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By Marlene Kaufmann
CSCE Counsel
The United States Helsinki Commission held a hearing featuring the testimony of His Excellency Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, Foreign Minister of The Netherlands and Chairman-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe for 2003. The Foreign Minister testified on September 3, 2003 about the OSCE's efforts to promote security, stability and human rights in Europe and Eurasia.
"In the last few years, we have come face to face with unprecedented challenges and threats to our security," said Minister de Hoop Scheffer. "The fight against terrorism is, and it should be, a top priority on our agenda." He noted that developing a comprehensive strategy to address new threats to security and stability will be the objective of OSCE Foreign Ministers in their upcoming meeting in Maastricht, The Netherlands, in early December. "We need to go beyond the repertoire of military action and policing as responses to security problems, and the OSCE can provide an impetus to this effort," he said. "No sustainable conflict resolution, let alone peace, can be achieved without due regard for human rights and democratization, for economic and environmental development, and without due regard for the rule of law."
Other more surreptitious threats to security include organized crime, trafficking in human beings and illegal immigration, according to the Foreign Minister. Under de Hoop Scheffer's leadership, the Dutch Chairmanship has made combating human trafficking a priority and has secured the adoption of an OSCE action plan to combat trafficking in human beings to assist countries in confronting this modern day slavery whether they are countries of origin, transfer or countries of destination.
The Minister explained that in support of this plan he intends to send missions of experts to assist countries in the fight against trafficking. The missions will draw on the expertise of OSCE institutions and will both monitor and take action against human trafficking. "Against this background, I feel sure that the Organization will be able to make an active, solid contribution to the fight," Mr. de Hoop Scheffer said.
United States Helsinki Commission Chairman Rep. Christopher H. Smith (R-NJ) welcomed the new OSCE effort. "I think it is a very realistic action plan . . . and it really adds to the common effort that we all need to take with regard to this modern-day slavery," said Smith, who has led the fight in Congress against human trafficking.
Chairman Smith asked Minister de Hoop Scheffer to expand the anti-trafficking action plan to include the military in all OSCE countries, as well as policing and peacekeeping deployments throughout the region.
Chairman Smith described his own efforts to make the U.S. military aware of this problem, including a request to the Army's Inspector General to investigate allegations of human trafficking at establishments frequented by U.S. military personnel in South Korea. An Ohio-based investigative news team revealed that women trafficked from Russia and the Philippines were being forced into prostitution in local clubs and bars surrounding U.S. bases and exposed the fact that uniformed U.S. military personnel understood the circumstances and yet did nothing to prevent or report the crime.
According to Chairman Smith, the Inspector General took quick and decisive action to investigate the alleged activities and made specific recommendations to correct the matter. "The U.S. military has put more than 660 establishments, now seen for what they are, off limits to U.S. military as a direct result of this investigation," Mr. Smith said.
Minister de Hoop Scheffer agreed that military and peacekeeping operations should be reviewed in strategies to combat human trafficking and said that the work being done by the U.S. military could serve as an example. The Minister also noted that NATO is undertaking a review of what its role should be in this regard. De Hoop Scheffer will take over as Secretary General of NATO in January, 2004.
The Chairman-in-Office reviewed the work of the OSCE in combating anti-Semitism, racism and discrimination by highlighting the June conference held in Vienna regarding the rising tide of anti-Semitism in the OSCE region and strategies to combat it, as well as the September conference focused on efforts to combat racism, xenophobia and discrimination. Both Chairman Smith and Commission Member Rep. Alcee L. Hastings (D-FL), who participated in the June conference, urged de Hoop Scheffer to support another OSCE conference on anti-Semitism, which Germany has offered to host in Berlin in 2004. The Minister confirmed his support for such a conference saying, "having visited the Holocaust Memorial Museum this morning, having seen that, you need not have any other argument to go on fighting anti-Semitism."
Commissioner Hastings queried Foreign Minister de Hoop Scheffer about his views on extending the term of the Chairman-in-Office from the current one year to two or three years, in view of the tremendous challenges facing the OSCE Chairmanship and the amount of work to be done. Mr. Hastings complimented the Minister, in particular, for the work he has done with Central Asian states.
Calling his work as Chairman-in-Office "very challenging and a tremendously interesting responsibility," de Hoop Scheffer said he felt maintaining the one year term for the OSCE Chairmanship is the best way to proceed. He pointed to the work of the Troika, which is composed of the immediate past, current and upcoming Chairman-in-Office, who meet on a regular basis to discuss OSCE matters. The Minister has sought to strengthen this working group during his tenure and indicated that he felt this mechanism, along with the appointment of Special Representatives to focus on particular issues, serves to bring continuity to the leadership of the OSCE.
Commissioner Hastings, who serves as a Vice President in the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly (OSCE PA) also asked the Chairman-in-Office about what can be done to strengthen the working relationship between the OSCE and the OSCE PA. Mr. Hastings voiced hope that the Parliamentary Assembly would participate fully in the Maastricht Ministerial Meeting and that the OSCE and Assembly would continue to foster a working partnership.
Viewing this issue from the perspective of his sixteen years of service in the Dutch Parliament, the Chairman-in-Office said he believes that the OSCE leadership has made substantial progress in its relationship with the Parliamentary Assembly. He welcomed the opening of the Parliamentary Assembly's Liaison Office in Vienna, headed by Ambassador Andreas Nothelle, as well as the active participation of Parliamentary Assembly President Bruce George in meetings of the Troika. The Foreign Minister said that he would continue to work to improve interaction between the OSCE and the Assembly.
Minister de Hoop Scheffer further highlighted the actions of the OSCE by discussing regions in which the Organization has been particularly active–including Central Asia, Belarus, Moldova, Chechnya, and Georgia.
Helsinki Commission Member Rep. Joseph R. Pitts (R-PA) voiced concern about the authoritarian rule in much of Central Asia and the Caucasus and its potential to move toward a family dynasty, as seems to be happening in Azerbaijan.
The Chairman-in-Office expressed his view that Central Asian governments need particular attention from the OSCE, given that social changes brought about since the end of the Cold War have begun to stall. The Minister, who recently visited the five Central Asian countries, emphasized the importance of direct involvement with participating States in order to monitor and pressure for change. "The OSCE missions are the eyes and the ears of the organization," he said.
Mr. de Hoop Scheffer, who also spoke with members of nongovernmental organizations in Turkmenistan, stressed the need to maintain communications between all OSCE states, because the alternative would be to expel them. "Would that improve the fate of the people in jails in Uzbekistan or Turkmenistan?" he asked rhetorically. "I don't think so, but it's the perpetual moral dilemma we have."
Mr. Pitts and Minister de Hoop Scheffer also expressed concerns about the refusal of Belarus to fully participate in OSCE meetings and negotiations. The Chairman-in-Office mentioned that of particular concern are attempts by the Government of Belarus to restrict the media's independence. He said he would follow the situation critically and would take whatever necessary action was called for.
In Moldova, the OSCE plans to step up its efforts to resolve the Moldova-Transdniestria conflict. The OSCE is focusing on a political settlement and preparations for post-settlement. The two parties understand that a peacekeeping operation may be in place during the transition activities, and the OSCE is discussing the possibility.
Mr. de Hoop Scheffer called for Russia to reclaim its weapons and ammunition from Moldova before the end of the year. He also urged the United States and the European Union to assist conflict resolution efforts in Moldova.
The OSCE is still pushing for cooperation between Chechnya and the Russian Federation, despite difficulties in negotiations. The OSCE has developed a program aimed at benefitting the Chechen population and improving areas such as the judiciary and public order, economic and social developments, re-integration of displaced people, and media development.
De Hoop Scheffer said violence and political obstacles have made negotiations in the area difficult. But he remained positive about a program to affect change. "I believe that the Russian Federation and the OSCE have a common interest in defining such a program," he said, adding the human suffering and material costs of this conflict are immense.
The Maastricht Ministerial Meeting will set the agenda for the OSCE's future work and will address modern threats to security and stability, the Chairman-in-Office said. The meeting will take up human trafficking, economic and environmental issues, and review of field missions and peacekeeping. The conference will also be open to nongovernmental organizations, which de Hoop Scheffer said have been crucial to helping bring about change.
The Chairman-in-Office concluded his testimony by stressing the importance of multilateral efforts and of the continued support of the United States. "That is one of the reasons why, with full candor, I have shared my impressions, convictions, and intentions for the coming period with you," he said. "In short, it takes a joint effort by the entire OSCE community to make this organization work."
The United States Helsinki Commission, an independent federal agency, by law monitors and encourages progress in implementing provisions of the Helsinki Accords. The Commission, created in 1976, is composed of nine senators, nine representatives, and one official each from the Departments of State, Defense, and Commerce.
United States Helsinki Commission Intern Lauren Smith contributed to this article.


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Eurovision Winners Warmly Received In Azerbaijan
The 30-year-old Jamal, a mother of two who lives in London, and Gasimov, 21, an international relations student in Azerbaijan, beat out 24 other finalists on May 14 to secure their nation's first-ever win in front of 36,000 spectators in a soccer arena in the German city of Duesseldorf.
The pair, who go by the name Ell/Nikki, won 220 points for their classic pop ballad "Running Scared," meaning next year's songfest will be hosted in Baku.
The win was portrayed as national triumph by the main television channels in Azerbaijan, where it's hoped the victory will transform the image of the ex-Soviet state of 8 million, until now known as an energy exporter on Europe's fringe.
In a statement on his website, the country's authoritarian President Ilham Aliev said that winning Eurovision was "a great success of the Azerbaijani state and people."
"It's a great victory for Azerbaijani culture," said a report by the public broadcaster. "Around 800 million people live in Europe; we were able to show them our culture and now we will be able to show them our traditions."
An Azerbaijani lawmaker said that the result proved that the country was capable of integration with Europe.
"Azerbaijan needs such victories. It unites the nation," lawmaker Ganira Pashayeva told the French news agency AFP.
More than 120 million viewers around the globe tuned in to watch the spectacle.
compiled from agency reports
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Five Residents Of Volatile Tajik Region Extradited By Russia
DUSHANBE -- Russian officials detained five residents of the village of Yazgulom in the volatile Gorno-Badakhshan autonomous region and extradited them to Tajikistan last week, where they were charged with "membership in an extremist organization," a source close to Tajik law enforcement told RFE/RL on June 17.
RFE/RL has chosen not to disclose the names of the five, who were arrested in Russia in late May. The source spoke on condition of anonymity.
On May 16, Tajik security forces arrested more than 30 residents of Yazgulom, accusing them of plotting unspecified sabotage.
Sources told RFE/RL at the time that those arrested were suspected of having links with "extremist groups" in neighboring Afghanistan.
There were no details regarding the arrests in Yazgulom and the deportation of the five Tajiks from Russia as neither officials nor relatives of the detained individuals agreed to talk to RFE/RL.
Residents of Gorno-Badakhshan have been under pressure for years. A crackdown on the restive region intensified in 2022 after mass protests in May that year were violently dispersed by police and security forces.
Tajik authorities said at the time that 10 people were killed and 27 injured during the clashes between protesters and police.
Residents of the remote region's Rushon district, however, have told RFE/RL that 21 bodies were found at the sites of the clashes.
Dozens of the region's residents have been handed lengthy prison terms on terrorism and extremism charges since then.
Deep tensions between the government and residents of the volatile region have simmered ever since a five-year civil war broke out shortly after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Still, protests are rare in the tightly controlled nation of 9.5 million where President Emomali Rahmon has ruled with an iron fist for nearly three decades.
Putin Names Cousin's Daughter Deputy Defense Minister
Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed four deputy defense ministers on June 17 and appointed three new ones, one of whom is Anna Tsivilyova, who, according to investigative reports, is the daughter of Putin's cousin. Tsivilyova is the wife of the former governor of the Kemerovo region, Sergei Tsivilyov, who recently became Russia's energy minister. In recent weeks, several top military officials and Defense Ministry officials have been arrested on corruption charges before and after Putin dismissed his longtime ally, Sergei Shoigu, as defense minister and appointed former First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov in his place. To read the original story by RFE/RL's Russian Service, click here.
Russian Journalist In Exile Accused Of Justifying Terrorism
Russian lawmaker Andrei Alshevskikh quoted Interior Ministry officials on June 17 as saying that an investigation was launched last month against television journalist Tatyana Lazareva on a charge of justifying terrorism. The charge stems from Lazareva's report about Ukrainian drones attacking Russian sites. Last week, the ministry added Lazareva to its wanted list. In July 2022, Lazareva, who openly condemned Moscow's full-scale aggression against Ukraine, was added to Russia's list of "foreign agents." Lazareva fled Russia after Moscow launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. To read the original story by RFE/RL's Russian Service, click here.
- By Reuters
Denmark Seeks To Limit Shadow Tanker Fleet Carrying Russian Oil
Denmark is considering ways to limit a potentially environmentally harmful shadow fleet of tankers from carrying Russian oil through the Baltic Sea, Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said on June 17. Since Western governments imposed a price cap on Russia's oil to limit funds for its war in Ukraine, Russia has relied on a fleet of aging tankers based outside the West. About one-third of Russia's seaborne oil exports pass through the Danish straits between the Baltic and North seas, and any restrictions on the tankers could send oil prices higher and hit the Kremlin's finances. The Russian Embassy in Copenhagen called any proposed restrictions "unacceptable."
- By Reuters
Russian-Uzbek Billionaire Usmanov Sues UBS In Germany Over 'Erroneous Decisions'
Russian-Uzbek billionaire Alisher Usmanov has filed a lawsuit against the bank UBS Europe SE in Frankfurt over what his lawyers said were unsubstantiated reports made about his transactions that triggered an investigation of him. Usmanov's lawyer, Peter Gauweiler, said in a statement on June 17 that German prosecutors and the Council of the European Union "have issued numerous erroneous decisions for which UBS is partly responsible, in particular, due to the use of its suspicious transaction reports as an instrument for the purposes of criminal prosecution and EU sanctions policy." UBS declined to comment.
- By RFE/RL
Blast At Czech Military Grounds Kills 1, Injures 8
A munitions blast at a military testing ground in the Czech town of Libava has killed one soldier and injured eight, seven of whom were soldiers, the Defense Ministry said. The ministry gave no details on what caused the June 17 explosion, which occurred at a site used by the army for testing since 1949. "The families of the injured and the deceased soldier have been notified," the ministry added. The Czech Republic recently urged Brussels to restrict the movement of Russian diplomats and their families within the EU, saying the matter had gained new urgency following a spate of sabotage incidents in EU states, which have been blamed on Russia. Czech police also confirmed in April that Russian agents were involved in two munitions depot blasts that killed two workers near the eastern Czech village of Vrbetice in 2014.
- By RFE/RL
Kremlin Says Putin To Visit North Korea
Russian President Vladimir Putin will embark on a two-day visit to North Korea starting June 18, the Kremlin announced. Putin is expected to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for talks focused on expanding military cooperation. U.S. and South Korean officials have accused Pyongyang of providing Russia with artillery, missiles, and other military equipment to help Moscow in its invasion of Ukraine, possibly in return for key military technologies and aid. Both Pyongyang and Moscow have denied accusations about North Korean weapons transfers, which would be in violation of UN Security Council resolutions.
U.S. Soldier Gordon Black Pleads Not Guilty To Attacking Russian Girlfriend
U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Gordon Black, who was arrested in Russia's Far East city of Vladivostok last month, rejected a charge of attacking his Russian girlfriend and threatening to kill her, as his trial resumed.
Black testified at the trial on June 17 that Aleksandra Vashchuk drank a large amount of vodka on the day of the incident in question and started behaving aggressively towards him, verbally insulting him and also physically attacking with punches to the ear and eye. She also threw a plate at him, he said.
According to Black, when he started to pack his belongings to leave the apartment, Vashchuk tried to block his exit and they scuffled.
Black accepted that he hit Vashchuk once and pushed her twice after which Vashchuk crashed into a wall.
Black partially accepted guilt on a charge that he had taken cash from Vashchuk, adding that he had no bad intention about it as he returned the sum to her the next day.
Black also said that, before arriving in Vladivostok from South Korea, he sent about 300,000 rubles ($3,350) to Vashchuk. After arriving in Russia, he transferred another $525 to her via an acquaintance.
Vashchuk confirmed that Black had contributed to a major part of the rent for the apartment in Vladivostok where they had lived together for a month. She reiterated her previous statement, saying that Black had aggressive episodes several times during their partnership.
At the trial's first session on June 6, Vashchuk asked the court not to imprison Black, saying he needs "psychiatric help."
U.S. authorities have said Black traveled to Russia via China from South Korea -- where he had been assigned before heading back home to Texas -- without informing his superiors.
Weeks later, Russian authorities also said that another U.S. citizen, identified as William Russell Nycum, had been detained on "petty hooliganism" and alcohol charges in a separate case, adding that Nycum was being held in a detention center in Moscow.
The two arrests have again raised questions over whether Russian authorities are targeting Americans by detaining them with an eye on using them in potential prisoner swaps amid sharp disagreements between Moscow and Washington over the war in Ukraine and other international security issues.
Among those U.S. citizens being held are journalists Alsu Kurmasheva of RFE/RL and Evan Gershkovich of The Wall Street Journal. Both have been detained on charges they, their employers, and their supporters reject as politically motivated.
American Paul Whelan was convicted in 2020 and sentenced to 16 years in Russian prison on espionage charges that he and the U.S. government have repeatedly rejected.
Russia's Foreign Ministry has said the cases involving Black and Nycum are not political and neither is accused of espionage.
The State Department in September 2023 issued a "do not travel" warning to U.S. citizens and cited "the singling out of U.S. citizens for detention by Russian government security officials."
With reporting by Vladivostok1.ru
Ukraine's Top Military Chief Says Russia Is Upping Attacks Ahead Of More Western Military Aid
Russia's military is intensifying its attacks in Ukraine, trying to gain more territory before the Ukrainian military receives more promised Western military aid, including F-16 jets, Ukraine's top military commander said on June 17.
Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine
RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's full-scale invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war in Ukraine, click here.
"The enemy is well aware that as a result of the gradual receipt of a significant amount of weapons and military equipment from our partners, and the arrival of the first F-16s, which will strengthen our air defense, time will play in our favor and its chances of success will decrease," Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskiy said in a post on Telegram.
"Therefore, the command of Russia's troops is currently making every effort to increase the intensity and expand the geography of hostilities in order to maximize the depletion of our troops, disrupt the training of reserves and prevent the transition to active offensive actions," Syrskiy added.
Syrskiy said Russian forces were focusing on the Pokrovsk front, in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk.
Moscow's forces there are closing in on a key transit artery and supply route linking civilian hubs in the north of the industrial territory to towns further south, according to Syrskiy.
His assessment come after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said the current level of Western military aid was not enough to guarantee Ukraine's victory over invading Russian forces.
"There is aid. There are serious packages. Is it enough to win? No. Is it late? Yes," Zelenskiy said on June 16 on the sidelines of an international peace summit in Switzerland.
Like other Ukrainian officials, Zelenskiy has repeatedly called on Ukraine's Western allies to expedite weapons deliveries, particularly promised fighter jets and air defense systems.
At the two-day gathering at a Swiss resort over the weekend, 80 countries called for the "territorial integrity" of Ukraine to be the foundation of any peace agreement to end Russia's war.
Russia's absence at the Ukrainian-initiated Global Peace Summit has tamped down hopes of any breakthrough, as has China's decision to stay away.
Participants India, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates were among those that did not sign the final document, which focused on issues of nuclear safety, food security, and the exchange of prisoners.
On June 17, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the summit produced "zero" results.
He added that Russian President Vladimir Putin was "still open to dialogue and serious discussion."
On the eve of the summit, Putin issued terms for a cease-fire, including that Ukraine hand over control of four regions in areas not only occupied by Russian invading forces, but Ukrainian-controlled parts of those regions as well.
The proposal was rejected immediately by Kyiv and its Western backers.
NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg has slammed the conditions as a path to "more aggression, more occupation."
Azerbaijani Activist Held In Custody For 2 Days On Unknown Charges
The NIDA civic movement in Azerbaijan said one of its members, Nicat Amiraslanov, was released from custody on June 17 after spending two days in a police station in Baku on unspecified charges. Amiraslanov said he "cannot give any details about the case at the moment." Some 20 civil rights activists and journalists, including employees of the ToplumTV channel and the Abzas Media investigative website, have been arrested in Azerbaijan on charges of foreign currency smuggling since last November. The activists and journalists have rejected the charges, calling them politically motivated. To read the original story by RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service, click here.
- By Current Time
Russia Issues Warrants For 2 Investigative Journalists In Exile
A Moscow court on June 17 issued arrest warrants for two journalists from the independent iStories investigative website -- Yekaterina Fomina and chief editor Roman Anin -- on a charge of "distributing false information about the Russian military." The court's ruling came hours after the Interior Ministry added the two journalists to its wanted list. In the spring of 2022, Fomina published an investigative report revealing facts confirming allegations of crimes committed by occupying Russian troops against Ukrainian civilians. iStories has been branded an "undesirable organization" and banned in Russia. Both Fomina and Anin are currently outside of Russia. To read the original story by Current Time, click here.
Kyrgyz Activist Held For Protesting Change In Flag Transferred To House Arrest
Kyrgyz activist Aftandil Jorobekov, who was arrested in December for openly protesting a change to Kyrgyzstan's national flag, was transferred to house arrest over the weekend, his lawyer told RFE/RL. The 40-year-old activist was charged with calls for mass disorder and disobedience to authorities' requests. The flag's amendment was proposed by President Sadyr Japarov, who signed the bill on December 22, 2023. The law allowed for "straightening" the wavy yellow rays of a sun on a red field of the old flag to avoid resemblance to a sunflower. The Kyrgyz word for sunflower is kunkarama, but it also means "dependent." To read the original story by RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service, click here.
More Tajik Citizens Stranded At Moscow Airport
More than 30 Tajik nationals have been stranded at Moscow's Vnukovo airport since last week amid tightened passport controls almost three months after a deadly terror attack near Moscow. Some of the stranded Tajiks told RFE/RL that Russian security officials did not allow them to enter the country, saying that "Tajiks cause problems in Russia." In April, thousands of Tajiks were stranded in Moscow airports after they were barred from entering Russia amid anti-Tajik sentiments after 11 Tajik men were arrested for their alleged involvement in the attack on a concert hall near Moscow in March that left 144 people dead. To read the original story by RFE/RL's Tajik Service, click here.
- By RFE/RL
Nuclear Powers Continue To Modernize Arsenals, Rely On Them More, New Study Says
The nine nuclear-armed nations in the world continue to modernize their nuclear arsenals amid growing reliance on them as deterrence in 2023, a fresh report issued on June 17 by a Swedish think tank said.
"While the global total of nuclear warheads continues to fall as cold war-era weapons are gradually dismantled, regrettably we continue to see year-on-year increases in the number of operational nuclear warheads," said Dan Smith, director of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). "This trend seems likely to continue and probably accelerate in the coming years and is extremely concerning."
Earlier this month, Russia and its ally Belarus launched a second phase of exercises to practice the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons, part of the Kremlin's efforts, analysts say, to discourage the West from ramping up support for Ukraine.
Separately, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), said in its own report issued on June 17 that the nine nuclear-armed states spent a total of $91.4 billion on their nuclear weapons programs in 2023. The Geneva-based coalition of disarmament activists won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2017.
ICAN said that figures show a $10.7 billion increase in global spending on nuclear weapons in 2023 compared to 2022, with the United States accounting for 80 percent of that increase. The U.S. share of total spending, $51.5 billion, is more than all the other nuclear-armed countries put together. The next biggest spender was China at $11.8 billion, ICAN said, with Russia spending the third largest amount at $8.3 billion.
In its report, SIPRI estimated that some 2,100 of the deployed warheads were kept in a state of high operational alert on ballistic missiles, and nearly all belong to Russia or the United States. However, it said that China is also believed to have some warheads on high operational alert for the first time.
Russia and the United States have together almost 90 percent of all nuclear weapons, SIPRI said. The sizes of their military stockpiles seem to have remained relatively stable in 2023, although Russia is estimated to have deployed around 36 more warheads with operational forces than in January 2023, the watchdog added.
In its SIPRI Yearbook 2024, the institute said that transparency regarding nuclear forces has declined in both countries in the wake of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and debates around nuclear-sharing arrangements have increased in importance.
Washington suspended its bilateral strategic stability dialogue with Russia, and last year Moscow announced that it was suspending its participation in the New START nuclear treaty.
With reporting by AP
- By RFE/RL
Trial Of Jailed U.S. Journalist Gershkovich To Start June 26 Behind Closed Doors
The trial of jailed U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich will start on June 26 and be held behind closed doors, Russian court officials announced on June 17.
Last week, prosecutors said Gershkovich will stand trial for espionage in a court in Yekaterinburg.
It was in that Ural city that Gershkovich, a reporter with the Wall Street Journal, was arrested in late March 2023 during a reporting trip.
Russian authorities have not provided any evidence to support the espionage charges, which The Wall Street Journal and the U.S. government have vehemently rejected. They say Gershkovich, 32, was merely doing his job as an accredited reporter when he was arrested.
The U.S. State Department said in December that Moscow rejected a significant offer it made to secure the release of Gershkovich and Paul Whelan, another American imprisoned in Russia on espionage charges.
Another U.S. citizen currently held by Russian authorities is Alsu Kurmasheva, an RFE/RL journalist who was arrested in Kazan, the capital of Russia's Republic of Tatarstan, in October 2023 and charged with failing to register as a "foreign agent" and spreading falsehoods about the Russian military.
Prior to her arrest, Kurmasheva, who faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted, had her passport confiscated following a visit to care for her mother. RFE/RL and the U.S. government say the charges against her are reprisals for her work.
Many analysts and officials say it appears as though Russia is targeting American citizens to detain for potential use in prisoner exchanges or for other geopolitical purposes.
Russia is believed to be seeking the release of Vadim Krasikov, who was given a life sentence in Germany in 2021 for the killing of Zelimkhan "Tornike" Khangoshvili, a Georgian citizen of Chechen descent who had fought Russian troops in Chechnya and later claimed asylum in Germany.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, asked in February about releasing Gershkovich, appeared to refer to Krasikov by pointing to a man imprisoned by a U.S. ally for "liquidating a bandit" who had allegedly killed Russian soldiers during separatist fighting in Chechnya.
With reporting from Reuters
Russia Steps Up Attacks In Donetsk Region During Peace Conference In Switzerland
Russia stepped up its military attacks on Ukraine, the General Staff of the Ukrainian military said in its evening assessment on June 16 as the leaders of Ukraine and its supporters wrapped up a two-day peace conference in Switzerland.
Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine
RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's full-scale invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war in Ukraine, click here.
An estimated 88 combat clashes took place during the day, the Ukrainian General Staff said.
"Throughout the day, the enemy is intensifying its offensive and assault operations, looking for ways to penetrate our defenses and try to drive Ukrainian units out of their positions," the assessment said.
According to the report, the most active area was around the city of Pokrovsk, where the Russian military is attempting to make further advances. Several attacks were ongoing there at the time of the assessment.
"In the Pokrovsk area, the Russian troops are not reducing the pace of their offensive. Since the beginning of the day on this part of the front they have attacked Ukrainian defensive lines 36 times. Twenty-five enemy assaults were unsuccessful, another 11 attacks are ongoing," the Ukrainian military said.
Russian forces twice attached in the Vovchansk area during the day, firing 16 missiles from the Belgorod region in southern Russia.
The Russian military also made 10 attempts to storm Ukrainian positions in the Lyman area and around Kurakhove.
"Three assaults by the invaders were repulsed by the defense forces, and seven more clashes are ongoing," the summary said, adding that two clashes were ongoing in the Kupyansk area.
The General Staff said that since the beginning of the day, Russia lost 54 of its soldiers, one armored fighting vehicle, and a warehouse of ammunition in the Lyman area.
The information could not be independently verified.
Russia intensified its attacks as representatives of nearly 100 countries attended the peace summit in Switzerland. Russia and China were not among them.
Eighty countries and four organizations, including the Council of Europe and the European Commission, joined the the final communique of the meeting.
Switzerland will discuss the results of the meeting with Russia, China, and other countries that did not attend, Swiss Foreign Minister Ignatius Cassis said.
"We have an active embassy in Moscow, and every two weeks we communicate with the minister of foreign affairs, and we also intend to discuss with Russia the results of this conference," Cassis told a news conference.
The Swiss minister said a "detailed discussion" of the results of the conference is planned with those countries that didn't attend, including China, which refused to participate due to the absence of Russia.
"There are different opinions and ideas about how to continue this path, the path to peace. And these different ideas need to be united in order to find a common way forward," Cassis said.
- By AFP
Serbian Soccer Fans In Custody After Clashes Ahead Of Euro 2024 England Match
Seven fans of Serbia's national team were taken into custody on June 16 after scuffles broke out in the German city of Gelsenkirchen ahead of the team's Euro 2024 match against England, police said. A complaint of dangerous bodily harm was filed against one of the fans, a police spokesman told AFP. Details of any injuries and what happened in the scuffle were still unclear, the spokesman said. Police earlier reported having to separate England and Serbia fans after clashes between the two sets of supporters. The spokesman said no England fans had been taken into custody.
Russian Journalist Killed In Drone Attack In Ukraine's Donetsk Region
A Russian journalist was killed in a drone attack in the Russian-controlled part of the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine, his news organization said on June 16.
"Our correspondent Nikita Tsitsagi was killed during an attack by Ukrainian Army drones," News.Ru said on Telegram.
The editors reported that the journalist died in the area of St. Nicholas Monastery near Vuhledar in southern Donetsk region, the scene of fierce fighting for the past three months. No other details were provided.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said a Ukrainian drone had "purposefully hit the Russian journalist preparing a report in the area."
The death of Tsitsagi was confirmed to TASS by the pro-Russian authorities of the region.
The journalist collaborated with TASS, the online magazine New Tab, and the Russian-language online newspaper Lenta.ru. He received an award last year for his reporting for New Tab from the city of Shebekino in the Belgorod region.
Tsitsagi's death came to light three days after a cameraman with the Russian television channel NTV was killed when his film crew came under fire in the in the area around Horlivka, which lies north of Donetsk city in part of the region controlled by Russian troops.
Russian state news agency RIA Novosti reported that cameraman Valery Kozhin died in the hospital, citing Ivan Prikhodko, the Russian-installed head of the Horlivka administration.
Russian authorities in the region reported that Kozhin and another NTV journalist, correspondent Aleksei Ivliev, were severely injured in an explosion. Ivliev's condition, according to NTV, is stable.
There has been no comment from Ukraine.
Kozhin previously covered military conflicts in which Russian forces participated, including in Syria, Russian media reported.
Two other Russian correspondents -- Rostilav Zhuravlev of RIA Novosti and Boris Maksudov of the Rossiya-24 TV channel -- were killed in separate incidents last year in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhya region while covering Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
More than 10 Ukrainian journalists have been killed in the war.
With reporting by AFP
- By dpa
Ukraine Coach Asks For Continued Support Ahead Of Opening Match In Euro 2024
Ukrainian national soccer coach Serhiy Rebrov asked Europe to keep supporting his country in the war against Russia ahead of Ukraine's Euro 2024 opener against Romania on June 17. "Football is not the top priority in our country," Rebrov said on June 16. "The war continues. We need continued support. We are fighting for peace, we are fighting for peace in Europe," he added, saying this will be an "extra tick of motivation." Ukraine managed to qualify for the European Cup despite the war preventing any home games. Rebrov said Ukrainians are proud of their players and the players are proud of the people back home. Defender Illya Zabarnyi added: "There's a lot of pressure on everyone, but it's also a great motivation to get out on the pitch." The first game will be a "very emotional moment," he said.
- By AFP
Afghan Taliban Delegation To Attend Next Round Of UN Talks In Qatar
Taliban authorities will attend the third round of United Nations-hosted talks on Afghanistan in Doha, Qatar, a government spokesman said on June 16. The Taliban-led government's participation in the conference of foreign special envoys to Afghanistan had been in doubt after it was not included in the first round and then refused an invitation to the second round. Zabihullah Mujahid told AFP a delegation from Afghanistan will participate in the Doha conference scheduled for June 30 and July 1. Mujahid told Afghan media that a delegation would attend because the talks' agenda appeared "beneficial to Afghanistan." The agenda includes "topics such as aid for Afghanistan and creating opportunities for investors in Afghanistan."
First Pride Rally Held In Kyiv Since Russia's Full-Scale Invasion
Several hundred LGBT activists and their supporters, including Ukrainian soldiers, marched in central Kyiv on June 16 to demand the government grant them more rights as they took part in the first Pride march in the Ukrainian capital since Russia launched its full-scale invasion more than two years ago.
Protected by riot police, demonstrators demanded the legalization of civil unions and harsh penalties for discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
Staff from the U.S. Embassy and several European embassies attended the rally on one of the central streets of Kyiv as participants shouted slogans such as, "It's always time for human rights."
In addition to seeking legal reforms to legalize civil unions for same-sex couples, campaigners are seeking changes in the law to allow people in those partnerships to make medical decisions for wounded soldiers and bury victims of the war.
Viktor Pylypenko, a Ukrainian soldier who has served as a rifleman and paramedic in the Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Donetsk regions, told RFE/RL his group brought two messages to the march, each one displayed on banners.
One called on the world to "stop procrastinating" and send Ukraine more weapons and air-defense systems, he said. The other demanded the Ukrainian president and parliament "stop procrastinating" on the implementation of European values and on the introduction of human rights for groups that face discrimination.
Others said LGBT soldiers serving in the military are fighting the same as others and only want equal treatment under the law in their relationships and other aspects of their lives.
"We are ordinary people who are fighting on an equal footing with everyone else, but deprived of the rights that other people have," Dmitriy Pavlov, an army soldier who used a cane to walk, told the Associated Press.
Many of the soldiers displayed rainbow patches on their uniforms and showed off the medals they had received.
Participants carried rainbow flags or wrapped themselves in them. Undeterred by rainy weather and a heavy police presence, many participants wore colorful clothing and gawdy accessories as they marched. The event lasted about 20 minutes and ended without provocations when participants went to the nearest metro station and dispersed.
Organizers faced difficulties ahead of the event. City authorities turned down a petition to allow it to be held at a metro station.
Police set up cordons in central Kyiv to keep the marchers clear of a counterdemonstration in which protesters carried posters with anti-gay slogans as they joined a march to a memorial for fallen soldiers in the center of the city.
The Pride march was condemned by one of the main branches of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
"This action is part of a left-wing radical political movement and is aimed at imposing a political ideology, and also aimed at destroying the institution of the family and weakening Ukrainian society in the conditions of war and repelling Russian aggression," the church said in a statement.
With reporting by AP
4 Killed In Roadside Bombing In Pakistan's Restive Northwest
Four passengers were killed and two others wounded in a roadside bomb explosion in Pakistan's northwest province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on June 16. The incident occurred in the restive tribal district of Kurram. District emergency service officials told Radio Mashaal that all the victims were members of one family. The two wounded are being treated at a military hospital in Peshawar. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. Kurram has a history of sectarian violence. To read the original story by Radio Mashaal, click here.
- By Reuters
Iran Rebukes G7 For Statement On Nuclear Program Escalation
Iran called upon the Group of Seven (G7) on June 16 to distance itself from "destructive policies of the past," Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said, referring to a G7 statement condemning Iran's recent nuclear program escalation. On June 14, the G7 warned Iran against advancing its nuclear enrichment program and said it would be ready to enforce new measures if Tehran were to transfer ballistic missiles to Russia. "Any attempt to link the war in Ukraine to the bilateral cooperation between Iran and Russia is an act with only biased political goals," Kanaani said.
Security Forces Storm Russian Detention Center To End Hostage Drama
Two corrections officers at a Russian detention center in the southern city of Rostov-on-Don were freed on June 16 by Russian special forces who stormed the facility after several inmates took the officers hostage.
Russia's Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN) confirmed that the two corrections officers had been released and the inmates who had taken them hostage killed.
"During a special operation to free hostages in pretrial detention center No. 1 of the Main Directorate of the Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia in the Rostov region, the criminals were eliminated," FSIN said on Telegram. "The employees who were held hostage were released and were not injured."
Residents of Rostov-on-Don reported hearing the sounds of gunfire in the area of the detention center around noon local time. The FSIN confirmed soon afterward that riot police had stormed the building.
According to the Baza Telegram channel, one of the hostages was slightly wounded. He was treated at the scene and his life was not in danger, the report said.
Some local news outlets reported that some prisoners had also been killed.
Baza reported that six inmates managed to knock out the bars over the windows of their cells and enter the duty station, where they took the two corrections officers hostage, demanding weapons, a car, and free passage.
Videos distributed on social media showed the hostage-takers armed with knives and sharp objects.
The six had been accused of terrorist activities and some were reported to have links to the Islamic State (IS) extremist group. Among them were natives of Ingushetia and Chechnya who were convicted of terrorism charges in December, according to Kavkaz.Realii, citing preliminary information.
IS has carried out a number of attacks on Russian soil in recent years, including most recently in March when gunmen opened fire on a crowd at a concert hall in suburban Moscow, killing 145 people.
Residents of the Rostov region noted that Governor Vasily Golubev did not comment on reports about the hostage-taking incident while it was ongoing despite a number of central streets having been blocked, and questions from residents about the situation were deleted from Golubev's Telegram channel.
The governor said after the hostages were release that it had been the work of "provocateurs with obvious anti-Russian sentiments and an attempt to stir up an interethnic theme."
- By RFE/RL
80 Countries Back Ukraine's 'Territorial Integrity' At Swiss Peace Summit
Eighty countries have called for the "territorial integrity" of Ukraine to be the foundation of any peace agreement to end Russia's war in a communique issued on the second and final day of their gathering at a Swiss resort on June 16.
Russia's absence at the Ukrainian-initiated Global Peace Summit has dampened hopes of any breakthrough, as has China's decision to stay away.
Participants India, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates were among those that did not sign the final document, which focused on issues of nuclear safety, food security, and the exchange of prisoners.
Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine
RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's full-scale invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war in Ukraine, click here.
The final statement said the UN Charter and "respect for territorial integrity and sovereignty…can and will serve as a basis for achieving a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in Ukraine."
"We believe that reaching peace requires the involvement of and dialogue between all parties," it also said.
Viola Amherd, the Swiss president who hosted the event, told the final news conference that the fact that the "great majority" of participants agreed to the final document "shows what diplomacy can achieve."
On the eve of the summit, Russian President Vladimir Putin issued harsh terms for a cease-fire, including that Ukraine hand over control of four regions in areas not only occupied by Russian invading forces, but Ukrainian-controlled regions as well, demands immediately rejected by Kyiv and its Western backers.
Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, said the conference was "rightly" titled "Path to Peace" because such a goal will not be achieved in a single step.
"It was not a peace negotiation because Putin is not serious about ending the war. He is insisting on capitulation. He is insisting on ceding Ukrainian territory -- even territory that today is not occupied by him," she said. "He is insisting on disarming Ukraine, leaving it vulnerable to future aggression. No country would ever accept these outrageous terms."
Speaking at the end of the two-day meeting in Burgenstock, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said the support of Western and other leaders demonstrates that the rule of international law can be restored.
"I hope that we can achieve results as soon as possible," Zelenskiy said. "We'll prove to everyone in the world that the UN Charter can be restored to full effectiveness."
Responding to a question from RFE/RL at the final news conference, Zelenskiy said more countries may join the final communique.
"First of all, [the term is] not signing but joining [the final communique]. This is an important difference, because joining the communique means that the communique is open," he said. "Even countries that are now thinking to join it have consultations ongoing in their respective countries."
Russian political scientist Aleksandr Morozov told Current Time, a Russian-language network run by RFE/RL in cooperation with Voice Of America, that countries such as South Africa and India that did not join the communique are reserving space for their own peace initiatives. He said that while these wouldn't be bad, they would only prove that Putin's demands are unrealistic because they disrespect Ukraine's territorial integrity and thus go against the UN Charter.
In holding the summit, Zelenskiy had been seeking to rally a greater number of countries behind Ukraine's cause, especially those from the so-called Global South, and maintain world attention on Russia's brutal invasion. That has become more urgent amid some global fatigue with the 28-month war, fighting in the Middle East, and growing concern about Chinese aggression toward Taiwan.
The June 15-16 summit was the culmination of Zelenskiy's efforts over the past 19 months to engage global leaders in helping end the biggest war in Europe since World War II.
Switzerland agreed to host the summit with the hope it would pave the way for a future peace process that includes Russia. Zelenskiy did not want Russia to participate at this stage.
At their meeting on June 16, delegates agreed on a final summit declaration that focused on three issues: a call for the need for nuclear and food security and the return of prisoners of war and children removed from Ukraine during the conflict.
Ihor Zhovkva, Zelenskiy's deputy chief of staff, told reporters on the sidelines of the summit that Kyiv decided to focus on these three issues "because the majority of the international community is united around these positions today."
"The text is balanced. All of our principled positions on which Ukraine had insisted have been considered," Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told reporters on June 16 about the final communique.
"Of course we...understand perfectly that a time will come when it will be necessary to talk to Russia," he said. "But our position is very clear: We will not allow Russia to speak in the language of ultimatums like it is speaking now."
The conference was expected to decide the host country for a follow-up conference, but the meeting in Switzerland closed with the location of a second meeting undetermined.
Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis said it was conceivable that a follow-up summit could be held before the U.S. presidential election in November.
Saudi Arabia was believed to be one of the leading candidates, and Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud said on June 15 that the kingdom was ready to assist the peace process, but he warned a viable settlement would hinge on "difficult compromise."
China, which backs Russia, joined scores of countries that sat out the event. Beijing has said any peace process would require the participation of both Russia and Ukraine, and has put forward its own ideas for peace.
Ukrainian security analyst Alina Hrytsenko told Current Time that China is trying to position itself as a peacemaker and doesn't believe that either side can achieve a military victory. She pointed out that that Putin's "peace offer" included a refusal to consider Zelenskiy legitimate, making it unclear under China's peace initiative who could be Putin's counterpart in peace talks.
On June 15, on the first day of the Swiss summit, many Western leaders condemned Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, citing the UN Charter in defense of its territorial integrity, and rejecting Putin's demands for Ukraine to cede land for peace.
"One thing is clear in this conflict: There is an aggressor, which is Putin, and there is a victim, which is the Ukrainian people," Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said.
"Russia should realize that it has borders, like any other state, and that it has neighbors, like any other state. This international community, the new security architecture, can exist only when the big countries, the biggest of the biggest, recognize their neighbors, respect their neighbors and their territorial integrity," Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili said.
"Sovereignty, territorial integrity, and discrediting aggression as a tool of statecraft are crucial principles that must be upheld in case of Ukraine and globally," Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas told the opening session on June 15. "That is why I'm concerned about so-called peace plans and initiatives that ignore the core UN Charter principles. We cannot treat Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty as somewhat secondary," Kallas added.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, representing the United States while President Joe Biden attended a fundraiser in California, said Putin's June 14 "peace" proposal was not a call for negotiations but a call "for [Ukraine's] surrender."
Harris also reiterated America's full backing for Ukraine and announced $1.5 billion in new U.S. assistance for multiple projects, including energy infrastructure and civilian security.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz stated that "peace in Ukraine cannot be achieved without involving Russia" but noted Russia has refused all collective calls for peace.
Ahead of the summit, leaders from the Group of 7 major industrial nations announced a $50 billion loan package for Kyiv that will leverage interest and income from the more than $260 billion in frozen Russian assets.
Biden and Zelenskiy this week signed a security agreement that commits the United States over 10 years to continued training of Ukraine's armed forces.
Biden, who decided not to attend the summit despite pleas from Zelenskiy, also approved sending Ukraine a second Patriot missile system and imposed another round of financial sanctions on Russia.
The White House also eased restrictions that kept Ukraine from using American weaponry to strike inside Russia, allowing strikes into Russia for the limited purpose of defending Kharkiv.
Last month, Russia launched a small-scale offensive in the northern Kharkiv region, seeking to stretch Ukraine's outgunned and outmanned forces across the roughly 1,200-kilometer front line. The effort has slowed, as Ukraine rushed new units to the area, reinforced positions, and fired on Russian positions across the border.
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subset: commoncrawl


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Peter of Alexandria
St Peter's birth and early life is largely known. He is believed to have grown up under the tutelage of Archbishop Theonas, Peter's predecessor as Archbishop of Alexandria. Peter led the Catechetical School of Alexandria which at the time was the center of theology of the Church. Peter was chosen as the Archbishop of Alexandria in the year 300 upon the death of his mentor, Theonas, who had recommended Peter to the church leaders as his successor.
Three years later, in 303, the persecutions of Roman Emperor Diocletian began. With the rise of the persecutions, Peter established rules in Alexandria for the re-admittance, after appropriate penance, to the church of those who lapsed from the faith. His rules brought opposition from those extremists, led by Meletius, Bishop of Lycopolis, who thought them too lenient. In 306, Peter was forced to leave Alexandria due to renewal of the persecutions by the Romans. During the time he was in hiding, Meletius usurped Peter position as bishop of Alexandria and began to consecrate his followers as bishops, even to sees of standing bishops who were in prison for defending their Faith. Among Meletius' ordinations was that of Arius, the future heretic, who denied the divinity of Christ. Upon his return to Alexandria, Peter anathematized and excommunicated Arius after he refused to correct his position and submit to the truth.
In 311, Peter returned to Alexandria during a pause in the persecutions, but was soon arrested and sentenced to death. Upon hearing of his sentence, a large number of people, expressing their outrage, assembled at the gate of the prison where he was held. To avoid a riot, with its resulting bloodshed, Peter suggested to the Roman authorities that they secrete him through the back of the prison so he might be taken away secretly to execution. His executioners took Peter from the prison in the dark of night to the place where St. Mark had been martyred and, there, Peter was beheaded. Tradition notes that on that night a pious virgin heard a voice from the heaven declaring, "Peter was the first among the Apostles; Peter is the last of the Alexandrian martyrs."
During the time of Peter's life as archbishop he nurtured the Church of Alexandria, seeing it strengthened and grow in spite of the persecutions. After his execution, his people gathered at the place of his death where they collected his body and head and proceeded to the cathedral. At the cathedral they dressed him in his bishop's vestments and sat him on his throne at the high place in the altar. During his life St. Peter always sat on a footstool next the the throne as he would never sit on it. He once explained he did not dare sit on the throne because whenever he approached his throne he saw a heavenly light shining on it and sensed the presence of a divine power.
St. Peter is known as a great theologian and champion of Orthodoxy. The Councils of Ephesus and Chalcedon consulted passages in his book, On the Divinity (of Jesus Christ). The most widely known and esteemed of his works by the Church are his Penitential Canons.
Peter of Alexandria | ||
Preceded by: Theonas |
Bishop of Alexandria 300-311 |
Succeeded by: Achillas |
See also
- OCA: Hieromartyr Peter the Archbishop of Alexandria
- Catholic Encyclopedia: St. Peter of Alexandria
- Pope Peter of Alexandria
External link
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Categories > People > Clergy > Bishops > Bishops by city > Patriarchs of Alexandria
Categories > People > Saints > Martyrs


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TACOMA, Wash. (AP) — Wanted: A green thumb with extensive knowledge of the black, or at least gray, market.
As Washington state tries to figure out how to regulate its newly legal marijuana, officials are hiring an adviser on all things weed: how it's best grown, dried, tested, labeled, packaged and cooked into brownies.
Sporting a mix of flannel, ponytails and suits, dozens of those angling for the job turned out Wednesday for a forum in Tacoma, several of them from out of state. The Liquor Control Board, the agency charged with developing rules for the marijuana industry, reserved a convention center hall for a state bidding expert to take questions about the position and the hiring process.
"Since it's not unlikely with this audience, would a felony conviction preclude you from this contract?" asked Rose Habib, an analytical chemist from a marijuana testing lab in Missoula, Mont.
The answer: It depends. A pot-related conviction is probably fine, but a "heinous felony," not so much, responded John Farley, a procurement coordinator with the Liquor Control Board.
Washington and Colorado this fall became the first states to pass laws legalizing the recreational use of marijuana and setting up systems of state-licensed growers, processors and retail stores where adults over 21 can walk in and buy up to an ounce of heavily taxed cannabis.
Both states are working to develop rules for the emerging pot industry. Up in the air is everything from how many growers and stores there should be, to how the marijuana should be tested to ensure people don't get sick.
Sales are due to begin in Washington state in December.
Washington's Liquor Control Board has a long and "very good" history with licensing and regulation, spokesman Mikhail Carpenter said.
"But there are some technical aspects with marijuana we could use a consultant to help us with," Carpenter said.
The board has advertised for consulting services in four categories. The first is "product and industry knowledge" and requires "at least three years of consulting experience relating to the knowledge of the cannabis industry, including but not limited to product growth, harvesting, packaging, product infusion and product safety."
Other categories cover quality testing, including how to test for levels of THC, the compound that gets marijuana users high; statistical analysis of how much marijuana the state's licensed growers should produce; and the development of regulations, a category that requires a "strong understanding of state, local or federal government processes," with a law degree preferred.
Farley said the state hopes to award a single contract covering all four categories, but if no bidder or team of bidders has expertise in all fields— regulatory law, statistical analysis and pot growing — multiple contracts could be awarded. Or bidders who are strong in one category could team up with those who are strong in another. Bids are due Feb. 15, with the contract awarded in March.
Habib, the chemist, said she's part of a team of marijuana and regulatory experts from Montana who are bidding for the contract. They're fed up with federal raids on medical dispensaries there.
"We want to move here and make it work. We want to be somewhere this is moving forward and being embraced socially," she said.
Khurshid Khoja, a corporate lawyer from San Francisco, wore a suit and sat beside a balding, ponytailed man in a gray sweatshirt — Ed Rosenthal, a co-founder of High Times magazine and a recognized expert on marijuana cultivation. They're on a team bidding for the contract.
"I've seen the effect of regulation of marijuana all my life," Khoja said. "I'd like to see a more rational, scientific approach to it."
Several people asked whether winning the contract, or even subcontracting with the winning bidder, would preclude them from getting state licenses to grow, process or sell cannabis. Farley said yes: It would pose a conflict of interest to have the consultant helping develop the regulations being subject to those rules. But once the contract has expired, they could apply for state marijuana licenses, he said.
After the questions ended, the bidders mingled, exchanging business cards and talking about how they might team up. One Seattle-area marijuana grower, a college student who declined to give his name after noting that a dispensary he worked with had been raided by federal authorities in 2011, approached Rosenthal.
"It would be my dream to smoke a bowl with you after this," he said.
Johnson can be reached at https://twitter.com/GeneAPseattle


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Snugglebunny and one of Rosebud's newborn twins
This photo, which I first posted back in April, is one of my favorites because it always makes me smile. I felt a slight twinge of guilt as I pulled out my camera and snapped it, telling myself that I really should have been rescuing Snugglebunny.
She wasn't in any immediate danger, though, and was actually quite calm. She just stood there, moving her head slowly from left to right, right to left, as if trying to somehow see around the bucket. There was no frantic thrashing about or racing around in a panic. Snugglebunny has been in this predicament before.
I'm glad I took the few seconds to capture this moment because apart from it being so funny, it now has a special significance. You see, when Snugglebunny wasn't looking, I did a little switcheroo. This was after I had removed the bucket from her head of course.
You never know what you're going to find during lambing season when you first walk into the barn each morning. Sometimes it's something wonderful, and sometimes it's just the opposite. And sometimes it's both. The morning of the bucket photo it was both. (The bucket came later.)
Rosebud was standing in the small fenced area attached to the barn, busily cleaning up a set of newborn twin girls. Snugglebunny was laying in the hay a few feet away with a lamb sticking halfway out of her—and it was the wrong half sticking out.
The lamb was dead. It was also stuck. I carefully pulled the lamb the rest of the way out, and made sure Snugglebunny was alright. Thankfully she was.
Next I turned my attention to the new twins. They had become tired of being licked clean by Rosebud and were getting antsy. They wanted breakfast. Rosebud wanted to clean them up some more. A little commotion ensued as the three of them scrambled around and around and around.
The bigger lamb succeeded in getting a drink, but the smaller one didn't. To make sure she had enough energy to keep trying to eat, I gave her a small starter bottle of milk. It's amazing how much of a difference a couple of sips of milk can make to a struggling newborn lamb.
Meanwhile Snugglebunny, who would have to be penned up in the barn so she could be milked and dried out, was searching for the baby she knew she'd just had. And as I stood there watching the four of them, I realized that I could take this situation and use it to my advantage.
When Snugglebunny called out to her lamb, I plunked the smaller twin down in front of her and said, "Here she is Snugglebunny. Here's your baby right here."
There are all sorts of ways the sheep books and sheep experts tell you that you can "graft" a lamb, usually an orphan, onto another mother, usually one who has just lost her lamb. Methods include everything from a complicated way of tying up the ewe in a pen so that she can't reach her head back and butt the lamb away from the milk bar, to using special sprays that mask the "wrong" scent of the new baby.
A friend who raises sheep told me that when she was growing up, sometimes they would put Vick's Vapor Rub on the nose of the ewe and the tail of the lamb. The old way of doing it was to take the skin from the dead lamb and place it over the orphan lamb like a little coat.
The longer I live on a farm, the more I come to realize that what may often be perceived by some as the "lazy way" is actually the "now you're finally getting it!" way. The secret is to stop fighting Mother Nature because you are never going to win.
When you find yourself at dusk, racing around a field and screaming madly at the sheep to GET IN THE @#$%! BARN while they munch away, calmly ignoring you, it's time to step back from the situation. Wait 10 or 15 minutes, and chances are the sheep, who know that dangerous predators come out at night and that the only truly safe place to sleep is in the barn, will eventually tuck themselves in.
Call me lazy, but at least I've saved some of my sanity—and my voice.
I skipped the rope, the spray, and the Vick's Vapor Rub and simply crowded all four of them into a bonding suite. Then I stood back and left them alone.
I didn't have high hopes, but I also had nothing to lose. I wasn't dealing with an orphan lamb, just an eager mother and a mom with a spare baby she might be willing to give up. I figured the worst that would happen would be that Snugglebunny wouldn't be interested, or Rosebud wouldn't part with one of her twins, and I'd have to move Snugglebunny into a separate pen to dry out as originally planned.
It took a couple of days. At first the twins were confused. They would each try to nurse from both mothers, but the smaller lamb didn't seem to be getting much milk. I fed her Snugglebunny's milk from a bottle, while Snugglebunny murmured secret mommy talk in her ear, because she had no doubt at all that lamb was hers. And as Snugglebunny became more and more protective of her baby, Rosebud gently pushed that baby away.
Does Snugglebunny know what really happened that morning? Does her baby? And what about Rosebud? I'll never know for sure. But it doesn't matter.
What matters is that this happy, healthy lamb has a wonderful mother who loves her very, very much. End of story.
© 2007 FarmgirlFare.com, the loving foodie farm blog where Farmgirl Susan shares photos and stories of her crazy country life on 240 remote acres.


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The new federal city, the District of Columbia, was laid out in a diamond shape and marked with boundary stones in 1791 and 1792. Surveyor Andrew Ellicott and his team, which included Benjamin Banneker, established a base camp at Jones Point and in early 1791, the survey began. The markers were to be set a mile apart, except where, according to Ellicott, the miles terminated on declivities or in waters.
Markers were engraved with Jurisdiction of the United States on the side facing the new capital and the name of the state on the opposite side, except for corner markers where a corner edge faced the capital. It was at Jones Point that the South cornerstone was laid on April 15, 1791. Health concerns caused Banneker to leave the team that same month.
In addition to the Jones Point marker, four stones comprising part of the southwest boundary are in Alexandria. The first is at the southeast corner of Wilkes and South Payne streets, the second is on the east side of the first block of Russell Road, the third, seen in this 1976 image, is in the First Baptist Church parking lot at 2932 King, and the fourth is in the 3800 block of King Street west of Wakefield Street along the Arlington border.
Over the years, the stones around the nations capital were worn, moved and damaged, and some were replaced. Beginning in 1915, local chapters of the Daughters of the American Revolution installed metal cages to help protect the markers, and in 1920, the DAR held a dedication ceremony for the Southwest 2 marker on Russell Road. In the 1990s, in honor of the bicentennial of the District of Columbia, the DAR added a plaque at the Southwest 3 stone, an original marker with some lettering still visible.
Out of the Attic is provided by the Office of Historic Alexandria.


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Stargate - Empire at War: Pegasus Chronicles is a total conversion for the fantastic game Star Wars - Empire at War: Forces of corruption. This total conversion will replace every single Star Wars asset of the original game with Stargate assets. This includes units, buildings, icons, sounds, videos and so much more. Pegasus Chronicles offers 3 playable races, the Ta'uri (alliance between Earth and the Asgard), Anubis (a mighty systemlord) and the Wraith. Beside these 3 playable races, you will meet many non-playable ones like the Replicators, the Asurans, the systemlord alliance, the Aschen, the Ori and many more. Each faction will have several space and land units, well known from the series or completely new ones. Contrary to our first full version for the normal Empire at War, the next release will offer finished GC maps, in which you can play through the known Stargate storylines and experience a lot of never seen missions and adventures.
Only registered members can share their thoughts. So come on! Join the community today (totally free - or sign in with your social account on the right) and join in the conversation.
You liked the artwork "By Thor!"? Have a look at the speed drawing video! Ow.ly


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D is for Dirty, That's Good Enough for Me
Edited below! Lost passages from the verse-epic have been recovered!
So I had this crazy, dirty alphabet ditty all done up for you - inspired by you, you dirty dawgs - all nicely laid out on my Blogger screen with pictures and everything and then I go to save it and pfaff... "YOU ARE NOT LOGGED IN. PLEASE LOG IN AND TRY AGAIN."
And, just like that, it's gone. Apparently, my original post was created under conditions of intolerable subterfuge and Blogger - dear, sweet, protective Blogger, always looking out for me -took care to ensure that no HBM posts be created under false pretenses, and, so... zaaappp.
All that remains are those passages of verse that I was able to recall as I sat, fuming, for the duration of the bus-ride that is my long and lonely trip home from the suburban campus at which I have been sentenced to teach and scribbled what I could from memory. Much to the obvious discomfort of the older lady who was sitting next to me and reading over my shoulder... (p is for phallus that stands at attention!)
Herewith, then, all that is extant of the verse-epic, Now You Know Your ABCs...
A is for alphabet, propped against wall
B is for boob-sling, all crunched in a ball
C is for child, who puts bras on her head
D is for dirty, the things that you said
E is for eager, your stories to tell
F words were few, but that's just as well
G is for glee, as you dished out your smut
H is for hell, where we'll land on our butts
I's for the incident I had you describe
"Jumped out, did your boobs!" claimed many a scribe
"Knocked off your chest! The boob-sling did fly!"
"Liquored-up, you sure were - and don't try to lie!"
"Massages at noon - the real dirty kind!"
(Nooners, it seems, are much on your minds.)
Over-the-shoulder-boulder-holders got lots of mention
As did things starting with P, that stand at attention.
Q (is lost in the gaping maw of the Bloggerburator. I have no recollection of what I did with Q, which means that it was probably brilliant. Future scholars will write great tomes about the lost passages of the HBM alphabet, perhaps using iconography from the HBM blog-scrolls - extant notwithstanding the Great Blogger Implosion of 2040 - to construct a hypothetical alphabet that can be used to decode the Secrets of the Great Cult of the Virtual Mother...)
R (ditto)
S is for sex - you all think I have lots
Truth is... um...
(Truth is what?! what's the truth? WHY CAN'T I REMEMBER DAMMIT?)
(Truth is... sex waits 'til I've washed all the pots? Sex makes me break out in spots? means connecting the dots? What what what was the truth about sex?)
Underwear in this house just gets tossed in the bin
Vampy bras see some action, but not very much sin
WonderBaby steals bras to wrap 'round her sweet head
X-rated undies are now chapeaux instead.
Yet shouldn't the bra be celebrated in play?
Z's pronounced ZED by Canadians, eh?
(OK, that last line was not in the original verse-epic but I am just too exhausted by my failure to remember the original couplet to do anything more than flame out in a blaze of total lameness.)
Yeah, that's right. Cover your ears. La Perla is best for muffling the sound of bad poetry.
Inspired by your comments, the Husband has come up with a plausible candidate for the missing Q/R couplet!
Q is for quickie, of which there are few;R is for romp, a nice word for screw.
This is a tremendous contribution to the fragmented verse-epic, and I thank you all for your contribution. But we're still missing the conclusion to the second line of the S/T couplet, and I will not sleep until it is recovered. (I will not sleep in any case, but that's beside the point.)
Labels: Being Bad


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Ahead of the World Cup, the host country, Brazil, has seen labor strikes, protests, construction delays at stadiums, but tomorrow the games begin. Brazilians hope they can put all the problems behind them. They just want to get the party started. It sounds like it already has if you listen to NPR's Lourdes Garcia-Navarro.
LOURDES GARCIA-NAVARRO, BYLINE: So I'm in Sao Paulo, and if you want to come and find World Cup fever in this massive city of 20 million people, then there's nowhere better than the street of Aspicuelta, which is in the heart of the very trendy neighborhood of Vila Madalena. It's basically bar, after bar, after bar, and indeed, fans are not hard to come by.
NIKOLAI FAMULO: Very excited - can't wait to start the kickoff, yeah.
GARCIA-NAVARRO: That's Nikolai Famulo from Croatia. He's here with a group of friends at one of these bars having fun, waiting eagerly for the opening game of the World Cup when Brazil will face-off against Croatia. Needless to say, Croatia are not the favorites.
FAMULO: We will win.
GARCIA-NAVARRO: (Laughing) Everyone says that.
Another group who are not expected to move out of group play is the United States. Even the coach, Jurgen Klinsman, has said the Americans won't win. But Jason Sullivan, a 27-year-old property manager from Baltimore, Maryland, who is sitting at a different bar down the road, refuses to accept defeat.
JASON SULLIVAN: Yeah it's going to be a tough group for sure, but I have hope. I have faith.
GARCIA-NAVARRO: With him is 26-year-old Brandon Peck who is an actuary from New York City. He acknowledges that the US is in the so-called, group of death, with many difficult games against soccer powerhouses - among them, Portugal. And his wish -
BRANDON PECK: It's really - we just hope Cristiano Ronaldo doesn't play.
GARCIA-NAVARRO: But the fans that are most prevalent are those from the region - Chileans, Argentinians, Ecuadorians, Colombians. One fan from Mexico even came here by bike. Others have driven motor homes and joined a caravan across the Andes. Many don't have tickets, and they're just here to soak up the atmosphere. At Sao Paulo's football museum, we run across a group of young Colombians from Medellin. Daniel Lopez is 21.
DANIEL LOPEZ: (Spanish spoken).
GARCIA-NAVARRO: He says, this is the first time in a long time we Latin Americans are so close to a World Cup, and there are people here from all over the region, so you have this Latin flavor.
Many of the fans have complained about traffic. Others have noted for a country about to host the world's biggest soccer tournament, there isn't exactly a festive air. But at least for now, in the run-up to the games, they say they haven't had to deal with much of the unrest. That may soon change. Protests are being planned for the opening match and beyond.
In Sao Paulo on Tuesday evening, a small group of demonstrators vowed that they would continue to speak out against the tournament, which they say has happened at the expense of vulnerable Brazilians. A particular target of their ire is FIFA, soccer's world-governing body. Danilo Cajazera is an organizer.
DANILO CAJAZERA: FIFA didn't pay one cent of tax to us. This model of World Cup is no good anymore. This World Cup violates so many human rights, and we don't like it. We don't like this way of doing things.
GARCIA-NAVARRO: He points to the many forcible evictions that have taken place, and the fact that most Brazilians can't afford to buy tickets to the games as evidence of how FIFA has ruined soccer for many Brazilians.
CAJAZERA: What was really a surprise that you - two days for the World Cup and the city is not all yellow and green with flags and shirts and the streets painted. This is surprise - is a surprise even to me. So I think this shows how violent the process is.
GARCIA-NAVARRO: Cajazera says they will be out on the streets protesting for the rest of the games. Lourdes Garcia-Navarro, NPR News, Sao Paulo. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.


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From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This cake will go down in family annuls as one that nearly rent years of marital bliss. It is a brown butter pound cake that is made with a copious amount of bourbon. It was made for a derby day party that we, in the end, could not attend, but for which I had committed a dessert. I decided to make this cake because it was unusual, mercifully easy to make, and its use of bourbon would connect it to Derby Day and the state of Kentucky. Now, before I go any further, I must tell you that I don't know a lot about hard liqueur. Bourbon is bourbon as far as I'm concerned, so, in the course of making this cake, I grabbed the first bottle I found in the pantry and went about my work. It turns out I grabbed a bottle of special "sippin' whiskey" that the Silver Fox keeps on hand for a friend who visits us sporadically. I was glibly pouring a cup and a half of something called Jefferson's Presidential Select into the cakes, when my beloved walked into the kitchen and did the guy version of nearly fainting. Apparently, I was using the champagne of bourbons in my pound cakes. Who knew? Were the cakes worth it? The brown butter gives the cake a unique richness and nutty flavor. The bourbon keeps it really moist and its flavor blends nicely with the butter. The cake lacks eye appeal, so, for the party, I decided to use it as a base for peach shortcake. It would also make a wonderful trifle, but I don't think it works as a stand alone dessert. If you decide to try this cake, make it a full 24 hours before you plan to serve it. The recipe makes way more syrup than is needed for one cake, so you can safely cut the quantities for the syrup in half. If you like the flavor of brown butter you will enjoy this cake. Here's the recipe.
Brown Butter and Bourbon Pound Cake...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of R.J. Cooper and the James Beard Foundation
2 cups sifted cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup bourbon
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup water
1 vanilla bean split
1/4 cup bourbon
1) Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter and lightly flour an 8-1/2 x 4-1/2-inch loaf pan.
2) Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat until milk solids on bottom are a dark chocolate brown and butter smells nutty. Transfer to a shallow bowl and place in freezer to cool until just congealed. (Butter should be somewhat solid for mixing stage.)
3) Meanwhile, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
4) Beat congealed brown butter, bourbon, and sugars with an electric mixer until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture and mix until just incorporated.
5) Spoon batter into prepared loaf pan. Smooth out top and rap pan on counter to settle batter. Bake until cake is golden-brown and a wooden pick inserted into the center comes out clean, about an hour.
6) Meanwhile, to make syrup: Combine sugar, water, and vanilla bean in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil and simmer until sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes. Stir in bourbon.
7) When cake is done, remove from oven and let cool in pan for 30 minutes. Invert cake onto a rack and let cool completely, right side up, for an hour, brushing the pound cake with the syrup every 5 minutes.
Yield: 1 loaf.
One Year Ago Today: Kentucky Derby Mint Julep Cake
Two Years Ago Today: Finnish Strawberry Yogurt Pie
Three Years Ago Today: Kaiser Rolls


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Super Bowl XLI Ramp-Up: Here we go. Save your game predictions (for now). I'm going to have a stand-alone post for game picks, coming later this morning. The three ways I'm looking at it, so you can get ready:
(1) Which team do you think will win, straight up?
(2) Which team do you think will win, against the 7-point spread favoring the Colts?
(3) Which team are you ROOTING to win?
As you'd guess, they aren't necessarily compatible. In fact, I've got a mixed bag. (Will I stick with my preseason pick of Colts-over-Bears or go with my gut?)
Meanwhile, Prince rules. Apparently, Prince provided the greatest Super Bowl press conference of all time yesterday, doing a set of songs, rather than your ordinary "Q&A" format.
(Having covered one of those once, they are brutal. I can only imagine how fun it was to actually be there to hear Prince essentially do a mini-concert for a small room of people.)
Considering this start, Prince has the potential to be the best choice for Super Bowl halftime entertainment in recent memory.
NBA All-Star Game reserves announced. The headlines:
West: Carmelo left out! Perhaps spending too much time on his MySpace page? His new teammate AI made it, along with Dirk, Parker, Nash,
Two dynamics worth noting, both around injury-related issues:
(1) Boozer is injured, but don't expect David Stern to pick Carmelo Anthony to replace him (although there will be HUGE fan and media pressure to. Will this be the sports blogs' big movement?)
(2) Anytime Howard and Amare (who will likely start at center for the West over injured
More NBA:
(1) Why are the Suns so much better this year than last year and why is this the year they topple the Spurs and Mavs for the West title? One word: Amare. And last night's performance is a good representation of why: Amare had 24 points and 24 rebounds and the Suns thumped the Spurs by 16.
(2) Dwyane Wade hit for a franchise-record 24 4th-quarter points (41 overall) to lead the Heat over the Cavs.
UPDATE (2 p.m.): I don't usually read Simmons (I wouldn't want to see any quality analysis that is half-formed in my own head articulated by him before I could claim it as my own original thought), but I just glanced at Simmons' mag column about "Fantanking," and all I could think of was that it was about time he got on the bandwagon. How long have I been talking about the value of tanking? Since the start of the Quickie chat? Longer?
There's a very simple hypothetical that I use: Would you trade an 0-82 season for LeBron James, straight up? A single winless season in exchange for LeBron for the next 10 years. Let me make it more enticing by saying that if you turn down the deal, your team will only win 17 games anyway, like the Cavs in 02-03, so it's not like you'll be missing anything by conceding the entire year.NFL Crime-Watch:
Maybe the cops brought CJ in to work as a profiler: No. 85 certainly has enough experience being around criminals.
(2) Andy Reid's sons are the new Bengals: One is suspected of pointing a gun at a motorist. The other is accused of possessing drug paraphernalia. The Bengals 10-day contract is coming any day.
College Hoops Parity Watch, Pac-10 Edition:
(1) No. 18
(2) No. 5 UCLA avenged a loss to No. 9 Oregon from early January with a 12-point spanking in
UPDATE: ACK! HOW COULD I HAVE FORGOTTEN TO WRITE ABOUT UVA'S AWESOME WIN OVER DUKE? Let me sum up with pith: WOO, HOOS! BOO, DUKE.
Morning Miscellany:
(1) Eric Gordon, one of the Top 5 high school hoops players in the country (and Illinois de-commit who went to rival Indiana), had 43 points last night on ESPN2 and simply destroyed national No. 22 Loyola, who – if you missed it (and how could you?) – feature Michael Jordan's sons.
(2) There is justice in the world: A judge dismissed that ludicrous "discrimination" lawsuit that was brought against the Angels for handing out giveaway bags to women fans only – on Mother's Day.
Carmelo-vs-Shanoff MySpace Challenge: From the injury of an All-Star snub to the insult of having me gain on him! Merely four full days into "The Challenge" (as it is now known throughout the MySpace Universe... or perhaps only in my own head):
I have 299 friends (as of 7:15 a.m. today). Carmelo has 31280 friends. The "1 Percent" Goal is 313. I am now merely 14 away, and I suspect we can hit the goal by the end of the day. If you're on MySpace and haven't joined the effort, have at it!
UPDATE (11:25 a.m.): SUCCESS! In approximately 96 hours, my Challenge has been met! After my last check, I was at 322 friends. Carmelo was at 31,398. The "1 percent" goal was 314 -- done! Huge thanks to everyone on this terrific effort. I won't be greedy and look for 2 percent, but instead:
(1) Continue accepting as many friends as want in, and (2) Ask for your help in finding new quasi-celebrities to Challenge. Ideally, they would be athletes. Not A-listers like Melo, but ones a little further down the chain. Send any ideas to my email above (or leave a message on the MySpace page).
Finally, in case you missed it: Yesterday's "Thank-You" post. Or just scroll down two posts.