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The weekend looks to be simply fantastic with a high of 72 expected on Saturday and only 68 (brrrr?) on Sunday. Both days will have a fair amount of sunshine.
With all this great weather, you'll definitely want to be outside. But what do to?
Check out our Coastin section and fill up your weekend calendar with lots of entertainment activities.
Do you know how many illegal Bangladeshi immigrants there are in India? Are there 30 million of them? What about 20 million? writes Vir Sanghvi.
Do you know how many illegal Bangladeshi immigrants there are in India? Are there 30 million of them? What about 20 million? Or is the figure as low as 10 million?
I ask because the truth is that nobody knows how many illegal Bangladeshi migrants have made India their home. Every figure you read will be an approximation or — and this is more likely — a simple guess. The 30-million figure, for instance, is usually quoted by people who want to claim that the problem of migration ha...
India. The border between India and Bangladesh is porous and there is little that anyone can do to check migration. Moreover, many people in the border villages do not recognise that an international boundary exists. It is not uncommon for a man to cycle from a Bangladeshi village to a town in India to buy something — ...
So, there are many Bangladeshis in the border districts of West Bengal. Because there are few cultural differences, they fit in easily with the local people. Many of these Bangladeshis do then make their way to such cities as Calcutta or Delhi.
This by itself should not be a cause for much concern. We were all part of the same country till 1947 and it is inevitable that people will keep moving between the nations of South Asia, no matter how the international boundaries are drawn.
But, we are repeatedly told, the “problem of Bangladeshi migrants” is different. First of all, there are supposed to be too many of them. Secondly, there is a danger that some of them will have terrorist links. And finally, there is no way that India can sustain such a huge burden on its resources. There are simply not...
If you think about it, none of this makes much sense. The figures, as we have seen, are just concoctions. The terrorism stuff is nonsense. There is very little evidence that Bangladeshis foment terrorism in India and no evidence at all that the rag-pickers, sweepers and domestic servants who constitute the bulk of the ...
That leaves us with the not-enough-jobs-to-go-around argument. This seems reasonable enough till you realise that nobody objects to immigration from Nepal. In fact, we actually encourage Nepalis to come and seek employment in India and have special laws in place that enable them to cross the border without passports an...
So, why are there enough jobs for Nepalis and not enough jobs for Bangladeshis?
Not only is the answer obvious but here’s another fact: many of those who have left Bangladesh and opted for India are Hindus who feel increasingly alienated because of the Islam-isation of Bangladeshi society. But, do you ever hear of a drive against illegal Hindu immigrants? On the contrary, such parties as the BJP h...
No doubt, there are enough jobs to go around when it comes to Bengali Hindus.
But why blame the BJP alone? The Congress is as responsible for creating the scare about illegal Bangladeshi immigrants. In 1993, when Narasimha Rao was Prime Minister, we made the mental shift from seeing Bangladesh as a source of cheap labour to suddenly seeing it as a menacing country from which millions of illegal ...
It was in 1993 that the government launched Operation Pushback which authorised the police to pick up thousands of poor Bengali Muslims from all over Delhi and to send them to the border. Bangladesh refused to accept these people — claiming that they were not Bangladeshis at all — and many were stuck in the no-man’s la...
Operation Pushback — and its equivalents in other cities — continues to this day even if the name has changed. It is still the responsibility of the police to round up illegal Bangladeshis and to send them back across the border. The Delhi Police, for instance, has ten Task Forces whose primary function is to scour Del...
believe that illegal immigration is a serious problem, I don’t think it is possible for anybody to support the manner in which alleged Bangladeshis are being deported.
I have been reading a pamphlet produced by the Citizen’s Campaign for Preserving Democracy. Members of this group studied the way in which the police rounded up Bangladeshis. And what they found is truly disturbing.
First of all, many of the people being deported are not even Bangladeshis. Under the Foreigners Act, the burden of proof is on the accused and not on the police (you are guilty till proved otherwise). So the only way for a Bengali Muslim to prove that he is an Indian is to produce documentation. But few poor people in ...
Secondly, the notion of due process does not exist. All civilised countries constitute some kind of judicial body that serves as a court of appeal and allows the man who is being deported a chance to be heard.
In theory, India also allows for this kind of appeal. According to the Foreigners Act, there should be a tribunal. And the Illegal Migrants (DT) Act of 1983 has a provision for a tribunal.
But no tribunal has been constituted in Delhi under the Foreigners’ Act. And as for the Illegal Migrants (DT) Act, well, that’s not valid in Delhi.
In effect, this means that the authorities can decide that anybody is an illegal immigrant and can throw him out of the country. There is nothing a victim can do by way of protest. There is no appeal at all.
Thirdly, because the police are not very good at identifying illegal immigrants, they rely on a network of local informers who point out the so-called Bangladeshis. Because these informers are trusted implicitly by the police, they have complete power over their communities. Anybody who does not keep them happy will be...
Fourthly, the Task Forces work on the basis of a quota. In a manner reminiscent of the sterilisation quotas during the Emergency, each Task Force has to identify 100 illegal Bangladeshi immigrants every day. Obviously, the police cut corners in an effort to fill this quota — even if this means deporting non-Bangladeshi...
And finally, there is a complete violation of all international protocol. Diplomatic procedure requires that if you are deporting nationals of another country, you inform that country’s embassy or high commission. But nobody bothers to inform the Bangladeshi Mission.
What worries me the most about all this is that we in the media have been happy to go along with the Bangladeshi migration scare despite its plainly xenophobic and frankly communal nature. Perhaps this is because the victims of the injustice — the poorest of the poor, rag-pickers, slum-dwellers etc — do not constitute ...
But this is no longer about poor people or even about Bangladeshis. It is about how we define ourselves as a society. Are we to become a country that allows policemen to pick up anybody they like and throw him out without any kind of due process? Or are we to be a society of laws where everyone has the right to be hear...
How you answer those questions does, I think, determine your response to the drive against Bangladeshi migrants.
NANTWICH Players Theatre is inviting residents to join them for a performance of Katherine Howard.
The play tells the events surrounding Katherine’s marriage to King Henry Vlll.
She becomes a pawn in a game of deadly political rivalry at court as her relatives press her into a royal marriage and her enemies plot her downfall.
Performances will take place at the Players Theatre, on Love Lane, Nantwich, from 7.45pm from May 20-28.
Tickets are available by calling the Nantwich Tourist Office on 01270 537 359.
Selenium or Vitamin E can sharply increase the risk of prostate cancer, according to a new study from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center.
Taking Vitamin E can raise the chances of getting prostate cancer by as much as 63 percent in some men. Taking selenium can double the risk of getting a high-grade form of the same illness.
The findings, published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, are the latest to show that supplements don’t always have a positive effect.
In the new study, the researchers initially assumed that supplementation with selenium might lower prostate cancer risk in men with low levels of the trace micronutrient, said Dr. Alan Kristal, the lead author of the study.
For the study, researchers analyzed data from a study that included more than 35,000 men. The Selenium and Vitamin E Cancer Prevention Trial (SELECT) began in 2001 and was originally designed to last 12 years, but it was halted early when it looked like vitamin E might be increasing the risk of cancer. The study volunt...
In the new analysis of the SELECT data, researchers examined the impact of vitamin E and selenium in a subset of the original group. Kristal and his colleagues found that supplementation with vitamin E alone raised the risk of prostate cancer by 63 percent in men who had low levels of selenium at the beginning of the s...
Previous studies of other dietary supplements have reached a similar conclusion: that the supplements may harm instead of help.
In 1996 researchers found that beta carotene and vitamin A supplementation not only didn’t prevent lung cancer, but also increased the risk of its development. Last year, Kristal found that omega-3 fatty acids increased the risk of ggressive prostate cancer.
Arsenal hope to have midfielder Jack Wilshere back for Saturday's Premier League clash with Liverpool, a match manager Arsene Wenger says his side must "dominate" if they are to contain free-scoring Daniel Sturridge and Luis Suarez.
Sturridge and Suarez have scored a combined 37 goals for fourth-placed Liverpool this season, and Wenger said leaders Arsenal could not sit back and defend if they hoped to stifle a side that is "strong offensively". "We need to dominate the game in order to keep Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge quiet," he told a news ...
"Liverpool are strong offensively with Sturridge, Suarez, (Philippe) Coutinho, (Raheem) Sterling and (Steven) Gerrard. Liverpool are in a better position than when we last played them. They have momentum. We must control possession. Saturday is a good moment for us to win a big game because we have a big month ahead."
Arsenal are two points clear at the top of the league, but face a busy period of fixtures in which they will play five times in 14 days, starting with the trip to Anfield. Wenger hopes to have England international Wilshere back from an ankle injury on Saturday, ahead of a week when they host Manchester United in the l...
As a real estate agent or broker you may find yourself going paperless more and more. And even if you’re not fully “in the cloud” as you make a transition into a paperless lifestyle, you need to consider how basic data security measures can help prevent future headaches.
This WIRED article proves just how easy one’s life can come crashing down because of lax security measures.
Google and its two-step verification is just one simple way to help keep hackers out of your account. Simply sign into your Google account as normal, enter a code that you receive via text message and you’re set! To get started or learn more, click here.
We have all seen plenty of situations where someone’s brand/company Twitter account is hacked. Twitter’s two-step authentication is an easy way to help prevent this from happening to you and your brand.
You’ll need to add your phone and follow the directions, but that’s it! Once you sign up for login authentication, every time you sign into your Twitter account a code will be sent to your phone for you to sign in with. Watch this quick video and read more from Twitter about getting started.
How secure is your computer?
Whether it’s theft or a crash, your hard drive has a lot of precious files on it — and not just to you and your business, but your clients as well. Michael Stelzner from Social Media Examiner has some great tips for protecting your computer and its data. When was the last time you backed up your hard drive?
What other measures do you take to protect your data?
The key moment in Jimmie Johnson's fourth consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship happened Feb. 12, 2006.
That's not a typo. Feb. 12, 2006.
It was that day when Johnson stood up for his crew chief, Chad Knaus, who had been chased out of Daytona International Speedway by NASCAR after inspectors disqualified the No. 48 Chevrolet for being tricked up for time trials.
Knaus was suspended for six Cup races, including the week of the Daytona 500, and fined $35,000. Johnson won the 500 with Darian Grubb subbing for Knaus on pit road.
"We play within a set of rules," Johnson said. "Chad broke the rules. He's admitted that."
No criticism. No whining. No finger-pointing. Johnson stood tall by his crew chief.
Johnson and Knaus emerged from that week with even a stronger driver-crew chief relationship, which led them to a golden championship path. They won their first Cup title that season, and they've defended it the last three seasons.
"We get mad at each other, there's no doubt about it," Knaus said. "But I think that is part of the dynamic we've got. Jimmie is obviously typically very mellow, which counters my aggressiveness, I guess you would say, very well."
The other key to their unprecedented four consecutive Sprint Cup Series championships has been Johnson's performance in the Chase playoff format introduced by NASCAR in 2004.
From 1949 until 2003, the Cup title was determined by accumulating points in a season-long effort, though the manner in which points were divvied out has changed several times.
But the days of building a points lead throughout the season are over. In the current Chase format, the top 12 drivers in the points standings after 26 races battle for the championship during the last 10 races of the season.
The last four seasons Johnson has posted incredible numbers in the Chase driving the No. 48 Chevy owned by Rick Hendrick and Johnson's teammate, Jeff Gordon.
Of the combined 40 Chase races the last four seasons, Johnson has won 30 percent of them -- 12 wins -- to go along with 11 other top-five finishes. Remarkably, 20 of his 23 top-fives were either victories or second-place performances.
In 2006 and again in '07, Johnson had unbelievable streaks. In '06 he had a five-race streak of a win and four runners-up finishes.
The next year, he did it again, only better -- winning four consecutive races. Johnson had three Chase wins in 2008 and four last season.
Johnson and Knaus brought an attack mode to the stock-car playoffs.
"I think I have done a very good job this year (2009) of understanding the Chase, understanding the pressure, understanding what I'm capable of, what the team is capable of, what to focus on," Johnson said.
Johnson and Knaus have figured out the winning formula -- don't waste too much energy and resources during the "regular season," then ignite the rocket engines when you get into the playoffs.
Johnson, who was named AP 2009 Athlete of the Year, is the only driver to make the Chase field all six years, finishing second in 2004 and fifth in 2005 before beginning his four-peat. In his eight years of full-time driving duty, he has won at least three races and never finished lower than fifth in the standings.
"I am just blown away by the things we've been able to accomplish over the last eight years in the sport," Johnson said. "Obviously, the last four years have been just unbelievable."
"It's not that we backed into any of this," he added. "It's not that it just happened. We've gone out and worked really, really hard and have dedicated our lives to it, and it's paid off."
From the first day they met at the massive Hendrick Motorsports campus, Johnson and Knaus were on the same page -- be smart and relentless on the racetrack. Their chemistry and shared mindset has created this seemingly unstoppable force.
"We both discussed it early on and said, 'This is our shot.' You get kind of one opportunity in life to make things happen, and this was our opportunity," Knaus said. "We both dove in headfirst and believe in one another, and here we are."
Knaus and Johnson have managed to stay one step ahead of the fierce competition in NASCAR's marquee stock-car tour. They don't plan to stop the beatdown any time soon.
They have the resources, and more importantly the will, to continue the championship streak.
"We're certainly going to show up and try and go about business as usual," Johnson said. "That's just kind of what we do. We've got a lot of racing left in us."
"I think when you get on a wave like this and you get the momentum behind you, you don't want to stop," Knaus said. "I think you get excited and you want to continue it on and it's easy to feed off of that fire once it starts to develop."
It's a fire that has Johnson and Knaus going for "one for the thumb" in 2010.
Maria del Pilar Hurtado to face charges of illegally wiretapping calls of opponents of former president Alvaro Uribe.
Panama has extradited Colombia's former spy chief to face charges of illegally wiretapping calls of opponents of former President Alvaro Uribe.
Maria del Pilar Hurtado was ferried from Panama to the Colombian capital on a pre-dawn flight on Saturday, where she was taken to the chief prosecutor's office to await arraignment.
"She has been at the headquarters of the prosecutor's office since 5 am," a Colombian government source told the AFP news agency.
Hurtado was the top official at the now-defunct Administrative Department of Security (DAS), the national intelligence agency from 2002-2010, when former President Alvaro Uribe was in office.
She is accused of having ordered illegal wiretaps on politicians, journalists, human rights defenders and other perceived political enemies of Uribe.
Uribe took to Twitter on Saturday to denounce what he called "political torture" against Hurtado.
Dozens of DAS officials have already been convicted for illegal spying and providing assistance to right-wing paramilitary death squads.
Hurtado fled the country in 2010 and was granted asylum in Panama, but surrendered to Colombian authorities after Interpol on Friday issued an order for her arrest.
Interpol's arrest order charges her with numerous offenses, including aggravated criminal conspiracy and abuse of public office.
Joe Nichols has added a remix of “Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off” to his new album, Old Things New, released this week on Universal South. The remix features Colt Ford and will be shipped to 250 dance clubs nationally. A live version of “Let’s Get Drunk and Fight,” a track from Nichols’ 2007 album, Real Things, has...
The United Arab Emirates has been carrying out the enforced disappearance and torture of scores of people in southern Yemen, says Amnesty International.
Five leading human rights groups have urged the Foreign Secretary, Boris Johnson, to take action to negotiate the return of a British father on death row in Ethiopia, after more than three years of a failed strategy.
A British man on death row in Ethiopia has gone two years without a phone call to his family in London. Andargachew ‘Andy’ Tsege last spoke to his partner and three children on 14 December 2014.
The Foreign Office and Commonwealth Office has confirmed that a Briton held on death row in Ethiopia is still alive, two weeks after hearing that his life may be in danger.
The British Foreign an Commonwealth Office (FCO) has failed for over a week to confirm the safety and wellbeing of a British father held on death row in Ethiopia, despite having received reports last weekend that his life was in danger.

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