Venezuela Grants Snowden Asylum

On July 6, Russia Today headlined " 'Free from imperial persecution:' Venezuela offers Snowden asylum."

Days earlier, President Nicolas Maduro said asylum would be "seriously"considered if sought. Snowden deserves a "humanitarian medal," he added. "If this young man is punished, nobody in the world will ever dare to tell the truth," he stressed.

Venezuela Grants Snowden AsylumHe's a man of his word. It's official. Maduro granted Snowden asylum. He did so on Venezuela's Day of Independence.

On April 10, 1810, the First Republic of Venezuela was established. Venezuela's War of Independence began.

On July 5, 1811, Venezuela declared independence. Spanish colonial rule ended.

Venezuela was its first American colony to break free. Doing so reflected Bolivar's vision. He liberated half of South America. He advocated using national wealth responsibly, equitably and fairly.

He fought against what he called the imperial curse "to plague Latin America with misery in the name of liberty."

MPs accuse Raila of abetting Knut strike

Thursday, July 11, 2013 BY BARRY SALIL

MPs and senators from Rift Valley have accused former Prime Minister Raila Odinga of capitalising on the on-going teachers strike to campaign for the rejection of the VAT Bill.

The legislators claimed the campaign is part of Raila's plan to sabotage the Jubilee government promises to Kenyans. The leaders wondered why Raila failed to fulfill the 1997 teachers agreement in the 10 years he was in government, especially when he was a co-principal between 2008-2012.

Facebook And Microsoft Reveal Spying Requests

Details of tens of thousands of queries by US officials emerge after the firms strike a deal with security authorities. 

Facebook and Microsoft have revealed that US government agencies made tens of thousands of requests for user data in the second half of last year.

The firms were able to release the information after reaching a deal about disclosures with US national security authorities.

Bill Cosby Does It Again, but Does He Go Too Far In His Criticism ofBlack People!!!!

They’re standing on the corner and they can’t speak English.

I can’t even talk the way these people talk:
Why you ain’t, …
Where you is, 
What he drive,
Where he stay,
Where he work,
Who you be…
And I blamed the kid until I heard the mother talk.
And then I heard the father talk.
Everybody knows it’s important to speak English except these knuckleheads. You can’t be a doctor with that kind of crap coming out of your mouth.
In fact you will never get any kind of job making a decent living.

Television entrepreneur, Dorothy Ghettuba, explains how she got to where she is today

BY Dinfin Mulupi | July 9, 2013

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Dorothy Ghettuba is the founder and CEO of Spielworks Media

Four years ago Dorothy Ghettuba quit her job at a venture capital firm in Canada and moved back to Kenya to follow her passion for TV production. With no education or experience in the field, the only thing Ghettuba was armed with was her determination to make it. 

“There was no plan B. When I was packing up my stuff and leaving a good job, and leaving a comfortable life in a place where people have first world problems of ‘can I have the strawberry or the vanilla one’… failure was not an option,” she said.

Ghettuba is the founder and CEO of Spielworks Media, one of Kenya’s leading production houses. Some of its TV shows include Block D, Lies that Bind, Higher Learning, Saints, Ladies 1st and civic education drama series Know Your Constitution, which have aired on TV stations both in Kenya and outside the country.

KENYA KICKS OUT 24 DRUG TRAFFICKERS IN A MONTH

 July 8, 2013 BY KAMORE MAINA

Seven out of the 24 foreigners deported in the last month are believed to be key members of drug cartels operating in Kenya and have in the past been arrested on narcotic offences.

The seven include Anthony Chinedu, whose recent deportation caused a diplomatic furore when the Nigeria government held a Kenyan chartered plane, seven crew members and 12 security personnel at Lagos’s Murtala Mohammed International Airport for close to three weeks.

Majority of those deported are from West Africa with many of them coming from Nigeria.

Chinedu was deported with his brother, Johnson Obina.

Kethi Kilonzo is not a registered voter, IEBC Tribunal rules

The best news so far! This woman was being pushed into people's throats. Selected by failed politicians but not elected by the people's. Her fathers principals and political stands are not the same. Shame on CORD the pushers of failed political manoeuvres! Kenyans have woken up. The days of installing stooges are gone, as Kenyan's, we select and install the right candidates who meets the criteria - Mashariaz Gitonga

The IEBC tribunal has made a ruling on the eligibility of Kethi Kilonzo to be a contestant in the Makueni by-election.

The tribunal has ruled that the daughter of the late Makueni Senator is not a registered voter hence inelligible to contest the July 22 by-election.

Her nomination certificate issued by Returning Officer for Makueni senate has been revoked and the IEBC tribunal has ordered an investigation as to how she obtained the slip she presented to IEBC for clearance.

She had been nominated by the Wiper Democratic Party of Kenya.

The tribunal spent Friday and Saturday trying to determine whether she met the threshold set out in law to participate in the by-election which was occasioned by the death of Senator Mutula Kilonzo on April 27.

The IEBC Tribunal however upheld the nomination of Jubilee’s Prof Philip Kaloki to vie for the Makueni senate seat.

In other related news, IEBC Chair Issack Hassan says IEBC did not receive report of any loss of booklet in which Kethi Kilonzo’s registration slip came from.

More later…..

RAILA ODINGA is a conman and a thief

MIGUNA MIGUNA  July 8, 2013 

Last week, former Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s Coalition Adviser, Miguna Miguna, wrote a shocking letter to Daily Nation’s Special Assignment Editor Muriithi Mutiga saying, Raila Odinga, who he interviewed last Saturday, is a political conman and a thief.

The letter was also copied to a few journalists in Nairobi, who refused to use the alleged information.

Miguna, who is a brilliant lawyer, seems not yet done with Raila Odinga who always claims he won the March 4th election

How to get a baby of the desired sex

July 5th 2013, By Dr Alfred MurageThere are various reasons why couples may wish to conceive either a baby boy or a girl. Family balance or societal pressures are some of the reasons. Rarely, there may be a medical reason why a child of a particular sex is desired.
But sex selection purely for social reasons has ethical and demographic dilemmas, and is medically illegal in many jurisdictions. However, advanced medical technology and increasing demand for sex selection have both created the need for more debate on the matter. There is a push for relaxation of the rules on a selective basis, and more couples may have a chance to pre-select the desired sexes of their future children.

‘I killed Rasta, Wanugu and Wacucu, then my colleagues came for me’

Saturday, July 6th 2013, By NYAMBEGA GISESAMeet Daniel Seronei. He was once the Rambo, Commando and Chuck Norris — all combined — of Kenya’s crime busting efforts.
Today at 49, he is a pale shadow of himself. We are in a shady hotel in a dusty town near the Kenya-Tanzania border, where I have tracked him.
Seronei looks around nervously, his eyes darting left and right. “I don’t like sticking in the same place for long,” he proclaims, taking one more suspicious sweep of the place.
He is tall, slender and dark, but a sickly man, his face aged by ordeal. He wears dark sunglasses. The sun set hours ago.

NASA Finds Message From God on Mars

Jul 01, 2013, NASA announced today that its Curiosity Rover has found an unambiguous message from God written on tablets in a Martian cave.
According to an official press release two giant stone slabs the size of small elephants were located deep inside a cavern abutting Aeolis Mons, a large mountain.
Upon one tablet is a copy of the Ten Commandments and the text of John 3:16 written in 12 languages - including English, Spanish, Chinese, Basque and Hebrew. On the other tablet is a simple message in English reading "I am real."
According to top scientists who have studied the discovery extensively, these findings may have definitively established Christianity as the one true religion.
"This is amazing," says Syms Covington, an Australian researcher working for NASA's Mars Exploration Program. "We went into the cave looking for water, and we found proof of God's existence instead.
"I mean how else did those tablets get there? I can tell you one thing: there's not a single atheist inside NASA's control room now. What we saw was jaw-dropping."

Moyes: Fergie offered the job

David Moyes says he is thrilled to have become the new manager of Premier League champions Manchester United.

And, speaking at his first press conference as boss of the Old Trafford club, the Scot revealed how the job offer was delivered out of the blue by his predecessor, Sir Alex Ferguson.

New Americans take oath

There they stood, 487 new U.S. citizens, brimming with smiles or crying or doing both as “The Star-Spangled Banner” played.

By Tan Vinh, Seattle Times staff reporter

There they stood, 487 new U.S. citizens, brimming with smiles or crying or doing both as “The Star-Spangled Banner” played.

They are Americans for sure — sporting Air Jordans, pulling out iPhones and posting Facebook pictures during their naturalization ceremony Thursday at the Fisher Pavilion.

Many waved mini American flags. Some got teary-eyed as they made eye contact with their loved ones in the crowd.

Private landlords face £3,000 fines for renting to illegal immigrants

By Steven Swinford, Senior Political Correspondent, Jul 2013Private landlords face fines of up to £3,000 if they fail to inspect tenants' passports and other identity documents to establish that they are not illegal immigrants.

Under plans unveiled yesterday, ministers said they wanted to make it more difficult for people to stay in the UK without permission.

However, to avoid discriminating against people on grounds of "race and ethnicity", everyone who rents a property will be required to provide their passport or other proof of their right to live in Britain.

Landlords will be required to assess whether they think immigration documents provided to them are forgeries. If so, they will be expected to contact the Home Office to raise their concerns.

Wild spendour at Ol Pejeta

 

PHOTO | JOSEPH KANYI  NATION MEDIA GROUP

By JAMES NGUNJIRI ngunjirij@ke.nationmedia.com, July 4  2013 

In Summary

• Ol Pejeta will be undertaking the maintenance of the roads, security fences, water, and electricity at a fee. The cost will be shared among the owners, with each home paying about Sh200,000 a year
• So far 55 houses have been sold, with five-bedroom units going for Sh33 million
• Owners will get a 99-year lease from the Mt Kenya Wildlife Estate, the developers of the property, as well as shareholding in the estate with the right to make decisions and to vote

Imagine a life in the wild, the quiet of the night punctuated every now and then by the roar of a lion and the cheeky laughter of a hyena. Imagine, also, a life removed from the hustle and bustle of civilisation, yet entrenched in that very civilisation.

'I've got a surprise for you': Husband blindfolds his wife.... and thenchops off her fingers to stop her studying for a degree

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

A jealous husband is facing life in prison after chopping off his wife's fingers because she began studying for a degree without his permission.

Rafiqul Islam, 30, blindfolded his wife Hawa Akhter, 21, and taped her mouth, telling her he was going to give her a surprise present.

UHURUTO have done nothing in their 100 days in office - RAILA ODINGA

The teachers issue is an inherited problem from RAO and his administration. which the opposition want to smear on the current government. 

The laptop program is a promise made to school children's and not to the teachers.

Tracing the bad blood between Kenyatta and Odinga dynasties

June 11th 2013, By Standard Reporter Kenya: Less than a month after independence, Prime Minister Jomo Kenyatta was convinced his Home Affairs Minister Oginga Odinga was planning to overthrow him.
Western intelligence agencies had been filling his ear with talk of a radical plot to remove him from power by force.
And when Kenya Army (former King’s African Rifles) soldiers in Lanet mutinied in January 1964 demanding better pay, Kenyatta reacted to the crisis by first calling Odinga and ordering him to remain at home until it was solved. Kenyatta and his allies feared Odinga would exploit the situation politically or, worse, was planning a coup.

'Enter the Dragon' Actor Jim Kelly Dies at 67

The martial artist appeared in films such as "Black Belt Jones" and "Three the Hard Way" in the 1970s.

Jim Kelly, a martial artist famous for his role in the 1973 Bruce Lee film Enter the Dragon, died on Saturday of cancer, his ex-wife Marilyn Dishman told the Associated Press.

"Yesterday, June 29, 2013, James Milton Kelly, better known as Jim Kelly, the Karate expert, actor, my first husband and Sabrena Kelly-Lewis's biological father died," Dishman wrote in a Facebook note about his passing. "Sabrena needs all of your good thoughts and prayers. This is a difficult situation to process. Even I am having trouble processing it. Like his mother, there will be no service!"

Kelly starred in numerous martial arts films in the 1970's, including Black Belt Jones, Three the Hard Way and Black Samurai. He later left acting and became a professional tennis player. He appeared in a commercial with NBA star LeBron James in 2004.

"I never left the movie business," Kelly told the LA Times in 2010. "It's just that after a certain point, I didn't get the type of projects that I wanted to do. I still get at least three scripts per year, but most of them don't put forth a positive image. There's nothing I really want to do, so I don't do it. If it happens, it happens, but if not, I'm happy with what I've accomplished."

Kelly, who was born in May 1946, was the second cousin of baseball star Willie Mays. He was a talented natural athlete who grew up in Kentucky and starred in football, baseball and track teams.

In 1971, he won four major martial arts championships in a row and became a star in the karate world. Producer Fred Weintraub hired him for a small role in 1973's Enter The Dragon and teamed with the actor again for Black Belt Jones. 

The pain of being RAO.........give this guy a bone......

 

Former Prime Minister, Raila Odinga, has sensationally stated that he is equal to former President Mwai Kibaki and should be accorded the same treatment with the former President.

Speaking in a one on one interview with a journalist from one of the major dailies, Raila said the Jubilee Government has been frustrating him from the day he lost the Presidency to President Uhuru Kenyatta and his Deputy William Ruto.

“I recognise that there is another Government in power and they are entitled to their attitudes. But I think we should be a civilised country that respects its citizens. Everybody has rights: children, the sick, the disabled, the infirm, the aged, everybody. At every stage of life people should be treated with respect. It’s a culture we should institutionalize.” Raila said.

To stress his point, Raila, who is also CORD leader, said the Jubilee Government had withdrawn all his security leaving him with only one security guard.

“In my home (in Karen) there is only one person. When he is asleep, I have nobody there. The guards assigned to my home are not provided with transport. That leaves the question whether they are supposed to carry guns in a matatu. I was a Prime Minister who was an equal partner with the President. That’s why I had 20 Ministers and Kibaki had 20 ministers. They say I’m not entitled to anything. I am not a VIP. Look what they do for the others. Nyayo (former President Moi) is given six cars. Kibaki has 25 guards. He has been given a budget of Sh250 million for an office. What about me? Don’t I have things to do? I have not been paid even a single cent in pension since I left office. Yet I served as an MP for 20 years, as a Minister and Prime Minister. How am I supposed to survive for the rest of my life?” furious raila posed.

Raila said when he inquired about his retirement’s package, he was urged by Jubilee operatives to quit active politics if he wants the package.

“I am not their subject. I can’t be ordered around by the spokesmen of people. They never brought me into politics and they can’t force me to retire. I will not be held to ransom because of benefits. It’s a carrot they are dangling before me but they should be more civilised. I have a mission in politics and it is to serve the people. Only they can tell me to retire and not some Government functionaries.”  He said.