Young Americans are more likely than the general public to favor a government-run universal health care insurance system, an open-door policy on immigration and the legalization of gay marriage, according to a New York Times/CBS News/MTV poll. The poll also found that they are more likely to say the war in Iraq is heading to a successful conclusion. Read more>
New poll finds that young Americans are leaning left
Posted June 27, 2007 by akirykCategories: Americas, Democracy
South Korea to resume rice aid to North
Posted June 26, 2007 by akirykCategories: Food and Nutrition
South Korea will resume sending rice aid to North Korea from Saturday, as Pyongyang begins steps towards nuclear dismantlement, the unification minister said on Tuesday. Read more>
U.S. sets record of private giving
Posted June 26, 2007 by akirykCategories: Culture, Economy
Americans gave away nearly $300 billion in 2006, surpassing even the unusually high giving of 2005 that was triggered by such disasters as the Gulf hurricanes and the Asian tsunami. Donations in the US rose an inflation-adjusted 1 percent, according to a report released yesterday by the Giving USA Foundation. If disaster relief is excluded, the increase was 3.2 percent. Read more>
Proliferating icebergs creating ecosystems
Posted June 22, 2007 by akirykCategories: Environment, Global Warming
The proliferation of Antarctic icebergs caused by rising temperatures is creating a vast ecosystem of plankton, krill and seabirds that may have the power to absorb some of the carbon dioxide that is driving global warming, scientists reported Thursday. Read more>
New York City smokers’ ranks drop 19%, study says
Posted June 22, 2007 by akirykCategories: Health
The city’s department of health, citing a combination of high taxes, workplace limits and $10 million in grim television advertising, said yesterday that the number of smokers in New York City had declined by 240,000 in the last five year. Read more>
Plastic bag revolt spreads across Britain
Posted June 20, 2007 by akirykCategories: Environment
Spurred by a filmmaker’s documentary, the English town of Modbury became the first in Europe to ban them outright. Stores, grass-roots groups, and citizens are joining forces to reduce national consumption of plastic bags. Read more>
Down-to-earth indie labels adopt green packaging
Posted June 19, 2007 by akirykCategories: Culture, Environment
There wasn’t a CD manufacturing operation in the entire country that satisfied the eco-friendly needs of Cloud Cult leader Craig Minowa. So he built his own. Read more>
Iraqi Shiites and Sunnis find some common ground - on a soccer field in Jordan
Posted June 19, 2007 by akirykCategories: Iraq
In a match pitting Iraq against Iran, a Christian Science Monitor reporter wades into the stands to find Sunnis and Shiites united. And it’s not just the Iraqis who will be seeking solace in soccer this week. The Palestinian territories, Syria, Iran, and Lebanon are also lining up at the West Asian Football Federation Championships here, which is shaping up to be something of a World Cup for weakened – or at least threatened – states. Read more>
Massachusetts legislators vote to defeat same-sex marriage ban
Posted June 14, 2007 by akirykCategories: Gay rights
A proposed constitutional ban on same-sex marriage was defeated today by a joint session of the Legislature by a vote of 45 to 151, eliminating any chance of getting it on the ballot in November 2008. At least 50 votes were needed to advance the measure. Read more>
Women lawyers force big rights gains in Uganda
Posted June 14, 2007 by akirykCategories: Human Rights, Women
This spring, a small group of lawyers helped overturn laws that gave men more rights than women. In April, the Uganda Association of Women Lawyers (FIDA-U) achieved its most significant legal success to date when the nation’s Constitutional Court overturned key parts of the adultery law – which allowed married men, but not women, to have an affair. It also scrapped parts of the Succession Act, which gave more rights to husbands than wives when a spouse dies. But more important for many of the lawyers here is the ability to improve the individual lives of the women they advise. Read more>
