The Story is a syndicated radio show produced at WUNC in Chapel Hill. The show is hosted by Dick Gordon, who interviews people who have an interesting story to tell. Today, they aired the segment where Laura and Agbessi get to tell the story of the library in Yikpa, and the impact it had on their lifes.
Click to listen: mp3
The first part of the program is about a photographer – the interview with Laura and Agbessi starts after 32 Minutes.
“Bush moves to counter gas emissions” the headlines read all over the place. He moved?
Bush signed an executive order directing federal agencies to craft regulations that will “cut gasoline consumption and greenhouse gas emissions from motor vehicles.” He ordered the agencies _ the departments of Transportation, Agriculture and Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency _ to have the rules in place by the end of 2008.
Bush moves to counter gas emissions, WaPo (AP Story), May 15, 2007
The President has been told by the Supreme Court of the United States to do something, an gives his bureaucrats almost 2 years (until he leaves office) to draw up rules. And the media call that a “move” ??? I call that dragging your feet. Not that I am surprised by the PrezMan’s lack of enthusiasm on this issue, but the mainstream media reporting this as a “move” is yet another example of how stupid they are.
The parliamentary elections in Togo have been postponed to August 5. This is probably a good thing because it give the parties in Togo time to prepare, but it also means that the RPT has more time to rig the vote.
Ouagadougou – Togo’s general election will be postponed from June 24 until August 5 due to technical, financial and human resources problems, officials said late Monday.
The Independent Electoral Commission of Togo (Ceni) announced after a meeting in Burkina Faso that a variety of problems had to be overcome before the vote could go ahead.
“Ceni notes that technical, logistical, financial and human constraints have to be dealt with before the electoral process can be properly carried out,” it said in a statement.
Togo’s Election Postponed, The Independent Online, South Africa, May 15, 2007
However, there are big questions whether all will be ready even at the later date. Especially there are serious concerns about the voting machines that apparently will be used. Between training poll workers to operate these machines and alleviating concerns about vote rigging using these machines, the election commission has a tall order to pull off a decent election even on the later date.
The Gulf of Aden separates the Horn of Africa from the Arabian Peninsula. Due to the desperate conditions, politically and economically, in Somalia and in Ethiopia, thousands of people from that region attempt to cross the Gulf of Aden to search for a better life in Yemen and Saudi Arabia. Callous human traffickers exploit the desperate situation of their fellow human being, promising a passage across the sea for $40. They cram more than a hundred people in 30-foot wooden vessels and set out for the three-day passage. For three long, hellish days, these people are without drinking water, food or even room to move. They are seasick, cramped and dehydrated. The “crew” keeps their human “cargo” under control by beating them, and throwing anyone over board who as much as opens his mouth. When they get near the Yemeni shore, the refugees are forced to jump in the water and swim to shore. Most can’t swim and are exhausted and so many of these poor souls drown there, right at the shore.
Thousands have taken this hellish voyage, and in 2005 alone, the UN estimates that 1,700 lost their lives in this horrifying quest for a better destiny.
A courageous Frenchman, the journalist Daniel Grandclément got on one of these boats and filmed the conditions on board, witnessed the beatings and heard the screams in the night. His documentary was aired in April on French television, but it is also available on the web:
Part One – (narration in French) this documents the conditions on the boat. Not for the faint of heart.
Part Two – (narration in French) this is an eerie, night vision film of the arrival of the refugees on the shore of Yemen. A documentary film team filmed this footage, apparently it was pure coincidence that they were there at the time.
Daniel Grandclément was arrested by Yemeni authorities, and held for five days before being released. The Somalis are allowed to stay in Yemen as refugees. The Ethiopians have to find their way through the Arabian Desert to Saudi Arabia.
Germany’s President Köhler made the right decision. He apparently carefully considered the petition for a pardon for Christian Klar and then decided to deny it. The political right in Germany was all in a huff over the fact that he even as much as considered the request, especially after it became public that he met with Klar. The left was in the awkward position of lending support to a president they usually don’t much care for. Köhler may be an egomaniac and a capitalist pig, but he did establish a new benchmark for the independence of the German presidency from politics.
Klar is a convicted murderer and terrorist. Christian Klar was a member of the German terrorist group Rote Armee Fraktion (Red Army Faction) or RAF. In 1982, he was convicted of 9 murders and 11 attempted murders between 1977 and 1981 and he was sentenced to 6 life sentences. German law, however, considers any number of multiple life sentences as a single life sentence. Also, most prisoners have the right to be released on parole after a certain amount of time. In Klar’s case, the court decided that he has to have served at least 26 years, before he has the right to be released on parole. That means Klar might get released from prison in 2009.
Klar has not helped the authorities in any way in clearing up some of the remaining questions about the RAF. He has not publicly shown any signs of a change of position or regret. Clearly, at the time his actions were politically motivated. But the way the RAF dehumanized anyone who represented the state, made them more similar to the “fascists” they said they were fighting against, than the “workers” they said they were fighting for. And the fact that they were helped by the Stalinist regime in East Berlin made them into nothing more than pawns in the Cold War.
The RAF showed no mercy – not even to the drivers and body guards, the regular cops and soldiers, all of whom were just doing their jobs, albeit for what the RAF considered the “wrong side.” It seems to me that the German legal system was fair enough for Klar and his kind. And it seems fair enough that he should serve his sentence like anyone else. He’s lucky he’s a dissident in this Germany. Had he been a dissident in East Germany or the Soviet Union, he would have had no lawyers, and the Stalinist henchmen would have shown no mercy. There, dissidents usually died in the Gulag.
Francophones – faites attention! This is a hillarious story by a Belgian writer, DDL: The Great Satan and the paralyzed man. During a recent visit to Togo, DDL was apparently inspired by a story in the news about an incident between Satan and a pastor who was trying to destroy him (it?). Kagni Alem, a Togolese blogger based in France, posted this story (HT GVO). Here is a excerpt – Satan has arrived and everyone runs away – almost everyone …
Les croyants, donc, décampent au galop, à tire d’aile, comme si on leur avait administré un lavement avec une grosse poire en caoutchouc rouge enfoncée profondément dans l’anus… et qu’on leur avait « injecté » de l’eau savonneuse… ou un liquide à base d’ail, de gingembre et de piment…
Ils abandonnent sur place leur « berger »… tétanisé, gueule grande ouverte comme un canard migrateur qui, suite à une erreur de pilotage ou de navigation, se retrouverait au beau milieu d’un tempête de sable, dans une région désertique du nord du Burkina-Faso… aveugle, aphone, coi, figé, stupéfié, annihilé, décomposé, incapable de bouger et de produire un seul son… et, surtout, de comprendre ce qui lui arrive…
… and the Maibock is in the house! Satisfaction got a keg of Foothills brewery’s newest masterpiece – the Gruffmeister Maibock. It’s a heady eight-percenter with a solid nose and a nice punchline. It won’t keep a head, but who cares?! This is a very drinkable beer – a lot less hoppy than the IPAs from Foothills. First it sneaks up on you, then it grabs you by the throat with its nice firm body, kisses you gently … and then kicks you in the ass. What a beer!
And so … what have you been up to on Mayday?
Ablodé to our Togolese friends! Even though this is still more a rallying cry than a victory chant. Forty eight years ago Togo became an independent nation, relived from the yoke of French colonialism, only to become, after a few years, the playground of one of Africa’s original dictators, Etienne Gnassingé Eyadema.
Ablodé – freedom – was the rallying cry two years ago, when Eyadema died. A wave of hope washed over Togo and the diaspora. Many could not believe it at first - that the “old man” really had died. Many hoped this was going to be a major turning point. Yet that hope turned out to be another mirage, when Eyadema’s son Faure was installed by the military. Even though the “international community” pushed the RPT regime to go through the motions of an election, freedom had nothing to do with it. The Gnassingbé clan remained firmly in control of the country when the military declared their “candidate” Faure Gnassingbé the winner exactly two years and a day ago.
Ablodé – freedom – remains elusive in Togo. When a people is stuck between an entrenched ruling clan of billionaires, a trigger-happy military, an exiled “opposition” of aging French lawyers and businessmen and an indifferent international community, how can the fragile buds of democracy and freedom take root? The only hope for freedom in Togo is for the Togolese people to find its own leaders. In the villages, the neighborhoods of Lomé, Kara and Dapaong, there are so many people with talent and understanding. The new leadership needs to come out of their own ranks, and it has to break down tribal and religious barriers. Togo needs credible uniters who will rally the people to the cause of the fight against corruption, mismanagement and nepotism, and for justice and Ablodé!
Today is Africa Malaria Day. Malaria is an ancient global killer, and in Africa, more than 3,000 children die each day from malaria (Red Cross). In order to raise awareness about Malaria, and what to do about it, the WHO’s Roll Back Malaria initiative issued a statement that expresses hope that global collaboration can finally make inroads against the plasmodium falciparum:
The progress in fighting malaria in the last few years offers great promise. After too many years of debate, there is now widespread agreement about what works for prevention, diagnosis and treatment. Resources to fight malaria have grown considerably. New spokespersons from the developing world and donor countries have begun to relay key messages. Corporations and multilaterals are working together to replenish the development pipeline and bridge the supply gap of essential prevention tools and treatments. Foundations and other donors have catalyzed investments in new technologies, such as new single dose Artemisinin-based combination Therapies (ACTs), and research into vaccines continues. Some afflicted countries are paving the way for reducing barriers created by import tariffs and malaria service user fees. The world has recognized the toll that malaria takes on the developing world and is poised to respond.
Today was the funeral of my co-worker Shirley, or as West Durham Baptist Church called it, her Homegoing Celebration. The church was full, and the mood was somber, but not depressed. Shirley had touched many people with kindness and generosity, and many of the people who came to bid farewell to her were grateful for having known her.
I liked Shirley a lot, and I’ll never forget the delicious eggplant and zucchini she grew and so generously shared with me and other co-workers. She had a real “green thumb” and seemed to thoroughly enjoy gardening. At work, Shirley was our fastest, most experienced data-entry clerk, and it was quite amazing to see her calmly flipping through the pages of the instrument, while the fingers of her right hand were dancing across the computer keyboard.
Shirley died on April 20, 2007, at Duke Medical Center in Durham. She is survived by one son, one brother, two sisters, and one aunt, as well as a host of nieces and nephews, relatives and friends.
Yesterday was the Durham Earth Day Celebration and it was a gorgeous, sunny and very busy day. We had a Piedmont Biofiuels/BullCity Biodiesel booth at the event and Chris brought his brand-new, jet-black 2006 Jetta TDI over for show-and-tell. Interest in biodiesel and alternative fuels in general was really strong, and our volunteers Jeff, Gary, and Chris were busy most of the day. We had a wide range of discussions and conversations, from the basics like “what’s the difference between diesel and gasoline engines?” to advanced topics like how Blutec will impact biodiesel.
Local media were also interested in our message. Kimberley Pierce of WNCU did a 3-Minute, live interview with Jeff and I. WNCU is a community-funded radio station based at North Carolina Central University. The folks from the Duke University Center for Documentary Studies interviewed us, too. It was also a great day for networking, and in several conversations I brought up the idea of using pure biodiesel in the Durham School buses to reduce the exposure of our school kids to toxic exhaust fumes.
There was some debate among the biodieselers about showing off a stock, off-the-shelf car. Some argued that showing off a cool veggie car would attract more attention I thought it was an important point to demonstrate that a nice-looking, affordable car with no modifications whatsoever, can also be an alternative fuel vehicle, that burns a locally produced, mostly carbon neutral, relatively clean fuel.
An SVO-converted veggie car does attract more attention, and it’s very cool from a geek perspective. But I think the media already focus too much on this tiny minority of biofuel die hards, and that makes it look to the general public like they have to invest in expensive, complicated conversion kits in order to use biofuels. When you talk to folks, every other question is “how do you convert the engine?” when, of course, there is no conversion required at all for using biodiesel. And the focus on SVO conversions also tends to associate biofuels with funky-looking, 1970s Mercedes’ or VWs. Most people prefer a more modern ride. So showing off a comfortable, nice looking state-of-the art automobile really made a difference, I think.
Togo is not a poor country. But sadly, few citizens of the small, West African nation share in whatever wealth this country produces. This is documented by the pathetic $1,600 per-capita GDP – a bit less than Haiti ($1,800) and a bit more than Afghanistan ($1,500) (sources: Wikipedia and CIA).
Nothing illustrates better the wealth of Togo than the lifestyle of those Togolese with their fingers in the pie. Like the gentleman in the picture, who is the Defense Minister of Togo, and who runs the Togolese state cotton production monopoly and the gold mining operations, and who’s twin brother runs the Mills of Togo. According to LeTogolais Monsieur Kpatcha recently treated himself to a new, comfortable mode of transportation: a Rolls Royce Phantom – and apparently not just one, or two, but – count ’em (if you can) – three!! Three Rolls Royce Phantom – each for the tidy sum of €300,000 ($340,000). And he probably also had Route Nationale No. 1 re-paved between Lomé and Kara, so his new ride won’t suffer.
Kpatcha Gnassingbe – yes, of course he is a Gnassingbe – is another son of Gnassinbe Eyadema, the former strongman of Togo. Apparently Kpatcha is locked in a struggle for power with his little brother Faure (the current president of Togo). This power struggle could be bad news for the Togolese people, because “when the elephants fight, the grass suffers.” The average Togolese has nothing to gain in this fight. If anything, Kpatcha may be worse, and less scrupulous than Faure. Let’s hope this struggle won’t be taken out on the backs of the average Togolese.
[update 4/23: see some more info about Kpatcha below the fold]
Between the news of the horrible tragedy at Virginia Tech (we’re all Hokies this week!), a slightly hectic, double trip to the beach and another offer on a new house, we’ve had a busy, weird time lately.
Last week the kids were off from school, so on Thursday we drove to Atlantic Beach, to join a friend and her daughter at her beach house. Friday, I drove back to Durham, where Laura and I made an offer on a house and had a nice night out on the town. Saturday, I drove to Raleigh, where Piedmont Biofuels had its annual membership meeting at the McKimmon Center (nice digs!). I had promised to present the Durham update to the members, which I did. After that, I hopped back in the car and cruised back to the beach, for another walk in the sand and a couple of margaritas. Sunday, we cleaned up, I packed the kids into the car and we took off, in the midst of huge downpours from this nasty cold front that was sweeping into the area. This front had brought tornadoes to the Midwest and I think some funnel clouds were spotted in North Carolina as well. I find it a bit nerve-wracking to drive on those coastal highways in such downpours, because the roads have these huge ditches on the side, and in the rain they fill with water – up to 8 feet in some places. If the car slides off the road, you’re likely to end up in the water and drown! Anyway – we made it home with no problem.
… computer product (according to PC World).
AOL mailed a billion of these annoying CDs to people, and I think I received most of them.
Coming up for air a bit … we have some big projects going on, like getting our house ready to put on the market (to sell it) and looking for a new place to live. We’re planning to stay here in Durham, we just need a third bedroom, and a change in scenery.
Anyway – one of the projects I am working on is my biodiesel road tax. Figuring out how to “be legal” when using homebrew is turning out to be more complicated than actually making the stuff. And I am not even necessarily the trailblazer here. A lot of the groundwork seems to have been done by Piedmont Biofuels and other homebrewers. At this point, my biggest hurdle appears to be to convince a bonding company to post a $2000 bond with the state.
To be very clear: please do not take any of this information as legal advice. I am just documenting my experience for the benefit of a public discussion. I AM NOT A LAWYER.
In North Carolina, when one operates a licensed vehicle on public highways, one is required to pay road tax. (NC General Statute, Chapter 105, Article 36C) That tax is collected as part of the cost of the fuel for that vehicle, and all commercial retailers of fuel are required to collect that tax. But what happens if you don’t buy fuel from a retailer, and make your own instead? Do you still have to pay the road tax?
Well, the law is based on your use of North Carolina highways, not on the source of the fuel. If you use the highways, you have to pay taxes. If you don’t use the highways, you don’t have to pay taxes. That’s why you can get dyed, off-road fuel, which is not taxed, and which is only for use in off-road equipment, like farm vehicles, construction vehicles, recreational vehicles, etc. So if you make fuel yourself and use it in a vehicle on the highway, you have to pay road tax.
To be able to pay that tax to the NC Dept. of Revenue (NCDOR), you have to become a licensed and bonded “Biodiesel Provider.” So I emailed the NCDOR and today I received in the mail my very own form GAS-1262 – the NC Motor Fuels Tax License Application. Many of the NC DOR forms can be downloaded from the DOR website, but currently this one is not available online. So that’s about 20 pages of “light reading” and some trivia questions, like “Are you a shipper of record on one of the commercial pipelines serving North Carolina?”
No problem.
The other piece of this equation is the bond. Article 36C requires that Biodiesel Providers post a $2000 bond with the state. One of the most common ways to do this is to pay a bonding agency. So I contacted a friend of mine who is an insurance broker and also an agent for CNA Surety. Boy, those bonding folks are not easy to please. They wanted to know exactly what statute of NC law requires me to get a bond, and they said something about wanting an “official financial statement” from me. Can’t they just run a credit check? Well, we’ll see how that turns out.
So if I can get the bonding guys to do their thing (to the tune of $100/year!), I’ll just have to fill out the application, and I should be legal, and able to pay road tax to the state.
Beautiful, melancholic video of the demolition of the Durham Hotel, Durham, North Carolina, in 1975.
video by Billie Mann
Over the years, in conversations about sports, I have always identified myself as a biker – a mountain biker. Not a particularly competitive specimen, I lack the colorful outfit and fancy bike, but I do enjoy very much taking my 17-year-old Simonelli bike on a challenging single-track out in the woods. We’re just a 10-Minute drive down the road from a very nice 7-mile loop at Little River Park, and I try my best to hit the trail regularly.
The problem is that the park manager closes the MTB trails when it is too wet, to prevent damage to the trail and the forest. That is fine – I support that. So I began to just go for a run when the bike trails are closed. There are two nice hiking trails in the park, and they are great for running. The trails wind through a different part of the park, and run along the creeks and rivers in the back part of the park. They offer a totally different view of the land as the bike trails, which climb up a small hill.
So today I ran 5 Miles on those trails, and it was great! Last night thunderstorms moved through the area, and dumped a 3/4 inch (2 cm) of rain. Right now the redbuds and the dogwoods are blooming, and the other trees are breaking out in an ever-so-tender green. It’s been getting pretty warm, and it was 85 Deg. F (29°C) and the humidity this morning was at least 500 percent. Still, it was a fun run and the forest was really beautiful.
The US and the EU have reached a deal to liberalize transatlantic air travel. It may seem like a good idea to allow US airlines and EU airlines to send their planes to any destination in Europe and the US. It will increase competition and presumably give consumers more choice and lower prices. And they call this “Open Skies.”
In reality this deal looks to me like it will choke the already crowded sky even more. This deal is unlikely to provide me with a direct Lufthansa connection to Stuttgart from RDU or other smaller airports in the US to smaller airports in Europe. It will, however, increase traffic congestion at already extremely busy airports, like Atlanta, JFK and O’Hare, and it will increase the air traffic across the Atlantic. While evidence is mounting that air pollution is dangerously changing the global climate, this deal will put even more jets into the sky, depleting fossil fuel reserves and pumping greenhouse gas into the atmosphere.
The German Constitutional Court ruled (de) that symbols that use the Nazi schwastika as part of a clear, unambigous ANTI-Nazi message is legal in Germany.
WOW. I was a bit worried about this.
It would have been quite ironic if people who clearly express an Anti-Nazi sentiment had been criminally prosecuted for wearing the illegal Nazi symbol. Especially as there is a well-documented resurgence of Nazi- and White-supremacist ideology in Germany. AND after it was revealed that members of the police security detail for a former member of the Jewish council in Germany were Nazi sympathisers (de).
Durham is supposedly number 8 of the best places to live in the US:
Yay, Durham – the birthplace of … uh … [CTRL]+[ALT]+[Delete]!??
