Ian Bunn | Political & Popular Culture Arts

William B. Caldwell the IV a US Army Lieutenant General and the Commander of the NATO Training Mission in Afghanistan ordered a psychological operations team of the military to illegally manipulate visiting US dignitaries into supporting calls for further troops and funding. Caldwell is alleged to have breached laws that prevent the use of military propaganda on US citizens, by inappropriately pressuring the team to compile dossiers on senators and senior military personnel that identify “hot button issues” and vulnerabilities of each, enabling the targeting of propaganda for “psyops” to “plant inside their heads”. Caldwell denies the allegation that he commanded the use of the psychological operations team to influence the visitors, however General David Petraeus the US commander in Afghanistan has ordered an investigation.

Inspired by Michael Hastings ow.ly/46dQ0 image source Wikipedia ow.ly/46e3i

Michele Marie Bachmann the 54 year old US Congress Representative supporter of the Tea Party movement and founder of the House Tea Party Caucus has criticized First lady Michelle Obama for encouraging the creation of a “nanny state” during debates relating to breast-feeding following an announcement by the Internal Revenue Service that the purchase of breast-feeding equipment would be considered a medical expense and would qualify for reimbursement under federal tax law. Bachmann a well known and frequent critic of the Obama administration’s policies, attempted to link the decision with what she refers to as the “hard left” agenda. On the first anniversary of the “Let’s Move” campaign to fight childhood obesity, the first lady said, “Breast-feeding. Kids who are breast-fed longer have a lower tendency to be obese.”

Inspired by Ed Pilkington ow.ly/43hlJ image source Wikipedia ow.ly/43h4m

Saif al-Islam Muammar al-Gaddafi the 38 year old second son of the Libyan dictator Muammar al-Gaddafi, has made a speech on Libyan state TV blaming the political turmoil in Libya on drunken and drugged tribal factions and Islamist extremists acting on their own agendas. al-Gaddafi warned of civil war causing no trade, no oil money, and a country taken over by foreigners. He blamed the foment unrest and violence in Libya on  Arab and African expatriates, vowing to fight until the last man standing. While promising reforms he vowed he would not allow Al Jazeera, Al Arabiya or the BBC to trick the population with their aim at installing Islamist rule. al-Gaddafi in his finger-wagging speech blamed the foreign media for inflating the death toll.

Inspired by Amir Ahmed, Yousuf Basil, Greg Botelho, Salma Abdelaziz, Holly Yan and Mitra Mobasherat ow.ly/43gHq image source Wikipedia ow.ly/43guq

Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev the 79 year old former General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and the last USSR head of state until its dissolution in 1991, has criticized Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin for manipulating elections and creating a sham democracy, stating “We have everything – a parliament, courts, a president, a prime minister and so on. But it’s more of an imitation”. Gorbachev has become an outspoken critic of the current Russian regime, particularly the behavior of Putin and his protégé President Dmitry Medvedev, specifically their roll back of the 1990s democratic reforms. The UN high commissioner for human rights Navi Pillay, during a recent visit to Russia expressed similar remarks relating to the state of democracy in Russia.

Inspired by Miriam Elder ow.ly/41J0m image source Wikipedia ow.ly/41IZN

Rahm Israel Emanuel the 51 year old former White House Chief of Staff to President Barack Obama, known for his “take-no-prisoners style” earning him the nickname “Rahmbo” has been elected mayor of Chicago, making him the first Jewish mayor and the first mayor of any US city with dual citizenship in the US and Israel. Emanuel who has been characterized as being the most influential chief of staff of a generation, has taken out the mayoral contest with an excess of the required 50% vote to avoid a run-off election. Emanuel experienced yet won a protracted legal battle relating to his residency qualifications that threatened to have him disqualified from the voting ticket.

Inspired by Paul Harris ow.ly/41IL3 image source Wikipedia ow.ly/41IKu

Abdel Fattah Younes al Abidi the Libyan Interior Minister has resigned from Gaddafi’s government in support of protestors after a brutal crack-down by the government security forces that has resulted in the deaths of hundreds of protestors along with thousands injured.  Abidi claims that Gaddafi intends to intensify the brutality of the crack-down against the civilian population on a much larger scale by the use of mercenaries from other African countries, and the use of military airplanes to bomb the protestors if required. Gaddafi has refused to step down and is prepared to kill thousands to maintain control if necessary. Abidi described Gaddafi as a stubborn man who will not give up and would be prepared to die a martyr rather than lose control.

Inspired by Souhail Karam ow.ly/41H2Z image source India Talkies ow.ly/41H7z

Raymond Davis the US citizen who shot and killed two operatives of Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) has now been identified by the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) as a CIA operative member of the Task Force 373 black operations unit operating in the Afghan and Pakistan tribal areas. The US government is attempting to claim diplomatic immunity for Davis who has been charged with the double murder he claims was self defense. However Pakistani officials counter claim that Davis’s activities possessions and actions immediately following the incident suggest he was involved in a clandestine operation as an employee of the security firm Blackwater (now called Xe), setting up targets for US drone attacks throughout the region.

Inspired by Eric Lach ow.ly/41IfK image source India talkies ow.ly/41Io5

Leilani Neumann aged 42 of Weston Wisconsin along with her husband Dale aged 49 have been convicted by a jury of second-degree reckless homicide of their 11 year old daughter Kara, following an incident in which their sick child was refused treatment other than prayer, died of complications associated with undiagnosed diabetes. Instead of seeking medical assistance, the two religious fanatical parents knelt beside their dying daughter and sort prayer to cure the child. The Neumann’s who had received sentences of 10 years of probation, with 6 months jail time are now seeking to have the convictions and sentences overturned and allowed to present before a new trial to more fully explain their sincere belief that prayer is a form of treatment.

Inspired by Jeff Starck ow.ly/41HyQ image source Shadmia ow.ly/41HA9

Sandra Ávila Beltrán the 50 year old Mexican drug cartel leader, dubbed “The Queen of the Pacific” who has been imprisoned at the Santa Martha Acatitla women’s prison in Mexico since 2007 on charges of money laundering and conspiracy to traffic drugs has undertaken a Botox procedure while in prison. The prison’s warden and medical director have consequently had their employment terminated as a result of the unauthorized procedure. Beltrán had previously filed a complaint with the Mexico City human rights commission, referring to noxious fauna (insects) in her cell, and that a ban on allowing food from restaurants to be brought to the prison violated her human rights.

Inspired by Elpaso Times ow.ly/3Y7wF image source Neglected War ow.ly/3Y7u9

Yasmin Alibhai-Brown the 61 year old Ugandan-born British journalist of Pakistani descent, founder member of British Muslims for Secular Democracy, and commentator on issues of immigration, diversity and multiculturalism has accused the Cameron coalition government of “politicking of the worst kind” with his Munich dog whistle speech “speaking the words of white extremists but in posh” amplifying “the small talk of bigotry and boomed it through a megaphone”, while “loitering behind the fine façade of his personality”. Alibhai-Brown claims that “Muslims and migrants are being used to distract people from the planned chaos implemented by this unpopular coalition” with Cameron showing himself “to be selective, hypocritical, calculating, and woefully indifferent to Muslim victims of relentless racism and chauvinism”.

Inspired by Yasmin Alibhai-Brown ow.ly/3Y6PW image source Waeshael ow.ly/3Y6KV

Peter Richard Orszag the 42 year old  American economist who is a Vice Chairman of Global Banking at Citigroup and the former Director of the Office of Management and Budget under President Barack Obama has become somewhat of a nerd celebrity. Orszag has expressed his delight in his new role at Citi with analysts on the ground in sixty-six countries world-wide giving him global access to an “information flow” greater than most officials in the US government have access to. Orszag noted in an interview with The Daily the strong positive US economic trends, although predicting employment will remain sluggish suggesting that high unemployment may impact on Obama 2012 re-election campaign.

Inspired by Avi Zenilman ow.ly/3Y6ln image source Wikipedia ow.ly/3Y6eZ

Mehdi Karroubi the 73 year old Iranian reformist politician, democracy activist, chairman of the National Trust Party and critic of President Ahmadinejad’s foreign policy, has along with fellow reformist politician Mir Hossein Mousavi been denounced by the Iranian parliament as corrupts on earth and should be tried. The denouncements of the two opposition leaders came about following protests in Tehran for which they have been accused of inciting the demonstrations. Corrupt on earth is a capital crime levied against political dissidents in the Islamic Republic of Iran punishable by execution. Fifty conservative MPs marched through the main hall of the parliament chanting “Death to Mousavi, death to Karroubi”. Reports confirm sixty-six people had already been executed during January alone.

Inspired by Reza Sayah and Mitra Mobasherat ow.ly/3Y61Q image source Wikipedia ow.ly/3Y5Uz

Zahi Hawass the 63 year old Egyptian archaeologist who is Egypt’s Minister of Antiquities and accused of having a domineering personality who excessively courts personal media attention, has denounced the thieves who broke into the Egyptian Museum during the civil unrest that saw the overthrow of the Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Hawass stated that “My heart is broken and my blood is boiling” on the discovery that 13 cases had been destroyed and 70 objects broken including two sculptures of Tutankhamen.  There are at least another 17 artifacts missing along with jewelry stolen from the museum gift shop. Following the break in to the museum, the army along with concerned citizens formed a security barrier to protect the museum from further damage and thefts.

Inspired by Ashley Hayes ow.ly/3WDKn image source Wikipedia ow.ly/3WDHy

Geoffrey Roy Rush the 59 year old Australian actor who portrayal the Australian speech therapist Lionel Logue in ‘The King’s Speech’, a part that got him best supporting actor nominations for both an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award, has now won the best supporting actor award at the British Academy Film Awards in London (BAFTA). Rush’s portrayal of Lionel Logue the speech therapist who helped cure King George VI’s stammer has been roundly applauded, along with lead actor Colin Firth who also won best actor in his role as the King. Rush was unable to attend the award presentation at the Royal Opera House due to stage commitments in New York.

Inspired by SMH ow.ly/3WDon image source Wikipedia ow.ly/3WDvn

Stephen Elop the 47 year old Swedish president and chief executive officer of Nokia Corporation in a speech posted on an internal blog identified significant concerns at the world’s largest manufacturer of smart-phones, which is quickly being overrun for market share by Google’s Android and Apple’s iOS. Elop using a North Sea analogy warned the company was “standing on a burning platform” and needed to act swiftly to implement radical change to survive, claiming competitors weren’t just taking market share with devices but with an entire powerful enclosed ecosystem which including developers. Elop suggested the battle of devices has now become a war of ecosystems, resulting in Nokia having to decide how to either build, catalyse or join an ecosystem.

Inspired by Charles Arthur ow.ly/3WD5m image source lucasartoni ow.ly/3WD16

George Walker Bush the 64 year old former President of the United States of America has cancelled a planned visit to Geneva to address a Jewish Charity after being advised a human rights group is lodging in Swiss Courts criminal charges relating to the torture of terrorism suspects held in a CIA interrogation program he approved that authorized water-boarding, forced stress positions and sleep deprivation. A US based Center for Constitutional Rights along with the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights has issued a preliminary “indictment” to prosecute Bush if ever he travels outside of the US. Bush’s planned trip to Geneva would have been his first trip to another country since his memoir was published in which he admitted authorizing the torture techniques.

Inspired by Stephanie Nebehay ow.ly/3TLHy Image source Wikipedia ow.ly/3TLSi

David Kennedy an Australian archaeologist Professor from the University of Western Australia has unearthed 1977 potential archaeological sites in Saudi Arabia using high resolution photographs from Google Maps. Kennedy scanned 1240 square kilometres of the country to reveal 1082 potential ancient tombs that are shaped like tear drops, and has been able to confirm two of these sites after having a friend in Saudi Arabia drive out to the sites and photograph them. Kennedy believes the sites may be pre-islamic up to 9 -10 thousand years old, however acknowledges that some may be more recent perhaps within the past two centuries and hence will need further investigation to verify. Technology and its ease of access is now permitting research previously inconceivable.

Inspired by Asher Moses of the SMH ow.ly/3TKZc image source ow.ly/3TKVC

Wael Said Abbas Ghonim the 30 year old Egyptian Internet activist and Head of Marketing for Google Middle East has received international acclaim for energizing the pro-democracy demonstrations in Egypt following his emotional TV interview upon release by Egyptian police who had held him secretly for eleven days. Thousands of Egyptians in response to Ghonim’s interview protested in Cairo’s Tahrir Square to reject the embattled Egyptian regime’s pledges of constitutional reforms. Ghonim is the administrator of a Facebook page called “We are all Khaled Said” which is widely credited for inspiring the first January 25 protest. Ghonim is the subject of another Facebook page with 150,000 fans that seeks to authorize him to speak on behalf of the somewhat fractured groups of protestors.

Inspired by Hadeel Al-Shalchi ow.ly/3TKAI image source Wikipedia ow.ly/3TKsH

Muzzammil Syed Hassan the 46 year old former CEO of Bridges TV the first American Muslim television network broadcast in English found guilty of murder for the beheading murder of his wife Aasiya Zubair who had filed for divorce six days earlier. Hassan had been married twice previously with both of his earlier wives filing for divorce on grounds of severe domestic violence. Prosecutors alleged that Hassan had stabbed his wife 40 times before the beheading, however Hassan claims that his wife had beaten him and that he feared for his life. Hassan had pleaded not guilty to the murder charge and represented himself at trial, requesting the trial be dismissed due to lack of evidence.  His request was denied and he was convicted of the murder.

Inspired by Heather Ly at wgrz ow.ly/3TKok image source All News ow.ly/3TKhn

Doku (Dokka) Khamatovich Umarov the 46 year old Russian Chechen Islamist rebel leader often referred to as “Russia’s Osama Bin Laden” for his responsibility in numerous terrorist attacks on civilians, has claimed responsibility for the Domodedovo International Airport bombing killing 36 civilians. Umarov is the self-proclaimed Emir of the Russian North Caucasus, an unrecognized Islamic state he refers to as the Caucasus Emirate. In a video posted online, Umarov claimed responsibility for ordering the suicide bombing at Russia’s busiest airport the Domodedovo International Airport, Russia’s busiest airport, describing the terrorist act as a “special operation” targeting Vladimir Putin and the Russian. In the video he also criticized Britian USA and Israel for oppressing Muslims while praising China as a new superpower.

Inspired by Ralph Boulton at Reuters ow.ly/3TJYv image source Flagging HQ ow.ly/3TJRR

Cynthia Stroum the former US Ambassador to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and a major donor to Barack Obama’s presidential campaign has been accused of having a confrontational management style during her appointment to the Ambassador’s position. Inspectors from the State Department Inspector General’s office visited the U.S. Embassy in Luxembourg reporting chronic gaps in staffing levels caused by Stroum, leading to a state of dysfunction and an absence of a sense of direction. Stroum apparently spent an inordinate amount of her and other staff time supervising the repair of the ambassador’s residence and purchasing unwarranted volumes of wine and other liquour.  Gaps in staffing levels came about as senior staff sought transfers to other embassies to escape Stroum’s management style.

Inspired by Ryan Reilly at  TPMMuckraker ow.ly/3R7vW image source TPM ow.ly/3R7vE

Andimuthu Raja the 47 year old Indian former cabinet minister from the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) political party has been arrested by Indian Police relating to a corruption scandal alleged to have been perpetrated while he was the Telecoms Minister. Raja had been dismissed from the ministerial position three months earlier as a result of allegations he had misused his ministerial office in criminal misconduct to benefit others. Raja is accused of selling licenses at below market value with potential losses in revenue to the Indian government of almost $40billion.  A scandal that appears to now embroil the Indian Prime Minister for failing to act when the allegations were first aired.

Inspired by Aljazeera ow.ly/3R7nc image source Top News ow.ly/3R7mQ

Jacques René Chirac the 78 year old former French President of France from 1995 to 2007 has denied reports that he is suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, confirmed also by his wife Bernadette Chirac who claimed that she was “scandalised” by the reports, in which she is alleged to have told unnamed friends her husband suffered from memory lapses and she feared her husband had the disease. The report has surfaced only a month before Chirac‘s trial for corruption over two sets of allegations stemming from his time as mayor of Paris. Chirac is accused of embezzlement, breach of trust, and illegal conflict of interest involving the funding of party allies with taxpayers’ money in a bogus jobs scandal.

Inspired by Henry Samuel ow.ly/3QNqs image source Wikipedia ow.ly/3QNmj

Snorre Serigstad Valen the 26 year old Norwegian pianist, singer and politician nominated the whistle-blower and anti-secrecy website Wikileaks for the 2011 Nobel peace prize, an award conferred by a committee of five people chosen by the Norwegian Parliament. This unique nomination of an internet website that utilizes social media tools such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube to disseminate state secrets acknowledges the bringing about of immense change to the political landscape, as tyrannical regimes that have traditionally held power over conventional media sources are now unable to control the freedom of the internet. The Norwegian Nobel Committee accepts nominations from many sources including University professors and presidents, former committee members and advisors, former recipients of the award, and in Valen’s case members of national assemblies and governments.

Inspired by Wojciech Moskwa ow.ly/3Psf6 image source Wikipedia ow.ly/3Psdg

Ali Abdullah Saleh the 64 year old war monger President for 32 years of the Republic of Yemen and its former identities, having held the position for half his life time has announced that he will not seek reelection in 2013. Saleh’s long-term rule over the country was challenged with recent protests, and further strained as the Tunisia regime fell, and now with the likely fall of the long term Egyptian president. Yemin a poverty stricken country with up to a third of its population suffering chronic hunger, is on the verge of public outcry driven by the successes of the mass rallies held throughout the region.  In making his announcement Saleh called on the opposition to freeze all planned protests and rallies, and to form a national unity government.

Inspired by Mohammed Ghobari ow.ly/3PrVz image source Wikipedia ow.ly/3PrU9

Samir Zaid al-Rifai the 44 year old Prime Minister of Jordan and the son of former Prime Minister Zaid al-Rifai and grandson of Samir al-Rifaihas been replaced by king Abdullah II with Marouf al-Bakhit following weeks of protests in the country stemming from high food prices and poverty. Rifai oversaw a government subjected to a prolonged recession with record public debt heavily dependent on foreign aid for survival. Opposition forces are calling for constitutional changes to the king’s powers in appointing governments and approving legislation, drawing inspiration from the successes of Tunisia and the mass rallies in Egypt. Rifai was only appointed as Prime Minister in December 2009 but had an extensive history working in the Royal Court.

Inspired by Suleiman al-Khalidi ow.ly/3PrAi image source Wikipedia ow.ly/3PrzH

John Barry Prendergast the 77 year old English film score composer renowned for his James Bond soundtracks and five Academy Awards has died of a heart attack. John Barry the five-time Oscar-winning composer who wrote most of the music for the James Bond films, became embroiled in a court controversy over the ‘Theme’ music used in all of the franchise films. Sole compositional credit for the ‘Theme’ music is attributed to Monty Norman, who was contracted as composer for the ‘Dr. No’ film. Barry claimed he received a manuscript of Norman’s work which he rearranged musically and composed additional music. Norman received sole credit because of his prior contract with the producers and Barry struck a deal for a flat fee of £250.

Inspired by Hanna Jones ow.ly/3OJKT image source Wikipedia ow.ly/3OJMl

David Sean Ferriero the 65 year old American librarian and the 10th Archivist of the United States has revealed that Thomas Lowry an amateur historian had confessed to altering the date on an original pardon signed by President Abraham Lincoln to make it look as if the pardon was one of the president’s final acts just prior to his assassination. Lowry is alleged to have changed the dates from 1864 to 1865 in order to promote his book after finding many unpublished Lincoln documents in the National Archives. The pardon related to the sparing of a mentally incompetent Army private from the death penalty for desertion. Ferriero indicated that the statute of limitations had lapsed preventing criminally prosecution, however Lowry will be barred from National Archives facilities.

Inspired by Sam Roberts at NYTimes ow.ly/3N7yl image source Wikipedia ow.ly/3N7x6