Iphones in Afghanistan?

From the Al-Jazeera Web site: http://english.aljazeera.net/focus/2009/02/200928133747620542.html

Mullah Salaam Zaif*, a former member of the Taliban in Afghanistan, lives under house arrest at his home in Kabul. During a recent interview by the Reuters news service, Zaif produced an iPhone from his pocket and went to town.

A quotation from the Al-Jazeera posting explains why this is newsworthy: "During Taliban rule, which ended when the US and its allies rolled in and took control of Kabul in 2001, the leadership had banned just about anything associated with modern technology.

There were no televisions, no computers, no radios, no music and though iPhones were not around back then, they most certainly would not have been allowed."

When asked about his iPhone, Zaif responded as most people who own the device would: "I'm addicted," he said, "the internet is great on this, very fast."

It is certainly interesting that someone who might be considered an "enemy" of the U.S. would be so jazzed about using technologies that come from his former rival.

What might foreign acceptance of U.S. technologies signal for U.S. foreign relations? Is the iPhone awesome enough to win the hearts and minds of U.S. enemies around the world? What do y'all think?

Mr. Davidson


*Mullah Salaam Zaif is not this man's three-part name. Mullah is in fact a title of some kind. A token goes to the first person who comments or makes a new post explaining (correctly) what a mullah is.

New assignment

Howdy bloggers,

As we discussed in class the week before last, I'd like our newest blog posts to be on one of the following topics:

1) Obama's first 100 days
2) Economic stimulus package (or anything economy-related)
3) Iran, North Korea, or Iraq
4) Afghanistan
5) The Middle East

Other topics are acceptable, just run them by me before posting your story.

Y'all have made some great posts so far, and I look forward to seeing more in the future!

Keep up the good work,

Mr. Davidson

Seattle Airports are safe from Birds

A bird biologist, Steve Osmek created a radar that tracks birds. Bird are dangerous to air planes because they get stuck in the plane's turbines, which causes the plane to fall. It's like a mouse and an elephant. So if you ever land safely in a Seattle airport thank Steve Osmek.

sources are:CNN.com

An Instant Star

A 19-year old simply asked Obama a question and got a job offer and many other goodies including health care, refundable tax, and more. Barack Obama also complimented the fact that he's been working so hard at his job he had at McDonald's, flipping burgers, which pays only $7.85 an hour. This lucky man named Osegueda must be happy to take anything he gets. He also got another offer. A one-day event as the announcer for the Fort Meyers baseball team excites him. "I'll be ready," he said to the offer. For the video go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m1m_k2dCj0M&eurl=http://content.usatoday.com/communities/theoval/post/2009/02/62687523/1?se=yahoorefer&feature=player_embedded


My source: yahoo.com

Massive serpentine monster!

60 million years ago, after the dinosaurs, lived a relative of modern boa constrictors. He weighed over a ton, was 42 ft long, ate crocodiles, and lived in Northern South America! We found it's fossils- vertebrae from a coal mine in NE Columbia. It  happens to be the largest snake ever discovered. the existence of a large snake showed the tropic must have been hot. This is an amazing discovery!

Lake Cleanup by Marielle

Friends' lake cleanup ends with frustration

By Mark Lisheron
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF

Wednesday, February 04, 2009

Misty Chamberlain and April Miller are these two girls that wanted to do something for their community. So they went to Lake Marble Falls. Since it was dry, they picked up all the trash that they could find. They filled up two trash bags with cans and bottles, and put the rest of the stuff in a big pile next to the shore. Then they went to the police station to see who could pick it up, because it was too heavy for them, The lady at the front desk said that she would call the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, But when Misty saw the trash was still there, she went to the Marble Falls Chamber of Commerce, and they told her to go to lots of different places. But everyone that she spoke to said that they weren't responsible for that type of trash.


"I liked the idea that my friend and I were making a difference, I can't believe they'd just cover all this up with water. But right now I'm so done with trying to find out who is responsible for picking this stuff up," said Misty. I think that I would get very frustrated if I couldn't find anyone to pick up the trash that I cleaned out of a lake. I hope they find someone to pick it up soon. What they did was good. They worked hard and they helped the environment.

Painter vs. Law: a Painting with no Copyright.

A man named Shepard Fairey painted a portrait of Obama. It looks cool. One signed portrait made thousands of dollars on ebay. It inspired many people to create signs. However, it was a version that looked just like a photo of Obama. He used it to look at while he painted it. You must have permission to use that photo. Unfortunately, he didn't, so he should be in a lot of trouble. The AP confirmed that they owned the copyright. Fairey disagrees. They're currently working out the problem hoping to find a good solution. "We believe fair use protects Shepard's right to do what he did here," says Fairey's attorney, Anthony Falzone. Maybe they can compromise, workout a deal. On Fairey's side, he isn't exactly copying it, and he could have not acknowledged it at all. It was nice of him to acknowledge them and he should get to continue although maybe he should pay part of it. Where do you stand?

The Power of Common Sense

Obama wants common sense! Our 44th president has called for common sense and a $500,000 salary cap for top executives who have been affected by the federal bailout. Obama said,"We all need to take responsibility." He also repeated that the dudes on Wall Street are showing complete irresponsibility. Seriously, I agree with Obama. It's about time for Wall Street to show some "common sense."

Green Energy NOT Good for Workers

The Obama admenistration whants to millions of "green" jobs but a recent survay shows the downsides of these. The survay shows that people working at Walmart probibly gety payed less than people that work at solar and wind energy plants. The smallest pay was found at a recycling plant and was 8.25  dollers an hour. The avrege for wind and solar plants was $18.88. My sorce was "Reuters.com". -Ivy

21 police officers killed by a Suicide Bomber

Tuesday, February 3, 2009 in Afghanistan a suicide bomber, snuck in a police compound in a police uniform. The bomber detonated a very powerful explosive that killed 21 police officers. It also wounded 12 other police officers. The Taliban terrorist group claimed they committed the crime. The Taliban's have been targeting the police for about two years because they think there easy targets compared to the Western troops.                                                                                                                                                                                

                  source is Statesmen.com

Transparent President by Marielle

Obama's transparency push could lead to more official Web resources, blogs

Carla Thornton, The Industry Standard, 01.22.2009

Did you ever think that your president was not being as truthful as he could be?  Well, now you don't have to feel like that for a long, long time.  On the first day of his presidency, Barack Obama promised to make things public as much as he can because he doesn't want to keep secrets from people.  Marcia Hofmann, staff attorney for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, said, "On the whole, it's an incredibly positive development and in line with the guidelines we asked for."  I agree.  A president that keeps secrets doesn't make the people feel like he is trustworthy.  

Meredith Fuchs, general counsel for the National Security Archive, said she "expects Obama to push e-mail and require agencies to post more information on their sites, including blogs."

I am so happy that Barack Obama is not keeping secrets like Bush was, and I hope he keeps his promise forever.