| Campaigning in hard times
Indeed, in the tight race now unfolding, Democratic strategists exude calm certitude that, barring a catastrophic world event, the Republicans are toast. "All the fundamentals point to the Democrats winning the White House," says veteran party pollster Mark Mellman, who predicted that Michael Dukakis would lose in 1988 even when midsummer polls showed him 17 points up. The reason: a strong Reagan economy. The calculus isn't always so clear-cut. Consider a few recent exceptions: In 2000 the economy was tipping toward recession - the dot-com stock bubble began bursting in March - but no one thought Al Gore, the incumbent-party candidate and winner of the popular vote, suffered for it. Two years later the economy was still recovering from the 2001 recession, yet President Bush's Republicans enjoyed unprecedented gains in the congressional midterm elections as a new threat, terrorism, trumped economic concerns.
BUSINESS AND THE ENVIRONMENT: Grocers bag plastic sacks Flimsy ...
Ask her about plastic bags. As University Medical Center nurse Kim Hofstad loaded her pickup with groceries from Smith's Food & Drug on Rancho Drive on Wednesday afternoon, she talked about why she refuses to cart her food home in plastic sacks. Part of it is convenience: Paper bags simply fit better in Hofstad's kitchen garbage can. But Hofstad also deplores the environmental fallout of ubiquitous plastic film. .
Henry K. Lee
Jurors have long been sent home. Under questioning by defense attorney William Du Bois, Fraga said he was surprised that Alameda County didn't have a more structured process to interview children that would avoid common pitfalls and the risk of traumatizing them. Fraga continued to testify at a rapid clip at times, or in a monotone that made his answers disappear into the mike. Court reporter Annie Mendiola again told him to slow down. "I'm still talking fast?" asked Fraga, sounding surprised. Moments later, as he read from something, he read super-fast. "Please, please, please, slow down," Du Bois told him. "It's in the record," Fraga said, referring to the text. But the judge told him Mendiola didn't have access to what he was reading from and that if she didn't take down what he was saying, no one would.
Mohamed teddy bear teacher, Gillian Gibbons, is spared lash but gets ...
Ms Gibbons will have to rely on wellwishers bringing her food and water. David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, said he was "extremely disappointed" with the sentence and summoned Omer Siddig, the Sudanese Ambassador, to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to explain the decision. Mr Miliband said: "We are extremely disappointed that the charges against Gillian Gibbons were not dismissed. Our clear view is that this is an innocent misunderstanding by a dedicated teacher. Our priority now is to ensure Ms Gibbons’s welfare." He said he wanted to discuss "the next steps" with his Sudanese counterpart. .
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