The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
Monday, November 13, 2006 - 3A
NEWS BRIEFS
WASHINGTON
Castro said to have
terminal cancer
The government believes Fidel
Castro's health is deteriorating and
that the Cuban dictator is unlikely
to live through 2007.
That dire view was reinforced
last week when Cuba's foreign min-
ister backed away from his predic-
tion that the ailing Castro would
return to power by early Decem-
ber. "It's a subject on which I don't
want to speculate," Felipe Perez
Roque told The Associated Press in
Havana.
U.S. government officials say
there is still some mystery about
Castro's diagnosis, his treatment
and how he is responding. But
these officials believe that the 80-
year-old has terminal cancer of the
stomach, colon or pancreas.
He was seen weakened and thin-
ner in official state photos released
late last month, and it is consid-
ered unlikely that he will return to
power or survive through the end of
next year, said the U.S. government
and defense officials. They spoke
on condition of anonymity because
they were not authorized to speak
publicly about the politically sensi-
tive topic.
BAGHDAD
Shiite PM to change
cabinet after bout of
sectarian violence
The Shiite prime minister prom-
ised yesterday to reshuffle his Cabi-
net after calling lawmakers disloyal
and blamingSunni Muslims for rag-
ing sectarian violence that claimed
at least 159 more lives, including 35
men blown apart while waiting to
join Iraq's police force.
Among the unusually high num-
ber of dead were 50 bodies found
behind a regional electrical compa-
nyinBaqouba, 35 miles northeast of
Baghdad, and 25 others found scat-
tered throughout the capital. Three
U.S. troops were reported killed, as
were four British service members.
Also yesterday, the country's
Sunni defense minister challenged
Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's
contention that the U.S. military
should quickly pull back into bases
and let the Iraqi army take control
of security countrywide.
Defense Minister Abdul-Qadir
al-Obaidi rejected calls by al-Maliki
for the U.S. military to speed trans-
fer of security operations through-
out the country to the Iraqi army,
ainQ his mein still were too oory
equippaii traine dto do th e jo.
KINSHASA, Congo
* New Congo leaders
* try to bring order to
mining chaos
Among the biggest challenges
Congo's first elected government
in nearly 50 years will face is
bringing order to a chaotic min-
ing sector whose riches provoked
a regional war that killed millions
of people. ,
Congo's vast mineral resources
are worth an estimated $300 bil-
lion over the next 25 years. In the
past, though, the earthly riches
have only contributed to misery
and today most of Congo's 58 mil-
lion people are mired in poverty.
Endemic corruption is the major
impediment to development, says
Babacar Cisse, head of the U.N.
Development Program in Congo.
"Our major concern as a partner is
how they can come up with poli-
cies that will fight corruption in
this country - it's the whole sys-
tem that needs to be cleaned up,"
he said.
CLARENCE, Pa.
Michigan man
killed in plane crash
A Michigan man was killed and
another man was seriously injured
when a single-engine plane crashed
in the woods of northern Centre
County, authorities said Saturday.
The crash Friday night killed
passenger Harry Batson, 63, of
Erie, Mich., according to the Civil
Air Patrol. The patrol said the pilot,
Pascal Schadegg, is a citizen of Swit-
zerland. He was airlifted to Altoona
Regional Hospital.
-Compiled from
Daily wire reports
WEBSIT 1. TTD Y
YELP.CO
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peer reviews of most everything in
the phone book - from mechanics
to bars to beauty spas. Entries list
address, telephone number and dis-
play a Google map of the location.
It's useful, but not for everything.
There's more information on some
services than others - 133 restau-
rant reviews but ony two posts on
pet services.
SPELL CHECK
McCain takes:
early step
toward '08 bid
Arizona Republican
won't make decision
until early next year
WASHINGTON (AP) - Republi-
can Sen. John McCain said yester-
day he is taking the initial steps for a
White House bid in 2008, setting up
a committee that allows a potential
candidate to raise money and travel
the countryto gauge support.
Democratic Sen. Joe Biden reaf-
firmed his intention to seek his
party's nomination, though an
announcement about establishing
an exploratory committee probably
will not come until early next year.
The anticipated wide-open cam-
paign - for the first time since the
1928 race, the field will not include
a sitting president or vice president
- lost one possible participant when
Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.), decid-
ed against a long-shot run.
McCain (R-Ariz.) said he is mov-
ing toward a 2008 bid by "doing
things organizationally and legally"
but will not make a final decision
until early nextyear.
McCain, considered the front-
runner for his party's presidential
nomination, said he could create an
exploratory committee as early as
this week.
"Are we doing the things organi-
zationally and legally that need to
be done? Yes," he said. "There are
certain things legally you have to
comply with in order to continue to
raise money and set up an organiza-
tion."
"The important thing is we will
not make a decision until I sit down
with my family, but we will be pro-
pared," McCain said.
GOP officials last week said
McCain would set up an exploratory
committee and has opened a bank
account for the committee.
Yesterday, McCain character-
ized the moves as preliminary until
he decides over the holidays about
a possible bid. He unsuccessfully
sought his party's nomination fbr
president in 2000.
If McCain were to run, he would
turn 72 on Aug. 29, 2008, at the
heightofthe campaign. OnlyRonald
Reagan was older - 73 atthe start of
his second term. McCain's health
also could be an issue because he
has had several cancerous lesions
removed from his skin.
ZACHARY M EISNER/Daily
Tattoo artist Bill Falsetta inks a customer's initials onto his back. Falsetta charges $125 an hour for tattoo work and has worked
at New Brand Tattoo for six of its seven years of operation at 215 S. State St.
Did Green Party help GOP win in state?
LANSING (AP) - One of the
main reasons Republicans were
swept from power was the Iraq
war. Ironically, it may have
helped preserve their long-stand-
ing lock on the Michigan Senate.
Republicans won the two clos-
est Senate races in last week's
election by a combined 1,294 votes
out of 210,000 cast, giving them a
21-17 majority instead of a 19-19
tie to be broken by Democratic
Gov. Jennifer Granholm's lieuten-
ant governor.
Both races had Green Party
candidates who ran as part of the
"Stop the War Slate."
Democrats say most of those
votes would have been theirs if
not for the Green Party.
It comes as a reminder of Ralph
Nader's spoiler role that possibly
cost Al Gore the presidency in
2000.
TERRORISM
From page 1A
related to former Republican Sen-
ate candidate Mike Bouchard,
joined a think-tank there that
focused on terrorism in Egypt.
Over a five-week period, groups of
students worked together to write
proposals on current issues involv-
ing terrorism.
Students who study counter-
terrorism efforts usually major in
political science, psychology, his-
tory and Middle Eastern studies,
but Bouchard hopes that Universi-
ty students from all concentrations
will get involved with the project.
"Few classes here in Ann Arbor
provide such a space to do so, and
this group will allow anyone inter-
ested to participate," he said.
Bouchard said he is optimis-
tic that his project will increase
the amount of terrorism research
conducted at the University. He
said that students will benefit
from the opportunity to attend
lectures and review the groups'
final products.
"Terrorism isn't the war of yes-
terday - it's the conflict we're facing
today and tomorrow until we can
come up with solutions," he said.
Group members will choose
a topic related to terrorism, do
extensive research and then com-
pete to publish their papers in a
peer-reviewed journal.
At the University, some scholars
place terrorism in a social and his-
torical context to explain today's
violence. Others use mathematical
and computer models to simulate
terrorist actions.
Adjunct LSA Prof. Scott Atran,
a leading researcher in counterter-
rorism at the University, focuses
on gathering empirical data and is
a primary researcher for the Global
Jihadist Database Project, which
aims to produce a searchable body
of information for research use.
Justin Magouirk, a University
alum who is now executive direc-
tor of the Global Jihadist Database
Project, said the campus environ-
ment offers several benefits for ter-
rorism research.
"An advantage of universities
conducting research is that it is less
partisan-driven than think-tanks,"
Magouirk said.
He said another advantage for
universities is they can conduct
long-term research, which enables
them to find patterns in violence
over time.
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White House open to new
ideas for Iraq war
WASHINGTON (AP) - tone, days after a dissatisfied
Responding to a humbling elec- public handed the White House a
tion, White House aides said divided government.
yesterday that President Bush "Full speed ahead" in Iraq, as
would welcome new ideas about Vice President Dick Cheney put it
the unpopular war in Iraq, even in the final days of the campaign,
from Democrats he had branded was replaced by repeated calls
as soft on terrorism. for a "fresh perspective" and an
As Bush planned to meet today acknowledgment that "nobody
with a key advisory group on the can be happy" with the situation
war, his advisers adopted a new in Iraq.
Gain real world I
FRESHMEN! * BUILD YOUR
SOPHOMORES!
JUNIORS RESU E E
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Come by and pick up an application at the
Student Publications Building TODAY!!
Student Publications Building /
413 E. Huron
Applications Due: November 14, 2006
Call 734-764-0554 for more information
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