Mine is the use of "of" when writing phrases such as "I would of," rather than "I would have," or "I would've."
How do people escape from school with a habit like that? (Don't answer that. I must be mad to even ask.)
Can we find a list of ten between us?
]]>It seems everyone I talk to is against it so why do we let it continue. We should do something shouldnt we? But what do we do? What can we do? Probably nothing.
We will just sit around and let them carry on not going to work and not posting our letters.
Maybe the Queen should intervene (hmmmmm that rhymes), afterall it is the 'Royal' Mail is it not? That does signify some sort of manarchy interaction somewhere down the line.
What gets me is that they still turn up to work anyway but only to set fire to bins and crates and then knock back a few stellas while they throw some abuse back at the disgruntled locals who have just told them what they think of them.
Maybe it would be different if I knew someone who worked for the Royalmail, maybe I would have just a little bit of empathy.
But no, so all that is left is that Im still waiting for a plug adapter which I bought from Ebay two weeks ago.
The petition was signed by over 72,000 people.
His majority at the last election was 18,216 votes.
So as more people have now voted against than for him, he should hand in his notice, forthwith.
Needless to say he has refused to take action on the petition. 
Went for a walk this morning and had another brainstorm. According to the MTheory, there is a possibility billions of universes could exist in an ocean of gravity. It has been suggested that our Universe came into being when a tidal wave flowing through the ocean caused two universes to collide and caused the Big Bang which gave birth to our Universe.
Following on from my idea of yesterday, the scientists were talking about a Singularity at the bottom of a Black Hole. This Singularity could be a point of massive energy formed by all the material sucked into the Hole. Therefore, each Black Hole holds the potential for a new Universe. This is what could have brought our Universe into existence. If two Universes collided in the Ocean of Gravity, then a Black Hole in either of these Universes would contain the potential for a new Universe to be created with the destruction of the Black Hole in the collision.
On the subject of gravity in our Universe, if the Ocean of Gravity exists in which all Universes exist then its pull will be immense on all the Universes within it. When the Big Bang took place, some of the gravity within this Ocean would leak in and enable a new one to form. So the gravity in our Universe is much weaker than expected but sufficient to hold our Universe in existence. If insufficient gravity had leaked in, no galaxies would have been formed. The reason why the galaxies are being drawn outward could be explained by the presence of this Ocean of Gravity surrounding our Universe. Its attraction would be irresistible. It would also explain how our Universe could have a quantum ocean with tides. The same way as the moon controls our tides, so the tides in that quantum ocean would be controlled, but in a much more violent way, by the pull of the Ocean of Gravity, or even much larger Universes within it exerting their own force on our Universe. Through this, vortexes or Black Holes could be formed from the birth of the universes.
If we think of our oceans and the life forms that exist within it, like plankton, tiny creatures but not crushed by the power of the water they float in, because of a membrane protecting them. Then our Universe could also have a similar structure surrounding it which holds it in being but does not crush it in the Ocean of Gravity.
And that’s as far as I have got with this thought.
I had an idea going through my head while watching the Horizon programme on Black Holes. It might well have been thought of before but I found it exciting enough to want to write it down…
The scientists are all talking about black holes being formed by the collapse of a star, but it crossed my mind that black holes might have existed long before the galaxies were formed.
What I saw in my mind’s eye was at the beginning of time after the Big Bang had happened, perhaps the universe was filled with quantum matter that expanded outwards like an ocean. An ocean has tides, and these tides could have formed vortexes just as an ocean on earth can. These vortexes were what we now see as Black Holes. As the Black Holes rotated at huge speeds, they drew the quantum matter into lumps initially and gradually over billions of years began to form galaxies made up of stars and planets that we see today. Only the matter furthest from the event horizon of the Black Hole would be able to resist its pull and to begin orbiting it. Stable galaxies were formed because of the presence of these vortexes in the quantum ocean. The mass of the Universe is supposed to be made up of dark matter, and this is what composes the rest of the ocean as yet unformed into solid bodies and still free of the pull of a Black Hole.
What we witness today when a star collapses and disappears into a Black Hole could be caused by the star becoming so large it gets drawn towards an already existing black hole and the gravity exerted on it from the hole causes it to collapse and be sucked into it.
And that is as far as I can get with this thought…LOL…so will have to leave it there, but gravity plays a big part in the Universe and it keeps niggling away at the back of my mind.
US gunman 'set for Afghan tour'
Colonel John Rossi: "This has been a tragic incident"
A US major believed to have killed 13 people in a gun attack at a Texas army base was due to be deployed soon to Afghanistan, a military official said.
Major Nidal Malik Hasan, 39, a US-born Muslim, opened fire on soldiers at Fort Hood on Thursday.
Relatives of the army psychiatrist said he had strongly opposed his deployment and had wanted to leave the army.
US officials said investigations into what prompted the attack had continued through the night.
At an early morning news conference at Fort Hood, military officials said 12 soldiers and one civilian had been killed.
MAJOR NIDAL MALIK HASAN
US Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan
US-born Muslim raised in Virginia
Joined the army and trained to be a psychiatrist
Treated soldiers returning from combat zones
Described as a devout Muslim who attended prayers regularly
Said to have been unhappy about imminent overseas deployment
Profile: Major Nidal Malik Hasan
Of the 28 people who remained in hospital, 14 had required surgery but all were in a stable condition, Col Dr Steven Braverman said.
There was no comment on what might have triggered the attack.
"We're not going to speculate about motives. We'll let investigators find that out," deputy base commander Col John Rossi said.
Maj Hasan was shot four times during the attack and is currently on a ventilator in hospital, under armed guard.
The policewoman who shot him first is in a stable condition in hospital, officials said.
President Barack Obama described it as "a horrific outburst of violence".
He said: "It is difficult enough when we lose these brave men and women abroad, but it is horrifying that they should come under fire at an army base on US soil."
'Could have been worse'
The shooting began at about 1330 (1930 GMT) on Thursday at a personnel and medical centre at Fort Hood.
Initial reports said that the gunman - armed with two handguns, one of them a semi-automatic - had been killed. However officials later said that the suspect was in custody.
That's it so far...but it said here that the Deputy Base commander said they were not going to speculate on the motives of Major Malik...it seems pretty clear that the Major had some form of breakdown when the US army wouldn't release him from the Army. As an Army psychiatrist, it is possible he had just heard too much and seen too much damage done to the army personnel and couldn't take any more...the Army underestimated his state of mind and the consequences have been disastrous...
]]>http://www.crunchbase.com/company/mokono
mokono specialises in blog advertising solutions and brings marketers, agencies and bloggers together. It operates one of Europe´s largest blog community networks including portals such as blog.co.uk, blog.fr or blog.de.
mokono draws from the knowledge of hosting some 1M blogs across Europe and has pioneered new ways of using advertising in the blogosphere by using participative formats. mokono has started measuring campaign results via the increase in volume of mentions which have proven to significantly increase after a campaign, including clients such as Nokia, T-Home or BMW. This concept of measurement has initiated a discussion among advertising experts beyond Germany. In May 2009, the iab made volume of mentions an integral part of it´s social media definitions.
With over 4 million unique visitors a month in Germany and over 40M uniques in Europe, mokono provides significant reach for marketers and agencies that wish to address the most influential web crowd in Germany and the rest of Europe. Furthermore, mokono supports agencies and companies in the web2.0 - environment by actively providing knowledge and expertise. In February 2007, Germany´s media giant Burda acquired a stake in the company.
mokono was founded in 2006 by Florian Wilken and Vasco Sommer-Nunes. The two high school friends form a complementary team, with mokono being their second venture. From 1997 to 2002 they founded and managed an online dating company, which was acquired in 2002, by then the third largest online dating property in Germany.
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Thoughts?
]]>Paul Flynn: We've wasted enough lives in this war
Seven soldiers had died when we entered Helmand in 2006 – now the number is 214
Saturday, 5 September 2009
It is easier to repeat an old lie than reveal a new truth. Politicians of both main parties have their mouths bandaged by their own guilt. To change tactics now is to admit to failures of policy that have resulted in the deaths of 212 courageous soldiers.
When parliament resumes in mid-October, the PM will read out the names of the 24 soldiers that have been killed since mid-July. By then, there may be 40 names. Public opinion is increasingly rejecting the notion that British lives should be lost for a corrupt Karzai regime and a rigged election.
Vietnam veteran and US Senator John Kerry asked at the end of the Vietnam war in 1971. "How do you ask a man to be last one to die for a mistake?" British politicians should be haunted by the same nightmare.
Our incursion into Helmand province in 2006 was a grave error. Then, only seven soldiers had died – five in accidents. Our soldiers have paid the price of Helmand with the loss of another 204 lives. It is time for politicians to admit that our war aims are impossible.
The sooner a peace strategy is devised the better. Some gains made by the Nato presence can be protected. If we delay, outraged public opinion may demand a panic withdrawal as damaging as America's exit from Saigon. US politicians said then what our UK politicians are saying now: "We cannot afford to lose." The fear back then was the domino effect. If Vietnam went communist, so would all other countries in South East Asia. It was a lie, of course. Now we are told that terrorism in Britain is held back because of our war in Afghanistan. That's a lie, too. If it was true we should have plans to start new wars in Pakistan, Somalia and the Yemen.
Now we're told soldiers must keep on dying – perhaps for another 40 years – for which of the following causes?
*To guarantee the re-election of a corrupt president and his family.
*To allow the depraved thieves of the Afghan police to rule the villages.
*To continue the abject failure of the policy to eradicate drugs that have flooded the world with cheap heroin.
*To strengthen the oppressive, medieval warlords
*To defend barbaric human rights practices.
*Or because no politician will admit that it was stupid to stir up the hornets' nest of Helmand.
I asked David Miliband in July if he had ever talked to the Taliban. He said he had not. Neither have our generals. When people are killing our soldiers, it is important to ask them why.
Would their answer be: (a) we are killing them so that when the last British soldier dies we can go and plant bombs in Birmingham, or (b) we are killing them because they are Ferengi infidels in our country; it is our sacred duty in this Jihad to drive them from our country.
Answer (a) is the preposterous fiction that the Government and opposition peddle. All wars end in deals and the insurgents almost always win against an alien invader. The Taliban will stay and we will go. But it's easier to repeat an old lie than reveal a new truth.
Politicians are in denial, and refuse to confront the deep futility of the war in Afghanistan. It is more comfortable to tilt at the windmills of peripheral issues. Last year, European countries were howled at for dodging their share of the burden. Now, it is the myth that more troops and helicopters are solutions.
The key issues are ugly truths on Karzai's corruption, evil human rights record and the atrocities of his police and army. Politicians blaming foreigners or each other are on comfortable ground. It is easier than thinking.
British lives are being lost to keep Karzai as president. His record on human rights includes his refusal to pardon a young man sentenced to 20 years in prison for accessing an internet article on women's rights, while pardoning a group of young men guilty of gang-raping a 13-year-old girl. After all, boys will be boys. A suspended Afghan woman MP and human rights' prizewinner Malalai Joya said that the rights of women in Afghanistan now are worse than under the Taliban.
Of the $25bn aid poured into Afghanistan, only 20 per cent reached its intended recipients. The increase in the number of new Afghan millionaires and billionaires in Kabul include members of President Karzai's family. Meanwhile, poverty is deepening among other Afghanis. After eight years of generous Western aid, Afghanistan has the world's third highest child mortality rate and the world's second highest maternity mortality rate.
In 2001 an ebullient member of the Russian Duma thumped me on the back and gave me his mock congratulations. "You Brits are very clever. You have captured Afghanistan. We Russians did that – in six days. We were there for 10 years. We spent billions of rubles, killed a million Afghanis, and lost 15,000 of our soldiers. When we ran out, there were 300,00 Mujahadin in the hills around Kabul. It will happen to you."
Nato's Afghan war is in its final stages. Talks are already taking place with the Taliban. Military operations should be confined to our defended compounds. Patrols on foot and in vehicles should cease. They serve no purpose and expose our troops as targets for the Taliban roadside bombs.
A month ago the answer was "more helicopters". In the space of 10 days, the British Army has destroyed two of our £40m Chinooks. They were slightly damaged, but reparable. We could not guard them until a heavy lift helicopter could take them to a safe compound. When an Army is in such a perilous situation, it is time to withdraw to safe havens.
President Obama has a practical approach. He has appointed a new Nato supremo who has used the previously forbidden words of "exit" and "defeat". We should dump the illusion of victory and devise a peace exit strategy. It could consolidate the few gains made and avoid the bloodbath of the panic retreat of the Americans from Saigon. Public opinion will not tolerate indefinitely the pointless slaughter of our soldiers. We cannot win hearts and minds with bombs, bullets and bacabazi.
Clinging to myths is a deadly distraction. Afghans say: "Truth is like the sun. When it rises it is impossible to hide it." It will be some time before truth dawns in our parliament.
The author is Labour MP for Newport West
One point that isn't in this article but was on the News is that the Chief of Police in Afghanistan has to buy his position...he then gets the money back from taking a share of the bribes his police force, who are nothing more than hired mercenaries with no training, take from the people they are suppose to be protecting...most Afghan policemen have had only about eight weeks training and many leave and go and join the Taliban...
This information came from another source...an Army spokesperson...The army has admitted that it is much harder to train the police force than it is to train the Afghan army, and that is difficult enough, because they are not easy command followers and see little point in the discipline practices that the British soldiers have to go through during their training...
The main dangers over here are home grown terrorists as Paul Flynn pointed out and the main source of terrorists is not Afghanistan but Pakistan...so the question still stands...what are we doing in Afghanistan, apart from seeing our soldiers dying regularly, and supporting a corrupt regime?
]]>http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/console/b00nk0gc
I haven't listened to it yet so cannot comment....
]]>Every Disney film recently has been vacuous, bland and pointless. The darkness, vivacity and sheer emotive force has gone. Dreamworks is slightly better but nothing has the resonance of even tv cartoon series like Dungeons and Dragons, He-man or Dogtanian. Not because these were better than the average kiddie fodder, but because there was time, effort and life put into these that is now gone. Our culture is being eroded, turned into a bland mush by people who think fairy tales should have a happy ending, CGI is always better, the darker side of life is traumatising for kiddies and differences between cultures should not be celebrated but should be hidden, destroyed and denied, for one big, bland, superculture based on flat pack furniture with no art, literature or anythingn not approved of by middle class secularists who hate science and art alike because it distinguishes individuals and rewards merit over mediocrity.
]]>Six drugs service scientists may resign over sacking of chairman
Growing fury at 'disgraceful' decision that undermines relations between politicians and scientists
By Danny Brierley
Sunday, 1 November 2009
Nutt: His sacking could cause 'meltdown' of drugs advisory counci
Leading members of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) are expected to resign over the sacking of its chairman, leaving the service in disarray, one of its leading scientists has warned.
Dr Les King, a respected chemist and former head of the Drugs Intelligence Unit in the Forensic Science Service, said that anger over the "disgraceful" decision by the Home Secretary, Alan Johnson, to remove Professor David Nutt could lead to a meltdown in the 40-year-old organisation.
He claimed that as many as six of its scientists will resign from the independent organisation, putting further pressure on the Government over its handling of the affair. Dr King cautioned that the Government's whole drugs programme could be at risk.
Related articles
* Government drugs advisor quits in protest
Fuelling the sense of anger in the scientific community over the sacking, Lord Drayson, the Science minister, expressed concern that he had not been informed of the decision.
Professor Nutt said last night that his own children may have tried drugs. "I'm sure my children have tried drugs. In fact, some have told me they have," he told The Mail on Sunday.
The row has wider ramifications for the relationship between politicians and scientists, many of whom are concerned at Mr Johnson's reaction to Professor Nutt's comments. Dr King said: "Academics, medics and others are going to ask themselves if they want to serve on these agencies without payment, on their own time and expense, when the advice that they produce is routinely ignored."
To the anger of scientists, Mr Johnson accused Professor Nutt of "lobbying for a change in policy".
Professor Nutt's dismissal, a first for a chairman of the ACMD, came days after he expressed dismay at the Prime Minister's insistence that cannabis remain a class B drug, and nine months after he said that there was little difference in the dangers of horse riding and taking ecstasy.
Dr King added: "What we say is objective and evidence-based. Sometimes people do not want to hear that. The Government has a statutory obligation to consult the council before it makes any changes to the classification of drugs – the Misuse of Drugs Act is clear about that. If significant figures resign, it cannot function any more, and without a change to the Act of Parliament the Government cannot make any changes." Members of the council, which meets twice a year, are due to gather again on 10 November, when discussions will be dominated by Professor Nutt's sacking. But the resignations are likely to occur sooner, said Dr King.
Following the sacking, there are now 30 members of the council, fewer than half of whom are scientists. The Home Office has refused to comment on the possibility of resignations, but Lord Drayson told followers of his Twitter account that he was "looking into" the sacking after hearing the news while in Japan. The minister, who is likely to have to deal with the anger of scientists, later posted a message saying he would be "asking why I wasn't informed".
The shadow Home Secretary, Chris Grayling, has backed Professor Nutt's sacking. Chris Huhne, the Liberal Democrats' home affairs spokesman, said: "The sacking was utterly disgraceful and a serious mistake. It has much wider implications, not just for the ACMD but for any independent scientific advisory service trying to give a sensible assessment of evidence to policy-makers. It is absolutely essential that the Government takes impartial, scientific advice. You cannot question David Nutt's credentials; if anyone knows the difference between facts and opinions, it is him."
Rudi Fortson, a leading criminal barrister and author who specialises in drug cases, said: "If the scientists were to resign en masse a vacuum would be left and that would be a matter of some concern." In an open letter to Mr Johnson, Professor Peter Tyrer, the head of the Centre for Mental Health and editor of the British Journal of Psychiatry, said Professor Nutt's scientific credentials were "impeccable".
Richard Garside, the director of the Centre for Crime and Justice at King's College London, accused Mr Johnson of undermining scientific research. He said: "I'm shocked and dismayed that [he] appears to believe that political calculation trumps honest and informed scientific opinion."
]]>What would happen if at the general election literally not one single person left their house to vote? I mean literally zero for all parties? Think they have a contingency plan for that?
Anyone want to chip in for a medium sized tropical island?
]]>
Douglas Adams said in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy:
"Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job."
]]>http://armchairrevolutionaries.blog.co.uk/2009/03/22/holiday-inn-s-sharia-shame-5810945/
Anyway, for those who want to go along and heckle them, Islam For The UK will be trudging along our city's streets tomorrow in the Westminster/Parliament area, taking in Whitehall, Downing Street and Trafalgar Square. They are demanding the full implementation of sharia law in Britain. These of course are the traditional spots for people seeking to extend or uphold the freedoms of this country on demos, so it will be interesting to see how this bunch of authoritarian idiots shape up as marchers. Presumably they have got the police's permission for all this nonsense.
This would not be so odd as you might think. Sometimes the group's demands are so bizarre you have to suspect them of being on the CIA's payroll as agents provocateurs. The group has allegedly earmarked Buckingham Palace to be turned into a mosque, Come The Glorious Day. That ridiculousness does not mean though that the group should not be taken seriously. They are said to have attracted some rather nasty friends and supporters, none of whom are representative of the muslims I know.
]]>Man charged over 'burglar murder'
Tyler Juett, 17, died in hospital from stab wounds
A man has been charged with murdering a 17-year-old who was stabbed after breaking into a house in Nottingham.
Omari Roberts is accused of stabbing Tyler Juett, 17, and a 14-year-old as they broke into the house in Heathfield Road, Old Basford, on 13 March.
Mr Juett, of Aspley, died later at Nottingham's Queen's Medical Centre.
The Crown Prosecution Service said 23-year-old Mr Roberts' alleged actions were "not reasonable" and he should face prosecution.
As well as the murder charge, Mr Roberts, of Heathfield Road in Old Basford, Nottingham, is accused of wounding with intent.
He appeared at Nottingham Magistrates' Court earlier and was sent for trial at the city's crown court, where he is due to appear on 10 November, a court official said.
Mr Juett's 14-year-old companion, who cannot be identified, pleaded guilty to burglary at Nottingham Youth Court on 14 May and was sentenced to two years' detention.
What is 'reasonable' in this situation? If he had taken a baseball bat, and struck them, he'd be charged with assault or murder if one of them died as a result...was he supposed to allow them to continue ransacking his mother's house? Should he have rung the police and then sat back and waited for them to arrive, and, in the meantime, endanger his mother's life if she was in the house, which I can't make out whether she was there or not...if she was, then what is a reasonable response in such a circumstance? The police shoot an unarmed man on a tube until there's nothing left of his head, and they're not charged with any crime...but a man who defends his own mother's home and accidentally kills the burglar is a murderer??? Seems a pretty topsy turvy justice system we have now...
I've just discovered that his mother was there when he arrived to visit her...here's a more
detailed version of the events...
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1223342/Man-stabbed-death-burglar-ransacking-mothers-house-charged-murder.html
What do you think?
We’re still here - Blair,
But we still don’t have a voice:
New Labour, Old Tory, no change, no choice.
http://stuartsyvret.blogspot.com/2009/03/mass-murderer.html
The island’s authorities have now issued a warrant for his arrest when he did not attend a preliminary court hearing. This caused Mr Syvret to cross the Channel. He is seeking sanctuary with John Hemming, a Liberal Democrat MP. Mr Syvret is not just any old whistleblower, he is an elected Senator on the feudal Crown Dependancy (it calls itself a "Bailiwick") of Jersey.
“I have completely lost faith in Jersey’s judicial system,” he said. “It’s a joke. Jersey’s legal system is utterly corrupt, incompetent and overly politicised. They will have to drag me back.”
Syvret intends to fight any attempt by the Jersey authorities to extradict him from England back to the Island, which the Queen is head of state of because she claims descent from the Duke of Normandy.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/mp-gives-asylum-to-jersey-whistleblower-1809824.html
]]>The last section is the most interesting I think...does pose a whole load of new questions...
It was immediatley obvious that they had packed the audience with ethnic minorities, many more than usual. Lots of students and liberal types asking the questions. Very hostile towards Mr Griffin. There was shouting and booing.
I was watching the BBC Have-Your-Say (a live comment forum) at the same time - and there was strong support for the guy.
From what I remember, he made the following points:
* the BNP want a truce with Islam - we stop interfering in the muslim countries, they don't try to convert the UK. Seems fair to me.
* Teaching sex education to 5 y.o. children is wrong - particularly teaching homosexuality to young children. I totally agree.
* Immigration needs to stop, but those already here can stay, provided they are legal.
These are all things I agree with. Given that he was in a snake pit, he came across pretty credible.
The other panelists kicked off by calling him a facist and a nazi. This was ironic seeing as the left-wing UAF were outside the BBC trying to get the show cancelled, so we, the public, can't hear what this guy has to say. Who's really anti democratic? Who are the facists?
Lets not forget Peter Hain, who feels the same way - And lets not forget Jack-the-lying-snake-Straw was a member of the Communist party! and he's sitting there on QT name calling!
There was a wonderful moment when Jack Straw was going on and on about morals - And Nick Griffin just replies "You've killed hundreds of thousands in an illegal war, and you're lecturing me about morals?"
it was sweet. Jack Straw - You are a vile snake.
]]>Very good article about the Royal Mail strike written by a postie. It says a lot about what's going on and, if you believe him, is a bit on an inditement of the Royal Mail management.
Comments?
]]>It's just brilliant. What is so funny, that some of them are genuine headlines (or at least could be). Enjoy a bit of light relief.
My favourite:
COULD BINGE DRINKING GIVE THE MEMORY OF DIANA DIABETES?
]]>UN votes to endorse Gaza report
Both Israel and Hamas have rejected the charges in Mr Goldstone's report
The UN Human Rights Council has backed a report into the Israeli offensive in Gaza that accuses both Israel and Palestinian militants of war crimes.
The report by Richard Goldstone calls for credible investigations by Israel and Hamas, and suggests international war crimes prosecutions if they do not.
Twenty-five countries voted for the resolution, while six were against.
Both Israel and the US opposed official endorsement of the report, saying it would set back Middle East peace hopes.
The Palestinian Authority initially backed deferring a vote, but changed its position after domestic criticism.
Palestinians and human rights groups say more than 1,400 Gazans were killed in the 22-day conflict that ended in January, but Israel puts the figure at 1,166. Thirteen Israelis were killed.
'Culture of impunity'
Before the vote in Geneva, from which 11 countries abstained, the Palestinian representative argued that the matter was simply about respect for the rule of law.
Earlier, the United Nations Human Rights Commissioner had insisted that now was the time to end the "culture of impunity" which pervaded.
Israeli air strike in Rafah, Gaza, on 13 January 2009
The report accuses Israel of using "disproportionate force" in Gaza
UN seeks close Gaza scrutiny
Key extracts from UN statement
Full UN report on Gaza war
In contrast, Israel had lobbied intensively against the resolution.
The Israeli government says that the Goldstone report is biased against Israel, and removes the right of nations to defend themselves against terrorists.
The US representative at the Human Rights Council agreed, saying that the resolution - which also criticised Israel for its recent actions in East Jerusalem - only made the prospect of a meaningful peace process more difficult.
But he also urged both sides to launch independent investigations.
The BBC's Tim Franks in Jerusalem says momentum behind the Goldstone report will grow.
The UN, at its headquarters in New York, may take it up, our correspondent says.
The report demands that unless the parties to the Gaza war investigate the allegations of war crimes within six months, the cases should be referred to the International Criminal Court at The Hague.
In the short term, the resolution will also provide some political relief for the Palestinian Authority President, Mahmoud Abbas, our correspondent says.
Mr Abbas had been the butt of intense criticism among the Palestinian public and from his Islamist rivals in Hamas, for initially trying to delay a vote on the Goldstone report, he adds.
]]>At Wednesday's special UN Security Council meeting on the Middle East, both Israeli and Palestinian representatives argued against and for the implementation of the recommendations suggested by the 15-member UN team that probed the Gaza conflict.
The UN Human Rights Council, a 47-member inter-governmental body within U.N. for protecting and promoting human rights globally, had voted on January 12 to set up the probe into the alleged human rights violations by Israeli forces against the Palestinians.
The UN team led by South African judge Richard Goldstone had concluded in their 575-page report that actions amounting to war crimes and crimes against humanity were committed by the Israeli security forces and Hamas militants during the Gaza offensive.
The report alleged that the Israeli operations "were carefully planned in all their phases as a deliberately disproportionate attack designed to punish, humiliate and terrorize a civilian population," and listed a series of recommendations, including the handing over of the case to an international tribunal if Israel fails to investigate the war crimes allegedly committed by its soldiers during the Gaza offensive.
Palestine Authority Foreign Minister Riad al-Malki told the Council on Wednesday that his government took the allegations of possible war crimes and crimes against humanity committed against the Palestinians in Gaza very seriously. He said that Palestinians "reject any equating of the occupying power's aggression and crimes with actions committed in response by the Palestinian side," adding that his government supported "the pursuit of domestic investigations to address this critical matter."
Maliki went on to say that the Palestinians would seek to "rectify the malfunction that occurred" in Geneva when the Human Rights Council meets later in the week, adding that the Palestinian leaders were hoping that the 47-member council "will endorse, and formally convey the report to the appropriate United Nations agencies, in accordance with the report's recommendations."
Meanwhile, Israel's UN ambassador Gabriela Shalev dismissed the Gaza report, claiming that it "favors and legitimizes terrorism" and is "destructive to the peace process." She stressed that the report was one-sided and biased against Israel. She added that the international community must recognize Israel's right to self defense if they expect Israel to "take further risks for peace."
"By trying to bring this report before a so-called urgent debate in this council, this council's attention was diverted from the reality in our region," Shalev said. She added that such a debate is "a tale full of sound and fury, signifying nothing."
Arguments from both sides came a day after the Human Rights Council decided to hold a special session in Geneva on Thursday to debate on the Gaza report. The council in a statement on Tuesday said the special session is being held at the request of Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, with 18 of the 47 council members approving a motion to hold a special session to debate the Gaza report.
The development followed the Council's decision on 2nd October to postpone the voting on a draft resolution on the report to its next session in March 2010 in Geneva. The earlier decision to postpone the debate came after Pakistan requested for the postponement on behalf of the co-sponsors of the resolution, and was aimed at buying more time for members to consider the contents of the fact-finding probe.
On Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had lashed out against the Gaza report in a speech at the opening session of the Knesset. He called the war crimes charges leveled against Israeli troops "an absurd claim," and described the UN report as a "distorted one, written by this distorted committee".
Israel had rejected the UN report earlier, stating that it would launch a diplomatic offensive to prevent any prosecutions of its soldiers by an international war crimes tribunal. The Israeli Foreign Ministry said that it was "appalled and disappointed" by the "biased" UN report. Israel said it "did not feel able to cooperate with the Fact Finding Mission because its mandate was clearly one-sided."
Hamas, the radical Islamist group that controls the Gaza Strip, also criticized the UN team's findings and and described it as "political, biased and dishonest" report. The group said that the report put people "who resist" crimes "on the same level as those who perpetrate" them.
Israel had launched a 22-day offensive against the Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip on 27th December in response to continued rocket fire into southern Israel by Palestinian militants in Gaza. The three-week war was was finally halted on 17th January with separate unilateral cease-fire by Israel and Hamas, the group that controls Gaza Strip.
]]>The remains of St Therese of Lisieux have arrived for their first visit to England and Wales.
She was described by Pope Pius X as "the greatest saint of modern times".
A casket containing bones from her thigh and foot will visit 28 sites in England and Wales, including Anglican York Minster and a London jail.
St Therese, a French Carmelite nun who died of tuberculosis in 1897 aged 24, came to wider attention after her autobiography was published.
The Roman Catholic Church says the relics - which have been credited with promoting healing and reconciliation - are likely to draw huge crowds during their month-long tour.
St Therese said she intended to use her time in heaven to do good on Earth, and she was considered to be an effective bridge to God.
BBC religious affairs correspondent Robert Pigott said that people prayed to her, assuming her to be in heaven, and in many cases felt their prayers had been answered.
Her remains were taken to Baghdad seven years ago in the hope of averting the Iraq conflict, and part of the relics have been sent into orbit around the Earth.
Over the next few weeks, the casket containing her bones will visit various sites, including the chapel of Wormwood Scrubs jail in London.
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