From nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net Wed Dec 5 17:44:08 2007 From: nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net (nymhm@lists.artsandmedia.net) Date: Wed Dec 5 17:46:57 2007 Subject: NYMHM: Cuba's green thumb; data snooping and its discontents; here comes the flood Message-ID: ============================================================================= NEWS YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED * December 5, 2007 * Vol. 6, No. 49 Important but overlooked news from around the world. NYMHM is a free service of Newsdesk.org. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Online this week: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004489.html - RSS: http://newsdesk.org/news/atom.xml - Donations: http://artsandmedia.net/contribute/ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- QUOTED: "I was expecting the site to tell me that I couldn't do that. I'm just curious about these things so I tried it, and boom, there was somebody else's name and somebody else's data." -- Canadian Jamie Laning changed one letter on a passport renewal Web site URL, and got surprising results (see "Privacy," below). CONTENTS: *Top Stories* Whither Cuba's green thumb? Dollar's drop a drag for Americans abroad The plagues of Uganda *Privacy* Data snooping and its discontents *Environment* Here comes the flood ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- TOP STORIES ............................................................................. > Whither Cuba's Green Thumb? Floods, storms, drought and heat, plus an array of economic concerns, are taking their toll on Cuban agriculture. Inter Press Service reports that 75 percent of Cuban land used for crops and grazing has fallen into disuse, even as produce prices increase and the variety of crops available diminishes. Raul Castro, who heads the Communist government there, said earlier this year that ... GET THE WHOLE STORY: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004490.html > Dollar's Drop a Drag for Americans Abroad The good fortune of the Euro -- not to mention the Czech Crown -- makes for dismal tidings for American expatriates and their European colleagues paid in dollars. According to The Prague Post, employees of American firms and institutions in the Czech Republic have taken the equivalent of a 15 percent salary cut as a result of ... GET THE WHOLE STORY: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004491.html > The Plagues of Uganda Concurrent outbreaks of several diseases in Uganda have health officials there on the defensive, reports The Monitor in Kampala. Even as the country struggles to contain an ebola outbreak, new cases of meningitis, cholera, bubonic plague and yellow fever are turning up in different parts of the country. Suspected cases of hepatitis have ... GET THE WHOLE STORY: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004492.html ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- PRIVACY ............................................................................. > Data Snooping and its Discontents The limits of data privacy are being tested in Western democracies, as governments and corporations push for greater access with sometimes unexpected results. British authorities demanded that a group of about 30 animal rights activists hand over the keys to encrypted files stored on computers that had been seized by police. The demand is the first of its kind under a recently enacted measure of the nation's controversial Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act, reports BBC News. The provision of the law that deals with decryption was written to combat pedophiles and terrorists, although many critics ... GET THE WHOLE STORY: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004493.html ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- ENVIRONMENT ............................................................................. > Here Comes the Flood Heavy weather the world over is raising concerns about the potential of a flood-prone future, and what that means for vulnerable populations. In the U.S. Pacific Northwest, 24-foot waves closed shipping channels, and 13 inches of rain in one 30-hour period shut down commerce, damaged streets and highways, and brought down trees and power lines, reports Bloomberg.com. Five days of continuous rain have had a catastrophic effect in Algeria, causing a house and a bridge to collapse as rivers burst their banks and floodwaters surged through suburban Algiers. At least eleven lives were lost, reports Agence France-Presse. Meanwhile, a report by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development found that 40 million people ... GET THE WHOLE STORY: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004494.html ============================================================================= Editors: Josh Wilson, Will Crain ............................................................................. SUPPORT PUBLIC-SERVICE MEDIA Newsdesk.org and News You Might Have Missed are commercial-free, and available at no charge. We welcome your tax-deductible contributions: https://secure.groundspring.org/dn/index.php?id=695 ............................................................................. MANAGE YOUR SUBSCRIPTION Subscribe, unsubscribe, etc: http://lists.artsandmedia.net/mailman/listinfo/nymhm/ ............................................................................. News You Might Have Missed and Newsdesk.org are free services of Independent Arts & Media: http://artsandmedia.net/ ............................................................................. E-mail list powered by Group D Communications: http://www.groupd.com/ ............................................................................. DISCLAIMER: All external links are provided as informational resources only, consistent with the nonprofit, public-interest mission of Independent Arts & Media. Independent Arts & Media does not exercise any editorial control over the information you may find at these locations and does not have a copyright on any of the content located at these sites. ============================================================================= From nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net Fri Dec 7 11:37:01 2007 From: nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net (nymhm@lists.artsandmedia.net) Date: Fri Dec 7 11:45:26 2007 Subject: Newsdesk.org needs your help today! Message-ID: <71a0e47cb45204317c93a93934d08b09@artsandmedia.net> --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- Newsdesk.org Winter Fund Drive Funds raised so far: $360 // Goal: $2,000 People on List: 1,951 // Weeks left: 3 Donate online: http://artsandmedia.net/contributions/ Get the latest online: http://newsdesk.org/ * Full details on making a tax-deductible donation are at the end of this email. * -- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- December 7, 2007 Dear Friends of Newsdesk.org; Seismic shifts continue to rock the journalism world. Knight Ridder, once one of the great newspaper publishers, is no more. In the Bay Area, this has resulted in a near monopoly by the MediaNews Group, which, in the process of acquiring the old KR properties, is seeking to eliminate the Newspaper Guild to push forward its new cost-cutting agenda. This drive cut costs only means a decrease in significant reportage of all sorts: -- The Boston Globe, Baltimore Sun, Newsday and LA Times have all shuttered or diminished overseas bureaus ... this in a time of international terrorism, global climate shifts, and boundary-crossing cultural and economic crises. -- Media consolidation, which drives cost-cutting, continues apace ... from Rupert Murdoch's Wall Street Journal acquisition to Sam Zell's play for the Chicago Tribune. -- Presidential campaign reporting in the United States trudges forward with the traditional "horse race" coverage of hairstyles, candidate upsmanship and poll-tracking. In the midst of all this, we at Newsdesk.org seek only to increase our reporting capacity, expand our groundbreaking world news coverage, and dig ever-deeper into the fundamental and urgent issues of our times. We also push forward the dialogue about journalism and democracy, through events such as "Save The News!" -- a public conversation coming up December 12 in San Francisco: Dec. 12: "Save the News!" Journalism, democracy & our communities http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004487.html YOU CAN HELP We've been publishing News You Might Have Missed every Wednesday since February 2002. Our budget is less than $10,000 a year. But now we need your help. There's a lot of news out there you're not getting. And it's clear that you can't count on the big guys to deliver it. Your donations of $25, $50, $100, $500 or more will keep Newsdesk.org alive in 2007 -- and help us grow. Details on how to make a tax-deductible donation are at the end of this email -- or just click through to our secure online donor page: Newsdesk.org Donor Page http://artsandmedia.net/contributions/ All donations are handled by our sponsor, Independent Arts & Media, a nonprofit group that advances public dialogue by increasing access to independent voices. Thanks so much for your support of nonprofit, commercial-free journalism! Sincerely, Josh Wilson * Editor Newsdesk.org --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- HERE'S HOW YOU CAN SUPPORT NEWSDESK.ORG IN 2008 Newsdesk.org Winter Fund Drive Funds raised so far: $360 // Goal: $2,000 People on List: 1,951 // Weeks left: 3 Recommended donations: $25, $50, $100, $500 or more. Donate online: http://artsandmedia.net/contributions/ Snail Mail (checks only!): Independent Arts & Media PMB 821 * 601 Van Ness Ave., Ste. E * SF, CA 94102 * All donations are tax-deductible. * * Thank you for your generous support! * --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- From nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net Wed Dec 12 15:46:08 2007 From: nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net (nymhm@lists.artsandmedia.net) Date: Wed Dec 12 15:47:33 2007 Subject: NYMHM: Alaska oil politics; poverty Down Under; Islamo-liberalism Message-ID: ============================================================================= NEWS YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED * December 12, 2007 * Vol. 6, No. 50 Important but overlooked news from around the world. NYMHM is a free service of Newsdesk.org. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Online this week: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004497.html - RSS: http://newsdesk.org/news/atom.xml - Donations: http://artsandmedia.net/contribute/ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- QUOTED: "[W]hen former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif returned to Pakistan, where did he go? To the Sufi shrine in Lahore." -- Pakistani anthropologist Akbar Ahmed on Sufism as an antidote to Islamic fundamentalism (see "Islam," below). CONTENTS: *Top Stories* Oil industry's Amazon frontier A man, a dam and a salmon plan Corruption roils Alaska oil politics *Australia* Things looking up for the poor Down Under *Islam* The stirrings of Islamo-liberalism ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- TOP STORIES ............................................................................. > Oil Industry's Amazon Frontier Economic development and ecological conservation are once again at odds in the Amazon, where a remote region thick with rare species -- and indigenous peoples in "voluntary isolation" -- has been opened to extensive oil and gas development. Environment News Service reports that Brazil's Petrobras, the U.S. firm Barrett Resources and Spain's Repsol have all been approved to develop vast ... GET THE WHOLE STORY: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004498.html > A Man, a Dam and a Salmon Plan A federal judge rebuked the government for its latest plan to restore salmon runs along the Columbia and Snake rivers. According to The Oregonian, U.S. District Judge James A. Redden has declared that the government plan, like two previous plans he also rejected, won't live up to the Endangered Species Act because it does not ... GET THE WHOLE STORY: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004499.html > Corruption Roils Alaska Politics With two oil executives headed to jail for giving hundreds of thousands of dollars in illegal payments and "benefits" to prominent state politicians, Alaskans can look forward to plenty of court-watching in the months to come. According to The Christian Science Monitor, the appetite in Alaska extends beyond courtroom voyeurism, however, thanks to an array of oil-related issues -- from corrosion in pipelines to disputes over the Exxon Valdez ... GET THE WHOLE STORY: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004500.html ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- AUSTRALIA ............................................................................. > Things Looking Up for the Poor Down Under When Australia's conservative government was voted out of office last month, much of the world's media emphasized the possible ramifications for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan -- or the fact that the former singer of politically charged rockers Midnight Oil is now the nation's environment minister. But the changes go much deeper than that. The newly installed government of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is acting quickly to reverse the policies of previous Prime Minister John Howard on a wide range of social justice issues. This week, the government announced that it would discontinue the controversial "Pacific Solution," whereby Asian refugees seeking asylum in Australia were held in camps in ... GET THE WHOLE STORY: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004501.html ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- ISLAM ............................................................................. > The Stirrings of Islamo-Liberalism Plenty of media attention has been given to fundamentalist Islam and Taliban-style "Islamo-fascism." But a trio of recent articles brings to light an overlooked liberal trend in the Muslim world, in the form of emerging pro-democracy movements and an apparent resurgence of Sufism. The Netherlands-based academic Asef Bayat notes in a recent essay that democracy in the Middle East is impossible without the emergence of a new type of Muslim citizen -- "teachers, students, the young, women, workers, artists, and intellectuals" -- who can spur a "post-Islamist" interpretation of ... GET THE WHOLE STORY: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004502.html ============================================================================= Editors: Josh Wilson, Will Crain ............................................................................. SUPPORT PUBLIC-SERVICE MEDIA Newsdesk.org and News You Might Have Missed are commercial-free, and available at no charge. We welcome your tax-deductible contributions: https://secure.groundspring.org/dn/index.php?id=695 ............................................................................. MANAGE YOUR SUBSCRIPTION Subscribe, unsubscribe, etc: http://lists.artsandmedia.net/mailman/listinfo/nymhm/ ............................................................................. News You Might Have Missed and Newsdesk.org are free services of Independent Arts & Media: http://artsandmedia.net/ ............................................................................. E-mail list powered by Group D Communications: http://www.groupd.com/ ............................................................................. DISCLAIMER: All external links are provided as informational resources only, consistent with the nonprofit, public-interest mission of Independent Arts & Media. Independent Arts & Media does not exercise any editorial control over the information you may find at these locations and does not have a copyright on any of the content located at these sites. ============================================================================= From nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net Fri Dec 14 14:23:20 2007 From: nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net (nymhm@lists.artsandmedia.net) Date: Fri Dec 14 14:26:20 2007 Subject: [Newsdesk] "The Story of the Chicago Reader": A fundraising fable Message-ID: --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- Newsdesk.org Winter Fund Drive Funds raised so far: $720 // Goal: $2,000 People on List: 1,951 // Weeks left: 2 Donate online: http://artsandmedia.net/contributions/ Get the latest online: http://newsdesk.org/ * Full details on making a tax-deductible donation are at the end of this email. * --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- December 14, 2007 Dear Friends of Newsdesk.org; Thanks to the 15 people who've donated so far! You've been exceptionally generous, and we are zipping along to meeting our modest but vital fundraising goal. So thank you again! Your support goes directly to the production of News You Might Have Missed each week. On that note -- if you wish to see our services expanded to include daily content and renewed exclusive reporting, please let your friends know about Newsdesk.org, and invite them to match your own donation. * THE STORY OF THE CHICAGO READER It's important to recognize that while commercial news outlets have been and are a vital part of our civic lives, profit expectations seem inevitably to undermine or compromise the process, in large ways and small. The latest example is the layoffs of four celebrated writers at the Chicago Reader, following that alt-weekly's purchase by Atlanta's Creative Loafing. The fascinating thing about this situation is that the editor, Alison True, acknowledged that the writers writers "have produced some of the paper's most exciting and important work," but that the layoffs were a "necessary adjustment" to "market forces." Here are a few links for you to explore the story yourself: "Changes at the Chicago Reader" Chicago Reader, Dec. 14, 2007 http://www.chicagoreader.com/features/stories/letters/071213/ "Chicago Reader cuts four of its 'most impactful reporters'" Romanesko, Dec. 7, 2007 http://www.poynter.org/column.asp?id=45&aid=134099 * GOOD NEWS: JOURNALISTS AT WORK Newsdesk.org was founded in direct response to these of challenges. We are working to create an outlet for the good works of all the talented, dedicated but laid-off, outsourced and downsized journalists, who, along with the general public, are the biggest victims of commercial news media's decline. In contrast, Newsdesk.org is: - Operated entirely by reporters, editors and news producers - Funded by its readers - Backed by a nonprofit business model that trumps the negative financial pressures of the commercial sector. We know there's never been a "golden age" for news media. But we're committed to putting into practice the ideals of the Fourth Estate as the foundation of democracy. * HOW YOU CAN HELP These are big aspirations, and making good on them has not been easy. But we are always learning from the challenges, and in 2008 have big plans to continue developing and adapting our services, to serve you more effectively and continue expanding our coverage. Your donations of $25, $50, $100, $500 or more will help us keep Newsdesk.org alive and growing in the new year and beyond. Details on how to make a tax-deductible donation are at the end of this email -- or just click through to our secure online donor page: Newsdesk.org Donor Page http://artsandmedia.net/contributions/ All donations are handled by our sponsor, Independent Arts & Media, a nonprofit producer's co-op that expands civic dialogue by increasing access to independent voices. We'll be back next week with one final message for you, and then wrap our 2007 season and gear up for 2008. Thanks so much for your support of nonprofit, commercial-free journalism! Sincerely, Josh Wilson Editor * Newsdesk.org/ 415/861-5302 --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- HERE'S HOW YOU CAN SUPPORT NEWSDESK.ORG IN 2008 Newsdesk.org Winter Fund Drive Funds raised so far: $720 // Goal: $2,000 People on List: 1,951 // Weeks left: 2 Recommended donations: $25, $50, $100, $500 or more. Donate online: http://artsandmedia.net/contributions/ Snail Mail (checks only!): Independent Arts & Media PMB 821 * 601 Van Ness Ave., Ste. E * SF, CA 94102 * All donations are tax-deductible. * * Thank you for your generous support! * --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- From nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net Wed Dec 19 11:27:47 2007 From: nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net (nymhm@lists.artsandmedia.net) Date: Wed Dec 19 11:31:56 2007 Subject: NYMHM: Iraqis AWOL in U.S., Ethiopian Jews fault Israel, Afghan reconstruction Message-ID: ============================================================================= NEWS YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED * December 19, 2007 * Vol. 6, No. 51 Important but overlooked news from around the world. NYMHM is a free service of Newsdesk.org. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Online this week: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004505.html - RSS: http://newsdesk.org/news/atom.xml - Donations: http://artsandmedia.net/contribute/ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- QUOTED: "Although this certainly is a case of domestic violence, some are referring to this as an example of an 'honor' killing." -- The Muslim American Society on the killing of an immigrant teen in Canada, allegedly by her father (see "Fundamentalism," below). CONTENTS: *Top Stories* Iraqi officers AWOL in the U.S. Protestors say Israel will exclude Ethiopian Jews Afghan reconstruction faces U.S. budget cuts *Fundamentalism* Muslim teen's slaying sparks Canada debate *Media* Fur flies in tiger photo fight ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- TOP STORIES ............................................................................. > Iraqi Officers AWOL in U.S. At least five and as many as a dozen Iraqi officials have deserted U.S.-based military training, and are at large and unaccounted for, the Washington Times reports. Now, a pair of Texas Republicans are demanding answers from White House officials -- more than a year after first inquiring about the disappearances. The desertions occurred between 2005 and 2007, and were reported to the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Neither agency would ... GET THE WHOLE STORY: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004506.html > Protestors say Israel will Exclude Ethiopian Jews Hundreds of Ethiopian Jews demonstrated in Jerusalem on Monday, alleging that as many as 8,500 of their family and community members have been cut from Israel's immigration program. The Jerusalem Post reports that demonstrators displayed photos of loved ones still in Ethiopia, while Avraham Neguise, a leader of the protests, accused the Israeli ... GET THE WHOLE STORY: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004507.html > Afghan Reconstruction Faces U.S. Budget Cuts An innovative reconstruction program in Afghanistan has been praised for giving decision-making power to small villages and communities, but may be shuttered due to funding shortfalls. Washington Monthly reports that Afghanistan's National Solidarity Program is a success across the country, even in unstable areas where the Taliban still holds sway. Originally developed by a "maverick" World Bank officer in Indonesia, advocates say the NSP ensures a sense of ownership by involving all community members in ... GET THE WHOLE STORY: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004508.html ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- FUNDAMENTALISM ............................................................................. > Muslim Teen's Slaying Sparks Canada Debate The slaying of a 16-year-old Muslim girl, allegedly by her father, has sparked a furor in the Canadian press and beyond. Aqsa Parvez died in a hospital last week, hours after a man called 911, saying he had killed his daughter. Parvez's father was arrested and charged in her death. One of her brothers was charged with obstructing the investigation. Parvez and her Mississauga, Ontario, family were immigrants from Pakistan, and early reports said that she had fought with her father over her refusal to wear the traditional ... GET THE WHOLE STORY: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004509.html ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- MEDIA ............................................................................. > Fur Flies in Tiger Photo Fight When Chinese officials declared this fall that a rare South China tiger had been photographed in the wild, it appeared at first to be a story of nature's powers of survival. But now the officials are defending the photos against claims that they are obvious fakes. The controversy began in October, when China's official Xinhua news agency reported that a farmer had handed in photos he took of a tiger in a forest near his house in Shaanxi province. The South China tiger is critically endangered, and has not been spotted in the wild since ... GET THE WHOLE STORY: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004510.html ============================================================================= Editors: Will Crain, Josh Wilson ............................................................................. SUPPORT PUBLIC-SERVICE MEDIA Newsdesk.org and News You Might Have Missed are commercial-free, and available at no charge. We welcome your tax-deductible contributions: https://secure.groundspring.org/dn/index.php?id=695 ............................................................................. MANAGE YOUR SUBSCRIPTION Subscribe, unsubscribe, etc: http://lists.artsandmedia.net/mailman/listinfo/nymhm/ ............................................................................. News You Might Have Missed and Newsdesk.org are free services of Independent Arts & Media: http://artsandmedia.net/ ............................................................................. E-mail list powered by Group D Communications: http://www.groupd.com/ ............................................................................. DISCLAIMER: All external links are provided as informational resources only, consistent with the nonprofit, public-interest mission of Independent Arts & Media. Independent Arts & Media does not exercise any editorial control over the information you may find at these locations and does not have a copyright on any of the content located at these sites. ============================================================================= From nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net Wed Dec 26 14:25:06 2007 From: nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net (nymhm@lists.artsandmedia.net) Date: Wed Dec 26 14:35:54 2007 Subject: NYMHM: Trouble at the roof of the world; Terror trial jury blackout Message-ID: <20071226142506.joe6qnoyog8wgkck@webmail.artsandmedia.net> NEWS YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED * Vol. 6, No. 52 Editor's note: For the next two weeks, NYMHM will be on an abbreviated schedule. Thank you for your readership and happy holidays! > Trouble at the Roof of the World Water rights and free speech are the latest sparks that have inflamed protests in Tibet against the Chinese government. Hundreds of nomads -- yak herders and others whose way of life seems to exist outside of politics and time -- fought with police last month after a disagreement involving three ... GET THE WHOLE STORY: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004513.html > Judge Calls for Terror Trial Jury Blackout A federal judge in Miami ordered jurors to be selected anonymously in the upcoming retrial of an alleged terrorist cell, citing concerns about the potential for jury tampering. The move, which is sometimes made in organized crime trials, will mean that potential jurors in the closely watched case will be referred to by number instead of by name. Jurors will also be investigated and supervised by the U.S. Marshals Service in order to ... GET THE WHOLE STORY: http://www.newsdesk.org/archives/004512.html From nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net Thu Dec 27 13:24:49 2007 From: nymhm at lists.artsandmedia.net (nymhm@lists.artsandmedia.net) Date: Thu Dec 27 13:25:58 2007 Subject: A message from NYMHM's Julia Scott Message-ID: <20071227132449.8juyp640cosso0gc@webmail.artsandmedia.net> --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- Newsdesk.org Winter Fund Drive Funds raised so far: $1,000 // Goal: $2,000 People on List: 1,953 // Weeks left: 0 Donate online: http://artsandmedia.net/contributions/ Get the latest online: http://newsdesk.org/ * Full details on making a tax-deductible donation are at the end of this email. * --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- Dear NYMHM readers; In the four years that I had the privilege of working on News You Might Have Missed, I took great pleasure in flagging truly underreported news stories from world media to bring to your attention. One of the best parts of my job was discovering obscure, but reliable, news sources -- like The Santiago Times of Chile or The New Vision of Uganda. Often it took hours of searching to find that diamond in the rough, a story important enough to merit our attention but that escaped that of the U.S. news media. As NYMHM matured into a weekly collection of issue- or theme- based news sections, we sought to help readers make the connection between news events taking place in different parts of the globe. Thus we brought you issue-focused coverage of: * How Kurdistan's attempts to maintain oil independence have been stifled by sectarian loyalties, vandalism and oil smuggling by Iraqis elsewhere in the country. * How motherhood has been outsourced to women renting their wombs for a price, from India to Australia. * How fundamentalist Mormons in the American Southwest are seeking to decriminalize polygamy, while governments in Uganda and Iraqi Kurdistan debate banning the practice to protect women from abuse. Frequently our coverage of an issue precedes the attention it receives from the mainstream media. That was the case with an October 10 story we picked up from Today's Zaman, a Turkish alternative news source, about threats made by Turkey's foreign minister over a resolution Congress was about to consider declaring the Armenian killings a genocide. Finally, we have prided ourselves on giving space and attention to domestic issues not recognized by many U.S. news sources, such as the rising tide of hate crimes against the homeless or the routing flouting of U.S. water pollution laws. I want to thank you for your support over the years, which has made this all possible. I completed my last edition of News You Might Have Missed this past November, and encourage you to help fund the next generation of NYMHM editors with a tax-deductible donation today. This free service is made possible not by foundations or corporate sponsors, but by the generous donations of readers like you. Thank you again for your support, which has made so much possible, and best wishes for the new year! Julia Scott Editor Emeritus News You Might Have Missed http://newsdesk.org/ --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- HERE'S HOW YOU CAN SUPPORT NEWSDESK.ORG IN 2008 Newsdesk.org Winter Fund Drive Funds raised so far: $1,000 // Goal: $2,000 People on List: 1,953 // Weeks left: 0 Recommended donations: $25, $50, $100, $500 or more. Donate online: http://artsandmedia.net/contributions/ Snail Mail (checks only!): Independent Arts & Media PMB 821 * 601 Van Ness Ave., Ste. E * SF, CA 94102 * All donations are tax-deductible. * * Thank you for your generous support! * --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---