The Christian Science Monitor back issues from April 2008:
Letters to the Editor.(EDITORIAL)(Editorial)
Apr 01, 2008 ... Thoughts on the dispute over the name Macedonia Regarding the March 27 article, "Macedonia by any other name?": I was not surprised that the article did not find archaeological evidence of Alexander the Great in Skopje, the capital of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia ...
The battle of Basra.(EDITORIAL)(Editorial)
Apr 01, 2008 ... Gen. David Petraeus needs to be blunt in his coming report on Iraq and say whether last week's battle for Basra has made it easier for the US to start pulling out. The six-day conflict in Iraq's second largest city could be a turning point leading to a stronger central government. If not, ...
The bin Ladens: a family history.(FEATURES)(BOOKS)(Book review)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Byline: Chuck Leddy The rags-to-riches story of the bin Laden family begins with Mohamed bin Laden, who started as a bricklayer for an American oil company in the 1930s and later began his own construction business. As far as politics went, Mohamed Bin Laden appeared to have ...
Michael Pollan steps into a food fight.(FEATURES)(BOOKS)(Book review)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Byline: Kendra Nordin Over the past decade, more than 10,000 books relating to diet have been published in English. In this torrent raining down on us each year one thing has become clear: Food is an enemy. Whatever happened to giving thanks for a bountiful spread before digging ...
The impossible physics of Harry Potter.(FEATURES)(BOOKS)(Book review)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Byline: Emma Marris Michio Kaku is a physicist specializing in string theory at the City College of New York; it would seem he's also a major Star Trek fan. The show, along with other science fiction classics, is a constant touchstone in "Physics of the Impossible," his latest ...
Readers' picks.(FEATURES)(BOOKS)(Brief article)
Apr 01, 2008 ... Readers' picks My Attainment of the Pole by Frederick Cook is a fascinating first-hand account of Cook's claim to have beaten Peary to the North Pole. - Joe Diamanti, West Bend, Wis. What Is The What by Dave Eggers is about a Sudanese refugee caught up in ...
The odd, remarkable, yet true story of Jumbo the circus elephant.(FEATURES)(BOOKS)(Jumbo: The Greatest Elephant in the World)(Book review)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Jumbo was a Victorian-era superstar, a mega-celebrity whose fame was in proportion to his six-ton, 11-foot frame. Like some human celebrities, he traveled from continent to continent, consorted with royalty, indulged in fits of temper, and finally met with a tragic end. In what ...
Bengalis replanted in American soil.(FEATURES)(BOOKS)(The Namesake)(Book review)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Byline: Yvonne Zipp Plenty of teenagers think their parents are from another country (if not another planet), but in the case of the characters in Unaccustomed Earth, it's inevitably true. Returning to themes she explored in her first novel, "The Namesake," Pulitzer-Prize ...
Two entrepreneurs turn discarded skis into outdoor furniture.(FEATURES)(CURRENTS)(Mike Bellino and Ken Moreau)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Byline: G. Jeffrey MacDonald Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor Millbury, Mass. -- Except for the flouring of sawdust that covers everything in Mike Bellino's workshop here, the place looks more like a used sporting goods store than a furniture factory. Skis in ...
On the Secure Fence Act.(THE HOME FORUM)
Apr 01, 2008 ... When the "Secure Fence Act" became law in October 2006 - instructing the Department of Homeland Security to build 700 miles of fence along the US-Mexican border and instituting other measures to slow the tide of illegal immigrants into the US - it was hailed by supporters and derided by ...
Essay: Up a bonnie, bonnie hill by Loch Lomond.(THE HOME FORUM)(Essay)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Byline: Christopher Andreae I didn't think it would happen - although the Electricity Man and I had talked about doing it for, oh, three or four years. We'd bump into each other as we were exercising our dogs on our semiurban streets. His house is 10 minutes from ours. When ...
Young Tibetans question path of nonviolence.(WORLD)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Byline: Jason Motlagh Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor Dharamsala, India -- Jigshe Tsering spends nearly every day inside a wire enclosure outside the Dalai Lama's residence. Like most of his fellow student hunger-strikers, who have vowed to remain inside their ...
Ch㡶z seeks Shangri-La with 'socialist cities'.(WORLD)(Hugo Chavez)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Byline: Sara Miller Llana Tucked in the mountains in a patch of land called Camino de los Indios just outside Venezuela's capital, Caracas, up a treacherous dirt road that only a four-wheel-drive vehicle would dare, leftist President Hugo Chavez is building a new metropolis from ...
Tension in Zimbabwe after opposition claims victory.(WORLD)(Movement for Democratic Change)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Byline: Scott Baldauf Staff writer | a contributor Johannesburg, South Africa; and Harare, Zimbabwe -- Zimbabweans remained calm two days after Saturday's elections, but high expectations of an opposition victory have increased the dangerous potential for postelection violence, ...
Reporters on the Job.(WORLD)
Apr 01, 2008 ... * All This For Me? Staff writer Sara Miller Llana called and called the Venezuela housing ministry in an effort to get an interview about the new socialist cities that President Hugo Chavez is building. She couldn't get a response. Finally, she called and asked if she could just go up ...
Anger follows the fight with Sadr's militia.(WORLD)(Moqtada al-Sadr)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Byline: Sam Dagher Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor Baghdad -- "The Charge of the Sadrs" is spray painted in black all over the numerous Iraqi Army and police checkpoints now abandoned in eastern Baghdad's Shiite neighborhoods. The graffiti mocks Prime ...
In Israel, Ethiopian refugee helps others.(WORLD)(Yohannes Lemma Bayu)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Byline: Joshua Mitnick Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor Tel Aviv -- Yohannes Lemma Bayu arrived here on a tourist visa in 1997, fleeing his government in Ethiopia. It took him five years, a three-week hunger strike, and an order from Israel's Supreme Court to win ...
NATO's message to Russia.(OPINION)(North Atlantic Treaty Organization)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Byline: Eugene Rumer Washington -- When leaders of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) countries gather in Bucharest, Romania, Wednesday for their regular summit, they will confront several pressing issues. Ukrainian and Georgian aspirations for membership in the ...
Paulson proposes major new role for the Fed.(USA)(Henry Paulson, Federal Reserve Board)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Byline: Ron Scherer Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor New York -- The Federal Reserve already manages the economy: setting interest rates, supervising banks, making sure the nation's payment systems operate efficiently. Now, the Bush administration is proposing that ...
Where U.S.-Mexico border fence is tall, it works.(USA)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Byline: Daniel B. Wood Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor Yuma, Ariz. -- US border patrol agent Michael Bernacke guns his SUV down the wide desert-sand road that lines the US-Mexican border through urban San Luis, Ariz. To his right stands a steel wall, 20 ...
U.S. Supreme Court takes a new 10 Commandments case.(USA)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Byline: Warren Richey Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor Public displays of the Ten Commandments have long been a magnet for litigation. But a US appeals court in Denver has put a new twist on the issue. Last year, the court told a city in Utah that since ...
Colleges take more notice of gambling problems.(USA)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Byline: Stacy Teicher Khadaroo Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor Colleges concerned about the addictive potential of gambling face an uphill battle against its glamorized image. Think ESPN's all-out coverage of poker tournaments or the parade of movies: Now it's ...
Paulson's plan too long-term for some in Congress.(USA)(Henry Paulson)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Byline: Gail Russell Chaddock Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor Washington -- In proposing a broad, complex overhaul of US financial regulation Monday, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson cautioned that the plan would take years of patient negotiation to execute. Some ...
Supreme Court declines Capitol Hill search and seizure case.(USA)(United States)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Byline: Warren Richey Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor The US Supreme Court has declined to take up a case examining whether federal agents investigating corruption in Congress can seize thousands of documents from a lawmaker's office without violating the ...
Supreme Court upholds Delaware border claim.(USA)(United States)
Apr 01, 2008; ... Byline: Warren Richey Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor Delaware has won a border dispute with neighboring New Jersey over its power to block development projects on the Jersey side of the Delaware River. In a 6-to-2 decision announced on Monday, the US ...
Cull of the wolf.(EDITORIAL)
Apr 02, 2008 ... 'Wolves were hunted and killed with more passion than any other animal in US history," according to the US Fish and Wildlife Service. As the gray wolf makes a comeback, so does that passion, and with it the need to balance human life with wildlife. Wolves - predators that play a ...
Letters to the Editor.(EDITORIAL)(Editorial)
Apr 02, 2008 ... Responses to Reverend Wright's 'radical' sermons Regarding the March 28 article, "Obama's pastor preaching hate?": The article makes the case that the Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr.'s speech was not hateful because it was "radical" and its style did not lend itself to be interpreted ...
Art museums struggle with provenance issues.(FEATURES)(CURRENTS)(San Diego Museum of Art)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Randy Dotinga Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor San Diego -- The first inkling of trouble came when a customs agent arrived at the door of the San Diego Museum of Art in 2004. The agent carried a subpoena and, to the museum's chagrin, news that ...
Mastering the high-tech tools that help us.(FEATURES)(CURRENTS)(computer multitasking)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Gloria Goodale Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor Los Angeles -- Multitasking has long been a badge of honor for the digitally well-armed, a term equating high personal productivity with computerlike efficiency. But also widely discussed in recent ...
Hannaford's breach is a warning for your PC.(FEATURES)(CURRENTS)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Tom Regan Columnist It started with a single piece of malware on a single machine. But that malicious software was then forwarded to some 300 computer servers for the Hannaford supermarket chain. With that, the credit-card information of millions of people, primarily ...
Charcoal fuels the economy and deforestation of Mozambique.(FEATURES)(CURRENTS)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Stephanie Hanes Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor Matenga, Mozambique -- Santos Junior Guilaza's hands are calloused, burned countless times by the smoldering wood he separates, barehanded, from the dark, steaming dirt of his earthen kiln. His bare feet are ...
To help put a stop to female circumcision.(THE HOME FORUM)
Apr 02, 2008 ... The world is composed of many cultures, each containing colorful and delightful aspects. But sometimes facets of a culture have evolved from fear or even a misunderstanding of how the world or the human body works. These practices can lead to fear and suffering. Both Jesus and ...
Root Beer.(THE HOME FORUM)(Poem)(Brief article)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Carolyn Flower Root beer from a bottle, root beer from a can, but root beer from a tub is how it all began. Powdered roots and sugar, cold water and yeast. These are the ...
Chicken Fingers that are mom-tested and kid-approved.(THE HOME FORUM)(Recipe)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Margo Rudman Gold I expected that my children would become adventurous eaters. After all, their mother had tried buffalo in Rio de Janeiro; green papaya salad from a street vendor in Bangkok, Thailand; kebabs (which may or may not have been lamb) from the medina in ...
Essay: the summer of '72, when anything seemed possible.(THE HOME FORUM)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Carol E. Ayer When I was 10, I decided I would marry Gene Tenace. He was the unlikely hero of the 1972 World Series. Gino, an Oakland Athletics catcher and sometime first baseman, surprised everyone by hitting home runs in his initial two at-bats in the ...
Afghanistan to ask NATO for bigger army of its own.(North Atlantic Treaty Organization)(WORLD)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Gordon Lubold Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor KABUL, Afghanistan -- Afghan officials will go to the NATO summit in Romania Thursday with a request: pay to increase our national Army by 40 percent. A bigger Army, Afghan officials argue, will allow the US and ...
As North ups threats, some S. Koreans remain friendly.(WORLD)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Donald Kirk Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor MOKPO, South Korea -- - The legacy of the Sunshine policy of reconciliation with North Korea endures in this thriving southwestern seaport that spawned the career of former president Kim Dae Jung. "He ...
Churches call for calm as Zimbabwe awaits election results.(WORLD)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Scott Baldauf and a contributor Staff writer | Bulawayo and Harare, Zimbabwe -- With tensions rising, as Zimbabweans await the slow release of results from Saturday's national elections, church leaders are appealing for peace and restraint. Foremost was the ...
Reporters on the job.(challenges in international reporting)(WORLD)(Brief article)
Apr 02, 2008; ... * Web Traffic Jam in China: The technical details of the Chinese government's Internet filtering system escape staff writer Peter Ford, "but whatever they do they are doing it in spades at the moment", he says. China's censors, aka "Net Nannies," use software to sift zillions ...
Chinese get one news source on Tibet.(WORLD)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Peter Ford Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor Beijing -- When the Dalai Lama issued what he called "a personal appeal" to his "Chinese brothers and sisters" last week for an end to misunderstandings that have plagued Chinese-Tibetan relations, the spiritual ...
Mugabe: reaching out with resignation deal?(President Robert Mugabe)(WORLD)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Scott Baldauf Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor | and a Contributor Johannesburg, South Africa; and Harare, Zimbabwe -- - Behind-the-scenes negotiations between Zimbabwe's ruling party and the main opposition party of Morgan Tsvangirai are under way in the ...
Journalism at its very best.(OPINION)
Apr 02, 2008 ... Byline: Roy J. Harris Jr. Boston -- Arriving in eastern Ohio in 1925 as the new editor of the Canton Daily News, Don Mellett stumbled onto a civic disgrace - and a great story. Gangsters from as far away as Chicago were using Canton as a "hideout" for thugs on the lam, and ...
Taxes - my patriotic duty.(OPINION)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Walter Rodgers Oakton, Va. -- It's early April, which means these are the few days of the year when Americans of almost every political stripe unite in a perennial ritual: complaining about taxes. Count me out. I'm happy to pay my fair share to the ...
Muslim reformer's 'heresy': The Islamic state is a dead end.(USA)(Abdullahi Ahmed an-Naim)(Muslim Heretics Conference)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Jane Lampman Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor Abdullahi Ahmed an-Naim has seen what can happen to an Islamic reformer: His mentor was executed in 1985 in Sudan; he himself had to flee the country. Still, the self-described "Muslim heretic" has no trouble ...
At NATO summit, Bush likely to get some of what he wants.(USA)(George W. Bush, North Atlantic Treaty Organization)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Howard Lafranchi Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor WASHINGTON -- George W. Bush arrives at a NATO summit in Bucharest Wednesday focused on both the details and the big picture of his presidency's transatlantic policy. His ability to get what he ...
With gas costly, drivers finally cut back.(USA)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Ron Scherer Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor New York -- For the first time since 1980, when long lines sprouted at gasoline stations, Americans are beginning to cut down on their driving. The slight decline in total miles driven - apparent first ...
Meet '08 contender John McCain ... again.(USA)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Linda Feldmann Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor WASHINGTON -- John McCain is one of America's best-known politicians. In the latest Gallup favorability ratings for people in the news - a survey of all Americans, not just voters - the senior senator from ...
Economic woes hit state budgets.(USA)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Peter Grier Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor Washington -- In Nevada, Gov. Jim Gibbons told legislators on March 31 that the state's budget shortfall could reach $900 million by the middle of next year - and that he wants spending cuts beyond the 4.5 percent ...
Arizona's 'virtual' border wall gets a reality check.(USA)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Daniel B. Wood Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor Aravaca, Arizona -- - At first glance, it looks like an ordinary, TV antenna tower, Anywhere, USA. Thirty-five miles of dusty desert from the nearest highway, it telescopes almost a hundred feet up ...
Pritzker architecture prize goes to Jean Nouvel of France.(2008 Pritzker Architecture Prize)(FEATURES)(CURRENTS)
Apr 02, 2008; ... Byline: Bonnie Churchill Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor The 2008 Pritzker Architecture Prize, the most prestigious award given in architecture, goes to Jean Nouvel of France. This is only the second time an architect from France (Christian de Portzamparc in 1994 ...
New cats for Wall Street's mice.(EDITORIAL)(Editorial)
Apr 03, 2008 ... Like generals, financial regulators tend to fight the previous war. They write rules to foil old misconduct. But Wall Street innovation has become, well, too innovative to only look back. Now a Treasury plan aims to create nimble watchdogs to head off the next novel trigger of a financial ...
Letters to the Editor.(EDITORIAL)(Editorial)(Letter to the editor)
Apr 03, 2008 ... Human rights advocacy looks hopeful in Saudi Arabia Regarding the March 26 article, "Small steps on rights in Saudi Arabia": I was incredibly pleased to see the steps Saudi Arabia is taking to incorporate human rights into the mainstream discourse. The fact that King Abdullah ...
A secret to improving cargo ship efficiency: go fly a kite.(FEATURES)(CURRENTS)
Apr 03, 2008; ... Byline: Gregory M. Lamb Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor When the cargo ship Beluga SkySails left the port of Bremen, Germany, in January, it carried with it a high-tech version of an ancient means of propulsion. During its 11,952-nautical-mile voyage to ...
Cargo trikes nudge delivery trucks in Cambridge, Mass.(FEATURES)(CURRENTS)
Apr 03, 2008; ... Byline: Mark Clayton Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor Cambridge, Mass. -- On a recent drizzly gray afternoon, Wenzday Jane straps on gaiters to keep tire spray from soaking her socks. Then she hops onto a ruby-red three-wheeled cycle van with a silver-winged "NAP" ...
Dust plays huge role in climate change.(FEATURES)(CURRENTS)
Apr 03, 2008; ... Byline: Robert C. Cowen Columnist Scientists know that dust affects climate. Tiny particles create veils that reflect sunlight and cool the atmosphere. Dark particles absorb sunshine and warm things up. But as scientists look deeper into the dust-climate connection, they find ...
Bush's 'caution' on CO2 seen as 'foot-dragging' by critics.(Pres. George W. Bush, carbon dioxide)(FEATURES)(CURRENTS)
Apr 03, 2008; ... Byline: Brad Knickerbocker With the U.S. Supreme Court peering over its shoulder and Congress turning up the political heat, the Bush administration is moving toward some sort of action on the climate-changing greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2). But what ...
On the road - from Germany to Cambodia - in a communist jalopy.(FEATURES)(CURRENTS)
Apr 03, 2008; ... Byline: Tibor Krausz Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor Bangkok, Thailand -- Move over, Herbie; here come the new stars of overachieving motorized underdogs. Hear them roar! OK, cough, wheeze, and sputter. Meet Ziggy, Fez, and Dante - intrepid ...
People can change.(THE HOME FORUM)
Apr 03, 2008 ... What changes an angry maximum security prisoner into a man who loves learning about Christian healing, art, and the birds that fly past his cell window? What could reach someone who seemed little more than a coldhearted cog in an oppressive system, driving him to save the victims of his ...
Take pleasure in poetry.(THE HOME FORUM)(Brief article)
Apr 03, 2008 ... April is National Poetry Month. One good way to celebrate is by exploring a couple of in-depth poetry websites. PBS has just created Poetry Everywhere (www.pbs.org/poetry), which features films of poets (including Robert Frost) reading their work, animated interpretations of ...
Poetry that makes my world shift.(THE HOME FORUM)
Apr 03, 2008; ... Byline: Dawn Goldsmith My copy of Mid-American Review lay on the table for weeks. Literary writing and I don't always mix well. It stands elite and all-knowing, nose in the air, page after page of introspection based upon Greek myths and sophisticated-yet-obscure references that ...
Small Birds.(THE HOME FORUM)(Poem)(Brief article)
Apr 03, 2008; ... Byline: Darren Stone Small Birds Nine gulls flew loud and high, blown inland by an angry wind; our crows took off, confused; the cardinal found shelter in the elm. But all the long dark night, the thought of small birds ...
Dance of Spring.(THE HOME FORUM)(Poem)(Brief article)
Apr 03, 2008; ... Byline: DeMar Regier Dance of Spring In the woods woodpeckers tap breezes waltz branches swing. In the field crows fly rounds bunnies hop a fox trots. ...
The Quaker Ladies.(THE HOME FORUM)(Poem)
Apr 03, 2008; ... Byline: Sharon Smith Abbott The Quaker Ladies have gathered yet again; little congregations sprouting in the virginal green grass, their white bonnets nodding at ...
Rough border town leads reform of Mexico's legal system.(WORLD)
Apr 03, 2008; ... Byline: Sara Miller Llana Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor Ciudad Ju㡲z, Mexico -- On a recent day in a brand-new courtroom in this scruffy border town, a front line in Mexico's drug war, the prosecution and defense pepper a witness with questions about the ...
Mugabe era's end may be near.(President Robert Mugabe)(WORLD)
Apr 03, 2008; ... Byline: Scott Baldauf Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor Johannesburg, South Africa -- It may be the beginning of the end of the Mugabe era, and Zimbabweans can taste it. Army chiefs loyal to President Robert Mugabe now meet with opposition leaders looking ...