| Soccer Fans Pumped Up for Euro 2012 Tournament Posted: 27 Jun 2012 04:05 PM PDT | A small number of Spanish soccer fans arrived by train in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk on Wednesday, ahead of their team's semi-final match against neighbours Portugal. Foreign fan attendance has been low in the Ukrainian mining city during the Euro 2012 tournament, but several Spaniards arrived around 0900 local (0600GMT) from the capital Kiev after an overnight train journey. They were optimistic that their team would win. "I hope Spain will win, we have a better team and I hope tonight will be our night. I hope we will win the final in Kiev," said Adrian Garcia from Madrid. "Really we expect to win because Portugal is not so strong. But we are afraid of Germany in the final. We hope to win today to go to Kiev and then we will see," said Carlos from Zaragoza. "We are expecting to break Portugal, to win and to win 2-0," another fan, Marco, also from the Spanish capital, said. No Portuguese fans were on the train, but some were expected to arrive by plane later in the day. World and European champions Spain will be given their sternest Euro 2012 test yet against Iberian rivals Portugal and their in-form forward Cristiano Ronaldo in the first semi-final later on Wednesday. All eyes will be on Spain coach Vincente del Bosque to see if he continues his policy of not starting with a striker. The scampering Ronaldo is set to be marked by Real Madrid team mate Alvaro Arbeloa in Donetsk. Germany and Italy will meanwhile be continuing their preparations for Thursday's <b>...</b> | Views: 0 0 ratings | | Time: 01:49 | More in Sports |
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| Maren Morris performs "Slide" @ NTD's Studios in New York Posted: 26 Jun 2012 07:32 PM PDT | Maren Morris, Top 100 Artist on The Verge at New Music Seminar, stops by NTD in NYC to perform "Slide". Is this a Hit song? What do you think?... (song use by permission) | Views: 153 5 ratings | | Time: 02:43 | More in Music |
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| Microsoft Building in Athens Attacked Posted: 27 Jun 2012 12:17 PM PDT | The aftermath of an arson attack in the Greek capital Athens. Early Wednesday morning, several attackers drove a van loaded with gas canisters and cans of petrol into the ground floor of a Microsoft building. The attack, which took place around 4 am local time, caused extensive damage to the lobby and ground floor, and minor damage to the first floor - but no injuries occured. Police said the perpetrators drove the van through the building's entrance, then set it alight once inside. Police also said at least two people wielding pistols and a machine gun kept security guards away as they carried out the attack. Microsoft said it would now shut its office in the city while it assesses the damage. In the past, anarchist groups have attacked large international companies with gas canisters as a symbolic gesture against capitalism, but police say it's too early to say who was behind Wednesday's attack. | Views: 12 0 ratings | | Time: 01:02 | More in News & Politics |
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| Michael Jackson Flash Mob Stopped Posted: 27 Jun 2012 11:28 AM PDT | A group of Michael Jackson fans unwittingly found themselves facing the brunt of a new Russian protest law on Monday. Then they were dispersed by police after attempting to stage a flash mob in honour of the late pop singer in St. Petersburg. Footage from a local TV station showed between 15 and 20 Michael Jackson fans gathered to hang posters and lay flowers near the US Consulate on the third anniversary of Jackson's death. Police officers, however, soon moved in to break up the gathering, detaining one fan dressed up as Jackson. Elina Tsyrkul "We just didn't think that this was a meeting - it's not some kind of organized action, and we're not trying to propagandize anything. We just love Michael Jackson and we just want, on a day like this, to gather and be all together," Police claimed the fans were inconveniencing pedestrians, according to media reports. Last year, a similar memorial event in St. Petersburg, attended by close to 20 participants, was held without event or detentions, according to media reports. Russia has issued a series of new laws, tightening control on protests, including a bill that would dramatically increase fines for people who take part in protests that violate public order rules. Putin, at the beginning of the month told a meeting of top judges in his native St. Petersburg that he decided to sign the bill despite objections from his own human rights adviser, Mikhail Fedotov, who asked the president to veto it. Participants in protests where <b>...</b> | Views: 20 2 ratings | | Time: 01:50 | More in Entertainment |
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| Chinese Farmer's Five-Thousand-Duck Walkabout Posted: 27 Jun 2012 10:57 AM PDT | Ducks are a major symbol of China's capital Beijing, from the sports teams named after them, to top restaurants featuring them as entrees. Yet, far from the capital, one farmer in East China takes his duty as duck farmer to a whole new level. Several times a year, farmer Hong Mingshun takes his flock of ducks for a walk—5000 of them at a time. He raises the ducks for eggs and meat, but a welcome by-product are the walkabouts, which have now become a local entertainment sensation. For the full Script- tinyurl.com | Views: 1 0 ratings | | Time: 01:43 | More in Pets & Animals |
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| Hollywood Dog, Uggie Puts Paws in Cement Posted: 27 Jun 2012 09:41 AM PDT | Uggie, best known as Jack from the Oscar-winning film "The Artist", became the first canine to have his paws cemented outside of Grauman's Chinese Theatre. The star dog officially retired from showbiz yesterday with a ceremony that connected him to Tom Hanks, Elizabeth Taylor, and others of Hollywood royalty. Uggie rose to prominence after his turn in "The Artist". He played a memorable role as Jean Dujardin's companion in the silent film. The Artist, which comes out on Blu-Ray and DVDs today, won five Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Uggie's trainer, Omar Von Muller, noted how things have changed since "The Artist" was released. Omar Von Muller, Uggie's Trainer "This has been a rush. This has been incredible. All the success in Uggie, everybody says that I'm a great trainer, I don't think so; he's just a great dog." Muller also urged people to adopt, noting that his star student was adopted. Uggie's film credits also include playing Queenie in last year's "Water for Elephants". Fellow canine celebrities Lassie and Rin Tin Tin lent their star power to the occasion, appearing alongside the 10-year-old Jack Russell Terrier. The councilman declared yesterday "Uggie Day" in Los Angeles. After the ceremony, Uggie signed his "pawtograph" on Blu-ray copies of "The Artist" for 50 lucky fans. For more news and videos visit ➡ english.ntdtv.com Follow us on Twitter ➡ http Add us on Facebook ➡ on.fb.me | Views: 22 1 ratings | | Time: 01:42 | More in Pets & Animals |
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| Queen Elizabeth Visits Northern Ireland Posted: 27 Jun 2012 12:29 AM PDT | For more news and videos visit ➡ english.ntdtv.com Follow us on Twitter ➡ http Add us on Facebook ➡ on.fb.me Crowds greet the Queen as she begins her Northern Ireland visit. Her majesty attends a thanksgiving service in bomb-hit town of Enniskillen. Britain's Queen Elizabeth was greeted by cheering crowds in the Northern Irish town of Enniskillen on Tuesday. Eleven people were killed there by an IRA bomb at a memorial service in 1987. Following the service at the town's St Macartin's Church of Ireland Cathedral, she met members of the Catholic community at the nearby St Michael's. During her two-day trip the queen will meet former IRA commander and current deputy first minister of Northern Ireland Martin McGuinness for the first time. The queen has never met a senior figure in the now-defunct IRA, which killed her cousin Lord Mountbatten in 1979, or its political wing Sinn Fein. And a meeting would be a significant landmark in the peace process. The IRA ended its 30-year armed campaign against British rule in 1998, but small splinter groups have continued to launch attacks against British targets, prompting security concerns that have prevented the queen from publicly announcing trips to the province in advance. In a sign of a softening of the party's attitude to the royal family, Sinn Fein last week said it would not block the Northern Ireland government from giving the queen a present to mark the 60th anniversary of her accession to the throne. Last year, the <b>...</b> | Views: 7 0 ratings | | Time: 01:44 | More in News & Politics |
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| Resignation of Greek Prime Minister Makes Headlines Posted: 27 Jun 2012 12:13 AM PDT | For more news and videos visit ➡ english.ntdtv.com Follow us on Twitter ➡ http Add us on Facebook ➡ on.fb.me The sudden resignation of the Greek finance minister sparks more questions about the country's ability to renegotiate the terms of its bailout. 64-year-old Vassilis Rapanos stepped down before even being sworn into office. The resignation of Greece's incoming finance minister dominated the headlines in Athens on Tuesday. Vassilis Rapanos, the 64-year-old chairman of the National Bank of Greece, turned down the post before even being sworn in because of ill health on Monday. The announcement threw the government's drive to soften the terms of an international bailout into confusion just days before a European summit. The office of Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, who himself only took office last Wednesday following a June 17 election, said Rapanos had sent a letter of resignation because of his health problems and it had been accepted. Samaras himself has only just emerged from hospital after undergoing eye surgery to repair a damaged retina. On the streets of Athens, one woman said Samaras and Rapanos should have dealt with their health issues earlier. [Stemi Stourletou, Athens Resident]: "Of course there is concern when any country is lacking a finance minister and his people have not been informed as to what that means for them especially when the prime minister is sick at the same time. In my opinion, they both knew about their health problems, they <b>...</b> | Views: 5 1 ratings | | Time: 03:18 | More in News & Politics |
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| European Parliament Tackles Human Rights in China Posted: 26 Jun 2012 10:48 PM PDT | For more news and videos visit ➡ english.ntdtv.com Follow us on Twitter ➡ http Add us on Facebook ➡ on.fb.me Torture, organ harvesting from live prisoners of consience, long prison terms, harrassment, Internet censorship - these are just a few of the human rights violations discussed at a hearing at the European Parliament in Brussels last week. Overseas dissident Su Yutong, who now works as a journalist for Deutche Welle, was one of the guest speakers. She told an audience of over 100 people the story of her exile and described the suffering human rights lawyers, journalists, and petitioners undergo at the hands of the Chinese communist regime. Members of the European Parliament, EU officials, human rights activists and dissidents attended the hearing. The day before the hearing, Su spoke with blind lawyer-activist Chen Guancheng on the phone. [Su Yutong, Human Rights Activist]: "Because I talked to him after he (Chen Guangcheng) arrived in the US, he told me just this one thing: please believe me, even though I'm abroad, I will not be cut off from China, I will still do whatever I can from here." Sakharov Prize winner Wei Jingsheng expressed his concerns about the worsening situation of human rights in China through a video message. [Wei Jingsheng, Sakharov Prize winner]: "Nowadays the human rights situation in China is in the most dangerous phase. Judicial authorities have been transformed into mafia, which will definitely make the whole society rapidly enter <b>...</b> | Views: 5 0 ratings | | Time: 03:31 | More in News & Politics |
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| CCP Removes Police Chiefs To Avoid Corruption Posted: 26 Jun 2012 11:37 PM PDT | Follow us on TWITTER: twitter.com Like us on FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com Xu Zhubao,former Nanjing vice mayor and local top policeman was recently nominated as Shandong Provincial police chief. China has seen a total of nine provincial-level police chiefs brought in from out of the area and given assignments. China's media asserted the measure would avoid corruption of important official positions. Yet scholars say if the CCP remains essentially unchanged without purging the Political & Legislative Affairs Committee, the fall of the late Qing Dynasty is an instructive reminder. A leadership meeting of Shandong Provincial Public Security Department was held on June 21st in Jinan in Shandong. The conference nominated Xu Zhubao as the chief of Shandong Provincial Public Security Department. Xu who was the previous director & Party chief of Nanjing Municipal Public Security Bureau and Nanjing's vice mayor, took office as assistant to the Governor of Shandong. He was also part of Shandong Provincial Party Committee, Party chief of Shandong Public Security Department and president of Shandong Police College. In 2012, the provinces of Zhejiang, Sichuan, Chongqing, Hunan and Shandong have each replaced their provincial police chief. Except Sichuan, the other four provinces changed the successors for those non-local CCP cadres. In this year's CCP provincial leadership transition, new police Heads were repeatedly replaced by those out of the area. Professor Zhu Lijia, China National <b>...</b> | Views: 36 0 ratings | | Time: 04:43 | More in News & Politics |
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| Zhou Yongkang Orders Li Wangyang Case to be Completed Posted: 26 Jun 2012 11:33 PM PDT | Follow us on TWITTER: twitter.com Like us on FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com The latest issue of Hong Kong Trends magazine revealed that after Li Wangyang's suspicious death on June 6, Zhou Yongkang gave the order to cremate Li's body within three days. According to the report, due to Li's death renewing international attention, intensified protests against Li's abuse may have forced Zhou Yongkang, the Political and Legislative Affairs Committee (PLAC) head, to hand down the following order. First, Ministry of Public Security should be involved in the investigation, avoiding politicizing the incident. Second, Hunan PLAC must intervene immediately, to set up an investigation team and complete the investigation report in three days. Reports said on the afternoon of June 8, without the consent of Li's family nor a third party witnesses, Shaoyang Public Security carried out an autopsy. On June 9, Shaoyang Public Security Department ordered the cremation of Li's body. Jiang Weiping: Overseas Clan Attempts to Clear Bo Xilai's Crimes It has been a few months since Bo Xilai's downfall, yet outsiders are still concerned with the Bo case. Although media exposed Bo's corruption, overseas websites and media continue to spread sham news excusing his crimes. Commentators believe that Bo's clan manipulated the spreading of this news'abroad. Radio France Internationale cited Jiang Weiping, a former Hong Kong Wen Wei Po newspaper reporter in Dalian, who said that although Bo was dismissed and <b>...</b> | Views: 20 0 ratings | | Time: 03:01 | More in News & Politics |
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| Is Legal Daily Criticizing PLC by Reviewing Qiao Shi? Posted: 26 Jun 2012 11:30 PM PDT | Follow us on TWITTER: twitter.com Like us on FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com Ahead of the 18th Congress, the high profile release of Qiao Shi's new book "On Democracy and Rule of Law" has attracted a lot of public attention. Legal Daily is an official media of the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) Political and Legislative Committee. On June 25, it published an article by She Mengxiao, former Vice Minister of Justice. She Mengxiao recalled Qiao's achievements on China's democracy and law, while leading the PLC. Some analysts believe that the Legal Daily is indirectly criticizing the current PLC of Zhou Yongkang, by reporting Qiao's opinion on the PLC. Qiao Shi is the retired former chairman of the CCP's National People's Congress Standing Committee. His new book "On Democracy and Rule of Law" was released at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 20. The book revealed for the first time some facts about withdrawing and restoring the Central PLC. In 1988, the CCP started restructuring it's departments, separating the Party and the government. On May 19, 1998, a Politics and Law Leading Group was established to replace the PLC. Qiao Shi made his position clear that the PLC is a subsidiary body of the party committee. He emphasized the party's leadership over the PLC. Meanwhile, Qiao believed that the PLC shouldn't interfere in other departments too much. Analysts said that Qiao's words go against the expanding of the PLC. Lin Zixu, current affairs commentator: "It is well <b>...</b> | Views: 10 0 ratings | | Time: 03:53 | More in News & Politics |
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| CCP Officials Praise Jin Ping Mei, Speak Highly of Ximen Qing Posted: 26 Jun 2012 11:27 PM PDT | Follow us on TWITTER: twitter.com Like us on FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com "Jin Ping Mei" is one of the Four Marvelous Masterpieces of the Ming dynasty in China. It received notoriety due to it graphic depiction of sexuality. In the past, it was banned because many people believed it would break good social customs. However, Chen Dongyou, the executive deputy leader of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Jiangxi province propaganda department, recently publicly stated that Jin Ping Mei is worth a careful read to Chinese. He also said Ximen Qing, the promiscuous role of the novel, is a successful businessman. The word on the street is that official corruption within the CCP system has already existed around every corner, and it's common that all levels' officials adopt mistresses. From top to bottom, there's almost no CCP official that is beyond corruption and promiscuity. Now, corruption is so serious that officials from the propaganda department praise "Jin Ping Mei" publicly. Netizens comment that the CCP is a group of Ximen Qing fans. According to China media, Chen Dongyou, the executive deputy leader of the CCP Jiangxi province propaganda dept., said during a speech that "Jin Ping Mei" is a tradition novel worth a careful and extensive read to the current Chinese. As a so called scholar of the novel "Jin Ping Mei," Chen Dongyou has conducted a deep study on it. He believes that Ximen Qing is not only a promiscuous man, but also a successful businessman. With his own <b>...</b> | Views: 14 0 ratings | | Time: 04:17 | More in News & Politics |
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| CCP Blocks Article on Wang Lijun Posted: 26 Jun 2012 11:24 PM PDT | Follow us on TWITTER: twitter.com Like us on FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) hasn't disclosed the crimes committed by Wang Lijun. Wang is the former Chongqing Public Security Bureau' director, who went to Chengdu's US Consulate in February. Overseas Chinese website recently published an article, written by a Chongqing police member. The article is titled 'A Police Monologue: Memories of Witnessed Wang Lijun's Records.' It discloses for the first time the true image of a CCP' drawn picture of a hero. A well-known lawyer Chen Youxi wrote the preface and published this article online. But it was removed by the officials soon after. Why doesn't the CCP expose the behavior of criminals? If CCP continues to accommodate people like Wang Lijun, what kind of disastrous consequences will this bring? The 130000 words article shows in detail how Wang Lijun suppressed the underground businesses in Chongqing City, as well as how the Chongqing Police robed private businesses in the name of suppressing the mafia. It discloses how people in the Public Security bureau were removed, beaten and persecuted for not assisting Wang. It also reveals how Wang was faking work experiences, certificates, resumes, etc.. Lawyer Chen Youxi wrote on this webpage that after the article was uploaded, it got 50000 clicks around noon. However, the publication was removed on the same night. Historian Liu Yinquang thinks the CCP has always been trying to cover up its crimes <b>...</b> | Views: 13 0 ratings | | Time: 04:29 | More in News & Politics |
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| College Exam Champions, No Career Contributions Posted: 26 Jun 2012 11:20 PM PDT | Follow us on TWITTER: twitter.com Like us on FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com In China each year, who's the best in college entrance exams is a hot topic; there's ongoing controversy over this issue. As scores for 2012 are released, the different regions' top students are once again under media and social attention. The Yunnan Provincial Department of Education conducted a special research on the 22 top college students taking their entrance exams, and on the past 10 years' Olympic winners in Yunnan—they had not made any big career contributions. The department also inspected China's top 124 college students in the last 32 years, and found that none of them had become leaders of their career fields. While education departments in many areas have banned speculating in college entrance exam scores, interviews on top college students still appear in newspapers everywhere. Many websites also made high-profile announcements of champion students' names, while listing their exam stories. Shandong University's former professor Sun Wenguang says, the so-called 'top students' are only champions in the college entrance exam mechanism; boasting the top students, only shows the incompetence of the Chinese educational system. Sun Wenguang says many local governments and schools do not hesitate to cheat—masquerading under a false name or giving answers in the exam room, in order to obtain better credits in exam results and increase their achievements. Sun Wenguang: "To get good results by <b>...</b> | Views: 14 0 ratings | | Time: 04:40 | More in News & Politics |
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