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Tuesday, July 17, 2007

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania — Local caterers get ready for big business, as almost three thousand fans converge on the David L. Lawrence Convention Center over the Independence Day weekend for the world’s largest ever furry convention, Anthrocon 2007.

Many hope to renew acquaintances, or meet new friends. Others look to buy from dealers and artists, or show off new artwork or costumes. Some attend to make money, or even learn a thing or two. But one thing unites them: They’re all there to have fun.

Friday, January 2, 2009

Portuguese Maria de Jesus died Tuesday, at 115 years and 114 days old. The vegetarian, non-smoking, teetotal farmer had only visited a hospital once in her life, outliving her husband by 57 years, and two of her five children. The cause of her death is either unknown or has not yet been released.

De Jesus had five children, 11 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren and six great-great-grandchildren. She had no need for a mobility scooter — instead she lived on her farm and moved with a walking frame, declining nursing care. However, due to sight and hearing problems, she could not easiliy recognize her family, including daughter Madalena, 84, with whom she lived.

She never went to school, and could not write, but one of her children said of her that she never “fell ill, nor took any medication.”

She became the world’s oldest person after the November 26 death of American Edna Parker, who was 115 years and 220 days old. Her position as the world’s oldest person has now been taken by American Gertrude Baines, 114.

Thursday, March 16, 2006

Anti-war demonstrators in Sydney, Australia on Thursday dubbed U.S. Secretary of State Dr Condoleezza Rice a “war criminal” and “murderer.” Two protesters were evicted and five people were arrested during protests against the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.

Dr Rice, on a three-day trip to Australia, said she understood why people found it hard to be positive about Iraq when all they saw on their television screens was violence.

Soon after Rice began her speech at the University of Sydney’s Conservatorium of Music, two protesters shouted from the rear of the auditorium, “Condoleezza Rice, you are a war criminal,” and “Iraqi blood is on your hands and you cannot wash that blood away.” Standing with their palms towards her, the young man and woman repeated their accusation until security intervened to remove them from the hall.

About 15 minutes into Rice’s address, a third protester appeared at a balcony door, interrupting her speech as she referred to freedom. “What kind of freedom are you talking about? You are a murderer,” said the demonstrator before he was quietly escorted from the hall. “I’m very glad to see that democracy is well and alive here at the university,” she said.

In her speech, Rice sought to justify the U.S. occupation of Iraq, describing Iraqis as now more free. One student asked about abuses committed by U.S. forces at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. She said the abuses had made her “sick to her stomach.” However, she defended Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where human rights groups say detainees are held in inhumane conditions and in detention flouting international laws.

Before Rice began her speech, about 50 protesters were gathered at the front gates of the Conservatorium. The group were confronted by police on horseback and by police dogs. Police used the horses to charge into the group of activists and push them back, as a police helicopter hovered.

A police spokeswoman said the group was blocking pedestrian access to the building and that police had spent more than 20 minutes warning them to move. The police then moved in and pushed the crowd back 20 metres. Police say five people have been charged with “hindering police in the execution of their duties.”

The “Stop the War Coalition” says Rice is a “war criminal” and is not welcome in Australia. The group’s spokeswoman, Anna Samson, says the protest is one of many planned in the lead-up to the third anniversary of the invasion and occupation of Iraq on March 20.

Paddy Gibson, from the University of Sydney’s Student’s Council, says the protest is in opposition to the Iraq war, and to the use of the University of Sydney’s campus to host Rice, “the most powerful woman in the world,” who they say is a war criminal. “They’re saying, ‘… you’ve got Sydney Uni’s support to stand up and peddle your murderous hate speeches,’ which is what we see it,” he said.

“You’ve got 180,000 people killed, as we said, for no other reason than strategic control of the region’s oil resources. And the anti-Muslim racism that’s been whipped up to justify this war is being felt by Sydney University students,” said Mr Gibson.

A compilation of brief news reports for Friday, November 7, 2008.

Friday, November 7, 2008

Labour Party candidate Lindsay Roy defeated the Scottish Nationalist candidate by 6,737 votes, to win the UK parliamentary seat for Glenrothes in Scotland. Opinion polls had predicted a close race, but personal campaigning by Prime Minister Gordon Brown, and a high turnout of 52% in Thursday’s vote, secured a high margin for the UK’s governing party.

• Agence France-Presse. “Labour snatches unlikely victory in Glenrothes by-election” — Google News, November 7, 2008
• “Glenrothes by-election: ‘The win has bought Brown some time'” — The Scotsman, November 7, 2008
• “Labour victorious in Glenrothes” — BBC News, November 7, 2008

Friday, November 7, 2008

28 people were wounded and at least 11 are dead after an explosion in the centre of Vladikavkaz, capital of the North Ossetia region of Russia.Local authorities suspect that Thursday’s explosion was caused by a female suicide bomber.

• Tony Halpin. “Suicide bomber in North Ossetia kills 11” — The Times, November 6, 2008
• Haroon Siddique and agencies. “North Ossetia bus stop bomber kills 12” — guardian.co.uk, November 7, 2008

Friday, November 7, 2008

At 0719 UTC (6.19 on Friday evening local time) a magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck 120 kilometres (75 miles) north east of the South Pacific island of Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu.It was followed by several less powerful aftershocks. Reports from the US geological service placed the focus of the quakes at a depth of 35 km.Press reports say that no tsunami warnings were issued.

Vanuatu experienced a similar earthquake on Wednesday, near the island of Efate. That event had a magnitude of 6.3.

• “Tanimbar Islands of Indonesia hit by earthquake” — Wikinews, November 7, 2008
• “Two strong earthquakes rock Vanuatu” — Wikinews, August 1, 2007
• “Strong earthquake hits near Vanuatu” — Wikinews, August 7, 2006

• “Magnitude 6.4 – VANUATU 2008 November 07 07:19:39 UTC” — US Geological Survey, November 7, 2008
• “Latest Earthquakes Magnitude 5.0 and Greater in the World – Last 7 days” — US Geological Survey, November 7, 2008
• “Earthquake strikes near Vanuatu” — The Australian, November 7, 2008
• Agence France-Presse. “Quake strikes off Vanuatu” — Google News, November 7, 2008
• “Magnitude 6.3 – VANUATU 2008 November 04 18:35:45 UTC” — US Geological Survey, November 4, 2008

Friday, November 7, 2008 17:46:00

American car manufacturer General Motors has lost 2.5 billion US dollars in its third quarter of 2008. The hemorrhage of cash has prompted GM to suspend talks of a “strategic acquisition” that some business analysts say may be referring to a possible buyout of Chrysler. Revenue has fallen nearly 5.8 billion dollars, greatly due to the recent global economic crisis which has caused consumers to sharply cut back on spending. The report indicates that GM could go bankrupt in 2009 without government assistance.

• Matthew Dolan and Jeff Bennett. “GM Posts Loss, Warns of Cash Squeeze” — Wall Street Journal, November 7, 2008
• Associated Press. “GM reports $2.5B 3Q loss, says it’s running out of money, suspends Chrysler takeover talks” — Newsweek, November 7, 2008

Friday, November 7, 2008

World stock markets posted another drop at close of trading yesterday.Blue chip indices showed losses of 3.55% in Tokyo and 6.84% in Frankfurt.Oil prices echoed the trend, falling to $60.77 per barrel, down 6.94%.

This story incorporates translated text from a story in French Wikinews: “Crise financière : nouveaux replis des places boursières le 6 novembre 2008” (November 7, 2008) which has a license that is compatible with English Wikinews.

• “Nikkei” — Les Échos, November 7, 2008 (French)
• “FTSE” — Les Échos, November 6, 2008 (French)
• “cours du brut” — EuroInvestor.fr, November 6, 2008 (French)
• “Vue générale des marchés” — EuroInvestor.fr, November 6, 2008 (French)

Monday, October 29, 2012

The Bremer Freimarkt (Free Fair) — historically one of the oldest fairs in Germany — has its greatest event with the Free Fair Procession “Freimarktsumzug”; this year’s Freimarktsumzug took place Saturday.

The procession started Saturday morning on the opposite side of the river Weser in the “Neustadt” and passed the city hall about one hour later. 146 colorfully decorated groups were taking part, some of them dancing to their own music, and were watched by about 200.000 people in the streets during more than four hours of the whole performance. The event could also be viewed on television and on livestream on the web.

The Free Fair opened on the place behind the main station of the city of Bremen a week ago. The origin of this popular event can be traced back to the year 1035. Nowadays it has been called the “biggest Fairground Festival in northern Germany”.

For a few years, an historical spectacle involving actors of the theatre group Shakespeare Company has been part of the opening performance of the fair. With a replica of an old cog an ambassador enters the banks of the river Weser close to the city and walks with his companions to the market place in front of the city hall of Bremen where the Kleiner Freimarkt (Small Free Fair) is opened. Members of the Chimney Sweep Guild hang up a big heart at the statue of Roland as a sign of the opened market. The traditional opening takes place in the Bavarian tent on the Bürgerweide behind the main station of Bremen with the tapping of the first keg by the incumbent Senator of the Interior of the Free Hansetown of Bremen. This is followed by the dance with Miss Free Market on the stage. Late at night, also fireworks are lighted over the place Bürgerweide and can be admired by people. The exclamation Ischa Freimaak (It’s Free Fair) is meant to spread a relaxed and unreserved atmosphere among the guests.

The fair is a major source of revenue for showmen, carousels and food stalls, some of which arrived nearly two weeks before the opening from all over Germany. This year the Freimarkt is to last until Sunday November 4. The subsequent disassembly, especially the technically complex rides, should then take about ten days.

• Large portable Ferris wheel Image: Online Team www.ekd.de.

• Free Fair Procession in the City of Bremen 2009 on its way from the Neustadt Image: House1630.

• Fairground Festival at night Image: Tobi85.

• The monastery’s oxen were used in a procession during the Free Fair in the nineteenth century Image: Lithography by Friedrich Wilhelm Kohl, 1845.

• Reconstruction of the cog “Roland von Bremen” Image: Eva K..

• Free Fair Procession Saturday on its way to the the main station Image: House1630.

Monday, October 29, 2012

The Bremer Freimarkt (Free Fair) — historically one of the oldest fairs in Germany — has its greatest event with the Free Fair Procession “Freimarktsumzug”; this year’s Freimarktsumzug took place Saturday.

The procession started Saturday morning on the opposite side of the river Weser in the “Neustadt” and passed the city hall about one hour later. 146 colorfully decorated groups were taking part, some of them dancing to their own music, and were watched by about 200.000 people in the streets during more than four hours of the whole performance. The event could also be viewed on television and on livestream on the web.

The Free Fair opened on the place behind the main station of the city of Bremen a week ago. The origin of this popular event can be traced back to the year 1035. Nowadays it has been called the “biggest Fairground Festival in northern Germany”.

For a few years, an historical spectacle involving actors of the theatre group Shakespeare Company has been part of the opening performance of the fair. With a replica of an old cog an ambassador enters the banks of the river Weser close to the city and walks with his companions to the market place in front of the city hall of Bremen where the Kleiner Freimarkt (Small Free Fair) is opened. Members of the Chimney Sweep Guild hang up a big heart at the statue of Roland as a sign of the opened market. The traditional opening takes place in the Bavarian tent on the Bürgerweide behind the main station of Bremen with the tapping of the first keg by the incumbent Senator of the Interior of the Free Hansetown of Bremen. This is followed by the dance with Miss Free Market on the stage. Late at night, also fireworks are lighted over the place Bürgerweide and can be admired by people. The exclamation Ischa Freimaak (It’s Free Fair) is meant to spread a relaxed and unreserved atmosphere among the guests.

The fair is a major source of revenue for showmen, carousels and food stalls, some of which arrived nearly two weeks before the opening from all over Germany. This year the Freimarkt is to last until Sunday November 4. The subsequent disassembly, especially the technically complex rides, should then take about ten days.

• Large portable Ferris wheel Image: Online Team www.ekd.de.

• Free Fair Procession in the City of Bremen 2009 on its way from the Neustadt Image: House1630.

• Fairground Festival at night Image: Tobi85.

• The monastery’s oxen were used in a procession during the Free Fair in the nineteenth century Image: Lithography by Friedrich Wilhelm Kohl, 1845.

• Reconstruction of the cog “Roland von Bremen” Image: Eva K..

• Free Fair Procession Saturday on its way to the the main station Image: House1630.

Published:Wednesday, September 7, 2005Updated:Saturday, September 10, 2005 (Travolta, Preston, Moore, Stones, Three Doors Down, Johnson, Smith)

After Hurricane Katrina passed across the United States, various artists and media stars have leapt at a call to action.

John Travolta and wife Kelly Preston flew his private plane to deliver a load of supplies and tetanus vaccine to Baton Rouge and New Orleans. Part of a Scientology project which has been using their non-massage “assists”, in an interview Preston mentioned that “auditing” had also been performed on victims.

Kevin Smith is holding an online auction on his Web site.

Sean Penn actually went to Louisiana. After loading down a small boat with his entourage, it was discovered one of them had neglected to seal a hole in the bottom. Penn was wearing a white vest rather than a life vest while bailing. After the motor wouldn’t start, the crew paddled down a flooded New Orleans street. Bystanders jeered at whether any victims could fit aboard the crowded craft. No report on rescue stunts. Local authorities had previously been criticized for not allowing volunteer boaters in to help.

Morgan Freeman, whose home fared well, is organizing an online auction of celebrity items at charityfolks.com, to benefit the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund.

Curt Schilling opened his home to a family of nine driven out of their New Orleans home. The Schilling family will provide housing for the Fields for a year while their home in New Orleans is rebuilt and repaired.

Some celebrities “graced” disaster zones with their presence in the days following Katrina.

Singer Macy Gray and television personality Phil McGraw visited Houston’s Astrodome.

Celebrities visiting New Orleans include Michael Moore (opposite side of lake), singer Harry Connick, Jr., CNN’s Anderson Cooper, actor Jamie Foxx, singer Faith Hill, actor Matthew McConaughey, singer Lisa Marie Presley, comedian Chris Rock, and The Oprah Winfrey Show contributor Lisa Ling and interior decorator Nate Berkus.

Oprah Winfrey visited New Orleans, Houston, and Mississippi.