Third time lucky....
It is morning and I have made it to White City in West London, an area colonised by the 91Èȱ¬. This is something of an achievement given that it took three attempts to board a tube train, any tube train, before I finally squeezed on. Not a task for the faint-hearted...
Anyway... our regular morning meeting begins at 11am GMT, so if you have any suggestions of news stories or talking points in your area, please get in touch as soon as possible. We will consider all ideas in our meetings before we decide what will make the programme tonight.
Here are some of my suggestions....
%3Ca%20href="https://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/2/hi/south_asia/6061184.stm">Sri Lanka tourist city port hit - Tamil Tiger rebels carry out a suicide attack on a naval base in the tourist city of Galle, the Sri Lankan military says. On Monday, a bombing of a military convoy left 100 dead. There have been more than 2000 deaths this year so far and it appears to be getting worse. There are supposed to be peace talks next week in Switzerland, but is anyone committed to peace? Officially there is still a ceasefire, although many Sri Lankans would beg to differ, and both sides say they are 'acting defensively'... Can you suggest what both sides need to do to achieve peace? Get in touch below.
Another on-going conflict is in Sudan...the Janjaweed militia in Darfur are fighting with direct support and orders from Sudan's government, %3Ca%20href="https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6060976.stm">a man claiming to be a former member has told the 91Èȱ¬ . He isn't the only one, %3Ca%20href="https://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-2409336,00.html">"Dily" has been speaking to the Times newspaper in London. He claims to have been a member of the notorious Janjaweed militia in Sudan, backed by the Sudanese government to burn villages and kill their inhabitants in Darfur.
All of this, if true, completely contradicts the Sudanese government's version of events - i.e. that they have never backed any militia to attack any Darfurians. These claims should then strengthen arguments that the UN should go in, regardless of any objections from the Sudanese government. And where is the African Union in all of this? They have troops on the ground and have done so for 3 years. Has it made any difference? Is the African Union and its force, as many %3Ca%20href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/15/AR2006101500655.html">refugees claim, a joke? Send us your comments and don't forget to send a number (we won't publish this though!)
The third conflict I'd like to talk about is Iraq, we did do it %3Ca%20href="/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2006/10/tuesdays_on_air_discussion_1.html">yesterday and had such a huge response that maybe it is worth revisiting. Yesterday we asked if Iraq would be better off partitioned, but today I'd like to move it on a bit: What other alternatives there are to the crisis? A panel of experts in the US has been looking at this very question, and one of the possible solutions to emerge %3Ca%20href="https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6060544.stm">is involving Iran and Syria more in efforts to stabilise Iraq. The US has always been against their involvement, but may be beginning to realise that it may now help, or as Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld put it last night
It is quite clear that neither Iran, nor Syria, have been helpful. It obviously would be vastly better from the standpoint of the Iraqi people were they to be at least not unhelpful, as a start. But they have been unhelpful.
%3Ca%20href="https://www.gizmag.com/go/6335/">The Whaling debate intensifies - Iceland has begun hunting whales after a 20 year pause. It has raised hackles all over the world - but the question is, in a world of fish-eaters, why are whales so special? They do provide more meat per animal than any other fish, and some species are not exactly going extinct - so what's the problem? Why don't people get so upset about the cod, which is %3Ca%20href="https://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-2408526,00.html">under serious threat?
Several high-ranking Nigerian officials %3Ca%20href="https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6058858.stm">condemn the impeachment of a state governor - Is Nigeria finally cleaning up? Or is this a political witchhunt ahead of next year's elections?
%3Ca%20href="https://www.digitaljournal.com/article/40225/File_Sharers_Face_the_Music_With_a_Fresh_Wave_of_Lawsuits">Music industry unleashes 8,000 new lawsuits - FILE SHARERS beware, because the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry has just today filed 8,000 lawsuits targeting you.
and many of you are emailing this article to your friends:
%3Ca%20href="https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/6057734.stm?lsm">Human species 'may split in two' - Humanity may split into two sub-species in 100,000 years' time as predicted by HG Wells, an expert has said. An elite and a troglodyte underclass... Which one would you rather belong to?
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%3Ca%20href="%3Ca%20href="https://www.unison.ie/worldnews/stories.php3?ca=31&si=1707565">US warns against second nuclear test">American satellite pictures and officials in Japan and South Korea suggested there had been "suspicious vehicle movements" around the first test site, near North Korea's north-eastern city of Kilju.
Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho %3Ca%20href="%3Ca%20href="https://www.4thegame.com/club/cfc/news/195035/jose_hails_cech_progress.html">Jose hails Cech progress">says that injured goalkeeper Petr Cech is making progress after undergoing surgery on the fractured skull he suffered against Reading
%3Ca%20href="%3Ca%20href="https://news.independent.co.uk/world/politics/article1886648.ece">Bush and Blair isolated as criticism of war grows">George Bush and Tony Blair were looking more isolated than ever last night as the ground shifted further under their strategy of remaining in Iraq "until the job is done".
%3Ca%20href="https://www.theherald.co.uk/politics/72418.html">Blair backs suspension of veil woman
Tony Blair fuelled the debate on multiculturalism and integration in British society yesterday as he backed a local authority's decision to suspend a Muslim classroom assistant for refusing to remove her full face veil at school.
%3Ca%20href="https://www.itv.com/news/46160e9fb5d9132f695289dc1d5fc454.html">Madonna explains adoption
In an open letter, the star has explained the reasons behind the decision to take custody of the one year-old. The baby arrived at the London home Madonna shares with husband Guy Ritchie this morning and the singer is hoping to set the record straight.
%3Ca%20href="https://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-2406821,00.html">The future ascent (and descent) of man
HUMANITY could evolve into two sub-species within 100,000 years as social divisions produce a genetic underclass, a scientist said yesterday
