Tuesday, June 17, 2008

SPB News for Tuesday.




Dozens of gay couples to say 'I do' in California --Court ruling makes California the second state to allow same-sex nuptials Dozens of gay couples were rushing down to their county clerk's office Monday evening to be among the very first to say "I do" under the historic court ruling making California the second state to allow same-sex marriages.

Democrats to back down on Iraq war conditions Democrats in the Congress, who came to power last year on a call to end the combat in Iraq, will soon give President [sic] George W. Bush the last war-funding bill of his presidency without any of the conditions they sought for withdrawing U.S. troops, congressional aides said on Monday. Lawmakers are arranging to send Bush $165 billion in new money for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, enough to last for about a year and well beyond when Bush leaves office on January 20. With this bill, Congress will have written checks for more than $800 billion to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, with most of the money going to Iraq Blackwater, KBR, Halliburton, and Fluor.

'Mission doable' Israeli Ministers Mull Plans for Military Strike against Iran The Israeli government no longer believes that sanctions can prevent Iran from building nuclear weapons. A broad consensus in favor of a military strike against Tehran's nuclear facilities -- without the Americans, if necessary -- is beginning to take shape

Brown Pushing EU to Freeze Assets of Iranian Bank Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Britain is pushing the European Union to impose new sanctions against Iran, including freezing the assets of its biggest bank, to pressure the nation to give up its nuclear program. "Britain will urge Europe, and Europe will agree to take further sanctions against Iran," Brown said in London at a press conference with U.S. President [sic] George W. Bush.


Supreme Court rebuffs Exxon Mobil's efforts to halt human rights lawsuit Exxon Mobil Corp. has failed to convince the Supreme Court to halt a human rights lawsuit against it. The justices, without comment, on Monday rejected the energy company's appeal of a ruling on a 2001 lawsuit filed by International Rights Advocates on behalf of 11 villagers in Indonesia's Aceh province.

McCain urges end to ban on offshore drilling Sen. John McCain said Monday the federal moratorium on offshore oil and gas drilling should be lifted, and individual states given the right to pursue energy exploration in waters near their own coasts. McCain's presidential rival, Sen. Barack Obama, opposes an end to the moratorium, a spokesman Hari Sevugan said

Israel pressed to reveal why army killed cameraman The Israeli military has come under renewed pressure to explain why its tank shells killed a Reuters cameraman and eight other Palestinians on a road in Gaza two months ago. Reuters is pressing for immediate release of the military's internal inquiry findings after an independent report for the London-based news agency found that there had been was no militant activity in that area. Fadel Shana, 24, was killed on 16 April by flechette darts that burst from a tank shell as he was filming about a mile away from the tanks and in clear view of them. Eight bystanders aged between 12 and 20 were also killed, involving two tank shells.

Lost Army Job Tied to Doubts on Contractor — WASHINGTON — The Army official who managed the Pentagon's largest contract in Iraq says he was ousted from his job when he refused to approve paying more than $1 billion in questionable charges to KBR, the Houston-based company that has provided food …

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