In the News LXX

Obama and Romney are neck and neck
Its too close to call although in situations like this its normally the incumbent that will win out. Romney will pick up a boost with the RNC but he has to become more deliberate in his attack on Obama with respect to the economy. The Akin fiasco has not helped him out either.

Hugo Chavez threatens the UK
It seems as though he has invoked a Monroe Doctrine of his own to establish Venezuela as the guardian of South American interests. I doubt whether the Brits arre quivering in their shoes about this one. Despite Chavez's rhetoric Venezuela is still a marginal force and Chavez the caricature of the proverbial South American despot.

A Christian girl with Down's Syndrome is arrested for blasphemy in Pakistan
The 11 year old could face the death penalty. This is completely insane (as is all religious fundamentalism) but somewhat to be expected in the increasingly intolerant 'islamist' milieu of  the failed Pakistani state.

More bloodshed in Syria
This is one conflict that the US should definitely avoid getting involved in. On one side you have the Assad-Iran-Russia-Hezbollah alliance on the other you have Brotherhood-Al Qaeda- rebel alliance. Its really a no win situation. Assad has lost much credibility amongst his population and would be ousted if it weren't for foreign backing. He has also been hit by some high profile defections. Either way the outcome looks poor from Israel's perspective.  Although the weakening of the supply line to Hezbollah may help the Jewish state temporarily. The 'whining western left' doesn't know who to back either - where is the United Church boycott of Syria when you need it? 

Al Qaeda rears its ugly head
The Al Qaeda serpent is alive and well in Yemen. It blows up oil pipelines but the irony is, is that Al Qaeda has been built up indirectly from oil money. Such is the nature of the political beat in the middle east.

Aftermath of the Miner shootings reverberates throughout South Africa
This does not bode well for the ruling ANC which I have predicted for some time will eventually split.  The individual most likely to gain from this debacle is the former ANC youth leader Julius Malema. His star is on the rise against the falling profile of President Zuma. Interesting side line from the World Bank - South Africa is one of the most unequal societies in the world - 10% of the country controls 60% of the wealth and 20 million out of a total work force of 38 million are unemployed. The ANC is so riddled with cronyism that its collapse is more likely now than ever.