Headlines Sunday 26th September 2010

=== Todays Toon ===

Sir George Ferguson Bowen GCMG (2 November 1821 – 21 February 1899) was a British colonial administrator whose appointments included postings to the Ionian Islands, Queensland (Australia), New Zealand, Victoria (Australia), Mauritius and Hong Kong

=== Bible Quote ===

“My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.”- 1 John 2:1

=== Headlines ===

Abbas: Israel Must Choose Between Peace or Settlements
Speaking before the U.N. General Assembly, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas says there will be no peace deal with Israel unless it stops settlement construction in areas the Palestinians claim for their future state.

Immigration Strategy Called Into Question
The President and his Democratic allies face criticism over there immigration strategy after two efforts to provide illegal immigrants a path toward citizenship fell flat this week

Double-Amputee Returns to Front Lines
Despite losing one of his legs and part of his foot in Iraq, Army Capt. Dan Luckett is back on duty and fighting on the front lines of America's Afghan surge in one of the most dangerous parts of the volatile country

Rahm Eyes Chicago, Successors Line Up
Although Rahm Emanuel hasn't yet said whether he's leaving the White House to run for mayor of Chicago, speculation has been swirling in recent weeks over who will succeed him as President Obama's chief of staff

Breaking News

Samurai sword attack at deli
A FORMER postal worker accused of threatening a deli clerk with a samurai sword was arrested in western Washington after he led police on a wild pursuit that ended with them ransacking his house with tear gas, The Olympian reported today.

Fourteen dead in tropical storm
AT LEAST 14 people have been killed by flooding and landslides from heavy rain across the Caribbean basin, as Tropical Storm Matthew lashed water-logged Central America overnight.

Five shot in frat party gatecrash
A COLLEGE frat party crasher has opened fire injuring five revelers inside of a house near Seton Hall University in Newark, New Jersey in the US, authorities said.

Shots fired into suburban unit
MORE than a dozen shots have been fired into a unit in Sydney's west.

NSW/ACT

DJ's sushi 'shamed'
DAVID JONES has suffered another blow after their sushi bar been added to the NSW Food Authority's Name and Shame list. Full list.

Clubs scan for weapons
SOME Sydney nightclubs have begun using US-style metal detectors to scan patrons for guns and knives.

iPhones and iPads to be HSC subjects
I-PHONES are banned in classrooms, but they will now be focus of a new HSC technology subject.

Warning 'Monsters' will target kids
LIMITED identity checks on popular kids' online sites, such as Moshi Monsters, at risk of predators.

Cop charged over 'spray assault'
OFFICER charged with assault after 'capsicum-spraying' a man while off-duty.

Queensland

Tasers for teachers leaked
QUEENSLAND teachers would be given Taser stun guns to control unruly students under a leaked State Opposition draft policy.

Bligh under fire over mate's job
ONE of Anna Bligh's close friends has scored an $80,000-a-year pay rise after landing an unadvertised job in the Premier's department.

Spelling mishap in hands of police
IT WAS one 'L' of a bad day for the signwriter who took care of this "pollice" car.

Police cash in on covert cameras
QUEENSLAND'S covert speed cameras have snared more than 17,000 motorists in five months - catching 10 times as many as their fixed counterparts.

Somlyay hits back at 'rat' tag
QUEENSLAND MP Alex Somlyay has come out swinging, declaring he was no "Liberal rat" after ditching his nomination for Deputy Speaker in Federal Parliament.

Victoria

Fans set for one day in October
FOOTBALL fans are frantically trying to lock in tickets for Saturday's blockbuster AFL Grand Final rematch.

Mick's plea to Pie family
MAGPIES coach Mick Malthouse says his side will draw on the strength of the Magpie army to lift it to Grand Final glory next Saturday.

Magpie army in shock, belief
AS the Magpie army's beloved Pies set about making up for one of the biggest missed opportunities in sport, fans were left stunned.

Saints set to march back to the 'G
THE Saints were bemused and confused after they came marching home to snatch a draw in the Grand Final.

Spirit of 1977 rises
MAGPIE and Saints players have been told to forget yesterday's painful Grand Final and focus on Saturday's rematch.

We live to fight on: Eddie
WHEN Lenny Hayes spun out of the pack and kicked forward, the first thing on my mind was, "Don't go through for another Barry Breen."

Rogue petrol head's car impounded
A ROGUE petrol head was left without his pride and joy after he was clocked at 143km/h in a 60km/h zone on the Monash Freeway.

Delays threat to lives
DESPERATELY ill Victorians seeking urgent ambulance assistance are facing a life-threatening waits for help, documents reveal.

Our politicians living good life
FREE skiing weekends, bottles of fine wine and first-class international air travel upgrades are among our State MPs' perks.

House of memories
THIS week, Your Street visits Ashburn Grove, Ashburton, where residents fear the impact of a planned townhouse development.

Northern Territory

Nothing new

South Australia

Mary an inspiration for us all
WHEN Mary is canonised on October 17, she will be recognised as a "universal saint".

Left high and dry
ADELAIDE'S western suburbs have one summer left in which to enjoy their only outdoor public pool, with the State Government planning to bulldoze it from March - replacing it with office buildings.

Goodbye Glendi
SOUTH AUSTRALIA'S favourite Greek festival has been cancelled for the first time in 32 years.

Man assaulted, car stolen
FOUR people had a horror start to their post-grand final celebrations when a man assaulted one of them in their front yard while claiming he was a police officer.

Women smashes police windscreen
AN enraged young woman has smashed the windscreen of a police car after her boyfriend was arrested during a wild party overnight.

Bedding shop goes up in flames
A BEDDING shop has caught ablaze in suspicious circumstances, according to police.

Drunken man tries to evade police
A DRUNK driver has tried to outrun police after officers spotted him speeding in the northern suburbs in early hours of this morning.

Western Australia

Can you beat Sideshow Alley?
THE Sunday Times sent in the toughest, strongest, most accurate and athletic sportspeople - to reveal the fairness or otherwise of Sideshow Alley.

Tie pushes Mainwaring Game to October 9
THE tied AFL Grand Final and subsequent replay will push the Chris Mainwaring Legends Match back to the following Saturday, October 9 at Subiaco Oval.

RSPCA wants on-the-spot justice
RSPCA inspectors want the power to hit cruel or lazy pet owners with on-the-spot fines.

Government fat-cat bill up $10m
TAXPAYERS are forking out $10 million a year to pay the wages of dozens of new bureaucrats hired by the Barnett Government.

Facebook warning on Mosman attack
THE rape of a German teenage nanny at knife-point in Mosman Park has prompted police to warn foreign au pairs against posting Facebook messages revealing they are home alone.

Public school fees go unpaid
CASH-STRAPPED WA parents owe more than $10 million in outstanding public school fees and charges.

Our sad state of hospital parity
COMPARING Northam Hospital with two counterparts in Queensland reveals the second-rate service some WA patients receive.

'WA must change water use'
SPRING has arrived in the West and nowhere is that more apparent than the show of native wildflowers in our bushlands, the native gardens of Kings Park are living proof of that.

Girl critical after hit by car
A YOUNG girl is in a critical condition in hospital after being hit by a car in Perth's southern suburbs late yesterday.

Tasmania

Nothing new

=== Comments ===

Racist Messages Pose Problem for Mainstream Sites
Associated Press
Although you rarely hear racial insults on Main Street these days, there's a place where unashamed bigotry is all too easy to find: tossed off in the comments sections of some of the Internet's most popular websites, today's virtual Main Street.

Internet anonymity has removed one of the strongest barriers to the type of language that can ruin reputations and end careers. Racist messages are a small percentage of the wild and woolly web, but they stick out since they are rare in person — and they raise a host of questions.

Do these comments reflect a reversal of racial progress? Is that progress an illusion while racism thrives underground? What kind of harm are these statements doing? Could there be any value in such venting? And what, if anything, should a free society do about it?

"We've seen comments that people would not make in the public square or any type of civic discussion, maybe even within their own families," said Dennis Ryerson, editor of The Indianapolis Star. "There is no question in my mind that the process, because it's largely anonymous, enables people who would never speak up on Main Street to communicate their thoughts."

At the newspaper's website, moderators delete individual racist comments that are brought to their attention, and will take down a whole thread if such comments persist. On some stories that are expected to provoke racism, the entire comments section is disabled beforehand, a practice shared by a growing number of newspapers.

On a single day recently, racially offensive online remarks were not hard to find:

In a comment on a Yahoo News story about a black civil rights era photographer revealed to be an FBI informant, someone called blacks farm animals who "were not and are not wanted in this society."

Another commenter wrote, "We all know who MADE America what it is today, and we also know which group is receiving hefty tax dollar pay outs... so until the tables turn the only thing you should be saying is 'thank you' to all the hard working (whites) who gave you the life you now take for granted."

Black racism was evident, too. One person on the site wondered if the FBI beat information out of the photographer: "You know how white people do." On a BlackVoices.com story about two black sisters jailed 20 years for an $11 robbery, someone used several crude epithets to suggest that the judge was a white racist.

A USAToday.com story about demographic changes in the nation's kindergartens turned into open season on Latinos. "Go to any ER, school, jail and see first hand what race is over consuming precious US resources?" one comment said. Another complained in ugly terms about Latino birthrates.

Some believe such comments indicate that racism has not declined as much as people may think. Joe Feagin, a sociologist at Texas A&M University, said a study he conducted of 626 white college students at 28 institutions revealed thousands of examples of racism in "backstage," all-white settings.

Are these comments cause for alarm?

"Like the loudest ambulance siren you've ever heard," Feagin replied. "All this stuff was already there. It's just the Internet has opened a window into it that we normally would not have had."

Linda Chavez, chairman of the conservative Center for Equal Opportunity, says racist comments come from a "very small but often vocal minority of people. Most Americans do not like this type of coarse race hatred."

Chavez has received plenty of racist comments in response to her online writings. "My sense, based on their grammar and spelling, is they're not the people who are hiring. These are not influential people who make policy." But she does see a destructive aspect: "It may actually increase the percentage who will feel comfortable expressing these views. Social pressure is important."

Racist comments may scare average people away from productive conversations about race — conversations that are moving rapidly into the digital domain from print publications, town halls, street corners and shopping malls.

"When there are forums about race, people flock there to do battle," said Eric Deggans, a reporter and blogger for the St. Petersburg (Fla.) Times. Whenever he blogs about race, "about 20 percent of the comments will be straight-up racist. Another 20 percent are questionable."

The racial comments and other personal attacks have made Deggans, who is black, feel more defensive, as if he's always under attack: "It wears you down after a while."

"I have to constantly coach myself to dial down the hurt and the anger, because you get three comments that are really hurtful and prejudiced, but the fourth is someone who wants to have a genuine conversation," he said.

Some journalism observers believe real names should be required to post comments, some of which would never be chosen for publication in the traditional "letters to the editor" section.

"It astonishes me that they allow such blatant expressions," said Robert Steele, a journalism scholar at DePauw University and The Poynter Institute.

The comments sections of media websites are meant to foster community discussion and keep people engaged with the site, which in turn generates revenue for an industry still struggling to make money online.

"Even if it's legitimate to try and draw viewers to sites, is it legitimate to allow individuals who are swinging a sharp ax, and often doing so with a hood over their heads in anonymous fashion, to have this forum that can not only create harm but breed hatred?" Steele asked.

As champions of free speech and enemies of censorship, journalists take care to tailor any proposed limits.

"I recognize the value of citizen dialogue," Steele said. "But when the comments are poisonous ... you have to go back to the issue of why you would allow the dialogue."

"For me, all the problems of online anonymity and comments outweigh any imagined benefits," said Herb Strentz, a retired journalism professor and dean at Drake University in Des Moines. "If people want to contribute thoughtful things, they should be willing to stand up for them and be quoted."

Polls and studies that measure racism are hotly debated because most people won't acknowledge prejudice to a stranger, the subject is so subjective and politically charged, and many people of all races may not even recognize their own biases.

On one side sits evidence that racism remains a major challenge: For instance, some 40 percent of white Americans hold at least a partly negative view toward blacks, according to a 2008 Associated Press-Yahoo poll that focused on racial attitudes and the presidential election.

On the other are signs of progress: The percentage of African-Americans saying black people's situation improved over the last five years has doubled since 2007, to 39 percent, according to a 2010 Pew poll. The poll also found that 70 percent of whites and 60 percent of blacks believe the values of the two groups have become more similar.

These surveys all measured racial attitudes in what used to be known as the "real world." Today, "the digital space IS the real world," said Pablo Boczkowski, a professor in Northwestern University's Media, Technology and Society program.

"We always had people shouting on the street," Boczkowski said. "It was a handful of people, and the sender of the message could be clearly identified. Now the audience is much bigger, it's more unknown, it's more diverse potentially, and this has changed the dynamics of the game."

The dynamics of racism on the recipient can be powerful online, said Brendesha Tynes, a professor of psychology and African-American studies at the University of Illinois.

Her study of 264 Midwestern high school students found that 20 percent of whites, 29 percent of blacks and 42 percent of "other" or multiple races reported being personally subjected to racial epithets or other discrimination online — and that these youths were more likely to feel depression or anxiety. The study was published in the Journal of Adolescent Health.

"We've made a lot of progress online and offline on race relations, but you can go into some of these spaces and it will take you back to pre-civil rights times," Tynes said.

"The danger is, people see other folks online saying whatever they want to say, and they think it's acceptable online behavior," she said. "Over time, that might become an acceptable way to talk about race online."

Public disapproval has played a major role in reducing face-to-face racist speech, and Tynes noted that public complaints can get racist comments removed from popular places like Facebook. But, she added, "the Internet is just too vast to say that certain groups' disapproval will impact the way people express race online."

She believes more education and discussion are needed: "Even though we talk about a post-racial America, race has never been more salient than it is right now."

So what types of people are typing these anonymous attacks? The white homeowner who smiles at his black neighbor? Minorities trying to make whites look bad? People of any race just looking for a thrill?

Jared Taylor, who is white and calls himself a "race realist," believes that whites and Asians are more intelligent than Hispanics and blacks. He avoids using racial slurs, and his organization's website does not allow racial insults — but he has an explanation for the source of the comments: "Intense frustration among ordinary whites at what they see as coddling and excuse-making for blacks and Hispanics."

"Many, many whites are hopping mad about that kind of double standard," he said in an e-mail interview. "Their frustrations are never voiced in the mainstream media, and anger provokes crude language. ... Most of those people probably never use racial slurs when they speak. This gives them a chance to commit what is considered a great and shocking sin and get away with it."

Is there any value in venting online? Ryerson, the newspaper editor, said a mental health professional once told him that the act of writing virulent letters to the editor probably provided a "safety valve" — because knowing the letter would be read, if only by the editor, could deter the writer from violence.

"The only problem," Ryerson said, "is we didn't print those letters."

Nathan Schroeder, national secretary for the Supreme White Alliance — whose website warns visitors of its "racist overtone" — says people who share his views benefit from online anonymity.

He said many white people "aren't to that point yet where they will openly come out and say, 'I stand for this. I am proud of my heritage. I want to preserve my people.' They don't want their close friends, families, what have you, to find out so they are more comfortable speaking about it on the Internet.

"Regardless, they still feel the same feelings that we do, whether they want to be open right now about it or not."

The number of U.S. hate groups has more than doubled in the last 10 years, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, up to 932 hate groups in 2009. Deborah Lauter, civil rights director for the Anti-Defamation League, said there are thousands of hate websites — "more than we can possibly keep track of."

The most popular hate websites draw tens of thousands of visitors each month. Mainstream sites draw into the millions — and some comments there would not be out of place within the Supreme White Alliance.

Many people were angered by recent stories on the Des Moines Register website about black youths who attacked white patrons at the Iowa State Fair. An early report said the black youths were heard saying it was an occasion to beat whites, although police later said that could not be verified and did not press hate crime charges.

One anonymous commenter said slavery should never have been ended, while another wrote that blacks should be put in a coliseum with guns and left to kill each other, said Strentz, the retired professor.

He believes there is still much racial progress to be made in America.

"Even if we do away with anonymity, we clean up the comments online, well, that's just treating the symptoms," he said. "We really haven't solved anything, except on the surface."
===
America Losing Science Brainpower Advantage?
By Devin Powell
The United States' ability to compete globally in science and technology is on a "perilous path," said a new report delivered Sept. 23 on Capitol Hill to a bipartisan group of policymakers, industry leaders, and academics.

American students continue to perform poorly in math and science compared to their counterparts abroad, the report claims. Though the United States is still a leader in innovation and produces a disproportionate share of the world's wealth, other countries such as China are investing heavily in research and education and, according to the new report, threatening America's competitiveness.

"At a time when jobs are our foremost concern in the United States, keeping our brainpower advantage is a good way to keep new jobs coming," said Sen. Lamar Alexander R-Tenn.

The group that met Thursday was originally brought together in 2005 by a bipartisan request from Congress to assess the U.S.'s competitiveness and to recommend a path for the future. They concluded that the health of the American economy and the creation of jobs depend on innovation.

"We've known for some time that science research is a firm foundation for economic growth," Rep. Rush Holt D-N.J. said on Thursday. "Now we're really at a critical moment."

New scientific discoveries drive the creation of new jobs: Basic research in solid-state physics, for example, led to the materials now used in products ranging from iPods and medical scanners to GPS networks and to the jobs in these industries.

"Rising Above the Gathering Storm," a report written by this group and sponsored by the National Academies in 2005, outlined the problems facing the U.S., including stagnated federal research funding and a dysfunctional educational system.

It listed 20 recommendations meant to improve the American education system, double federal spending on basic research, encourage more people to pursue careers in science and engineering, and reform patent, immigration, and litigation policies.

Revisiting this original report five years later, the members of the Gathering Storm committee have now upgraded the storm to an approaching Category 5 hurricane.

"The outlook for America to compete for quality jobs has further deteriorated over the past five years," according to the new report.

Only 4 of the top 10 companies receiving U.S. patents in 2009 were American companies. Most of General Electric Co.'s research and development personnel are located outside of the U.S., and 77 percent of global firms surveyed said they will build new research and development facilities in China and India.

"China graduated more English-speaking engineers last year than we did," said Rep. Frank Wolf, R-Va. "The United States' share of high-tech exports has fallen from 21 to 14 percent, while China's rose from 7 to 20 percent."

"They're doing better than we are," Wolf added.

The new report again stressed the importance of education. Though most of the world's top universities are located in the United States, the World Economic Forum ranks the U.S. 48th in math and science education. American test scores in these subjects have changed little over the last 40 years. Nearly one-third of American adults don't know how long it takes the Earth to revolve around the Sun, according to the National Science Board.

Some progress has been made in basic research funding. The America COMPETES Act, passed in 2007, opened the door for new funding for major government agencies such as the National Science Foundation and for the new agency ARPA-E devoted to high-risk, high-reward energy research. Many of these efforts were funded by money from the 2009 economic stimulus bill.

This stimulus funding is now largely used up, and the America COMPETES Act expires this year. Thursday's advocates for science called on the Senate to pass a reauthorization of a revised version of the COMPETES bill that allows federal spending for basic research to continue to increase.

"This is a marathon, not a sprint," said Norman Augustine, former chairman and chief executive of the Lockheed Martin Corporation. "Just running fast, we'll stay in the same place. We have to run really fast."

FoxNews.com's SciTech section is on Twitter! Follow us @fxnscitech.
===
KING OF TURTLE BAY
Tim Blair
Kevin Rudd begins his UN takeover:

In his second address to the UN since Thursday, Mr Rudd said the organisation was formed after World War II to help fashion a collective approach to communal problems.

But 65 years on, the UN was struggling to remain relevant.

Nothing escapes Kevin’s attention.

“If we fail to make the UN work, to make its institutions relevant to the great challenges we all now face, the uncomfortable fact is that the UN will become a hollow shell,” Mr Rudd told the general assembly.

“Put even more starkly, we must do that which we say.”

Why start now?
===
THEIR OPINION OF OBAMA HAS … CHANGED
Tim Blair
Iowahawk rounds up the rueful rubes:

• Jon Stewart

• Matt Damon

• Michael Moore

• Colin Powell

• Kathleen Parker

• George Soros

• Shepard Fairey

UPDATE. Precision car dancing from Ken Block. JUST HIT THAT VIDEO LINK, NOW:

The Obama connection might not be immediately obvious, but it’s in there.
===
SAME TIME NEXT WEEK
Tim Blair
One of the greatest games in AFL history. Opinion is divided on whether the replay is a better option than extra time, but at least Rob Oakeshott isn’t allowed to decide the winner.

UPDATE:

The AFL will play extra time if next Saturday’s Grand Final replay is drawn again … “Five minutes extra time each end will be played.”

UPDATE II. Scores are currently tied in the NRL final between St George and Balmain. Nearly 60 minutes gone ... and should have favored tigers at the death - ed