The statement, released Monday when programming was interrupted on North Korea’s state TV by a special report, comes amid rising tensions on the Korean peninsula.

Earlier this month, North Korea was unsuccessful in a long-range missile launch, prompting worries that North Korea may conduct another nuclear test. South Korean officials say new satellite images show that North Korea has been digging a tunnel in what appears to be preparation for a third atomic test.

According to the Associated Press, the statement from North Korea was unusual in promising something soon and in describing a specific period of time.

via North Korea issues unusually specific threat

Original Statement from the North Korea News Agency

Pyongyang, April 22 (KCNA) — A spokesman for the DPRK Foreign Ministry Sunday issued the follow statement:
Prevailing on the Korean Peninsula is such emergency situation that the Lee Myung Bak group of traitors’ confrontation hysteria has gone beyond a tolerance limit and should not be allowed to go on any longer.

The despicable group which has committed the worst evils went the lengths of recklessly hurting the dignity of the supreme leadership of the DPRK again.

It is the unanimous human nature and noble sentiment in the world to regard the cherished mental mainstay as dignity dearer than one’s own life and not to tolerate any act of hurting it.

It is, at the same time, the universally accepted morality to respect the dignity of the supreme leadership of each country and nation irrespective of idea, system, religion and political view.

Traitor Lee Myung Bak, however, let loose a string of such malignant invectives that can be uttered only by a shark that the north might spend a ridiculous amount of money for the celebrations of the centenary of the birth of President Kim Il Sung and that amount of fund would be enough to buy a large quantity of food. This was, indeed, a hideous provocative act of seriously hurting the noble feelings of the Korean people.

The centenary of the birth of Kim Il Sung, the benefactor of the national resurrection, the great sage of mankind and the eternal President of the DPRK, is the greatest holiday of the nation in history and the great jubilee in human history.

Lee is no more than human scum of the times as he so malignantly desecrated this significant holiday, far from congratulating the compatriots in the north on it.

It is certain that he went through an ill-famed course before being reduced to human scum.

Looking back on history, it was none other than Lee who drove the inter-Korean relations into the lowest ebb though they had developed thanks to the growing desire for reunification after the publication of the June 15 joint declaration and he was the arch criminal who escalated only the tensions on the peninsula and in the region.

The group of traitors was busy with the groundless false propaganda that “the north was stockpiling food for feasts on the Day of the Sun,” not content with making desperate efforts to deter the international moves for food aid to the DPRK last year. At that time we had already branded him as an underwit.

The service personnel and people of the DPRK are shaking with irrepressible resentment at the group which defamed the father of the nation whom they are holding in high esteem as the sun. They are now eagerly waiting for the issue of an order so that they may mercilessly punish the traitor.

Loud shouts of slogan “Let us beat to death the group of rat-like Lee Myung Bak” are also heard even from the women of the country known as a country of courteous people in the East from olden times.

As the Lee group is making last-ditch efforts to seek a way out in escalated confrontation with fellow countrymen, the service personnel and people unanimously hold that this group should be eradicated as early as possible for being a cancer-like entity disturbing the peace and stability in the peninsula and the region.

The situation on the peninsula is so tense that it may go beyond control due to the desperate frenzy of the traitor on the deathbed.

In view of the prevailing situation, the DPRK Foreign Ministry solemnly declares that in case something happens on the peninsula now, the responsibility will entirely rest with traitor Lee.

If any country intends to interfere in the internal affairs of the Korean nation under the pretext of being an ally or partner, patronizing the above-said human scum which wantonly violates human ethics and morality, it will not be able to escape the strikes of the extremely infuriated service personnel and people of the DPRK.

 Via KOREAN CENTRAL NEWS AGENCY of DPRK.

By Ari Rabinovitch

JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israel’s energy sector will be hurt in the short term by Egypt’s decision to stop selling it natural gas, but the country has been weaning itself off the once-crucial supplies and has a number of contingency plans that will lessen the impact.

Sunday’s announcement that Egyptian state-owned oil and gas companies would stop the gas sales, which were part of a 20-year deal, was the dramatic conclusion to a year of sabotage and pipeline attacks that had already disrupted supplies.

“It’s an unfortunate announcement, but in no way is it a surprise. It sums up a reality that has existed for more than a year,” Israeli Energy Minister Uzi Landau told Reuters.

“Nearly two years now we have been preparing for a halt in supplies. So, while it causes great discomfort and will bring a rise in energy prices, Israel has been developing its energy market without depending on this gas,” he said.

The gas deal, signed in 2005, was the most significant economic agreement to emerge from the historic Israeli-Egyptian peace treaty of 1979.

But ties have been strained since Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, an advocate of the peace deal, was toppled by a popular revolt last year.

To avoid further tension, Israel’s leaders have described Egypt’s move to stop supplying gas as a business, rather than diplomatic, decision. Egyptian officials also said ending the contract was a trade issue.

Gas from Egypt once accounted for about 40 percent of Israel’s reserves of natural gas, the country’s primary energy source. But with pipeline attacks in Egypt’s Sinai peninsula stopping flows for most of 2012, Israel has looked elsewhere.

Its own newly discovered reserves from huge offshore gas fields will secure Israel’s energy needs for decades, even making it an exporter, but the first field, Tamar, will only come on line around April 2013. The even larger Leviathan prospect is due to begin production around 2017.

STOP-GAP SOLUTIONS

In the meantime, the government is rushing construction of an off-shore liquefied natural gas terminal to receive imports, has told exploration firms to speed up drilling on smaller, more accessible fields, and is planning to import a fleet of portable generators to prevent blackouts this summer.

Israel’s electric utility – without Egyptian gas and with the country’s sole working gas field nearly depleted – has turned to more expensive and dirtier fuels like diesel and fuel oil, causing electricity prices to surge.

The mostly underwater pipeline at the centre of the matter was built and is operated by the Eastern Mediterranean Gas Co (EMG), whose shareholders include Egypt Natural Gas Co, Thai energy giant PTT, U.S. businessman Sam Zell, Israel’s Merhav and Ampal-American Israel Corp.

In 2010, EMG provided 2.5 billion cubic meters (BCM) of gas to Israeli customers. But that number was expected to more than double throughout the 20-year deal.

Once the pipeline attacks began, Ampal, together with PTT and Zell, took legal action against the Egyptian government, seeking $8 billion in damages for not safeguarding their investment.

One official with knowledge of the affair told Reuters, on condition of anonymity, that Egypt’s latest decision could be a manoeuvre to help it in the legal proceedings.

Ampal’s stock closed down 19.2 percent in Tel Aviv to 0.775 shekels, a new 52-week low.

In the past year, with supplies from Egypt stopped for more than 200 days, Israeli power plants and major industrial players have signed multi-billion dollar contracts to buy gas from the offshore Tamar field.

So Sunday’s announcement was a good one for the Tamar consortium, led by Texas-based Noble Energy and Israel’s Delek Energy, said UBS analyst Roni Biron.

“Most companies are not looking at Egypt as a reliable source of gas due to the repeated attacks on the pipeline and the geopolitical landscape, so you can’t base a work plan on such unpredictable gas flows,” he said.

(Additional reporting by Steven Scheer; Editing by Tova Cohen and Helen Massy-Beresford)

Made by Dutch electronics giant Philips, the bulb swaps filaments for light-emitting diodes to provide illumination.

Using LEDs endows the light with a long life and a hefty price tag. The first versions are set to cost $60

Philips has arranged discounts with shops that will sell the bulb meaning some could buy it for only $20

Production ban

The bulb triumphed in the Bright Tomorrow competition run by the US Department of Energy that aimed to find an energy efficient alternative to the 60-watt incandescent light bulb.

The DoE challenged firms to develop a design that gave out a warm light similar to that from an incandescent bulbs but was much more energy efficient.

Philips was the only entrant for the competition and its design underwent 18 months of testing before being declared a winner.

via BBC News – US introduces $60 LED light bulb.

$60 Light Bulbs For Earth Day!

“Because the new bulb is 83 percent more energy efficient than the standard 60-watt incandescent, consumers can now experience new savings for their pocketbooks,” Philips’ North America executive Ed Crawford said in announcing rebates.

International Earth Day, now in its 42nd year, was celebrated by environmentalists Sunday seeking to bring attention to climate change and pollution, and highlight ways to save energy.

President Barack Obama issued a US proclamation for the day to “reflect on the challenges that remain,” and confront the “most urgent environmental issues and rallied around a single message: the success of future generations depends upon how we act today.”

via $60 Light Bulbs For Earth Day!.

Technorati Tags: $60, 60 dollar, bulb, competition, design, DoE, Earth Day, efficient, Energy, incandescent, Light, Obama bulb, Obama light bulb, philips, sixty dollar light bulb

Post Published: 22 April 2012
Author: politisite
Found in section: Gadgets, Green, Green, Technology, Top Story, Trending, U.S. Politics

Tags: $60, 60 dollar, bulb, competition, design, DoE, Earth Day, efficient, Energy, incandescent, Light, Obama bulb, Obama light bulb, philips, sixty dollar light bulb

Made by Dutch electronics giant Philips, the bulb swaps filaments for light-emitting diodes to provide illumination.

Using LEDs endows the light with a long life and a hefty price tag. The first versions are set to cost $60

Philips has arranged discounts with shops that will sell the bulb meaning some could buy it for only $20

Production ban

The bulb triumphed in the Bright Tomorrow competition run by the US Department of Energy that aimed to find an energy efficient alternative to the 60-watt incandescent light bulb.

The DoE challenged firms to develop a design that gave out a warm light similar to that from an incandescent bulbs but was much more energy efficient.

Philips was the only entrant for the competition and its design underwent 18 months of testing before being declared a winner.

via BBC News – US introduces $60 LED light bulb.

$60 Light Bulbs For Earth Day!

“Because the new bulb is 83 percent more energy efficient than the standard 60-watt incandescent, consumers can now experience new savings for their pocketbooks,” Philips’ North America executive Ed Crawford said in announcing rebates.

International Earth Day, now in its 42nd year, was celebrated by environmentalists Sunday seeking to bring attention to climate change and pollution, and highlight ways to save energy.

President Barack Obama issued a US proclamation for the day to “reflect on the challenges that remain,” and confront the “most urgent environmental issues and rallied around a single message: the success of future generations depends upon how we act today.”

via $60 Light Bulbs For Earth Day!.

Technorati Tags: $60, 60 dollar, bulb, competition, design, DoE, Earth Day, efficient, Energy, incandescent, Light, Obama bulb, Obama light bulb, philips, sixty dollar light bulb

Post Published: 22 April 2012
Author: politisite
Found in section: Gadgets, Green, Green, Technology, Top Story, Trending, U.S. Politics

Tags: $60, 60 dollar, bulb, competition, design, DoE, Earth Day, efficient, Energy, incandescent, Light, Obama bulb, Obama light bulb, philips, sixty dollar light bulb

As Karl notes: ”PolitiFact rated the story about the Romneys transporting the family dog on the roof of their car as ‘Mostly True.’ And PolitiFact rated the story about former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee frying squirrels in a popcorn poppersimply ‘True.’” But in tackling the topic of President Obama’s boyhood appetite, even though the item is in the web site’s “Truth-O-Meter” directory (URL — www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2012/apr/20/context-obama-dog-eating-indonesia/), it kept the Truth-O-Meter in the closet, and only lamely reproduced some of the verbiage from Obama’s Dreams of My Father, introduced by the following narrative (original was in italics; internal links were in original):

In context: Obama’s comments on eating dog in Indonesia

Supporters of Mitt Romney and Barack Obama have been sparring about dogs. Obama supporters have noted that Romney drove the family car with his dog Seamus attached to the top in a crate. Romney supporters have been saying lately that Obama has acknowledged eating dog when he was a boy in Indonesia. For today’s installment of our In Context series, we’ll explore what Obama has said.

The account comes from Obama’s autobiography, Dreams from My Father, which includes an account of his interactions with animals shortly after moving to Indonesia. Obama lived there between 1967 and 1971 – when he was 6  to 10 years old — during his mother’s marriage to Lolo Soetoro, an Indonesian-born student she had met at the University of Hawaii.

Politifact’s Louis Jacobson acts as if it’s only “Romney supporters” who are “saying” that “Obama has acknowledged eating dog when he was a boy” — almost as if no one else could possibly be doing so, and almost as if there’s any legitimate doubt that he did. “In context” (the words in Jacobson’s headline) — What about “I was introduced to dog meat (tough), snake meat (tougher), and roasted grasshopper (crunchy)” doesn’t he understand?

via BizzyBlog.

Technorati Tags: Dog, dog eat dog, eat, eating, Indonesia, Obama, Obama’s, Politifact