The General News Thread (formerly "Minor Headlines")

[Dong Zhou]

Romania’s parliament has voted to impeach/suspend President Traian Basescu on the grounds he is taking the powers of the Prime Minister when he pushed through austerity measures demanded for an IMF loan ver the objections of Prime Minister Victor Ponta. Also influencing judges and racism, Senate Speaker Crin Antonescu steps in till the referendum is done. Ponta has been accused of undermining democratic safeguards, sacking both speakers and the ombudsman, undermining the Constitutional court, as well as accusations he plagiarized his PHD. Ponta has said he and his family have been threatened.

Clearly some long term issues about checks+balances vs need to push things through sometimes and clearly issues over powers of President vs Prime Minister but short term, could be very nasty whatever the result.

[Zhuanyong]

New York mom faces murder charges for allegedly poisoning 2 kids to get back at cheating husband

When I first saw this report a few days back it made me sick to my stomach. I mean, I can see a person snapping and doing that to the person who brought that kind of pain to them but to two innocent children? It definitely puts a new kind of sick, demented, and twisted to retribution for me.

[Dong Zhou]

Seems a new constitution for Zimbabwe has been agreed and is set to go to a referendum. Clauses include the President losing his rights to declare war, dissolve parliament or hold office for more than ten years. Also includes giving increased powers to provincial governing councils. Expected to be elections following the referendum and an tentative easing of sanctions

IMF suggests Japan really needs to learn that females can work too

[Alicanto]

IMF suggests Japan really needs to learn that females can work too

Greece suggests Germany really needs to learn that jobs in the public sector can be well-paid too.
Gaddafi suggests Spain really needs to learn that the artillery can be used to stop mass protests too.
Brazil suggests Europe really needs to learn that to make way for biofuel production you can cut down forests too.
Idi Amin suggests Western countries really need to learn that political opponents can be a source of protein too.
Robert Mugabe suggests... Ok, that's enough.

[Dong Zhou]

Enrique Pena Nieto accused of electoral fraud with his opponent Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador appealing to the courts about the 7% defeat in the Mexican Presidential elections.

Veteran politician Pranab Mukherjee becomes President of India

[Dong Zhou]

-Allegations a man set off a fire in a nuclear submarine as he wanted to get off work early. Might be an issue of mental problems rather then as bad as it sounds.

-Sansha is China's newest city but is also in disputed territory so the Philippines have refused to recognize it.

-India has temporarily banned Tiger tourism

-Ghana President and former hockey international John Atta has died, his vice president John Mahama has been sworn in.

-Hugo Chávez urges people to drink state company Corpozulia's grape juice: Uvita rather then drink Coke. Also refuses to stop his special broadcasts during the election camapign

[Dong Zhou]

-First sporting day of the 2012 Olympics and already a massive error. The woman's football/soccer match between North Korea and Columbia was held up for over an hour as somebody in Glasgow's Hampden Park, which hosts Scotland's games so should be experienced at this, used the South Korean flag when showing the N.Korean lineup on the big screens. The team refused to play till this was rectified.

-Golden Dawn starts a Greek only blood drive and after one of their MP's Nikitas Siois steps down due to heavy workload, despite rumors that he is otherwise unemployed, Nazi punk rocker Artemis Matthaiopoulos comes in. The friend of the party leader's daughter once sung about burning down Parliament.

-The death of Cuban political activist Oswaldo Payá has descended into accusations of assassination by the government and trouble flaring up at his funeral.

-Kenya’s Education Minister Mutula Kilonzo threatens to sue journalists as he ends up in the middle of a skirt war.

-Eva Perón to become first woman on Argentinian banknotes, replacing Julio Argentino Roca on new 100 pesos notes.

-Greek triple jumper Voula Papachristou expelled from Olympic team for racist tweets.

-The ban on the Mombasa Republican Council has been overturned by the courts, the Kenyan government plans to appeal.

[Dong Zhou]

-First sporting day of the 2012 Olympics and already a massive error. The woman's football/soccer match between North Korea and Columbia was held up for over an hour as somebody in Glasgow's Hampden Park, which hosts Scotland's games so should be experienced at this, used the South Korean flag when showing the N.Korean lineup on the big screens. The team refused to play till this was rectified.

The second day sees the Swansea and Wales international Joe Allan put down as English in the offical program. They also see Ukraine and Armenia as regions of Russia

-Romney's visit to Britain going down really badly.

-Harriet Harman, champion of woman's rights, has declared it impossible to be a Tory and a feminist. Sometimes, she really doesn't help herself.

-Former Romanian Prime Minister Adrian Nastase, adviser to the current Prime Minister, has been jailed for two years for corruption.

-The World Bank warns that Palestine's finances are not yet strong enough to support it's own institutions with civil servants unpaid in July.

-Netherlands suspends aid to Rwanda, US does a token cut, due to allegations Rwanda is backing rebels in Democratic Republic of Congo

[LuXunMaster102]

Romney's visit to Britain going down really badly

I've heard quite a few whispers about that disastrous Romney ad venture in Britain. However, Im not really sure what he did to offend the British and Im to lazy to look it up. Do you care to elaborate upon what happened?:D

[Dong Zhou]

Romney's visit to Britain going down really badly

I've heard quite a few whispers about that disastrous Romney ad venture in Britain. However, Im not really sure what he did to offend the British and Im to lazy to look it up. Do you care to elaborate upon what happened?:D

Said we weren't ready/willing to hold the Olympics, broke protocol, called Miliband "Mr Leader", revealing talks with the head of MI6 and bad choice of words to describe the rear of Downing Street. Rumours are, didn't leave a very good impression on the Conservatives though their views on him were not as warm as some might have expected anyway.

Mostly of it is the Olympic comment, though in fairness we have seen some early disasters and we did grumble a lot about it, with every error seized upon after that.