WASHINGTON (AFP) - New US President Barack Obama gave notice Tuesdsay that an era of economic "greed and irresponsibility" is over as he pledged swift and bold action to kickstart the world's biggest economy.
Warning the nation cannot long prosper "when it favors only the prosperous," the new president told the cheering crowds that "everywhere we look, there is work to be done.
"Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age," Obama said in his inaugural speech.
"Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet."
The way forward, the new president pledged, was to act now.
"The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act -- not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth.
"We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together."
In the runup to his inauguration, Obama warned of a "tough year" ahead and a recession that will linger for much longer unless Congress takes "dramatic" action on his mammoth stimulus plan.
The US Senate has set the stage for an early victory for the new president by freeing up the second 350-billion-dollar slice of a financial bailout, leaving the House of Representatives to act this week.
Democratic House leaders also laid out their 825-billion-dollar version of Obama's stimulus plan, which he hopes to drive through Congress in a first jolt to the crisis-mired economy.
The president-elect said he was glad Congress had seen the "urgency" of action to act on the stimulus bill, which he hopes to have on his desk in the Oval Office by mid-February.
The package, designed to create or preserve three to four million jobs in the sinking US economy, includes billions of dollars to spark a fast track development of alternative energy industries and sources.
"Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions -- who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans," Obama said in his speech, in answer to concerns from some Republican lawmakers who oppose big government.
Dismissing them as "stale political arguments," he said "the question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works."
He also promised to hold to account those who manage tax dollars in order to restore trust between the people and the government.
"Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill," he said, apparently seeking to deflect fears raised during the campaign that he leaned toward socialism.
"Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control -- and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous," he said.
The first African-American president underlined the importance of spreading wealth by extending "opportunity to every willing heart" as part of sound economic policy, rather than charity.
Showing posts with label News. Show all posts
Showing posts with label News. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Obama becomes U.S. president and turns page on Bush years
By Steve Holland and Caren Bohan
WASHINGTON - Barack Obama took power as the first black U.S. president on Tuesday and quickly turned the page on the Bush years, urging Americans to rally to end the worst economic crisis in generations and repair the U.S. image abroad.
"Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America," Obama said, addressing an exuberant sea of people in an inaugural speech that was optimistic but realistic about the challenges ahead.
He pledged bold and swift action to bring new life to the U.S. economy and declared to millions watching abroad: "We are ready to lead once more."
Underscoring the tough road ahead, Wall Street ushered in the new presidency with a record Inauguration Day slide amid signs the global banking crisis was far from over.
Hundreds of thousands of people erupted in cheers on Washington's National Mall grounds as they watched Obama stand with one hand raised, one hand on a Bible used to swear in Abraham Lincoln in 1861, and repeat the brief oath to become the 44th U.S. president.
Beaming, the new president kissed his wife, Michelle, and his school-age daughters, Malia and Sasha. Then he turned to the crowds stretching into the distance on a cold, wintry day.
"Obama, Obama," the crowd cheered.
Obama, a Democrat, succeeded Republican George W. Bush, who served two terms and left office having plumbed record lows in approval ratings and leaving a legacy of two wars and an economy in recession.
Obama offered a sharp break from Bush, emphasizing the need for sacrifice and pledging to restore U.S. global standing, responsibly end the war in Iraq, and focus less on the size of government and more on whether it works.
WALKING SOME OF THE WAY
During a triumphant ride down Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House in a heavily armoured limousine, Obama and his wife thrilled wildly cheering crowds by getting out of the limo and walking a part of the way on foot.
Security personnel -- part of a contingent that numbered in the thousands -- kept close watch.
Obama has to hit the ground running given the state of the economy and the U.S. Senate confirmed several key Obama appointments, including Steven Chu as energy secretary and Tom Vilsack for agriculture.
The Senate Finance Committee is expected to vote on Timothy Geithner as treasury secretary on Thursday. Hillary Clinton, Obama's fierce rival for the Democratic presidential nomination and his choice as secretary of state, is expected to be approved by the full Senate on Wednesday.
The inauguration of Obama, 47, the son of a black Kenyan father and a white mother from Kansas, was steeped in symbolism for African-Americans, who for generations suffered slavery and then racial segregation that made them second-class citizens.
The jubilant mood was jolted by the collapse of Massachusetts Democratic Senator Edward Kennedy at an inaugural lunch honouring Obama on Capitol Hill. Kennedy, 76, who underwent surgery in June for a brain tumour, appeared to suffer convulsions, a congressional aide said.
Wheeled out on a stretcher, the brother of the late President John F. Kennedy was driven away by an ambulance to a hospital, where he was described as awake and answering questions.
BRACING FOR REALITY
Polls show widespread U.S. public support for Obama and optimism about the coming four years of his presidency. But Obama sought to temper soaring expectations with reality.
The new president cited the worst U.S. economic conditions in 70 years and the Iraq and Afghanistan wars as having put the country in crisis. "What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility," he said.
He said the "badly weakened" U.S. economy will be a top priority as he works with the Democratic-controlled U.S. Congress on an estimated $825 billion economic stimulus package.
The economy had fallen victim to "greed and irresponsibility" and an avoidance of hard choices, Obama said. The economic crisis showed that markets can spin out of control "without a watchful eye," he added, signalling he would put a priority on revamping financial regulations.
Obama will meet his senior economic advisers on Wednesday to discuss the stimulus plan.
Turning to foreign policy and the standing of the United States abroad, Obama vowed the United States would leave Iraq "responsibly" and help Afghanistan win a hard-earned peace.
He did not provide a specific timetable for a U.S. withdrawal from Iraq, but under a U.S.-Iraqi agreement, U.S. troops would depart by the end of 2011. Obama has pledged to increase U.S. troop strength in Afghanistan to turn back a resurgent Taliban.
He was due to meet military commanders on Wednesday to discuss the possibility of accelerating the U.S. troop withdrawal from Iraq, and the need for more forces in Afghanistan.
In a clear reference to harsh U.S. interrogation practices of terrorism suspects that have been widely condemned abroad, Obama vowed a change, saying he rejected as false "the choice between our safety and our ideals."
There has been broad world disapproval of many Bush policies in the U.S. war on terrorism that Bush declared after the September 11 attacks in 2001 that deeply shaped his eight years in office.
After years of tense relations with Muslims, Obama offered conciliatory words to the Islamic community, saying he would seek a "new way forward" based on mutual interest and mutual respect.
But on the issue of terrorism, he said: "You cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you."
Bush, his public approval ratings in the basement as the cheers for Obama resounded around the city, left Washington for his home state of Texas after the inauguration.
11 MILLION UNEMPLOYED
The recession has saddled the country with a $1 trillion deficit and 11 million people unemployed and has become the top concern of the U.S. public. Economic woes helped Obama beat Republican John McCain in the November presidential election.
"I don't care what colour he is," said Garrell Winstead, a 67-year-old real estate investor from Cincinnati, Ohio who was in Tuesday's crowd. "If the economy doesn't improve and if he doesn't create enough jobs, patience will evaporate."
Obama gave no specifics about his proposed stimulus package. But he said the plan that would pay for new roads, bridges, electrical grids and other projects would set the foundation for future growth.
He also repeated campaign promises to "restore science to its rightful place" -- the Bush administration was criticized for packing scientific advisory panels with industry representatives and ideologues. He also promised to put technology to work transforming healthcare, and action towards an alternative energy policy.
WASHINGTON - Barack Obama took power as the first black U.S. president on Tuesday and quickly turned the page on the Bush years, urging Americans to rally to end the worst economic crisis in generations and repair the U.S. image abroad.
"Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America," Obama said, addressing an exuberant sea of people in an inaugural speech that was optimistic but realistic about the challenges ahead.
He pledged bold and swift action to bring new life to the U.S. economy and declared to millions watching abroad: "We are ready to lead once more."
Underscoring the tough road ahead, Wall Street ushered in the new presidency with a record Inauguration Day slide amid signs the global banking crisis was far from over.
Hundreds of thousands of people erupted in cheers on Washington's National Mall grounds as they watched Obama stand with one hand raised, one hand on a Bible used to swear in Abraham Lincoln in 1861, and repeat the brief oath to become the 44th U.S. president.
Beaming, the new president kissed his wife, Michelle, and his school-age daughters, Malia and Sasha. Then he turned to the crowds stretching into the distance on a cold, wintry day.
"Obama, Obama," the crowd cheered.
Obama, a Democrat, succeeded Republican George W. Bush, who served two terms and left office having plumbed record lows in approval ratings and leaving a legacy of two wars and an economy in recession.
Obama offered a sharp break from Bush, emphasizing the need for sacrifice and pledging to restore U.S. global standing, responsibly end the war in Iraq, and focus less on the size of government and more on whether it works.
WALKING SOME OF THE WAY
During a triumphant ride down Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House in a heavily armoured limousine, Obama and his wife thrilled wildly cheering crowds by getting out of the limo and walking a part of the way on foot.
Security personnel -- part of a contingent that numbered in the thousands -- kept close watch.
Obama has to hit the ground running given the state of the economy and the U.S. Senate confirmed several key Obama appointments, including Steven Chu as energy secretary and Tom Vilsack for agriculture.
The Senate Finance Committee is expected to vote on Timothy Geithner as treasury secretary on Thursday. Hillary Clinton, Obama's fierce rival for the Democratic presidential nomination and his choice as secretary of state, is expected to be approved by the full Senate on Wednesday.
The inauguration of Obama, 47, the son of a black Kenyan father and a white mother from Kansas, was steeped in symbolism for African-Americans, who for generations suffered slavery and then racial segregation that made them second-class citizens.
The jubilant mood was jolted by the collapse of Massachusetts Democratic Senator Edward Kennedy at an inaugural lunch honouring Obama on Capitol Hill. Kennedy, 76, who underwent surgery in June for a brain tumour, appeared to suffer convulsions, a congressional aide said.
Wheeled out on a stretcher, the brother of the late President John F. Kennedy was driven away by an ambulance to a hospital, where he was described as awake and answering questions.
BRACING FOR REALITY
Polls show widespread U.S. public support for Obama and optimism about the coming four years of his presidency. But Obama sought to temper soaring expectations with reality.
The new president cited the worst U.S. economic conditions in 70 years and the Iraq and Afghanistan wars as having put the country in crisis. "What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility," he said.
He said the "badly weakened" U.S. economy will be a top priority as he works with the Democratic-controlled U.S. Congress on an estimated $825 billion economic stimulus package.
The economy had fallen victim to "greed and irresponsibility" and an avoidance of hard choices, Obama said. The economic crisis showed that markets can spin out of control "without a watchful eye," he added, signalling he would put a priority on revamping financial regulations.
Obama will meet his senior economic advisers on Wednesday to discuss the stimulus plan.
Turning to foreign policy and the standing of the United States abroad, Obama vowed the United States would leave Iraq "responsibly" and help Afghanistan win a hard-earned peace.
He did not provide a specific timetable for a U.S. withdrawal from Iraq, but under a U.S.-Iraqi agreement, U.S. troops would depart by the end of 2011. Obama has pledged to increase U.S. troop strength in Afghanistan to turn back a resurgent Taliban.
He was due to meet military commanders on Wednesday to discuss the possibility of accelerating the U.S. troop withdrawal from Iraq, and the need for more forces in Afghanistan.
In a clear reference to harsh U.S. interrogation practices of terrorism suspects that have been widely condemned abroad, Obama vowed a change, saying he rejected as false "the choice between our safety and our ideals."
There has been broad world disapproval of many Bush policies in the U.S. war on terrorism that Bush declared after the September 11 attacks in 2001 that deeply shaped his eight years in office.
After years of tense relations with Muslims, Obama offered conciliatory words to the Islamic community, saying he would seek a "new way forward" based on mutual interest and mutual respect.
But on the issue of terrorism, he said: "You cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you."
Bush, his public approval ratings in the basement as the cheers for Obama resounded around the city, left Washington for his home state of Texas after the inauguration.
11 MILLION UNEMPLOYED
The recession has saddled the country with a $1 trillion deficit and 11 million people unemployed and has become the top concern of the U.S. public. Economic woes helped Obama beat Republican John McCain in the November presidential election.
"I don't care what colour he is," said Garrell Winstead, a 67-year-old real estate investor from Cincinnati, Ohio who was in Tuesday's crowd. "If the economy doesn't improve and if he doesn't create enough jobs, patience will evaporate."
Obama gave no specifics about his proposed stimulus package. But he said the plan that would pay for new roads, bridges, electrical grids and other projects would set the foundation for future growth.
He also repeated campaign promises to "restore science to its rightful place" -- the Bush administration was criticized for packing scientific advisory panels with industry representatives and ideologues. He also promised to put technology to work transforming healthcare, and action towards an alternative energy policy.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
More than 1,000 species discovered in Mekong: WWF
For those who knows me well enough will know that I like animals and wildlife a lot. This news of new species been found just make me more excited to find out how these creatures look like. Extract from Yahoo news...
Scientists have discovered more than 1,000 species in Southeast Asia's Greater Mekong region in the past decade, including a spider as big as a dinner plate, the World Wildlife Fund said Monday.
A rat thought to have become extinct 11 million years ago and a cyanide-laced, shocking pink millipede were among creatures found in what the group called a "biological treasure trove".
The species were all found in the rainforests and wetlands along the Mekong River, which flows through Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and the southern Chinese province of Yunnan.
"It doesn't get any better than this," Stuart Chapman, director of WWF's Greater Mekong Programme, was quoted as saying in a statement by the group.
"We thought discoveries of this scale were confined to the history books."
The WWF report, "First Contact in the Greater Mekong", said that "between 1997 and 2007, at least 1,068 have been officially described by science as being newly discovered species."
These included the world's largest huntsman spider, with a leg span of 30 centimetres (11.8 inches), and the "startlingly" coloured "dragon millipede", which produces the deadly compound cyanide.
Not all species were found hiding in remote jungles -- the Laotian rock rat, which the study said was thought to be extinct about 11 million years ago, was first encountered by scientists in a local food market in 2005, it said.
One species of pitviper was first noted by scientists after it was found in the rafters of a restaurant at the headquarters of Thailand's Khao Yai national park in 2001.
"This region is like what I read about as a child in the stories of Charles Darwin," said Dr Thomas Ziegler, curator at the Cologne Zoo, who was involved in the research.
"It is a great feeling being in an unexplored area and to document its biodiversity for the first time both enigmatic and beautiful," he said.
The new species highlighted in the report include 519 plants, 279 fish, 88 frogs, 88 spiders, 46 lizards, 22 snakes, 15 mammals, four birds, four turtles, two salamanders and a toad -- an average of two previously undiscovered species a week for the past 10 years.
The report warned, however, that many of the species could be at risk from development, and called for a cross-border agreement between the countries in the Greater Mekong area to protect it.
Scientists have discovered more than 1,000 species in Southeast Asia's Greater Mekong region in the past decade, including a spider as big as a dinner plate, the World Wildlife Fund said Monday.
A rat thought to have become extinct 11 million years ago and a cyanide-laced, shocking pink millipede were among creatures found in what the group called a "biological treasure trove".
The species were all found in the rainforests and wetlands along the Mekong River, which flows through Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and the southern Chinese province of Yunnan.
"It doesn't get any better than this," Stuart Chapman, director of WWF's Greater Mekong Programme, was quoted as saying in a statement by the group.
"We thought discoveries of this scale were confined to the history books."
The WWF report, "First Contact in the Greater Mekong", said that "between 1997 and 2007, at least 1,068 have been officially described by science as being newly discovered species."
These included the world's largest huntsman spider, with a leg span of 30 centimetres (11.8 inches), and the "startlingly" coloured "dragon millipede", which produces the deadly compound cyanide.
Not all species were found hiding in remote jungles -- the Laotian rock rat, which the study said was thought to be extinct about 11 million years ago, was first encountered by scientists in a local food market in 2005, it said.
One species of pitviper was first noted by scientists after it was found in the rafters of a restaurant at the headquarters of Thailand's Khao Yai national park in 2001.
"This region is like what I read about as a child in the stories of Charles Darwin," said Dr Thomas Ziegler, curator at the Cologne Zoo, who was involved in the research.
"It is a great feeling being in an unexplored area and to document its biodiversity for the first time both enigmatic and beautiful," he said.
The new species highlighted in the report include 519 plants, 279 fish, 88 frogs, 88 spiders, 46 lizards, 22 snakes, 15 mammals, four birds, four turtles, two salamanders and a toad -- an average of two previously undiscovered species a week for the past 10 years.
The report warned, however, that many of the species could be at risk from development, and called for a cross-border agreement between the countries in the Greater Mekong area to protect it.
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
Obama wins US election, to become first black president
WASHINGTON, (AFP) - Americans elected Democrat Barack Obama as their first black president, handing him an historic victory over Republican John McCain, television networks projected.
Obama, 47, will be inaugurated the 44th US president on January 20, 2009, and inherit an economy mired in the worst financial crisis since the 1930s, two wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and a nuclear showdown with Iran.
Television networks projected his victory over Republican John McCain after Senator Obama solidified traditional Democratic states and cut deep into the Republican territory which his rival needed to control to win the White House.
Obama's historic inauguration will complete a stunning ascent to the pinnacle of US and global politics from national obscurity just four years ago and close an eight year era of turbulence under President George W. Bush.
Obama, 47, will be inaugurated the 44th US president on January 20, 2009, and inherit an economy mired in the worst financial crisis since the 1930s, two wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and a nuclear showdown with Iran.
Television networks projected his victory over Republican John McCain after Senator Obama solidified traditional Democratic states and cut deep into the Republican territory which his rival needed to control to win the White House.
Obama's historic inauguration will complete a stunning ascent to the pinnacle of US and global politics from national obscurity just four years ago and close an eight year era of turbulence under President George W. Bush.
