N. Korea denies Kim Jong Il health 'conspiracies'...

North Korean leader Kim Jong Il is believed to be recovering from recent surgery, South Korea's spy agency said Wednesday, as the communist nation rejected reports questioning Kim's health as a "conspiracy plot." Speculation has intensified that Kim may have taken ill after he missed a parade Tuesday commemorating the communist state's founding 60 years ago. That followed weeks of being absent from public view and rumors that foreign doctors were brought to the isolated nation to possibly treat him.

On Wednesday, South Korea's National Intelligence Service reported to a parliamentary committee that it obtained intelligence reports showing Kim recently had surgery for an unspecified circulatory problem, and his condition had much improved, an agency official said. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity citing office policy, did not elaborate. South Korea's Yonhap news agency, citing lawmakers briefed by the spy agency, reported that the 66-year-old Kim suffered a cerebral hemorrhage, but he remains conscious and "is able to control the situation." The NIS also reported to lawmakers that Kim is in a "recoverable and manageable condition," and that the North is not in a "power vacuum," Yonhap said. NIS officials said they could not confirm the Yonhap report. Earlier in the day, North Korean officials denied that Kim may be ill or that there was anything unusual about his absence from the parade. Song Il Ho, a senior diplomat, said reports of Kim's illness are "worthless" and a "conspiracy plot," adding Western media "have reported falsehoods before," according to Kyodo's dispatch from Pyongyang.

It was not the first time North Korea had sent a message to the outside world through Kyodo. Kim Yong Nam also gave the news organization an interview two days after North Korea carried out its first-ever nuclear test blast in 2006. In another indication that the North's leader is alive, Pyongyang's official Korean Central News Agency said Kim sent a birthday greeting Wednesday to Syria's leader. Kim wished Syrian President Bashar Assad good health and success in efforts to make the country secure and prosperous, according to the Korean-language message carried by KCNA. Early Wednesday, South Korean President Lee Myung-bak convened an emergency meeting in Seoul to discuss the situation with senior aides, an official at the presidential Blue House said. Lee's office said in a statement after the meeting that the government will continue to follow the situation closely. It said Seoul had predicted the North's leader may not attend Tuesday's event, but did not elaborate. Seoul's Defense Ministry said there has been no unusual movement in North Korea's military and the heavily armed border between the two sides remained calm.

Speculation over Kim's condition spiked Tuesday after he did not appear at a parade commemorating North Korea's founding 60 years ago, one of the country's most celebrated holidays along with the birthdays of Kim and his late father, Kim Il Sung, the country's founding leader. Kim, who has been rumored to be in varying degrees of ill health for years, took over the reclusive state upon the death of his father 14 years ago in a hereditary transfer of power. The younger Kim attended the parade on the 50th and 55th anniversaries and was widely expected to do so this year as well. [End of report]

It was definitely strange not to see him attending the anniversary parade because I am used to see him at the event in the past, so it definitely raised a few eyebrows and hence the speculation on what could possibly happen to him. At the same time, it was not surprising to hear that he is ill or could be suffering from any illness. Everyone knows the attitude of North Korea, and it is also no surprise that they are keeping mum on the situation. Whatever that he might be suffering from, I think it could be something serious even though the North Korean officials are downplaying the reports. We definitely know that he had gone for a surgery recently, but nobody knows the reason for it, or whether he is doing well after the surgery. I dont think you can blame the West for trying to speculate on what might be happening at the moment because they are obviously concern on every development in North Korea due to the current nuclear talks, so the talks about it being a 'conspiracy plot' I think is not right. Although there have been some progress made on the N.Korea nuclear programme, both countries (N.Korea and America) are still suspicious of each other and this would not help to ease the tension.

Currently, nobody knows what has happened to Kim. There are even talks that he might have died already. I doubt that the reports of him dying is true though but what will happen to the country should he be gone? There will definitely be a lot of problems for sure not only for North Korea but for countries such as America and their neighbouring countries as well, South Korea and China in particular. Neither China nor South Korea want to see a chaotic transition, in part because that might mean tens of thousands of refugees pouring across their borders and some people have even suggested that there could be a civil war in the country. Being a dictator, Kim has made certain that the country's senior military officers are on his side hence, he will not have a shortage of people who could replace him should the situation arise. Speculation often centers on one of his three sons, but again that doesnt necessarily have to be the outcome. It would be good if any of his generals are pick to replace him because Kim and his generals agree on the key policy that concerns the outside world such as their nuclear weapons.

Nevertheless, I think the situation in North Korea and its relationship with the outside world won't be changing much if there is a new leader or not. The world needs to know more about what is happening in the country but knowing their attitude, they wont be giving out much. There are still some elements of fear in them of the outside world and they probably don't trust anybody else even though they are starting to open up gradually. Until then, let the guessing game continue.

*The report was taken from AP.

Thai PM fired over cookery show...

Thailand's Constitutional Court Tuesday fired the country's prime minister, Samak Sundaravej, for violating the constitution by hosting a TV cooking show while in office. Tuesday's ruling against Sundaravej, who has faced weeks of violent street protests, also forces the resignation of his cabinet. Ministers are barred from working for private companies, and Samak's opponents filed the case hoping that a conviction will compel him to step down.

In theory, analysts say, Samak can return as prime minister in days -- if the ruling coalition nominates him again and a parliament vote is taken. Samak appeared in court Monday, and argued that he had not violated any rules. His work for the television company, he said, was as a freelancer and not an employee. Further, he said, the show was not on the air any more and that he received just $2,300 for his appearances. The 73-year-old Samak continued to appear sporadically on the show "Tasting while Grumbling" after he became prime minister in February. On the show, he served up personal favorites and dished on topics that struck his fancy. Soon after taking over, he said that there was no reason for him to stop what he was doing. Professor Suchit Bunbongkarn, an expert on the constitution disagree with him and said the document clearly bans prime ministers from being employed by a private entity.

The court case is another attempt by Samak's opponents who have thrown everything but the kitchen sink at him. Samak was already facing charges of corruption, appealing a three-year prison sentence for defaming a deputy governor and dealing with an election commission decision last week that his party committed electoral fraud in the December elections and should be dissolved. In adition, thousands of protesters have camped outside the Government House, the government's headquarters -- blocking Samak from entering since August 26. The protesters are demanding that Samak step down. They accuse him of being a proxy for his ousted predecessor Thaksin Shinawatra. Samak has strongly denied the allegation and has refused to resign.

The People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) -- which is heading the protests -- contends Samak is trying to amend the constitution so Thaksin does not have to face charges. Thaksin, who was ousted in a coup in 2006, returned to England last month just as he was to appear in court in a corruption case. [End of report]

The situation in Thailand is getting interesting now. It is getting from bad to worse for Samak. Just when I thought it couldnt get any worse after the clashes between his supporters and anti-government demonstrators, it just did. First of all, I dont understand why any leader of a country would want to host a cooking show when he should be thinking about ways to improve the country. Its fine if you want to showcase your talent once in a while, but I dont think hosting a TV show is a good idea, much less a cooking show. I heard today that Mr Samak has a notoriously big appetite, which could explain why he has a cooking show. Here is the problem. According to the Thai constitution, the P.M. may not accept compensation from a private company while in office. The Thai company, Face Media, that made the shows, says it paid Samak around $2,300 for several appearances, an amount that the Samak maintains was used to buy ingredients and cover transportation costs. But the court didn't buy that argument, ruling that Samak and his entire cabinet must resign.

You can just imagine how happy his opponents were when they heard the news. They were still camping outside the Government House when they heard it and they greeted the court decision with loud cheers and claps. Their celebrations could be shortlived though as Samak could still be the Prime Minister in theory. The judges might have fired him but they didnt ban him from politics, so he could still return as the Prime Minister. Thailand's ruling coalition holds the right to reinstate him as Prime Minister, something party officials have already vowed to do. Key leaders in the six-party PPP-led coalition government met Wednesday to discuss the next move, while parliament prepared to hold an emergency session to vote in a prime minister. It is expected that he would retain his position as the Prime Minister because there are not much people in the government that are interested to take over the job. I do hope that he will get his position as the PM back because I know that he has not anything wrong since he took over from Thaksin. Ive spoken on a great length regarding the issue in my previous post so I wont touch on that any further.

I am not foolish enough though to say that everything will be over if he is back in power because his opponents will continue to call for him to step down. I just hope that Mr Samak wont bow down to their request since he has not done anything wrong. But sometimes, he doesnt have the choice to make the decision to step down. Even before this whole incident, he was already facing charges of corruption, appealing a three-year prison sentence for defaming a deputy governor and dealing with a fraud charges that are related to his party for the election last December. One thing for sure, he will still have a lot of problems to deal with whether he managed to retain his PM post or not and it is not likely going to end anytime soon.


*The report was taken from CNN.

Russia agrees troops pullout from Georgia heartland...

Russia agreed on Monday to completely withdraw its troops from Georgia's heartland within a month, but there was no commitment to scale back its military presence in two Georgian separatist regions. Georgia welcomed the deal as a "step forward," brokered by French President Nicolas Sarkozy on behalf of the European Union during four hours of talks with Russian leader Dmitry Medvedev.

Last month's Russian invasion, that sent forces deep into Georgia in response to an attempt by Tbilisi to retake the breakaway region of South Ossetia, drew condemnation from the West and raised fears for the security of energy supplies. Sarkozy and Medvedev, meeting at the neo-Gothic Meiendorf Castle outside Moscow, announced an agreement to pull back hundreds of Russian troops still stationed in buffer zones inside undisputed Georgian territory. The French leader, accompanied by EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, took the deal to Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, who offered cautious approval. In contrast to Russia's conciliatory tone with the EU over Georgia, tensions with the United States flared on Monday when Russia said it was sending warships for exercises in the Caribbean Sea, its biggest deployment there since the Cold War.

The United States said it was rescinding a U.S.-Russian civilian nuclear pact, saying the time was not right for the agreement "given the current environment." Medvedev, after his talks with Sarkozy, made clear that he would not reverse his decision to recognize Georgia's breakaway South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent states, a move condemned by the West. Russia's Foreign Ministry said it would formally establish diplomatic relations with the regions on Tuesday. It still depended on the deployment of an international force to monitor the Russian troops, a contingent which would include a 200-strong EU force, according to a text of the agreement released by the Kremlin. Georgia is home to pipelines carrying oil and gas from the Caspian Sea to world markets which are favored by the West because they bypass Russia. But the conflict has cast doubt on Georgia's viability as a safe energy route. Russia said it was morally obliged to send in its military last month to prevent what it called a genocide in the separatist regions by an aggressive Georgian government egged on by its ally, the United States.

The agreement signed by Medvedev and Sarkozy did not contain any stipulation that Russia withdraw to pre-conflict positions, a demand previously mentioned by Western states. That leaves Russia scope to leave troops and weapons inside South Ossetia and Abkhazia. Russia's Foreign Ministry said it was sending its nuclear-powered cruiser Peter the Great, as well as other warships and an anti-submarine aircraft, for joint exercises in November with U.S. foe Venezuela in the Caribbean Sea. A ministry spokesman said the exercises had nothing to do with tensions over Georgia, but they follow Russian complaints about U.S. warships deployed in the Black Sea, an area where Moscow has been the dominant naval power. [End of report]

If anyone thinks that Russia is not committed in achieving a peace process with Georgia, then I think this move will help to prove them wrong. It is good to see that the Russians are working very hard to find a solution to the current problem when every other country in the world are condemning Russia and are having a one-sided view and by refusing to listen to Russia reasons for attacking Georgia. For some of them, they only think that Russia is the bad guy in the entire conflict and thus should be punished. The fact is, Russia went into Georgia because of Georgia's initial actions. Russia was forced to do what it did, but instead of blaming Georgia, they are pointing their fingers to Russia instead. If you remember a ceasefire earlier, Russia had promised to withdraw its troop by a period of time, but of course that didnt happen not because Russia had any other intentions such as taking over Georgia again, but because the conditions and situation in the country didn't allow them to do so. Russia once again receieved a lot of criticism from EU and America, but again they failed to understand Russian position on things.

Russia's move to recognize Georgia's breakaway South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent states didnt help to improve the situation and reduce the tension especially between both Russia and America but I thought it was a right move by the Russians. The West then threaten Russia with harsher actions such as sanctions, though it didnt materialised. America, who is a strong supporter of Georgia meanwhile has announced that it has froze a much vaunted US-Russian civilian nuclear pact in protest at Moscow's military moves in Georgia. The EU meanwhile knows that any form of action that goes against the wish of Russia is not good for them either. The EU is so dependent on energy from Russia. It buys 30 percent of its imported oil and 40 percent of its imported natural gas from Russia. In my opinion, it seems to me that the EU needs Russia more than it needed the EU. I think that is probably why they are so desperate to achieve some form of progress with the Russian, but at the same time, they need to be careful on what they do. I think its also good to hear about the deployment of an international force to monitor the Russian troops. I believe everyone would be very happy with the agreement but whether it will really work, we will have to wait and see.

I know that the Russian will play their part in ensuring peace in the region, so the EU or anyone else won't have anything to worry about that. At the same time, the deployment will probably help to prove that the reports about Russian aggression in Georgia wrong. I just hope that Georgia would not create any kind of problem anymore because it wouldnt be good for them. They should just go with the flow and accept whatever terms that have been agreed upon and it will only be then that both countries are able to prevent a similar incident from happening again.

*The report was taken from Reuters.

Keegan finally quits Toon....again

Kevin Keegan's second reign in charge of Newcastle United has come to an end after he resigned as manager. The news brings to an end huge confusion surrounding Keegan's future at the club, after talk of his departure first emerged on Monday evening. Keegan held discussions with Newcastle's hierarchy on Monday and Tuesday, and reports of him being sacked began to leak out of St James' Park.

However, Newcastle denied he had been sacked and then Keegan insisted through the League Managers Association that he had not resigned. Now, following further talks, Keegan has quit his role - bringing to an end his second spell in charge, which lasted eight months, after he took charge following Sam Allardyce's departure. In a statement released through the LMA, Keegan confirmed he had quit - citing the fact he did not have the control he wanted over club affairs.

"I've been working desperately hard to find a way forward with the directors, but sadly that has not proved possible," he said.

"It's my opinion that a manager must have the right to manage and that clubs should not impose upon any manager any player that he does not want.

"It remains my fervent wish to see Newcastle United do well in the future and I feel incredibly sorry for the players, staff and most importantly the supporters.

"I have been left with no choice other than to leave."

The LMA confirmed that Keegan failed to resolve his issues after talks over the past few days. [End of report]

When I first heard this news on Monday, I was completely shocked, but having said that, I think I should saw it coming. The question now is who to blame for the current situation. The first person that should be blame is probably the owner of the club, Mike Ashley. When he took over the club from Freddy Shepherd, everyone thought we were going to achieve great things. Afterall, Ashley is one of the richest person in the country and logically speaking, he should invest a lot of cash in bringing new players into the club. He even promised that there would be cash to spend. His first major decision at the club was probably to sack Sam Allardyce, our manager then, who was not his choice of manager, but Freddy Shepherd's. The club wasn't doing too well then and it was probably a right thing to sack him. So the search for a new manager was on and most supporter was asking for the appointment of Kevin Keegan. I dont need to tell you what he means to the club. Mike Ashley listened to the fans and he got Keegan to be the new manager. Everyone was happy, or so it seems.

The first sign that things wasnt going well between Keegan and Ashley in particular was the recruitment of Dennis Wise and Tony Jimenez as the Director of Football and the club Vice-President for player recruitment respectively. I dont really know what their job really is but whatever it is, Keegan was unhappy. According to him, they were trying to buy players that he was not interested in and they were trying to sell players behind Keegan's back, which was ultimately the main reason for him to resign. He wanted to have more control on how the club is run and he didnt got it. I dont know whether that is true or not but I have to agree with Keegan when he says that he should have the control on which player to buy and sell, I think any manager needs to have that power. I disagree with Keegan though on his decision to quit the club once again. He should just stick with the current squad and leave at the end of the season. I have to admit, I wasnt that pleased when Keegan became the manager because there were many other top managers who are unemployed.

Keegan might have came close to winning the Premiership in his first reign at the club, but I highly doubt it would happen again. It is difficult to say if his time with the club now is a success or not because he has only been here for eight months. I believe Mike Ashley is also responsible for the current situation we are in. He has not delivered what he has promised which is to invest huge sum of money in buying new players, but to be fair with him, he had to pay off a lot of debts left by Freddy Shepherd when he took over. He may say that he is short in cash right now, if that is the case, he should sell the club already. I heard that the Arab company that bought Manchester City recently were also considering to buy Newcastle, but Mike Ashley wasnt interested at all, I dont know why. If he doesnt have the cash to invest in the team anymore, he should just sell the club to someone who has the money to bring the club forward. It is a shame that he had miss out on the great opportunity.

Well, everything has happened now there is no turning back. As much as I wanted to see Keegan staying, it just wasnt meant to be. I dont know what will happen to the club now, it is in utter disarray. Im just hoping that some big company are interested to buy the club and get rid of Ashley because I dont think we are going anywhere with him still in charge. The search for a new manager starts again, but whether things are going to change for the better, I guess we will all just have to wait.



*The report was taken from SkySports.

Mom spared death for microwaving baby....

A woman convicted of murdering her infant daughter by microwaving her was spared the death penalty Wednesday by a jury that couldn't reach a unanimous decision. China Arnold showed no immediate reaction, but she smiled and waved to family members as deputies led her from the courtroom. Her relatives told her they loved her. The defense had argued that Arnold was drunk when the offense occurred and had no motive, while prosecutors had called the crime "heinous" as they argued for the death penalty.

After about five hours of deliberation, the jury told Montgomery County Common Pleas Judge Mary Wiseman that it couldn't decide whether to recommend the death penalty or life in prison, and that it wouldn't be able to make such a decision even if it deliberated through Thursday. Wiseman is now limited to sentencing Arnold to life in prison without parole, life without parole for at least 30 years, or life without parole for at least 25 years. She plans to impose her sentence Monday. Arnold was accused of killing month-old Paris Talley in 2005. A judge declared a mistrial in February, and the retrial began August 18. The jury found Arnold guilty Friday of aggravated murder.

Defense attorney Jon Paul Rion said that he is relieved that Arnold didnt receieved the death penalty. Rion had asked Tuesday for a new trial, saying a former cellmate who said Arnold confessed to the crime has changed her story. Wiseman has not ruled on the motion and said she would schedule a hearing. Rion said he plans to present witnesses that point to another person being responsible for the baby's death. During the trial, an 8-year-old boy said he saw another boy walk into the kitchen of a nearby apartment with the baby, heard the microwave go on and then later saw the burned baby in the microwave.

Attorneys for both sides addressed the jury before deliberations on Wednesday. The fact that Arnold had been a Girl Scout, that her father died when she was young and that she comes from a close family does not outweigh the seriousness of the crime, Assistant Montgomery County Prosecutor Daniel Brandt said. Defense attorney Kevin Lennen urged the jury not to recommend the death penalty, saying Arnold was drunk at the time and that she had no motive to kill her child. [End of report]

Fair sentence? Well I let you decide for yourselve. When I first heard this news, I was really shocked and felt really disgusted by Arnold's actions. I think anyone with a right frame of mind and who have any common sense in them would agree with me. Murdering your own child is already a terrible thing to do but to do it in such a way is even more terrible. How could a mother place her infant daughter in the oven and microwaving her. I dont care what the reason was for her to do that, whether she was drunk during that time or not, it was just unforgivable. If someone had done that here in Singapore, then Im sure she would have receieved the death sentence straightaway but I think she is fortunate the laws there isnt the same as the one here. I think everyone would want to see her receiving the death penalty but they wouldnt be thinking properly and they would probably be making a rash decision. Whatever the level of the crime is, I think everyone deserve a fair trial and they should be punished as such.

As you can see from the report, it also says that her Defense attorney Rion said he plans to present witnesses that point to another person being responsible for the baby's death. Now whether that is true remain to be seen but it is really difficult for me to believe his story, that an 8-year-old-boy was responsible for the death of the infant. And judging from the reaction of Arnold when the verdict was announced, it seems like she had the looks of someone guilty of the crime than someone not. I think it was also difficult to use the excuse that she had a difficult family background to justify her actions. She is not a child anymore. She is an adult and she should at least know that putting her child in the microwave is wrong, not to mention burning her in the microwave. In my opinion, I think the most likely sentence that can be considered as fair for all parties, apart from the death penalty is the life imprisonment without parole. She should be considered very fortunate that she gets to avoid the death penalty, irregardless of why she decided to do it.

At the end of the day, whatever sentence that she will receieved will not change the fact that the dead infant cant be brought back to life again. It is just sad to see that a mother could do something so cruel to her own child. If she dont want the child, then she should just give her away to someone else that are willing to take care for her. I'm just wondering what her family are thinking about her now. They say that they still love her but I dont know how they could possibly justify her actions. Alright, Im done now. Share your views regarding this story with me as I would love to hear from you.

*The report was taken from AP.

Japan searches for a new prime minister,again...

Photo by AFP.

Japan began searching for a new prime minister on Tuesday after Yasuo Fukuda became the second leader to abruptly resign in less than a year, threatening a further policy vacuum as the economy teeters on the brink of recession. The frontrunner to become the 11th prime minister in 15 years is former foreign minister Taro Aso, 67, an outspoken nationalist popular with voters who was runner-up to Fukuda in the race for party chief last year.

Markets took the sudden departure of Fukuda in their stride. Both the Nikkei stock average and government bond futures rose after initial wobbles, although analysts said Aso might try to spend Japan's way out of its economic woes. Aso said he thought he was a suitable candidate in a party vote, which Kyodo news agency said was expected on September 22. Fukuda, 72, had been struggling to cope with a divided parliament where opposition parties have the power to delay legislation, and his sudden exit raised questions about his conservative party's ability to cling to power or even hold together after ruling Japan for most of the past 53 years. The bespectacled Fukuda, a moderate conservative who favors close ties with Japan's Asian neighbors, only took office last September after his predecessor, Shinzo Abe, similarly quit after just a year in office. Fukuda's resignation does not automatically mean an early election, ahead of the due date of September next year.

However, whoever the LDP picks as its leader, and thus the next prime minister, might choose an early poll to take advantage of any rise in public support. A complete deadlock in parliament could also force the prime minister to call an election reluctantly. The ruling coalition is almost certain to lose seats, if not its majority, but voters say they want a turn to pick their government. The main opposition Democratic Party has made no secret of its desire to oust the LDP and its junior coalition partner, the New Komeito. If the LDP goes past the outspoken Aso again, other potential leadership contenders are Economics Minister Kaoru Yosano, known for his commitment to fixing Japan's tattered finances, and conservative Yuriko Koike, who was briefly last year the country's first female defence minister. Popular female lawmaker Seiko Noda, currently the minister in charge of consumer affairs, has also been mentioned by the media as a possible successor to freshen up the LDP's image.

Analysts said the next LDP prime minister would face similar woes given the parliamentary deadlock and the party's rusting political machine and scandal-tainted image. Talk of a broad realignment of party alliances has been simmering since the opposition took control of the upper house last year, but it remains to be seem if early moves pick up steam. [End of report]

When I first heard this news yesterday, I have to admit I was quite surprised. I knew that Fukuda had received some criticisms since he took over from Shinzo Abe but I didnt expect him to resign. I dont know what it is about the way they run things in the Japanese government but there will always be some sort of problems whoever the Prime Minister is and it doesnt take long for them to resign. I mean you just have to look at the recent history of the Prime Ministers in the country to really understand what the problem is all about. Fukuda became the second Japanese prime minister in a row to throw in the towel with just under a year in office and the third to do so without holding a general election. I think the country was progressing well when Junichiro Koizumi was still the Prime Minister. I quite like him so it was sad when he had to go. Then I thought Shinzo Abe was an excellent choice to replace him but that wasn't true. It was actually difficult to judge whether he was a success or a failure because he didnt stay in power for a long time, and the same goes with Fukuda.

Lets take a look at some of the candidates that are likely to be the next PM. Taro Aso, the popular former Minister of Foreign Affairs is currently leading the line of likely successors. I believe this is not the first time that he has been in that position, so that just show that he is a strong candidate. The hope is that Aso can can not only rekindle the office's appeal but, much more importantly, help break gridlock in parliament, where the LDP heads a coalition in the lower house of the Japanese Diet. Fukuda reshuffled his Cabinet last month to install Aso in the No. 2 spot as the secretary general of Liberal Democratic Party. The Upper and Lower Houses of the Diet have been paralyzed for more than a year now. Since then, Japanese politics has been rife with indecision which is why it is no surprised that Fukuda's approval ratings have hovering below 30%. Fukuda has not said when his resignation takes effect. But if the LDP elects Aso as president, the expectation is that the much-more appealing leadership could restore confidence in the party and help it win the general elections that needs to take place before Sept. 2009. It is definitely not going to be an easy task for him. I just think if he is elected to be the party's president, which will also mean he will be the next PM before the elections next year, it would be foolish for them to hold an early elections.

I think Aso is a great candidate to be the next PM as far as the party is concern, but I dont think the majority of the people will agree with that. I believe that he decline in the LDP's popularity will definitely have an affect on Aso or anyone else that the party decides to be president during the elections later, whether it will be move forward to this year or not. There are critics, of course, who see no real change as the ultimate outcome of such political maneuverings. The situation in Japan was already in turmoil before Fukuda took over and it is going to get much worse now if they dont sort out things now.


*The report was taken from Reuters.

Thousands flee Hurricane Gustav...

Hundreds of thousands of people have been fleeing the southern US coast as Hurricane Gustav approaches land. Authorities have ordered the evacuation of New Orleans and an estimated 1.9 million people along the Gulf coast have been heading inland. The Category Three storm is expected to make landfall at midday local time. The storm has prompted the Republicans to scale back their national convention where John McCain is due to accept the party's nomination for president.

President George W Bush and Vice-President Dick Cheney have scrapped plans to address the event in St Paul, Minnesota on Monday. Forecasters at the US National Hurricane Center say that at the current speed, the centre of the storm would hit the coast by midday local time. The US National Hurricane Center warned Gustav was packing winds of 115 mph (185km/h) and could bring "extremely dangerous" storm surges 14ft (4.2m) above normal. Isolated tornadoes are also possible in the area. A dusk-to-dawn curfew is in force in New Orleans, which is described as being like a ghost town. The 7,000-strong Louisiana national guard has been mobilised and support requested from other states. The New Orleans mayor has warned looters will be sent to jail. Crime was a major problem in the New Orleans area in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, which hit the city three years ago, causing disastrous floods. The exodus of an estimated 1.9 million people from the Louisiana coast is said to be the largest evacuation in state history. Roads out of New Orleans - much of which lies below sea level - were crammed with traffic throughout Sunday.

Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal has appealed to residents to leave while they can while New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin told local TV only about 10,000 residents remained in the city, where rain began falling at sunset on Sunday. He said the first storm winds could hit New Orleans at daybreak on Monday and Gustav could reach Category Four strength. In 2005, three-quarters of New Orleans was flooded by a storm surge that claimed more than 1,800 lives in coastal areas. All eyes will now be on the city's levees, which Category Three storm Katrina swept away under a wall of mud and water. The storm has already claimed the lives of more than 80 people in the Caribbean, causing widespread damage in Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Jamaica over the past week. At least 300,000 people were evacuated in Cuba as the storm brought extensive flooding and some severe damage, but no reports of deaths. [End of report]

It is a very stressful and dangerous situation in the affected states right now and I dont like to hear news as this because you just know what could happen and it just brings back bad memories like Katrina. I dont think anyone can forget what happened then and to know that the possibility of such disaster happening all over again is very scary. The fact that the storm has already claimed the lives of more than 80 people in the Caribbean over the past weak is not a good thing to hear. I mean, try to imagine the level of damage that the storm would cause in more populated areas such as Louisiana or New Orleans. The good thing about it is that the American government is much more better prepared to deal with the hurricane and I think the lessons they have learnt during the Katrina experience has better equipped them in managing the situation more effectively. You can't stop the hurricane completely but you can reduce the level of damage that it might cause and I think the local states have done well in evacuating its people. You might want to know that there are still some though that are refusing to move out from their house. They cant be force to do it if they dont want to, so I just hope they will still be safe once the hurricane is gone.

I would also like to talk a little about the Republican National Convention which is scheduled to run from today through Thursday in Minnesota. Due to the hurricane however, it has been suspended and that is why President Bush and Vice President Cheney have scrapped their plans to address the event which is sad in some part for me. I was really looking for President Bush's speech but unfortunately, the current situation doesnt allow him or anyone else for that matter in the Republican camp to celebrate. John McCain has said that it is just not right for them to be having a festive occasion when there is a hurricane going on in some parts of the country and I have to agree with him. You might say that this somewhat might be a setback for John McCain but at the same time, it could still be a blessing in disguise. As you all know during the Katrina disaster, the Bush administration and the Republican party in particular was blamed for slow, botched response that exacerbated disaster. Therefore, John McCain could used the current disaster situation to show to the people that he is much better in handling this kind of crisis and it might just win him some more votes.

Anyway, whatever the reason is, I just hope that Hurricane Gustav will not be as bad as Katrina, at least in the numbers of the people who was killed. You can rebuild a town back after it is destroyed, but if someone gets kill, you cant bring that person back to life. It is good to hear that everyone in the country is doing their best to prevent a repeat of Katrina, but whether their effort is good enough to see them through this difficult period, that remains to be seen. Let's hope to hear better news over the coming days.

*The report was taken from BBC.