J.N. Ssekazinga
Wednesday, 29 October 2014 00:00

'Al-Qaeda' Wi-Fi connection delays plane

The plane, an American Airlines flight bound for London, turned back to the gate in Los Angeles when the hotspot, entitled “Al-Quida Free Terror Nettwork” (sic), was spotted in a list of available connections. The passenger notified a flight attendant while the plane was taxiing.

Flight 136 had been due to take off this past Sunday at 8pm but was held in LAX for three hours while passengers were told to turn off their electronic devices, ABC 7, an American news network, reports.

Passengers were initially told that the delay was down to a maintenance issue rather than the discovery of the Wi-Fi network. The plane ended up being rescheduled for Monday at 1pm, with some passengers having to stay overnight in LA before they could board the next available flight.

"After an hour, (the captain) said there was a security threat and that we didn't have clearance to take off," Elliot Del Pra, a passenger, told ABC 7.

The flight was taken back to the gate and delayed until 1pm on Monday.

The Los Angeles airport police said on Monday that "no crime was committed and no further action will be taken."

An American passenger caused his fellow fliers to be detained on board a flight from Philadelphia to the Dominican Republic for an extra two hours earlier this month, after he shouted “I have Ebola!” and had been sneezing and coughing during the flight. He was removed by people in protective suits while a passenger filmed the incident.

A woman has been killed after being trampled by an elephant in India.

The 27-year-old woman, from Gujurat, India, was trying to take pictures of the elephant in a captive elephant park in Iruttukanam near Munnar in Kerala's Idukki district, when the elephant struck her with its trunk, then proceeded to trample her to death.

"The couple along with their four-year-old son were taking pictures standing near the elephant," a police official told the Times of India. "Suddenly the elephant swayed its trunk and it hit the woman, who fell down near the elephant's leg. In the melee, accidentally she came under the elephant's feet and was seriously injured.”

The woman was visiting the park with a tour group of 14 other people.

The body has been kept in a nearby government hospital and will be flown home tomorrow, police said.

No comment has been made by the organisers of the elephant park.

 

It's amazing to see what people leave on planes.

From smartphones to fancy jewelry to designer handbags. 

If you’re looking to score on discounted electronics, fancy jewelry or even a car, head over to Indianapolis International Airport’s surplus auction this Thursday, Oct. 30.

The Midwest airport is auctioning off items left behind at baggage claim, scoured from the lost and found and surplus airport machinery like fork lifts, fuel rig nozzles and dozens of airplane tools. Looking for something to cart around all that machinery? Chevrolet and Ford trucks are up for sale. 

According to Key Auctioneer's official list of auction items online, office equipment like Dell computers, laptops and drop down projector screens will be available. Meanwhile at the unclaimed items auction, David Yurman bracelets, Breitling and Bulova men's watches round out the high end jewelry items available. 

And if you can’t make it to the Midwest hangar this Thursday, many of the items will be available through their live online auction.

Get a preview of the items up for grabs a full day before they hit the auction block by logging on at 10 a.m. this Wednesday.

Source:foxnews.com

TripAdvisor has unveiled its latest search feature that presents users with personalized recommendations based on search history, travel preferences and site usage.

The company announced its “Just for You” feature today and hopes it will make the entire searching and planning experience more relevant for site users.

“By virtue of the insights and attributes that we’ve gathered from millions of traveler reviews and opinions, TripAdvisor is uniquely able to match travelers with their ideal hotels,” said Adam Medros, senior vice president, global product, in a press release.

Searchers can now tag certain travel preferences as they surf through destinations like price, hotel class, amenities and brand. The travel site will log these tags, along with traveler’s previous search history and recommendations of other places, to deliver customized results on future travel inquiries.

“With the new feature, we can not only match a traveler with their preferred type of hotel, but we can suggest the trendy, boutique hotel located downtown with a swimming pool because we know those are the specific hotel characteristics you like,” Medros continued.

But how invasive is the new function?

According to the Boston Globe, TripAdvisor claims that it only monitors activity on its website and does not track general browsing history. Members may grant the site access to their Facebook accounts for more personalized results.

 

Source: foxnews.com

Wednesday, 29 October 2014 00:00

EALA SET TO REVIEW RULES OF PROCEDURE TOMORROW

East African Legislative Assembly, Kigali, October 28, 2014: EALA is set to commence review of the Rules of Procedure tomorrow, the Speaker, Rt. Hon Margaret Nantongo Zziwa has ruled this afternoon.

 The ruling followed a Motion introduced by Hon Judith Pareno seeking to adjourn other business in the House until the review/amendment of the said Rules of Procedures are debated on as a matter of priority.

 According to the mover of the Bill, Article 60 of the Treaty stipulates that the Assembly may make, amend, add to or revoke to the rules governing the Assembly. The motion, which was seconded by Hon Nancy Abisai further avers that the term of Commissioners of EALA ends on December 5, 2014 and that their election is neither provided for in the Administration of EALA Act nor in the Rules of Procedure.

 The debate on amendments was interrupted on the 26th March 2014.  Today, Hon Pareno moved that the debate resumes immediately and that it should be placed on the Order Paper as the 1st item on the agenda of the next business of the House.

 Article 49 (2) of the Treaty for the Establishment of the East African Community provides that the Assembly shall make its Rules of Procedure and those of the Committees.

 The move was preceded by a Motion moved by Hon Mike Sebalu that the East African Community Co-operative Societies Bill, 2014 be read for the second time. The object of Bill is to provide a legal framework for Co-operative Societies in line with Article 128 of the Treaty for the Establishment of the EAC strengthening the role of private sector as an effective force for developing economies. 

The Bill is divided into ten parts. Part 1 deals with preliminary matters which according to Hon Sebalu, lay down objectives of Co-operative Societies which include: solving problems collectively, co-ordinating knowledge and skills and promoting self-reliance amongst Members. 

 The rest of the areas contained in the Bill deal with the formation, rights and duties of Members and Privileges. The Bill further contains clauses whose content include the assets and liabilities, settlement of disputes and winding up/dissolution of Societies.

 

Friday, 27 June 2014 00:00

On trail of dangerous rebel mission

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Friday, 27 June 2014 00:00

Denver shooting I saw people dying

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Yet another journalist has come out against the seemingly unprecedented secrecy of the Obama administration.

USA Today Washington Bureau Chief Susan Page said at a White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) event on Saturday that the current administration is more threatening to press freedom than "any administration in American history." Page said she was "really worried" about what could happen if the White House continues to prevent reporters from doing their job of telling the news and telling the truth.

“This administration has been more restrictive and more challenging to the press, more dangerous to the press, really, than any administration in American history,” Page said. “I think access to the White House has just gotten worse and worse.”

In January, former New York Times executive editor Jill Abramson called the Obama administration "the most secretive White House" she has ever encountered as a journalist. Associated Press Washington chief of bureau Sally Buzbee also chimed inon White House transparency in September, citing daily "intimidation" tactics and firmly stating that the current administration is "significantly worse than previous administrations."

The famous media lawyer James C. Goodale, who represented the New York Times through the Pentagon Papers case, condemned Obama for criminalizing whistleblowers and reporters who use them as sources, boldly stating that "Obama will surely pass President Richard Nixon as the worst president ever on issues of national security and press freedom."

Journalist and co-founder of the Intercept Glenn Greenwald noted these recurring claims Tuesday morning:

The transformation of some of Britain’s most picturesque coastal towns and villages through the rise of “wireless working” is revealed in an official study pinpointing the areas where it is now the norm to work from home.

New analysis of census findings for England and Wales has highlighted a clutch of once isolated beauty spots where between a quarter and a third of the working population run businesses or work remotely from their own homes.

It shows how a handful of seaside communities, particularly in Devon and Cornwall, have managed to buck the trend of towards economic decline seen in other coastal towns, benefiting from a rise of home-working, boosted by Internet connections.

The study by the Office for National statistics shows that coastal communities overall have higher levels of unemployment and long-term ill health as well as a higher average age and lower inward migration than average British towns.

But a handful of small coastal communities, led by the town of Lynton in Devon, now enjoy some of the highest employment rates in the country boosted by the increasing ability of people to work from home.

In Tintagel, on the rugged coast of north Cornwall, 33 per cent work from home while in Porlock, Somerset and Hugh Town in the Isles of Scilly the proportion is 30 per cent.

Across England and Wales as a whole just over 10 per cent of the population work from home and in coastal towns as a whole, the proportion doing so is slightly lower than average.

But the study shows that within small seaside resorts and towns the proportion rises dramatically.

Tony Meakin, the mayor of Lynton, and his wife Linda, were drawn to the area when they moved back to the UK five years ago, after living in South Africa, because of the scenery and close community spirit.

He said the higher-than-average number of Bed and Breakfast establishments in the town boosted the number of people working from home but that the trend is reviving the fortunes of a range of other businesses.

The process likely to intensify after the arrival high-speed fibre optic broadband connections.

He said the Internet is undoubtedly boosting both traditional businesses such as builders or gardeners and enabling people to set up new ventures.

Although the area around Ilfracombe, just over 20 miles away, suffered economically from railway line closures in the Beeching cuts and the rise of package holidays, Lynton now has almost 80 per cent employment, well above the national average and one of the highest anywhere on the British coastline.

“If people were having to travel to get a job instead of being able to work from home I think we would have half the population here, in bad weather the journey is horrendous,” he said.

“So the Internet is having a huge impact.”

But as well as enabling existing residents to stay, the ability to work from home has also drawn new residents.

“I would guess that the majority of people who have moved here have come on holiday and just love the area,” he said.

“It is still traditional English village life with incredible community spirit.

“There are a lot of arty businesses here, pottery and people making silver jewellery, the old Methodist church has been turned into a craft centre, there are some beautiful things – those are all people working from home.”

Small coastal communities with highest proportions of home-workers:

Lynton, Devon (35 per cent)

Tintagel, Cornwall (33 per cent)

Porlock, Somerset (30 per cent)

Hugh Town, Isles of Scilly (30 per cent)

Southwold, Suffolk (29 per cent)

Overstrand, Norfolk (28 per cent)

Salcombe, Devon (28 per cent)

Charmouth, Dorset (27 per cent)

Rock, Cornwall (26 per cent)

Polperro, Cornwall (26 per cent)

Tuesday, 28 October 2014 00:00

BBC signs deal with 'Breaking Bad' station

The BBC will hope to gain new leverage in the US television market after signing a deal that gives a 49.9 per cent stake of its BBC America channel to the American broadcaster behind Mad Men and Breaking Bad.

AMC paid $200m (£125m) to the BBC’s commercial arm – BBC Worldwide – for the stake in the fast-growing channel, which is now in 80 million American homes.

The deal will enable BBC America to cut costs, and will provide the BBC with a new relationship with AMC’s creative teams – potentially bringing more big US shows to Britain. The new partners said they would “jointly pursue a number of opportunities”. 

Tony Hall, BBC Director-General and Chairman of BBC Worldwide, said the partnership would “help us reach new audiences in the US, strengthen BBC America’s position and create opportunities for the UK creative community”.