US president pokes fun at critics and media at annual press dinner.
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Chemical weapons in Syria a ‘game changer,’ says Obama
- Saturday, 27 April 2013 02:05
- Shafigh Hidayati
- Hits: 119
US President Barack Obama underlined on Friday that the use of chemical weapons in Syria would amount to a “game changer,” but also said that intelligence that such weapons had been used by the Syrian regime was not yet definitive.
US President Barack Obama reiterated on Friday that the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian regime was a “game changer,” but stated that intelligence proving that such weapons had been used was not yet concrete.
“Horrific as it is when mortars are being fired on civilians and people are being indiscriminately killed, to use potential weapons of mass destruction on civilian populations crosses another line with respect to international norms and international law,” Obama told reporters at the White House.
“That is going to be a game changer. We have to act prudently. We have to make these assessments deliberately. But I think all of us ... recognise how we cannot stand by and permit the systematic use of chemical weapons on civilian populations,” he said.
CROSSING BARACK OBAMA'S 'RED LINE'
Right now the US is quite right to be very cautious. Politically there is a lot of pressure to lower the threshold, to provoke some type of military intervention. But I think the burden of proof should be very high.
Jean Pascal Zanders, Senior Research Fellow at the European Union’s Institute for Security Studies
Obama’s comments came one day after the White House said US intelligence services believed with “varying degrees of confidence” that the chemical nerve agent sarin had been used by President Bashar al-Assad’s forces against opposition combatants in the country.
UK plays down idea of military response
Following the White House’s statement, British Prime Minister David Cameron said that the situation was “extremely serious,” echoing past statements by Obama that the use of such weapons would represent a “red line” for the international community.
Cameron, however, shied away from the idea of a military intervention, suggesting that a political response would be more likely.
"I think what President Obama said was absolutely right, that this should form for the international community a red line for us to do more," Cameron told the BBC. "I've always been keen for us to do more."
"In my view what we need to do – and we're doing some of this already – is shape that opposition, work with them, train them, mentor them, help them so we put pressure on the regime and bring this to an end," Cameron added.
US keeps ‘all options’ open
In the US, there has been much speculation about the Obama administration’s next move, with several members of Congress calling for greater American involvement in the Syrian conflict. However, FRANCE 24’s correspondent in Washington D.C., Philip Crowther, said that White House officials have insisted that intelligence assessments alone are not enough to warrant a military response.
“The White House says it has intelligence… but wants definitive corroborated evidence,” said Crowther.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, White House spokesperson Jay Carney said, “I’m not going to set a timeline, because the facts need to be what drives this investigation, not a deadline. We are continuing to work to build on the assessments made by the intelligence community, that the degrees of confidence here are varying, that this is not an airtight case.”
Thus far, the US has endeavored to avoid military involvement in Syria, providing only non-lethal aid to opposition forces fighting against Assad’s regime. Carney stressed that Obama was considering a range of options if it were determined chemical weapons had been used in Syria, including, but not only, a military response.
Pressure for strong US response
Yet some lawmakers, such as Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona, have insisted that the intelligence assessment demanded a strong, US response.
“The president of the United States said that if Bashar Assad used chemical weapons, it would be a game changer, that it would cross a red line,” McCain said. “I think it’s pretty obvious that red line has been crossed.”
Meanwhile, Senator Dianne Feinstein, a Democrat from California and head of the Senate Intelligence Committee, voiced her concern that the US’s highly public acknowledgement of its intelligence assessment could embolden Assad, prompting him to calculate “he has nothing more to lose.”
“Syria has the ability to kill tens of thousands with its chemical weapons. The world must come together to prevent this by unified action,” she said.
Other leading congressional voices, however, urged a more tempered response following a brief by Secretary of State John Kerry on Friday.
“This is not Libya,” said Nancy Pelosi, the senior Democrat in the House of Representatives. “The Syrians have anti-aircraft capability that make going in there much more challenging.
US economy growth rate misses expectations
- Saturday, 27 April 2013 01:52
- hatef mokhtar
- Hits: 109
US economic growth gained speed to an annual rate of 2.5 percent in the first quarter, but not enough to meet forecasts made by economists.
The Commerce Department said on Friday that gross domestic product (GDP) expanded at a 2.5 percent annual rate, after growth nearly stalled at 0.4 percent in the fourth quarter.
However, the increase missed economists' expectations for a three percent growth pace.
"It wasn't the bang-up start to the year we had hoped for, and the signals from March suggested that we will only decelerate from here into the spring trimester," said Avery Shenfeld, chief economist at CIBC World Markets Economics in Toronto.
Part of the acceleration in activity reflected farmers' filling up silos after a drought last summer decimated crop output. Removing inventories, the growth rate was a tepid 1.5 percent.
Consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of US economic activity, increased at a 3.2 percent pace - the fastest since the fourth quarter of 2010. It grew at a 1.8 percent rate in the fourth quarter of last year.
However, households cut back on saving to fund their purchases after incomes dropped at a 5.3 percent rate in the first quarter. The drop in income was the largest since the third quarter of 2009.
The saving rate fell to 2.6 percent, the lowest since the fourth quarter of 2007, from 4.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2012.
Monetary stimulus
The GDP report could give ammunition for the Federal Reserve to maintain its monetary stimulus.
The US central bank, which meets next week, is widely expected to keep purchasing bonds at a pace of $85bn a month.
Although government spending, which fell to a 4.1 percent annual rate, tax increases and federal budget cuts could slow growth later this year.
Data ranging from employment to retail sales and manufacturing weakened substantially in March after robust gains in the first two months of the year. There are indications the weakness persisted into April.
The GDP report showed contributions to growth from all areas of the economy, with the exception of government, trade and investment by businesses in offices and other commercial buildings.
Homebuilding growth
Much of the gains in first-quarter spending came from car purchases and outlays for utilities, which were boosted by unusually cold temperatures.
Consumers managed to step up their spending despite the return of a two percent payroll tax and higher petrol prices.
Despite the spike in petrol prices, inflation pressures were benign in the first three months of the year.
An inflation gauge in the government's GDP report rose at a 0.9 percent rate, the smallest increase since the second quarter of 2012. The personal consumption expenditure index had increased at a 1.6 percent pace in the fourth quarter.
Business spending on equipment and software slowed sharply, growing at an only three percent rate after a brisk 11.8 percent pace in the fourth quarter.
Homebuilding marked an eighth straight quarter of growth, though the pace moderated from the fourth quarter.US economic growth gained speed to an annual rate of 2.5 percent in the first quarter, but not enough to meet forecasts made by economists.
The Commerce Department said on Friday that gross domestic product (GDP) expanded at a 2.5 percent annual rate, after growth nearly stalled at 0.4 percent in the fourth quarter.
However, the increase missed economists' expectations for a three percent growth pace.
"It wasn't the bang-up start to the year we had hoped for, and the signals from March suggested that we will only decelerate from here into the spring trimester," said Avery Shenfeld, chief economist at CIBC World Markets Economics in Toronto.
Part of the acceleration in activity reflected farmers' filling up silos after a drought last summer decimated crop output. Removing inventories, the growth rate was a tepid 1.5 percent.
Consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of US economic activity, increased at a 3.2 percent pace - the fastest since the fourth quarter of 2010. It grew at a 1.8 percent rate in the fourth quarter of last year.
However, households cut back on saving to fund their purchases after incomes dropped at a 5.3 percent rate in the first quarter. The drop in income was the largest since the third quarter of 2009.
The saving rate fell to 2.6 percent, the lowest since the fourth quarter of 2007, from 4.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2012.
Monetary stimulus
The GDP report could give ammunition for the Federal Reserve to maintain its monetary stimulus.
The US central bank, which meets next week, is widely expected to keep purchasing bonds at a pace of $85bn a month.
Although government spending, which fell to a 4.1 percent annual rate, tax increases and federal budget cuts could slow growth later this year.
Data ranging from employment to retail sales and manufacturing weakened substantially in March after robust gains in the first two months of the year. There are indications the weakness persisted into April.
The GDP report showed contributions to growth from all areas of the economy, with the exception of government, trade and investment by businesses in offices and other commercial buildings.
Homebuilding growth
Much of the gains in first-quarter spending came from car purchases and outlays for utilities, which were boosted by unusually cold temperatures.
Consumers managed to step up their spending despite the return of a two percent payroll tax and higher petrol prices.
Despite the spike in petrol prices, inflation pressures were benign in the first three months of the year.
An inflation gauge in the government's GDP report rose at a 0.9 percent rate, the smallest increase since the second quarter of 2012. The personal consumption expenditure index had increased at a 1.6 percent pace in the fourth quarter.
Business spending on equipment and software slowed sharply, growing at an only three percent rate after a brisk 11.8 percent pace in the fourth quarter.
Homebuilding marked an eighth straight quarter of growth, though the pace moderated from the fourth quarter.
Guantanamo Bay and Indefinite Detention - Hunger Strike Continues
- Friday, 26 April 2013 21:07
- administrator
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(New York) – More prisoners have joined a hunger strike at the US-run detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, bringing the reported total to 93 out of 166 held at the facility, according to media reports. Lawyers for the detainees claim that the actual number is higher.
Mexico: Serious crimes against free expression in 2012
- Thursday, 25 April 2013 20:29
- administrator
- Hits: 140
Violence against journalists and media workers in Mexico increased by more than 20% in a year.
CIA 'tracked Boston bomb suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev
- Thursday, 25 April 2013 08:45
- hatef mokhtar
- Hits: 258
One of the Boston bomb suspects was added to a terrorism database 18 months ago at the request
of the CIA, officials have told US media.
The FBI has already said it investigated Tamerlan Tsarnaev, 26, but had found no evidence of a threat.
Tsarnaev was killed during a police chase last week. His brother Dzhokhar, 19, is in custody over the bombs.
Three people were killed and more than 260 wounded when two devices exploded at the Boston Marathon on 15 April.
A US politician earlier confirmed the bombs were set off by remote control.
But the devices were not sophisticated and apparently had to be triggered from a few streets away.
FBI 'not at fault'
Officials said Tamerlan Tsarnaev had been added to the Terrorist Identities Datamart Environment (Tide) on the request of the CIA.
The database contains as many as 745,000 entries, and individuals on that list are not necessarily on the so-called terrorist watch list.The Russian authorities had alerted US counterparts to the activities of Tamerlan Tsarnaev, whose family has its origins in the war-torn Russian republic of Chechnya.
About six months before the CIA requested his name be added to Tide, the FBI asked the Russians for more information about Tamerlan Tsarnaev but received none, and closed its investigation.
The authorities earlier said the US intelligence community had no information about threats to the marathon ahead of the 15 April attacks.
After a classified briefing in the House intelligence committee on Wednesday, Democratic Congressman Dutch Ruppersberger said he believed the FBI was not at fault.
"I feel, based on the testimony today, that the FBI did exactly what they would do and they followed through the protocols that were necessary once they got that information," Mr Ruppersberger told reporters.
He also said he had been told the bombs were detonated with a "garage door opener-type of device".
Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was injured during the police manhunt and remains in hospital in a fair condition.
Officers captured him as he hid in a boat covered by a tarpaulin in a garden in Watertown, Massachusetts.
Officials initially had said he exchanged gunfire with police for more than an hour before he was captured on Friday
But the Associated Press quoted two unnamed officials as saying Dzhokhar Tsarnaev had been unarmed when he was captured.Suspects' parents arriving
The younger brother has been charged in hospital with using a weapon of mass destruction and malicious destruction of property resulting in death.
He could be sentenced to death if convicted on either count.
In bedside questioning, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev has said he and his brother were angry about the US wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
But the brothers are not believed to have had direct contact with a militant organisation, politicians said after closed-door briefings.
It is suspected the brothers became radicalised online.
The suspects' parents, Anzor Tsarnaev and Zubeidat Tsarnaeva, are due to arrive in the US on Thursday, Russian media reported.
The Tsarnaev family has origins in the predominantly Muslim republic of Chechnya in southern Russia.
The brothers had been living in the US for about a decade at the time of the attack.
In 2012, Tamerlan Tsarnaev spent six months with relatives in Dagestan, another Russian republic, which has an Islamist militant insurgency.
Safety of journalists at risk in Venezuelan post-election clashes
- Wednesday, 24 April 2013 23:41
- hatef mokhtar
- Hits: 92
The opposition's decision to dispute ruling party candidate Nicolás Maduro's very narrow victory in the 14 April 2013 presidential election has heightened concern about the effects of the Venezuelan media's extreme polarization.
The demonstrations that have been held or will soon be held in various parts of the country are reinforcing the already considerable dangers for journalists and freedom of information.
Reporters Without Borders has learned of two incidents during demonstrations held by the opposition yesterday to press for a complete recount of the ballots.
In Caracas, supporters of opposition candidate Henrique Capriles yesterday besieged the buildings that house the Latin American TV news channel TeleSur and the main state-owned TV station, Venezolana de Televisión (VTV). The management of both stations said their staff were threatened and insulted.
At the same time, the Press and Society Institute Venezuela (IPYS-Venezuela) reported that its correspondent, Juan José Faria, and two other employees of the privately-owned local newspaper La Verdad, photographer Eduardo Méndez and driver Yolman Bejarano, were arrested in San Francisco, in the northwestern state of Zulia.
The three men were covering a “cacerolazo” (a neighbourhood protest consisting of banging on pots and pans) called by the opposition, when the police arrested them on a charge of “destabilization”. After confiscating their equipment and mobile phones, the police said they would be held until a preliminary court hearing scheduled for 16 April.
“At a time when each news media and, in particular, each journalist runs the risk of becoming caught in an explosive political situation, we make three urgent recommendations in the wake of those we made before the 14 April election”, Reporters Without Borders said.
Our recommendations:
• That the competent authorities provide equal safety guarantees to all journalists covering demonstrations and counter-demonstrations.
• That the media provide balanced coverage of statements by the leaders and members of the two main political forces.
• That media editors and columnists refrain from exaggeration and distortion, and from mutual accusations that will only increase the danger for their reporters in the field.
“The two main protagonists of this election, President-elect Nicolás Maduro and opposition leader Henrique Capriles, are also asked to act responsibly,” Reporters Without Borders said. “Both have a duty to ensure respect for fundamental constitutional freedoms – safety, the right to free movement and pluralist news and information.”
Reporters Without Borders hopes that its recommendations will be taken by the Organisation of American States, the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) and the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR).
Mexican free speech NGO receives threats of reprisal
- Wednesday, 24 April 2013 22:52
- admin
- Hits: 24
ARTICLE 19's Mexico office has this morning received an anonymous letter containing a direct threat of reprisal for the work that the staff undertake to protect journalists from violence.
“ARTICLE 19 in Mexico is targeted for asking uncomfortable questions and pursuing the truth: the truth about impunity; the truth about corruption; the truth behind official lies. As a result, the office that works to protect journalists and human rights defenders is itself now in need of protection,” said Dr Agnes Callamard, ARTICLE 19 executive director.
A letter was discovered this morning at the front door to the ARTICLE 19 office in Mexico City. It makes a direct threat to Director, Dario Ramirez, and the rest of the staff, expressing anger at ARTICLE 19's work protecting journalists.
Mexico is one of the most dangerous countries in the world to work as a journalist or human rights defender.
“We are facing the situation with all due diligence. It is our priority to safeguard the integrity of our staff, our partners and our allies. We will continue to defend the right to freedom of expression as an essential element to exercise other rights,” stated Dario Ramirez, director of ARTICLE 19 Mexico and Central America.
The letter threatens:
“Too much fucking freedom. Let's see how macho you are after you and your cunts are beaten up.
We are fucking tired of you.
We are watching you closely so don't think you are safe.
We will fuck you assholes. We want to fuck you over.
You know who we are and that we can do it."
ARTICLE 19 has submitted a complaint to the state agencies in Mexico responsible for investigating such attacks, and trusts that the state protection mechanism will fulfil its mandate.
ARTICLE 19 opened its regional headquarters in 2006 and has since documented and denounced pressure against the media, journalists and others that exercise the fundamental right to freedom of expression.
“Despite this threat we will continue to defend and promote freedom of expression in Mexico,” added Dario Ramirez. v
Sarah Palin Calls for Invasion of Czech Republic
- Wednesday, 24 April 2013 09:56
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Sarah Palin called for the invasion of the Czech Republic today in response to the recent terrorist attacks in Boston.
In an interview with Fox News, the former governor of Alaska said that although federal investigators have yet to complete their work, the time for action is now.
"We don't know everything about these suspects yet," Palin told Fox and Friends this morning, referring to Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, who allegedly carried out the Boston Marathon attacks. "But we know they were Muslims from the Czech Republic.
"I betcha I speak for a lot of Americans when I say I want to go over there right now and start teaching those folks a lesson. And let's not stop at the Czech Republic, let's go after all Arab countries.
"The Arabians need to learn that they can't keep comin' over here and blowing stuff up. Let's set off a couple of nukes in Islamabad, burn down Prague, then bomb the heck out of Tehran. We need to show them that we mean business."
Can't See Russia...
Although hosts Steve Doocy and Gretchen Carlson applauded Palin's jingoism, they immediately attempted to rectify her multiple geographic errors.
"Well Islamabad is the capital of Pakistan, which isn't Arab," Carlson corrected, "and Tehran is the capital of Iran, which is predominantly Persian. But I do see your point."
"Also Czech Republic isn't really an Arab or even Muslim country, I don't think," Doocy added, "but otherwise what you're saying makes a lot of sense. I think most Americans wish Obama would step up and lead on this one."
Palin, however, didn't take kindly to being corrected and defended her analysis.
"Steve, that's probably one of the most ignorant things I've ever heard. How is Czech Republic not a Muslim country? You saw those brothers, they were Islamic and they were Chechen!"
"Yes there were Muslim and they were ethnic Chechens," Doocy started, "but they grew up mostly in Kyrgyzstan and the United States. And more importantly, Chechens don't come from the Czech Republic, they come from Chechnya, which is part of Russia. "
"What's the difference?" Palin responded. "Isn't Russia part of the Czech Republic?"
"No, the Czech Republic is a separate country. It's part of the European Union and a strong NATO ally," Doocy noted. "But heck, why not? Let's invade. What could go wrong?"
"Yeah and while we're at it," Carlson added, "let's call the Queen of England and see if the U.K. will join us."
In a statement released after the interview, Palin attacked Fox News and its "pro-Islamic" and "pro-geography" bias.
"This is just another case of the politically correct liberal media refusing to tell the truth about radical Islam," she said.
Commons Speaker to rule today on MPs' freedom of speech
- Tuesday, 23 April 2013 19:56
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House of Commons Speaker Andrew Scheer will rule Tuesday afternoon on the Conservative Mark Warawa's complaint that parties are going too far in muzzling their MPs.
Boston bombs: Tsarnaev brothers 'planned more attacks'
- Monday, 22 April 2013 23:28
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The brothers suspected of bombing the Boston Marathon were probably planning further attacks, the city's police commissioner has said.
Ed Davis told CBS News that Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev had been carrying homemade bombs and grenades which they threw at police when cornered.
A top US interrogation group is waiting to question Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, who is in a serious condition in hospital.
His elder brother died during a gunfight with police on Thursday night.
Two women and an eight-year-old boy were killed in Monday's blasts, close to the finish line of the marathon.
A police officer was killed and a transport officer shot in the thigh during the operation to track down the brothers.
Doctors treating the wounded officer, Richard Donohue, said on Sunday he was in a stable but critical condition.
The pair clashed with police on Thursday night, in the shoot-out which killed the elder brother.
Speaking to CBS's Face the Nation, Mr Davis said: "We have reason to believe, based upon the evidence that was found at that scene - the explosions, the explosive ordnance that was unexploded and the firepower that they had - that they were going to attack other individuals."
"That's my personal belief at this time."
He said more than 250 rounds of expended ammunition were found at the scene, and that the ground was "littered with unexploded improvised explosive devices that we had to point out to the arriving officers".
Another device was found inside a car the brothers had earlier hijacked.
Officials were now trying to trace all the weapons used by the brothers, he said, adding that this would be a "significant part of the investigation".
'Unable to speak'
Dzhokhar Tsarnaev escaped the clashes with police, but was arrested late on Friday when he was found seriously injured and hiding inside a boat in a suburban backyard.
He is under armed guard at the Beth Israel Deaconess Memorial Hospital, where many of the bomb victims are also being treated - he is heavily sedated and has a breathing tube in his throat.
The High-Value Detainee Interrogation Group - a multi-security agency unit specialising in questioning terror suspects - are waiting to question him in the hope he will give some clue as to his motive and whether the pair had outside help.
But he has not yet been able to speak and Boston's Mayor Tom Menino told ABC News on Sunday: "We don't know if we'll ever be able to question the individual."
Prosecutors have not yet determined what charges the teenager might eventually face.
A federal charge of using a weapon of mass destruction to kill people carries a possible death sentence. There is no death penalty in the state of Massachusetts.
'Brainwashed'
The two bombs - placed inside pressure cookers packed with shrapnel and hidden in backpacks - exploded amid crowds standing close to the finishing line of the Boston Marathon on Monday afternoon, killing three people.
Boston mayor Tom Menino: "We don't know if we'll ever be able to question the individual"
More than 170 people were injured, of whom more than 50 are still in hospital, three in a critical condition.
Mr Menino said evidence indicated that the accused pair had acted alone, but that the elder of the two, 26-year-old Tamerlan Tsarnaev, had "brainwashed his younger brother" into carrying out the attack.
The governor of Massachusetts, Deval Patrick, said video surveillance footage firmly placed Dzhokar Tsarnaev at the scene of the first explosion.
"It does seem to be pretty clear that this suspect took the backpack off, put it down, did not react when the first explosion went off and then moved away from the backpack in time for the second explosion,'' he told NBC News, saying he had been briefed on the footage by law enforcement officials.
"It's pretty clear about his involvement and pretty chilling, frankly," he said.
On Saturday, Governor Patrick had told reporters that he hoped Dzhokhar Tsarnaev survived "because we have a million questions, and those questions need to be answered".
The Tsarnaev brothers are ethnic Chechens who had been living in America for about a decade.
One key line of inquiry into the motives behind the attack will be a six-month trip made by Tamerlan Tsarnaev to Dagestan in the Russian Caucasus in 2012.
The FBI had interviewed Tamerlan Tsarnaev in 2011 after a request from a foreign government, US law enforcements officials have confirmed.
But agents closed the case after finding no cause for concern.
Dagestan has had a long-running Islamist insurgency, but a prominent militant group in the region, the Mujahedeen of the Caucasus Emirate Province of Dagestan, denied any link to the Boston attacks, saying in a statement it was not fighting the US but Russia, and did not attack civilians.
Several members of the Tsarnaev family have condemned and disowned the brothers, but their parents have insisted they must have been framed.
The Tsarnaev brothers
- Sons of Chechen refugees from the troubled Caucasus region of southern Russia
- Family is thought to have moved to the US in 2001, from Russian republic of Dagestan
- They lived in the Massachusetts town of Cambridge, home to Harvard University
- Dzhokhar, 19, (right) was awarded a scholarship to pursue further education; he wanted to become a brain surgeon, according to his father
- Tamerlan, 26, was an amateur boxer who had reportedly taken time off college to train for a competition; he described himself as a "very religious" non-drinker and non-smoker
Q: Where are Chechens from? A: Not the Czech Republic
- Monday, 22 April 2013 00:30
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By Jethro Mullen, CNN
Memo to tweeters: Chechnya is not the Czech Republic.
That's the message from the Czech ambassador to the United States.
As it emerged Friday that the family of the two suspects, Tamerlan and Dzhokar Tsarnaev, is originally from Chechnya, those unfamiliar with the restive Russian republic rushed to brush up their knowledge of the region.
Some, however, seemed determined to get the wrong end of the stick.
A quick recap: The Czech Republic is in Europe -- hundreds of miles from Russia and more than 1,000 miles from Chechnya, which is in the Caucusas region where southern Russia borders
Georgia and Azerbaijan.
On Friday night, the Czech Republic's top diplomat to the United States decided to set the record straight -- diplomatically.
"I am concerned to note in the social media a most unfortunate misunderstanding," Ambassador Petr Gandalovic wrote. "The Czech Republic and Chechnya are two very different entities -- the Czech Republic is a Central European country; Chechnya is a part of the Russian Federation."
The Czech Republic, once firmly in the sphere of the Soviet Union, is now a member of the European Union.
In his statement, the Czech ambassador struck a more somber note, saying he was "deeply shocked by the tragedy that occurred in Boston." And he was at pains to make clear his country’s position.
“The Czech Republic is an active and reliable partner of the United States in the fight against terrorism,” he said. “We are determined to stand side by side with our allies in this respect, there is no doubt about that.”
Or, to put it more succinctly:
"Dear US idiots, Czechoslovakia doesn't exist since 1993. Chechnya is approx. 2500 km away from Czech Republic. #Boston
Petr Manda
Woman told she was 'too fat to tan' at salon and is then refused a refund
- Sunday, 21 April 2013 23:46
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A woman was told she was 'too fat to tan' at a tanning salon.
Kelly McGrevey said she purchased a tanning package at Aloha Tanning in Norton, Ohio on Monday after a quick tour of the facility.
When she returned to tan on Tuesday, Ms McGrevey says the man working at Aloha at the time turned her away.
He said, 'Sorry, but I'm not going to let you tan today because we've just implemented a new policy where anyone over 230 pounds can't go in one of our beds. I was just so shocked and embarrassed and humiliated,' she told WKYC news.
The previous day she had been tanning in a standup bed but the following day was informed that it was broken and that traditional beds were off-limits to heavy customers.
Ms McGrevey then asked for a refund of her $70 month-long tanning package but the salon refused saying they did not give refunds.
It was at this point Ms McGrevey called the police and filed a report against the owner of Aloha Tanning, Justin Hileman.
She demanded to see the salon's policy on tanning and weight but the owner refused.
A worker at the salon called Nicole said although the policy wasn't written down there was indeed a 230-pound weight limit on acrylic beds that is normally discussed with customers.
'We do have a lot of bigger people that came in here and they know that they can't go into the laydown beds because they are so, you know, they are bigger,' she said.
Ms McGrevey has been told that she will not receive a refund and has been advised instead to dispute the charge with her credit card company.
'I'm humiliated. I'm embarrassed. I don't want to face this guy for 30 days. I just want my money back,' she said.
Norwegian
