Politics
China pledges socialism for 100 years
CHINA'S prime minister promised to maintain "socialism for 100 years" yesterday as the Communist Party tried to play down media discussion of political reform.
"We must keep a firm grasp on the basic principles of the party in the initial stage of socialism, without wavering, for 100 years," the Wen Jiabao, said in an article reproduced in the People's Daily newspaper and other centrally controlled state media.
Dampening hopes both of Chinese dissidents and of governments abroad that have called for faster political change, he said that while democracy was necessary it could only come about on the party's terms and when the socialist system was "mature". He said that in the meantime China had to focus on economic development.
Posted: Submitted by Seosamh on Fri, 2006-04-21 12:01.Ireland's War of Independence: The chilling story of the Black and Tans
Ben & Jerry's decision to give their latest flavour of ice-cream the same name as Churchill's notorious army has provoked howls of protest. David McKittrick describes the force's reign of terror against Irish nationalists
Published: 21 April 2006
To practically the whole world it may seem like a harmless, cheerfully cutesie name for a new American ice-cream flavour, just adopted by the popular manufacturer Ben & Jerry's.
But some Irish-Americans have given the "Black and Tan" flavour a reception that is cold to the point of frigidity, complaining of its associations with one of the most notorious forces ever seen in Ireland.
Posted: Submitted by Seosamh on Thu, 2006-04-20 14:41.
Sex cues ruin men's decisiveness
Catching sight of a pretty woman really is enough to throw a man's decision-making skills into disarray, a study suggests.
The more testosterone he has, the stronger the effect, according to work by Belgian researchers.
Men about to play a financial game were shown images of sexy women or lingerie.
The Proceedings of the Royal Society B study found they were more likely to accept unfair offers than men not been exposed to the alluring images.
The suggestion is that the sexual cues distract the men's thoughts, preventing them from focusing on their task - particularly among those with high natural testosterone levels.
The University of Leuven researchers gave 176 heterosexual male student volunteers aged 18 to 28 financial games to test their fair play.
|
They are looking for opportunities to pass on their genes
|
|
|
|
|
Seosamh |
Posted: Submitted by Seosamh on Mon, 2006-04-17 12:16. |
|
|
More than 120,000 turn out to honour 1916 heroes IT took some of us by surprise, this communal catch in the throat, when drums rolled and the Tricolour fluttered to the top of its flagpole above the GPO. For a time on this special Easter Sunday, eyes misted over and the tens of thousands of people who lined the streets of Dublin found a common bond, united in a sense of national pride and belonging. Outside of all the pomp and political posturing, an extraordinary groundswell of public emotion cut to the core of yesterday's 1916 parade in Dublin. The atmosphere along the route was celebratory, yet reverential, good-natured and good-humoured, patriotic but not triumphalist. |
|
|
