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Matumizi ya simu za mkononi hayaendani na vipato vya wengi

Maxence M. Melo — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 09:00:36 +0000

KILA mtu katika jamii anahitaji kuwa na maendeleo, ikiwa ni moja ya hali za kuiridhisha nafsi yake.

Tunapozungumzia maendeleo tunalenga mabadiliko katika mwenendo mzima wa maisha ya mwanadamu, baada ya kujibidisha kufanya jambo la kuleta badiliko hilo jema.

Inasikitisha kusikia kwamba nchi yetu ni moja ya nchi maskini duniani na kuangukia kwenye kundi la nchi zinazoendelea.

Kwa maana hiyo basi, ni lazima kuwe na vigezo vya mtu kuonekana ameendelea kutoka hatua fulani ya maisha hadi nyingine.

Kwa mfano, kama jana kwenye mtihani wa hisabati ulipata alama 30 na katika mtihani wa leo umepata 40, basi hapo tunasema ameanza kuwa na maendeleo.

Vile vile mfugaji ambaye mwaka jana alikuwa na ng’ombe watano lakini mwaka huu ana ng’ombe 10, naye pia ana maendeleo mazuri.

Kabla ya Serikali ya Awamu ya Pili, Tanzania ilionekana maskini sana, lakini mara baada ya kuruhusa kuingiza bidhaa ambazo awali zilionekana si za muhimu kwa ustawi wa Mtanzania tulishangaa kuona nchi imebadilika ghafla kimuonekano.

Mwaka 1987 tukaanza kusikia na kuona luninga, majokofu, magari ya kifahari, vipodozi vya kila aina na nguo za kila namna na hapo kila mwenye uwezo alinunua kile alichokifurahia.

Baada ya muda fulani zikaingia simu za mkononi, maarufu kama mobiteli.

Kutokana na kuwa ghali kila aliyekuwa nayo alihesabika ameendelea au mwenye uwezo wa kifedha.

Kisaikolojia waliokuwa na simu walionekana kama watu wa kipekee na ndiyo maana kila aliyepata fedha zake alinunua simu kwa gharama ya kujinyima hata kula.

Hata hivyo kadiri teknolojia ya mawasiliano ya kisasa ilivyopanuka na kuenea ilionekana kuwa Watanzania walikuwa mstari wa mbele kuichangamkia. Kwa maana ni watu wanaopenda maendeleo.

Walio wengi maendeleo yakawa ni kuwa na simu na wala si jambo jinginelo katika maisha ya kila siku.

Katika maisha ya kawaida ya mfanyakazi wa kima cha kawaida inaaminiwa kuwa kipato chake ni wastani wa dola moja ya Marekani.

Lakini uhalisia wa matumizi ya kumuwezesha kuishi akiwa amejipatia japo kipoza njaa, gharama yake ni takriban dola tatu kwa siku.

Mchanganuo katika familia moja ya kawaida, yaani baba, mama na watoto wanne kwa matumizi ya mwezi yanafanana kama ifuatavyo:

Chakula ni wastani wa sh 150,000; kodi ya nyumba ni sh 20,000; kuchangia umeme sh 20,000; maji sh 30,000; na nauli ya baba kwenda kazini na kurudi ni sh 30,000 na matumizi mengine sh 10,000; jumla ya vyote ni sh 260,000 kwa mwezi.

Sasa tuitazame hii familia ambayo baba kipato chake hakizidi sh 120,000 wa mwezi tena akiwa amebahatika kuwa na mwajiri mwenye utu.

Sasa kama bajeti nyingi zinafanana, hivi watu wanaishije majumbani mwao hata tunawaona wakiwa barabarani kila siku?

Hapo wengine tunakuwa na alama za kuuliza na kutuaminisha kwamba bila shaka baba yule ana namna nyingine za kuongezea kipato.

Iwe kupitia kwa shughuli anazofanya mkewe za kuuza mandazi au yeye hujiongezea kipato kwa kumdanganya mwajiri wake na pengine kumwibia kabisa.

Lakini tukiwa na bajeti hiyo kichwani, hebu tuone pia kuwa kila Mtanzania anajibidisha kuwa na simu ya kiganjani ambayo inaongeza mzigo wa matumizi yasiyoepukika ili mtu aone maana ya kuwa na kifaa hicho.

Kwa kadiri makampuni ya biashara ya simu yanavyosukumwa na upepo wa ushindani wa kibiashara, kidogo kumekuwa na unafuu wa gharama za kumiliki na kutumia simu binafsi.

Hata hivyo matumizi ya simu yanatofautiana kati ya mtu na mtu maana wengi hasa wafanya biashara huzitumia simu kwa mawasiliano ya utafutaji wa pesa, si kutumia pesa bila kuingiza pesa.

Lakini bado wapo wanaowasiliana kwa maana ya kujuliana hali na kupeana taarifa fulani za kimaisha.

Ingawa bajeti zetu kwa kweli ni ngumu lakini watu bado tumeng’ang’ania chombo hiki.

Kama nilivyoeleza kuwa mara nyingi matumizi ya simu nayo yanaweza yakaongozwa na uwezo wa mtu kifedha, kwani wapo wanaotumia wastani wa sh za Tanzania zisizopungua 30,000 au zaidi kwa siku moja.

Na kwa walalahoi walio wengi hujibana akijitahidi ili atumie wastani wa sh 1,000 kwa siku, hata, hivyo wakati mwingine hudai hana mtu wa kumpigia.

Gharama hii kwa mwezi yaweza ikawa sh 30,000 na tukiongeza katika bajeti yetu pale juu tunapata jumla ya sh 300,000.

Je, familia hii haioni kuwa ina kuwa na maisha magumu kila wakati kwa kushindwa kuishi kulingana na kipato?

Bajeti hii ambayo hailingani na vyanzo vya mapato ndivyo vinavyomsaidia ibilisi kumwingia mtu ashiriki kufanya maovu ili awe na kipato cha kukidhi hitaji la bajeti.

Kumbuka bajeti yetu haina gharama kwa ajili ya watoto kwenda shule kila siku sasa wewe msomaji utatafakari hilo mwenyewe.

Lakini pengine niwashawishi wenzangu kuwa ni heri mtu ujiweke katika maisha yanayolingana na unachopata ili usiije ukashawishika kuingia majaribuni na kuwakosea wanadamu na hata Muumba wako.

Ni kweli, kuwa na jokofu, gari, luninga na simu, vyote ni vya maana na muhimu kwa maisha yetu ya kila siku lakini ni vizuri zaidi kujipima ubavu wa kuwa na vitu hivyo.

Kuna rafiki yangu mmoja alinineleza atamuomba mjomba aliye nje ya nchi amletee gari ili naye aweze kuzalisha pesa.

Lakini nilimwambia rafiki yangu kuwa wazo lake ni jema lakini endapo atabahatika kuletewa gari kwa hali aliyonayo hatamudu kulifanya litembee barabarani.

Baada ya rafiki yangu kufikiria gharama ya mafuta pekee lakini akasahau kuwa kuna zaidi ya mafuta ili gari liwe barabarani kila siku.

Si nia yangu katika makala hii kuwakatisha tamaa Watanzania wanaodhani kuwa kumudu kununua simu ndiyo yote katika yote bila kufikiria gharama za muda wa maongezi za kila wakati ili ilete maana ya mtu kuwa na simu.

Ili maendeleo haya yasiwe mzigo wa kupasua vichwa vyetu, ningedhani ni vema tusijiingize kuiga maendeleo ya juu kabla ya kutosheleza bajeti zetu za kila siku, hususan hitaji la ugali na shule kwa watoto.

Nisingependa kulaumu walio na bahati mbaya ya kuwa na simu kwa kufuata mkumbo bali naamini kila mtu afungapo safari huwa tayari amekuwa ameagana na kisigino chake kwa ajili ya safari hiyo.

Binafsi nimeliona tatizo la kwamba simu zetu zinafanya maisha kuwa magumu siku kwa siku, maana watu hutumia gharama hata kupunguza bajeti ya mlo wa nyumbani.

‘Kupanga ni kuchagua,’ lakini hekima inatakiwa katika maamuzi tunayofanya.

Tuwe na simu na tuzitumie kadiri kipato kinavyoturuhusu.

Makala hii imeandikwa na Daniel Misheto na kuchapishwa na Gazeti la Tanzania Daima la leo

Mkapa azidi kutetewa

Maxence M. Melo — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 08:05:51 +0000

Paroko atumia misa ya kumuaga Malima kumsafisha

ORODHA ya viongozi wa dini na kisiasa wanaoonekana kukerwa na tuhuma zinazoelekezwa kwa Rais Mstaafu, Benjamin Mkapa zinazidi kuongezeka.

Baada ya padri mmoja wa Kanisa Katoliki wa Mtwara na mwingine wa Zanzibar kueleza dukuduku lao dhidi ya wale wanaomshambulia rais huyo mstaafu safari hii ameibuka kiongozi mwingine wa Kikristo kumtetea.

Aliyeibuka katika mwelekeo huo huo safari hii ni Paroko Msaidizi wa Kanisa Katoliki, Parokia ya Kristo Mfalme, Tabata, Jijini Dar es Salaam, Claudio Fadhili, ambaye jana aliungana na viongozi wenzake wa Kikristo kumtetea rais huyo mstaafu.

Paroko Fadhili alitoa kauli hiyo wakati akihubiri kwenye misa ya kuuaga mwili wa aliyekuwa Mhariri wa gazeti la HabariLeo, Cassian Malima aliyefariki dunia katika hospitali ya Aga Khan, Ijumaa iliyopita.

Kwa mujibu wa paroko huyo, kitendo cha baadhi ya watu wakiwamo watoto wadogo kumzonga Mkapa kwa kumuita fisadi mitaani na katika maeneo mengine ni cha kutomtendea haki rais huyo mstaafu ambaye alisema wakati wa utawala wake wa miaka 10 alilifanyia taifa hili mambo mengi ya manufaa.

Akitoa mfano alisema mema mengi ya kiuchumi yakiwamo yale ya kuimarisha mfumo wa miundo mbinu ambao umeshuhudia kuwapo kwa barabara nyingi nzuri ambazo matundani yake yanawafaidisha Watanzania hadi leo hii, ni matokeo ya kazi kubwa iliyofanywa na serikali aliyoiongoza Mkapa katika kipindi cha kati ya mwaka 1995 na 2005.

Katika ibada hiyo iliyohudhuriwa na umati mkubwa wa watu, wakiwamo viongozi wa serikali, vyama vya siasa, wanahabari na wananchi wa kawaida, Paroko Claudio alisema pamoja na ukweli kwamba Mkapa kama binadamu anayo mapungufu yake, lakini ukweli unabaki pale pale kwamba, wakati akiingia madarakani, hali ya uchumi wa taifa ilikuwa ni mbaya, kabla ya yeye kuiongoza serikali na kuiboresha.

‘‘Hivi sasa mambo haya yamesababisha hata wenzetu wa nje waanze kutucheka na kujiuliza hivi hawa ni wale Watanzania tuliowafahamu? Nchi inaelekea kubaya, hili suala la ufisadi, mtu mzima kama rais mstaafu Mkapa anaitwa fisadi…

Tunasahau kwamba Mkapa huyu alifanya kazi kubwa kuinua uchumi wa nchi…nasikia mtu anapita barabarani hata watoto wanapiga kelele fisadi huyooo! Tunakwenda wapi kama taifa?” Alihoji paroko huyo huku akiwaomba radhi waombolezaji waliofika hapo akisema anajua kwamba hapo hapakuwa sehemu sahihi ya kufikisha ujumbe wake huo.

Huku akinukuu maandiko kutoka katika Biblia, yasemayo ‘msihukumu, msije mkahukumiwa’ paroko hoyo aliwaonya watu kuacha kuwatuhumu wenzao kwa sababu tu ya kuendekeza ubinafsi wao.

Alisema Watanzania wanapaswa kutambua kuwa, mambo ya namna hii yanaweza kusababisha amani ya nchi ikapotea na heshima ya watu ikashuka hivyo kurudisha nyuma maendeleo ya nchi.

“Amani ya nchi inaweza ikapotea, watu wamebaki kulaaniana, mtu akionekana ana uwezo kidogo anaitwa fisadi, watu wataogopa kujiletea maendeleo kwa kuogopa kuitwa mafisadi,” alisisitiza paroko huyo.

Kauli hiyo ya paroko imekuja siku chache tu baada ya kiongozi mwingine wa kidini wa Zanzibar, Askofu Mstaafu wa Kanisa Anglikana visiwani humo, John Ramadhani, kutoa matamshi yenye mwelekeo huo huo wa kumtetea rais huyo mstaafu.

Askofu Ramadhani katika mahubiri yake ya hivi karibuni aliyotoa katika Kanisa la Mkunazini mjini Unguja, alimuelezea rais huyo mstaafu kuwa alikuwa mmoja wa viongozi waliokuwa mstari wa mbele kuheshimu haki za binadamu na misingi ya utawala bora enzi za uongozi wake.

Kiongozi mwingine ambaye naye hivi karibuni alisikika akipinga juhudi za watu kutaka Mkapa afikishwe mahakamani ni Mwenyekiti wa Taifa wa NCCR-Mageuzi, James Mbatia, ambaye aliwalaumu wale wanaotaka kuondolewa kinga kwa kiongozi huyo mstaafu.

Mbatia ambaye alikuwa akifungua Mkutano Mkuu wa NCCR-Mageuzi uliomchagua kuendelea kukiongoza chama hicho kwa miaka mingine mitano, alisema hatua ya kumpandisha Mkapa kizimbani kwa makosa yoyote aliyofanya wakati akiwa madarakani kunaweza kusababisha vurugu.

Mbali ya viongozi hao wawili, kauli zenye mwelekeo huo huo zilitolewa pia na Mnajimu maarufu wa Afrika Mashariki, Sheikh Yahya Hussein ambaye alisema juhudi zozote za kujaribu kumfikisha mahakamani Mkapa haziwezi kufanikiwa kutokana na ukweli kwamba wakati wa utawala wake kiongozi huyo aliwatetea wanyonge.

Sheikh Yahya ambaye alikuwa akitoa utabiri wake wa mwaka 2009, alisema pamoja na tuhuma hizo nyingi kuelekezwa kwa Mkapa kiongozi huyo mstaafu alikuwa akitarajia kuteuliwa kuongoza moja ya taasisi muhimu kimataifa katika kipindi cha kati ya mwezi Aprili na Juni mwaka huu.

Kauli za viongozi hao zinakuja wakati kukiwa na shinikizo kutoka kwa watu mbalimbali wanaotaka Mkapa afikishwe mahakamani kujibu tuhuma mbalimbali za ufisadi ambazo ziliibuka wakati akiwa mahakamani.

Wakati kukiwa na shinikizo hilo, tayari baadhi ya wabunge akiwamo Katibu Mkuu wa Chama cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo (CHADEMA), Willibrod Slaa, wameshaonyesha nia ya kuandaa hoja binafsi na kuiwasilisha bungeni ya kutaka Mkapa aondolewe kinga ya kisheria aliyonayo akiwa rais mstaafu.

Mbali ya wabunge hao kuonyesha nia hiyo, Spika wa Bunge, Samuel Sitta ameshapata kukaririwa zaidi ya mara moja akisema alikuwa tayari kupokea hoja binafsi yenye mwelekeo huo wa kutaka Mkapa aondolewe kinga hiyo ya kisheria ambayo inazuia kumfikisha mahakamani rais mstaafu kwa maamuzi aliyofanya wakati akitekeleza madaraka yake ya urais.

Wauza mafuta waanza mgomo Dar

Maxence M. Melo — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 07:24:16 +0000

HALI ya upatikanaji wa mafuta jijini Dar es Salaam, hasa Petroli, inazidi kuwa mbaya kutokana na vituo vingi kutouza bidhaa hiyo kwa kile kinachoonekana kuwa, ni njama za waziwazi za wafanyabiashara ya mafuta kuikwamisha serikali kudhibiti upandaji holela wa bei ya nishati hiyo.

Lakini Wizara ya Madini na Nishati imesema inasubiri kupata taarifa kutoka kwa watendaji leo asubuhi, kabla ya kuanza kuchukua hatua kwa wote waliokiuka sheria iliyotangazwa kwenye Gazeti la Serikali kuhusu bei elekezi za mafuta, kwa mujibu wa naibu waziri kwenye wizara hiyo, Adam Malima.

Mafuta ya dizeli ndiyo yanayopatikana bila ya shida kwenye vituo vingi na inauzwa kwa bei iliyotangazwa na Mamlaka ya Udhibiti wa Huduma za Nishati na Maji (Ewura).

Katika kile kinachoonyesha kutii agizo la Ewura, vituo hivyo vilivyokuwa vikiuza dizeli pekee, vimeweka mabango yanayoonyesha kuwa petroli inauzwa kwa bei ya Sh1,233 ikikaribiana na ya Ewura, ingawa inakuwa haiuzwi.

Hayo yametokea wakati Ewura imetangaza bei mpya ya nishati hizo kwa mikoa 21 ya bara, ikiwa imeongeza senti kadhaa kwenye bei ya awali.

Mgomo huo baridi ulisababisha vituo vichache vilivyokuwa vikiuza petroli kwa bei ya Ewura kufurika magari mengi na watu wenye madumu kwa ajili ya kununua petroli ya ziada, katika wiki ambayo bei ya mafuta katika soko la dunia imezidi kuporomoka na kufikia chini ya dola 39 kwa pipa.

Ewura imewataka wauzaji wa bidhaa hiyo kuuza petroli kwa Sh1,166 kwa lita, ingawa vituo vinavyouza bidhaa hiyo vimekuwa vikiuza kwa Sh1,233 kwa lita, tofauti na bei ambayo ilikuwa ikitumiwa awali na wafanyabiashara hao ambayo ilikuwa kati ya Sh1,450 na Sh1,600 kwa lita ya petroli.

Ewura pia imetaka dizeli iuzwe kwa Sh1,271 kwa lita na karibu vituo vyote vilikuwa vinauzwa nishati hiyo kwa bei inayolingana na ya mamlaka hiyo, yaani kati ya Sh1,280 na Sh1,300 kwa lita huku vingine vikidiriki kuuza hata kwa Sh1,180 kwa lita.

Ewura imeeleza kuwa, imeshawasilisha bei hizo mpya kwa Mwanasheria Mkuu wa Serikali ili atangaze kwenye Gazeti la Serikali na kuanzia hapo yeyote atakayekiuka bei hiyo atakabiliwa na adhabu ya faini ya Sh3 milioni au kunyang’anywa leseni au adhabu zote mbili kwa wakati mmoja.

Ewura pia ilisema bei mpya ilitakiwa kuanza Jumatatu iliyopita na kwamba, wale ambao wamekiuka tangu kipindi hicho, sheria itawakumba mara tu Mwanasheria Mkuu atakapotangaza bei hizo kwenye Gazeti la Serikali.

Katika kipindi cha kuelekea Krismasi, petroli ilipanda ghafla na kufikia hadi Sh1,800 na wauzaji walisingizia kuwa hiyo ilitokana na shehena walizokuwa wakitegemea kushindwa kufika kwa wakati kutokana na meli zilizobeba mafuta hayo, kuhofia kupita pwani ya Somalia ambayo ina maharamia wanaoendelea kuteka meli za mizigo na kudai donge nono ili waziachie.

Lakini umoja wa waagizaji wa mafuta, ulipingana na maelezo hayo ukidai kuwa mafuta yaliyo kwenye akiba yangeweza kutosheleza nchi kwa kipindi cha mwezi mmoja kabla ya shehena nyingine kuingia.

Jana Ewura ilitangaza bei mpya za mafuta zitakazotumiwa kuanzia Januari 13. Kwa mujibu wa bei hizo, jijini Dar es salaam, petroli itauzwa kati ya Sh1,171 na Sh1,259 kwa lita, wakati dizeli itauzwa kati ya Sh1,301 na Sh1,390 kwa lita.

Katika mikoa mingine, petroli itauzwa kati ya Sh1,201 kwa bei ya chini kabisa wilayani Kibaha, hadi Sh1,535 kwa bei ya juu kabisa katika mkoa wa Kagera, wakati dizeli katika mikoa hiyo itauzwa kati ya Sh1,339 kwa bei ya chini kabisa mkoani Morogoro na Sh1,693 kwa lita, ikiwa ni bei ya juu kabisa katika mkoa wa Singida.

Bei ya mafuta ya taa Wakazi wengi wa Dar es Salaam walioongea na Mwananchi, walielezea kuwa tatizo hilo ni mgomo uliopangwa na wafanyabiashara hao kama njia ya kukwamisha mkakati wa serikali wa kudhibiti bei ya mafuta.

“Hakuna kitu kingine ni ujanja tu wa kuikomoa serikali,” alisema mkazi wa Dar es Salaam, Jeseph Nkele ambaye alikuwa kwenye foleni ya petroli katika kituo cha Oilcom, Mlalakuwa, Mwenge.

“Kama serikali ina uwezo wa kuwabana kweli na tuone makali yao.” “Suala la mafuta sasa hivi limeshakuwa kero, kwa kuwa vituo vingi vimegoma kuuza… vinadai kuwa mafuta yameisha, wakati yapo kwenye akiba zao na ndio maana umetuona tumesongamana katika kituo kimoja kwa kuwa ndicho kinachotoa huduma katika maeneo haya,” alisema Juma Abdalah ambaye ni dereva wa daladala kati ya Mwenge na Kariakoo.

Aliongeza kuwa kutokana na hali hiyo, wanaiomba serikali kuchukua hatua kali kwa wale waliokaidi na wanaogoma kuuza mafuta hayo kwa madai ya kukataa kupunguza bei.

Naye dereva mwingine wa daladala anayehudumia kati ya Mwenge na Tegeta, Yusuph Khamis alisema kuwa vituo vinavyouza mafuta katika maeneo hayo ni vichache ukilinganisha na wingi wa vituo.

“Kuna vituo vingi sana vya kuuza mafuta katika maeneo haya, lakini mpaka sasa vinavyotoa huduma ni vichache ambavyo viko Tangi Bovu na Africana. Vilivyobaki vyote vimegoma, na ukienda wanakwambia mafuta yameisha. Hili ni tatizo. Lazima serikali ichukue hatua kali kukomesha hali hii,” alisema Khamis.

Habari hii imeandaliwa na Leon Bahati, Patricia Kimelemeta na Benton Nolo wa Mwananchi

Glitter banned from travelling to France and Spain

Maxence M. Melo — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 19:39:51 +0000

Gary Glitter has been banned from travelling to France and Spain, after police applied to the courts for a prevention order.

At least 19 countries have denied Gary Glitter entry
The disgraced singer, whose real name is Paul Francis Gadd, has to tell authorities of his travel plans seven days in advance because he is on the sex offenders register.

Ashford magistrates granted an order made by Kent Police last Thursday to stop Glitter from travelling to the two European countries. The order will last till March 2009.

The 64-year-old returned to the UK in August after spending 27 months in a Vietnam jail for abusing two young girls in 2006.

A spokesman for HM Court Service said: “On Thursday at Ashford Magistrates Court, in Kent, police applied for and were successful in an application to prevent Foreign Travel to France and Spain until 25 March 2009 by Mr Paul Gadd.

“Paul Gadd did not attend in person but was represented by Corker Binning Solicitors.”

Glitter in an attempt to escape repatriation after his release, flew 2,661 miles from Vietnam to Bangkok, then to Hong Kong, then back to Bangkok. Each country denied him entry.

At least 19 countries have refused to admit him, finally giving him little choice but to return to Britain where he was made to sign the sex offenders register.

The former glam rock star has informed police of his address – which has been kept secret.

Glitter was previously on the Sex Offenders’ Register for seven years, after he was jailed in the UK for four months in 1999 for possessing images of child abuse. He was discovered after a computer repair shop found the indecent images on his laptop.

He served two months of a four-month sentence then left the country and moved to Spain and Cuba before travelling to south-east Asia.

He was expelled from Cambodia after facing allegations of sex crimes and moved to the Vietnamese coastal resort of Vung Tau, before being jailed for molesting the two girls.

Source: The Telegraph
Written by: Urmee Khan

$700 billion bailout rejected

Maxence M. Melo — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 19:31:58 +0000

Washington’s massive bailout of Wall Street has been rejected by members of Congress amid dramatic scenes, after strong objections by the public to the $700 billion rescue plan.

The White House and Congressional leaders, who reached a compromised agreement on the financial package on Sunday, were confident that the measure would pass.

But rank and file members of both the Republican and Democratic parties rebelled, after many received complaints from their constituents throughout the morning about the deal to use taxpayers’ funds to buy devalued assets of major Wall Street firms.

All 435 members of the lower House of Representatives face re-election on Nov 4.

A total of 132 out of 199 Republicans voted against their whips and against their president despite a morning appearance by George W Bush urging them to approve the bill for the good of the nation.

With just a simple majority needed to pass the bill, 94 Democrats joined the rebellion, defeating the bill by 228 to 205. Party whips attempted to twist arms, to no avail. The bill will now have to be reintroduced at a later date.

The bill was defeated by an unlikely alliance of conservative Republicans who viewed the bill as “socialism” and left-wing Democrats who resented the fact that the bill did not contain more provisions to help struggling homeowners.

The Dow Jones industrials dropped suddenly as news of the rejection hit Wall Street. The Dow had already dropped by about 300 points, and then fell a further 300 points in a matter of minutes, before recovering slightly.

House Republicans blamed Democrat Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi for a partisan speech on the floor shortly before the vote was taken that inflamed feelings and led to members turning against the bill.

John Boehner, leader of the House Republicans, said: “I believe we could have got there today had it not been for a partisan speech that the Speaker gave. The Speaker had to give a partisan voice that poisoned our conference and that caused a number of our members to go south.”

Mr Boehner and other senior party figures said they would work to reform the bill and find a “true middle ground”.

A White House spokesman said Mr Bush was “very disappointed”.

“There’s no question that the country is facing a difficult crisis that needs to be addressed,” deputy press secretary Tony Fratto said.

He said the president will be meeting members of his team later in the day “to determine next steps”.

At 7.30am, Mr Bush had praised the bill as “strong and decisive legislation” that “will help restart the flow of credit” but Wall Street was fearful that the government’s plan to buy bad debt wouldn’t be sufficient to resuscitate nearly frozen credit markets.

US investors were also unnerved by the buyout of the country’s sixth largest bank Wachovia by Citigroup. By mid-morning the Dow Jones industrial average fell by 2.45 per cent.

The president urged Congress to pass the bill expeditiously and asked voters to remember that a “vote for the bill is a vote to prevent damage to you and your community”.

Congressional leaders had won key concessions from the White House and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, most notably a cap on compensation for bosses at bailed-out firms, a guarantee that the government will be paid back first when troubled assets begin earning again, and the phased introduction, with heavy Congressional oversight, of rescue funds.

Public attitudes to the bailout are at best grudging acceptance and at worst hostility.

Both presidential candidates, Senators Barack Obama and John McCain, had expressed their support for the deal.

Source: The Telegraph

Written by: Alex Spillius in Washington

McCain, Obama Debate

Maxence M. Melo — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 07:43:54 +0000

In their first head-to-head debate Friday, Sen. John McCain criticized Sen. Barack Obama as a candidate who “doesn’t understand” the key issues the country faces, and Obama linked McCain to President Bush on several issues.

“I’m afraid Sen. Obama doesn’t understand the difference between a tactic and a strategy,” McCain said as the two traded jabs over Iraq.

Obama shot back, “I absolutely understand the difference between tactics and strategy. And the strategic question that the president has to ask is not whether or not we are employing a particular approach in the country once we have made the decision to be there.”

McCain drew from his experience overseas as he tried to portray himself as the more qualified candidate.

“Incredibly, incredibly Sen. Obama didn’t go to Iraq for 900 days and never asked for a meeting with Gen. [David] Petraeus,” he said.

McCain slammed Obama for not supporting the surge, an increase of about 30,000 troops to Iraq in early 2007. Bush sent the additional troops as part of a campaign to pacify Baghdad and its surrounding provinces.

“John, you like to pretend like the war started in 2007,” Obama shot back. “You talk about the surge. The war started in 2003, and at the time when the war started, you said it was going to be quick and easy. You said we knew where the weapons of mass destruction were. You were wrong.”

Watch entire debate:

Part 1 » Debate Part 1

Part 2 » Debate Part 2

Part 3 » Debate Part 3

Obama repeatedly criticized the Bush administration and charged that McCain is an endorser of his policies

In describing his tax plan, Obama said, “over time, that, I think, is going to be a better recipe for economic growth than the — the policies of President Bush that John McCain wants to — wants to follow.”

Obama also said the economic crisis is the “final verdict on eight years of failed economic policies promoted by George Bush, supported by Sen. McCain.”

Both candidates squeezed in a few cheap shots. Obama brought up McCain’s jokingly singing a line about bombing Iran, and McCain jabbed Obama for his short-lived “presidential seal.”

Immediately after the debate, both campaigns issued statements declaring their candidate the winner.

“This was a clear victory for Barack Obama on John McCain’s home turf. Sen. McCain offered nothing but more of the same failed Bush policies, and Barack Obama made a forceful case for change in our economy and our foreign policy,” said Obama-Biden campaign manager David Plouffe.

“John McCain needed a game-changer tonight, and by any measure, he didn’t get it,” he said.

McCain’s campaign said “there was one man who was presidential tonight; that man was John McCain.”

“There was another who was political; that was Barack Obama. John McCain won this debate and controlled the dialogue throughout, whether it was the economy, taxes, spending, Iraq or Iran. There was a leadership gap, a judgment gap and a boldness gap on display tonight, a fact Barack Obama acknowledged when he said John McCain was right at least five times,” communications director Jill Hazelbaker said.

During the first 30 minutes of the debate, the candidates focused on the economy, even though the debate was supposed to be centered on foreign policy.

For a while, it seemed like the debate might not even take place, because McCain said he would not show up unless Congress came to an agreement on the government’s proposed $700 billion bailout plan.

McCain said Friday that enough progress has been made for him to attend the debate, even though Congress has not made a deal.

Here’s a snapshot of what the candidates said.

On government spending:

McCain said he would consider a spending freeze on everything but defense, veterans affairs and entitlement programs in order to cut back on government spending.

Obama disagreed, saying, “The problem is, you’re using a hatchet where you need a scalpel.

“There are some programs that are very important that are currently underfunded,” Obama said.

He agreed that the government needs to cut spending in some areas, but he said other areas, such as early childhood education, need more funding.

McCain repeated his call to veto every bill with earmarks.

Obama said the country “absolutely” needs earmark reform but said, “the fact is, eliminating earmarks alone is not a recipe for how we are going to get the middle class back on track.”

On the bailout proposal:

Obama said that the United States was facing its worst financial crisis since the Great Depression.

McCain said he was encouraged that Republicans and Democrats were working together to solve the crisis.

Obama refused to be pinned down on whether he would support a $700 billion plan proposed by President Bush’s top economic advisers, saying the final details of the proposal were not known.

McCain said he hoped to be able to vote for it.

On the likelihood of another terrorist attack:

McCain that another attack on the scale of the September 11 hijackings is “much less likely” now than it was the day after the terrorist attacks.

“America is safer now than it was on 9/11,” he said, “But we have a long way to go before we can declare America safe.”

Obama agreed that the United States is “safer in some ways” but said the country needed to focus more on issues such as nuclear non-proliferation and restoring America’s image in the world.

On relations with Russia:

Obama called for a re-evaluation of the United States’ approach to Russia in light of the country’s recent military action in the Caucasus.

“You cannot be a 21st-century superpower and act like a 20th-century dictatorship,” he said.

McCain accused Obama of responding naively to Russia’s invasion of neighboring Georgia last month by calling on both sides to exercise restraint.

McCain said he would support the inclusion of Georgia and Ukraine in NATO.

On Iran:

McCain said Iranian nuclear weapons would be an “existential threat to the state of Israel” and would encourage other countries in the Middle East to seek nuclear weapons as well.

“We cannot allow another Holocaust,” he said.

Obama agreed that the United States “cannot tolerate a nuclear Iran,” calling for tougher sanctions from a range of countries including Russia and China.

McCain called for a new “league of democracies” to stand firm against Iran.

On Iraq:

McCain said the next president will have to decide when and how to leave Iraq and what the United States will leave behind.

The Republican candidate said that the war had been badly managed at the beginning but that the United States was now winning, thanks to a “great general and a strategy that succeeded.”

“Sen. Obama refuses to acknowledge that we are winning in Iraq,” McCain said.

Obama responded, “that’s not true; that’s not true.”

He blasted McCain as having been wrong about the war at the start, saying McCain had failed to anticipate the uprising against U.S. forces and violence between rival religious groups in the country.

“At the time when the war started, you said it was quick and easy. You said we knew where the weapons of mass destruction were,” Obama said, citing the key White House policy justifying the 2003 invasion.

“You were wrong. You said that we were going to be greeted as liberators. You were wrong,” he said.

China astronaut to walk in space

Maxence M. Melo — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 06:57:17 +0000

Three Chinese astronauts orbiting the Earth are about to take part in their country’s first space walk.

One astronaut will leave the vessel for 20 minutes to conduct experiments while a second will don a spacesuit but remain in the spacecraft as back-up.

The operation will be broadcast live on television across China.

Conducting operations outside a spacecraft is essential if China is to fulfil its goal of building an orbiting station in the next few years.

The 42-year-old fighter pilot Zhai Zhigang is due to carry out the manoeuvre at 1630 Beijing Time (0830 GMT) on Saturday.

The Shenzhou VII capsule soared into orbit on a Long March II-F rocket from Jiuquan spaceport in north-west China.

The rocket put the Shenzhou capsule in a near-circular orbit more than 300km above the Earth.

Mr Zhai is joined on the mission by two other “yuhangyuan” (astronauts) – Liu Boming and Jing Haipeng.

Zhang Jianqi, one of the chief engineers for China’s space programme, said keeping three men in the spacecraft, and then sending one outside, would be a “big test”.

“This is a big technological leap,” he told state-run news agency Xinhua.

“The risks are quite high. Sending up three astronauts is a jump both in quantity and quality.”

When Mr Zhai carries out his excursion, he is expected to wear a Chinese-made spacesuit thought to have cost between £5m and £20m ($10m-$40m).

The yuhanguan will be tethered to the capsule with an umbilical cable.

His back-up, Mr Liu, will monitor the activity, presumably to reel the spacewalker back inside if there is an emergency.

Mr Zhai will retrieve an externally mounted experiment and oversee the release of a satellite.

The ship will then release a 40kg (88lb) satellite which will circle the orbiter and beam back images to mission control.

At the end of the mission, the Shenzhou re-entry capsule will target a landing in north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

China became only the third nation after the United States and Russia to independently put a man in space when Yang Liwei, another fighter pilot, went into orbit on the Shenzhou V mission in October 2003.

Two years later, Fei Junlong and Nie Haisheng completed a five-day flight on Shenzhou VI.

According to the Associated Press, Xinhua posted an article on its website prior to the lift-off that was written as if Shenzhou VII had already been launched into space.

HAVE A LOOK AT THIS:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7636114.stm

The article reportedly carried a date of 27 September and came complete with a dialogue between the astronauts.

Chinese media report that this latest mission is the “most critical step” in the country’s “three-step” space programme.

These stages are: sending a human into orbit, docking spacecraft together to form a small laboratory and, ultimately, building a large space station.

The Shenzhou VIII and IX missions are expected to help set up a space laboratory complex in 2010.

China launched an unmanned Moon probe last year about one month after rival Japan blasted its own lunar orbiter into space.

South Africa set for a new leader

Maxence M. Melo — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 07:52:27 +0000

South Africa’s parliament is due to choose an interim president, following the resignation of Thabo Mbeki.

The new leader is expected to be Kgalema Motlanthe, who is currently the deputy head of the governing African National Congress (ANC).

Mr Motlanthe is seen as a calming figure who could help heal tensions in the divided party.

He will serve until polls next year, when Mr Mbeki’s rival, Jacob Zuma, is widely expected to become president.

Thabo Mbeki resigned on Sunday over claims of political interference in a corruption case against Mr Zuma.

He denies the allegations but said he was stepping down at the request of the ANC in the interests of party unity.

Kgalema Motlanthe will be elected at a parliamentary sitting in Cape Town.

He is a long-serving member of the ANC hierarchy and a man generally seen as a safe pair of hands, reports the BBC’s Southern Africa correspondent, Peter Biles.

The immediate task will be to ensure a smooth political transition, given much talk of feuding and divisions within the ANC, our reporter adds.

Mr Mbeki’s departure has led to a flurry of resignations from the cabinet and caused uncertainty on the markets.

Making money from blogging

Maxence M. Melo — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 07:21:05 +0000

The advertising slogan says that what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. But at Blogworld Expo it was more likely to appear online, either written up on a website, as a photo on image sharing sites such as Flickr, or as a video clip uploaded to YouTube.

Blogging has continued to grow in the last few years, and organiser of the Expo, Rick Calvert, was delighted at the diversity of those attending.

“Look at the topics that people here are covering – sports, politics, religion, technology, finance and military bloggers to name just a few. We have had attendees flying in from around the world, but the one thing that links them all is their passion for this new media.”

It is the connections between these groups, and the spirit of sharing that was on show both at the conference and online every day, that drives the rich and diverse modern internet.

Both the individual blogger and the larger media companies are looking for ways to make the business of blogging profitable.

One of the rules of thumb that came up on the panel discussions at BlogWorld was that there is still the same amount of advertising money out there, but rather than be restricted to a few media conglomerates, it is being shared out a lot more.

Sharing culture

Larger companies are seeing advertising revenue drop, while bloggers are seeing their incomes rise.

What seems to be working well at the moment for the full-time bloggers at the Expo is affiliate marketing.

Rather than being paid to display an advert on their site, affiliate marketing only pays the blogger when their reader acts on the displayed advert.

This could be as simple a goal as clicking on the advert, through to receiving a percentage of any item the reader buys via an advert.

Amazon offers a large affiliate program, where people can receive up to 15% of the sale price of an item as commission by referring their readers to the site.

How well these techniques would translate to the larger sites of traditional media companies remains to be seen, but there are a number of profitable new media companies, such as b5media, that not only show that it can be done, but are actively sharing how they have achieved their success and are more than happy to help others to do the same.

This culture of sharing that runs through the blogging scene is one reason that this new medium is such a breath of fresh air to many.

Social experience

The idea of small connections building up to create something of value was illustrated by Laura Fitton, of Pistachio Consulting.

Explaining her first moments on Twitter (a micro-blogging service where people can post messages that are a maximum of 140 characters in length), she saw the initial view that presented the messages of everyone on the site – a rather overwhelming moment that caused her, and others, to come away with a poor first impression.

But once she started to tell Twitter who her friends were, and those people she wanted to follow that were in her field of expertise, then Twitter became a much more social experience with conversations between old and new friends, and it became much more useful to her.

In a short space of time, she started a new business helping companies make the best use of services like Twitter to build up their own online connections.

Making these connections is one of the hidden secrets of the internet.

Relevant media

With more sites out there providing rich media on pretty much any topic, building this web of connections can take time.

Europe-based start-up Zemanta had one of the more impressive software demonstrations at the expo.

Their code, which can be plugged into the popular blogging system WordPress, will automatically seek out relevant media to any post that you are writing on sites such as Twitter, Facebook, and many others.

These links are then posted on your site alongside each story, making your posts part of the ongoing and continuing conversations.

Blogging is still a nascent industry but on the strength of the BlogWorld Expo, the pioneers have put down not only a strong groundwork for those that are following them, but have also put in place a rich ecosystem that rewards openness and sharing.

There may be a wide choice of tools, all being used by disparate groups with distinct aims, but the result is the same.

Blogs help people around the world to communicate their interests and passion with others and allows people to find this information with ease.

The early years of blogging are coming to a close, and while they have been very successful, the feeling from the BlogWorld Expo is that blogging is going to continue to grow and mature into a powerful communications channel for everyone.

N Korea warned over nuclear move

Maxence M. Melo — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 07:11:09 +0000

The US has urged North Korea to reconsider its decision to bar UN monitors from its main nuclear complex.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said restarting its nuclear programme would deepen Pyongyang’s isolation, but she added that talks were not dead.

The UN’s atomic watchdog earlier said it had removed seals and surveillance cameras from part of the Yongbyon plant at North Korea’s request.

The move comes amid a dispute over an international disarmament-for-aid deal.

North Korea said it planned to restart nuclear activities earlier this month because the US had not fulfilled its part of the deal to remove Pyongyang from its terrorism blacklist.

The White House said that would only happen when North Korea allowed monitors to verify claims it had made about its nuclear arms programme.

The UN nuclear inspectors have been expelled from the most sensitive part of the Yongbyon facility: the reprocessing plant which can be used to make weapons-grade plutonium.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said that Pyongyang intended to introduce nuclear material at the facility next week.

Its inspectors had been observing the process to shut down Yongbyon – as part of a deal struck in six-party talks with South Korea, the US, China, Russia and Japan.

Ms Rice said that discussions with the North on its obligations for denuclearisation were “by no means” dead.

“We’ve been through ups and downs in this process before. The important thing is that this is a six-party process and that means there other states that are carrying the same message,” she said.

Symbolic gesture

Pyongyang began dismantling the reactor last November.

It was expecting to be removed from the US terror list after submitting a long-delayed account of its nuclear facilities to the international talks in June, in accordance with the disarmament deal it signed in 2007.

It also blew up the main cooling tower at Yongbyon in a symbolic gesture of its commitment to the process.

However, the US said it would not remove North Korea from its list of state sponsors of terrorism until procedures by which the North’s disarmament would be verified were established.

The North has been locked in international discussions for years over its nuclear ambitions.

North and South Korea have been technically at war since their 1950-53 conflict ended without a peace treaty.

Fuel rods

Experts say the Yongbyon plant could take up to a year to bring back into commission, so there will be no new plutonium production for a while.

However, there is plenty already available in the form of the spent fuel rods, taken from the reactor core, but only removed to a water-cooled tank on the site, says the BBC’s John Sudworth in Seoul.

It is this nuclear material that will now be introduced into the separate plutonium reprocessing plant, according to the information given to the IAEA.

Some estimates suggest the fuel rods could yield about 6kg (13lbs) of plutonium within two to three months – enough for one atomic bomb to add to North Korea’s existing stockpile.