Tag Archives: horse-racing
Obama: I might lose congressional vote on Syria
Obama: I might lose congressional vote on Syria (AP) / 10 September 2013 President Barack Obama conceded Monday night he might lose his fight for congressional support of a military strike against Syria, and declined to say what he would do if lawmakers reject his call to back retaliation for a chemical weapons attack last month. The president sought to use a glimmer of a possible diplomatic solution — including vaguely encouraging statements by Russian and Syrian officials on Monday — as fresh reason for Congress to back his plan. Syria welcomed a proposal to turn over all of its chemical weapons to international control. Obama said Syria’s statement was a potentially positive development, but he voiced skepticism about that the regime of President Bashar Al Assad would follow through. He said it was yet another reason for lawmakers to give him the backing he is seeking. He spoke in a series of six television network interviews planned as part of a furious lobbying campaign aimed at winning support from dubious lawmakers and well as a war-weary public. Speaking of Assad’s government, Obama said the credible threat of a military strike led by the United States “has given them pause and makes them consider whether or not they could make this move” to surrender control of their chemical weapons stockpile. “If we don’t maintain and move forward with a credible threat of military pressure, I do not think we will actually get the kind of agreement I would like to see,” Obama said on CNN. But Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid cited “international discussions” in unexpectedly postponing a test vote originally set for Wednesday on Obama’s call for legislation backing a military strike. In a separate interview with NBC, Obama took the step — unusual for any politician — of conceding he may lose his campaign in Congress for authorization. “I wouldn’t say I’m confident” of the outcome, he said. “I think it’s fair to say that I haven’t decided” on a next step if Congress turns its back, the president told NBC. Obama arranged a trip to Congress on Tuesday as well as a prime time speech from the White House. The president picked up a smattering of support but also suffered a reversal when Sen. Johnny Isakson, a Republican, announced he had switched from a backer of military action to an opponent. Reid, the Senate majority leader, made a statement of support for the president’s request. “Today, many Americans say that these atrocities are none of our business, that they’re not our concern,” the Democrat said of Assad’s alleged gassing of civilians on Aug. 21. “I disagree. Any time the powerful turn such weapons of terror and destruction against the powerless, it is our business.” Others came down on the other side of the question. “I will vote ‘no’ because of too much uncertainly about what comes next,” said Sen. Lamar Alexander, a Republican, reflecting concerns that even the limited action Obama was contemplating could lead to a wider war. Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, a Democrat, also voiced opposition. “I strongly believe that we need the entire world, not just America, to prevent and deter the use of chemical weapons in Syria, or anywhere else on the globe,” she said. In the House of Representatives, one of two female Iraq war veterans in Congress announced opposition to military strikes. Legislation approved in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee last week would give Obama a maximum of 90 days to carry out a military attack, and it includes a ban on combat operations on the ground in Syria. Both of those limitations were last-minute concessions to critics of a military option, and it was unclear whether Reid would seek additional changes to build support. Despite the difficulty confronting Obama, an AP survey indicated the issue was hardly hopeless for the president, particularly in the Senate where Democrats maintain a majority, and perhaps also in the Republican-controlled House. The survey showed 23 Senate votes in favour of military authorization and 10 more leaning that way. Opponents totalled 20, with another 14 leaning in the same direction, with the remaining 33 senators undecided or publicly uncommitted. That created at least the possibility of the 60-vote majority that will be necessary to advance the bill. In the House, there were fewer than a dozen declared in support and 150 opposed or leaning that way. But 201 lawmakers had yet to take a public position, more than enough to swing the outcome either way. The public opinion polling was daunting for the president and his team. An Associated Press poll showed that 61 percent of those surveyed want Congress to vote against authorization of U.S. military strikes in Syria and 26 percent want lawmakers to support such an action, with the remainder undecided. Continue reading
Students urged to pursue excellence
Students urged to pursue excellence (Wam) / 9 September 2013 His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, on Sunday paid an inspection visit to two schools in Dubai — the Granada School for Primary Education and the Al Nokhba (Elite) Model School in Al Mazhar area. The visits come within the framework of Shaikh Mohammed’s interest in pursuing excellence in the field of education for students in the UAE. He was accorded a warm welcome by the students and teaching and administrative staff of the two schools. Shaikh Mohammed toured the Granada School where he met with the students and congratulated them on the start of the new academic year. He wished them success and high performance. He also inspected the activities in the classes at the schools. At Al Nokhba Model School, Shaikh Mohammed was briefed by a computer science teacher on the performance of students. He also toured the school and inspected the new equipment installed this academic year. Shaikh Mohammed expressed pleasure at sharing with the students their happiness to come back to schools. He wished them success in their studies and efforts towards a bright future for them and for the UAE. Al Qattami visits Fujairah schools Humaid Al Qattami, Minister of Education, on Sunday visited several schools in Fujairah and Seiji neighbourhood marking the reopening schools. He joined the students as they sang the national anthem and hoisted the national flag. Al Qattami was briefed on the preparations made by schools for the new academic year and ordered immediate provision of anything they lacked. Saluting the national flag and singing the national anthem with students is a stress on the ministry’s efforts towards reinforcing the national identity and values of loyalty and inculcating them among students said Al Qattami. He added that his programme of visiting schools will continue throughout the year. Getting back to class after the summer break Olivia Olarte-Ulherr Classes started on Sunday on a high note with a number of government schools having nearly perfect attendance. Abdulaziz Ahmed, principal of Al Aasima School in Al Shamkha, said 95 per cent of his students turned up on the first day. He expects all the boys to be present the next day. “We have a very good first day with welcome activities for our Grade 1 students. We have characters and toys and we showed them around our school,” he said. Dr Abdullatif Al Shamsi at the Applied Technology High School in Abu Dhabi on Sunday. — Supplied photo Classes officially started soon after with teachers and students being in classrooms till 1pm, as per the official school timing. “We have a very good attendance,” said another school principal on Abu Dhabi. A school for girls in Al Shahama also saw hundred per cent attendance. In Baniyas, Umm Abdulla avoided waking up her son to go to school on Sunday. “It’s just the first day of school and maybe teachers will not teach yet,” she reasoned. But Abdulla, who will begin Grade 5 this year, woke-up early on his own to get ready for school. “I am excited to go to school because I miss my friends. We have not seen each other since the school break and I have so much to tell them about my holiday,” he said. At the Institute of Applied Technology (IAT), classes reopened on Sunday with two new campuses in Ajman for girls and boys. All of IAT’s now nine campuses have 5,016 enrollees and 100 per cent attendance on Sunday. “On the first day of school, we have 100 per cent attendance because we notified students early on that we will start our work on the first day. All lessons at IAT are very important and they can’t miss any lesson,” said Dr. Abdullatif Al Shamsi, general manager of IAT. IAT, which offers career-based technical education at the secondary and tertiary levels, has a very strict attendance policy. For this academic year, 5,200 students applied at IAT but only 1,850 candidates were chosen for Applied Technology High School, a 38 per cent increase from students last year. All new students underwent a two-week workshop in English, Math and Science prior to the opening of classes to prepare them for their course works. IAT also hired an additional 150 teachers this year, to complete its 600 teachers. Private schools Across the emirate, in the Western Region, Asian International Private School in Madinat Zayed, resumed classes last week after a two-month summer break. According to principal Molly D’Coutho, attendance was 93 per cent on the first day. “Now we have 99 per cent. Parents who went on vacation wrote to us saying that they could not come back last week due to the high airfare. Now we’re on regular stream,” she said. For students who went on holiday, the principal had tasked them to “get closer with their grandparents, uncles and aunties” and write anecdotes about them. The aim was to get the students build better relations with relatives back home, said D’Coutho. The stories were read by the students during the school assembly. Students’ safety In keeping with students’ safety on the back-to-school day, the Abu Dhabi Police in collaboration with the Abu Dhabi Education Council (Adec) launched a new campaign aimed at enhancing the level of traffic safety for students this new academic year. The ‘Students’ safety is everyone’s responsibility’ drive on Sunday at Khalifa City A featured awareness programmes and an exhibition on traffic safety. The campaign targets schools, parents, education authorities, school administrations, school bus drivers and other participants. “The safety of our students is not only the responsibility of one entity, but a collaborative process in which the society becomes an extended family for the students. Let us embrace our duty to protect these students from traffic accidents and create a culture of safety awareness,” said Brigadier Hussein Ahmed Al Harthi, director of the Traffic and Patrols Directorate at the Abu Dhabi Police. “This requires drivers to be extra alert to the presence of students on the roads, particularly in the hours when students are coming to school in the morning, or leaving school in the afternoon,” he added. For the campaign, the police have drafted a comprehensive plan that includes intensified patrols at areas of traffic congestion around schools in Abu Dhabi, Al Ain and the Western Region. “We urge all parents to avoid making abrupt stops in undesignated areas when collecting their children outside schools, as this leads to traffic congestion and accidents. Traffic awareness messages will also be delivered to parents through their children,” Al Harthi said. These include educational videos that focus on basic safety rules, the importance of seat belts and child seats, and the golden rule for use of the school bus. Mohammed Salem Al Dhaheri, executive director of School Operations at Adec, has urged all schools to abide by the safety standards of school buses and ensure that all mechanical aspects of the buses are satisfactory, in order to provide safe transportation for students. He also encouraged all school bus drivers to abide by traffic safety rules, such as, avoiding overloading and only letting students disembark at designated areas. The campaign will continue throughout the year as part of the ‘Together’ initiative (www.uae-together.com). Safety messages have been spread though social networks Facebook (UAETogether), Twitter and YouTube. olivia@khaleejtimes.com Continue reading
Many happy returns as Dubai Metro turns 4
Many happy returns as Dubai Metro turns 4 Lily B. Libo-on / 9 September 2013 Dubai Metro, world’s largest driverless rail network extending up to 75 kilometres, celebrates its four years of successful operation today with an increase of 20 per cent increase in its ridership over the years. The high-level performance of Dubai Metro’s 58 trains is evident by its more than 366,000 current average daily passengers, which has led millions to turn to public transport and decongest Dubai roads. Metro passenger, Joseph, an Indian expatriate in Dubai says: “I find the Metro very efficient, no-hassle public transport for expatriates. I live in Baniyas Square but work at the Dubai Airport Free Zone in Al Qusais. Yet, I reach my work place in 15 minutes. I have never been late because Metro Green Line is bringing me to work with efficiency and speed.” According to Cherrie Rentillo, a Filipina, the metro helps her in saving time. “It is very efficient and seldom has any technical glitches. Even if it happens, the Rail Agency of the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) always has a solution. “It is fast as you will not go through a traffic rush. It’s just perfect,” she says. Pakistani expatriate, Ali Mohammed, is all praises for the Dubai Metro. “Since its launch in 2009, I have never been late for work though I work on Shaikh Zayed and stay in Deira. It is a great help to workers, not just in terms of time but also in terms of cash. RTA’s newly launched Metro Mini Entertainer, a discount voucher booklet priced at Dh65, is also a help when I come home late. It contains Dh2,000 worth of savings from over 30 different outlets representing restaurants and leisure centers located close to the metro stations.” Sudanese housewife, Huda, said that the latest expansion of the women and children cabin from 7am to 9am and from 5pm to 9pm from Sunday to Thursday is convenient to mothers when travelling with kids, especially while going to the Mall of the Emirates or The Dubai Mall. “It is such a relief,” she said. Metro expansion welcome The news of the forthcoming expansion, which will expand the Red Line to Mirdif and the Green Line to Academic City, is also a welcome move. Dubai Metro passengers along this area said that it will give them the benefit of traveling faster and quicker. Ramadan Abdullah Mohammed, director of RTA’s Rail Operations, said that Dubai Metro celebrates its fourth year of operation today, with a huge success and increasing demand, which prompts it to continuously plan for expansion. “We conduct a continuous study to enhance our services to the public, even the latest allocation of one cabin to women and children from 7am to 9am and from 5pm to 9pm, is a product of our study. We also plan to increase the number of trains based on the continuous study of the ridership during peak hours and months, holidays such as Eid and National Day, and our target and achievements,” Ramadan said. He said the Dubai Metro achieved its target well in 2012, and even in 2013, it is performing well in terms of achieving its target. To start the project next year, the RTA is conducting more studies on the proposed extensions and the exact time to begin the projects next year after concluding its observations. The Green Line will extend up to 24 kilometres and the Red Line by 12 kilometres. Both lines consist of modern designs and architecture, including many retail outlets, Wi-Fi connectivity, ATM machines and accessibility for special needs passengers to public buses. The number of riders using the Dubai Metro Red Line in the last six months topped 43,552,110 riders at a rate exceeding seven million per month. The Green Line riders during the same period reached 23,549,206 at a rate of about four million riders per month. Deira City Centre, Burj Khalifa, Mall of the Emirates, Union, Burjuman, Al Rigga and Al Karama metro stations accounted for the biggest chunk of passengers in the Red Line. – lily@khaleejtimes.com Continue reading
