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State of the Union: Barack Obama to use address to rebrand himself in the centre

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 14:50:00 +0000

Polish President World News

State of the Union: Barack Obama to use address to rebrand himself in the centre

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Polish President World News

State of the Union: Barack Obama to use address to rebrand himself in the centre

Barack Obama will use Tuesday's State of the Union address to cement himself in the political centre as he aims to capitalise on a series of unexpected recent political successes.

White House advisers have indicated that the speech will be used as a rebranding amid a revival in his fortunes that he hopes lead to his being re-elected next year.

The annual address on Tuesday night, which last year was watched by 48 million, will pull together the themes the US president has been developing over the past two months as he sought to rescue his presidency following what he described as a "shellacking" for Democrats in the November midterm elections.

Mr Obama will use his annual address to appeal for political unity as he concentrates on the tasks of job creation and "responsible" deficit reduction.

He outlined the main themes of his speech, which will be delivered to a Republican-controlled House of Representatives and a Democratic-controlled Senate, in a videotaped address to activists. He told supporters in his "Organising for America" group that his "number one focus is going to be making sure that we are competitive, and we are creating jobs not just now but well into the future."

With a battle looming over the federal budget and Republicans pushing for repeal of the Mr Obama's signature health care law, he will call for civility and bipartisanship. Republicans have said that deep cuts in the deficit are needed to restore economic growth.

"These are big challenges that are in front of us, but we're up to it, as long as we come together as a people – Republicans, Democrats, independents – as long as we focus on what binds us together as a people, as long as we're willing to find common ground even as we're having some very vigorous debates," Mr Obama said.

Mr Obama's popularity ratings have crept up above the 50 per cent threshold recently thanks to a number of political successes before the new year as well as his response to the recent mass shooting in Tucson, Arizona was widely praised.

Some of those connected to the Arizona tragedy, which left Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords gravely wounded, are likely to be guests of Michelle Obama, the First Lady, for the speech on Capitol Hill.

In a rare show of unity, some members of Congress will cross the aisle to sit with their opponents. Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, a liberal Democrat, will be beside Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma, a conservative Republican.

"I think if Coburn and Schumer can sit next to each other, then probably just about everybody can," Mr Schumer told CBS News. "It's true it's symbolic, but let's not forget (that) oftentimes in history, symbols influence reality."

The speech comes as Mr Obama's prospective Republican opponents in the 2012 election begin stepping up their efforts. In a "straw poll" of Republican activists in New Hampshire, where the first primary will be held, Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor who has not yet declared his candidacy, won with 35 per cent of the 276 ballots cast. Sarah Palin, the former Republican vice-presidential candidate, could only manage fourth place, with seven per cent.

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Related : State of the Union: Barack Obama to use address to rebrand himself in the centre By Toby Harnden, Washington, Polish President World News

Surrogate mother given right to keep baby

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Sat, 22 Jan 2011 21:20:00 +0000

Polish President World News

Surrogate mother given right to keep baby

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Surrogate mother given right to keep baby

A Surrogate who agreed to carry a baby girl on behalf of a couple but had a change of heart about handing the child over has been granted the right to keep her by a judge.

The six-month-old child, known only as T, should remain with her birth mother because it is in her best interests, Mr Justice Baker said.

Explaining a ruling he made in a hearing last month, Mr Justice Baker said on Thursday the child's welfare "requires her to remain with her mother".

He said: "In my judgment, there is a clear attachment between mother and daughter. To remove her from her mother's care would cause a measure of harm. It is the mother who, I find, is better able to meet T's needs, in particular her emotional needs."

The judge said the risks of entering into a surrogacy agreement are "very considerable".

He added: "In particular, the natural process of carrying and giving birth to a baby creates an attachment which may be so strong that the surrogate mother finds herself unable to give up the child."

He said the mother met the couple, Mr and Mrs W, over the internet in 2009 and agreed informally that the mother would be inseminated by Mr W, and hand the baby over after the birth.

During the pregnancy, however, she changed her mind, and at T's birth refused to hand over the baby as agreed.

The mother has two older children.

Mr W is a chef and he and Mrs W were married in 2005.

After Mr and Mrs W were married, they tried to have a baby themselves, but their attempts resulted in a series of miscarriages, which led them to consider surrogacy.

It was agreed that the mother would act as a surrogate for the Ws, using Mr W's sperm, and she became pregnant, but at some point during the pregnancy, relations between the parties deteriorated.

The child was born on July 16, and Mrs W went to the hospital, but says she was made to feel unwelcome by the mother's friends and family members. Her husband began legal moves a week later, and another judge appointed a woman as the child's guardian.

Mr Justice Baker said: "At the date of the hearing before me, T was five months old. The evidence from the guardian is that she is thriving in her mother's care."

The judge said he did not believe that Mr and Mrs W or the mother had told him the whole truth about a number of matters. However he had formed the clear impression that each was devoted to the child.

He was concerned about the mother's behaviour, including that at one point she had adopted a false persona to elicit information from the Ws.

He also found she had falsified a document and lied to the court about it.

But he did not believe she had deliberately set out to deceive the Ws from the outset.

As for the Ws, the judge was concerned about their involvement with a woman known to them initially as D but more widely, including to the police and social services in Scotland, as CL.

Mrs W said she came across CL via an internet chat room. CL told her that she was a victim of domestic violence, and Mrs W felt sympathy for her and offered her refuge. CL stayed at the Ws' home for about a fortnight.

However the guardian had made some inquiries and there were allegations that she is a prostitute and surrogate parent.

The judge found that the Ws had misled the court about how they got in touch with CL and that Mrs W came across her via a surrogacy website.

"It was wholly irresponsible of the Ws to invite her into their home, and the fact that they have no awareness of this risk is alarming."

The judge also found Mrs W had told the mother that Mr W had been violent to her on one occasion, and that both Mr and Mrs W had concealed the truth about the incident to the court.

He was also concerned about their "startling lack of insight" as to the child's needs and the difficulties that might arise if she were to be moved to their care immediately at the end of the hearing, as they proposed.

The judge ordered a review hearing for next month to see how matters have progressed, and gave leave to the guardian to tell the local authority about the case. There will be "interim visiting contact" between the father and the child until the hearing, to be arranged by the guardian.

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David Cameron's judgment over Andy Coulson was deeply flawed

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 19:15:00 +0000

Polish President World News

David Cameron's judgment over Andy Coulson was deeply flawed

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Polish President World News

David Cameron's judgment over Andy Coulson was deeply flawed

Why did the Prime Minister insist on having this deeply compromised man in the heart of Number 10, ask Simon Heffer.

Never mind what we think of Andy Coulson. What do we think now of Dave, who appointed him knowing his proximity to the phone-hacking scandal? Some of us said at the time that this was reckless. Let us suppose that, as he maintains, Mr Coulson knew nothing about the criminal enterprise going on when he edited the News of the World: did that not suggest he was deficient in some way?

I think Mr Coulson has much more explaining to do. I am amazed that Dave did not think this too, and that he, in the wake of what I know he was advised by very senior colleagues, persisted in having this deeply compromised man in the heart of Number 10. This is catastrophic for Dave, whose arrogance, lack of judgment and contempt for decent values are all exposed at a stroke by Coulson's scuttling off with his head held low.

Perhaps Dave should learn a lesson, show some humility, and wonder whether some of his other decisions might be equally suspect.

The logic of learning a language

Michael Gove says he has left the door open to making a foreign language compulsory once more at GCSE. Why stop there? Isn’t it better to do French or German than hairdressing, typing or media studies? Not only does it prevent one from projecting the image of the ignorant, boorish Brit abroad, it also teaches the student to be better at English by instructing him in the logic of grammar. The emphasis on science teaching now creates an intellectual imbalance; when my elder son took science GCSEs recently, they seemed to be mainly about the fetish of so-called climate change. The application and rigour needed to do well at languages are excellent mental disciplines and a valuable part of education. Pourquoi attendons-nous?

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Astronomer's guide to the solar system

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 19:24:00 +0000

Polish President World News

Astronomer's guide to the solar system

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Astronomer's guide to the solar system

Dr Marek Kukula, Public Astronomer at the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, takes readers on a hitch-hiker's guide to our solar system using this collection of photographs showing the best "tourist" attractions of our solar system. The collection of pictures has been put together as the Royal Observatory launches its 2011 Astronomy Photographer of the Year contest, for pictures captured by humans. For more information on the competition.

A full-disk extreme ultraviolet image of the Sun taken by the Solar Dynamics Observatory's Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) instrument, showing the temperatures of gases on the solar surface and in the solar atmosphere on March 30, 2010. Red gases are cooler (around 60,000 degrees Celsius), blue and green are warmer (more than 1 million degrees). A solar flare is seen at upper left.

Dr Kukula says: "Spacecraft like the Solar Dynamics Observatory allow us to 'see' wavelengths of light which would be invisible to human eyes. In the ultraviolet the Sun's familiar face appears dark, but now we can see that it's surrounded by wispy streamers of gas and blotched with bright regions of intense solar activity, each the size of the Earth."

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Tell-tale letdown: Poe visitor again a no-show

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 16:07:00 +0000

Polish President World News

Tell-tale letdown: Poe visitor again a no-show

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Polish President World News

Tell-tale letdown: Poe visitor again a no-show

Dame Edna Everage - the Australian superstar/housewife with purple hair and a caustic wit - will unleash a string of loving, but scathing, put-downs at the Regent Theatre in Arlington on Saturday and Sunday.

But this Dame Edna is not the same Dame Edna that Boston audiences have grown to love. That Dame Edna was a character played by her creator, 76-year-old Australian comic Barry Humphries, who’s been doing Edna for more than half a century.

This Dame Edna is played by Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based Michael L. Walters. He’s a self-admitted - and Humphries-approved - fake.

“I would never pass myself off as Barry,” Walters said, on the phone from Sarasota, Fla., where he was performing last week. “It’s a tribute show. It has Barry’s blessing. He’s very flattered.

“This show,” Walters continued, “depends on the audience and their willingness to play along and delve into the fantasy world. They have to get past the notion that this is an impersonator of an impersonator and invest themselves in the notion that this is Dame Edna, here to have an audience with them.”

Walters began doing an Edna-esque character in dinner theater in the ’90s. He met Humphries 11 years ago in Tampa on Humphries’ first American tour and started working on his Edna act in 2001. He says it really began to take off four years ago.

The show is both scripted and unscripted. There’s video. There’s music. Walters, 39, sings both in Edna’s high, screechy voice and in his own classically trained voice. The plot, such as it is, hinges on the notion that Edna wants to buy the Regent Theatre.

“She wants a winter home where she can watch the elderly preserve themselves in the fridge rather than the oven,” Walters explained.

As with Humphries’ act, much of the show is interactive. Humphries’ Edna has called it “a conversation between two people, where one of them is a lot more interesting than the other.”

“There’s this almost gleeful sadomasochism,” Walters said, “where the audience says, ‘Oh God, I hope she doesn’t pick on me.’ And when she doesn’t, they’re a little disappointed. I have to get to know the people within my sight lines and read faces, see who is receptive to be spoken to. In this show, I’m trying to be open and inviting, but at the same time, sometimes I’ll give people the opportunity to be funny and then turn right around and slam-dunk them.”

Who is Dame Edna to Walters?

“This is someone who is consumed by her own celebrity,” he said. “This is a woman who, through her own megalomania, is blind to her own flaws. Therefore, the only people she can see fault in are the people before her. And she says the most godawful things.”

“A Royal Audience with Michael L. Walters as Dame Edna” at the Regent Theatre, Arlington, Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets: $20-$25; 781-646-4849.

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Beatles Songs trending again after iTunes store launch

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 02:30:00 +0000

Beatles Songs trending again after iTunes store launch

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Beatles Songs

Beatles Songs Parts 1

Beatles craze renewed after Steve Jobs and co start selling Beatles songs on iTunes.

According to Google’s raw data on top searches, Beatles songs are back on top 20. The English rock band turned worldwide iconic group is now one of the hottest artists selling songs on Apple’s digital stores.

Before the grand launch last Monday, Apple’s official website sported four clocks with different time zones. After 12 hours, the four members of the band once called “Johnny and the Moondogs” surfaced.

After 24 hours, all 17 albums of Beatles released by Apple have made it to top 100 albums chart. The top performing album in iTunes according to Apple’s data is “Abbey Road.”

Aside from raking in millions of dollars, Beatles songs are also in demand when it comes to TV shows. According to UK news organizations reports, UK’s hit reality show X-Factor featured Beatles songs. Talking about the timing.

Meanwhile, a report is claiming that “Hey Jude” is the most popular Beatles song in Britain outpacing its nearest rival, Let It Be, based on sales record of iTunes in the said country. ~ Beatles songs on iTunes

Penn State Football Schedule 2010: Nittany Lions Lead Hoosiers in Fourth Quarter

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 02:17:00 +0000

Penn State Football Schedule 2010: Nittany Lions Lead Hoosiers in Fourth Quarter

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penn state football Parts 1

Penn State Football Schedule 2010: Nittany Lions Lead Hoosiers in Fourth Quarter.

The Penn State Nittany Lions have had a very interesting run this season as they started off in the top 25 in the AP and Coaches polls but then quickly dropped out of the rankings after losses to the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Iowa Hawkeyes.

They then went on to fall to the Illinois Fighting Illini in Week 6, but then they bounced back and won three straight games against Minnesota, Michigan and Northwestern.

The Lions stumbled last week against the Ohio State Buckeyes, but they seem to be redeeming themselves today as they lead the Indiana Hoosiers 34-24 at the end of the fourth quarter.

Penn State will then have to host the Michigan State Spartans to end their season, and that could be anyone's game.

The Nittany Lions may have not had the most stellar of seasons, but this is still a very young football team.

Next season, they will still have some serious strength at quarterback with Matthew McGloin (only a sophomore), and I expect the Nittany Lions to be one of the strongest teams in the Big Ten for the 2011-2012 season. ~ Penn State Football Schedule 2010

Cookbook Watch: 'Americas Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook'

Cookbook Watch: Americas Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook'

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 02:02:00 +0000

Cookbook Watch: Americas Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook'

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Americas Test Kitchen

Americas Test Kitchen Parts 1

You can't make a low-fat pie crust. It just won't work.

That's the sad conclusion that Jack Bishop came to during a two-year-long endeavor to put together "Healthy Family Cookbook," the first-ever healthy recipes cookbook to come out of Americas Test Kitchen.

"We haven't really tackled the subject in such a comprehensive way, but there's huge interest in this area, we always get people asking, 'Why can't you guys do more healthy recipes?' " says Bishop, who served as editorial director on the project and will be signing copies of the book Thursday night at Barnes & Noble in Santa Monica.

It took a team of 10 people more than two years to test and develop the recipes. Some dishes are inspired by other recipes from Americas Test Kitchen's archives, but all are original for the book, Bishop says. The team quickly found out that you can't just do the obvious -- slash the sugar or butter in half, eliminate the oil, or substitute whole wheat flour for white flour. The testing group also decided it would be cheating to simply scale back portion sizes. "We didn't take a biscuit recipe for 12, cut the portions in half, and then say 'Look, we cut the fat in these biscuits by 50%," Bishop said.

Before Bishop's team even got started, there were some philosophical issues to tackle. What does healthy really mean? Is it low-fat? Low-carb? High-protein? The Test Kitchen decided it was none of those things. Instead, they put together recipes that kept the calories in reasonable check and revolved around fresh fruits and vegetables and whole grains, or looked for ways to cut back the calories in fat in other dinnertime favorites, such as pizza

"This is not a diet book, it's not specifically tailored to one health issue, it's really an all-purpose cookbook," Bishop says. "These are recipes that had to taste good, first and foremost," and not be larded down with excess fat and calories.

Most entrees are in the 300 to 500 calorie range, many side dishes are 100 to 200 calories, and there are plenty of slim desserts clocking in at about 200 to 300 calories.

The resulting cookbook works on several different levels. There are amibitious multi-recipe dishes for the experienced cook looking to cut calories. The book is also a guide to whole grains and seasonal vegetables for the uninitiated looking to venture out. And it could also serve as a handy "starter" cookbook for kids heading off to college or their first apartment, or, perhaps newlyweds who are also new to the inside of a kitchen.

Bishop says testers quickly learned that no-fat can often mean no-flavor, but that using low-fat was often an acceptible substitute that tasters didn't even notice. In one creamy dip, for example, mayonnaise is replaced with low-fat sour cream, and some low-fat cottage cheese blended with boiling water (to eliminate the curds) for a velvety, tasty dish with a fraction of the calories. "And you really can't tell the difference," he says.

The big heartbreak, though, was pie dough. The testers simply could not find a way to make a lower-fat version. "We found that the simpler the recipe, the harder it can be to make it healthy, and pie dough has basically three ingredients: flour, sugar and a fat. What can you replace? It was a doomed endeavor." After more than 40 stabs at it, the team gave up. "No one really felt like the pie [dough] was worth publishing. Go with a crisp or a cobbler instead."

One happy discovery: Bishop says he remembers whole wheat pasta from back in the day, when it was gritty, sour and "just plain awful." The whole wheat pasta on the market today is not only good, it pairs better with "hearty, gutsier olive oil sauces" than traditional pastas, he said. The Test Kitchen's favorite: Bionaturae Organic 100% Whole-Wheat Spaghetti.

And one surprise: You can make a butter-free roux, if you toast and brown the flour first. That's what made the chicken pot pie recipe in the book a reality, Bishop says. "That was one of the recipes where we were really able to take out that fat, and still ended up with a beautiful, thickened sauce." ~ Americas Test Kitchen

The portrait of Polish President Lech Kaczynski, and his wife at the plane crash

Polish President ~ The portrait of Polish President Lech Kaczynski, and his wife at the plane crash

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 08:54:00 +0000

The portrait of Polish President Lech Kaczynski, and his wife at the plane crash

The portrait of Polish President Lech Kaczynski, and his wife at the plane crash site in Smolensk, western Russia, Tuesday, April 13, 2010. Polish President Lech Kaczynski, his wife and some of the country's most prominent military and civilian leaders died Saturday along with dozens of others when the presidential plane crashed as it came in for a landing in thick fog near Smolensk in western Russia.

Polish President ~ The portrait of Polish President in Russia 2

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 21:19:00 +0000

The portrait of Polish President in Russia 2

Relatives of those who were killed in the aeroplane crash near Katyn, arrive at a Moscow morgue to identify friends and relatives, Monday, April 12, 2010. President Dmitry Medvedev declared Monday a day of mourning in Russia, and his country held two minutes of silence in memory of those killed in Saturday's crash.

Russian national flag, foreground, and President's Colour, background, fly at half staff over the Moscow Kremlin on Monday, April 12, 2010, in respect for Polish President Kaczynski and others who died Saturday in a devastating plane crash near the western Russian city of Smolensk. President Dmitry Medvedev declared Monday a day of mourning in Russia, and his country held two minutes of silence in memory of Polish late President Lech Kaczynski and other people killed Saturday.

A Jesus statue covered in a Polish national flag stands in front St. Cross down town Warsaw, Monday, April 12, 2010. Polish President Lech Kaczynski, his wife and some of the country's highest military and civilian leaders died on Saturday, when the presidential plane crashed as it came in for a landing in dense fog in western Russia.

Polish President ~ Poland mourns as president and wife lie in state

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 08:42:00 +0000

Poland mourns as president and wife lie in state

WARSAW Thousands of people threw flowers of mourning in a hearse slowly or joined an enormous viewing line at the Presidential Palace yesterday homage to the Polish President Lech Kaczynski and his wife as their bodies lay in state.

Kaczynski and his wife Maria Kaczynski were among 96 people were killed in a plane crash in western Russia. The researchers showed that human errors as the cause.

knelt down and prayed and wept before the coffin, mourners closed on its first two columns of the hall of the palace, where the president appoints and dismisses the government. The queue of proportion for more than a mile, but do not stop the pain.

"We will wait as long as it takes" said Alicja Marszalek, a retired telephone operator waiting with a friend. "We want to pay homage to them because they were wonderful people. He was a modest man, very well educated, intelligent and kind."

Polish television broadcast live images of mourners walking by the coffins. Many were families with children, parents, and grandparents. Each coffin was flanked by a pair of soldiers, standing crisp and stonelike.

Stanislaw Kracik, Krakow province governor, said the funeral will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday in the 1,000-year-old cathedral — the main burial site of Polish monarchs since the 14th century.

The last Polish leader killed in office, General Wladyslaw Sikorski, the exiled World War II leader who perished in a mysterious plane crash off Gibraltar in 1943, is also interred there.

Leaders expected for the funeral include Russian President Dmitri Medvedev.

Kaczynska’s body, in a wooden casket draped with Poland’s white-and-red flag, was met by her only child, Marta, and by Jaroslaw Kaczynski, her brother-in-law who was also the twin of the late president.

Her daughter knelt by the casket and wept as a Polish honor guard stood by.

Kaczynska’s body was then ferried slowly to the Presidential Palace in the back of a black Mercedes-Benz hearse, just like her husband’s was on Sunday. Thousands of Warsaw residents lined the route, gently lobbing bouquets of tulips and roses on top of the hearse.

“I’m here because it’s such a tragedy for Poland,’’ said Maja Jelenicka, 63. “I’m in despair. I feel as if I’ve lost a close relative. Maria Kaczynska was a wonderful woman, kind, with a heart of gold.’’

Parliament held a special observance in memory of the president and the 18 lawmakers killed in the plane crash. In the assembly hall, framed portraits of the lawmakers and flowers bedecked their now-empty seats.

The names of the victims were read out, and Senate Speaker Bogdan Borusewicz, his voice breaking, declared the crash the “greatest tragedy in Poland’s postwar history.’’

Investigators have suggested that human error may have been to blame in Saturday’s crash that killed the Polish president and 95 others. The Tu-154 went down while trying to land in dense fog at Smolensk in western Russia. All aboard were killed, including Kaczynski and dozens of Polish political, military, and religious leaders.

They had been traveling in the Polish government-owned plane to attend a memorial in the nearby Katyn forest for thousands of Polish military officers executed 70 years ago by Josef Stalin’s secret police.

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov said yesterday that there was no explosion or fire on the plane and that the engines were working normally.

The pilot had been warned of bad weather in Smolensk, and was advised by traffic controllers to land elsewhere — which would have delayed the Katyn observances. He was identified as Captain Arkadiusz Protasiuk, 36, and the co-pilot as Major Robert Grzywna, 36.

Traffic Controller Murawjew Anatoly, the Russian team in which the plan succeeded, the newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda that the team ignored his warnings about the deteriorating weather airport Smolensk.

Polish Prosecutor General Andrzej Seremet said Polish prosecutors were still reviewing data from the flight recorders and would discuss their findings tomorrow.

So far, 87 bodies have been recovered and 40 of them identified, he said.

Polish President ~ The portrait of Polish Presiden in Russia

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 10:25:00 +0000

The portrait of Polish Presiden in Russia

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev pays his respect at a portrait of President Lech Kaczynski and his wife Maria at the Polish Embassy in Moscow, Russia, Monday, April 12, 2010. President Dmitry Medvedev declared Monday a day of mourning in Russia, and his country held two minutes silence in memory of those killed in the crash.

Russian national flag, right, and President's Colour, background, fly at half staff over the Moscow Kremlin on Monday, April 12, 2010, in respect for Polish President Kaczynski and others who died Saturday in a devastating plane crash near the western Russian city of Smolensk. President Dmitry Medvedev declared Monday a day of mourning in Russia, and his country held two minutes of silence in memory of Polish late President Lech Kaczynski and other people killed Saturday.

Polish President ~ Kaczynski Often a Source of Tension Within E.U.

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 10:16:00 +0000

Kaczynski Often a Source of Tension Within E.U.

Lech Kaczynski, who died Saturday in a plane crash in western Russia, rose from childhood fame as an actor to become president of Poland. He was 60.

Half of an unusual tandem of power, Mr. Kaczynski was elected president in 2005 from the nationalist-conservative Law and Justice Party, led by his identical twin, Jaroslaw, whom he later appointed prime minister.

Swept into office as voters repudiated the group of former Communist officials who had dominated the country’s politics for much of the preceding decade, Mr. Kaczynski and his brother struggled at the top. They frequently put Poland on a collision course with its European Union partners and Russia, while polarizing voters at home with a shift to the right.

“His approach is to first destroy and then think about what to build,” Lech Walesa, hero of the Solidarity movement and former president, said in 2006 of Lech Kaczynski, who once served as Mr. Walesa’s national security chief.

Poland joined the European Union in 2004, but Mr. Kaczynski often preferred dealing with the United States.

As soon as Mr. Kaczynski took office in the presidential headquarters in the center of Warsaw, he forged close relations with Ukraine and Georgia, determined to bring them closer to NATO and eventually have them admitted to the American-led military organization.

His defense of those two countries often upset leading members of the European Union, especially Germany, which was concerned that an expanded NATO would make Russia feel threatened and lead to new East-West tensions. Mr. Kaczynski, however, believed passionately that a strong NATO would prevent Russia from reasserting its influence over Eastern and Central Europe.

Mr. Kaczynski was born on June 18, 1949, when Warsaw was in ruins. His suspicions of Russia and Germany had deep roots. His father, Rajmund, an engineer, and his mother, Jadwiga, who studied linguistics, had been active in the Polish resistance against the Nazis.

He and his brother — who could be told apart only by a mole on Lech’s left cheek — became famous at age 12 when they starred in a film version of “The Two Who Stole the Moon,” a beloved children’s story. They began their rise to political prominence in the underground Solidarity movement in the 1980s.

They were close, at first, to Mr. Walesa, but they fell out with his movement during the 1990s, claiming that the intellectuals, led by Adam Michnik, had made too many compromises with former Communists and the secret police. The brothers remained active in politics, with Lech Kaczynski serving as justice minister from 2000 to 2001 and gaining popularity by emphasizing his tough stance against crime.

He became mayor of Warsaw in 2002, and critics began to see his brand of nationalism — he and his brother wanted a complete break with the past by purging the civil service and the media of former Communists — as overzealous and provincial. But the twins were helped in their rise to power by an image of honesty in a country that had witnessed one corruption scandal after another for years.

Yet he was not reluctant to create tensions with Moscow or Berlin. Poland joined NATO in 1999, part of the first bloc of former Communist countries, along with Hungary and the Czech Republic, to join the alliance.

“It was obvious to us that this was the only tough security structure there was in the world, and that the membership of NATO would only mean benefits for Poland,” Mr. Kaczynski said in an interview last year.

He added that did not mean that Russia’s leaders had “abandoned their ideas to regain influence, like using natural resources, natural gas, as a weapon and trying to influence politicians.”

“Indeed,” he said, “back in the early 1990s, my impression was that Poland’s entry into NATO would finally resolve those questions. And here I must admit I was wrong.”

He lobbied hard for the United States to deploy part of its controversial shield against ballistic missiles in Poland, arguing that it would enhance Poland’s security against Russia. Those plans, supported by President George W. Bush, were scaled back by President Obama.

A devout Roman Catholic, Mr. Kaczynski was regarded as skeptical of the European Union while he fought to defend Poland’s sovereignty against Brussels and to protect its traditional, conservative values. In 2008, he argued against ratifying the union’s Lisbon Treaty for fear its prohibition of discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation would become Polish law.

Mr. Kaczynski’s star had been fading in recent years, and he would have faced a difficult re-election battle this year.

His wife, Maria, an economist, also died in the crash. Mr. Kaczynski is survived by his brother, Jaroslaw, who was forced to step down as prime minister in 2007 after a bruising party defeat at the polls. He is also survived by his daughter, Marta; two granddaughters, Ewa and Martyna; and his mother.

Polish President ~ Body of Poland's First Lady returned home

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 09:11:00 +0000

Body of Poland's First Lady returned home

WARSAW, Poland — The body of Polish First Lady Maria Kaczynska is being flown back from Russia as members of parliament prepare to hold a special observance in memory of their president and numerous lawmakers.

Polish President Lech Kaczynski, his wife Maria and 94 other officials were killed in a plane crash in Smolensk, Russia, on Saturday.

Kaczynska's body was being flown back to Warsaw on Tuesday and it was expected to arrive by 10:30 a.m. (0830 GMT; 4:30 a.m. EDT). The president's body returned on Sunday.

Later the legislature to meet in special session in memory of Kaczynski and more than a dozen members of Parliament were killed in the accident.

Polish President ~ Honorary memberships of the First Lady

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 06:03:00 +0000

Honorary memberships of the First Lady

# The First Lady agreed to become a member of the Honorary Committee at the naming ceremony of the Fordoński Bridge in Bydgoszcz (the bridge will be named after Rudolf Modrzejewski).

# Maria Kaczyńska agreed to preside over the Honorary Committee for building the statue to Ignacy Jan Paderewski at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles.

# The First Lady accepted the title of Honorary President of the Towarzystwo Przyjaciół Dzieci Ulicy im. Kazimierza Lisieckiego “Dziadka” “Przywrócić Dzieciństwo” (Kazimierz “Dziadek” Lisiecki Friends of Children of the Streets Association “Bringing Childhood Back”). Maria Mościcka, a Polish First Lady from the interwar period, also supported the Association.

# The wife of the President of Poland accepted an invitation to become a member of the Honorary Committee for Creating a John Paul II “Village of Hearts" in Mysłowice.

# The First Lady agreed to become a member of the Honorary Committee of Fundacja Sztandaru Nadwiślańskiego Oddziału Straży Granicznej (Foundation for the Banner of the Vistula Border Guard).

# The First Lady became the President of the Honorary Committee for the Development of the Lublin Region Oncology Centre in Lublin.

Polish President ~ Maria Kaczynska, the First Lady of Poland

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 05:03:00 +0000

Maria Kaczynska, the First Lady of Poland

Maria Kaczyńska, wife of the President of the Republic of Poland, comes from a patriotic Polish family from the Vilnius region in Lithuania. Her mother, Lidia Mackiewicz, was a teacher; her father, Czesław Mackiewicz, was a specialist in forestry. The family settled within the present Polish borders after the Second World War. During the war her father was taking part in guerrilla warfare against the German forces occupying the Vilnius region; one of his brothers fought at Monte Cassino in Italy as a soldier of the Polish Corps of General Władysław Anders. The second brother, an officer of the Polish Army, was killed at Katyń Forest.

Maria Kaczyńska attended primary and secondary schools in Rabka Zdrój in southern Poland. She graduated from the Department of Maritime Transport of the Higher School of Economics (now the University of Gdańsk) in Sopot on the Baltic coast. After receiving her diploma she worked at the Maritime Institute in Gdańsk, where she conducted research into the developmental perspectives of maritime freight markets in the Far East.

In 1978 she married Lech Kaczyński, at that time an assistant research fellow at the Faculty of Law of Gdańsk University, an activist of the democratic anti-Communist opposition in Poland. In June 1980 she gave birth to her daughter, Marta, and shortly afterwards, in August 1980, widespread labour strikes broke out in Gdańsk and other Polish cities; the "Solidarity" trade union movement was established. When the Communist authorities cracked down on "Solidarity" and introduced martial law in Poland in 1981, her husband was interned for almost a year; after his release he was active in the underground "Solidarity" movement. At that time Maria Kaczyńska was on maternity leave; finally she decided not to return to work at the Maritime Institute. She engaged in tutoring and worked as a freelance translator from English and French; at the same time she was bringing up her daughter and helping her husband in his fight against the Communist regime in Poland.

After the fall of the Communist regime, during the period of political transformation of the country, when her husband held several important public offices, Maria Kaczyńska always supported charitable and cultural initiatives, especially when Lech Kaczyński was Mayor of Warsaw in 2002-2005. When she became the First Lady of Poland in 2005, her public activities took on a new dimension. As First Lady she co-operates with Polish and foreign non-governmental organizations focusing on social, medical and humanitarian issues. She participates in charity projects, using her position to help impoverished and handicapped persons, notably children with health problems and disabilities. She supports initiatives enriching Polish cultural life, acting in concert with artistic and intellectual circles. She is committed to promote her country abroad and to strengthen the positive image of democratic Poland in the world. She sometimes acts as Special Envoy of the President, representing her husband at official functions in various countries. She is involved in the international promotion of Polish cultural heritage.

Maria Kaczyńska takes an interest in literature and art; she loves music, ballet and the theatre. She likes travelling, which gives her an opportunity to gain an insight into the lives and traditions of other countries. She values both family life and social life. She enjoys spending her time with her granddaughters Ewa and Martyna. She speaks English and French and possesses some knowledge of Spanish and Russian.

The First Lady admits to having a strong personality. Her pleasant manner, cheerfulness and a fine sense of humour have won her a lot of friends; she is always open to new ideas. In matters of dress and personal adornments she prefers restrained, classical style.

Both the President and the First Lady love animals; they own two dogs and two cats.

Polish President ~ Honorary memberships of the First Lady

Polish President ~ Russians' outpouring of emotion touches Poles

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Sun, 11 Apr 2010 09:54:00 +0000

Russians' outpouring of emotion touches Poles

MOSCOW –

The plane crash in Russia that killed the Polish president and a long list of notable Poles has brought a sudden rush of warm feelings between two nations whose relations have been fraught with historical hatreds.

In Russia, the normally stoic Vladimir Putin has set the tone with an outpouring of emotion, while Poland has been deeply moved by the gestures of sympathy from a country that had long tried to subjugate it.

In a significant step, a Russian state television network on Sunday night aired "Katyn," a celebrated Polish film about a World War II-era Soviet massacre that looms large in Polish memory. For decades the Soviet Union denied responsibility, and even today many Russians know little about the killings.

Closer political ties still seem far off, but Poland's foreign minister, long suspicious of Russia's intentions, made clear the tragic plane crash also offers an opportunity.

"I don't know if there is a political breakthrough because we have many contradictory issues with Russia, but we have an emotional breakthrough," Radoslaw Sikorski said Monday on Radio TOK FM.

"It seems that the personal reaction of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is the result of his realization of what Soviet Russia had done to Poland. Therefore, he felt our pain when another tragedy took place."

The presidential plane crashed Saturday while bringing President Lech Kaczynski, his wife, lawmakers, military commanders, priests and historical figures to a ceremony in memory of the 22,000 Polish officers and intellectuals executed in 1940 by Soviet secret police in the Katyn forest and elsewhere.

Relatives of victims of the massacre were among the 96 people who died when the plane went down.

Putin flew immediately to the crash site in western Russia, where he embraced Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk. On Sunday, holding a bouquet of red roses, Putin appeared genuinely shaken as he escorted Kaczynski's body to a plane to be flown to Warsaw.

"This is of course first and foremost Poland's tragedy and that of the Polish people, but it is also our tragedy. We mourn with you," he said in an interview with Polish television.

His words clearly touched a chord with ordinary Poles.

"Putin's gestures are striking. He's not a soft kind of person but I get a positive impression," said Slawomir Pawelski, 88. "It's sad the reconciliation is happening under such painful circumstances and not on the normal diplomatic or political level, but let's be happy with what we have because it opens the door to friendship."

Russia declared Monday a national day of mourning, an unusual and possibly unprecedented step in honoring citizens of another country. President Dmitry Medvedev and former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev went to the Polish Embassy in Moscow to pay their respects and write in a book of condolences.

It was under Gorbachev in 1990 that the Soviet Union first acknowledged responsibility for the Katyn massacre, which until then the Soviets had blamed on Nazi forces that invaded Russia in 1941.

That was also the official line in Poland until the fall of communism in 1989, but Poles had always known the truth and the cover-up only fed animosity toward Russia.

To this day, many Russians know little or nothing about Katyn. In a poll conducted March 10 by the respected Levada Center, only 19 percent said the Polish officers were shot on dictator Josef Stalin's orders. Twenty-eight percent said Nazi Germany had ordered the executions, while 53 percent said they could not answer. The poll of 1,600 Russians nationwide had a margin of error of 3.4 percentage points.

That could change after the nationwide broadcast of Andrzej Wajda's film "Katyn" on Sunday evening. The 2007 film, which was not distributed in Russia, was first shown last week on the state cultural channel, which has a limited audience.

Eugeniusz Smolar, director of the Center for International Relations in Warsaw, predicted that the film would help Russians come to terms with their own painful history under Stalin.

"It is important for our better relations in the future that the Russians conduct a debate on the past among themselves, not necessarily with the help or participation of the Poles," he said, "But this will also influence in a positive manner the future of Polish-Russian relations because we will understand each other better," he said.

Relations have been improving lately under Tusk, who met with Putin in Katyn on April 7. Even Sikorski, who has made some strong critical statements about Moscow in the past, has toned down his rhetoric as Poland's chief diplomat.

Masha Lipman, a political analyst at the Carnegie Moscow Center, said the sudden goodwill between Russians and Poles offers a chance to overcome the dark past, but she was skeptical it would be seized.

For Poland, the litmus test will be whether Russia shows a new willingness to fully expose the crimes committed against Poles under Stalin, she said.

Russia has refused to fully open the Katyn archives, apparently unwilling to reveal the names of those who carried out the executions, and also has denied requests to rehabilitate the murdered Polish officers.

"Katyn has always been the major thing for Poland," Lipman said. "Without progress on Katyn there will be no improvement in relations."

Another concern, she said, was whether anti-Russian sentiments would play a part in Poland's presidential election campaign and, if so, whether Russia would be able to show restraint.

The suspicions on both sides still run deep.

"Putin's behavior, Russians' behavior, the Russian authorities' behavior is very surprising, but history teaches us about being careful of what our eastern neighbors do," said Katarzyna Polak, a 30-year-old Warsaw resident.

"I keep wondering if it is all sincere and true. I'm afraid Putin's gestures are calculating. It's hard to believe he is acting spontaneously."

Polish President, Wife Among Dozens Killed in Russia Plane Crash

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 15:56:00 +0000

A plane with Lech Kaczynski, Polish President near Smolensk in western Russia crash killing all 135 passengers on board, Russian and Polish authorities said. Polish officials also confirmed Saturday that Kaczynski on board the flight with his wife, like Slawomir Skrzypek, the head of the Central Bank of Poland, Andrzej Kremer, deputy foreign minister and chief of the army.

The Tupolev Tu-154 crashed on approach to the airport of Smolensk, in a dense fog. Sergei Antufiev, the governor of Smolensk, in Russia, said the official media, there were no survivors of the accident. And "cut off the tops of the trees, crashed and broke apart," said Russo-24 Antufiev television. Polish Rafal Kiepuszewski shock region, a journalist tracking the situation in Poland, said the news was a surprise for the Polish people. have been map In Depth: Lech Kaczynski, "The fact that most of the Polish political class seems to be eliminated in this flight really be a deep blow to the Polish nation come to," he said. The Polish government delegation was on its way to the city of Smolensk, on the commemoration of the 70th attend the anniversary of the Katyn massacre - where Russian forces have killed over 20,000 Polish soldiers.

Kaczynski became president of Poland since 2005. Previously, he was mayor of Warsaw, Polish capital. An emergency cabinet meeting was called to Warsaw to discuss the situation, while a crowd had gathered at the presidential palace. Crash Investigation of Smolensk local investigators said on Saturday that pilot error may be the cause for the accident have been. "The pilot of the ground in Minsk, reported but decided to land at Smolensk, Yevseyenkov, a spokesman for the local government," said Andres. Chris Yates, an aviation expert told Al Jazeera the Tupolev Tu-154 can operate in extreme weather conditions and can land on unpaved runways. "These things are built as a thank you," he said via e-mail. "According to initial reports, an accident seems appropriate, with plane trees cut .."

Polish President ~ Lech Kaczynski

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 13:22:00 +0000

WARSAW - Polish President Lech Kaczynski, who died on Saturday in a plane crash in Russia, was a militant anti-Communist who was long associated with his twin brother to his country in a nationalist direction too conservative. Kaczynski, 60, has pursued a very pro-American foreign policy, according to a consensus between the parties that in Poland developed after the fall of communism. There was a strong supporter of plans for a U.S. missile defense system in the country to build the largest new EU members from Eastern Europe. Prickly nationalism Kaczynski and his twin brother Jaroslaw - have long been served as prime minister and now opposition leader - sometimes complicated relations with European neighbors and Russia. Lech Kaczynski has long against the reform of the EU was called before the signing of the Treaty of Lisbon in November last year. In the 1970s and 1980s, the Kaczynski brothers were activists of the anti-communist opposition and continue to serve as advisers to Solidarity founder Lech Walesa. Kaczynski supported the presidential candidacy in 1990, Walesa became the chief adviser to the president on security issues. His collaboration with Walesa ended in bitter political differences and Walesa was defeated in 1995 by former communist Aleksander Kwasniewski. Kaczynski was justice minister in Poland in the years 2000-2001, and his strong stance against crime has laid the foundation for the popularity of the fuel according to the proposed takeover of the presidency. He was mayor of Warsaw in 2001 and has earned the respect of a sober style and reputation speaks ..

Polish President

noreply@blogger.com (Gowoori) — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 12:54:00 +0000

Polish President Lech Kaczynski and some of the military and civilian leaders of the death machine. A flight President, crashed while landing in thick fog in the West of Russia today. (New Zealand), killing 96 officers.

Russian officials and Poland say no one survived the Soviet era Tupolev the president and his wife, the official 70th anniversary events in thousands of Polish massacre by the Soviet secret police.

Army Chief of Staff, General Franciszek GąGor Slawomir Skrzypek National Bank and Vice Chairman of the Foreign Minister Andrzej Kremer Polish Foreign Ministry on the board.

Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations is hunting F. 96 88 Polish state. Foreign Minister of Poland Piotr Paszkowski said the passenger list of the 89 people in a show.

"We still do not understand limits. The size of this tragedy and what the future will not occur in Poland "Paszkowski. "We believe that the hope many were killed.

The Lake Districts Manager Mo error connection. Occurred about 11 pm (7 PM In New Zealand) said that the beam

NEWS State "Russia" - 24 channel video websites represent a piece of the plane scattered bush Blank and a small fire in the forest covered with fog. Caudal fin with red and white away Polish.

'Presidential aircraft to flee Poland. However associated with the display before the Treetops lost and poor, official says Russian region Sergei Anoufriev - 24 "No one can survive disasters.

President TU - 154 at least 20 years of Polish officers. Leaders of change planes, but she said no net. Safety problems associated with 66 TU - 154 and six in the last five years, Florida Sierra Transport Aero Russell just uploaded Tu - 154 Service Fleet.

Trust relationships. Sierra Poland that will call poison for decades. This massacre of Katyn.

Russia will not regret much. Some 22,000 Polish officers killed technologies. However the decision of the Minister President Vladimir Putin of involvement in mind earlier this week in a forest near Katyn should be viewed as a gesture of goodwill to check Russia - 24 with hundreds of monuments around several Polish Katyn flag some songs.

Putin is the introduction of the audit committee error Kremlin.

Polish Primes Minister Donald Tusk called a meeting in Warsaw in the government and half-staff palace President that they were placed flowers and lighting candles.

Ad links.

Display in black ink, some windows in the capital Poland

President of Poland is a leader in Chief of the army. However is responsible for. Wrong most of the characters Kaczynski, 60, is president of Sesame in December 2005 after loosing the presidential election.

Save nationalism, PI dual male female opposition leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski, Poland, former Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski, they have a daughter of Economics Mary, Martha, and two granddaughters.

Kaczynski said he would have found a second term in presidential elections this fall. He is expected to attack his page Parliament Bronislaw Komorowski of the President of Ivory "Civic Platform".

Under the Constitution, Komorowski assumes presidential duties.

Poland 38 million, the largest communist country in the 10 old European Union joined in recent years.

Years of the Polish people. Europe is to avoid Recession and economic growth compared to 1.7 percent.

It is a major partner. U.S. in the region after the decline of communism - the stance the party line.

Countries that send soldiers to war, U.S. - Iraq and the recent increased commitment in Afghanistan, about 2,600 soldiers.

US Patriot missiles in Poland is expected in Poland this year, in terms of management in 2008 - with the support of Kaczynski and Tusk - a long missile interceptors.

President Bush's administration will Related set to anger Russia, under the leadership of President Barack Obama.

Obama Under the plan, Poland would host various interceptor missile defense system as part of the system over mobile and not fixed in later 2018.

Kaczynski, Poland, reference services leading to death after the first World War II era Rights General Wladyslaw Sikorski in the airplane from Gibraltar in 1943.

US PJ Crowley, said State Department spokesman, "This is a serious tragedy of Poland, and we extend sincere condolences to the Polish people us

German Foreign Minister Ban friend, Guido Westerwelle said he was "shocked and sad death of Kaczynski.

"Everyone is suffering from Germany. Polish neighbors" Westerwelle said during our visit in South Africa.