News Nuggets 578

A Jaguar at the El Picacho Zoo in Tegucigalpa in El Salvadore.  From the Huffington Post

MUST-SEE YEMEN PROTEST PROGRAM!!
Yemen: A Tale of Two Protests on the "People and Power" Program on Al Jazeera English
"As demonstrations advance across Yemen, People&Power follows activist Tawakkol Karman."
This show provides an on-the-ground visceral sense of the revolutionary change that is happening in Yemen.  It examines the last three months of a leading female dissident's daily existence, her personal life and bravery in the face of extraordinary pressure to shut up.  Absolutely gripping.

Yemen Army Commanders, Top General Defect, Join Anti-Government Protesters from the Associated Press via the Huffington Post
"With the defection, it appeared Saleh's support was eroding from every power base in the nation – his own tribe called on him to step down, he fired his entire Cabinet ahead of what one government official said was a planned mass resignation, and his ambassador to the U.N. and human rights minister quit."

All Despots Should Fear Gadhafi's Fate from the Editorial Board of the Daily Star [of Lebanon in English]
"The intervention offers a template with the clout to dissuade megalomania in other world dictators. If the prospect of a downtrodden populace losing their trepidation doesn’t strike fear into autocrats’ hearts, the possibility of an international military attack just might dissuade tyrannical tendencies."
I think this was one of the key reasons the US has gone into Libya.

Europe Pressure, Arab Support Helped Turn U.S. from the Wall Street Journal
"In hindsight, the meeting at the Elysée Palace in Paris was the launch point for four frantic days of diplomacy that turned the Obama administration toward intervention, western and Arab diplomats say."

Libyan Airstrikes: The Women Who Called for War (John Avlon) from the Daily Beast
"That a diplomatic team led by Hillary Clinton, Susan Rice, and Samantha Power advocated military action against Gaddafi may be a footnote in the Libyan conflict—but it is a significant mark of our nation's evolution, argues John Avlon."

Resetting on the Libyan Front (Editorial) from the Moscow Times
"Russia’s vote Thursday in the United Nations Security Council on Libya Resolution 1973 is more evidence of the changing nature of Moscow’s foreign policy. The trend toward an improved relationship with the United States that has been evident since 2009 has reached a new level. In a nutshell, the Kremlin has dropped its former policy of vetoing anything in the UN Security Council that it doesn’t like. Instead, it appears to be focusing on its truly vital interests only. And Libya, today, is not among them."

And Now Syria... (Joe Klein) from Time Magazine
"if Syria becomes the next revolutionary theater, I wouldn't be surprised if the Sunni powers in the region do as they perceive Iran to have done: provide covert support to an anti-Alawite people-power movement."

Covering a Nuclear Disaster from Time Magazine
"Many of the foreign reporters covering the March 11 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami had seen plenty of death and destruction before coming to Japan. But what has so unnerved many journalists this time is an enemy that is odorless, colorless and tasteless."

Maddow: Dems Are on the Offensive in Ohio VIDEO from Americablog
"Rachel Maddow has been talking about not just stopping the Conservatives from doing what they're doing in the states, but "exacting a political cost" for their having done it in the first place. In other words, she's talking about Democrats (real ones) going on offense and rolling back Conservative victories."
Very interesting analysis by Maddow.  I suspect she's on the money!

History's Gutsy (and Unsung) Black Heroines from The Root
"Every year during March, Women's History Month, you can find a sprinkling of celebrated African Americans. Our greatest-hits collection features Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, Madam C.J. Walker, Josephine Baker, Althea Gibson and Angela Davis. But black women's history has many lesser-known players who rarely shine in the spotlight. Here are a few of the rabble-rousing, boundary-crossing women in history you may not know about -- but should."

WORKING-CLASS HISTORY NUGGET!!
What the Luddites Really Fought Against (Richard Conniff) from Smithsonian Magazine
"The label now has many meanings, but when the group protested 200 years ago, technology wasn't really the enemy."

NEWSPAPER EDITORIAL NUGGET!!
Top 10 Unforgettable Editorials from Smithsonian Magazine
"These editorial voices rose above the America clamor with words we will never forget."

LOYAL DOG NUGGET!!
A Dog's Best Friend: The Loyal Spaniel that Stayed by its Companion's Side Until They were Rescued from Tsunami Zone VIDEO from the Daily Mail [of the UK]
"In heartwarming footage, the brown and white dog leads reporters to the injured mud-splattered animal who is lying flat out among the wreckage. The dog had seemingly stuck by the side of the wounded animal in Arahama, Sendai, for days following the earthquake and tsunami."
On NPR's Weekend Edition on Saturday, Scott Simon gave a moving tribute to these two dogs.  You can hear that tribute HERE.