Work Sharing: The Way for States to Reduce Unemployment in the US

Individual US states should implement a ‘work sharing’ policy of reducing worker hours rather than laying them off.

Washington, DC - It is clear that we are not going to see any major action from the federal government to reduce unemployment any time soon. There is no hope that this Congress will support another round of stimulus and not much more hope from the next Congress, even if the Democrats somehow regain control.

What that means is that we are looking at a long, painfully slow recovery. Assuming that the economy continues to generate 200,000 jobs a month, roughly its average over the last three months, we will not get back to more normal levels of unemployment until somewhere near the end of the decade.

And it is certainly plausible that progress will be worse. That story assumes a recovery lasting for more than a decade, something the United States has never experienced.

This means that we should expect to see a labour market in which millions of workers will be unable to find jobs for long into the future. They will be unable to adequately support their families, and may even lose their homes, all because the folks in charge of running economic policy don’t know what they are doing.

US unemployment drops to 8.2 per cent

While economic policy is best made at the national level, as a result of the bill that extended the payroll tax cut, there is a policy that states can pursue that might make a real difference. This bill included a provision that calls for the federal government to pick up the tab for state spending on work sharing as part of the state’s unemployment insurance programme. This means that states can save themselves a great deal of money if they can encourage employers to use work sharing as an alternative to layoffs.

Work sharing, formally known as “short work”, is an arrangement whereby employers reduce the hours of their existing work force instead of laying off workers. For example, if an employer was going to lay off 10 workers, she can instead have the same reduction in labour time by reducing the hours of 50 workers by 20 per cent.

Under the unemployment insurance system, workers would typically be entitled to roughly half of their pay if they were laid off. Under the short work system, the government would make up roughly half of the lost wages for workers who were put on short time. In this example, if their hours were cut back by 20 per cent, the government would make up half of the lost wages, or 10 per cent of their total wages. This leaves the worker earning 90 per cent of their former wages while working 80 per cent of the time.

The bill that extended the payroll tax cut included a provision that was taken from a bill originally proposed by Senator Jack Reed and Representative Rosa DeLauro that reimburses states for the money that they spend on their short work programme. This gives the 23 states that already have short work programmes in place an enormous incentive to promote work sharing as an alternative to laying off workers.

While the unemployment benefits that would be paid to laid off workers come directly out of the state’s unemployment insurance fund, the state would be reimbursed 100 per cent for the money paid to workers who have their hours cut. The states that don’t currently have programmes in place could also receive federal money to establish short work programmes.

No relief in US unemployment drop for teens

At the moment, less than 40,000 workers nationwide are on short work programmes. To increase this number, states will first have to publicise the system. Many employees don’t even know that the programme exists.

States should also try to increase the flexibility of the system. Most of these programmes were put in place more than 30 years ago. In many cases they are overly bureaucratic. For example, an employer may be required to specify in advance exactly which workers will have their hours reduced, and by how much time over a three to six month period. Such restrictions can make the short work system sufficiently unattractive that few employers will want to go this route.

However, there have been notable success stories. Germany’s unemployment rate is lower today than at the start of the recession largely because it has encouraged employers to keep workers on the payroll working fewer hours rather than laying them off. Its growth has been no better than growth in the United States over the last four years. 

There are also examples in the United States of companies that use work sharing effectively. In addition to keeping workers on the job, companies also benefit from retaining skilled employees. As a result, when demand picks up they need to only increase hours rather than search for and train new workers.

There also could be longer term benefits from work sharing. Workers in the United States spend many more hours on the job than their counterparts in other wealthy countries. We are the only wealthy country that does not guarantee workers some amount of paid vacation, sick leave, or parental leave. If work sharing gets workers used to the idea of working less for somewhat less pay, perhaps it will lead to a new push for getting the sort of guaranteed time off that workers in other countries take for granted. That would be a huge bonus from a policy that at the moment also offers the best hope for getting unemployment down to more acceptable levels before the end of the decade.

French Like Americans… BOTH are Unimpressed With Presidential Candidates

French campaign fails to enthuse voters

Presidential poll predicted to see high voter abstention as candidates fail to connect with people hungry for change.

PARIS, France - France might be facing some of the toughest economic challenges in decades, but many voters are unconvinced that any of the candidates running for the presidency are capable of rescuing the country from the current crisis.

Voting is not compulsory in France, and an opinion poll published by Ifop for the Journal de Dimanche weekly newspaper on Sunday predicted 32 per cent of the population would abstain from voting this coming weekend.

This is particularly high, even compared to the 2002 presidential election, which saw a 28 per cent abstention rate in the first round.

The rate of non-participation plummeted to 16 per cent in 2007, an election that pitted the conservative Nicolas Sarkozy against the Socialist Party’s Segolene Royale. Both candidates then had broken the mould of what their respective parties traditionally represented.

Few surprises

There are few such surprises in this year’s selection of candidates, in an election predicted to lead to a runoff between Sarkozy, the sitting president, and Francois Hollande, the long-time leader of the Socialist Party.

Spotlight coverage of April 22 presidential election

A group of Popular Movement (UMP) activists, braving the bitter wind to hand out pamphlets for Sarkozy’s re-election bid, agreed that the 2012 campaign has failed to engage the French public.

One of them, Veronique Baldini, said she anticipated a high rate of absenteeism in both rounds of voting, on April 22 and May 6. 

“I don’t know why so many people are saying they will abstain,” said Baldini, who is the deputy mayor of the 16th district of Paris. “Maybe it’s because the campaign on the television hasn’t been particularly exciting.”

It had lacked the rigorous and rousing debates that marked French campaigns in the 1980s and 1990s, she said, and the candidates avoided saying anything too contentious.

Baldini said the 2007 presidential elections had been more exciting because Sarkozy had a much more compelling opponent in Royale.

“Royale was a much less conventional candidate, but Hollande is very controlled and avoids anything controversial,” the UMP official said.

Milaret Katja says she sees no point in voting in either round of elections [Al Jazeera/Yasmine Ryan]

She acknowledged that all of the candidates were guilty of neglecting the very issues that mattered most to many French people.

“It’s true that they have talked enough about the crisis, about unemployment, which seems to be a fundamental issue for many French people,” she said.

With just days left for the first round of the election, the cover of the left-wing Marianne magazine voiced the scepticism so many are feeling about the candidates.

“The biggest lies of the campaign,” it read, illustrated with images of the leading candidates all holding their hands over their hearts, their mouths open as they woo potential voters.

Milaret Katja, a young woman living in the 16th district, said she would not be voting because she did not believe it would make any difference which candidate wins. 

Neither Hollande or Sarkozy, nor any of the other candidates, offered a palatable alternative in her view.

“I think it’s become too much about the personalities and not enough about the policies,” she said, arguing French presidential campaigns have become increasingly superficial.

“These American-style campaigns have no substance. It’s bullshit.”

Little enthusiasm

David Zoher, who recently turned 18 and will be voting for the first time, said he would be doing so without much enthusiasm for the candidates.

“I’m going to vote because it’s my duty as a citizen, but none of the candidates really excited me,” he said.

He does not support Sarkozy’s policies, because he thinks they have favoured the wealthy at the expense of the majority of the population.

He is deciding between Hollande and Jean-Luc Melenchon, the far-left candidate, but harbours no high expectations of either bringing about real change..

“I don’t think changing the president in France will change much,” he said. “It won’t overcome the crisis.”

Poignant tale of the Once-Thriving Greek Community in Egypt

“I feel lucky. Everyone has a homeland. But we, the Greeks of Egypt, have two homelands. Sometimes I am asked: ‘How did you feel in Egypt?’ I felt at home. I was never a stranger.”
Popi Deligiorgi

Greeks and Egyptians are connected by ancient history. Both peoples are descendants of two of the world’s oldest known civilisations.

At the start of the 20th century there were about 200,000 Greeks in Egypt. Today, the Greek community there has approximately 1,000 members.

It was a community that once controlled 80 per cent of Egypt’s financial life, founded the first bank, established the country’s first theatres and cinemas, and produced the first wines and cigarettes.

But this thriving community departed with the rise to power of Gamal Abdel Nasser and pan-Arab nationalism.

This film follows several Greek citizens who undertake a return visit to Egypt, the land where they were born and raised.

They visit their old homes and neighbourhoods as well as former family businesses, and they search for the Egyptian friends they left behind.

 

http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/aljazeeraworld/2012/04/20124212646347121.html via @ajenglish

Decades of American Missteps in Foreign Policy Requires The social media peace corps

The social media peace corps

Unfortunately after decades of  wrong choices and missteps in American Foreign Policy NO amount of PR or rebranding techniques can address the primary goal of neutralising anti-American sentiment. Obama tried to follow his predecessors in maintaining the Status Quo and has found himself in a NEW WORLD  that is spewing forth decades of Contempt for America and how its Foreign Policies have negatively affected the lies of so many. We now face a NEW Arab World so ANTI ISRAEL that it  endangers all the middle East….. and America’s relationships thorough the region which are already severely damaged  by Bush Era atrocities. So how will social media help….. 

.

‘Tunisia is one of our oldest friends in the world,’ President Obama said when US Peace Corps reopened operations in the country [EPA]

Washington, DC -  After a 16 year hiatus, the US Peace Corps is reopening operations in Tunisia. The first group of volunteers is scheduled to arrive this year and their assignments will focus on English language training and youth skills development in order to help prepare Tunisian students and professionals for future employment.

Why would a middle-income country participate in a US programme that historically engages lower-income countries such as Vietnam and Mali? Tunisia boasts the best education system in Africa, and the only other Arab countries the Peace Corps operates in are Jordan and Morocco, which rank much lower than Tunisia in the UNDP human development index. 

“Tunisia is one of our oldest friends in the world,” President Obama said when announcing the resumption of the programme last October, pointing out that Tunisia was one of the first countries to recognise the United States. “I told the prime minister that, thanks to his leadership, thanks to the extraordinary transformation that’s taking place in Tunisia and the courage of its people, I’m confident that we will have at least another two centuries of friendship between our two countries. And the American people will stand by the people of Tunisia in any way that we can during this remarkable period in Tunisian history.”

Thus, the decision regarding the Peace Corps seems to be the latest example of the United States attempting to react positively to the Arab uprisings, which had their start in Tunisia in December 2010. Considering that the Arab world’s views of the US and President Obama are increasingly negative, with 73 per cent of Arabs seeing Israel and the US as the two most threatening countries, there is a great need for the United States to alter its relationship with the region. But by focusing on providing services and aid as a way of shoring up its image, the US is failing to truly understand once again what is at the core of anti-American sentiment in the region.

Back in 2006, a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report for the House International Relations Committee attempted to review the reasons for anti-American sentiment in countries with significant Muslim populations. The goal was to examine what the US could do to improve its image and reduce the tension between “Muslims and Americans” and thereby improve relations between the “West and everyone else”. Considering that the majority of Arabs are Muslims, several Arab countries were included in the report. 

Putting aside the problematic use of terms, what we learned from US citizens abroad was that our public diplomacy strategy was paralysed. But this was not entirely true, considering the new smart marketing and public relations campaigns the US was engaged in under Charlotte Beers’ innovative leadership as Undersecretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs. 

Public diplomacy strategy

Facebook was big, and perhaps there were interactive US websites that could be utilised. Twitter was not yet officially part of the foreign policy and diplomacy toolbox and neither were pre-approved blogs. We learned about the Echo Chamber, a Karen Hughes initiative for information sharing about lessons learned in other countries. Then there were her “Listening Tours” to the region, which tended to revert to “Talking At” tours.

During the recent Social Media Week in DC, State Department officials shared their updated tactics. The tone was not that different from six years ago. For example, several explained how Tweeting from embassy missions aided Foreign Services Officers in sharing the message of the US when they were limited in face to face interactions with foreign publics, due to restricted physical security measures. The “democratisation of information access” was supposed to be aiding in our public diplomacy strategy by making our diplomats more accessible to the people in the countries they were serving.

What was very clear, however, was that the foreign policy message itself had not changed. And here is where the problem lies: our public diplomacy strategy continues to be divorced from our foreign policy. What the State Department either fails to realise or refuses to address is that no amount of PR or rebranding techniques can address the primary goal of neutralising anti-American sentiment – because the problem is not that Arabs don’t get the US message, but rather that they get it loud and clear every time the US chooses to support oppressive regimes instead of promoting human rights.

From a pragmatic point of view, why would anyone decide to change his or her point of view about the US just because a newer technology is projecting the same message? It is like turning the volume up (or down) on a new song by the same musical artist. The voice is the same. Obama might choose to overlook US support for the 24-year dictatorial regime of Zine El Abedine Ben Ali, but the people of Tunisia won’t be quick to forgive and forget just because Americans are now coming to teach them English, or that there are US agencies Tweeting job tips to them.

Maybe it’s time for the US to engage in “raw listening” and realise that the problem isn’t that way the message is being relayed – but the message itself. 

Considering Buying an Apple i-PAD…. These Reviews May Help.

I was not about to rush out and get the newest latest and greatest without a through review… SO… Here are three that helped me make up my mind… I hope they are helpful to you as well !

The First review:

I was able to secure the new iPad at our local Apple store this morning, as ours wasn’t too busy, but I also got to spend a little time with a review model beforehand. In any case, I’ll take you hands-on with the new model, plus I’ll share my experience from my past two years of iPad ownership altogether, especially for those who haven’t yet had an iPad to call their own. I’ll also reveal a treasure trove of info on how you can legitimately download tons of quality apps and games for free, in hopes of making this the most helpful iPad review on Amazon!

My review tends to run long, so I’ve organized information by section, with headings, to make it more helpful for those just looking for specific info. For example, see the heading “Downloading Apps and Games” for the info on obtaining free apps and games!

First, let’s quickly cover what’s new, and what each means for you:
+ Retina Display – twice the resolution of the iPad 2, at 2048 x 1536 pixels (264px/in)
+ 5 megapixel rear-facing camera – take photos with over 8x higher resolution and quality than the iPad 2 (but still no flash)
+ Dual-core 1GHz A5X processor with quad-core graphics – better multitasking and flawless high-res graphics performance
+ 4G LTE capable – faster mobile connections on AT&T and Verizon when in 4G-LTE-covered network area

If you’re considering the now-cheaper iPad 2, here’s a quick recap of what was new last year:
+ Dual-core 1GHz A5 Processor – better multitasking, 9-times faster graphics
+ 3-Axis Gyroscope – allows for higher precision and more motion gestures
+ Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound pass-through with Apple Digital AV Adapter (sold separately)
+ Rear-facing camera – supports 960 x 720 sized photos (0.6 megapixels), plus 720p HD videos
+ Front-facing VGA-quality camera – VGA-quality is a resolution of 640 x 480 (0.3 megapixels)
+ Verizon 3G model now available – no longer limited to just AT&T for the WiFi+3G model
+ Thinner, lighter and smoother with contoured back – feels more comfortable in your hands

The iPad 2 brought a lot more new features to the iPad lineup, but the 3rd generation iPad still brings us some welcome new features. First, it sports the new A5X processor. Don’t be confused though, it’s not really that much better than the iPad 2′s, and it’s not technically a quad-core processor. The CPU itself remains dual-core, but the graphics processor built-into the CPU chip can compute 4 streams of graphics information, thus making the graphics aspect of the A5X processor quad-core. It’s confusing, I know. To be honest, there was no noticeable improvement in performance over the iPad 2, except maybe behind the scenes where it handles 4x more pixels. In general, everything on the new iPad runs just as smooth as it always has, which is as to be expected from Apple! But I imagine the new processor has particularly been used to speed up image processing for the new 5 megapixel camera, making photography just about as snappy as it is on the iPhone 4S, which I own as well. 4G support was also a nice surprise that had been rumored.

On the other hand, other rumors didn’t exactly pan-out, including an SD card slot for photos and file storage, nor the possibility of a smaller, more manageable 7″ iPad model, but I’m still holding out hope for one in the future. Thankfully, the price stays the same for these new models, but that is as to be expected. As a boon for those who don’t really plan to use the new high-res camera nor need the Retina display or 4G speed, the iPad 2 is going to stick around for a while longer, with a new lower price for those in the market!

===== My Background =====

I’m a website and mobile app developer who’s created a few apps and games for iOS devices, including the iPad. I also develop websites, so I like to ensure that those sites look and perform well on the device too, since it’s continually growing in popularity for surfing the Web with over the past two years. I’ve spent lots of time with both the iPad and various Android-based tablets, and I have to be honest… apps are what make the iPad (and other iDevices) so great. Android tablets have the benefit of price and size, but Android apps available for tablets are terribly mediocre! They’re also not as responsive as the iPad, at least not after you load them up with apps, games and other junk.

I’m no Apple fanboy, but I can recognize quality hardware and software when I see it, and as far as 10″ tablets are concerned, the new iPad simply can’t be beat, but that’s mostly due to Apple’s knack for high-end hardware, plus the ridiculously huge following of quality app developers that Apple can boast about. With over 200,000 apps just for the iPad alone, there’s more than enough to keep you busy!

===== First Impression =====

Unboxing any new device certainly has its appeal, but the iPad has an allure all its own, and the new model is just as touch-worthy as its older siblings, especially when it’s fresh out of the box and accompanied by that scent synonymous with new electronics. But when you turn it on for the first time it becomes clear: there’s something different about this new model, especially if you’ve been using the iPad 2 for a while. There’s a rich, vibrant crispness to the image that wasn’t there before. It’s almost like the screen isn’t there at all, as if the silky-smooth graphics are just floating there.

===== Interaction Experience =====

Thanks to the powerful processor, animations and transitions remain smooth on the new iPad, even on a Retina screen with 4-times more pixels! Plus, text on the new model is crisper than ever, even in apps that haven’t been retweeked for the new Retina display. Meanwhile, where the iPad really shines is with its continuation of a phenomenal multi-touch interface that is second to none, seriously. Android tablets and other devices may tout “multi-touch” support, but usually this just means they support 2-finger gestures like pinch-style zooming. The iPad touch-screen, on the other hand, supports up to ten simultaneous touches. Nothing new here, but still worth mentioning, especially for tablet newcomers. So if an iPad app ever needs to support that many touches, the iPad is ready. For example, the most common app supporting ten simultaneous touches is the piano app.

===== So What Can the iPad Actually Do? =====

Naturally, there are things you can do with the iPad right out of the box. You can browse the Web with Safari, set up your email, download your photos and videos to your iPad via iTunes, as well as shoot new photos and videos using either of the two built in cameras. You can also surf YouTube and watch your favorite videos via Apple’s built-in YouTube app. There’s also an iPod built in, so you can listen to your favorite tunes via the Music app, or download new music via the iTunes app. Another popular iPad app is iBooks, which lets you download and read e-books on your iPad. You can also jot notes, manage your calendar and contacts. You can even chat with other Apple-device users via FaceTime (over WiFi only). Of course, the fun and usefulness of the iPad doesn’t stop there. The App Store app is your portal to unending games and utilities. One thing Apple has been really good at is showing off just what you can do with the iPad. App developers have undoubtedly been busy creating unique experiences through their iPad apps, most of which have yet to be rivaled by (or ported to) Android and other tablets.

You can also download two additional Apple-made apps: iBooks, which lets you download and read ebooks easily on your device, and iWork, Apple’s office-document editing suite, a trilogy of apps which consists of: Pages (for editing word processing documents), Numbers (for editing spreadsheets) and Keynote (for editing PowerPoint-like slideshows); Each of the three apps can be downloaded separately for $9.99 each. Completely reworked for the iPad, the complete iWork suite will set you back a whole thirty bucks. So be aware of that before you go ahead and grab the iPad for use with work-related document editing, and so forth.

Also note that if you do intend to use the iPad for heavy writing or word-processing purposes, you’ll find that your ability to type quickly will be greatly inhibited by the virtual keyboard. Thus, you should snag the external keyboard as well, but I’ll explain a few typing techniques below. Either way, be prepared to pay more than merely the price for the iPad alone if you intend to transform the iPad into something a little more productive than it might be for you out of the box.

===== Downloading Apps and Games =====

Downloading apps on your iPad couldn’t be easier. Once you set up your iTunes account with a password and credit card, all you need to do is find the app you want from the App Store, tap the button at the top with the app’s price, then tap again to confirm. Enter your password (once per session), and voila, you just bought an app. Behind the scenes, Apple charges your card for the amount of the app plus tax, while you’re already off enjoying your new app. This ease of access is a blessing and a curse, because you can easily empty your wallet if you’re not carefully considering each purchase.

All apps in the App Store range in price from Free and 99 cents on up, always incrementing in whole dollar amounts (1.99, 2.99, 3.99, etc). The maximum price for an app is set to $999.99, of which there are only eight currently priced so outrageously. And don’t even think of toying with them. Apple does not allow refunds on apps you have purchased–all sales are final!

Now for the juicy money-saving secrets of the App Store!!

With the proper resources, you can legitimately download thousands of high quality apps for free. I do it all the time and it is perfectly legal. You see, Apple allows developers to temporarily put their apps on sale (and even drop the price to free). Usually they do this to get you to write some rave reviews for their apps. The secret to success is having the resources to help you spot these special app sales–so you know when and where to get them during these often extremely-limited-time promotions.

There are several resources you can use, both on the Web and on the iPad itself. I prefer to use an app called “AppShopper” that lists all apps that recently went on sale or dropped to free. You can filter just iPad apps, or show iPhone apps as well, and you can also filter just the free products or just the sale apps. But so many apps go on sale, making it hard to cut through the clutter, which is where AppShopper truly shines: the “popular” tab shows only the most popularly downloaded sale apps. If several other people aren’t downloading an app, you won’t see it listed there! AppShopper is a phenomenal little gem, and it has gotten me tons of apps FREE! It also has a companion website that lists the same apps. You can even create an account and track the apps you own, so you don’t end up trying to redownload them if they go on sale again! It also supports watch lists (via your account) with push notifications, and can alert you whenever an app you’re interested in goes on sale. It’s a real thing of beauty! There are other apps such as AppZappPush, AppSniper, AppAdvice, Apps Gone Free, and more, but none of them leverage the power of the masses to help you filter out the unwanted apps. Feel free to check them out if you like, though!

===== Typing on the iPad =====

Typing on the iPad can be annoying at times, but I mostly chalk that up to it being 10-inches. Being touted more as a Web browser and email device than an e-book reader, with the added potential that you’ll be using it to edit office documents, typing on the device can quickly become a concern. First, realize that the iPad’s no laptop–you won’t be speed-typing, so it may not be conducive for heavy usage like typing lengthy emails or blogging, let alone writing this review. With that in mind, there are a couple approaches you can try to determine what typing method is right for you. The ideal method might also change depending on where you are and how the iPad is oriented when using it.

Typing Method #1: Thumbs
The most flexible approach is to type with your thumbs, which can be done whether sitting or standing. In portrait mode: grasp the bottom of your iPad with your palms facing each other, and your pinky fingers towards you for the iPad to rest on. To stabilize the iPad and prevent it from flopping over and falling out of your hands, stretch both of your index fingers upwards towards the top of the iPad as much as is comfortable. Using your thumbs, hunt & peck the keys on the virtual keyboard to your heart’s content. Alternately, thanks to iOS 5, thumb-typing in landscape mode has now become painless. Normally, the keyboard is still docked to the bottom of the screen, and can be hard to reach the center of the keyboard with thumbs. However, if you press and hold the show/hide button on the bottom right corner of the keyboard. You can then choose to split the keyboard, with makes it easier for your thumbs to reach all keys, when the iPad is in landscape mode. You can also choose to undock the keyboard, which centers it vertically on the screen, instead of at the bottom.

Typing Method #2: Full Fingers
I’ve found this next method to be even more useful, though it requires you to be is best used while seated, with the iPad in resting in your lap, or on something soft, preferably with the iPad in landscape mode. With the iPad situated securely on your legs, you’ll find it becomes easier to type with your full range of digits (fingers), like you would on a full sized physical keyboard. I find it slightly awkward, though, to hit the spacebar frequently with the side of my thumbs as you typically would on a physical keyboard. Still, whether you use your thumbs for the spacebar, or decide to use your fingers instead, you’ll still find yourself typing slightly faster than with the thumbs-only hunt-and-peck method. Also, this typing method doesn’t work well with the iPad resting any anything hard and flat like a desk or table, as the rounded backside of the iPad causes it to wobble uncontrollably while trying to type. However, if placement on a hard surface is a must, you might try putting something soft under the iPad to stabilize it.

Typing Method #3: Speech to Text
Now, Apple has brought us an even more convenient way to type, thanks to Siri! Just hit the microphone icon on the lower-left side of the keyboard, and start speaking. In most cases, your words will be transcribed into the currently active text field, with potentially mis-interpreted words underlined in blue. Just select any such word, and a list of possible alternates will pop up for your choosing. You can also speak most punctuation, such as ‘period’, ‘open-paren’, ‘close-paren’, ‘hyphen’ and more. At times though, network congestion does hinder the ability for this feature to work properly, so hopefully that will improve over time.

Other methods of typing on the iPad include the external keyboard, as well as third party speech-to-text transcription apps, but with Siri’s voice transcription feature built in, the latter is no longer necessary.

===== Web Browsing =====

Alongside email, and spending money in the app store, Web browsing is one of Apple’s biggest suggestions for using the device. The iPad was born to surf the Web, but content on the Web is often best viewed vertically, and the new Retina display’s 2048×1536 resolution renders that content more crisply than ever, especially in portrait orientation (vertical). Working within the Safari Web-browsing app, the interface is swift and responsive.

However, not all your sites will work desirably on the iPad. Apple closed-mindedly refuses to support Adobe Flash on the iPad (as it has with the iPhone/iPod Touch). However, regardless of whether Apple likes it or not, Flash is being used around the Web, not only for advertising and video but for many other uses from graphs to product comparisons, but they don’t seem to care anyway. The same lack of support is true of Java, AIR, Silverlight and others though. So expect some of your sites to only be supported to a certain degree, if not entirely in some cases. This can be a bit of a bummer until Flash starts being replaced with other technologies like HTML5′s canvas technology, which is poised to take on some of Flash’s most familiar capabilities. Alternately, you can jailbreak your iPad (when a jailbreak is released for the new model), which would allow you to circumvent the Flash limitation.

Granted, I don’t often actually find myself surfing the web with the iPad for a few reasons. First of all, I prefer the display to be parallel with my face, but for the iPad that means craning my neck downwards and after a while that gets tiring. I also tend to do a lot of typing on the sites I use, and typing a lot on the iPad isn’t really an enjoyable experience. There are however some keyboard alternatives if you decide that on-screen typing isn’t for you. I just find it easier to work from a laptop when I’m on the go, and the 11″ MacBook Air fits that bill simply enough for me. Finally, when I browse the Web (on my computer), I typically have more than 9 tabs open at any given time. I say that because the iPad’s browser limits you to 9 tabs. If you rarely use more than 9 tabs when browsing the Web though, the iPad may be right for you.

===== Email, IM and Social Networking =====

Email on the iPad’s Mail app is best viewed in landscape mode, as it allows you to see both your list of messages on the left as well as the selected message itself on the right. It also makes managing emails easier, such as moving messages to other folders (or to the trash). Another reason for landscape mode is to make typing those lengthy emails easier (using typing-method #2 mentioned above).

You can have multiple email accounts, including Gmail, Yahoo, AOL, MobileMe, Microsoft Exchange and other custom POP3 and IMAP accounts.

Important Note: With the growing number of portable web connecting devices, there is one concern I want to express on your behalf. When you close the Mail app, it continues running in the background, even after disconnecting from one WiFi hotspot and reconnecting to another. My concern with this is that if haven’t set up your e-mail with a secure connection, and you connect to a public WiFi hotspot that a malicious user is monitoring, then the instant your mail app connects to the hotspot to check your e-mail, your e-mail credentials may be suddenly compromised. To avoid this you definitely want to be using some kind of secure connection for your e-mail if at all possible. Web-based email such as Gmail typically support this out of the box, and Gmail accounts are the easiest to setup on the iPad.

===== Media =====

If you own an iPhone or iPod Touch, it’s comforting to know that you audio/video experience will be similar on the iPad. You can watch videos via the YouTube app, which has been updated for the iPad to show YouTube HD videos beautifully. While the 1024×768 resolution of the iPad is a standard 4:3 ratio, not a widescreen 16:9 ratio, the HD videos as well as other video (including downloads from the iTunes store) display just fine, albeit with black bars. Some may not like that though, but I don’t see a wide-screen iPad coming to market for a while.

The Netflix and Hulu+ apps are great for members of those online video streaming services. Netflix videos stream quickly and even moving the play position back and forth in the timeline, the movie starts playing very quick without much time rebuffering the video. For those who want to watch live TV, I also recommend getting yourself a Slingbox and snagging the SlingPlayer app to stream live TV to your iPad. I do that, and it works quite well!

===== Photography and Video =====

The new iPad brings a phenomenal new high-quality 5MP camera to market that picks up where the iPad 2′s half-megapixel camera left off. 5 lenses inside the aperture, and the more powerful processor, combine to create the sharpest iPad image yet. Even low-light pictures are better than ever, though there’s still room for improvement there. There’s also a new iPhoto app from Apple (for five bucks) that lets you organize, edit and share your photos right on the iPad!

As if that’s not enough, there’s built-in Picture Frame mode that lets you use the iPad’s gorgeous Retina display to showcase your favorite photos, using clever transition effects like “Dissolve” with “Zoom in on Faces”, or the nifty multi-photo “Origami” effect. In this review’s comments, I’ll include a helpful link to an article that shows you how to set up and use this mode.

Plus, you can now record full-HD (1080p) videos, instead of just the previous 720p videos. Though I must warn you, in you plan to shoot a lot of video with the iPad (or even the iPhone 4S), you’ll want to go with a 32GB or 64GB model! These incredibly high-quality videos take up an incredibly large amount of storage space!

===== Productivity =====

Productivity carries numerous definitions. Usually its “getting something done” though some people tend to believe that it’s the ability to focus without being distracted, which I see as one of the iPad’s strengths considering it currently does not support multitasking (yet). In the context of software though, applications that allow you to edit office documents are commonly referred to as productivity software. Apple’s own suite of productivity apps, collectively called “iWork”, has been re-created from the ground up just for the iPad. (Previously it was only available for Macs.) For work-minded individuals, it will probably one of the most popular uses of the iPad. There are three apps in all: Pages is a word processing app that allows you to create and edit word processing documents. Then there’s Numbers, which allows you to create and edit spreadsheets. Finally there’s Keynote, which lets you create or edit presentations and slideshows (including PowerPoint files). So far, I’ve found the latter to be pretty invaluable in giving personal presentations within small groups or one-on-one meetings.

However, there is a whole category of iPhone and iPad-specific apps dedicated to productivity, and are consequently located under the category titled “productivity” in the categories section of the app store. Remember, any app that works for the iPhone will run on the iPad, but do note that there are some exceptional productivity apps made or updated for the iPad specifically. Some notable iPad-specific productivity apps include Bento (personal organization/information management), Things (project management), iTeleport (remote desktop/VNC), Layers (drawing/painting), and GoodReader (best PDF+ reader around).

===== Gaming =====

If you’re like me, you probably don’t have time for games. Ultimately, I still see the iPad as a productivity device more than as a gaming console. Regardless, the iPhone and iPad changed the game on that. Millions of people use their computers for gaming, and with the iPhone and iPod Touch having taken on a clear role as a gaming console that has been as revolutionary for mobile gaming as the Wii was for living-room gaming, it goes without saying that the iPad is, and will continue to be, a decent platform for playing games. Most Android games look terrible on tablet-sized screens, but iPad game developers have taken care of us with good quality iPad versions of most iPhone games. Board games and lap-friendly games are also perfect for the iPad. Meanwhile, I suspect that games heavily dependent on device-rotation and other accelerometer-based interaction may quickly wear you out do to the weight of the iPad. I got tired of playing EA’s Need For Speed: Shift after about 5 minutes. Resting the iPad on my knee didn’t help much.

===== Printing =====

Printing with the iPad is really hit-or-miss. The ability to print documents right from your iPad came along last year, with the iOS 4 update, but there are some caveats. Your printer must support “AirPrint” or, if yours doesn’t, you might have some success working with some software called Printopia (if you have a Mac with a shared printer). Google AirPrint or Printopia for more info and device compatibility. From there, printing is easy. The iPad will walk you through the process of locating the printer and setting up the printing options the first time around. For more information about printing with your iPad, I’ll linked to some informative off-site pages in the first comment for this review.

===== Security =====

With portable devices, there should always be some level of concern regarding the safety and protection of your data. The iPad deliver surprisingly well in the area, providing several layers of security to protect your data. You can require complex passcodes to securely access important information, encrypt data whether stored or transferred over WiFi, and even remotely wipe everything from your iPad instantly in the event of theft or loss (with subscription to Apple’s MobileMe service).

===== Praise =====

+ Apple continues its trend of creating the best multi-touch experience around. Android doesn’t even come close
+ The Retina Display – Phenomenal! Kudos for bringing it to the iPad as well as the iPhone and iPod touch
+ High performance 1GHz A5X processor – provides performance power for cutting-edge gaming and multitasking
+ Multitasks like a dream with iOS 5 and the powerful dual-core central processor
+ Rear camera – 5 megapixel photography goodness, plus it can do 1080p HD video (up from 720p)
+ 4G LTE option – It’s clearly the next big thing for improving connection speed when away from WiFi

===== Dissappointments =====

+ No 7″ model – the 10″ model is just too bulky sometimes
+ No true GPS – IP-based location just doesn’t cut it, and GPS has no subscription fee or contract to use like assisted (cellular) GPS does
+ No 128GB model – would have been useful for high-res videos that look great on the Retina display, or hold more of those huge 1080p videos
+ No USB or SD card slot – for storage expansion, or more importantly, importing pics from your external camera to the new iPhoto app
+ Front facing camera – great for FaceTime communication, but it only works over WiFi, Apple isn’t even letting it work over 4G!

===== The Bottom Line =====

If you already have an iPad 2, perhaps there isn’t enough new to warrant purchasing the new model, unless you really want the Retina display. If you have the original iPad, it’s probably worth getting though, seeing all the new additions that carried over from the iPad 2. If you’re considering

Overall, the iPad still sets the pace for most other tablets in its 10″ class, but I personally find all 10″ tablets to be a bit bulky and somewhat unwieldy. Particularly, I find it awkward to use the iPad where I want to use it most: lying in bed, or sitting on the couch with it in my lap. On the couch, where a laptop is comfortable resting on your lap, with the screen parallel to your face, whereas the iPad needs to be angled up, and your head angled downward. This can be a after a while. In bed, it’s just too heavy and bulky, and I’ve dropped the thing square on my face several times.

The solution? I’ve been begging Apple for a 7″ iPad for two years now. Jobs said no, but, with all due respect, he’s no longer calling the shots, so I say let’s see what Tim Cook can indeed cook up for us! If 10″ is comfortable for you, then it’s definitely worth 5 stars. Personally though, I can’t quite give it 5 until Apple releases a 7″ version. But I realize ratings are subjective, so call me a critic if you want. In all honesty, the iPad really is the best 10″ tablet around, and I would give no other tablet more than 3 stars. I’ll continue to keep mine around simply because it does have it’s uses, especially for Web and app development, but also for occasional gaming, and when not in use, it still makes a great digital picture frame with the aforementioned Picture Frame mode! (See the Photography and Video section)

I hope you’ve found this hands-on review helpful.

 

THE SECOND REVIEW I FOUND USEFUL

 Apple iPad MD364LL/A (32GB, Wi-Fi + Verizon 4G, White) NEWEST MODEL (Personal Computers)

This review is for iPad 2 owners trying to decide whether to upgrade. It also might be helpful for people deciding between buying a “new iPad” and an iPad 2 (which is now just 399, 100 bucks cheaper than the cheapest “new iPad”).

I was perfectly happy with my iPad 2, a wifi-only model with 32gb. When Apple announced the new iPad, I typed up a long list of reasons why I shouldn’t buy it. And then I bought one anyway. (I’ll be giving my iPad 2 to my parents.)

You’ve probably already read up on the new iPad and know the list of new features it has, and how the specs compare to the iPad 2′s specs. But comparing specs on paper is different than comparing the actual experience of using the two products, and the experience matters more than the specs. I can tell you which of those features, at least to me, really makes the experience of using the new iPad better. And there’s only one: the display.

I do a lot of reading on the iPad, and this is where the retina display really matters. Text is very sharp, even for very small fonts, and this makes reading on iPad much more comfortable. I’ve been reading Steve Jobs on my iPad 2 (using the Kindle app); I read the next chapter on the retina iPad and then tried to read the following chapter on the iPad 2 again, and going back to the iPad 2 was unpleasant. I had similar results when I compared reading articles on websites using Safari and when reading a few pages of War and Peace in the iBooks app on the retina iPad vs. iPad 2. After reading on the new iPad, you just won’t want to go back to reading on iPad 2.

If you read a lot on your iPad, this to me is a compelling reason to upgrade, and perhaps the only compelling reason.

What about photos? Videos? Games? Here, you can tell the difference, and the retina display is better. But in terms of how much the retina display increases my enjoyment of viewing pictures, video, and games, it is not enough to justify the cost of upgrading.

On both iPads, I compared hi-res pictures I took at the Chicago Botanic Gardens using a DSLR with a good lens. On iPad 2, your eye can indeed discern individual pixels if you look closely enough, whereas on the retina iPad, it’s like looking at a real print of the photo. But after looking at the pictures on the retina iPad, and even noticing the differences, it was still quite nice to view them again on the iPad 2. Similarly for video: I watched a scene from the Breaking Bad season 4 finale on both devices, and while it looked a bit better on the retina iPad, it still looked great on iPad 2. Streaming hi-res movie trailers looked better on the retina iPad, but still looked great on iPad 2. For streaming video from Netflix, I could not tell any difference, most likely because the resolution of the source material isn’t any higher than the iPad 2′s display.

I’m less of a gamer than most iPad users, but I did try Sky Gamblers: Air Supremacy (a game supposedly optimized for the retina display) and Plants vs. Zombies HD (an older game). PvZ looks exactly the same on both, Sky Gamblers looks better on the retina iPad but it still looks very awesome on the iPad 2.

In short, you can notice the difference the retina display makes for photos, videos, and games. Yet, the experience of using the iPad 2 is still quite excellent. The fact is that, even at a lower resolution, the iPad 2′s IPS display is exceptional.

What about the other specs? Is it worth upgrading to get a newer processor, for example?

No. I really don’t notice a difference in performance. The retina iPad is super fast, but so is iPad 2. Some apps load a little faster, others I can’t tell. But the speed difference, if any, isn’t enough to make the retina iPad more enjoyable to use than iPad 2.

What about battery life? The retina display has 4x the pixels of the iPad 2 display and requires a lot more power, which would drain the battery faster. But the new iPad also comes with a much bigger battery inside (that’s why it’s 1/10 of an inch thicker and an ounce or so heavier than iPad 2). Apple says battery life is about the same, and that seems to be true in my experience in the four weeks since I bought it. (I bought it March 16 and I’m editing this paragraph on April 13.)

What about the improved camera? Sure, it takes better pictures than the joke of a camera on iPad 2. But do most people use their iPad for photography, anyway? If you have an iPhone 4 or 4S, your camera is just as good or better, and it’s more convenient for taking pictures than using the iPad. Ditto for most smartphones. And only the rear-facing camera was improved; the front-facing camera is just as crappy as before. And that’s a shame, because the front camera is the one I’d actually use (for skype and facetime).

What about dictation? I find it works about 80%, less in a noisy room. Sure, it is easier to dictate and then edit the few errors that result than to type something from scratch on the iPad’s on-screen keyboard. But I don’t think most people will use the dictation feature enough for it to matter in the upgrade decision. People who write a lot on the iPad will already have an external keyboard (or should get one).

So, for me, the only new feature that matters enough to justify the upgrade is the retina display.

But there’s one other reason you might upgrade: If your iPad 2 is a wifi-only model and you think it would be handy to also have 3G/4G connectivity. (Or, if you bought an iPad 2 with 3G and you never use the 3G, now is your chance to buy an iPad without it and save $130.) I bought a new iPad with 4G so that I could use it when I’m traveling and away from a hotspot. Which isn’t very often, but I figured it would be handy to have.

What about 3G vs. 4G? If you have an iPad 2 with 3G, should you upgrade to enjoy the faster speed of 4G? The answer is only if you use it a lot.

4G on the new iPad is very fast. My iPad 2 doesn’t have 3G, so I can’t say how much faster. My verizon iphone 4S has 3G and it’s way slower than a wifi connection, but 4G on the new iPad is at least as fast as a good wifi connection.

That said, the cellular service is not cheap, so most people use it only when wifi is not available, which is not very often. You have wifi at home, at work perhaps, at most coffee shops and libraries and hotels. The exception would be people that have an expensive plan with a high data allowance; if that’s you and you use cellular connectivity a lot, then you have a good reason to upgrade. 4G is crazy fast.

The bottom line:

Upgrading is a tough call, because it’s expensive. The difference between what you’ll get if you sell your iPad 2 and what you’ll spend for a similarly configured retina iPad is probably around $250, maybe a little more. And if you upgrade, you might want more memory since apps designed for the retina display take up more space than standard apps.

I recommend that most iPad 2 owners upgrade only if they really want or need the retina display, especially for people who do a lot of reading on iPad. Or, if they bought a wifi-only iPad 2 and always regretted not getting cellular internet, now’s their chance.

If neither of these is true for you, stick with your iPad 2. It is still an absolutely great device, and still a very worthy purchase for people who want an ipad but can’t afford or don’t need the retina display.

The THIRD Review I Found Useful

Apple iPad MD328LL/A (16GB, Wi-Fi, White) NEWEST MODEL (Personal Computers)

For the last 20 years, I have steadfastly refused anything apple — I think it was the cult-like mentality that turned me off. Also, the fact that the devices are so easy to use, to borrow a phrase, even a cavegirl could do it (as evidenced by my very non-technical sisters and friends.) Of course, being a UNIX geek, I was steadfastly against the Apple software/iTunes/iEverything model. You can do anything you want on UNIX — there is no one to save you from yourself. The UNIX motto: “We sell ROPE!” (Of course, I have hung myself numerous times on said rope including the time I accidentally erased the entire hard drive (including operating system) on a UNIX system at the now defunct Bear Stearns!

But then I was given a shiny new Macbook Pro for my new job and I started having… doubts. For example, the terminal application under Apple OS is hauntingly like my beloved UNIX — including having vi and grep and the “/” pointing the “RIGHT” way. I figure any system that allows me to use VI can’t be completely evil.

I have played with many tablets — all android. I started out with the Motorola Xoom and then settled on the Asus Transformer. The thing that won me over about the Transformer was that the display was better than any I had seen… until now.

I purchased my first iPad this weekend sight unseen because I read that with the new retinal display, reading now became nearly comparable to the original Kindle/eInk technology. Despite my love of gadgets, I’m growing weary of having a Kindle, a Tablet, a Laptop, an MP3 player — not to mention all the peripherals one needs to support them.

So the first thing I did with the iPad was installed the Kindle app. I also have my Asus transformer here at work. I downloaded the same book and COULD NOT BELIEVE MY EYES! I never expected there to be such a noticeable difference. On the Asus transformer, you can actually see the individual pixels. On the iPad, it looks as smooth as an eInk display.

The thing about the iPad (and Apple products in general) is that it is the little details that have won me over. For example, the scrolling on the iPad is SOOO much smoother than the Transformer. When you swipe on the transformer to scroll through the list of books, it lurches and jumps and trying to finally control where the scrolling starts and stops is frustrating.

Also, the apps just work and don’t need to be updated every day — which just gets really old.

There are 2 areas I have found where I prefer non-apple products:

1. Performance — though I don’t have this problem with the current iPad because it is brand-spanking new. However, I expect that soon the apps that have been written more “frugally” for the earlier generation processors will soon bloat to suck up the faster processors of the new iPad.

2. Apple’s “control freak” mentality — DON’T like is having to jump through some hoops to use my music library from Amazon (I try to use iTunes as little as humanly possible). I also miss the ability to have my own wall papers and control the layout of the screen a bit.

However, the downsides are much smaller since I don’t wind up having to act as a beta tester for the tablet or the apps. I’m a software quality assurance engineer and while I am more than capable of troubleshooting my systems and getting them to work, I guess at this point, when I’m just using the web and a computer for my own enjoyment, I don’t want to have to do that work anymore… I just want to focus on my music or my books or the web article.s

Upshot: I guess there is a reason certain technologies and products become defacto standards — it is because they are legitimately the best. The iPad 3 is no exception — it sets the bar over any android alternative. Microsoft is fighting back with their Windows 8 mobile phone (the Lumia) which ALSO uses a retinal display. But Microsoft has a long way to go to achieve the type of platform consistency that you get with Apple. I like only having to know how to use one interface. Apple allows that because the iPad acts like the iPhone which is a basic version of their computer OS.

I will still always love my UNIX… the fact that apple is actually reuniting me with my beloved vi and grep and still providing me with a beautiful pleasurable stable platform is a huge bonus!

MY BOTTOM LINE… YEA, I GUESS I AM SOLD ON THIS NEWFANGLED CONTRAPTION…

Africa: Huge Water Reserves Under Continent

Researchers have found thatAfrica has huge reserves of water underground, which they estimate are more than a hundred times the annual renewable freshwater resources.

Their findings, published in the academic journal Environment Research Letters, show that the largest reserves are in aquifers in the north African countries of Libya, Algeria, Egypt, Chad and Sudan.

.

The scientists used existing data, but for the first time this data was collated to give a continent-wide picture. They estimate that there are 0.66 million cubic kilometres of groundwater storage under Africa.

However, the researchers emphasise that it is important to take into consideration the rate at which this stored water can be replenished.

Whilst the largest reserves lie across the arid region of north Africa, these were filled five thousand years ago when the region was much wetter. There is plenty of water under this area, about seventy five meters deep, but whatever is taken out is not replenished.

Other factors to be taken into account are the geological characteristics of the underground water reservoirs. For example, if the groundwater is very deep underground it cannot be accessed by hand pump.

The researchers find that “for many African countries appropriately sited and constructed boreholes will be able to sustain community handpumps and for most of the populated areas of Africa, groundwater levels are likely to be sufficiently shallow to be accessed using a handpump”.

One of the report’s authors, Helen Bonsor of the British Geological Survey, told AIM that it is not appropriate to downscale the report’s findings, and that their work does not deal with the quality of the water stored. It thus does not deal with the issues of salinization or contamination, although she said that in general the stored water is purer than surface water. She stressed that the report is intended to encourage debate and more local research.

There is certainly a large amount of water under Mozambique, and the paper estimates that there are 6,290 cubic kilometres of groundwater stored under the country, with particularly large reserves under Maputo province.

The groundwater in Mozambique is replenished at a rate of between 25 and 100 millimetres per year, and is stored relatively close to the surface. The paper shows that the aquifer productivity for much of Mozambique is high.

The British Geological Survey has also been undertaking a one year research project funded by the British government’s Department for International Development, looking at the resilience of African groundwater to climate change.

That research found that “groundwater possesses a high resilience to climate change in Africa and should be central to adaptation strategies”.

Striking a Balance Between Cyber War and Cyber Peace

.Greater dependence on networked computers and communication leaves the US more vulnerable to attack than others.

.Cyber warfare is the one of the most dramatic potential threats to be faced [EPA]

Two years ago, a piece of faulty computer code infected Iran’s nuclear programme and destroyed many of the centrifuges used to enrich uranium. Some observers declared this apparent sabotage to be the harbinger of a new form of warfare, and United States Secretary of Defence Leon Panetta has warned citizens of the danger of a “cyber Pearl Harbour” attack on the US. But what do we really know about cyber conflict?

The cyber domain of computers and related electronic activities is a complex man-made environment, and human adversaries are purposeful and intelligent. Mountains and oceans are hard to move, but portions of cyberspace can be turned on and off by throwing a switch. It is far cheaper and quicker to move electrons across the globe than to move large ships long distances.

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2012/04/201241510242769575.html

.

US steps up cyber propaganda war

.

The costs of developing those vessels – multiple carrier task forces and submarine fleets – create enormous barriers to entry, enabling US naval dominance. But the barriers to entry in the cyber domain are so low that non-state actors and small states can play a significant role at low cost.

Political shift

In my book, The Future of Power, I argue that the diffusion of power away from governments is one of this century’s great political shifts. Cyberspace is a perfect example. Large countries such as the US, Russia, Britain, France and China have greater capacity than other states and non-state actors to control the sea, air, or space, but it makes little sense to speak of dominance in cyberspace. If anything, dependence on complex cyber systems for support of military and economic activities creates new vulnerabilities in large states that can be exploited by non-state actors.

Four decades ago, the US Department of Defence created the internet; today, by most accounts, the US remains the leading country in terms of its military and societal use. But greater dependence on networked computers and communication leaves the US more vulnerable to attack than many other countries, and cyberspace has become a major source of insecurity, because, at this stage of technological development, offence prevails over defence in this realm.

The term “cyber attack” covers a wide variety of actions, ranging from simple probes to defacing websites, denial of service, espionage and destruction. Similarly, the term “cyber war” is used loosely to cover a wide range of behaviours, reflecting dictionary definitions of war that range from armed conflict to any hostile contest (for example, “war between the sexes” or “war on drugs”).

At the other extreme, some experts use a narrow definition of cyber war: a “bloodless war” among states that consists solely of electronic conflict in cyberspace. But this avoids the important interconnections between the physical and virtual layers of cyberspace. As the Stuxnet virus that infected Iran’s nuclear programme showed, software attacks can have very real physical effects.

A more useful definition of cyber war is hostile action in cyberspace whose effects amplify or are equivalent to major physical violence. In the physical world, governments have a near-monopoly on large-scale use of force, the defender has an intimate knowledge of the terrain and attacks end because of attrition or exhaustion. Both resources and mobility are costly.

In the cyber world, by contrast, actors are diverse (and sometimes anonymous), physical distance is immaterial and some forms of offence are cheap. Because the internet was designed for ease of use rather than security, attackers currently have the advantage over defenders. Technological evolution, including efforts to “re-engineer” some systems for greater security, might eventually change that, but, for now, it remains the case. The larger party has limited ability to disarm or destroy the enemy, occupy territory, or use counterforce strategies effectively.

Potential threat

Cyber war, though only incipient at this stage, is the most dramatic of the potential threats. Major states with elaborate technical and human resources could, in principle, create massive disruption and physical destruction through cyber attacks on military and civilian targets. Responses to cyber war include a form of interstate deterrence through denial and entanglement, offensive capabilities and designs for rapid network and infrastructure recovery if deterrence fails. At some point, it may be possible to reinforce these steps with certain rudimentary norms and arms control, but the world is at an early stage in this process.

 

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2012/04/201241510242769575.html

.

If one treats so-called “hacktivism” by ideological groups as mostly a disruptive nuisance at this stage, there remain four major categories of cyber threats to national security, each with a different time horizon: cyber war and economic espionage are largely associated with states, and cyber crime and cyber terrorism are mostly associated with non-state actors. For the US, the highest costs currently stem from espionage and crime, but over the next decade or so, war and terrorism could become greater threats than they are today.

Moreover, as alliances and tactics evolve, the categories may increasingly overlap. In the view of Admiral Mike McConnell, the US former director of national intelligence: “Sooner or later, terror groups will achieve cyber-sophistication. It’s like nuclear proliferation, only far easier.”

The world is only just beginning to see glimpses of cyber war – in the denial-of-service attacks that accompanied the conventional war in Georgia in 2008, or the recent sabotage of Iranian centrifuges. States have the greatest capabilities, but non-state actors are more likely to initiate a catastrophic attack. A “cyber 9/11″ may be more likely than the often-mentioned “cyber Pearl Harbour”. It is time for states to sit down and discuss how to limit this threat to world peace.

 

Which Economy Is It, Stupid?

Let’s be REAL: The state of voters’ finances influence elections, but there are many interacting and counteracting measures to study as well.

When economic indicators are ‘good’, such as high levels of employment, incumbent candidates tend to do well [REUTERS]

Since James Carville famously wrote “The Economy, Stupid” in Bill Clinton’s campaign headquarters, the mass public has become increasingly familiar with what is one of the more important “facts” discovered by political scientists: US presidential elections are undoubtedly affected by the state of the economy.

The question of which part of the economy matters most, however, still remains unsolved. Nate Silver has two very interesting recent posts on this topic. In one, he makes the claim that the key figure is 150,000 jobs per month: if the US economy performs better than that between now and the elections, Obama has a good chance of being elected.In the second, he subjects a whole host (43 to be precise) of different economic variables to the test of predicting 16 different US presidential election results, and then compares which of these variables performs best; again his payroll job growth variable does quite well. Also recently, The Monkey Cage’s Larry Bartels, also writing in the New York Times, highlights changes in real disposable income (which comes in tenth on Silver’s list), a long time favourite variable of political scientists studying US politics.

Both posts are worth reading, as they continue to provide irrefutable evidence of a link between economic conditions and election results in the US. Moreover, the question of which economic conditions matter most is of both academic and pragmatic interest. Whether it is actually possible to study this in an empirically satisfying matter when limiting oneself to US presidential elections, however, remains an open question. As Silver notes:

“When you’re testing 43 different economic indicators over a sample of just 16 elections, the best-performing ones are likely to have been a little lucky. In fact, the relative rank of the economic indicators has historically been very inconsistent: those that perform best over one set of elections do not do much better over the long-term.”

In my book on economic voting in post-communist countries in the 1990s, I took a slightly different tack. Rather than try to parse out the effect of different economic variables on election results, I used the best data I had available to try to get a general estimate of how parties would perform when the economic environment was “good” as opposed to “bad”. Now I was doing something quite different – trying to use regional variation in economic conditions to predict regional variation in election results one election at a time – but at the end of the day I wonder how much more we can really claim with 16 elections to draw on in the US beyond the (very valuable) observation that better economic conditions help the incumbent, while worse economic conditions hurt the incumbent.

As Silver aptly notes, a variable that does well through 13 elections can suddenly perform poorly in the 14th, and then where are we? Most obviously, I think this probably follows from the fact that an awful lot of Silver’s 43 variables co-vary with one another. If his results showed three variables with huge effects and then 40 with no effect, I would think we were on to something quite important. Instead, however, we see a gradual decline across all the variables, suggesting to me at least that after four more presidential elections we might still see the same gradual decline, but with a reordering of the rankings.

Indeed, the most interesting thing from Silver’s horse race type of analysis is probably the variables that have norelationship with vote outcomes. And while these may also be the result of random noise, there is one that is worth mentioning, which is unemployment.

I have always been struck by the lack of unemployment measures in most of these US economic voting models, and Silver suggests why this is the case: in his data at least, unemployment has no effect on election results in US presidential elections (as a side note, while I used a variety of variables in my models in post-communist countries, unemployment is an – if not the most – important driver of the results). Silver does, however, find a very strong effect for change in unemployment between January-September of the election year, which actually overlaps very nicely with Bartels’ basic claim in his piece that voters are myopic, heavily weighting recent economic developments at the expense of economic developments from earlier in one’s term.

So once again, we may be in a situation where economic variables co-vary with one another (we would expect growth in real disposable income to go up as unemployment comes down), but we can make some interesting observations about the time-frame within which the economy matters.

Libya: A Feudal Disaster in the Making

Federalism in Libya: Tried and failed

Given Libya’s history and infrastructure, appeasement of local actors via regional autonomy is a recipe for disaster.

- In today’s Libya, local is king. Yet, if Libya is to become a functioning state that derives its legitimacy and stability from resource extraction, wealth distribution, and empowering its citizens, the interim government of the National Transitional Council (NTC) must become king.

In the run-up to the June elections many militias and civil society organisations are lambasting the interim government’s mission to centralise authority rather than its lacklustre results at achieving that task. On March 5, notables in Benghazi – Libya’s second city and capital of the Eastern region of Cyrenaica – proposed to compensate for the ineffectiveness of the central NTC authorities by asking them to relinquish certain powers to sub-state bodies such as an autonomous Cyrenaican provincial government. On April 17, they met again to demand that NTC authorities change the election law and stake their claim to Libya’s resource rich Sirte basin.

At the start of April, clashes in Libya’s main southern cities of Sebha and Kufra led to similar calls for special regional autonomy arrangements, dubbed “federalism” in the Libyan political discourse. These calls for the delegation of overlapping, autonomous, and ill-defined powers to localities and regions bear only the vaguest resemblance to types of federalism that exist in the United States, Germany, or India. Worse than being ill-named, such proposals are ill-timed as it is manifestly impossible to act upon them until the constitutional convention is convened following the elections.

The militias remain powerful

There are many valid reasons why Libyans would trust local actors over central ones. The local militias courageously vanquished Gaddafi and in many areas have provided a modicum of security and social welfare functions in his wake. In fact, in the absence of functioning NTC institutions throughout most of Tripolitania – Libya’s Western region – the militias have become judge, jury, prison guard, and executioner. Rather than focusing on rebuilding infrastructure or creating a functioning bureaucracy, the militias tend to concern themselves with the populist issues of purging the Libyan state of those who served under Gaddafi and attending to the needs of their home communities. These issues are highly popular with wide swathes of the Libyan population.

Nevertheless the time has come where militias and local activist groups constitute the primary barrier to stability, reconstruction, and a democratic transition. Paradoxically, the aloof technocrats of the NTC are Libya’s only real hope. Tragically, these technocrats appear more hapless every day. The primary pillar of the NTC campaign to curb the militias has been offering a one-time demobilization payment to revolutionary fighters in exchange for registration with the Warrior’s Affairs Committee. Rather than successful causing fighters to either join the national army or return to civilian employment – the ostensible aims of the programme - after awarding $1.4bn, the NTC has determined that much of the money was fraudulently awarded and has actually reinforced militia solidarity. After this announcement on April 10, fighters protested against the NTC in Tripoli and raised new traffic checkpoints.

Even well-thought out NTC demobilization programmes will not succeed if the conditions that nourish the militias remain. Just recently necessity gave rise to a new militia in the Arab town of Rugdalein – an area that remained loyal to Muammar Gaddafi until his very last days. Men from Rugdalein knew they needed to prepare to stand their ground, as they watched Libyans from other localities known for supporting Gaddafi, such as Tuwarga, being forcibly evicted from their homes. On April 2, the predominately Berber militias from Zwara attacked men, women, and children in Rugdalein and scores were killed in an example of traditional Libyan feud settling. In the eyes of the inhabitants of Rugdalein, the central government was powerless to protect them and only their militiamen defended their community.

History of Federalism

Amid the ongoing tumult, over-eager commentators warn that Libya is poised to fracture along regional, tribal, and provincial lines. Ambassador Akbar Ahmed, Chair of Islamic Studies at American University in Washington, has written in an Al Jazeera English Opinion piece that federalism is the only solution which would be in fitting with Libyan history.

The reverse is true. Federalism was tried in the Kingdom of Libya between 1951 and 1963. It facilitated dysfunctional governance, widespread corruption, and redundant government offices at the national and provincial levels simultaneously enacting conflicting policies. Provincial legislators and bureaucrats were local notables protecting their fiefdoms – similar to the militias and regional strongmen of today. Taxation policy was subject to a provincial veto rendering wide-scale planning unwieldy.

When Libya was a poor desert economy prior to 1961, central planning and streamlined infrastructural budgets were not yet necessary. However, with the influx of oil wealth post-1961, federalism needed to be abandoned when the inefficiencies it fostered impeded the rapid development of Libya that would otherwise have been possible. Protracted battles in 1963 over which authorities had the right to tax foreign companies operating in Libya were its final death knell.

Federalism is divisive

Today’s Libya requires the rapid creation of nation-wide institutions and human capital that Libyan history shows is incompatible with federalism. Yet, the proponents of federalism wish to decide taxes and budgets at the provincial level – a sure recipe for gridlock. Furthermore, one of the few positive legacies of Gaddafi’s rule is his construction of extensive water and oil pipelines that link the provinces together. For example, much of Libya’s oil is extracted in Cyrenaica and brought via pipelines to the Sirte Basin, while the majority of Libya’s groundwater comes from aquifers in southern Cyrenaica but is consumed in the populous areas of Western Tripolitania. A return to a “federal” governmental model would inevitably endanger these gains unleashing a competition over strategic resources – especially those in the Sirte Basin where Cyrenaica and Tripolitania meet.

Creating a functional chain of command

The NTC’s current failings point in another direction – careful delegation of local powers to the spontaneous organisations that arose in each town and region during the uprisings, creating a chain of com­mand that links these organisations to the central government. Misratans should run their town’s affairs through their new democratically elected local council and Benghazi transparency activists must be involved in their local governance – but only as representatives of the central government and not as their own fiefdoms.

In post-Gaddafi Libya, peripheral actors will continuously rebel if they do not feel they have a say in their own governance. Federalism is not the only way to give them that say. In fact, the discourse surrounding federalism has proved so toxic that the Benghazi declaration of March 5th unleashed scores of anti-federalism protests, leading to NTC officials stating that they would use force to prevent an Eastern federal region from coming into being. Further backlash was occasioned by the April 17 meeting of the pro-federalism “Congress of the People of Cyrenaica”.

Like Afghanistan and Yemen, Libya may be yet another country in which the culture and history of peripheral actors does not allow them to easily accept a subordinate position, even to a central authority they accept as legitimate. However, Libya is certainly the only example of an oil-rich Arab country where the periphery remains dominant; usually the economic requirements of the extractive industries necessitate nationwide infrastructure and coherent chains of command. Given Libya’s history and shared infrastructure, appeasement of local actors via promises of regional autonomy is a recipe for confusion and inefficiency. In the long-term, enshrining a federal system would almost certainly doom the implementation of any coherent, countrywide development plan.

 

 

 

 

 

Did “Hip Hop” Help the Arab Spring Movement??

From protest songs to revolutionary anthems

Protesters of the Arab Spring are realising the power of music, and finding their voices in styles from folk to hip hop.

Arab hip hop has become one of the defining cultural motifs of the revolts of the last eight months’ [GALLO/GETTY]

“My music may be soft, but I’m a warrior on stage.”

So explained Tunisian folk rock singer Emel Mathlouthi as we sat in the restaurant of the African Hotel after almost eight hours of rehearsal for a concert she performed at the Museum of Carthage two days later. It was a defiant remark, coming in response to a discussion of the much-celebrated role of hip hop in the Tunisian revolution, and Mathlouthi certainly had a point.

Rappers like Tunisia’s El General have received hundreds of thousands of YouTube hits (See YOUTUBE Below):

.

.

.

Repeated international attention for writing their songs supporting the revolution. But watch Mathlouthi’s rendition of “Kilmati Houra” (My Word is Free) (Beow:

.

.

 which she performed on the street on amidst the crowd on Bourghiba Avenue on a chilly winter’s evening in the middle of the revolution, and the power of a simple voice, without drum machines, effusive anger and the other aspects of hip hop, becomes clear.
On the Street, but not of the Street?

There are many reasons Arab hip hop has become one of the defining cultural motifs of the revolts of the last eight months. It’s gritty, angry, and evokes the kind of urban imagery – poverty, unemployment, police brutality, lack of life chances – that were at the heart of hip hop culture before it was taken over by bling. Today, Tunis, Cairo and other Arab capitals have, in one sense, inherited the mantle of Compton, Oakland or Brooklyn, where much of the most famous political American rap emerged.

In contrast, Mathlouthi’s songs recall the generation prior, reminding us of folk music’s powerful role in the American civil rights and anti-war struggles of the 1960s and 1970s. And so it was not surprising that as we talked about the evolution of her music, she turned to singers like Joan Baez and Bob Dylan before I could mention them.

“At first, I had rock band and we played covers of hard bands like In Flames, the Dark Tranquility, The Gathering and Italian gothic group Lacuna Coil. But then I switched to softer music after listening to Baez and Dylan, and realised what you could do with just a guitar and voice. My music became more revolutionary as it became softer.”

Mathlouthi’s insight about the power of softness struck a chord with me, as it mirrored precisely the experience of Egypt’s Ramy Essam, another metalhead turned acoustic singer who became one of the main voices of Tahrir Square.

Already sold on the importance of hip hop to the Tunisian revolution, when I first heard Essam’s version of his soon to be famous song “Irhal” (“Leave Now!” the Egyptian equivalent of the ubiquitous slogan “Dégage!” In Tunisia), featuring just him singing over his acoustic guitar, I immediately called a producer friend to work on a hip hop remix with drums and bass. To my ears, they would help turn a great protest song into a revolutionary anthem. But as soon as I watched the crowd react to him performing it live in Tahrir a few days later it became clear that the extra instrumentation were superfluous.

Some Examples Arab rap and Hip Hop

.

.

.

.

Reinventing tradition

A generation before either Essam or Mathlouthi were born, legendary Egyptian singer Sheikh Imam and his oud, often joined by his reknowned poet Ahmed Fouad Negm, inspired Egyptians with their highly charged songs that railed against state violence and the sufferings of Egypt’s – and by extension the Arab world’s – poor and working classes. Negm’s famous “The Donkey and the Foal”, which has long been understood as an allusion to Mubarak and his son and would-be successor Gamal, was also set to music by Essam, w

“I started Tanboura as a response not merely to local oppression, but to the penetration of a commercial aesthetic that almost destroyed traditional music in egypt, and the mentality and authentic values that existed with it.”Zakaria Ibrahim, founder of Tanboura and director of El Mastaba Center for Egyptian Folk Music

ho, like Mathlouthi and just about every other singer or rapper I know, has been strongly inspired by Sheikh Imam.

Another generation of traditional musicians today carries the mantle of Sheikh Imam and the still very much alive Ahmed Fouad Negm, whose devil-may-care attitude and humorous and poetic style of attacking Mubarak in the final years of his rule became a template for the artistically rich protests at Tahrir.

But it wasn’t just Negm’s poetry that brought a traditional feel to the Tahrir protests. One of the main musical highlights of the 18 day protests was the performance by celebrated folklore group Tanboura. They brought a tradition of protest music from the Suez Canal region that has taken on Nasser, Sadat and the Israeli occupation with equal vigor. For their actions members have, like Imam and Negm before them, faced prison and worse at the hands of the regime.

For Zakaria Ibrahim, founder of Tanboura and director of El Mastaba Center for Egyptian Folk Music, Tanboura’s popularity is inseparable from its dual role as a voice of protest and a regenerator of traditional styles of music that recently were in danger of disappearing completely.

“I started Tanboura,” Ibrahim explains, “as a response not merely to local oppression, but to the penetration of a commercial aesthetic that almost destroyed traditional music in Egypt, and the mentality and authentic values that existed with it.”

Scholars might blanche before such a seemingly rose-colored view of “tradition” and “authenticity”, given that so-called traditional and authentic Egyptian culture is certainly not free of prejudice, oppression and violence. But Ibrahim’s focus here is on music, not society as a whole.

“Before it was just our traditional music in the street. People shared it because it expressed their hopes and needs. We sang against repression, against longing to go home after the Israeli conquest of Sinai, we had the same desires to ask for democracy and holding the government accountable, and just like today we went to prison for it. But then with the commercialisation of music songs changed completely. Instead of people sharing, now it became just commercial, without art, while the remaining traditional groups had to play for Mubarak and be controlled by his system to survive. They lost their freedom.”

Of course, the plight of musicians was no different than the plight of Egyptians more broadly. What’s interesting is that the same forces of neoliberalism – strongly associated with Gamal Mubarak and his cronies – that many analysts believe ultimately turned the old guard of the military-economic elite against the Mubaraks also drove traditional musicians like the members of Tanboura onto the streets.

“Mubarak was using the opening to the West to flood market with Western music,” Ibrahim explained, “but offered no support for traditional music. Now at least we can hope for support.”

Tradition and hybridity

.

.

Next Music Station: Tunisia

 The popular protests that toppled Ben Ali and Mubarak succeeded in good measure because the dictatorial regimes they confronted were unable to stop the uncontrolled flow of information, whether through social media or satellite networks like  Al Jazeera (which in fact made unprecedented use of social media in its coverage of the protests).

The ability to share knowledge unbound by once powerful government censorship regimes both linked activists and protesters together and brought the realities of government repression and lies into clearer public view than ever before.

Among the most powerful forces for encouraging the unrestricted spread of knowledge and culture through the internet and its multifaceted forms of social media is the Creative Commons movement, of which, not surprisingly, Al Jazeera has been a major supporter.

As an academic and musician I have long felt that encouraging unrestricted, and as important, free circulation of knowledge and cultural products enabled by the use of Creative Commons’ legal mechanisms is crucial for the future of both art and scientific/academic knowledge in the global era.

At the beginning of July, Al Jazeera and Creative Commons joined together to sponsor the 3rd Creative Commons Arab Regional Meeting and Concert, fittingly held in Tunis. As many of the participants at the meeting, from Creative Commons Chairman Joi Ito to Tanboura member and one time Sheikh Imam disciple Yasser Shoukry, explained to Al Jazeera  journalist and tech expert Bilal Randaree, there is a strong affinity between the principles of Creative Commons and those of the Arab Spring.

Coming to the meeting I already had first hand experience of the activist and political implications of the kinds of circulation of knowledge enabled by Creative Commons. What I could not have imagined, however, was how the community created by CC could bring together traditional and contemporary forms of artistic production in ways that produced truly powerful and innovative hybrid forms of music and art.

For the meeting and concert we brought together well over a dozen artists from Tunisia, Egypt, Palestine, Morocco, and the US. Free of the pressure of creating a commercially viable product, our traditional singers from Egypt, Yasser Shoukry, and Tunisia, Alia Sellami, brilliantly teamed up with Tunisian rap groups Armada Bizerta and Lak3y and Gazan rapper Ayman Mghamis, to write two songs that epitomised the ongoing struggles faced by the young people who have led the Arab revolutions.

This includes the difficulty young Arabs face merely to travel outside their countries (many of the invited Gazan participants couldn’t get visas, while those that did waited three days at the border to get out. Ramy Essam was not permitted to leave Egypt), and the need to continue the revolutionary impetus even as the urge to return to “normalcy” grows by the day.

Blending the poetry of Negm and Abdel Rahman al Abnudi, Shoukry and Sellami provided the vocal foundation over which the rappers could let fly with some of the most intimate yet powerfully delivered truths of the struggles they have faced, and their peers continue to face, whether in Tunis, Cairo, Gaza or beyond.

For our part, the musicians brought together traditional Moroccan guimbris with acoustic guitars, distorted and multi-affected electric guitars and some incredibly funky bass guitar and percussion players thanks to the willingness of members of the other groups who participated in the concert to join our Creative Commons jam.

After only a few hours of rehearsing we had developed two powerful songs that gave our rappers and singers a unique sound which they used to collaborate over with a joyful vengeance. The rappers spat ou

“Among the greatest challenges facing artists…is the difficulty of actually creating the physical spaces for them to meet and collaborate.”

t in angry stacatto the realities of the moment in which we found ourselves; while Shoukry and Sellami offered voices of beauteous, calm tradition to remind us of where we’ve been and how to move beyond it to the next level.

And through it all, musical direcor and Moroccan metal pioneer, Reda Zine, focused on the Gnawa rhythms and melodies which have linked West African not only to southern Africa, but east across the entirety of North Africa and the Middle East. All guitarist/bloger Kerim Bouzouita and I had to do was add few choice guitar riffs and we had officially created a new genre of world music that has yet to be named.

The collaboration was a great success by the closing concert, and the musicians have pledged to complete writing and recording the songs so that they can be proplerly released via a CC license – which would allow other artists to build on our foundation to craft new and even better versions of the song. Two art workshops also joined the creative process, producing several wonderful videos that will be worked in more definitively once the songs are completed.

It is clear, from our experience, that among the greatest challenges facing artists in particular, and especially those particpants in the ongoing struggles for social and political change, is the difficulty of actually creating the physical spaces for them to meet and collaborate. This meeting and concert showed that however important new media and hi tech communications have clearly become, they are still no substitute for face to face interaction (a point equally well proven in the success of the revolutions once they actually moved from facebook to the streets in collaborative action).

At the same time we will continue to try to reach out to those who couldn’t meet with us through these forms of social media. We will bring them into the musical and visual dialogue as much as possible with the hope, always, that at the end of the day we’ll all be sharing the same real stage – whether at Tahrir, the Carthage Museum, or hopefully in the near future, the Damascus Citadel or rebuilt Pearl of Bahrain.

AND Just in case you wonder if these things can go viral.. see this video with almost 1.7 million views….

.

.

MUSIC CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN

THE WORLD

Conundrum: Protect speech or society?

The online conundrum: Protect speech or society?

What is MOST interesting to me in this article is that MOST Americans do not know, understand. or care about the censorship that is talking place HERE in the USA and abroad… hence we will ultimately lose our First Amendment Rights by legislation and fear mongering. 

Look at how countries are prosecuting people for what they say on social media.

Many post to Facebook and Twitter the same way they speak privately to their friends. 

Online conversations, however, are public and may be limited by law especially when it comes to controversial speech. Even countries that put a premium on free expression are prosecuting netizens for things they post. 

Do these laws infringe on free speech or ensure civilised society? 

In an effort to comply with speech laws around the world, Twitter announced in January it would block tweets and user accounts that violate domestic laws. This picture shows how some users feel about the new policy. 

1. This is an example of what a user might see if a Twitter account has been censored or blocked due to a country’s speech standards.
2.  
   

    

    
3. This is what Twitter users would find if they tried to view a tweet that has been censored in another country.
4.  
   

    

   In India, Professor Ambikesh Mahapatra was arrested for sharing a political cartoon with his friends that criticised West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. This is the political cartoon that caused Mahapatra’s arrest. The picture parodies the situation where the Chief Minister fired one of her party members, Dinesh Trivedi, for raising the railway fares.
    
   
    
   In Turkey, the government is investigating famous pianist and composer Fazil Say, who is accused of offending Christianity, Judaism and Islam as well as causing public resentment on Twitter. If found guilty under Article 216 of the Turkish Penal Code, he could face between six months to three years in prison. This links to his Twitter page.
    
   
    
   Article 216 of the Turkish Penal Code explains the restrictions on expression (it can be found under Chapter 3: Offences against Society). 

    

   It states: “Anyone who openly incites sections of the population to enmity or hatred toward another group on the basis of race, social class, religion, or sectarian difference, in a manner which may present a clear and imminent danger in terms of public safety shall be sentenced to imprisonment of from one to three years.” 
    
   
    
   1. Although Twitter removed Say’s tweets, the hashtag #FazilSay was trending on Twitter in support of the composer. 
   2. “
      Let’s support @Fazil__Say in his brave & witty twitters for the Turkye we used to love but under threat by humourless bigotists #FazilSay
       
   3. World famous Turkish pianist investigated for anti-religious tweet. Turkey 500 years behind, far from achieving freedom of speech. #FazilSay

       
   4. This image captures the slew of Liam Stacey’s controversial tweets after popular football star Fabrice Muamba suffered heart failure during a match in the UK on March 17 (Disclaimer: the link to this screenshot contains explicit content.). After pleading guilty to “racially aggravated harassment,” 21-year-old Stacey is serving 56 days in prison and faces expulsion from his university. Stacey’s Twitter account has been deleted. 
       
      
       
      Another example of Stacey’s controversial tweets posted on March 7.
      http://stats.storify.com/record/click?sid=4f8834ec52eb83935e73c326&redirect=http://www.flickr.com/photos/61221198@N05/7084825259
      .
      
      
      Fabrice Muamba’s girlfriend, @ShaunaMuamba, posted to Twitter the following picture to show the vast support behind the footballer after Stacey’s tweets drew anger from some fans.
      .
      .
      
      
      
      .
      .
      Also in the United Kingdom, John Kerlen, a blogger who goes by the alias Olly Cromwell, is under scrutiny for calling his local Bexley councillor vulgar names via Twitter. Section 127 of the Communications Act of 2003 makes it possible to charge an individual with “improper use of public electronic communications.” Some reports say he may face up to six months in prison.
      
      .
      .
      This photo is posted on Kerlen’s blog where he sounded off about authority figures using the same type of language for which he was found guilty. 
      .
      .
      
      .
      .
      .
      1. One Twitter user compares Kerlen’s case with that of Stacey. “
      2. @SeanInSpain Hmm, this bothers me in a way the Liam Stacey conviction didn’t. Is that logical or just my own feelings on n-word vs c-word?
      3. The hashtag #FreeTheBexleyOne has become popular with those supporting Kerlen.
      4. “
         Problem using C word to describe politicians is it’s a breach of Official Secrets Act! #FreeTheBexleyOne
          “
      5. Dear @BexleyCouncil How do you feel being nationally infamous for assaulting free speech as default response to criticism? #freethebexleyone
         “

         freedom of speech does not exist MT “@edsbrother: A man has been convicted of swearing on twitter. bit.ly/Iz3UZp #freethebexleyone”
         .
         .
         .
         On April 14, Muslim-American Tarek Mehanna was sentenced to serve 17 years in prison on charges of “supporting Al Qaeda” and expressing “sympathetic views” to the group, as well as conspiring to “murder U.S. soldiers in Iraq.” The charges came after Mehanna translated documents from Arabic to English and posted his controversial views online. Click here for the translated document
         .
         .
         
         
         
         .
         .
         A poem Mehanna wrote is also the background of the Twitter account @FreeTarek.  
         .
         .
         
         .
         .
         .
         .
         This is a photo of protesters outside Mehanna’s trial..
         .
         .
         
         
         
         .
         .
         .
         .
         In another UK case, Merseyside Cadet Amy Graham was arrested on April 10 on charges of “racial aggravation”. On April 9, she tweeted, ”I hate Muslims with a passion” under the Twitter handle.
         .
         .
         .
          @AmyJgra. Her account has since been suspended. The story can be found here. 
         .
         .
         
         
         .
         .
         .
         .
         .
         .In the US, UCLA student Alexandra Wallace posted a video in March attacking Asians which quickly went viral. Because of the university’s policy supporting free speech and expression, Wallace was not expelled. She later withdrew from the university.  
         .
         .
         .
         .
         .
         
         

Southern Sudan Withdraws and Promotes Peace

Sudan Declares ‘Liberation’ of Heglig As Juba Announces SPLA Pullout

Juba-Khartoum — Sudan announced on Friday that its armed forces defeated South Sudan army and regained full control of oil-producing region of Heglig, shortly after Juba announced immediate withdrawal of its army.

South Sudan’s information and media minister, Barnaba Marial Benjamin, on Friday told reporters in Juba that the country’s president, Salva Kiir Mayardit, had ordered the immediate withdrawal of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) from Heglig.

“The Republic of South Sudan announces that SPLA troops have been ordered to withdraw from Panthou (Heglig),” Benjamin said.

“An orderly withdrawal will commence immediately, and shall be completed within three days,” he added.

Shortly after South Sudan’s announcement, Sudan’s defense minister Abdel Rahim, Mohamed Hussien appeared on state television to declare the liberation of Heglig.

Hussein said that Sudan’s army (SAF) liberated the area after defeating SPLA forces.

Heglig was occupied by the SPLA last week, leading to the worst standoff between Sudan and South Sudan since the latter seceded last year.

The outbreak of military confrontations followed months of failed negotiations between Khartoum and Juba over border demarcation, citizenship and oil exports.

Spaniards Furious over EU Imposed Reforms. Vow to Fight!

Spaniards fight back against reforms

Government’s fiscal and social initiatives are met with anger

Protesters throw stones at the police in central Barcelona during a general strike in Spain March 29, 2012. REUTERS/Gustau Nacarino

1. The political coalition “Izquierda Unida,” or United Left, began an online campaign called “Our cuts will be with a #Guillotine.”  The campaign is an answer to the austerity measures and their way of expressing their dissatisfaction with their system of governance and the monarchy, which they say does not represent them. The campaign’s aim is to create a “Third Republic with more rights and more democracy.” 
   
   
   
2. Share
   

   Frente a los mercados #IIIRepública y #Guillotina http://pic.twitter.com/f1YZgRrn

   Standing up to the markets #ThirdRepublic and #Guillotine
   
   
3. Youth and university groups representative of the movement tweeted out the following images, which feature and define articles of the Second Republic’s constitution and compare them to today’s laws and practices in Spain. 
4. For example, the image below defines the first article of the Second Republic’s constitution as saying “Spain is a democratic Republic of all types of workers, which organises itself through liberty and justice.”  The 2012 reality is “Labour reform and cuts to social and civil liberties.” 
5. Share

   
   #Guillotina Contra la reforma laboral y los recortes de derechos sociales y civiles #IIIRepública http://pic.twitter.com/F0OUC5Ew

    #Guillotine Against labour reform and cuts to social and civil liberties.
   
   
6. The following image describes how Article 48 of the Second Republic stipulates that education will be secular. In 2012, however, the state finances religious education and allows the presence of the Catholic Church’s teachings in public schools. 
7. #Guillotina En defensa de la enseñanza de calidad. La educación a la escuela, la religión a la iglesia #IIIRepública http://pic.twitter.com/78wWDsqV

    #Guillotine In defense of a quality education. Education to schools, religion to churches. #ThirdRepublic
   
   
8. Others joined in on the online conversation with the hashtag #Guillotin
   
   
9. A los que votaron PP y ahora lloran por lo que se está aprobando. #guillotina

    To those who voted for PP (Spain’s Popular Party, which is conservative) and are now crying for what has been approved #Guillotine
   
   
10. “

    ¿Recortes sociales, malestar general, ausencia de soberanía, borboneos? Tenemos la solución: #Guillotina. Nuestra experiencia nos avala

    Social cuts, general discomfort, absence of sovereignty? We have the solution: #Guillotine. We are backed by experience. 
    
    
11. The top image features a headline from the Spanish newspaper “El Pais” that reads: “[Prime Minister] Rajoy announces cuts of 10 billion to Health and Education.” The second headline, from the website Publico, reads: The Church receives 10 billion a year from the treasury. 
12. 
    Rajoy, a tí sí que te vamos a dar nosotras recortes… #Guillotina @Acontracorrent http://pic.twitter.com/TEuSddJn

    Rajoy, we will definitely give you cutbacks. (Mariano Rajoy is the current Prime Minister of Spain and is part of the People’s Party).  
13. “
    Y llevamos 5 meses de legislatura. Quedan 3 años y medio… #guilloti
    We’re 5 months into this term. There’s 3 years and a half left…#guillotine
    
    
14. The following tweets allude to the recent proposal by Spain’s Interior Minister Jorge Fernandez Diaz to criminalise calls for violence on social networks (which spurred the hashtags #HelloDictatorship and #IAmACriminal) that disturb the public peace. 
15. “
    Que la #guillotina sea violencia, pero que condenar a generaciones enteras a la misera y precariedad no lo sea #GrandesMentirasDeLaHumanidad
    That the #guillotine is violence, but condemning entire generations to misery and deprivation is not is one of #HumanitysGreatLies
    
    
16. “
    Convertir en TT el hastag #Guillotina no incita violencia. Cobrar dinero x cada noche ingresado en un hospital SI ES INCITAR A LA VIOLENCIA

    Making the hashtag a trending topic does not incite violence. Charging money for each night spent at a hospital DOES INCITE VIOLENCE.
17. Spaniards have been using the hashtag #HolaDictadura or, “Hello Dictatorship,” to criticise the country’s Popular Party, current reforms and proposals of laws they say infringe on their rights. 
    
    
18. “
    .@PPopular #populares una cosa es tener una supuesta Mayoria Absoluta(28% de C. electoral) y otra cosa es abusar de ella #holadictadura

    . The Popular Party #popular One thing is having a supposed absolute majority (28% of electoral) and another thing is abusing of it. #HelloDictatorship
    
    
19. “
    “Esta primavera vuelven los 70″ –¿En la ropa y complementos? –No no, en el código penal #holadictadura

     “This spring the ’70s are back” –”In clothes and accessories?”–No, in the penal code. #HelloDictatorship
    
    
20. 

    #HolaDictadura A los tenebrosos tiempos del Imperio regresado hemos! http://pic.twitter.com/4tKiwhxr

    In the words of Dark Yoda: To sinister times the Empire has gone back! (The image reads, “Come on over to the dark side” next to the Popular Party logo.)
    
    
21. “
    Hay que darle gracias al gobierno por recordarnos que somos mucho mas peligrosos tomando plazas que rompiendo cosas #holadictadura

      Let’s give thanks to the government for reminding us that we are much more dangerous taking to the streets than breaking things #HelloDictatorship
    
    
22. “
    Si la resistencia pasiva a la autoridad es considerada atentado, pues habrá resistencia activa porque cuesta lo mismo. #HolaDictadura

    If passive resistance to authority is considered an attempt, then there will be active resistance because they cost the same. #HelloDictatorship
23. Share
    

    A partir de ya, si no llamas “AMADO LÍDER” a Rajoy, eres ETA #HolaDictadura http://twitpic.com/98h58s

    By now, if you don’t call Rajoy “BELOVED LEADER,” you are ETA ( Basque separatist group) 
    
    
24. The hashtag #SoyCriminal or, “I’m a criminal,” also trended when news broke of the Interior Minister’s proposal to criminalise calls to protest. 
25. “
    Feliz 1984 #SoyTerrorista #SoyCriminal #SoyDelincuente
    Happy 1984 #IAmATerrorist #IAmACriminal #ImADelinquent
    
    
26. “
    Primero te llaman antisistema y luego cambian el sistema para convertirte en criminal #SoyCriminal

    First they call you anti-system and then they change the system to make you into a criminal #IAmACriminal

    “
27. #SoyCriminal y mi delito es seguir pensando que tengo Derechos.

    #IAmACriminal and my crime is to keep thinking I have rights.