China sets up a rare earth body

     China produces 95% of the world's rare earth elements. These elements are significant in the production of various high-tech products. China's trading partners believe the China is trying to become the world's biggest producer of rare earths to benefit domestic manufacturers. They argued that by limiting exports, Beijing kept low prices for domestic buyers but international firms. They also claimed that Beijing tried pressuring international manufacturers to move to China.  China denied these claims and said they placed these restrictions to prevent environmental damage.  

Car Bomb Detonates in Nigeria

     On Sunday morning, a suicide car bomber detonated the explosives in his car on a busy road. The explosive killed at least 38 people. The reason for the explosion revolves around religious, ethnic and political violence in the nation.
     The explosion hit Kaduna, the capital of Kaduna state. It left charred motorcycles and debris all across a major road. Nearby buildings had windows blown out and roofs torn apart. It also damaged the nearby All Nations Christian Assembly Church and the ECWA Good News Church while people were there worshiping on Easter Sunday.
     No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack but many suspected a radical Islamic sect that's been responsible for hundreds of killings. This invokes fear because of the turmoil revolving around a region on that's the dividing line between Nigeria's Christian south and Muslim north.

Opposition to Putin

     Putin has a pretty strong hold on Russia. In the city Duma, his United Party holds 33 of the 35 seats which is way more than just majority. But city voters have turned against Putin. Less than fifty percent voted him which opened many opportunities to his opponents. Putin rules by fiat which he calls the "vertical of power." This means that his loyalists dominate the law-making bodies.
     Mikhail Velmakin, an emerging politician, believes there is hope for new political faces in Moscow. he is using his philosophy which is a mixture of Gandhi and Tip O'Neill. In 208 when Velmakin was elected to an unpaid on one of Moscow's neighborhood advisory councils he was preparing himself to take protest from the streets into the halls of the government. He and others are organizing a nonpartisan Council of District Deputies providing networking in preparation for elections to the more powerful city Duma in 2014.

UK asks China to re-evaulate Neil Heywood's Death in Chongqing

     Neil Heywood died in Chongqing last November supposedly because of the over-consumption of alcohol. His family and the British embassy accepted the police findings at first but are now having doubts. The British businesman was friends with Chongqing  boss, Bo Xilai. Bo is one of China's most popular politicians but has recently been removed for being a part of one of the biggest politcal scandals in the country in years. BBC understands that thought there was friendship, there were no business connections between Bo and Heywood.
     A couple British nationals living in China told the UK embassy in Beijing about their susipicions regarding the death but it is not yer clear whether Chongquing police have re-opened the investigation.
     There have also been some rumours going around about Heywood. Some said that he was a teetotaller meaning that he totally abstained from drinking but then others said that Heywood would drink occasionally.

Obama & Chinese President Hu Coordinate Over North Korea Missle Launch

     North Korea is planning to lanch a long-range rocket that will carry a satellite. It is intended to be laungch between April 12 and April 16, marking the 100th anniversary of Kim II-sung's birth. The US believes that the launch would violate UN resolutions and be a missile test.
     The White House says that President Hu stated that he is taking this issue very seriously and regesiterd concern with the governement in Pyongyang but the US national security officials believes differently because he has yet to see any change in policy. Obama criticized China for being to soft with North Korea. South Korea threatened to shoot down the rocket if it crossed into their territory.
     Last month, Pyongyang agreed to suspend long-range missile tests and uranium enrichment and allow UN inspectors in if the US supplied 240,000 tonnes of food aid to North Korea. The has now been suspended. The UN national Security Council passed resolutions prohibiting North Korea  from nuclear and ballistic missile activity. Pyongyand responded by walking out of nuclear disarmament talks and carrying out a nuclear test weeks later.

Political Cartoon #5

http://www.cagle.com/2012/01/two-party-system/

1. The cartoon is drawn by Bob Gorrell.
2. The key object is the podium which represents Obama giving his State of the Union address.
3. The cartoonist uses caricature. Obama is drawn with big ears, mouth, and nose and a long,skinny head.
4. The cartoon deals with how sound the State of the Union is.
5. The cartoon's message is that Obama doesn't really have anything to say about the State of the Union to convince people that is it is sound and stable because in reality it is not. Obama is trying to make it seem as if the State of the Union is sound by trying to ignore the problems that it has.
6. The cartoonist is from the point of view of the GOP and other people who believe Obama has nothing good to say about the State of the Union.

Politcal Cartoon #5

http://www.cagle.com/2012/01/two-party-system/

1. The cartoon was drawn by Pat Bagley.
2. The key things in the cartoon are the elephant and the donkey. The elephant represents the republican party and the donkey represents the democratic party.
3. The device uses caricature. The drawing of donkey and the elephant is exaggerated.
4. The cartoon deals with the representation of the poor in politics, government and political parties.
5. The cartoon's message is that the poor are not represented at all. The two party system if for the benefit of the middle and rich class, not the poor.
6. This cartoon is from a poor person's point of view who believes that they are not represented by any political party.