Sunday, January 10, 2010 Chinese officials have said that their country’s exports surged last December to edge out Germany as the world’s biggest exporter. The official Xinhua news agency reported today that figures from the General Administration for Customs showed that exports jumped 17.7% in December from a year earlier. Over the whole of 2009 total Chinese exports reached US$1.2 trillion, above Germany’s forecast $1.17 trillion. Huang Guohua, a statistics official with the customs administration, said the December exports rebound was an important turning point for China’s export sector. He commented that the jump was an indication that exporters have emerged from their downslide. “We can say that China’s export…

Sunday, April 12, 2009 Abhisit Vejjajiva.Image: Yipski. Troops are being deployed throughout Thailand as the government of Abhisit Vejjajiva declared a state of emergency in reaction to protesters supporting ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Armoured vehicles and bands of protesters are reportedly roving the streets of Bangkok and the prime minister has threatened to use force against the protesters. File photo of Thaksin Shinawatra from 2005.Image: Helene C. Stikkel (US DoD). The protesters are supporters of the National United Front of Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD). They demand the immediate resignation of the prime minister and fresh elections. A group of protesters at the country’s Ministry of the Interior, which Xinhua…

Thursday, January 14, 2010 Countries and organizations from around the world are sending aid and help to victims of the devastating 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck Haiti on Tuesday, damaging many buildings. The death toll is currently unknown, but estimated to run into the tens of thousands of people. Remarks by President Barack Obama on rescue efforts in Haiti. (4:30) US president Barack Obama said in a press conference that “I’ve directed my administration to launch a swift, coordinated and aggressive effort to save lives and support the recovery in Haiti.” Obama announced that aid from the US armed forces was coming to Haiti, noting, “Several Coast Guard cutters are…

Sunday, November 20, 2022 Russian Wikinews captured exclusive media of a September 14 talk delivered by Russian traveller and author Viktor Pinchuk on his manual Hobo Tourism, published on English and Russian Wikibooks. Pinchuk spoke at the 2022 Literary Festival hosted by the Crimean Republican Universal Scientific Library in Simferopol, which was named after I. Y. Franko. The hour-long lecture, delivered in English and Russian, addressed the advice and information given in the manual, including on overnight accommodation, self-sufficiency and Pinchuk’s experience travelling. The lecture included a question and answer session and exclusive anecdotes, such as his deportation from Fiji. ‘Hobo tourism’ is similar to Western-style backpacking whereby one “[forgets]…

Monday, June 11, 2007 Anti-junta demonstrations in Bangkok reached their largest point yet on Saturday night, when between 10,000 and 15,000 protesters marched from Sanam Luang to the Royal Thai Army headquarters to call for the resignation of Council for National Security chairman General Sonthi Boonyaratglin. Yesterday, Sonthi, the leader of last year’s coup d’état, rejected the protesters demands, saying he would remain as chairman of the military’s governing body in the best interests of Thailand, and that he wasn’t doing the job for personal gain. “And I doubt the motives of these people who are organizing the rallies,” Sonthi was quoted as saying by The Nation newspaper. The demonstrations…

Wednesday, July 5, 2017 Former Chelsea and England’s football captain John Terry signed a one-year contract with Aston Villa on a free transfer, the club announced on Monday. In April, the 36-year-old defender announced his desire to leave his boyhood club, Chelsea, after his contract ended with the London-based club. John Terry joined the Blues 22 years ago, and made his professional debut against Aston Villa in 1998. Since then, Terry has won fifteen trophies making 717 appearances for Chelsea. The only players who made more appearances for Chelsea were Ron Harris and Peter Bonetti. He has won the Premier League and FA Cup five times, EFL (English Football League)…

Sunday, March 27, 2005 Danville, California — The California-based Engligh language tracker, Global Language Monitor, released its 2005 list of most confusing – yet frequently cited – high tech buzzwords to be “HTTP,” “Voice Over IP” (VoIP), and “Megapixel.” Closely following were “Plasma,” “Robust,” “WORM” and “Emoticon.” In early March, the group used a predictive index computer algorithm to track specific words and phrases in the media and on the Internet. They were tracked in relation to frequency, contextual usage and appearance in global media outlets. The Global Language Monitor claims to analyze and catalogue trends in word usage and word choices, focusing on the linguistic impact on various cultures.…