take unlimited action in response to some incident. In the 19th Century, the British tipped an American boat, the "Caroline", over the Niagara Falls as they said it was helping Canadian rebels. It was subsequently agreed that retaliation was permissible but had its limits. In another case, in 1928, a tribunal held that German retaliation against some Portuguese troops for opening fire on them by mistake had been disproportionate. In this case, the issue is whether Israel's actions following the capture of its soldiers were justified by their scale and tactics. What is Israel's response? An Israeli official said: "We feel that proportionality should be judged in terms of the threat we face. This is not just an issue of the kidnappings. Hezbollah has a huge arsenal and has fired 1,000 missiles at us. We are acting in self-defence. "We are targeting only military objectives, including transport facilities that Hezbollah can use, but you have to remember that Hezbollah often hides in civilian areas. We sent flyers and gave other warnings to civilians to leave before our attacks." And Hezbollah's reaction? Hezbollah has argued that its initial raid was to capture the Israeli soldiers to be bargained for and that it has retaliated with rockets because of strikes against Lebanon and its civilians. The Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah said: "When the Zionists behave like there are no rules and no red lines and no limits to the confrontation, it is our right to behave in the same way." What has the UN Human Rights Commissioner said? The Commissioner, Louise Arbour, has raised the possibility of prosecution. "The scale of killings in the region, and their predictability, could engage the personal criminal responsibility of those involved, particularly those in a position of command and control," she said. "International humanitarian law is clear on the supreme obligations to protect civilians during hostilities. "Indiscriminate shelling of cities constitutes a foreseeable and unacceptable targeting of civilians. "Similarly, the bombardment of sites with alleged innocent civilians is unjustifiable." Does this mean that there could be a war crimes trial? That would not be easy. Israel is not a party to the International Criminal Court and nor is Hezbollah. There would have to be a separate procedure agreed by the UN. Has the International Committee of the Red Cross spoken? Yes. The Head of ICRC Operations, Pierre Kraehenbuehl said: "The civilian population is bearing an extremely heavy burden and consequences of the military action that is under way. "The high number of civilian casualties and the extensive damage to essential public infrastructure does raise, in our view, serious questions regarding the respect of the principle of proportionality in the conduct of hostilities." [email protected]

A lung cancer patient who won a High Court battle to be given a drug to prolong his life has died just hours after receiving the news. Paul Bould, 51, of Morecambe, Lancashire, won an injunction to be given Tarceva after his local Primary Care Trust refused to fund it. His solicitor Yogi Amin said Mr Bould died at Lancaster Royal Infirmary in the early hours of Thursday morning. He said he fought "until the end" to receive the drug. Morecambe Bay Primary Care Trust had refused to pay for the Tarceva, which costs £1,500 for a month's treatment. The High Court ruled on Tuesday that Mr Bould must be allowed access to the drug until a full judicial review can be heard. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) is currently appraising Tarceva for use on the NHS and final guidance is expected in December. Mr Bould said on Tuesday he was "over the moon" at the decision. I've been on the drug for the last two months after my doctor prescribed it. "It has stopped my coughing and made it easier for me to breathe," he said. Solicitor Yogi Amin of law firm Irwin Mitchell represented breast cancer sufferer Ann-Marie Rogers in her battle for the drug Herceptin. A statement from Morecambe Bay PCT said the trust had looked at the evidence relating to Tarceva and said the drug was not a cure. "The PCT is committed to funding medical treatment, support and care of proven effectiveness for patients with all forms of cancer," it said. "However, the PCT faces major challenges in fulfilling its responsibility to all its residents in Morecambe Bay to make best use of finite available funds, to prioritise funding for those drugs and medical treatments that are cost effective and of proven medical effectiveness." The PCT was now planning to "explain the reasons behind its decision to the High Court at a full hearing". http://www.bbc.co.uk

Six people were taken to hospital and 23 others treated for cuts and bruises following an accident on a ride at Alton Towers. It happened when the front carriages of the Runaway Mine Train became separated and rolled back into the rest of the ride at the Staffordshire theme park. The ride, which was full with 46 passengers at the time, was immediately evacuated and was closed to the public. Alton Towers and the Health and Safety Executive are investigating the crash. Two women, aged in their 30s or 40s, were flown by air ambulance to North Staffordshire Hospital suffering possible whiplash, spinal or abdominal injuries of the sort seen in car crashes, a Staffordshire Ambulance spokesman said. 'Rickety rails' A third woman was taken by land ambulance to the same hospital and a man is thought to have made his own way to a casualties centre in Leek. Two other people were taken to Accident and Emergency later. It is believed all six would have left hospital on Thursday evening. The 23 others were treated at a medical centre at the theme park. A spokeswoman for the theme park said: "The health and safety of our guests is our primary objective. The ride has been closed and will remain so whilst a thorough investigation is carried out." The rollercoaster ride is one of the older attractions at the theme park. Its description on the theme park's website invites customers to "rattle along the rickety rails and mine shafts, past trees and rivers, on a speeding locomotive that's out of control - and getting faster every second." The spokeswoman said it was unclear how long the ride would be closed for. The rest of the theme park remains open http://www.bbc.co.uk

Microsoft is warning Windows users about a virus that takes over PCs via the popular PowerPoint program. Attached to the virus is a poisoned presentation that, if opened, installs keylogging software on a computer. Users are being told to take care because it could be weeks before Microsoft produces a patch that protects against the security loophole. So far relatively few people are thought to have been caught out by the booby-trapped presentation. Nasty bug The bug that the malicious hackers behind the virus have exploited has been found in PowerPoint 2000, 2002 and 2003. Security experts said the virus was aimed at companies in Asia because Chinese characters are used in the subject line of the e-mail the booby-trapped files are attached to and in name of the poisoned PowerPoint presentation. The presentation purports to be 18 humorous slides about love between men and women. The PowerPoint presentation is attached to an e-mail that arrives from a Google GMail address. Anyone opening the PowerPoint file will trigger the virus that installs a keylogger that records everything typed on an infected machine. It also opens up a backdoor into that machine that the creators of the virus are likely to exploit to gather the recorded keystrokes or to install other malicious programs. Once a machine has been compromised the virus installs a blank version of the poisoned presentation to hide evidence that a computer has been taken over. In an advisory about the exploit Microsoft said "limited" attacks were taking place using the bug and added: "In order for this attack to be carried out, a user must first open a malicious PowerPoint document attached to an e-mail or otherwise provided to them by an attacker." The bug is known as a "zero-day" attack because it was exploited so soon after being discovered. To protect themselves against hackers exploiting the bug, Microsoft warned users not to open or save PowerPoint files that turn up unexpectedly - even if they are from trusted sources. PowerPoint has become widely used in businesses for presentations. The virus bearing the booby-trapped PowerPoint files started circulating a day after Microsoft issued a series of software patches as part of its regular security updates. Typically these updates are issued on the second Tuesday of every month. Security firms said the timing was deliberate as it gave the virus the longest chance to rack up victims before Microsoft gets round to closing the loophole. Microsoft said it was on target to release a patch to protect against the exploit on 8 August http://www.bbc.co.uk

Jackass star Steve-O has quit ITV1's reality show Love Island after just two days, following a string of rows with fellow contestants and TV bosses. "Steve-O became very emotional last night and again this morning, and was upsetting some of the other celebrities," an ITV spokesman said. "We therefore agreed with him that he should go home." Steve-O, whose real name is Steven Glover, became known for performing dangerous stunts on MTV's Jackass show. A row broke out between the US star and the show's producers on Tuesday after they failed to supply him with enough beer or chocolate, with Steve-O claiming "simple requests have been ignored". Leo Ihenacho, singer with The Streets, said: "The thing with Steve-O, he thinks that he's in a five-star hotel." 'Great entertainment' The MTV star had been due to stay for a week. ITV are currently deciding whether he should be paid his full fee. "He has been great entertainment since he arrived on Monday, and we thank him for his contribution," a spokesman said. The second series of Love Island has struggled to find viewers, with audiences rarely higher than 2 million. The programme sees 11 contestants, including model Sophie Anderton and former Boyzone singer Shane Lynch, "dating" on a Fijian island. http://www.bbc.co.uk

Actress Kate Hudson has won a libel action against the National Enquirer magazine after it published an article suggesting she had an eating disorder. The magazine ran pictures claiming to show Hudson as "painfully thin" and said her mother, Hollywood star Goldie Hawn, had urged her to "eat something". But lawyers for the magazine admitted the claims were false and agreed to pay damages for the distress caused. Hudson said she was relieved and happy that the situation had been resolved. "The allegations that I sued over were blatantly false," she said. "I could not stand by while such lies were being perpetrated about me." The magazine published the story under the headline: "Goldie tells Kate: Eat something! And she listens!" 'No concerns' It further claimed: "Star confronts daughter after photos surface showing her painfully thin." Simon Smith, lawyer for Hudson, told the High Court in London that no such confrontation had ever taken place. "Ms Hawn has explained to me that she never had any concerns about her daughter's appearance whatsoever," he said. Mr Smith pointed out that the magazine had published pictures of the actress taken at around the same time and described her as "looking great" and "stunning". Lawyers for the magazine's publishers, American Media Inc, apologised for any distress and embarrassment caused. The published images circulated widely in September and October 2005. Hudson has appeared in several Hollywood films and won a Golden Globe in 2001 for her performance in Almost Famous. Although Hudson is American and the magazine is published by an American company, she was able to sue under British libel laws because the magazine was also published in the UK. http://www.bbc.co.uk

Bring it On, 10 Things I Hate About You,

Hmmmmmm!!! its getting very dark at the moment. they seem to be out to show the worst sides of all the characters in the recent episodes. tonight's turn was Sayid, and whilst I felt sorry for him because grief was obviosuly getting to him, I was also starting to like him less.

you mean Blair has picked up on the Stitch & Bitch trend and is trying to appeal to younger voters? :laugh3:

What more do you need as a headline? Reckon he'll buy a copy and frame it?

With the spreading violence in Lebanon and Gaza, the Israeli doctrine of absolute security and massive retaliation — the notion that any attack or threat of attack on Israel will be met with a disproportionate response — is again proving counterproductive to Israel's own security as well as to the larger stability of the region. It makes no sense for Israel to destroy the civil infrastructure of the Palestinians and of Lebanon in response to the kidnapping of its soldiers, or to further weaken the capacity of the governments of Lebanon and the Palestinian Authority while at the same trying to hold them accountable for the actions of groups and militias they cannot reasonably control. This collective punishment of the Palestinian and Lebanese people is not only inhumane and should be condemned but also leads to more radicalization and to more chaos. That was the lesson of the Israeli siege of the Palestinian Authority in 2002, which severely weakened its ability to govern, helping to pave the way for the political success of Hamas. And it will be the lesson of the increasing destruction of Lebanon. Indeed, the most likely casualty of the latest case of Israel's massive retaliation will be the fragile social peace and the democratically elected government in Lebanon. Ironically, the much-trumpeted Cedar Revolution, the only example of the success of the Bush doctrine that neoconservatives can still point to, could be brought down by the Likudnik policies of Israel that the neo-cons so champion. It took Lebanon more than 20 years to recover a degree of stability and civil peace after the last major incursion. How long will it take to recover from the unraveling of the stability that American and Israelis policies are helping to bring about? It is now clear that the American and Israeli strategy of trying to isolate Hamas and Hezbollah, on the one hand, and Syria and Iran on the other, has backfired. Would the situation in Gaza have gotten so out of hand if Israel, the United States, and the European Union had tried to work with the democratically elected Hamas government from the outset? And would Hezbollah have felt the freedom to take the reckless action it took — the deplorable firing of rockets on Israeli civilians? As Juan Cole points out today on Informed Comment: "A Lebanon with no Syrian troops and Hizbullah in the government was inherently unstable. With Syria gone, Hizbullah filled a security vacuum and also was less restrained." Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has said that Syria has a special responsibility to resolve this crisis. But the whole thrust of American policy of the last two years has been to reduce unconditionally Syria's influence in Lebanon so as to leave Lebanon to the Lebanese. By what logic does the Administration now seek to hold Syria accountable for the reckless action of Hezbollah militia in southern Lebanon? As Cole suggests, the hasty unplanned departure of Syrian forces may have ironically given Hezbollah more freedom to act than before. A dialogue with Syria together with an effort to have a more careful planned disengagement of Syrian forces would have given the Lebanese government a better chance of establishing control over its sovereignty in southern Lebanon. The big beneficiaries of American policy have been the more radical wings of Hamas and Hezbollah and the Iranians, who more and more look like the champions of the Palestinian people. The big losers are the so-called moderate Arab regimes, which again look helpless in the face of what is seen as Israeli aggression, and the moderate Israelis, Palestinians, and Lebanese who hoped for some normalcy of life with the prospect of peace, especially when the Hamas leadership appeared to be moving toward recognition of Israel. The United States and the larger world, too, are losers, for no one benefits from this mindless escalation of violence, particularly at a time of growing sectarian violence in Iraq and rising oil prices. The events of the past two weeks should remind us that the peace and stability of the region is too important to be left to Israel and to Washington. There is a need for much greater and more forceful U.N. and European Union involvement and for the kind of diplomacy that the Europeans and the UN conducted in the late 1980s and the early 1990s that led to the mutual release of prisoners and eventually to the Oslo peace process. The U.N. Quartet — consisting of the U.N., the United States, Russia and the EU — has been far too deferential to the Bush Administration's failed road map strategy and it is time for more active and comprehensive G-8 and U.N.-led diplomacy. Secretary General Kofi Annan's dispatch of two representatives to the region is a start, but it must be followed up by G-8 and U.N. Security Council action to rein in forces on all sides. This diplomacy should be aimed first at establishing a cease-fire and a mutual prisoner exchange and second at recognizing Hamas in Palestine and establishing talks with Syria and Iran. The United States must urgently back this diplomacy as well as make clear to Israel that it cannot support its current military action. The price it will pay in Iraq and in the region as a whole for doing so is just too large. http://www.cbsnews.com

Thousands of protesters have thronged the streets of central Damascus to wave Syrian and Hezbollah flags and shout their support for Hassan Nasrallah, the Lebanese Shia group's leader. Monday's state-organised protest is the first large-scale demonstration in Syria since Israeli and Hezbollah began attacking each other last Tuesday. But elsewhere in the Syrian capital there are few indications that the country could soon bear the brunt of Israel's firepower. Shops and cafes are as bustling as ever and the capital's hotels still brim with thousands of Lebanese nationals and foreign tourists - including many who have fled from Beirut over the past three or four days. Yet with the conflict in Lebanon continuing to intensify, some speculate think that the conflict might soon spill over into Syria, which supports Hezbollah and also hosts armed Palestinian groups including Hamas. Andrew Tabler, a Damascus-based fellow at the Institute of Current World Affairs and a consultant editor of 'Syria Today' magazine says that many Israelis want to see Syria punished for supporting Hezbollah and Hamas. "Many people in Israel, as well as the US, believe that Syria acts as a conduit for weapons and supplies to reach Hezbollah," he told Aljazeera.net "This is one reason why Israel could decide to raise the pressure on Syria by striking localised infrastructure, such as power stations or key roads," he said. Regional war Hezbollah's close links with Iran have also raised fears that Israeli strikes against Lebanon could broaden into a much wider regional conflict. Although Iran is internationally isolated, many think it could potentially create chaos in the region through other groups like Islamic Jihad and pro-Iranian Shia militias in Iraq which is funds, trains and arms. And experts warn that Syria's reach cannot be under-estimated either. Although Syria's military is underfunded, ill-equipped and badly-trained, Damascus can also upset US ambitions in the region, for instance by helping Arab Sunni jihadists to fight the US in Iraq. "Israel would be making a grave strategic mistake if it attacked Syria," Umran Zaaby, a lawyer and political analyst in Damascus told Aljazeera.net "Syria is not Lebanon. It is not a weak state and has allies in the region who can ensure that Israel, and the US, will find themselves in an even bigger dilemma than they do now." "Iran has the power to ensure that the American project in Iraq fails for good," Zaaby said. "It can also threaten to cut off energy supplies and send oil prices sky-high. Israel might have the strongest military power, but power is not just about the military" Tough talk The Syrian government has promised to defend itself against any Israeli attack. "Any aggression against Syria will have a firm and direct response not limited in time or means," said Mohsen Bilal, the Syrian minister of information, in an official statement on Sunday. Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian president, meanwhile said that he would put the "full resources" of his country at Lebanon's disposal. To win support around the Arab world, Syria has also tried to portray itself as the only defender of the Lebanese and Palestinians. State-owned daily Tishreen has loudly criticised the Israeli attacks and what it termed a "shameful silence" from other Arab countries. The newspaper's editorial on Saturday said that Israel, with the backing of the US, was trying to "redraw the regional map." Two Syrians workers have already died in the Israeli bombing of Lebanon. They were caught in an Israeli air strikes in the southern suburbs of Beirut, reported the Syrian state news agency SANA reported on Saturday. Rumoured ultimatums Israel has so far not publicly threatened Syria. However the Arab media has reported that Israel has secretly issued an ultimatum to President Assad. On Saturday, pan-Arab daily al-Hayat claimed that Israel, with US backing, had given Syria 72 hours to pressure Hezbollah into releasing two captured Israeli soldiers and ceasing cross-border attacks into northern Israel. US officials in Washington have neither confirm nor denied the report. But so far Iran and Syria have kept a low-profile in the conflict and are trying to avoid further escalation. A rocket salvo fired at a Lebanese-Syrian border crossing on Saturday was initially believed to have strayed into Syrian territory. But within just minutes both Israeli and Syrian military statements confirmed that only Lebanese targets had been hit. Waiting game Syrian officials might be treading carefully to avoid provoking an Israeli strike, but ordinary Syrians watching the conflict in neighbouring Lebanon find their emotions veering between concern and defiance. In Saiyida Zainab, a predominantly Shia town and pilgrimage site 25km south of Damascus, about 150 protesters gathered on Saturday night to wave yellow Hezbollah flags and banners, chanting their support. And when news channels reported that Hezbollah had badly damaged an Israeli warship off the Lebanese coast on Saturday, small convoys of cars drove around the Syrian capital, honking horns and banging drums. Others, though, are regarding the situation with more anxiety. Abdul Rahman Attar, president of the Syrian Red Crescent organisation, told Aljazeera.net: "we’re on alert now across the country and have to prepare for the worst." http://www.aljazeera.net

Like every important event, the war in Lebanon has already given us a large variety of spin-words and banal political clichés. It comes from Israel, Lebanon and the international community. A leader usually throws an expression into the air that the ordinary citizen will pick up and relay to every passing TV camera. So here it is ? the first big parade of words. Readers can suggest additions by sending them to [email protected]. As long as it takes: Usually means as long as the U.S. administration allows it to happen. In the current crisis the Americans are sensing there?s a genuine opportunity to weaken Hezbollah. They will feel obligated to intervene sooner rather than later in one of two cases: Heavier price in human life on the Lebanese side; or growing outcry coming from important allies in the international community. The fragile Lebanese democracy: The Arab world is now working on a new definition for democracy. From now on please use ?democracies? to denote countries in which there?s a weak government chosen by the people, and a strong militia controlled by outside forces. Thus, the democracy is safe on both accounts: You cannot act against the government, as it is a legitimate, democratically-elected leadership, and you cannot ask the government to take responsibility for its territory as it is too weak to act against the militias, and you don?t want to risk its collapse. Hezbollah is a terror organization: And like all terror organizations, it is allowed to get people elected to the parliament, operate freely in a sovereign state and demand negotiation with its leadership. Resolution 1559: Yet another proof that the UN is capable of calming a troubled area, and that good paperwork is an efficient tool in the war against terror. Crossing red lines: Something your enemy does. Israel says the abduction of soldiers was a crossing of a red line, and later it was the firing of Katyushas on Israeli cities. Hezbollah draw the lines in other places. "As long as the enemy pursues its aggression without limits and red lines we will pursue the confrontation without limits and without red lines,? its leader said. We are monitoring the situation: By way of drinking champagne, having fun and talking about a whole lot of other issues. The right to self defense: No country or leader will deny the right of every man for self defense. Of course Israel has the right to self defense. The question, argued by Israel?s critics, is whether the actions in Lebanon can be considered an act of self defense. But hey, who are we kidding here? We all know the real meaning of this expression, don?t we? It means ?you can keep bombing until we say otherwise.? Restraint: Bombing Beirut. It was irresponsible and unacceptable: The sentence with which one describes Hezbollah?s behavior before saying that "The Israeli strikes targeted Lebanon's equipment, its roads, its communications, its energy sector and its airport. Why?" Here?s a hint: The answer to the question (this one was articulated by France?s Jacques Chirac) might be hiding in the first sentence. Iran and Syria are responsible: U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said today that ?Iran, Syria, Hezbollah, Hamas ? are trying to destabilize democratic and moderate forces.? And what do we do about it? Bomb Hamas and Hezbollah and denounce Iran and Syria. Does this line of action have any connection to the fact that it?s easier to pick a fight with the weaker bully? We would call for a 'show of moderation' from all parties involved: Another one from Chirac, but you could hear similar statements coming from a variety of international leaders. What they mean is one of two things: We care so much that even taking a side from afar seems too demanding. Or: We know Israel has every right to defend itself, but upsetting Hezbollah is too risky. http://www.haaretz.com

A third of children in the UK use blogs and social network websites but two thirds of parents do not even know what they are, a survey suggests. The children's charity NCH said there was "an alarming gap" in technological knowledge between generations. Even when parents had put controls on what youngsters could access, almost half the 1,003 children aged 11 to 16 surveyed said they could disable them. The NCH said families had to learn more about technology to protect children. 'Worldly wisdom' A tenth of the 11-year-olds who took part in the survey said their parents did not know about the people with whom they communicated online. And 13% revealed they were never supervised while using computers at home. John Carr, the NCH's new technology adviser, said: "Children are pretty clued up when it comes to technology but they often lack the worldly wisdom to steer them away from its potential hazards. "That's where parents come in. But our research shows they need to increase their knowledge if they want to protect their children." The survey also found that 69% of parents thought they knew less than their children about mobile phones. The NCH and the supermarket chain Tesco are launching a parents' technology guide, called IT? Got IT! Good!, which is being distributed at stores. The chief executive of Tesco Telecoms, Andy Dewhurst, said: "Young people are often in the driving seat when it comes to new technology, and mobile phones and internet use can be of huge benefit for families. "For example, parents can use texting to stay in regular touch with their children. "However, all new technologies bring some risks and we believe that if parents talk to their kids and stay in touch with technology then they can be much more aware of how young people are using their mobiles and computers and can understand and help prevent those potential risks." Meanwhile, a Mori survey of 2,300 11 to 16-year-olds in England and Wales has found that three fifths liked the idea of using computer games in the classroom. Half of those aged 15 and 16 did not. It was commissioned as part of Teaching with Games, a project led by the Bristol-based research body Futurelab. http://www.bbc.co.uk

The entertainment industry has been threatened with possible law changes if it does not tackle the problem of ticket touting by next summer. Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell said "targeted action and changes in legislation" could be considered to stop exploitation of "genuine fans". Ms Jowell also announced an action plan after talks with industry leaders. This includes allowing people to return tickets and the setting up of a website to allow exchanges at face value. "The innocent victim of ticket touting is the fan who has to pay through the nose for a vastly overpriced ticket to see their sporting, stage or musical hero," said Ms Jowell. "These are the people we must protect." After the minister's third meeting with industry figures on the issue, she said "good progress" was being made. The action plan includes the following: An industry agreement to introduce a policy allowing the return of tickets at face value to original seller The Concert Promoters Association to set up a website allowing fans to exchange tickets at face value Development of a kite mark system for ticket sales websites The drawing up of a code of practice for primary and secondary ticket sellers "The industry should consider itself on notice," said Ms Jowell. "If it hasn't come up with a workable solution to stamping out the most unscrupulous touts by next summer, where there is clear evidence it's needed, we may consider targeted action and changes in legislation to ensure genuine fans are protected from exploitation." 'Hard look' Auction website eBay has blamed promoters and organisers for helping create a secondary market for tickets, pointing to "the shambolic way they distribute tickets through jammed phone lines and crashing websites". They needed to take "a hard look at the way that they allocate tickets to sponsors and agencies, and at the way they price tickets to fill the house and maximise merchandise sales", said eBay's Richard Ambrose. Some ticket agencies, venues and promoters want touting banned on websites like eBay. Mr Ambrose said that 90% of ticket sales on the site in the last year had been people selling five or fewer tickets. "The vast majority of people selling online are selling for personal reasons, normally because they cannot attend an event," he said. Profiteering Stuart Galbraith, managing director of events company Live Nation, said eBay was "actually allowing people to buy tickets that they have no intention of using whatsoever, and making it more difficult for people who want to buy face value tickets in the first place". "There are numerous examples of shows on eBay where people are being sold tickets when there are actually legitimate tickets, very available, in the marketplace at face value. "And they are actually making people pay more then they should be." Mr Galbraith, who is also a member of the Concert Promoters Association, added: "The secondary market will always exist. "What we are looking to do though is to stop the enormous proliferation that has come about, with the advent of the internet, of people that are buying tickets purely and simply with a view to making profits out of genuine concert-goers." The government has no plans to make touting illegal but is looking to identify ways of making it unattractive for touts to operate. http://www.bbc.co.uk

In full: Bush and Blair's unguarded chat A full transcript of the off-the-cuff conversation between US President George W Bush and UK Prime Minister Tony Blair during a break at the G8 conference in Russia. The president was caught on tape using an expletive as he described the actions of Hezbollah in attacking Israel. The two men start by discussing an exchange of gifts: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bush: And thanks for the sweaters - I know you picked em out yourself... Blair: Oh yes absolutely - in fact I knitted it!!! (laughter) Bush: What about Kofi Annan - he seems alright. I don't like his ceasefire plan. His attitude is basically ceasefire and everything sorts out.... But I think... Blair: Yeah the only thing I think is really difficult is that we can't stop this without getting international presence agreed. I think what you guys have talked about which is the criticism of the [inaudible word). I am perfectly happy to try and see what the lie of the land is, but you need that done quickly because otherwise it will spiral. Bush: Yeah I think Condi's [uS Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice) gonna go soon. Blair: Well that's all that matters but if you... You see at least it gets it going. Bush: I agree it's a process...I told her your offer too. Blair: Well it's only if she needs the ground prepared as it were. If she goes out she HAS to succeed whereas I can just go and... Bush: You see the irony is what they need to is get Syria to get Hezbollah to stop doing this shit and it's all over... Blair: Dunno... Syria.... Bush: Why? Blair: Because I think this is all part of the same thing... Bush: (with mouth full of bread) Yeah Blair: Look - what does he think? He thinks if Lebanon turns out fine. If you get a solution in Israel and Palestine. Iraq goes in the right way Bush: Yeah - he's [indistinct] Blair: Yeah.... He's had it. That's what all this is about - it's the same with Iran Bush: I felt like telling Kofi to call, to get on the phone to Assad and make something happen. Blair: Yeah BUSH: [indistinct] blaming Israel and [indistinct] blaming the Lebanese government.... http://www.bbc.co.uk

Bush's nickname for his pal Blair Forget prime minister, Mr Blair, or even plain old Tony. The new way to address the prime minister, we learn, is "Yo Blair". That at least is how George Bush greets the PM in private, according to unguarded remarks they both made in front of an open G8 microphone. We also learn how Mr Blair refers to international commerce as "this trade thingy". And there was some strong language used as well. The US president apparently believes the Middle East conflict could be ended if only pressure were put on Syria "to get Hezbollah to stop doing this shit". Who says Cherie Blair hasn't got guts? At the G8 summit her husband got it in the ear every time he voiced concerns about Russia's human rights record. President Putin, who smarts at every jibe, retaliated by talking of "the fight against corruption" in Britain and referred in the same breath to Lord Levy, the PM's fundraiser. The Russian president followed up by criticising Britain for sheltering a Chechen separatist who he believes is a terrorist. Mrs Blair's response? She slipped quietly out of the summit and visited human rights activists in St Petersburg. Not only that - she even offered them free legal advice, which as a human rights lawyer she is qualified to provided. Nevertheless all the elements of quite a diplomatic row were there and indeed lots of bushy Russian eyebrows were raised. But Mr Putin's spokesman insisted Mrs Blair had every right to visit whoever she wanted and it just went to show that Russia did actually have some human rights groups after all. As well as addressing the Middle East crisis and sorting out world trade, this was the summit that was supposed to abolish rain. President Putin, we were told, had deployed air force jets to "seed" incoming clouds so they rained over Finland instead. Inevitably St Petersburg was drenched in torrential rain for much of the weekend. However, such was the organisers' lack of confidence in their president's promise that they provided the thousands of summiteers with an anorak. At first we were rather sniffy, but as the heavens opened this rather natty blue waterproof became the must-wear item of St Petersburg. http://www.bbc.co.uk

At least 80 people have been killed in a tsunami triggered by an earthquake off the island of Java, aid agencies in Indonesia said. The earthquake, which had a magnitude of 7.2, struck off the town of Pangandaran at 1519 local time (0819 GMT), causing a two-metre-high wave. One resident, Teti, said high waves had destroyed hotels in Pangandaran and thrown boats onto the beach. "Waves suddenly came and we ran to the hills," she told local radio. Seeking refuge "Many small hotels were destroyed," she said. "Boats have been thrown into hotels." At least 2,000 people are also thought to have been displaced from the area. A local official, Rudi Supriatna Bahro, said that thousands of people had sought refuge in mosques and other safe places. "Many of the injured were suffering from broken bones," he told Indonesia's Metro TV. A Red Cross worker, Putu Suryawan, said some 40 people were injured and another 40 were missing. Earlier, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said the search was still ongoing for the missing. Mr Yudhoyono urged residents in coastal areas to move to safer places and said that rescue teams had been sent to the affected area. Warnings Tremors from the earthquake were felt in the capital, Jakarta, for more than one minute, but there were no reports of damage or casualties there. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii had issued tsunami warnings for parts of Indonesia and Australia, and the Japan Meteorological Agency also warned of localised tsunamis. Police in Australia's Christmas Island reported a 60 cm surge but no damage, Reuters news agency said, while India authorities issued a tsunami warning for the Andaman and Nicobar islands, which are located west of Indonesia. But the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said on its website that based on historical and current data, "a more widespread tsunami threat probably does not exist". Earthquakes occur frequently in Indonesia, which sits on the seismically active so-called Pacific Rim of Fire. On May 27, a magnitude 6.3 earthquake hit near the city of Yogyakarta in Java, killing more than 5,800 people. More than 130,000 people were killed in Indonesia in the December 2004 Asian tsunami. http://www.bbc.co.uk