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Monday, February 15, 2010

Belgian authorities have confirmed that at least eighteen people died in a head-on collision between two passenger trains in the suburbs of Brussels. Other reports suggest that the death toll could be as high as 25. More than 125 passengers are reported injured, 11 of them “very seriously”. Rescuers were still trying to free bodies from the wreckage of the trains more than eight hours after the crash, which occurred in snowy conditions at 08:28 local time (0728 UTC) near the station of Buizingen in the municipality of Halle, about 15 kilometres southwest of the Belgian capital.

One of the trains involved was travelling from Quiévrain to Liège, while the other was travelling from Leuven to Braine-le-Comte. The collision saw the first two carriages of one train being forced upwards into the air over the first carriage of the second train. Eyewitnesses described the collision as “brutal”, with passengers being thrown “violently” around the carriages.

Television footage showed the two smashed locomotives forced up in the air, with passenger cars strewn over a wide area and dazed survivors wandering at the crash site. Train speed at the time of the crash was not immediately known. There are reports that one of the trains ran a stop signal.

Initial reports suggest that the Leuven–Braine-le-Comte train was on the wrong line. It is not known if the train went through a red signal or if there was a problem with the signalling. A “well informed source” quoted by French-language daily Le Soir suggested that there might have been an electrical failure in the signalling system.

The collision occurred on one of the main access lines to Brussels-South station, about 14 kilometres (9 miles) from the Belgian capital. It caused “major damage” to overhead power cables, especially on the Brussels–Mons and Brussels–Tournai lines, and high speed rail services between Brussels and France and the UK have been suspended. Thalys services were temporarily halted due to the accident, with four of its trains in the region being diverted to alternative stations. Thalys services between Brussels and Cologne have now resumed, but services to Amsterdam and Paris are still suspended.

One passenger on board, Christian Wampach, described conditions on board the train, “It was a nightmare. We were thrown about for about 15 seconds. There were a number of people injured in my car but I think all the dead were in the first car.” Wampach was in the third car.

Another passenger, Patricia Lallemand, said, “When we came out we saw dead bodies lying next to the tracks, some mutilated.”

Monday, March 15, 2010

The Church of Scientology is attempting to block the broadcast of a film on the German television broadcaster ARD, claiming the film is “intolerant” and violates the broadcaster’s guidelines.

The film titled Until Nothing Remains (Bis Nichts Mehr Bleibt) due to be broadcast during prime-time on March 31 tells the fictionalised story of a German family destroyed by their involvement in Scientology. It is based on the true story of former member Heiner von Rönn who lost thousands of euros and his wife and two children who are still members. Von Rönn was a member of the organisation for ten years.

Scientology in Germany claims the movie is top secret propaganda and is attempting to undermine the organisation and its adherents. Scientology spokesman Jürg Stettler told the daily Munich newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung, “What they’re planning to show is a violation of ARD’s programming guidelines. The station is required to support religious tolerance, not the opposite.” He added, “The truth is precisely the opposite of what ARD is showing.”

The film was made in total secrecy under the title The Dead Man in the Sound with the script, signs and clapboards bearing the fake title. Despite the attempts by the film crew to obscure the film’s story and intent, it appears the Scientology organisation still found out about the movie. The crew says there were reports of a Scientology spokesman tailing them at one point. Notebooks were also stolen from the trunk of director Niki Stein’s car. Not too long after the theft, Stein received an anonymous call whose caller stated, “We know you’re making a movie about Scientology,” and promptly hung up.

The film highlights concerns in Germany about the organisation which the government considers to a business, an abusive one at that and not a religion. The government is so concerned about Scientology that the group is monitored by the country’s domestic intelligence services. Tensions reached a high during the making of the movie Valkyrie, which starred Tom Cruise, a well known Scientology celebrity in his role as Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, the Wehrmacht officer who attempted to assassinate Adolf Hitler.

Carl Bergengruen, the head of TV movies for Südwestrundfunk (SWR or Southwest Broadcasting), the public broadcaster backing the project defended their secrecy practices saying, “Scientology kept trying to use a variety of methods to find out details about the project. We had reason to worry that the organisation would use all the legal means at its disposal to prevent the film from being broadcast.” He added, [As such, the project was] “kept under wraps for as long as possible for security reasons.”

Meanwhile, Volker Herres, programme director for ARD dismissed the charges leveled by Scientology at the film’s screening saying, “We’re not dealing here with a religion, rather with an organisation that has completely different motives. Scientology is about power, business, and building up a network. Its lessons are pure science fiction, it’s no religion, no church, no sect.”

Scientology has endured further controversy in recent weeks and months. Back in October of last year, Paul Haggis, director of the Oscar-winning film Crash and writer of Million Dollar Baby, which also won an Oscar, quit the Scientology organisation over its stance on same-sex marriage. Then last week, a feature article in The New York Times highlighted fraud and abuse that had occurred to a couple who were members of Scientology’s high ranking Sea Organization or SeaOrg.

Saturday, March 31, 2018

On Wednesday, Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced Australian cricketers David Warner and Steve Smith were banned from this year’s Indian Premier League (IPL) after the ball tampering incident in a Cape Town test match versus South Africa.

The ban imposed by the Committee of Administrators, appointed by the Indian Supreme Court, came a day after Cricket Australia (CA) announced Warner and Smith were banned from international as well as domestic cricket in Australia for a year for breaking Cricket Australia’s code of conduct — violating spirit of the game — per Article 2.3.5, and Cameron Bancroft received a similar ban from CA for nine months.

In a statement, BCCI said, “The BCCI hopes that the cricketers participating in the IPL hold the highest regard for the Spirit of Cricket and Code of Conduct for Players and Match Officials.” This dissolved AU$2.4 million contracts of the two. Smith and Warner had vacated their positions as Rajasthan Royals’ and Sunrisers Hyderabad’s captains earlier.

BCCI’s President CK Khanna, IPL Chairman Rajeev Shukla and BCCI Secretary Amitabh Choudhary were consulted by the Committee of Administrators for the ban.

Rajasthan Royals named Indian batsman Ajinkya Rahane as the new captain, while Sunrisers Hyderabad announced New Zealand’s Kane Williamson as the captain. Both the franchise are allowed to make replacements, BCCI had said in the statement. Warner was the highest run-scorer in last year’s IPL and won the 2016 edition of IPL with Hyderabad. This year’s IPL is to start on April 7.

Cameron Bancroft was banned for nine months for actually tampering with the match ball, instructed by David Warner. Bancroft later mislead the match officials when he was caught tampering with the ball. The sanctions by CA include Warner never to be considered for Australia’s captain for demonstrating and instructing a junior player how to tamper with the ball. Bancroft, and captain Steve Smith, who knew about the misconduct, but did not act to prevent it, as well as tried to cover up the matter, may be considered for the captaincy after two years.

Bancroft, who was seen rubbing the match ball with something, later identified as sandpaper, said, “I’m not proud of what’s happened and I have to live with the consequences and the damage to my own reputation that comes with”. Initially, when Bancroft was seen tampering with the ball, he lied to on-field match umpires Richard Illingworth and Nigel Llong that the instrument used was sticky tape, rather than sandpaper, and he was using it to apply granules to the ball.

Bancroft said, “I saw an opportunity to potentially use some tape and get some granules from the rough patches on the wicket and I guess try to change the ball condition […] It didn’t work. The umpires didn’t change the ball. Once I was sighted on the screen having done that I panicked quite a lot and that obviously resulted in me shoving [the tape] down my trousers.” Sandpaper is prohibited to be used with the match ball, however it is used to smooth the cricket bat.

Smith said the decision to change the ball was made during Day 3’s lunch break. Eventually, South Africa went on to win the match by 322 runs as they lead the series 2–1. For altering the ball conditions, the International Cricket Council (ICC) fined Bancroft 75% of the match wage. Bancroft violated ICC’s Article 2.2.9, “changing the condition of the ball”.

On Thursday, Warner posted a tweet apologising the cricket fans. He said, “Mistakes have been made which damaged cricket. I apologise for my part and take responsibility of it.” On social media, Steve Smith said, “I made a serious error of judgement and I now understand the consequences. It was a failure of my leadership. I will do everything I can to make up for my mistake and the damage it has caused”.

CA named Tim Paine as the captain on Tuesday. The three sanctioned were sent back to Australia on Wednesday. Glenn Maxwell, Joe Burns and Matthew Renshaw were called for the team as replacements. Bancroft, Smith and Warner can appeal the sanctions within one week. The sanctioning CA board consisted of former Australian Test players Mark Taylor and Michael Kasprowicz as well as Cricket Australia’s Chairman David Peever, Earl Eddings, Dr Bob Every, John Harnden, Tony Harrison, Jacquie Hey, and Michelle Tredenick.

Saturday, March 30, 2013

Yesterday, the Milwaukee County district attorney charged Cory J. Feerick, a 33-year-old from Brookfield, Wisconsin, with five misdemeanor counts of stealing US$35,000 worth of flush valves from fast food restaurants and university toilets and urinals. If convicted, Feerick could spend to 9 to 45 months in jail, and pay between US$10,000 and US$50,000 in fines.

Initially arrested in late January following a local news television story on the thefts, he stands accused of stealing parts worth between US$300 and US$600 each from locations that included Milwaukee Area Technical College, Waukesha County Technical College, ITT Technical Institute, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Marquette University, the Pick ‘n Save on Capitol Drive in Brookfield, and the Arby’s also located on Capitol Drive in Brookfield.

Feerick was dubbed the “Backpack Bathroom Bandit” by the media because video showed him committing the thefts while wearing a backpack. The thefts reportedly took place in September and October of last year, with several area police departments involved in investigating them.

Tuesday, October 30, 2007File:Nadine Strossen 5 by David Shankbone.jpg

There are few organizations in the United States that elicit a stronger emotional response than the American Civil Liberties Union, whose stated goal is “to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States”. Those people include gays, Nazis, women seeking abortion, gun owners, SPAM mailers and drug users. People who are often not popular with various segments of the public. The ACLU’s philosophy is not that it agrees or disagrees with any of these people and the choices that they make, but that they have personal liberties that must not be trampled upon.

In Wikinews reporter David Shankbone’s interview with the President of the ACLU, Nadine Strossen, he wanted to cover some basic ground on the ACLU’s beliefs. Perhaps the area where they are most misunderstood or have their beliefs most misrepresented is their feelings about religion in the public sphere. The ACLU categorically does not want to see religion disappear from schools or in the public forum; but they do not want to see government advocacy of any particular religion. Thus, former Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore’s placement of a ten ton monument to the Ten Commandments outside the courthouse is strenuously opposed; but “Lone Ranger of the Manger” Rita Warren’s placement of nativity scenes in public parks is vigorously defended. In the interview, Strossen talks about how certain politicians and televangelists purposefully misstate the law and the ACLU’s work in order to raise funds for their campaigns.

David Shankbone’s discussion with Strossen touches upon many of the ACLU’s hot button issues: religion, Second Amendment rights, drug liberalization, “partial-birth abortion” and whether or not George W. Bush should be impeached. It may surprise the reader that many ideas people have about the most visible of America’s civil libertarian organizations are not factually correct and that the ACLU often works closely with many of the organizations people think despise its existence.

Sunday, January 27, 2008

Wikinews has learned that a new entity calling itself The Regime used keylogging to gain an administrator password to 711chan.org, a site popular with the open vigilante group “Anonymous” that has recently been attacking Scientology online.

At 9:57 p.m. (eastern time) the site 711chan.org, was replaced, allegedly by The Regime by the title Church of Scientology along with a statement on the home page stating “This website has been deleted due to copyright claims from the Church of Scientology.” A search performed using Google, on 711chan has returned the number one result of the apparent hack. All that remains of 711chan.org is an apparent message to the members of the site to “run” and “hide.”

“711chan is full of fucking fail for siding with Gaia. I’m out of here, faggots. Enjoy your Gaia,” said the message, which currently is only available in a cached version.

At 1:45 a.m. on January 27, the site was replaced with “And now a message from our sponsors. YOU SUCK711chan will be back online shortly. I love you guys for helping me out. <3 plasma,” acknowledging the possibility 711chan was back in control of their site. The site’s name has been changed to “Church of 711.”

The Regime’s first attack went along with a message posted to 711chan’s website (quoted below) saying that “This site has not been blessed by The Regime and is deemed lame”, believing Anonymous to be self-proclaimed hackers (although this title was primarily used by the media). It also refers to Anonymous’ attempt to bring down the Church of Scientology (named ‘Operation Chanology‘), saying that “chanology is lame, scientology is lame”. It thereafter declared that the message board where Anonymous had been discussing Operation Chanology had been removed. Minutes later, 711chan stopped responding to queries.

The legitimate administrators of 711chan regained control after only three minutes, but it took nearly six hours to restore the site with recent additions missing. However, The Regime took the site down again twelve hours later, claiming to have removed the backups and stating, “all your db are belong to us” (an allusion to the phrase “all your base are belong to us“).

A new video posted to YouTube by someone who claimed to be The Regime shows a logo and uses a computer animated voice to threaten 711chan.org and their affiliates. The Regime, however, denies making the video saying “we are in no way responsible for making, nor are we tied to that video in any way.”

The video declares, “Dear ‘Anonymous’. We are The Regime. Your attacks on Scientology have not gone unnoticed.” The video’s text description states that “Your attacks on Scientology have not gone unnoticed, we have the money, resources and tools to put an end to your SP behaviour and so called hacking activities. You have soiled the good name of LRH and now it is you that have *our* attention.”

The acronyms in the text description are Scientology jargon “suppressive person” (a person who criticizes Scientology) and Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. Both terms were also used recently in a leaked internal Church of Scientology video featuring Tom Cruise promoting his beliefs. The video goes on to state that “Anonymous” has been declared “Fair Game” (another Scientology term).

The title of The Regime video, “Re: Message to Scientology”, is a reference to the video “Message to Scientology”, which was posted by “Anonymous” to YouTube on Monday. The original “Message to Scientology” video has been viewed over 1,000,000 times since it was posted.

“We have your IP addresses, your documents and secret plans. We own your 711chan, your IRC, and we are taking care of your raid forums. Call off your attacks on our religion immediately, or 4chan YTMND, something awful and your other bases will be brought to ruin. Do not underestimate us. You are out of your league. You have been warned,” added the video.

In an exclusive interview with Wikinews, the group is only called The Regime. When asked what their mission was, they stated “we have none.”

Wikinews also asked who or what was in charge of their group and they replied, “At one point, this would have been a complicated question as there were many tiers and positions of authority, however now leadership is confined to a single council.” They are also not affiliated with any other group and act alone with “no contacts with groups or individuals outside of itself.” They also refused to describe their group as a whole. They also stated to “define affiliated” when Wikinews asked if they were part of the Church of Scientology.

Their motivations are still not clear. When asked what motivates their group to do what they do, they replied, “What motivates any human to do anything? Money, Power, Respect? Choose one,” but also state that they will continue their attacks “if necessary.”

Wikinews also asked if The Regime was in any way affiliated with the Church of Scientology, including working for or against their beliefs or being a ‘branch of The Church’ The Regime simply replied, “We are not Scientologists, this is all we have to say on the subject.”

Sources within the “Anonymous” group have played down the actions of The Regime who – when announced on the IRC channel the group utilizes for communications – were said to be “… a bunch of gloryhunters ridin [sic] on our tails”. Another user of the IRC channel, calling himself “Anonz”, was quoted as telling other members of the group “… It’s funny how they call us scriptbunnies yet use scripts themselves.” The general consensus was that “Anonymous is not impressed.”

Friday, March 18, 2011

The New York Times announced on Thursday that it will start charging for full access to NYTimes.com, its online version. Beginning March 28, U.S. visitors who do not subscribe to the print edition will be allowed access to 20 articles a month. A digital subscription to the website will be required to read additional content.

The fee plan for Canadians is already in effect, allowing the NYT to “fine-tune the customer experience”, according to the announcement.

Unlimited access to articles will continue to be free for those users reaching the Times through links from search engines, blogs, and social media like Facebook and Twitter. The NYTimes.com home page and individual section front pages will continue be freely accessible.

The NYT unsuccessfully tried a pay wall six years ago. Due to declining profits and readership of its print edition, it is ready to try again.

According to comScore, a marketing research company that measures online traffic, NYTimes.com had 31.4 million individual visitors in February. It is the most-read newspaper site in the world, reported The Guardian.

“The challenge now is to put a price on our work without walling ourselves off from the global network, to make sure we continue to engage with the widest possible audience”, wrote Arthur Sulzberger Jr., NYT company chairman.