Daily News Items Here Please :newsflash

[Canada Joe]

White House race contests resume



Four US states are holding primaries and caucuses on Saturday, the first polls since the votes on Super Tuesday.

Democratic presidential hopefuls Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton remain neck and neck and have been continuing their dogged campaigning for every vote.

[Canada Joe]

Gaza rockets injure two Israelis



Israel has threatened to retaliate after two brothers were seriously injured in a rocket attack by Palestinian militants in Gaza.
The rocket, which landed in the town of Sderot, was one of around a dozen fired into southern Israel on Saturday.

[Canada Joe]

Yahoo rejects Microsoft approach



Yahoo has rejected a takeover bid worth more than $40bn (£20.5bn) from software giant Microsoft because it is too low.

Yahoo said the offer "substantially undervalues" the company and is not in shareholders' interests.

[Canada Joe]

Obama takes US poll clean sweep



Barack Obama has won three more states in the battle for the Democratic Party's presidential nomination.

The Illinois senator won in Louisiana, Nebraska and Washington state and won caucuses in the US Virgin Islands.

[Canada Joe]

Obama wins primaries clean sweep



Illinois Senator Barack Obama looks set to overtake his rival, Senator Hillary Clinton, in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination.

In the latest round of primaries, Mr Obama has clinched Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia.
Senator Clinton is looking ahead to primaries in Ohio and Texas on 4 March in the hope of reversing her fortunes.

[Canada Joe]

Hezbollah chief threatens Israel



Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah has warned that the militant group is ready for "open war" with Israel, after the killing of one of its leaders in Syria.
Nasrallah made the declaration during a fiery speech at the funeral of Imad Mughniyeh in Lebanon's capital, Beirut.

[Canada Joe]

Deadly blast at Pakistan meeting



A suicide bomber has killed at least 27 people in Pakistan after a meeting of murdered ex-PM Benazir Bhutto's party, the interior minister has said.
The attack happened on the last day of campaigning ahead of general elections on Monday.

[Canada Joe]

'Deadliest' attack in Afghanistan



At least 80 people have been killed in a suicide bombing outside the Afghan city of Kandahar - in what appears to be the deadliest attack since 2001.
The massive blast hit a crowd of people watching a dog-fighting contest.
"This suicide attack was the work of the Taleban," said Governor Assadullah Khalid, adding the death toll may rise.

[Canada Joe]

US spy satellite plan 'a cover'



Russia has accused the US of using a plan to shoot down a broken spy satellite as a cover for testing an anti-satellite weapon.
The US said last week that it would use a missile to destroy the satellite, to stop it from crash landing.

[Canada Joe]

Diana 'murdered', Al Fayed says



Princess Diana and Dodi Al Fayed were murdered, Mohamed Al Fayed has told the inquest into their deaths
He made the claim about the fatal Paris car crash as he began his evidence at the Royal Courts of Justice.
The Harrods boss also said Diana had told him she was pregnant. "I am the only person they told," he said.

[April]

After almost 50 years, Castro officially calls it quits

[Canada Joe]

US poll battle moves to Wisconsin



The White House race is continuing in Wisconsin as Democrats Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton seek a boost in their close battle for the party nomination.
Polls opened despite freezing temperatures, with officials expecting a big turnout.

[Canada Joe]

Obama extends lead over Clinton



Barack Obama has gained more ground over his rival, Hillary Clinton, in the contest to win the Democratic nomination to run for US president.
Mr Obama, the senator for Illinois, has won the primary in Wisconsin, and is also projected to take victory in Hawaii - his 10th win in a row.

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http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=19246298

That had me laughing. The campaign finance committee can't do anything about McCain disregarding their rules because he (& others) didn't confirm the nominees for the campaign finance committee. "Cute" politics.

I suppose if he is elected, he will push for changes to the spending rules.

Erm... I mean WHEN, not if

Gotta keep my eBay lotto numbers auction thriving

[Canada Joe]

Clinton and Obama spar in Texas



Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has accused rival Barack Obama of political plagiarism during a live televised debate.
But Mr Obama brushed off the accusation that he represented "change you can Xerox", saying it was just part of "silly season" politics. ...

[Canada Joe]

Gaming's future 'on the network'



The future of the games industry lies with the internet and content delivered from central servers, a panel of game luminaries has predicted.
"Everything is moving towards the network," said Neil Young, general manager of EA Los Angeles.

[Canada Joe]

Turkish troops enter north Iraq..'Dozens dead' in Turkish assault



Turkish ground forces have crossed across the border into northern Iraq to target Kurdish rebels said to be sheltering there, Ankara has said.
Thousands of soldiers are thought to be involved in the operation which the army says began on Thursday evening after an air and artillery bombardment.
Turkey's army says its ground offensive in northern Iraq has left five soldiers and dozens of Kurdish rebels dead.
Turkey said its ground forces had crossed the border to tackle rebels late on Thursday after an air and artillery bombardment.

[Canada Joe]

Deal will let Spears visit sons



Britney Spears will soon be allowed to visit her children after reaching an agreement with ex-husband Kevin Federline, his lawyer said.
The pop star would be granted access to her sons "very soon", said the lawyer, Mark Vincent Kaplan.

[Canada Joe]

Iraq warns Turkey over incursion



Iraq's foreign minister has warned that any escalation of Turkey's operation against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq could destabilise the region.
THoshyar Zebari told the BBC Iraq did not approve the "limited" raid into a remote, uninhabited area, and said it should end "as soon as possible".

[Canada Joe]

US will back new Iran sanctions



US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has said there is a "very strong case" for a third round of sanctions on Iran over its disputed nuclear programme.
She spoke as the UN nuclear agency said it could offer no "credible assurances" that Iran was not building a bomb.
UN Security Council members the US, UK, China, France and Russia meet on Monday in Washington to mull their next step.

[Canada Joe]

Iran defiant over sanction threat



Iran's leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says that no amount of UN sanctions will deter Tehran from its nuclear path.
"If they want to continue with that path of sanctions, we will not be harmed. They can issue resolutions for 100 years," he said in a TV interview.
His remarks came after a UN report said Iran was being more transparent - but had not given "credible assurances" that it was not building a bomb.

[Canada Joe]

Bomber strikes Iraq Shia pilgrims



At least 40 people have been killed and scores more injured by a suicide bomber targeting Shia pilgrims in the Iraqi town of Iskandariya, south of Baghdad.
An official told the BBC that a bomber wearing a suicide vest had detonated his device in a crowd. At least 60 people were injured in the attack.
The blast happened on a main route to the Shia city of Karbala, which is hosting a religious festival.

[Canada Joe]

Ralph Nader to run for president



Ralph Nader has announced plans to run again for the US presidency.

The anti-establishment consumer advocate made the announcement in a televised interview on Sunday.
Mr Nader was accused by many Democrats of handing the presidency to George W Bush in the November 2000 elections. He ran again unsuccessfully in 2004.

[Canada Joe]

US urges short Turkish campaign



US Defence Secretary Robert Gates has urged Turkey to keep its military campaign against Kurdish militants in northern Iraq as short as possible.
"The shorter the better," he said, adding that Ankara should attempt to reconcile with its Kurdish minority.

[Canada Joe]

Raul Castro named Cuban president



Raul Castro has been unanimously selected to succeed his brother Fidel as leader by Cuba's National Assembly.
Fidel Castro stepped down last week after nearly half a century in charge.
Raul has in effect been president since Fidel had major surgery in July 2006. It is understood that he was the only nominee in a vote seen as a formality.