Six In The Morning

Poll: Trayvon Martin case divides US by race, age, wealth and politics

Survey shows distinct differences in how Americans view shooting death 　　

By Brad Knickerbocker Staff writer Christian Science Monitor
The Trayvon Martin case is dividing the country racially, generationally, politically, and by economic status. That’s the finding of public opinion polls taken since the Feb. 26 killing of a black teenager by neighborhood-watch volunteer George Zimmerman in Sanford, Fla. “How Americans perceive this case is divided on several variables,” says Raghavan Mayur, president of TechnoMetrica Market Intelligence, which conducted a recent Christian Science Monitor/TIPP poll. “A similar pattern emerges when asked if blacks should be concerned about racial profiling in predominantly white areas.”

Scientists rewrite rules of human reproduction
Exclusive: Lab-grown egg cells could revolutionise fertility - and even banish menopause

Steve Connor Saturday 07 April 2012
The first human egg cells that have been grown entirely in the laboratory from stem cells could be fertilised later this year in a development that will revolutionise fertility treatment and might even lead to a reversal of the menopause in older women. Scientists are about to request a licence from the UK fertility watchdog to fertilise the eggs as part of a series of tests to generate an unlimited supply of human eggs, a breakthrough that could help infertile women to have babies as well as making women as fertile in later life as men.

Bosnia marks 20 years since outbreak of war
The Irish Times - Saturday, April 7, 2012

DANIEL McLAUGHLIN
BOSNIA HAS marked 20 years since the start of a war that killed some 100,000 people, forced two million from their homes and opened chronic rifts between its Muslims, Serbs and Croats. Streets in central Sarajevo were filled with 11,541 empty blood-red chairs yesterday, one for each victim of the 43-month Serb siege of the city. Serb shelling and sniper fire tormented Sarajevo and its 400,000 mostly Muslim residents throughout the Bosnian war, Europe’s bloodiest since 1945 and the most deadly chapter in the disintegration of Yugoslavia into seven successor states.

Dancing into dangerous territory as forbidden practice thrives again
The practice of wealthy Afghans exploiting boys as sexual partners, often dressing them up as women, is on the rise

Ernesto Londono in Dehrazi April 7, 2012
The nine-year-old boy with pale skin and big, piercing eyes captivated Mirzahan at first sight. ''He is more handsome than anyone in the village,'' the 22-year-old farmer said, explaining why he is grooming the boy as a sexual partner and companion. There was another important factor that made Waheed easy to take on as a bacha bazi, or a boy for pleasure: ''He doesn't have a father, so there is no one to stop this.''

Africa under threat from super-malaria megakiller


SARAH BOSELEY LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM
The global fight against malaria is being threatened by growing resistance to powerful new drugs which have become one of the most important weapons in the battle. Even though the resistance developed in Southeast Asia, it poses a great threat to our continent: the last time such immunity to anti-malarial drugs grew, it was in the same region and spread quickly to African countries, leading to the deaths of millions of children.

Israel Wary of Changes in the Arab World
For decades, Israel had been hoping for change in the Arab world. Yet now that the region is in upheaval, its not just Israeli citizens who are concerned. The government has shown a preference for walling itself in rather than exploring new opportunities.

By Juliane von Mittelstaedt
There is now a fence between Lieutenant Colonel Yoav Tilan and Egypt, and Tilan is clearly pleased about it. The fence is five meters (16 feet) tall and topped with shiny, sharp spikes. For good measure, the fence is flanked by three rows of barbed wire and an antitank ditch. From Israel's perspective, there is a good reason for the precautions. Egypt is now a perceived enemy. Seven months ago, killers crossed the border from Egypt and attacked busses and cars, killing eight Israelis. "The border is hot," says Tilan, noting that it is now Israel's most dangerous. Border incidents, including gunfire and attempts to demolish the fence, have become an almost daily occurrence. Israeli authorities have also found explosives on several occasions.