United States Against G8 Proposal Greenhouse Gas Emissions

The United States is bieng accused getting cold feet regarding Greenhouse gas emission reform. They’ve been accused of trying to buck many of the measures  by stalling and amending the draft proposals.

Story….

The US appears to have rejected draft proposals by Germany for G8 members to agree tough measures in greenhouse gas emissions, leaked documents have shown.

Wide-ranging US amendments to a draft communique prepared ahead of June's G8 in Germany summit cite a "fundamental opposition" to the proposals.

Germany wants all G8 members to agree timetables and targets for major cuts.

Greenpeace, who leaked the document, said it showed UK PM Tony Blair failed to persuade the US to alter its stance.

In the document, US officials make major changes to the communique.

In comments printed in red ink, the US negotiators express disappointment that earlier concerns have not been taken on board.

We have tried to 'tread lightly' but there is only so far we can go given our fundamental opposition to the German position US comments on leaked communique

The changes strike out entire sentences and significantly reduce the certainty with which the statement addresses climate change.

"The US still has serious, fundamental concerns about this draft statement," a red-inked note reads.

"The treatment of climate change runs counter to our overall position and crosses 'multiple red lines' in terms of what we simply cannot agree to," it continues.

"We have tried to 'tread lightly' but there is only so far we can go given our fundamental opposition to the German position."

However, in Washington, senior US lawmakers have written to President Bush expressing their dismay at the administration's position, the AFP news agency reports.

US 'isolated'

Correspondents say the document hints at a looming struggle over the issue of climate change at the G8 summit, to be held on 6-8 June in Heiligendamm, Germany.

Chancellor Angela Merkel wants to use Germany's presidency of the G8 to secure a major climate change deal, including:

• Agreement to slow the rise in average temperatures this century to 2C
  
  
  
• A cut in global emissions by 50% below 1990 levels by 2050
  
  
  
• A rise in energy efficiency in power and transport by 20 percent by 2020.

Greenpeace Director John Sauven described the US position as "criminal".

"The US administration is clearly ignoring the global scientific consensus as well the groundswell of concern about climate change in the United States," he said.

Mrs Merkel should make it clear the US was isolated on the issue among G8 members, he added.

Speaking on 24 May, British Prime Minister Tony Blair suggested the US - could be on the verge of altering its climate policy.

The US has not signed the 2001 Kyoto Protocol, which sets out targets for lowering emissions until 2012.

"I can't think that there's going to be many people running for presidential office next time round in the US who aren't going to have climate change in their programme," said Mr Blair.

"I think it is possible that we will see action - and at least the beginnings of that action at the G8 - I hope so. That's what I'm arguing for."

[Via BBC News]

Rosie Did Not Call American Troops Terrorists

Contrary to the bullshit we’re hearing from so called experts on Rosie’s comments on the Iraq fatalities, she did not call American troops terrorists.

I admit that Rosie is not my favorite celeb, but she was just making a point about how the Iraq people must “view” Americans after 655,000 Iraq people have died since the conflict in 2003.

Let’s face it – this war sucks and the people that led us into it are incompetent and pathetic – not to mention they’re liars.

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O'Donnell Quits The View Short of Contract

Rosie O’Donnell quits the view short of her contract deadline for exit. Many speculate it’s due to the last few feuds she’s had. One with Hasselbeck and one with “The Donald”.

Story From AP…

Rosie O'Donnell has fought her last fight at "The View." ABC said Friday she asked for, and received, an early exit from her contract at the daytime chatfest following her angry confrontation with co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck on Wednesday. She was due to leave in mid-June.

It ended a colorful eight-month tenure for O'Donnell that lifted the show's ratings but no doubt caused heartburn for show creator Barbara Walters. O'Donnell feuded with Donald Trump and frequently had snippy exchanges with the more conservative Hasselbeck.

O'Donnell said last month she would be leaving because she could not agree to a new contract with ABC executives.

"Rosie contributed to one of our most exciting and successful years at `The View,'" Walters said. "I am most appreciative. Our close and affectionate relationship will not change."

In a statement, O'Donnell said that "it's been an amazing year and I love all three women."

No one was feeling the love on Wednesday, when the argument with Hasselbeck began over O'Donnell's statement last week about the war: "655,000 Iraqi civilians have died. Who are the terrorists?"

Talk show critics accused O'Donnell of calling U.S. troops terrorists. She called Hasselbeck "cowardly" for not saying anything in response to the critics.

"Do not call me a coward, because No. 1, I sit here every single day, open my heart and tell people what I believe," Hasselbeck retorted, and their riveting exchange continued despite failed attempts by their co-hosts to cut to a commercial.

According to a New York Post report, O'Donnell's chief writer, Janette Barber, was allegedly led out of the building on Wednesday after she was caught drawing mustaches on photographs of Hasselbeck in "The View" studios. ABC executives didn't return repeated calls for questions on the incident Friday.

On Thursday O'Donnell had asked for a day off to celebrate her partner's birthday. "The View" aired a taped show on Friday.

On her Web site, O'Donnell posted a scrapbooklike video on Friday with pictures and news clippings of her tenure at "The View." Cyndi Lauper's "Sisters of Avalon" played in the background.

A day earlier, she posted messages on her Web site indicating she might not be back.

"When painting there is a point u must step away from the canvas as the work is done," she wrote. "Any more would take away."

[Source AP]

BORAT loves Pamela Anderson UNCENSORED

http://www.ngtv.com An EXCLUSIVE and UNCENSORED celebration of naughty, naughty "Borat." This episode of NO GOOD TV original series "Up Close" hosted by Carrie Keagan shows everyone's favorite Kazakhstani journalist the way he was meant to be seen (body thong not included).

[Via YouTube]

Samsung Digital Camera - Digimax L85 8MPT

Samsung Digimax L85

Samsung’s Digimax L85 digital camera (8 megapixels) is a super little machine, and in all respects does come through as advertised – except one.

The HDTV functionality leaves allot to be desired. I would never use this function anyway, so for our family it would make a sensible purchase/buy. 

Review…..

The black-and-silver case of the Samsung Digimax L85 ($338 as of 6/15/06) feels solid. The camera is easy to grip, partly because Samsung made it a little larger than an average point-and-shoot to accommodate a 5X zoom lens--still, there's no room for an optical viewfinder on this 8.1-megapixel model. At 230,000 pixels, the L85's 2.5-inch LCD has a higher resolution than the screens of many competing cameras; the display looked extra sharp and was especially easy to view in bright light.

Samsung is claiming a first in the L85's ability to display high-definition-quality images on an HDTV over a digital HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) cable. In theory, this sounds like a great way to show off your vacation snaps to friends and family on your new big-screen HDTV. In our tests, however, we found that the feature isn't quite ready for prime time. Photos displayed on a plasma HDTV in the PC World Test Center were razor-sharp with splendid colors, but people looked too thin and regular shapes (like circles and squares) appeared distorted. The problem is that the camera's wide mode records images with an aspect ratio of 16:8, which the camera then stretches to the regular HDTV ratio of 16:9 for display. You'll need to spend an extra $70 for a docking cradle and HDMI cable to connect the camera to your HDTV. (The cradle also makes it easier to charge the battery and to hook the camera up to a PC or printer.)

You access the L85's wide mode via the mode dial atop the camera. This mode is equivalent to the camera's auto mode, except that the image resolution is set at a 16:8 ratio (with a maximum of 5 megapixels). Unfortunately, as a result you can't simultaneously use the manual settings or any of the 12 scene modes. Similarly, the camera shoots video at 640 by 480 pixels or 320 by 240 pixels; pictures from these modes display with even more distortion than images shot in the wide mode do.

When put through its paces in the PC World Test Center, the L85 produced particularly crisp photos, earning a high score for sharpness that was well above the average. The camera's scores for color fidelity and exposure accuracy were about average, while its score for distortion was below average. In less formal testing, we had difficulty getting sharp photos in low lighting conditions at the camera's maximum sensitivity setting of ISO 400.

Advanced photographers will find plenty of controls to tweak on the L85. In addition to using the aperture- and shutter-priority modes, you can change the aperture size and the shutter speed independently in the full manual mode. You can set exposure compensation in all three manual modes, and you can even use auto-exposure bracketing to take a sequence of three shots at different exposure levels.

The L85 can store just four of its highest-quality JPEG images in its 23MB internal memory, so buying a high-capacity SD Card is essential, especially considering that the camera can also record images as lossless TIFF files, which are many times larger than JPEGs. The lithium ion battery recharges from an adapter that plugs into the base of the camera. In our tests, we were able to take 390 shots on a single charge.

Video Review of Samsung Digimax L700 Digital Camera. Just in case you are interested in this model too. Shop around!

Nikon D100 Digital Camera Review

Here is the manufacturer’s review of the Nikon D100 digital camera. We bought this one recently and it’s by far the best digital camera we’ve had to date. Pretty well all of Nikon’s overview on the D100 is accurate, and not much hype. A worthy by for sure.

Manufacturer Overview

As I say before each of my Nikon reviews, Nikon is one of the names that literally needs no introduction in the world of photography. Long a leader in the film world, they offer cameras for both the serious amateur and working professional. Their professional line contains cameras like the legendary F3, continuously produced for over 20 years now, and new "legends in the making" like the F5 and F100, renowned for their toughness and advanced features. In the digital world, Nikon has developed a commanding presence in the "prosumer" market with their Coolpix series. They broke new ground for usability and features with their Coolpix 900 several years back, building on that success with the 2 megapixel 950, followed by the 3 megapixel 990, which has now been upgraded to the 995 with a 4x zoom lens and improved flash configuration, and the five-megapixel Coolpix 5000. At the same time, they've broadened their line to include more purely consumer-oriented cameras like the Coolpix 775 and 885, and the new internal-swivel Coolpix 2500. The "Nikon Total Imaging System" also includes the hugely successful Super Coolscan 4000ED and Coolscan IV film scanners, which we've reviewed elsewhere. (Well, technically, only the 4000ED is "reviewed" as we write this, the Coolscan IV will be going up on the site soon.)

In early 1999, Nikon announced their first all-digital professional SLR, the D1. At the time, the specifications and price point (2.7 megapixels and a list price of $5850 for the body) rocked the pro camera world, and left many wondering whether Nikon could actually do it. They did. Not quite two years later, they raised the bar again with the D1x, a 5.47 megapixel camera at an even lower price point than the original D1. Now, they're bringing their digital SLR technology down from the pro market into a range accessible to well-heeled amateurs and the vast majority of professionals, with the D100. With a full 6.1 megapixel sensor and all the "Cameraness" of a true Nikon SLR, the most amazing aspect is its selling price of under $2,000 US! There's no question that this new price point for a Nikon digital SLR will revolutionize photography yet again, as literally thousands of Nikon shooters can now afford to enter the "no excuses" territory in the digital realm. Naturally, price by itself doesn't constitute a revolution - The camera itself has to meet the needs of photographers in the areas of resolution, color, image noise, tonality, and operating characteristics. After spending some time with a late-model "Initial Production" version of the D100 though, I can confidently say that it measures up in every category. Read on for all the details!

Pros

• 6.1-megapixel CCD delivering a maximum image resolution of 3,008 x 2,000 pixels.
  
• SLR design with true, TTL optical viewfinder.
  
• 1.8-inch TFT color LCD monitor.
  
• Interchangeable “F” mount lens design, accommodates a wide range of Nikkor lenses.
  
• Manual and automatic focus modes, with adjustable AF area selection.
  
• Program, Flexible Program, Shutter Priority, Aperture Priority, and Manual exposure modes.
  
• Shutter speeds from 1/4,000 to 30 seconds, with a Bulb setting for longer exposures.
  
• Depth of Field Preview mode.
  
• TTL exposure metering with three modes.
  
• Adjustable sensitivity from 200 to 1,600 ISO equivalents. (plus 3,200 and 6,400 as "ISO Boost" options)
  
• User-selectable white balance with eight modes and manual adjustment.
  
• Three Color modes, plus a color balance fine-tuning adjustment.
  
• Hue, Tone, and Sharpness adjustments.
  
• Built-in, pop-up flash with five operating modes.
  
• External flash hot shoe.
  
• Continuous Shooting, Auto Exposure Bracketing, and Self-Timer modes.
  
• JPEG, uncompressed TIFF, and RAW file formats.
  
• Image storage on CompactFlash Type I or II memory cards, or IBM Microdrive.
  
• USB cable for connection to a computer.
  
• Included CD-ROM loaded with Nikon View 5 software.
  
• NTSC video cable for playback on a television set (PAL for European models).
  
• Power from lithium-ion battery pack, optional AC adapter, or optional Nikon Multi-Function battery pack.
  
• Optional remote control accessory.

Video Review of My Last Nikon Digital Camera…