Just when it seems like we cannot get more on our plate @ binnallofamerica.com, we do. We've recently been commissioned to act as moderator of the "current events" section of the C2C message board.

Does this mean we will no longer act as independent observer of all things esoteric ? Of course not. It merely means we are one step closer to netting that elusive Noory interview ! And, of course, it means more free and enlightening content for binnallofamerica.com visitors.

I now give you the debut of an all new binnall original feature titled simply "News Watch". I can't guarantee publication dates, but am hoping that this can become a regular Monday occurance.

Hot 5 Stories of the Week

Five stories that piqued my interest, complete w. link, a relevant quote, and comments.

1.'Abbas as bad as Arafat' (World Net Daily)

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=42304

When news broke over the weekend that Mahmoud Abbas had won the presidency of Palestine, my first reaction was "there was an election ?" Yes, Virginia, there was an election in Palestine. Now, one of the losers gives an exclusive interview to World Net Daily to give his perspective on the election.

From the article : Ashqar: I am disappointed in the low turn out of the elections. Media reports say the turnout was high because 70 percent of registered voters came to the booths. But most Palestinians weren't registered. The press isn't telling you this, but according to the Palestinian Bureau of Statistics, only 50 percent of those eligible actually voted.

2. No Agreement Among Journalists on How to Ensure That a Story Is Right (AP via Tampa Bay Online)

http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGBZOHG7T3E.html

Four people get fired from CBS and Armstrong Williams is taking handouts to schill for the Bush administration. The facade of "objectivity" that shrouded the once proud mainstream media is slowly unraveling. And not a moment too soon. Next thing you are going to tell me is that Fox News is not 'fair and balanced'.

From the article : He added that investigative reporters - even seasoned, capable ones, like those at CBS and the CNN team that produced the discredited report that the U.S. military used nerve gas on American defectors in Vietnam - "tend to get excited that their premise seems to be coming true" and want to rush to publish.

3.Camp X Ray Here to Stay (The Independent via Infowars.com)

http://www.infowars.com/articles/ps/camp_xray_here_to_stay.htm

Who knew, pre-911, that America's little military base in Cuba would become such a happening place in the future ? It seems Camp X Ray serves as a "out of sight, out of mind" location for sending dissidents and potential terrorists. While allegations of abuse run rampant, the fact that X Ray houses few, if any, Americans, makes it a less interesting "cause" for those looking to change the world.

From the article : According to US officials at the time, they were "the worst of the worst." They had been chained to the seats of their transport plane for the journey half way round the world because "these are people who would gnaw through hydraulic lines on a C-17 to bring it down," General Richard Myers.

4.Crystal Skull Revealed to be Fake (Unknown Country)

http://www.unknowncountry.com/news/?id=4360

It's always sad when a great esoteric find turns out to fraudulant. Sad ... and amusing. The once great Crystal Skull turned into a mocked relic, thanks to advances in modern science. Makes one ponder on the fate of such artifacts as the Shroud of Turin or that old box they recently claimed came from the Boston Tea Party.

From the Article : Doubts about the authenticity of the skull first surfaced more a decade ago, and when scientists began to look at the skull’s surface under an electron microscope, the doubts proved to be true.

5. Principal cracks down on 'freak dancing' (CNN)

http://www.cnn.com/2005/EDUCATION/01/10/dances.cancelled.ap/index.html

Thankfully, someone out there is thinking of the children. I hadn't felt old in a long time, till I read this and realized I had no idea what 'freak dancing' was. Time ... it's the enemy of all mankind.

From the Article : Principal Jim Bennett of Lemoore Union High School said he warned students at a winter formal dance last month to either quit dirty dancing or face the possibility of not dancing at all.

Future News Now

Every day a story occurs somewhere in the world that has reprocussions on our lives in the long term future. Each week I'll try and find it and highlight it, so you are ahead of the curve. This week, a story that may be coming to a major metropolitan area near you sometime in 2005 :

Italy's smokebusters go into action (BBC) http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4161245.stm

Despite dubious reports on second hand smoke, it seems that governments worldwide have begun to "snuff out" smoking, despite raising serious money from cigarette tax. Rather ingenious to make money off of taxes and fines for using products already taxed. Sure it's funny in some ways and rather campy to have 'smokebusters' running around putting out cigarettes, but it also raises a spectre of what may come should more far reaching bans take affect. The quote, below, from a 'smokebuster' victim is telling :

From the Article : They have better luck in the next bar, finding a smoker who does not object too much to having his cigarette and shirt doused with water. "I guess it's the law now so we have to accept it," he laughs.

Editorial

Tsunami'd Out

I can't take it anymore ! Whenever I turn on my evening news, no matter which channel it is, I am bombarded with news on the Tsunami. And I've had enough. Yes, I know that it was a horrible tragedy and hundreds of thousands of people died or were adversly affected. And, yes, my heart goes out to them, wishing that they can persevere through these tough times.

What I cannot, nay will not, accept is the endless new pieces on the Tsunami from anyone with a camera and a microphone. I find it more than tad hypocritical that many of these news organizations would have had a hard time finding Sri Lanka prior to the Tsunami and were probably surprised that there even was an Indian Ocean.

And now comes the hundreds of "charitable" organizations with their hands out asking me to "help the Tsunami victims". After the debacle that was the big "911 charity movement", I am hard pressed to trust another "charity movement" that comes along without wondering if my hard-earned money is really going to help some poor Sri Lankan or just fill the coffers to some upper management type at The United Way.

One aspect of the Tsunami that has me troubled, as a person, is my simple apathy at the entire story. Perhaps it is too massive for my feeble mind to grasp or it simply occured too close to the holidays to make a dent in my "Coastie addled" mind, but it just does not resonate with me like many other stories covered ad nauseum by the mainstream media. One overridding feeling I have is that the mere fact that this was a "natural disaster" leaves me with no righteous indignation at the perpetrators of the event. Whom am I to get angry at ? God.

And so, I wish the best for the Tsunami victims, drop a dollar in a coffee can as I leave my local coffee shop, and go home, hoping to finally hear the end of this story once and for all.

End Notes

I hope this debut edition of News Watch has given you pause for thought. We're still working out the tweaks and bugs of the format, but expect to be back next week with more interesting tales from the world at large.