2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- → January 31, 2004 The United States defence budget is set to exceed US$400 billion next year—an almost 7% increase—according to budget proposals inadvertently posted on the Pentagons website. ... 2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- → // February 29, 2004 Jean-Bertrand Aristide resigns as president of Haiti and flees the country for the Central African Republic. ... 2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December Deaths in April • 18 Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara • 19 Norris McWhirter • 22 Pat Tillman • 24 Estée Lauder Other recent deaths Ongoing events EU Enlargement Exploration of Mars: Rovers Haiti Rebellion Reconstruction of Iraq – Occupation & Resistance Israeli... 2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December Deaths in May • 28 Gerald Anthony • 27 Umberto Agnelli • 22 Richard Biggs • 20 Len Murray • 17 Tony Randall • 17 Ezzedine Salim • 9 Alan King • 9 Akhmad Kadyrov • 8(?) Nick Berg • 7 Waldemar Milewicz Other recent deaths Ongoing... 2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December See also: June 2004 in sports Deaths in June • 28 Anthony Buckeridge • 26 Naomi Shemer • 26 Yash Johar • 22 Bob Bemer • 22 Thomas Gold • 22 Francisco Ortiz Franco • 16 Thanom Kittikachorn • 10 Ray Charles • 5 Ronald Reagan... 2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December See also: July 2004 in sports Deaths in July • 31 David B. Haight • 29 Francis Crick • 29 Nafisa Joseph • 23 Joe Cahill • 23 Mehmood • 23 Illinois Jacquet • 23 Carlos Paredes • 22 Sacha Distel • 21 Jerry Goldsmith • 21... 2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December See also: August 2004 in sports Deaths in August 2004 • 30 Fred Whipple • 26 Laura Branigan • 24 Elisabeth Kübler-Ross • 18 Elmer Bernstein • 15 Amarsinh Chaudhary • 14 CzesÅ‚aw MiÅ‚osz • 13 Julia Child • 8 Robert... 2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December See also: September 2004 in sports Deaths in September • 27 Tsai Wan-lin • 24 Françoise Sagan • 20 Brian Clough • 18 Russ Meyer • 15 Johnny Ramone • 12 Fred Ebb • 11 Peter VII of Alexandria • 8 Richard Girnt... 2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December See also: October 2004 in sports Deaths in October • 29 HRH Princess Alice • 25 John Peel • 24 James Cardinal Hickey • 23 Robert Merrill • 19 Paul Nitze • 18 K. M. Veerappan • 16 Pierre Salinger • 10 Christopher Reeve • 9... 2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December See also: November 2004 in sports November 2004 in science Deaths in November • 30 Pierre Berton • 29 John Drew Barrymore • 26 Bill Alley • 24 Arthur Hailey • 23 Rafael Eitan • 18 Bobby Frank Cherry • 16 John Morgan • 13... ← - 2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- → Deaths in December • 30 Artie Shaw • 29 Julius Axelrod • 28 Jacques Dupuis • 28 Jerry Orbach • 28 Susan Sontag • 26 Reggie White • 26 Sir Angus Ogilvy • 23 P. V. Narasimha Rao • 23 Doug Ault • 19 Renata Tebaldi • 16...

March 31, 2004

• Four U.S. civilian contractors are killed in a grenade attack by Iraqi guerrillas in Fallujah, Iraq. A violent mob pulls charred bodies from the burning vehicles and hang two bodies from a bridge over the Euphrates. In a separate incident, five U.S soldiers are killed in a large roadside bomb attack 12 miles (20 km) northwest of Fallujah. (CNN) (BBC)
• The Korea Train Express high-speed rail line opens, connecting Seoul to Busan and Mokpo. (CNN)
• The Guardian newspaper quotes British security service sources as believing that yesterday's raids may have stopped a major terrorist bombing. The sources state that MI5 and MI6 worked with police during the investigation leading to the raids. (Guardian)
• The International Court of Justice rules that the USA violated the rights of 51 Mexican citizens on death row for murder and orders a review of their cases. (AP) (BBC)
• The controversial Higher Education Bill, which will introduce variable tuition fees in England and Wales, passes its third reading in the House of Commons by 316 votes to 288, despite many MPs still vocally opposed. The Bill's second reading in January was passed with a majority of only 5 votes. (BBC) (Guardian) (Reuters)
• Politics of Austria: Jörg Haider, a leading figure in the Freedom Party who is widely viewed as neo-fascist, is re-elected governor of the state of Carinthia. (Scotsman) (Die Presse)
• A Canadian court rules that the Canadian Recording Industry Association did not prove that the downloading of music from the Internet is a copyright violation. The ruling is in line with a decision from the Copyright Board of Canada that downloading music is legal. (Toronto Star) (Bell Globemedia)
• Air America Radio, a self-styled liberal alternative to conservative talk shows on the radio, is launched on six stations from New York City to Los Angeles. (Kansas City Star)
• East African artifacts support evolution of symbolic thinking in Middle Stone Age. (National Geographic Society via EurekAlert)

March 31 is the 90th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (91st in Leap years), with 275 days remaining, as the final day of March. ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Wikiquote has a collection of quotations by or about: United States Wikinews has news related to this article: United States United States government CIA World Factbook Entry for United States House. ... A civilian is a person who is not a member of a military. ... Blackwater USA is a private military contractor and security firm, describing itself as providing support to military, government agencies, law enforcement and civilian entities in training, targets and range operations. ... The word grenade can mean:- The well-known hand grenade commonly used by soldiers. ... The Iraqi resistance are the groups fighting against the U.S. occupation of Iraq and the U.S.-installed interim government of Iraq. ... Fallujah (Arabic: الفلوجة; sometimes transliterated as Falluja and less commonly Fallouja, Falloujah, Faloojah, Faloojeh) is a city with a pre-war population of about 350,000 inhabitants in the Iraqi province of Al Anbar, located roughly 69km (43 miles) west of Baghdad on the Euphrates. ... The term MOB (all caps) may have several meanings, depending on context: Rice Universitys Marching Owl Band (The MOB) Man over board of a ship or boat Movable Object Block, an alternative term for sprite (computer science) In computer gaming, the acronym has given rise to the more general... Vehicles are non-living means of transportation. ... The Golden Gate Bridge connecting San Francisco and its peninsula to Marin County A bridge is a structure built to span a gorge, valley, road, railroad track, river, body of water, or any other physical obstacle. ... Length 2,800 km Elevation of the source 4,500 m Average discharge 818 m³/s Area watershed 765,831 km² Origin  Eastern Turkey Mouth  Shatt al Arab Basin countries Turkey Syria Iraq Boat on the Shatt-al-Arab The Euphrates (the traditional Greek name for the river, which is... A Norwegian soldier (a Corporal, armed with an MP-5) A soldier is a person who has enlisted with, or has been conscripted into, the armed forces of a sovereign country and has undergone training and received equipment to defend that country or its interests. ... Korea Train Express (KTX) is South Koreas high speed train system. ... Japanese Shinkansen trains began the development of modern high-speed railways (shown here: West Japan Railway Company 500 Series Shinkansen at Kyoto). ... Seoul (   listen?) is the capital of South Korea. ... Busan Metropolitan City, also commonly referred to as Pusan, is the largest harbor city in Korea, with a population of about 4 million, Busan is South Koreas second largest metropolis, next to Seoul. ... Mokpo (Mokpo-si) is a city in South Jeolla Province, South Korea, on the southwestern tip of the Korean Peninsula. ... The Guardian is a British newspaper owned by the Guardian Media Group. ... Current MI5 headquarters in Thames House, London MI5, officially called the Security Service, is one of the British secret service agencies. ... The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), more commonly known as MI6 (originally Military Intelligence Section 6), or the Secret Service, is the United Kingdom external security agency. ... The International Court of Justice (known colloquially as the World Court or ICJ) is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. ... Capital punishment in the United States is officially sanctioned by 38 of the 50 states, as well as by the federal government. ... The Higher Education Bill is a bill currently being reviewed by the British House of Commons. ... Royal motto: Dieu et mon droit (French: God and my right) Englands location within the UK Official language English de facto Capital London de facto Largest city London Area  - Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population  - Total (2001)  - Density Ranked 1st UK 49,138,831 377/km² Ethnicity... National motto: Cymru am byth (Welsh: Wales for ever) Waless location within the UK Official languages English(100%), Welsh(20. ... A third reading is the stage of a legislative process in which a bill is read with all amendments and given final approval by a legislative body. ... In some bicameral parliaments of a Westminster System, the House of Commons has historically been the name of the elected lower house. ... A second reading is the state of the legislative process where a draft of a bill is read a second time. ... The ethnically and culturally homogenous nation state of Austria is the small but prosperous remnant of Austria-Hungary, a vast multinational empire that ceased to exist in 1918. ... Jörg Haider in Carinthia (promotional photo) Jörg Haider (born January 26, 1950) is an Austrian politician. ... The Austrian Freedom Party (Freiheitliche Partei Österreichs, abbreviated to FPÖ) is an Austrian political party usually associated with the name of Jörg Haider. ... The terms Neo-Nazism and Neo-Fascism refer to any social or political movement to revive Nazism or Fascism, respectively, and postdates the Second World War. ... Carinthia (German Kärnten, Slovenian Koroška) is a federal state or Bundesland, located in the south of Austria. ... The Canadian Recording Industry Association is a non-profit trade organization that was founded in 1964 to represent the interests of Canadian companies that create, manufacture and market sound recordings. ... The Copyright Board of Canada is an economic regulatory body empowered to establish, either mandatorily or at the request of an interested party, the royalties to be paid for the use of copyrighted works, when the administration of such copyright is entrusted to a collective-administration society. ... Logo of Air America Radio, a U.S. radio network and program syndicator with a liberal point of view. ... Liberalism is a political current embracing several historical and present-day ideologies that claim defense of individual liberty as the purpose of government. ... Conservatism or political conservatism is any of several historically related political philosophies or political ideologies. ... A talk show (U.S.) or chat show (Brit. ... Midtown Manhattan, looking north from the Empire State Building, 2005 New York City (officially named the City of New York) is the most populous city in the United States, and is at the center of international finance, politics, entertainment, and culture. ... The Downtown Los Angeles skyline. ... East Africa is a region generally considered to include: Djibouti Eritrea Ethiopia Kenya Somalia Tanzania Uganda [[Image:Example. ... An artifact (also artefact) is a term coined by Sir Julian Huxley meaning any object or process resulting from human activity. ... Charles Darwin, father of the theory of evolution by natural selection. ... Stone Age fishing hook. ...

March 30, 2004

• A suicide bomber sets off a small explosion inside the Bolivian Congress. The bomber – a miner, protesting unpaid pensions – and the chief congressional security guard are killed; several bystanders are wounded. (BBC) (USA Today)
• French President Jacques Chirac retains his prime minister, Jean-Pierre Raffarin, but asks Raffarin to reform the country's government. (Washington Post)
• New Jersey physicist Greg Olsen pays $20 million to conduct environmental research for eight days aboard the International Space Station. (Miami Herald)
• Police in Uzbekistan raid a militant's hideout south of the capital, Tashkent. Fighting has caused 23 deaths in the area. (Reuters)
• The Philippines prevents a "Madrid-level attack" after arresting four members of the Muslim extremist Abu Sayyaf group. (SFGate)
• The White House allows Condoleezza Rice, the president's national security advisor, to publicly testify under oath on the investigation into the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. (XINHUA) (CNN)
• Eight men are arrested after a series of raids in the UK under the Terrorism Act 2000. Half a ton of ammonium nitrate fertiliser was found during the raids. (Guardian)
• SCO v. IBM: IBM has applied for a declaratory judgment that it does not infringe the SCO Group's copyrights. (Groklaw) (ZDNET)

March 30 is the 89th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (90th in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A suicide bombing is a bomb attack on people or property, committed by a person who knows the explosion will cause his or her own death in addition to the attacks primary purpose (see suicide, suicide weapons). ... The President of France, known officially as the President of the Republic (Président de la République in French), is Frances elected Head of State. ... Jacques René Chirac (born November 29, 1932) is a French politician. ... The Prime Minister of France (Premier ministre de la France) is the functional head of the Cabinet of France. ... Jean-Pierre Raffarin Jean-Pierre Raffarin   listen? (born August 3, 1948) is a French conservative politician. ... State nickname: The Garden State Other U.S. States Capital Trenton Largest city Newark Governor Richard Codey (D) Official languages None defined Area 22,608 km² (47th)  - Land 19,231 km²  - Water 3,378 km² (14. ... Gregory Olsen is the chairman of Sensors Unlimited, which develops sensitive near-infrared cameras. ... The United States dollar, or American dollar, is the official currency of the United States. ... ISS Statistics Crew: 2 As of June 17, 2005 Perigee: 347. ... Tashkent Tashkent (Toshkent or Тошкент in Uzbek, Ташке́нт in Russian; its name is Turkoman language for Stone City It is the current capital of Uzbekistan. ... Islam   listen? (Arabic: al-islām) the submission to God is a monotheistic faith, one of the Abrahamic religions, and the worlds second largest religion. ... The Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG), or simply Abu Sayyaf, also known as Al Harakat Al Islamiyya, is a separatist group of islamist terrorists based in and around the southern islands of the Philippines, primarily Jolo, Basilan, and Mindanao. ... The southern side of the White House The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of the United States. ... Condoleezza Condi Rice, (born November 14, 1954), is the second United States Secretary of State in the administration of President George W. Bush. ... The Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, commonly referred to as the National Security Advisor, serves as the chief advisor to the President of the United States on national security issues. ... The World Trade Center on fire The September 11, 2001 attacks were a series of coordinated terrorist attacks against the United States on September 11, 2001. ... The Terrorism Act 2000 is a current United Kingdom Act of Parliament - An Act to make provision about terrorism; and to make temporary provision for Northern Ireland about the prosecution and punishment of certain offences, the preservation of peace and the maintenance of order. ... The chemical compound ammonium nitrate, the nitrate of ammonia with chemical formula NH4NO3, is commonly used in agriculture as a high-nitrogen fertilizer. ... On March 6, 2003, the SCO Group (formerly known as Caldera Systems) filed a $1 billion lawsuit in the US against IBM for allegedly devaluing its version of the UNIX operating system. ... International Business Machines Corporation (IBM, or colloquially, Big Blue) (NYSE: IBM) (incorporated June 15, 1911, in operation since 1888) is headquartered in Armonk, NY, USA. The company manufactures and sells computer hardware, software, and services. ... A declaratory judgment is a judgment of a court which declares what rights each party in a dispute should have, but does not order any action or result in any legal damages. ... The SCO Group, Inc. ...

March 29, 2004

• Foreign relations of Taiwan: Dominica switches diplomatic recognition from the Republic of China to the People's Republic of China. (Channel News Asia).
• ROC presidential election, 2004: The Pan-Blue Coalition drops its demand for another round of voting by members of the military and the police who were put on a heightened state of alert on election day. Chen Shui-bian and Annette Lu sign letters promising not to contest the Pan-Blue petition for a recount.(Miami Herald)(Bloomberg)
• Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin has a close encounter with a UFO. Most likely the UFO was actually a fireball. (Canadian Press)
• An explosion occurs close to the main bazaar in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, killing two and injuring around twenty; preliminary reports point to two female suicide bombers. Also in the capital, three police officers are shot dead; and, in the city of Bukhara, another explosion at a suspected terrorist bomb factory claims ten fatalities. (Reuters) (BBC)
• The Republic of Ireland becomes the first country to ban tobacco smoking in all enclosed workplaces (including bars and restaurants); infringers risk a €3,000 (US$3,600) fine. (BBC)
• NATO welcomes seven new members, as Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia formally became members by depositing their instruments of accession with the United States' government, though the countries will join officially next month at a NATO meeting. All but Slovenia were formerly members of the Warsaw Pact. (BBC) (NATO)
• Nanoparticles allegedly cause brain damage in fish, according to a study of the toxicity of synthetic carbon molecules called "buckyballs". (NewScientist)
• Beauty firm Dove is to use "real women" in advertising after a survey finds two-thirds of UK women feel depressed about their figures and have low body confidence as a result of beauty advertising. (Ananova)
• Scientists discover methane in the Martian atmosphere and state it could mean there is life on the Red Planet. (Space.com)
• Spain is reported to be considering doubling her number of troops stationed in Afghanistan. (BBC) (CNN)

March 29 is the 88th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (89th in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the foreign relations of the Republic of China on Taiwan. ... National motto: None Official language Mandarin Chinese Capital and largest city Taipei President Chen Shui-bian Premier Frank Hsieh Area  - Total  - % water Ranked 138th 35,980 km² 2. ... Elections for the President and Vice President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) were held on March 20, 2004. ... The Pan-Blue Coalition, or Pan-Blue Force (Chinese: 泛藍軍; pinyin: fàn lán jÅ«n), is a political coalition in early 21st century Taiwan, consisting of the Kuomintang (KMT), the People First Party (PFP), and the smaller New Party (CNP). ... Chen Shui-bian, President of the Republic of China Chen Shui-bian (ch. ... Hsiu-lien Annette Lu (呂秀蓮, pinyin: LÇš Xiùlián) (born June 7, 1944) is the vice president of Republic of China on Taiwan and a member of the Democratic Progressive Party. ... The Prime Minister of Canada, the head of the Canadian government, is usually the leader of the political party with the most seats in the Canadian House of Commons. ... The Right Honourable Paul Edgar Philippe Martin, PC , MP , LL.B , BA (born August 28, 1938 in Windsor, Ontario) is the Prime Minister of Canada. ... UFO In Ufology, a close encounter is an event where a person observes evidence of visitation by extraterrestrial intelligence to Earth, or witnesses an unidentified flying object. ... A UFO -- fact or fiction? A UFO or unidentified flying object in the original, literal sense is any airborne object or optical phenomenon, detected visually or by radar, whose nature is not readily known. ... Bacubirito in Culiacan, Mexico is the second largest meteorite in the Americas, and fifth largest in the world A meteorite is a small extraterrestrial body that reaches the Earths surface. ... A bazaar is a market, often covered, typically found in areas of Muslim culture. ... Tashkent Tashkent (Toshkent or Тошкент in Uzbek, Ташке́нт in Russian; its name is Turkoman language for Stone City It is the current capital of Uzbekistan. ... A suicide bombing is a bomb attack on people or property, committed by a person who knows the explosion will cause his or her own death in addition to the attacks primary purpose (see suicide, suicide weapons). ... Bukhara (بُخارا in Persian, Buxoro or Бухоро in Uzbek (the Cyrillic alphabet was officially phased out for Uzbek after independence); Бухара in Russian; also Boxara in Tatar) is one of the major cities of Uzbekistan, and capital of the Bukhara region (Bukhoro Wiloyati). ... 1: cigar box 2: cigar 3: various pipes 4: waterpipe 5: joss stick 6: bong Various smoking equipment including different pipes, and cigars. ... The euro (€; ISO 4217 code EUR) is the currency of twelve European Union member states: Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain. ... The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States. ... The flag of NATO NATO 2002 Summit The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), sometimes called North Atlantic Alliance, Atlantic Alliance or the Western Alliance, is an international organisation for defence collaboration established in 1949, in support of the North Atlantic Treaty signed in Washington, D.C., on April 4, 1949. ... Map of Warsaw Pact member countries. ... Very Basic Description A nanoparticle is a microscopic particle whose size is measured in nanometers. ... Brain damage or brain injury is the destruction or degeneration of brain cells. ... Groups Conodonta Hyperoartia Petromyzontidae (lampreys) Pteraspidomorphi (early jawless fish) Thelodonti Anaspida Cephalaspidomorphi (early jawless fish) Galeaspida Pituriaspida Osteostraci Gnathostomata (jawed vertebrates) Placodermi Chondrichthyes (cartilaginous fish) Acanthodii Osteichthyes (bony fish) Actinopterygii (ray-finned fish) Sarcopterygii (lobe-finned fish) Actinistia (coelacanths) Dipnoi (lungfish) A fish is a poikilothermic (cold-blooded)* water-dwelling... For a list of biologically injurious substances, including toxins and other materials, as well as their effects, see poison. ... Generally, synthetic means pertaining to synthesis, i. ... General Name, Symbol, Number carbon, C, 6 Chemical series nonmetals Group, Period, Block 14, 2, p Appearance black (graphite) colorless (diamond) Atomic mass 12. ... A molecule is the smallest particle of a pure chemical substance that still retains its chemical composition and properties. ... Buckminsterfullerene (C60) Fullerenes are molecules composed entirely of carbon, taking the form of a hollow sphere, ellipsoid, or tube. ... Firm can have several meanings: Firm - a loose legal term for a company. ... Unilever is an Anglo-Dutch company which owns many of the worlds consumer product brands in foods, beverages, cleaning agents and personal care products. ... Generally speaking, advertising is the paid promotion of goods, services, companies and ideas by an identified sponsor. ... There are several uses of the word survey: // Kinds of surveys Statistical surveys are used in marketing and polling research. ... Image of a woman on the Pioneer plaque sent to outer space. ... Clinical depression is a health condition of depression with mental and physical components reaching criteria generally accepted by clinicians. ... Figure can refer to any of the following: A persons figure. ... In psychology, self-esteem or self-worth is a persons self-image at an emotional level; circumventing reason and logic. ... Beauty advertising is advertising for beauty products such as skin care creams, lip gloss or other makeup products. ... This article is about the profession. ... The simplest hydrocarbon, methane, is a gas with a chemical formula of CH4. ... Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the solar system, named after the Roman god of war (the counterpart of the Greek Ares), on account of its blood red color as viewed in the night sky. ... Atmosphere is the general name for a layer of gases that may surround a material body of sufficient mass. ... Life is a multi-faceted concept. ... A troop is a military unit, which can have different meanings depending on the country in which it is used. ...

March 28, 2004

• Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi, leader of Hamas, states that God has declared war on the United States. (NYTimes) (abs-cbnNEWS) (Reuters) (INDOlink)
• Cambridge University wins a controversial victory in the 150th Boat Race by 6 lengths, with a total time of 18:47 minutes. (BBC)
• The Arab League summit is postponed. The meeting was put off indefinitely because of differences of opinion regarding ways to encourage reform in the region, including democratization. (VOA) (BBC)
• UK Home Secretary David Blunkett prepares to publish a white paper on organized crime that will unveil new details of the Serious Organised Crime Agency, the proposed "British FBI". (Ananova)
• Israeli State Attorney Edna Arbel recommends that Prime Minister Ariel Sharon be indicted for taking bribes. (AP)
• The French regional elections result in massive losses for the governing conservative parties and victories for socialist-green alliances in at least 20 of 22 regions. (BBC) (Spiegel) (Yahoo France)
• A coup attempt in the Democratic Republic of the Congo fails. (BBC)
• The skeletal remains of Cecilia Zhang are found in a Toronto ravine after her high-publicity kidnapping. (Toronto Star)

March 28 is the 87th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (88th in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Dr. Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi (in the Arabic script عبدالعزيز الرنتيسي) (October 23, 1947 - April 17, 2004) was the co-founder of the Palestinian Islamist paramilitary and political organization Hamas. ... The Hamas emblem shows two crossed swords, the Dome of the Rock, and a map of the land they claim as Palestine (roughly, present-day Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip). ... An example of allāhu written in simple Arabic calligraphy Allah (Arabic: allāh) is the Arabic word for God. It is ultimately derived (according to most etymologists) from Proto-Semitic ʾil-, as is Hebrew El. ... REDIRECT [1] ... Boat Race Logo Exhausted crews at the finish of the 2002 Boat Race The Boat Race is a rowing race between the rowing clubs of the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge. ... Flag of the League of Arab States The Arab League or League of Arab States (Arabic: جامعة الدول العربية), is an organization of Arab states - compare Arab world. ... A summit is: A point higher than all the ground immediately surrounding it; see topographical summit. ... The Elections and Parties Series Democracy Representative democracy History of democracy Referenda Liberal democracy Representation Voting Voting systems Ideology Elections Elections by country Elections by calender Electoral systems Politics Politics by country Political campaigns Political science Political philosophy Related topics Political parties Parties by country Parties by name Parties by... The Home Secretary (official full title Secretary of State for the Home Department) is the chief United Kingdom government minister responsible for law and order in England and Wales; his or her remit includes policing, the criminal justice system, the prison service, internal security, and matters of citizenship and immigration. ... David Blunkett The Right Honourable David Blunkett (born June 6, 1947) is a British Labour Party politician. ... Publishing is the activity of putting information in the public arena. ... A white paper can be an authoritative report on a major issue, as by a team of experts; a government report outlining policy; or a short treatise whose purpose is to educate (contrast position paper) industry customers. ... Organized crime is crime carried out systematically by formal criminal organizations. ... The creation of the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) in the United Kingdom was announced on February 9, 2004. ... The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is a Federal police force which is the principal investigative arm of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). ... The Prime Minister of Israel is the elected head of the Israeli government. ... Ariel Sharon, the eleventh Prime Minister of Israel, spent many years in the Israel Defense Forces before being elected in March 2001. ... Regional elections were held in France on March 21 and March 28, 2004. ... A coup détat, or simply a coup, is the sudden overthrow of a government, usually done by a small group that just replaces the top power figures. ... Photo of Cecilia Zhang Dong-Yue Zhang (March 30, 1994-2003/04), known as Cecilia Zhang, was a 9-year-old girl who went missing from her Toronto, Ontario, Canada family in fall 2003, making Canadian and international headlines. ... }|135px|City of Toronto, Ontario Official Flag]]|Coat Image=[[Image:{{{Coat Image}}}|135px|City of Toronto, Ontario Coat of Arms]]}} {{Canadian City/Disable Field={{{Disable Motto Link}}}}} Motto: Diversity Our Strength {{Canadian City/Location Image is:{{{Location Image Type}}}|[[Image:{{{Location Image}}}|thumbnail|250px|City of Toronto, Ontario, Canada location. ...

March 27, 2004

• John Kerry joins other Democrats calling for National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice to testify before the September 11 commission and states the White House should learn from President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's openness during an inquiry after Pearl Harbor. (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
• ROC presidential election, 2004: 500,000 Pan-Blue protesters take to the streets in Taipei to demand a recount. (Reuters)
• NASA succeeds in a second attempt to fly its X-43A experimental airplane from the Hyper-X project, attaining speeds in excess of Mach 7, the fastest ever air-breathing hypersonic flight. (CNN)
• In Brussels, European Union Leaders express a sense of unity in the aftermath of the Madrid train bombings, and state that there is a new impetus to reaching a deal on the Union's draft constitution. (IHT)
• A powerful cyclone hits the coast of southern Brazil. Brazilian and U.S. meteorologists disagree over whether Cyclone Catarina is a hurricane, the first ever recorded in the South Atlantic. (AP)

March 27 is the 86th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (87th in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is the junior United States Senator from Massachusetts. ... The Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, commonly referred to as the National Security Advisor, serves as the chief advisor to the President of the United States on national security issues. ... Condoleezza Condi Rice, (born November 14, 1954), is the second United States Secretary of State in the administration of President George W. Bush. ... The Commissions seal The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, also known as the 9/11 Commission, was set up in late 2002 to prepare a full and complete account of the circumstances surrounding the September 11, 2001 attacks including preparedness for and the immediate response... The southern side of the White House The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of the United States. ... President is a title held by many leaders of organizations, companies, universities, and countries. ... Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882–April 12, 1945), 32nd President of the United States, the longest-serving holder of the office and the only man to be elected President more than twice, was one of the central figures of 20th century history. ... Satellite image of Pearl Harbor. ... Elections for the President and Vice President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) were held on March 20, 2004. ... The Pan-Blue Coalition, or Pan-Blue Force (Chinese: 泛藍軍; pinyin: fàn lán jÅ«n), is a political coalition in early 21st century Taiwan, consisting of the Kuomintang (KMT), the People First Party (PFP), and the smaller New Party (CNP). ... City nickname: the City of Azaleas Capital District Xinyi Area  - Total  - % water Ranked 16 of 25 271. ... The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), which was established in 1958, is the agency responsible for the public space program of the United States of America. ... NASA technicians working on the X-43A at the tip of a Pegasus rocket attached to a Boeing B-52B prior to launch (March 27, 2004) The X-43 is an unmanned experimental hypersonic aircraft design with multiple planned scale variations meant to test different aspects of highly supersonic flight. ... Hyper-X is a NASA multi-year experimental hypersonic ground and flight test program. ... Mach number (Ma) is defined as a ratio of speed to the speed of sound in the medium in case. ... In aerodynamics, hypersonic speeds are speeds that are highly supersonic. ... Emblem of the Brussels-Capital Region Flag of The City of Brussels Brussels (Dutch: Brussel, French: Bruxelles, German: Brüssel) is the capital of Belgium and is considered by many to be the headquarters of the European Union, as two of its four main institutions have their headquarters in the... The scene of one of the Madrid bombings. ... In meteorology, a cyclone is the rotation of a volume of air about an area of low atmospheric pressure. ... A coastal image featured on a United States postal stamp. ... Meteorology is the scientific study of the atmosphere that focuses on weather processes and forecasting. ... A South Atlantic tropical cyclone is an unusual weather event which occurs below the equator in the southern Atlantic Ocean. ... This article is about weather phenomena. ... For other uses, see Atlantic (disambiguation) The Atlantic Ocean is Earths second-largest ocean, covering approximately one-fifth of its surface. ...

March 26, 2004

• The United States Congress prepares legislation against peer-to-peer technology on multiple fronts. (Wired News)
• United Nations electoral experts and security support arrive in Baghdad. (UN News Center)
• The first South Atlantic hurricane ever recorded forms 275 miles off the coast of Brazil. (Miami Herald)
• Lord Carey, former Archbishop of Canterbury, says that Islam is authoritarian, inflexible and under-achieving; and that Muslim countries have contributed little of major significance to the world's culture for centuries, at the same time stating that most Muslims are peace loving people who should not be demonized. He, however, denounces moderates for not unequivocally denouncing the "evil" of suicide bombers. Critics said his critique of Islamic culture amounted to an "attack". (Daily Telegraph)
• ROC presidential election, 2004: The controversial victory of Chen Shui-bian is confirmed by the state electoral commission, with a margin of only 29,518 votes – 0.2% of the total – separating the candidates. Pan-Blue protestors storm and hurl eggs at the Central Electoral Commission building. (BBC)
• Israeli-Palestinian conflict: The United States vetoes a United Nations Security Council resolution (sponsored by Algeria and Libya) condemning the killing by Israel of Sheikh Ahmed Yassin along with six other Palestinians outside a mosque in Gaza City and calling for a complete cessation of executions. The veto is publicly motivated by the resolution making no mention of suicide bombings committed by Hamas and attributed to Yassin. 11 votes are recorded in favour, with three (United Kingdom, Germany, and Romania) abstaining and one (the United States) against. (BBC) (KC Star)

March 26 is the 85th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (86th in leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Congress of the United States is the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States of America. ... A peer-to-peer (or P2P) computer network is a network that relies on the computing power and bandwidth of the participants in the network rather than concentrating it in a relatively few servers. ... // Technology [from Gr. ... The United Nations, or UN, is an international organization established in 1945 and now made up of 191 states. ... The Elections and Parties Series Democracy Liberal democracy History of democracy Referenda Representative democracy Representation Voting Voting systems Elections Elections by country Elections by calender Electoral systems Politics Politics by country Political campaigns Political science Political philosophy Related topics Political parties Parties by country Parties by name Parties by ideology... An expert is someone widely recognized as a reliable source of knowledge, technique, or skill whose judgement is accorded authority and status by the public or their peers. ... Security is being free from danger. ... A street map of Baghdad Average temperature (red) and precipitations (blue) in Baghdad *See Bagdad, Tasmania for the Australian town of a similar name. ... The Atlantic Ocean is Earths second-largest ocean, covering approximately one-fifth of its surface. ... Hurricane Ivan viewed from the International Space Station, September 2004. ... The Right Reverend and Right Honourable George Leonard Carey, Baron Carey of Clifton, PC (born 13 November 1935), was the 103rd Archbishop of Canterbury, from 1991 to 2002. ... Arms of the Archbishop of Canterbury The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior clergyman of the established Church of England and symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion. ... Islam   listen? (Arabic: al-islām) the submission to God is a monotheistic faith, one of the Abrahamic religions, and the worlds second largest religion. ... A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم) is a believer in or follower of Islam. ... A century is one hundred of something, usually one hundred consecutive years, or 100 runs in cricket, or a bicycle ride of 100 miles in a day. ... A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم) is a believer in or follower of Islam. ... The concept of peace ranks among the most controversial in our time. ... A heart, a symbol of love Love has many meanings in English, from something that gives a little pleasure (I loved that meal) to something one would die for (patriotism, pairbonding). ... In folklore, mythology, and religion, a demon or demoness is a supernatural being that is generally described as a malevolent spirit, but is also depicted as a force that may be conjured and insecurely controlled. ... Evil is a term describing that which is regarded as morally bad, intrinsically corrupt, wantonly destructive, inhumane, or wicked. ... A suicide bombing is a bomb attack on people or property, committed by a person who knows the explosion will cause his or her own death (see suicide, suicide weapons). ... Islam   listen? (Arabic: al-islām) the submission to God is a monotheistic faith, one of the Abrahamic religions, and the worlds second largest religion. ... Elections for the President and Vice President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) were held on March 20, 2004. ... Chen Shui-bian, President of the Republic of China Chen Shui-bian (ch. ... The Pan-Blue Coalition, or Pan-Blue Force (Chinese: 泛藍軍; pinyin: fàn lán jÅ«n), is a political coalition in early 21st century Taiwan, consisting of the Kuomintang (KMT), the People First Party (PFP), and the smaller New Party (CNP). ... // Israel, the West Bank and Gaza Strip are at the center of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. ... A session of the Security Council in progress The United Nations Security Council is the most powerful organ of the United Nations. ... Shaikh (شيخ, also rendered as Sheik, Shaykh or Sheikh) is a word in the Arabic language meaning an elder or a revered old man. ... الشيخ أحمد ياسينSheikh Ahmed Ismail Yassin(~1937 — March 22, 2004) was the leader of Hamas until he was killed by an Israeli helicopter gunship. ... The Palestinians are a mainly Arabic-speaking people with family origins in Palestine. ... Tulip Mosque in Ufa, Russia. ... The article is about the Middle Eastern city. ... A suicide bombing is a bomb attack on people or property, committed by a person who believes the explosion will cause his or her own death in addition to the attacks primary purpose (see suicide, suicide weapons). ... The Hamas emblem shows two crossed swords, the Dome of the Rock, and a map of the land they claim as Palestine (roughly, present-day Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip). ...

March 25, 2004

• The 2004 Abel Prize in mathematics is announced to be awarded to Michael F. Atiyah and Isadore M. Singer for their index theorem. (Aftenposten)
• The terrorist group AZF suspends its bombing campaign in France but continues to demand money from the government. News agencies report that the government placed notices in Libération newspaper to contact the terrorists. (BBC)
• The House of Representatives of US state of Georgia passes a ban on genital piercings for women, including consenting adults, as part of a bill to ban female genital mutilation as performed by some Muslim populations, among others. The ban does not apply to men. The provision is not included in the version passed by Georgia's Senate. (AP)
• Novelist and filmmaker Alain Robbe-Grillet is elected to the Académie française. (Académie française)
• Five planets (Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn) array across the evening sky in a night show that won't be back for another three decades. (AP)
• A prototype of a mechanized five-ton disaster-rescue robot, the T-52 Enryu, is unveiled in Japan. (AFP)

March 25 is the 84th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (85th in leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Abel Prize is awarded annually by the King of Norway to outstanding mathematicians. ... Wikibooks Wikiversity has more about this subject: School of Mathematics Wikiquote has a collection of quotations by or about: Mathematics Look up Mathematics in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Wikimedia Commons has more media related to: Mathematics Bogomolny, Alexander: Interactive Mathematics Miscellany and Puzzles. ... Sir Michael Francis Atiyah, OM (born 22 April 1929) is a mathematician who was born in London. ... Isadore Singer (born 1924) is an Institute Professor in the Department of Mathematics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. ... In the mathematics of manifolds and differential operators, the Atiyah-Singer index theorem is an important unifying result that connects topology and analysis. ... Look up terrorist in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Terrorist may refer to: Terrorism, violence (especially against civilians) that is militarily insignificant but aimed at undermining morale it also tends to reduce peoples love life dramatically by causing erectile disfunction The Terrorist, a 1998 film based on the life of a... AZF was the name of a chemical factory near Toulouse, France, which exploded on September 21, 2001. ... Libération (affectionately known as Libé) is a French newspaper founded in Paris in 1973 by Jean-Paul Sartre, Pierre Victor alias Benny Levy and Serge July in the wake of the protest movements of May 1968. ... The Georgia General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Georgia. ... Body piercing is a form of body modification. ... Female circumcision (including excision) loosely refers to a number of procedures performed on the female genitalia and which are generally of a cultural, rather than medical, nature. ... A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم) is a believer in or follower of Islam. ... Alain Robbe-Grillet Alain Robbe-Grillet (born August 18, 1922) is a French writer and filmmaker. ... The Académie française, or French Academy, is the pre-eminent French learned body on matters pertaining to the French language. ... A planet (from the Greek πλανήτης, planetes or wanderers) is a body of considerable mass that orbits a star and that produces very little or no energy through nuclear fusion. ... Atmospheric characteristics Atmospheric pressure trace Potassium 31. ... (*min temperature refers to cloud tops only) Atmospheric characteristics Atmospheric pressure 9. ... Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the solar system, named after the Roman god of war (the counterpart of the Greek Ares), on account of its blood red color as viewed in the night sky. ... Atmospheric characteristics Atmospheric pressure 70 kPa Hydrogen ~86% Helium ~14% Methane 0. ... Atmospheric characteristics Atmospheric pressure 140 kPa Hydrogen >93% Helium >5% Methane 0. ... The T-52 Enryu (literally rescue dragon), or HyperRescueRobot, is a five-ton, 10-foot-tall (apx 3 m), hydraulically-operated robot, built to cut a path through debris for rescue workers, in the wake of an earthquake or other catastrophe. ...

March 24, 2004

• The World Trade Organization makes a preliminary ruling that United States laws prohibiting Internet gambling violate international trade agreements, in response to a complaint by Antigua and Barbuda. The Bush administration vows to appeal, while some members of the United States Congress say they would rather allow a trade war or withdraw from future WTO talks than repeal laws against online gambling. (BBC) (Seattle PI)
• Danish artist Marco Evaristti paints an iceberg in Greenland red, using 780 gallons of paint. (USA Today)
• A bomb is discovered on a TGV railway between Paris and Geneva near Troyes, France. (ONE News)
• Elk Grove Unified School District v. Newdow: The United States Supreme Court hears oral arguments over the constitutionality of the "under God" clause of the Pledge of Allegiance. (WTHR) (CNN)
• The British explorer David Hempleman-Adams sets an altitude record for a flight in a wicker basket balloon. (Bloomberg)
• Israeli-Palestinian conflict:
  • The leader of Hamas states that the group has no plans to attack US targets, retreating from earlier threats by its armed wing. However, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is announced as a new target, instead. (News Limited)
  • Sharon states that Israel has a "natural right" to pursue those who would destroy it. (Jewish Press)
  • Hussam Abdo, a 14-year-old Palestinian suicide bomber fails to detonate his bomb-vest at an Israeli checkpoint outside Nablus. The child was paid $23 and promised sex in heaven as his reward. An armed wing of Fatah takes responsibility for sending the boy. (HaAretz)

March 24 is the 83rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (84th in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an international organization which oversees a large number of agreements defining the rules of trade between its member states (WTO, 2004a). ... Corruption Jurisprudence Philosophy of law Law (principle) List of legal abbreviations Legal code Intent Letter versus Spirit Natural Justice Natural law Religious law Witness intimidation Legal research External links Wikibooks Wikiversity has more about this subject: School of Law Look up law in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Law, Legal Definitions... Gambling (or betting) is any behavior involving risking money or valuables (making a wager or placing a stake) on the outcome of a game, contest, or other event in which the outcome of that activity depends partially or totally upon chance or upon ones ability to do something. ... International trade is the exchange of goods and services across international boundaries. ... A treaty is a binding agreement under international law concluded by subjects of international law, namely states and international organizations. ... George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the current President of the United States. ... The Congress of the United States is the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States of America. ... A trade war refers to two or more nations raising or creating tariffs or other trade barriers on each other in retaliation for other trade barriers. ... Marco Evaristti, born 1963 in Chile, is a Danish artist. ... An iceberg (berg is the German word for mountain) is a large piece of ice that has broken off from a glacier or ice shelf and is floating in open water. ... Massive ordinance air-burst bomb. ... The TGV is Frances train à grande vitesse; literally high-speed train. Developed by Alstom and SNCF, and operated by SNCF, the French national railway company, it connects cities in France, especially Paris, and in some other neighbouring countries, such as Belgium and Switzerland. ... The Eiffel Tower has become a symbol of Paris throughout the world. ... Geneva (French: Genève) is the second-most populous city in Switzerland located where Lake Geneva (French: Lac Léman, but the Genevois are fond of calling it Lac de Genève) empties into the Rhône River. ... Troyes is a town in northeastern France. ... Newdow v. ... Seal of the Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest federal court in the United States of America. ... A constitution is a system, often codified in a written document, which establishes the fundamental rules and principles by which an organisation is governed. ... Dorothea Lange photograph of Japanese-American students reciting the Pledge of Allegiance The Pledge of Allegiance is a promise or oath of allegiance to the United States, and to its national flag. ... Contents: Top - 0-9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z A Diogo de Azambuja (15th century Portuguese explorer of the African coast) Pêro de Alenquer (15th century Portuguese explorer... Dette bestemmer vel ikke vi? ... Altitude is the elevation of an object from a known level or datum, called zero level. ... A record can refer to: a type of audio recording, i. ... Flight is the process of flying: either movement through the air by aerodynamically generating lift or aerostatically using buoyancy, or movement beyond earths atmosphere by spacecraft. ... Wicker is any sort of hard woven plant fiber formed into a useful object. ... Four styles of household basket. ... Balloons are often used or given on special occasions, like greeting cards or flowers. ... // Israel, the West Bank and Gaza Strip are at the center of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. ... The Hamas emblem shows two crossed swords, the Dome of the Rock, and a map of the land they claim as Palestine (roughly, present-day Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip). ... Wikiquote has a collection of quotations by or about: United States Wikinews has news related to this article: United States United States government CIA World Factbook Entry for United States House. ... A prime minister may be either: the chief or leading member of the cabinet of the top-level government in a country having a parliamentary system of government; or the official, in countries with a semi-presidential system of government, appointed to manage the civil service and execute the directives... Ariel Sharon, the eleventh Prime Minister of Israel, spent many years in the Israel Defense Forces before being elected in March 2001. ... Human rights are rights which some hold to be inalienable and belonging to all humans. ... Hussam Abdo (born 1989) is a Palestinian who made international headlines on March 24, 2004, when he was apparently forced to enter the Hawara Checkpoint, in West Bank, Israel, carrying bombs as part of a suicide attack attempt. ... The Palestinians are a mainly Arabic-speaking people with family origins in Palestine. ... A suicide bombing is a bomb attack on people or property, committed by a person who knows the explosion will cause his or her own death in addition to the attacks primary purpose (see suicide, suicide weapons). ... Panorama of Nablus Mt. ... The Fatah official emblem shows two fists holding rifles and a hand grenade superimposed on a map of the land they claim as Palestine (roughly, present-day Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip). ...

March 23, 2004

• Unrest in Kosovo: an UNMIK police patrol is attacked on the road Pristina-Podujevo. A UN police officer from Ghana is killed, a local police officer later dies of his wounds, and their translator is also wounded but in stable condition. (Kosovo.net)
• United States Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Secretary of State Colin Powell defend their pre-September 11th actions, saying that even if Osama bin Laden had been killed, the attacks on the World Trade Center and The Pentagon would have still occurred. Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and former Secretary of Defense William Cohen also testify before the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States. (AP via SFGate)
• Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi is chosen to lead Hamas in the Gaza Strip, and the movement's exiled politburo chief Khaled Meshaal is chosen as its overall leader. (BBC) (Washington Post)

March 23 is the 82nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (83rd in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Violent unrest in Kosovo (a United Nations-administrated province of Serbia officially called Kosovo and Metohija) broke out on March 17, 2004. ... The United Nations Mission in Kosovo or UNMIK is an interim civilian administration of the Serbian province (as part of Serbia and Montenegro) called Kosovo (officially Kosovo and Metohia), under the authority of the United Nations. ... Prishtinë/Prishtina (Albanian indefinite/definite form) or Priština (Приштина) (Serbian) is the capital city of Kosovo, a landlocked province of Serbia located at 42°65′ N 21°17′ E. It is estimated that the current population of Prishtina is as high as 500,000. ... Podujevo (Подујево; Albanian: Besiana), is the name of a town, the center of a municipality, situated in north-east of the province of Serbia called Kosovo (officially Kosovo and Metohia). ... This article is about the United Nations, for other uses of UN see UN (disambiguation) Official languages English, French, Spanish, Russian, Chinese, Arabic Secretary-General Kofi Annan (since 1997) Established October 24, 1945 Member states 191 Headquarters New York City, NY, USA Official site http://www. ... Translation is an activity comprising the interpretation of the meaning of a text in one language—the source text—and the production of a new, equivalent text in another language—the target text, also called the translation. ... The United States Secretary of Defense is the head of the United States Department of Defense, concerned with the armed services and The Secretary is appointed by the President with the approval of the Senate, and is a member of the Cabinet. ... Donald Rumsfeld Donald Henry Rumsfeld (born July 9, 1932) has been the Secretary of Defense of the United States since January 20, 2001, under President George W. Bush. ... The Seal of the United States Secretary of State The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. ... Colin Luther Powell, (pronounced koh-lihn, born April 5, 1937) was the 65th United States Secretary of State, serving from January 20, 2001 to January 26, 2005 under President George W. Bush. ... The September 11, 2001 attacks were a series of coordinated attacks carried out in the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. ... Osama bin Laden Usāmah bin Muhammad bin `Awad bin Lādin (born March 10, 1957) (Arabic: ), commonly known as Osama bin Laden (Arabic: ), is usually considered to be the figurehead of al-Qaeda, a Sunni Islamist terrorist network that has been involved in attacks against civilians and military targets... The twin towers, photographed from the west The World Trade Center in New York City was a complex of seven buildings leased by Larry Silverstein from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey around a central plaza, near the south end of Manhattan in the downtown financial district. ... A pre-9/11 view of The Pentagon, looking east with the Potomac River and Washington Monument in the distance. ... Madeleine Korbel Albright née Marie Korbel (born May 15, 1937 in Prague, Czechoslovakia, now in the Czech Republic), American diplomat, served as the 64th United States Secretary of State. ... William Cohen William Sebastian Cohen (born August 28, 1940) is a Republican politician from Maine who served as a United States Secretary of Defense under President Clinton. ... The Commissions seal The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, also known as the 9/11 Commission, was set up in late 2002 to prepare a full and complete account of the circumstances surrounding the September 11, 2001 attacks including preparedness for and the immediate response... Dr. Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi (in the Arabic script عبدالعزيز الرنتيسي) (October 23, 1947 - April 17, 2004) was the co-founder of the Palestinian Islamist paramilitary and political organization Hamas. ... The Hamas emblem shows two crossed swords, the Dome of the Rock, and a map of the land they claim as Palestine (roughly, present-day Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip). ... Politburo is short for Political Bureau. ... Khaled Mashal, also known as Khaled Mashaal (b. ...

March 22, 2004

• Testimony begins in the state murder trial of convicted Oklahoma City bombing accomplice, Terry Nichols, in McAlester, Oklahoma. (AP)
• ROC presidential election, 2004: Chen Shui-bian's Democratic Progressive Party submits a bill to the Legislative Yuan to allow an immediate recount, per Lien Chan's demand, but the majority Pan-Blue Coalition dismisses it as unnecessary saying the President could just issue an executive order instead. (The Star) (Bloomberg)
• Microsoft is to be fined a record €497 million ($613 million) by the European Commission as punishment for abusing its Windows monopoly, according to reports ahead of a key meeting by EU Commissioners on Wednesday. (Financial Times)
• Salvadoran presidential election: Tony Saca of the Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA) declares victory over a former Communist Party guerrilla leader, with 60% of the votes. (Seattle Times) (CoLatino) (El Salvador) (Democracy Now!)
• Israel assassinates Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, the spiritual head of Hamas, in the Gaza Strip. It then seals off both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. (Reuters) (BBC) Kofi Annan, and the British, French, and German governments, amongst others, condemn the killing. (BBC) (FOX)
• The former chief counter-terrorism aide to U.S. President Bush, Richard Clarke, claims that Bush diverted attention towards Iraq, ignoring the main threat of Al-Qaida. Clarke was the administration's senior counter-terrorism official when 9/11 took place. (Guardian) (Reuters) (FT) (BBC)
• The United Kingdom shuts its embassy in Algiers, Algeria, amid general security fears. (BBC) (CNN)
• Mijailo Mijailovic is sentenced to life imprisonment for the equivalent of First-degree murder, found guilty of assassination of Sweden's Foreign Minister Anna Lindh, September 10, 2003.
• Same-sex marriage in the U.S.: Benton County, Oregon commissioners, after receiving a letter from state attorney general Hardy Myers, reverse their earlier vote to begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples this Wednesday. But, stating they will observe the principal of equal treatment under the law, the commissioners decide that the county will stop issuing any marriage licenses until the Oregon Supreme Court has ruled on the constitutionality of the law. (Oregonian) (Register-Guard)

March 22 is the 81st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (82nd in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... In law and in religion, testimony is a solemn attestation as to the truth of a matter. ... Damage to the Murrah building before cleanup began. ... Terry Nichols (born April 1, 1955) is accused of being the accomplice of Timothy McVeigh, an American terrorist in the Oklahoma City bombing (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA, April 19, 1995). ... McAlester is a city located in Pittsburg County, Oklahoma. ... Elections for the President and Vice President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) were held on March 20, 2004. ... Chen Shui-bian, President of the Republic of China Chen Shui-bian (ch. ... DPP Flag The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) (Chinese: 民主進步黨; abbrev. ... The Legislative Yuan building in Zhongzheng District, Taipei City (the view is blocked by the childrens hospital building of the National Taiwan University Hospital). ... Lien Chan Lien Chan (連戰, in pinyin: Lián Zhàn) (born August 27, 1936, in Xian) is a Taiwanese politician. ... The Pan-Blue Coalition, or Pan-Blue Force (Chinese: 泛藍軍; pinyin: fàn lán jÅ«n), is a political coalition in early 21st century Taiwan, consisting of the Kuomintang (KMT), the People First Party (PFP), and the smaller New Party (CNP). ... Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) is the worlds largest software company, with over 50,000 employees in various countries as of May 2004. ... The euro (€; ISO 4217 code EUR) is the currency of twelve European Union member states: Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain. ... The United States dollar, or American dollar, is the official currency of the United States. ... The European Commission (formally the Commission of the European Communities) is the executive of the European Union. ... Microsoft Windows is a range of operating environments for personal computers and servers. ... A presidential election was held in El Salvador on Sunday, 21 March 2004. ... Elías Antonio (Tony) Saca González (born 9 March 1965) is a Salvadoran politician. ... The Nationalist Republican Alliance (Spanish: Alianza Republicana Nacionalista or ARENA) is a conservative political party in El Salvador. ... Schafik Handal Revolution or Death, We will win! El Salvador in struggle. ... Sheikh Ahmed Ismail Yassin (~1937 — March 22, 2004) was the leader of Hamas until he was killed by an Israeli helicopter gunship. ... The Hamas emblem shows two crossed swords, the Dome of the Rock, and a map of the land they claim as Palestine (roughly, present-day Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip). ... Kofi Atta Annan (born April 8, 1938) is a Ghanian diplomat and the seventh and current Secretary-General of the United Nations. ... Wikiquote has a collection of quotations by or about: United States Wikinews has news related to this article: United States United States government CIA World Factbook Entry for United States House. ... George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the current President of the United States. ... Richard A. Clarke (born 1951) provided national security advice to four U.S. presidents: Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, consulting on issues of intelligence and terrorism, from 1973 to 2003. ... Al-Qaeda (Arabic: القاعدة, the foundation or the base) is the name given to a worldwide network of militant Islamist organizations under the leadership of Osama bin Laden. ... The September 11, 2001 attacks were a series of coordinated attacks carried out in the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. ... Algiers (Fr. ... Surveillance photo of Mijailović at the crime scene Mijailo Mijailović (born December 6, 1978) is a Serbian living in Sweden since 1992. ... Life imprisonment is a term used for a particular kind of sentence of imprisonment. ... Murder is both a legal and a moral term, that are not always coincident. ... Anna Lindh Photo: Pawel Flato Anna Lindh (June 19, 1957–September 11, 2003) was a Swedish Social Democratic politician who served as Swedish Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1998 until her death. ... September 10 is the 253rd day of the year (254th in leap years). ... 2003 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Same-sex marriage, often referred to as gay marriage, indicates a marriage between two persons of the same sex. ... Benton County is a county located in the state of Oregon. ... The Oregon Supreme Court is the highest state court in the Oregon judicial department (branch of government). ...

March 21, 2004

• Jimmy Carter, former US president and 2002 Nobel Peace Prize winner, vehemently condemns George W. Bush and Tony Blair for waging an unnecessary war "based upon lies and misinterpretations" in order to oust Saddam Hussein. He claims that Blair had allowed his better judgement to be swayed by Bush's desire to finish a war that his father had started. (Independent)
• Malaysian general election: Secular ruling coalition Barisan Nasional wins a two-thirds majority and wrests back the state of Terengganu from Islamist party PAS. A recount is pending for the closely contested state of Kelantan. (Malaysiakini)
• The second race of the 2004 Formula One championship, in Malaysia, is won by Michael Schumacher. (BBC)
• Measurements taken at Mauna Loa Observatory show carbon dioxide readings of 379 parts per million, up by 3 ppm in one year; average increase for the past decade has been 1.8 ppm. The reason for this accelerated buildup in a greenhouse gas requires further analysis. (AP)
• Al-Qaeda claims to have purchased "smart briefcase bombs" with nuclear capabilities on the black market. (AP)
• Salvadoran presidential election: Voting takes place to elect a new president of El Salvador. (BBC)
• ROC presidential election: Taiwan's High Court has ordered all ballot boxes to be sealed, in order to preserve evidence. However, a recount of votes was not ordered. Various protests are held throughout the island. (AP)
• Malaysian general election: Voting gets underway all over Malaysia to decide the new holders of seats in Parliament and various state assemblies.

March 21 is the 80th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (81st in leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Order: 39th President Vice President: Walter Mondale Term of office: January 20, 1977 – January 20, 1981 Preceded by: Gerald Ford Succeeded by: Ronald Reagan Date of birth: October 1, 1924 Place of birth: Plains, Georgia First Lady: Rosalynn Carter Political party: Democratic James Earl Jimmy Carter, Jr. ... 2002 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Nobel Peace Prize (where Nobel is pronounced with the stress on the second syllable) is one of five Nobel Prizes requested by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel. ... George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the current President of the United States. ... The Right Honourable Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953 in Edinburgh, Scotland) is the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. ... Saddam Hussein Saddām Hussein Ê»Abd al-MajÄ«d al-TikrÄ«t, spelled Husayn or Hussain; (Arabic صدام حسين عبد المجيد التكريتي; born April 28, 1937 ) was President of Iraq from 1979 until his removal by coalition forces during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. ... George Herbert Walker Bush (born June 12, 1924) was the 41st President of the United States (1989–1993). ... General elections were held in Malaysia on March 21, 2004. ... Barisan Nasional (National Front) is a political coalition in Malaysia. ... State motto: no State motto Capital Kuala Terengganu Sultan Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Chief Minister Dato Idris Jusoh Area 12,955 km2 Population  - Est year 2000 879,691 State anthem Terengganu State Anthem Terengganu (Jawi: ترڠڬانو, formerly spelled Trengganu) is a state of Malaysia. ... PAS can stand for. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... First included in the Formula One World Championship in 1999, the Malaysian Grand Prix is held at the hyper-modern Sepang International Circuit at Sepang, Malaysia, near Kuala Lumpur. ... Main Article: History of Formula One See List of Formula One Grands Prix for results from past seasons and individual races. ... Michael Schumacher (born January 3, 1969) is a German Formula One (F1) driver. ... Mauna Loa is an active shield volcano in the Hawaiian Islands, one of five volcanic peaks that together form the Island of Hawaii. ... Carbon dioxide is an atmospheric gas composed of one carbon and two oxygen atoms. ... Increasing atmospheric CO2 levels as measured at Mauna Loa. ... Al-Qaeda (Arabic: القاعدة, the foundation or the base) is the name given to a worldwide network of militant Islamist organizations under the leadership of Osama bin Laden. ... The word nuclear means of or belonging to the nucleus of something. ... The black market is the sector of economic activity involving illegal economic dealings, typically the buying and selling of merchandise illegally. ... A presidential election was held in El Salvador on Sunday, 21 March 2004. ... Elections for the President and Vice President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) were held on March 20, 2004. ... General elections were held in Malaysia on March 21, 2004. ... The Parliament of Malaysia consists of the lower house (Dewan Rakyat or literally Peoples Hall, in Malay) and upper house (Dewan Negara or Nations Hall in Malay). ...

March 20, 2004

• ROC presidential election: Chen Shui-bian is declared the winner over Lien Chan by fewer than 30,000 votes of nearly 13,000,000 cast (0.25%). Lien calls the result unfair and demands it be voided. A controversial referendum is invalidated by low turnout. (BBC) (CNN)
• Former Queen Juliana of the Netherlands dies aged 94. (BBC) (Royal Household)
• On the first anniversary of the 2003 invasion of Iraq, millions join protests in cities across the world to demonstrate against the war and the continued occupation. In London two Greenpeace protesters evade newly-tightened security and scale the Houses of Parliament's Clock Tower to unfurl a banner calling for the truth to be told by the UK government. (Democracy Now!) (Reuters) (AFP) (BBC) (CNN)
• The BBC announces that actor Christopher Eccleston is to play Doctor Who when the show makes its eagerly-awaited return to television in 2005. (BBC)
• Stephen Harper is elected as leader of the Conservative Party of Canada, winning 56% of the possible points on the first ballot. (Global TV) (CBC) (Globe and Mail)
• A Methodist church jury in Bothell, Washington acquits a lesbian minister of violation of church rules. (AP)

March 20 is the 79th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (80th in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Elections for the President and Vice President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) were held on March 20, 2004. ... Chen Shui-bian, President of the Republic of China Chen Shui-bian (ch. ... Lien Chan Lien Chan (連戰, in pinyin: Lián Zhàn) (born August 27, 1936, in Xian) is a Taiwanese politician. ... A nation-wide consultative referendum (全國性公民投票) was held in the Republic of China (Taiwan) on March 20, 2004 to coincide with the 2004 presidential election. ... Queen Juliana Her Majesty Juliana Louise Emma Marie Wilhelmina (April 30, 1909 - March 20, 2004), Princess of Orange-Nassau, Duchess of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, was Queen of the Netherlands from her mothers abdication in 1948 to her own abdication in 1980 and Queen Mother (with the title of Princess) from... The 2003 invasion of Iraq was launched by the United States and the United Kingdom on March 20, 2003, with support from some other governments, making up what was described as the coalition of the willing. The invasions legitimacy has been disputed: the main officially stated reason was that... This article deals with the post-invasion period in Iraq and its occupation. ... St. ... Greenpeace protest in Brasília, Brazil. ... Security is being free from danger. ... The Clock Tower, colloquially known as Big Ben Big Ben is the colloquial name of the Clock Tower of the Palace of Westminster in London, and an informal name for the Great Bell of Westminster, the largest bell in the tower and part of the Great Clock of Westminster. ... The United Kingdom is a unitary state and a democratic constitutional monarchy. ... The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is the national publicly funded broadcaster of the United Kingdom. ... Christopher Eccleston on set in London during filming for Doctor Who in 2004. ... Main article: History of Doctor Who Doctor Who first appeared on BBC television on November 23, 1963. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ... Stephen Harper The Honourable Stephen Joseph Harper, PC, MP, MA (born April 30, 1959, in Toronto, Ontario) is leader of the Conservative Party of Canada, and leader of Her Majestys Loyal Opposition. ... (Redirected from 2004 Conservative Party of Canada leadership race) The Conservative Party of Canada leadership race ended March 20, 2004 with the election of Stephen Harper as the first leader of the new Canadian Conservative Party. ... The Conservative Party of Canada (French: Parti conservateur du Canada) is a right wing political party in Canada, formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in December 2003. ... The Methodist movement is a group of denominations of Protestant Christianity. ... Bothell is a city located in the state of Washington. ... A lesbian is a homosexual woman. ...

March 19, 2004

• ICANN announces that a Toronto, Canada organization, the International Foundation for Online Responsibility (IFFOR), has applied to sponsor the .xxx top-level domain. IFFOR claims that a special domain would help control the spread of pornography to children. However, in February the Internet Engineering Task Force released RFC 3675, ".sex Considered Dangerous", detailing technical and administrative concerns with such proposals. (Web Host Industry Review) (IETF announcement) (.xxx application)
• Pakistani soldiers seal off an area of South Waziristan where they suspect that the senior Al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahiri is hiding. The Pakistanis have suffered many casualties.(CNN)
• The U.S. military drops all charges of alleged mishandling of classified information against Muslim Army chaplain Yousef Yee at Guantanamo Bay.(FOX)
• Same-sex marriage in Canada: The Quebec Court of Appeal upholds a Quebec superior court ruling that same-sex marriages are valid under Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms. (CBC) It joins Ontario and British Columbia in permitting same-sex marriage. The couple which brought the suit is scheduled to be wed on April 10, after a required 20-day waiting period.
• Taiwan presidential election and referendum:
  • The People's Republic of China announces joint military exercises with France close to Taiwan, to coincide with the elections.(BBC)
  • President Chen Shui-bian and Vice-President Annette Lu are shot while campaigning in Tainan. A bullet hits Lu in the knee, before striking Chen in the stomach. The pair were travelling in the presidential motorcade. Both have left hospital after treatment. (Wash. Post) (ChannelNewsAsia) (BBC)
• Äänekoski bus disaster: At least 24 young people are killed and 15 injured, several of them seriously, in a collision on a icy road between a coach and a lorry carrying rolls of paper on Highway 4 near Äänekoski in Central Finland. The accident happened at around 2 a.m. local time (UTC +2). (Helsingin Sanomat) (BBC)
• The newspaper USA Today admits that a former reporter, Jack Kelley, invented or distorted important parts of at least eight major stories. He was, for example, a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in 2001 on the basis of an eyewitness account of a suicide bombing that, the publication now acknowledges, could not have happened as described. (USA Today)

March 19 is the 78th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (79th in leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... ICANN (pronounced I can) is the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers. ... Motto: Diversity Our Strength Map of Ontario Counties, Toronto being red Area: 641 sq. ... A top-level domain (TLD) is the last part of an Internet domain name. ... Pornography (from Greek πορνογραφια pornographia — literally writing about or drawings of harlots) (also informally referred to as porn or porno) is the representation of the human body or human sexual behaviour with the goal of sexual arousal, similar to, but (according to some) distinct from, erotica. ... A male Caucasian toddler child A child (plural: children) is a young human. ... The Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) is charged with developing and promoting Internet standards. ... A Request for Comments (RFC) document is one of a series of numbered Internet informational documents and standards very widely followed by both commercial software and freeware in the Internet and Unix communities. ... Flag of Waziristan Waziristan is a mountainous region of northwest Pakistan, bordering Afghanistan and covering some 11,585 km² (4,473 mi²). It comprises the area west and southwest of Peshawar between the Tochi river to the north and the Gomal river to the south, forming part of Pakistans... Al-Qaeda (Arabic: القاعدة, the foundation or the base) is the name given to a worldwide network of militant Islamist organizations under the leadership of Osama bin Laden. ... Ayman al-Zawahiri Ayman al-Zawahiri (Arabic: ) (born June 19, 1951) is a prominent member of the al-Qaeda group and formerly the head of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad paramilitary organization. ... A typiclal classified document. ... A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم) is a believer in or follower of Islam. ... A nations army is its military, or more specifically, all of its land forces. ... A chaplain is a priest or a member of the clergy serving a group of people who are not organized as a mission or church. ... James Yee, Muslim U.S. Army chaplain James J. Yee (Chinese: 余百康 or 余优素福), was a Muslim U.S. Army chaplain and held the rank of captain. ... Map of Cuba with location of Guantanamo Bay indicated. ... Same-sex marriage was legalized across Canada by the Civil Marriage Act enacted on July 20, 2005. ... The Court of Appeal of Quebec (in French: la Cour dappel du Québec) is the highest judicial court in Quebec, Canada. ... Beginning in 1963, a terrorist group that became known as the Front de libération du Québec (FLQ) launched a decade of bombings, robberies and attacks on government offices and at least two murders by FLQ gunfire and three violent deaths by bombings. ... In law, and more specifically, in the Anglo-American common law legal tradition, a superior court is a court of general jurisdiction over all, or major, civil and criminal cases. ... Same-sex marriage is marriage between individuals who are of the same legal or biological sex. ... The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is the bill of rights which forms part of the Constitution of Canada adopted in 1982. ... Motto: Ut Incepit Fidelis Sic Permanet (Loyal it began, loyal it remains) Other Canadian provinces and territories Capital Toronto Largest city Toronto Lieutenant Governor James K. Bartleman Premier Dalton McGuinty (Liberal) Area 1,076,395 km² (4th)  - Land 917,741 km²  - Water 158,654 km² (14. ... Motto: Splendor Sine Occasu (Splendour without diminishment) Other Canadian provinces and territories Capital Victoria Largest city Vancouver Lieutenant Governor Iona Campagnolo Premier Gordon Campbell (BC Liberal) Area 944,735 km² (5th)  - Land 925,186 km²  - Water 19,549 km² (2. ... April 10 is the 100th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (101st in leap years). ... Elections for the President and Vice President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) were held on March 20, 2004. ... A nation-wide consultative referendum (全國性公民投票) was held in the Republic of China (Taiwan) on March 20, 2004 to coincide with the 2004 presidential election. ... The Office of the President of the Republic of China is located in Zhongzheng District, Taipei City. ... Chen Shui-bian, President of the Republic of China Chen Shui-bian (ch. ... Hsiu-lien Annette Lu (呂秀蓮, pinyin: LÇš Xiùlián) (born June 7, 1944) is the vice president of Republic of China on Taiwan and a member of the Democratic Progressive Party. ... Tainan is the name of a city and a county in southwestern Taiwan. ... Crashed bus and paper rolls The Äänekoski bus disaster was a major traffic accident on March 19, 2004 outside the Konginkangas housing estate in Äänekoski, Finland. ... A lorry is an expression for a truck an open railroad car with a tipping trough, often found in mines The word originally meant a sort of heavy horsedrawn wagon. ... Äänekoski is a town and municipality of Finland. ... Central Finland is a region (maakunta / landskap) in the province of Western Finland. ... UTC also stands for the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Coordinated Universal Time or UTC, also sometimes referred to as Zulu time, the basis for civil time, differs by an integral number of seconds from atomic time and a fractional number of seconds from UT1. ... USA Today is a national American newspaper published by the Gannett Corporation. ... Jack Kelley was a longtime USA Today correspondent and nominee for the Pulitzer Prize. ... Listen to this article · (info) This audio file was created from the revision dated 2005-04-13, and does not reflect subsequent edits to the article. ... A suicide bombing is a bomb attack on people or property, committed by a person who believes the explosion will cause his or her own death in addition to the attacks primary purpose (see suicide, suicide weapons). ...

March 18, 2004

• Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf reports that his soldiers have surrounded a cadre of Al-Qaida men located in Waziristan, Pakistan that was protecting Ayman al-Zawahiri, the second-in-command for the organization.
• Howard Dean announces plans to form Democracy for America, a political organization intended to help progressive candidates holding similar views. (CNN)
• Indian government officials warn that rebels from northeast India based in Bangladesh, Myanmar and Bhutan are planning major attacks to disrupt upcoming national elections. (Reuters)
• Unrest in Kosovo: NATO announces that it will reinforce its Kosovo peacekeeping force, following ethnic unrest there that has killed at least 31 people over the past two days. More Serbian Orthodox Churches have been set ablaze by Albanians and violence has continued in and around Kosovo Serb enclaves. Russia and Serbia-Montenegro call for an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council. United Nations officials attempt to restore order in the province and blame the unrest on nationalist extremists on both sides. More demonstrations have taken place across Serbia, so far without the violence seen the previous day. (Washington Post) (BBC) (B92)
• Near-Earth asteroid 2004 FH is making the closest approach of an asteroid ever recorded. At 22:08 UTC it will pass 43,000 km above Earth's surface. (NASA-JPL)
• Cleanup work at Love Canal has been completed, federal officials said. The EPA says it should be taken off the Superfund list. Environmental activist Lois Gibbs said the Bush administration was seeking to deflect criticism from a March 11 Senate vote against reauthorizing an expired user fee on corporations to fund environmental cleanup. (NYT)
• US Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonin Scalia refuses to recuse himself from a case - involving his friend Dick Cheney - considering whether the White House must release information about private meetings of Cheney's energy task force stating that duck hunting and fishing trip "was not an intimate setting" and that the energy case was never discussed. (SC)
• The United States House of Representatives votes unanimously to double the reward for Osama bin Laden's capture to US$50 million. (CNN)

March 18 is the 77th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (78th in leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... General Pervez Musharraf (Urdu: ; born August 11, 1943, Near Delhi, India) became de facto Head of Government (using the title Chief Executive and assuming extensive powers) of Pakistan on October 12, 1999 following a bloodless coup détat. ... Al-Qaeda (Arabic: القاعدة, the foundation or the base) is the name given to a worldwide network of militant Islamist organizations under the leadership of Osama bin Laden. ... Flag of Waziristan Waziristan is a mountainous region of northwest Pakistan, bordering Afghanistan and covering some 11,585 km² (4,473 mi²). It comprises the area west and southwest of Peshawar between the Tochi river to the north and the Gomal river to the south, forming part of Pakistans... Ayman al-Zawahiri Ayman al-Zawahiri (Arabic: ) (born June 19, 1951) is a prominent member of the al-Qaeda group and formerly the head of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad paramilitary organization. ... Howard Brush Dean III, M.D. (born November 17, 1948) is a prominent American Democratic politician, currently serving as chairman of the Democratic National Committee. ... Democracy for America (DFA) is a political action committee dedicated to supporting fiscally responsible, socially progressive candidates at all levels of government—from school board to the presidency. ... Violent unrest in Kosovo (a United Nations-administrated province of Serbia officially called Kosovo and Metohija) broke out on March 17, 2004. ... The flag of NATO NATO 2002 Summit The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), sometimes called North Atlantic Alliance, Atlantic Alliance or the Western Alliance, is an international organisation for defence collaboration established in 1949, in support of the North Atlantic Treaty signed in Washington, D.C., on April 4, 1949. ... Pocket badge of the KFOR The Kosovo Force (KFOR) is a NATO-led international force responsible for establishing and maintaining security in Kosovo. ... The Serbian Orthodox Church Serbian Cyrillic (Српска православна црква; SPC, SOC) is a body of some 11 million Orthodox Christians united under the Serb Patriarch who includes Archbishop of Peć and Metropolitan of Belgrade and Karlovci in his title. ... Kosovo Serb Enclaves are the few remaining areas of the Serbian province of Kosovo where Serbs, Roma and other non-Albanians live. ... Serbia and Montenegro (Serbian: Србија и Црна Гора / Srbija i Crna Gora, often abbreviated as SCG) is the name of the union of Serbia and Montenegro, two former Yugoslav republics united since 2003 in a loose confederation. ... A session of the Security Council in progress The United Nations Security Council is the most powerful organ of the United Nations. ... The United Nations Mission in Kosovo or UNMIK is an interim civilian administration of the Serbian province (as part of Serbia and Montenegro) called Kosovo (officially Kosovo and Metohia), under the authority of the United Nations. ... Serbia and Montenegro  â€“ Serbia    â€“ Kosovo and Metohia        (UN administration)    â€“ Vojvodina  â€“ Montenegro Official language Serbian1 Capital Belgrade Area  â€“ Total  â€“ % water  88,361 km²  n/a Population  â€“ Total (2002)     (without Kosovo)  â€“ Density  7. ... Near-Earth asteroids (NEAs) are asteroids whose orbit intersects Earths orbit and which may therefore pose a collision danger, as well as being most easily accessible for spacecraft from Earth. ... 2004 FH is a near-Earth asteroid that was discovered on March 15, 2004 by the NASA-funded LINEAR asteroid survey. ... Love Canal is a neighborhood in Niagara Falls, New York. ... The mission of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is to protect human health and to safeguard the natural environment: air, water, and land. ... Checking the status of a cleanup site Superfund is the common name for what is officially known as the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 9601 to 9675, which was enacted by the United States Congress on December 11, 1980 in response to the... Lois Gibbs (born 1952) is an environmental activist whose involvement in environmental causes began in 1978, when she discovered that her 7-year-old sons elementary school in Niagara Falls, New York was built on a toxic waste dump. ... 11 March is the 70th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (71st in Leap year). ... Seal of the Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest federal court in the United States of America. ... Justice Antonin Scalia Justice Antonin Scalia (born March 11, 1936) has been a U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice since 1986. ... Richard Bruce Cheney (born January 30, 1941), widely known as Dick Cheney, is an American politician and businessman affiliated with the U.S. Republican Party. ... The southern side of the White House The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of the United States. ... The Energy Task Force, commonly known as the Cheney Energy Task Force after Vice President of the United States of America and former CEO of Halliburton, Dick Cheney. ... Seal of the House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the Congress of the United States, the other being the Senate. ... Osama bin Laden Usāmah bin Muhammad bin `Awad bin Lādin (born March 10, 1957) (Arabic: ), commonly known as Osama bin Laden (Arabic: ), is usually considered to be the figurehead of al-Qaeda, a Sunni Islamist terrorist network that has been involved in attacks against civilians and military targets...

March 17, 2004

• ROC presidential election, 2004: Nobel laureate Lee Yuan-tseh endorses Chen Shui-bian for the second time. (Seattle PI)
• Unrest in Kosovo: After two Albanian children are found drowned in the Ibar river in Kosovo and Metohia, with a third still missing, riots erupt in the town of Kosovska Mitrovica and later spread to the entire province. Mitrovica Serbs are blamed by Albanian media for forcing the children into the river, but this is later denied by United Nations officials. At least 22 people are killed by the end of the day with hundreds injured in clashes between Serbs and Albanians; enclaves of Kosovo Serbs elsewhere in the province experience attacks by Kosovo Albanians as well as offices of UN officials which were abandoned. In reaction to the violence in Kosovo, demonstrators in Serbia march in Belgrade and set ablaze mosques in Belgrade and Nish. (B92) (B92) (SwissInfo) (NYT) (BBC) (CNN) (B92) (RTS, in Serbian)
• Occupation of Iraq: A car bomb flattens the Mount Lebanon Hotel in central Baghdad at 20:10 (UTC+3), killing at least 17 people and injuring 45 more. (BBC) (CNN) (Democracy Now!)
• Utah bans execution by firing squad. (BBC)
• Ohio highway sniper attacks: Suspect Charles A. McCoy Jr. is arrested in Las Vegas, Nevada. (MSNBC)

March 17 is the 76th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (77th in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Elections for the President and Vice President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) were held on March 20, 2004. ... Lee Yuan-tseh was a scientist at LBNL when he won his Nobel Prize in 1986. ... Chen Shui-bian, President of the Republic of China Chen Shui-bian (ch. ... Violent unrest in Kosovo (a United Nations-administrated province of Serbia officially called Kosovo and Metohija) broke out on March 17, 2004. ... The Ibar river is a river in southern Serbia and Montenegro, with a total length of 276 km (171 miles). ... Kosovo (known in Albanian as Kosova, in Serbian as Косово и Метохија / Kosovo i Metohija, and in English simply as Kosovo) is a province in southern Serbia. ... Mitrovica (Косовска Митровица; Albanian Mitrovica or Mitrovicë) is a city located in the north of Kosovo, at 42. ... Serbs (in the Serbian language Срби, Srbi) are a south Slavic people living chiefly in Serbia and Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina. ... The United Nations Mission in Kosovo or UNMIK is an interim civilian administration of the Serbian province (as part of Serbia and Montenegro) called Kosovo (officially Kosovo and Metohia), under the authority of the United Nations. ... Kosovo Serb Enclaves are the few remaining areas of the Serbian province of Kosovo where Serbs, Roma and other non-Albanians live. ... Serbia and Montenegro  â€“ Serbia    â€“ Kosovo and Metohia        (UN administration)    â€“ Vojvodina  â€“ Montenegro Official language Serbian1 Capital Belgrade Area  â€“ Total  â€“ % water  88,361 km²  n/a Population  â€“ Total (2002)     (without Kosovo)  â€“ Density  7. ... Belgrade (Serbian, Београд, Beograd   listen? also known in Hungarian as Nándorfehérvár), is the capital of Serbia since 1404, Serbia and Montenegro (2003–Present) and Yugoslavia (1918–2003). ... Tulip Mosque in Ufa, Russia. ... Niš (Ниш, the Roman Naissus; see below) is a city in Serbia and Montenegro (formerly Yugoslavia), 43. ... The 2003 invasion of Iraq was launched by the United States and the United Kingdom on March 20, 2003, with support from some other governments, making up what was described as the coalition of the willing. The invasions legitimacy has been disputed: the main officially stated reason was that... A car bomb is a bomb that is placed in a car or truck and is intended to be exploded while there. ... A street map of Baghdad Average temperature (red) and precipitations (blue) in Baghdad *See Bagdad, Tasmania for the Australian town of a similar name. ... UTC also stands for the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Coordinated Universal Time or UTC, also sometimes referred to as Zulu time, the basis for civil time, differs by an integral number of seconds from atomic time and a fractional number of seconds from UT1. ... State nickname: Beehive State Other U.S. States Capital Salt Lake City Largest city Salt Lake City Governor Jon M. Huntsman, Jr. ... World War I firing squad Execution by firing squad is a method of capital punishment, especially in times of war. ... Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign just to the south of the Las Vegas Strip welcoming visitors to the city City nickname: The Entertainment Capital of the World Location of Las Vegas in Nevada County Clark Mayor Oscar B. Goodman Area   â€“Land   â€“Water 293. ...

March 16, 2004

• Rwandan President Paul Kagame accuses France of direct involvement in the 1994 genocide. (BBC)
• March 11, 2004 Madrid attacks: Spanish police identify six Moroccans suspected to have carried out the Madrid attacks. Five of the suspects are still at large but one is in custody. (BBC) (Washington Post)
• George W. Bush calls on his Iraq War allies to stick with the United States. (Reuters)
• An explosion at an apartment building in Arkhangelsk, Russia, kills 32. (Al-Jazeera)
• The Federal Reserve votes to keep interest rates unchanged, primarily since new hiring has continued to lag in the United States. (Forbes)

March 16 is the 75th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (76th in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Paul Kagame Paul Kagame (born October 23, 1957) is the president of Rwanda, and was a founder of the Rwandese Patriotic Front and its military commander during the Rwandan Civil War and Rwandan Genocide. ... 1994 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ... This article discusses the history of Rwanda. ... The scene of one of the Madrid bombings. ... George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the current President of the United States. ... The 2003 invasion of Iraq was launched by the United States and the United Kingdom on March 20, 2003, with support from some other governments, making up what was described as the coalition of the willing. The invasions legitimacy has been disputed: the main officially stated reason was that... On March 16, 2004, an explosion destroyed a corner section of a nine-story Soviet_era apartment building in Arkhangelsk, Russia. ... Murmansk, Archangelsk, Dikson, Tiksi, on the Arctic Ocean The city of Arkhangelsk (Арха́нгельск, formerly in English Archangel) lies on the Northern Dvina River (Се́верная Двина́) near its exit into the White Sea in the far north of European Russia. ... The Federal Reserve System is headquartered in the Eccles Building on Constitution Avenue in Washington, DC. The Federal Reserve System (also the Federal Reserve; informally The Fed) is the central banking system of the United States. ...

March 15, 2004

• Four U.S. Baptist missionaries working on a water purification project are killed in a drive-by shooting in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul. (CNN)
• The city of Aliso Viejo, California, nearly bans foam cups when they learn they are produced from a substance known as Dihydrogen monoxide (water), a substance that could "threaten human health and safety." (MSNBC)
• Pavlo Lazarenko, former prime minister of Ukraine, stands trial in a U.S. federal court in San Francisco for money laundering. (AP)
• Same-sex marriage in the United States: Commissioners of Multnomah County, Oregon dismiss state attorney general Hardy Myers' non-binding opinion that same-sex marriages are illegal and vow to continue issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. (Seattle Times)
• Newly elected Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero announces his government's opposition to the invasion and continued occupation of Iraq and his intention to withdraw Spanish troops from Iraq by June 30, unless they are part of a U.N. force. (BBC)
• Astronomers announce the discovery of 90377 Sedna, a Pluto-like planetoid which is the most distant individual object known to orbit the Sun. (Caltech) (BBC) (The Australian)
• Iran will reallow the entry of UN nuclear inspectors after March 27, says IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei. (BBC) (AFP)
• Haiti recalls its ambassador of neighbouring Caribbean state Jamaica, where ousted president Jean-Bertrand Aristide is said to be making a personal visit. Haiti also threatens to boycott a 2-day Caricom meeting. (AP) (BBC) (Reuters)
• In the aftermath of nomination day for the Malaysian general election, Barisan Nasional wins 4 more seats in various state assemblies and another parliamentary seat, uncontested. (ChannelNewsAsia) (Toronto Star)
• Exiled Syrian Kurds storm the Syrian consulate in Geneva and other Kurds protest in Turkey and Germany at weekend violence in northeast Syria. (BBC)

March 15 is the 74th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (75th in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Wikiquote has a collection of quotations by or about: United States Wikinews has news related to this article: United States United States government CIA World Factbook Entry for United States House. ... Baptist churches are part of a Christian movement often regarded as an Evangelical, Protestant denomination. ... A missionary is a propagator of religion, often an evangelist or other representative of a religious community who works among those outside of that community. ... Water purification, or drinking water treatment, is the process of removing contaminants from surface water or groundwater to make it safe and palatable for human consumption. ... MosÅ«l (36°22′ N 43°07′ E Arabic: al-Mawsil), Kurdish: Mûsil, or Nineveh (Syriac: ܢܝܢܘܐ) is a city in northern Iraq/Central Assyria. ... Location of Aliso Viejo within Orange County, California. ... Polystyrene is a polymer made from the monomer styrene, a liquid hydrocarbon that is commercially manufactured from petroleum. ... Water (from the Old English word wæter; c. ... Water (from the Old English word wæter; c. ... Lazarenko, SF, CA, May, 2004 Pavlo Ivanovych Lazarenko ( Ukrainian: Павло Іванович Лазаренко) was a Ukrainian statesman, who, while in power, was notorious for his corruptive practices. ... This page is a candidate for speedy deletion. ... Money laundering is the practice of engaging in financial transactions in order to conceal the identity, source and destination of the money in question. ... Same-sex marriage, often referred to as gay marriage, indicates a marriage between two persons of the same sex. ... Location in the state of Oregon Formed 22 December 1854 Seat Portland Area  - Total  - Water 1,206 km² (466 mi²) 79 km² (30 mi²) 6. ... Same-sex marriage is marriage between individuals who are of the same legal or biological sex. ... Example of marriage license issued in San Francisco A marriage license is permission from a legal authority for the marriage of two people to be performed. ... Homosexuality is a sexual orientation characterized by esthetic attraction, romantic love, or sexual desire exclusively for another of the same sex. ... Map of Spains electoral circumscriptions, and the parties leading in each circumscription in the election for the Congress of Deputies Legislative elections were held in Spain on March 14, 2004. ... A prime minister may be either: the chief or leading member of the cabinet of the top-level government in a country having a parliamentary system of government; or the official, in countries with a semi-presidential system of government, appointed to manage the civil service and execute the directives... José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero (born August 4, 1960) is the Prime Minister of Spain. ... This article is about the United Nations, for other uses of UN see UN (disambiguation) Official languages English, French, Spanish, Russian, Chinese, Arabic Secretary-General Kofi Annan (since 1997) Established October 24, 1945 Member states 191 Headquarters New York City, NY, USA Official site http://www. ... 90377 Sedna is a trans-Neptunian object, discovered by Michael Brown (Caltech), Chad Trujillo (Gemini Observatory) and David Rabinowitz (Yale University) on November 14, 2003. ... Atmospheric characteristics Atmospheric pressure 0. ... Planetoid (meaning planet-like) is an old synonym of asteroid. ... The Sun is the star at the centre of our Solar system. ... This article is about the United Nations, for other uses of UN see UN (disambiguation) Official languages English, French, Spanish, Russian, Chinese, Arabic Secretary-General Kofi Annan (since 1997) Established October 24, 1945 Member states 191 Headquarters New York City, NY, USA Official site http://www. ... March 27 is the 86th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (87th in Leap years). ... IAEA The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), established as an autonomous organization on July 29, 1957, seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy and to inhibit its use for military purposes. ... Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei (محمدالبرادعئ)(born June 17, 1942, Egypt) is the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), an inter-governmental organization under the auspices of the United Nations. ... ... Jean-Bertrand Aristide Jean-Bertrand Aristide (born July 15, 1953) is a Haitian politician and former Roman Catholic priest who was President of Haiti in 1991, from 1994 to 1996, and again from 2001 to 2004. ... The Caribbean Community and Common Market or CARICOM was established by the Treaty of Chaguaramas which came into effect on August 1, 1973. ... General elections were held in Malaysia on March 21, 2004. ... Barisan Nasional (National Front) is a political coalition in Malaysia. ... Kurds are one of the Iranian peoples and speak Kurdish, a north-Western Iranian language related to Persian. ... Geneva (French: Genève) is the second-most populous city in Switzerland located where Lake Geneva (French: Lac Léman, but the Genevois are fond of calling it Lac de Genève) empties into the Rhône River. ...

March 14, 2004

• The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) wins the Spanish Legislative elections. The outgoing government's support for the US-led invasion of Iraq was cited as a major factor leading to the Socialists' 43% plurality. (El Mundo) (BBC) (CNN) (Ministry of Home Affairs)
• Two suicide bombers kill 10 people in Ashdod, Israel. (BBC) (CNN)
• Madrid bombings: Spanish police receives a videotape where a man identifying himself as an al-Qaeda spokesman says the organisation claims responsibility for the attack, according to an announcement from the country's interior minister. The authenticity of the video has not been verified. The al-Qaeda claim overshadows voting in the general election. (BBC) (BBC) (Toronto Star)
• Occupation of Iraq: Six United States soldiers are killed over the weekend in three separate insurgent roadside bomb attacks, two in Baghdad and one in Tikrit. This occurs amidst the largest U.S. troop rotation since World War II.
• The National People's Congress of China changes the constitution to protect private property, in order to stop state officials from requisitioning property and private possessions. (BBC) (Reuters) (Al Jazeera)
• Voting takes place in the Russian presidential election. Incumbent Vladimir Putin wins by a large majority. The election is widely criticised by external observers who said Russian state television was very biased towards Putin during the campaign. (BBC) (Reuters)
• Pope John Paul II becomes the third-longest reigning pope in history, the other two being Saint Peter and Pope Pius IX. (Detroit Free Press)
• Several Kurds storm the Syrian embassy in Brussels protesting about violence and deaths in north-east Syria over the weekend. (BBC)

March 14 is the 73rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (74th in Leap years) with 292 days remaining in the year. ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Spanish Socialist Workers Party (Partido Socialista Obrero Español or PSOE) is one of the main parties of Spain. ... Map of Spains electoral circumscriptions, and the parties leading in each circumscription in the election for the Congress of Deputies Legislative elections were held in Spain on March 14, 2004. ... A suicide bombing is a bomb attack on people or property, committed by a person who knows the explosion will cause his or her own death in addition to the attacks primary purpose (see suicide, suicide weapons). ... Ashdod (Hebrew אַשְׁדּוֹד, Standard Hebrew Ašdod;, Tiberian Hebrew ʾAšdôḏ, Arabic إسدود ʾIsdūd) is a port city in Israel located halfway between Tel Aviv and Gaza, in the Southern District of Israel. ... The scene of one of the Madrid bombings. ... Bottom view of VHS videotape cassette with magnetic tape exposed Videotape is a means of recording television pictures and accompanying sound onto magnetic tape as opposed to movie film. ... Al-Qaeda (Arabic: القاعدة, the foundation or the base) is the name given to a worldwide network of militant Islamist organizations under the leadership of Osama bin Laden. ... Map of Spains electoral circumscriptions, and the parties leading in each circumscription in the election for the Congress of Deputies Legislative elections were held in Spain on March 14, 2004. ... The 2003 invasion of Iraq was launched by the United States and the United Kingdom on March 20, 2003, with support from some other governments, making up what was described as the coalition of the willing. The invasions legitimacy has been disputed: the main officially stated reason was that... The Iraqi resistance are the groups fighting against the U.S. occupation of Iraq and the U.S.-installed interim government of Iraq. ... A street map of Baghdad Average temperature (red) and precipitations (blue) in Baghdad *See Bagdad, Tasmania for the Australian town of a similar name. ... Tikrit (تكريت, also transliterated as Takrit or Tekrit) is a town in Iraq, located 140 km northwest of Baghdad on the Tigris river (at 34. ... World War II was a truly global conflict with many facets: immense human suffering, fierce indoctrinations, and the use of new, extremely devastating weapons like the atom bomb. ... The Great Hall of the People, where the NPC convenes The National Peoples Congress (全国人民代表大会 in Pinyin: Quánguó Rénmín Dàibiǎo Dàhuì, literally Pan-Nation Congress of the Peoples Representatives), abbreviated PNCOTPR, is the highest legislative body in the Peoples Republic of China. ... Presidential elections were held in the Russian Federation on March 14, 2004. ... Term of office: December 31, 1999 – Preceded by: Boris Yeltsin Succeeded by: Date of birth: October 7, 1952 Place of birth: Leningrad First Lady: Liudmila Putina Political party: None Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (Russian: Владимир Владимирович Путин   pronunciation?; born October 7, 1952) is a Russian politician and the current President of the Russian Federation. ... Pope John Paul II (Latin: ), born Karol Józef WojtyÅ‚a (May 18, 1920 – April 2, 2005), reigned as pope of the Catholic Church for almost 27 years, from 16 October 1978 until his death, making his the third-longest reign in the history of the Papacy according to the... The list of 10 longest-reigning Popes in Catholic reckoning, with one extra listing: St. ... Saint Peter, portrayed by Peter Paul Rubens in a papal chasuble and pallium holding keys, was one of the twelve disciples of Jesus and the first Pope of the Catholic Church. ... The Blessed Pope Pius IX, born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti (May 13, 1792 – February 7, 1878), was pope for a record pontificate of over 31 years, from June 16, 1846 until his death. ... Kurds are one of the Iranian peoples and speak Kurdish, a north-Western Iranian language related to Persian. ... Emblem of the Brussels-Capital Region Flag of The City of Brussels Brussels (Dutch: Brussel, French: Bruxelles, German: Brüssel) is the capital of Belgium and is considered by many to be the headquarters of the European Union, as two of its four main institutions have their headquarters in the...

March 13, 2004

• ROC presidential election, 2004: 2 million people march in 24 rallies across Taiwan in support of Lien Chan's bid for the presidency. (Reuters)
• The death toll in the Madrid bombings rises to 200; investigators continue search for perpetrators, with suspicions against ETA complemented by the apprehension of five foreign citizens connected to terror attacks in Morocco. (BBC) (AP)
• U.S. forces launch new offensive aimed at the Taliban and al-Qaeda and the capture of Osama bin Laden and Mullah Omar in Afghanistan. (AP)
• Fifteen teams that qualified for the DARPA Grand Challenge start on a 150–200 mile robotic race to Las Vegas, Nevada, for a $1 million prize. All of the teams break down within seven miles of the start line; none collect the prize. (The Register) (The Register)
• Nine people, eight of whom are children, are found dead in Fresno, California, USA. A man apparently related to the victims is arrested. The police speculate that the deaths may have been part of a ritual. (CNN) (AOL news)
• Malaysian general election, 2004: Nomination day. Barisan Nasional takes 15 Parliamentary seats uncontested and 7 state assembly seats. The Islamic Party of Malaysia captures one parliamentary seat in the state of Johor.

March 13 is the 72nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (73rd in leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Elections for the President and Vice President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) were held on March 20, 2004. ... Lien Chan Lien Chan (連戰, in pinyin: Lián Zhàn) (born August 27, 1936, in Xian) is a Taiwanese politician. ... The scene of one of the Madrid bombings. ... ETA can refer to: eta is a Basque word for and. Eta (letter) - from the Greek alphabet. ... Wikiquote has a collection of quotations by or about: United States Wikinews has news related to this article: United States United States government CIA World Factbook Entry for United States House. ... The Taliban (Pashtun and Persian: طالبان; students), also transliterated as Taleban, is an Islamist and Pashtun nationalist movement which ruled most of Afghanistan from 1996 until 2001, despite having diplomatic recognition from only three countries: the United Arab Emirates, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia. ... Al-Qaeda (Arabic: القاعدة, the foundation or the base) is the name given to a worldwide network of militant Islamist organizations under the leadership of Osama bin Laden. ... Osama bin Laden Usāmah bin Muhammad bin `Awad bin Lādin (born March 10, 1957) (Arabic: ), commonly known as Osama bin Laden (Arabic: ), is usually considered to be the figurehead of al-Qaeda, a Sunni Islamist terrorist network that has been involved in attacks against civilians and military targets... One of the only known photographs of Omar (date unknown) Mullah Mohammed Omar (ملا محمد عمر; born 1959) is the reclusive leader of the Taliban of Afghanistan and Afghanistans former de facto Head of State who has been in hiding since the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2002. ... Red Team Racings Hummer The DARPA Grand Challenge is a United States government-sponsored competition that aims to create the first fully autonomous vehicles capable of competing on an under-300 mile, off-road course in the Mojave Desert in the Southwest. ... Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign just to the south of the Las Vegas Strip welcoming visitors to the city City nickname: The Entertainment Capital of the World Location of Las Vegas in Nevada County Clark Mayor Oscar B. Goodman Area   â€“Land   â€“Water 293. ... The United States dollar, or American dollar, is the official currency of the United States. ... Fresno is the county seat of Fresno County, California. ... General elections were held in Malaysia on March 21, 2004. ... Barisan Nasional (National Front) is a political coalition in Malaysia. ... PAS logo The Islamic Party of Malaysia (also PAS, from Malay Parti Islam SeMalaysia) is an Islamist political party in Malaysia and is currently headed by Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang. ... State Motto: the state moto as appeared on the coat of arms reads kepada Allah berserah which literally means all hopes is to God (Allah) Capital Johor Bahru Sultan Iskandar Al-haj Chief minister Abdul Ghani Othman Area 19,984 km² Population 2. ...

March 12, 2004

• Same-sex marriage in the United States: Oregon's attorney general issues his opinion on same-sex marriage within Oregon. He concludes that current state law prohibits issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples, but that the Oregon Supreme Court is likely to conclude those statutes violate the state's constitution. The Wisconsin State Senate approves state constitution amendment to ban same-sex marriages or civil unions, to counter efforts elsewhere to legalize such partnerships. (Oregon Attorney General's opinion — PDF) (Wisconsin State Journal)
• A Utah woman is charged with murder when her child is stillborn, after allegedly refusing a Caesarean section. (Reuters) (SF Chronicle) (Toronto Star)
• March 11, 2004 Madrid attacks: Millions of people pack rainswept streets across Spain in protest against the recent Madrid bombings. (Reuters)
• The parliament of South Korea votes to impeach President Roh Moo-hyun, saying he "breached election rules" by calling for support for the Uri Party. Prime Minister Goh Kun will run the country until the Constitutional Court rules on the issue. Roh's supporters dismiss the move as a power play to influence the upcoming April elections. Thousands protest in support of Roh. (Reuters) (BBC) (BBC)
• Guantanamo Bay: Recently-released British Camp X-Ray inmate Jamal al-Harith is interviewed by the Daily Mirror, alleging physical assaults and psychological torture. (Daily Mirror) (BBC)
• Iraqi insurgents kill 2 U.S soldiers in a roadside bomb attack near the Sunni Triangle town of Habbaniyah. (AP)
• Iraqi police are responsible for killing 2 U.S. civilians, local investigators state. (UPI)
• The U.S. government announces its intention to stockpile as many as 25 million doses of an experimental anthrax vaccine. (AP)
• ROC presidential election, 2004: An ad comparing Chen Shui-bian to Adolf Hitler is withdrawn after protests by Jewish leaders.(CNN)

March 12 is the 71st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (72nd in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Same-sex marriage, often referred to as gay marriage, indicates a marriage between two persons of the same sex. ... State nickname: Beaver State Other U.S. States Capital Salem Largest city Portland Governor Ted Kulongoski (D) Official languages None Area 255,026 km² (9th)  - Land 248,849 km²  - Water 6,177 km² (2. ... In most common law jurisdictions, the Attorney General is the main legal adviser to the government, and in some jurisdictions may in addition have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions. ... Same-sex marriage, often referred to as gay marriage, indicates a marriage between two persons of the same sex. ... The Oregon Supreme Court is the highest state court in the Oregon judicial department (branch of government). ... The Oregon Constitution is a U.S. state constitution, the governing document of the American state of Oregon. ... The Wisconsin State Senate, based off of the U.S. Senate, is the upper house of the Wisconsin State Legislature, smaller than the Wisconsin State Assembly. ... Ban could be: ban, a decree that prohibits something, a form of censorship ban, a barring of access of resources on the Internet Ban, a king from Arthurian legend. ... Since its coining, the term homosexuality has acquired multiple meanings. ... Same-sex marriage is marriage between individuals who are of the same legal or biological sex. ... A civil union is one of several terms for a civil status similar to marriage, typically created for the purposes of allowing homosexual couples access to the benefits enjoyed by married heterosexuals (see also same-sex marriage); it can also be used by couples of differing sexes who do not... An interpersonal relationship is some relationship or connection between two people. ... State nickname: Beehive State Other U.S. States Capital Salt Lake City Largest city Salt Lake City Governor Jon M. Huntsman, Jr. ... The expected result of pregnancy is the birth of a living child. ... A caesarean section (cesarean section AE), is a form of childbirth in which a surgical incision is made through a mothers abdomen (laparotomy) and uterus (hysterotomy) to deliver one or more fetuses. ... The scene of one of the Madrid bombings. ... The scene of one of the Madrid bombings. ... Depiction of the impeachment trial of Andrew Johnson, then President of the United States, in 1868. ... The President is head of state of South Korea. ... Roh Moo-hyun (born September 1 (August 6 in lunar calendar), 1946) has been the President of South Korea since February 25, 2003. ... The Uri Party is a political party in South Korea. ... The Prime Minister of South Korea (국무총리 ; Gukmuchongri) is appointed by the President of South Korea with the National Assemblys approval. ... Goh Kun (born January 2, 1938) is a South Korean politician. ... Map of Cuba with location of Guantanamo Bay indicated. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Camp Delta. ... Alternate newspaper: The Daily Mirror (Australia) The Daily Mirror is a popular British tabloid daily newspaper. ... The Iraqi resistance are the groups fighting against the U.S. occupation of Iraq and the U.S.-installed interim government of Iraq. ... Map of the Sunni Triangle The Sunni Triangle refers to a roughly triangular area of Iraq to the northwest of Baghdad. ... A civilian is a person who is not a member of a military. ... A bottle and a syringe containing the influenza vaccine. ... Elections for the President and Vice President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) were held on March 20, 2004. ... Chen Shui-bian, President of the Republic of China Chen Shui-bian (ch. ... Adolf Hitler (April 20, 1889–April 30, 1945) was the Chancellor of Germany from 1933, and Führer und Reichskanzler (Leader and chancellor) of Germany from 1934, to his death. ... The word Jew (Hebrew: יהודי) is used in a wide number of ways, but generally refers to a follower of the Jewish faith, a child of a Jewish mother, or someone of Jewish descent with a connection to Jewish culture or ethnicity; and often a combination of these attributes. ...

March 11, 2004

• The Spirit rover takes first picture of Earth ever made from the surface of another planet. (Space.com)
• March 11, 2004 Madrid attacks: 10 bombs on Madrid commuter trains kill at least 180 people and wound more than 1400, the largest toll in any bombing in Europe (the 1988 Lockerbie bombing killed more but wounded fewer). (Washington Post) (BBC) (La Vanguardia) (CincoDías) (El Semanal) (Renfe) (Le Monde) (CBC) (Reuters) (CNN) Purported al-Qaida statement: (Al-Jazeera)
• Four British prisoners who had been arrested on their return from Guantanamo Bay are released without charge. A fifth was not arrested on arrival. A further four remain in the Cuban camp. British newspapers vie for the rights to their stories, with offers in the range of £300,000. Compensation lawsuits from the returned five are expected against the US and UK governments. (Guardian) (BBC) (BBC)
• Same-sex marriage in the United States: The California Supreme Court issues an interim stay ordering San Francisco officials to stop issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. The court said it would hear oral arguments regarding the controversy in May or June. The state says it did not register any of the thousands of recent gay marriages. (FOX/AP) (365Gay) (Washington Times)
• UN inspectors find weapons-grade uranium in Iran. Iran objects to UN and US policy, considering it "unrealistic." (Asia Times) (Radio Free Europe) (NYT)
• A Maryland woman and former Democratic congressional aide, Susan Lindauer, is arrested on charges of conspiracy against the United States, acting as an Iraqi spy before and during last year's invasion. (CNN) (Smoking Gun)
• An Australian Senate report on poverty is immediately dismissed by Prime Minister John Howard. The report shows between 2 and 3.5 million Australians, or up to 19 per cent of the population, are living in poverty. (Age) (West Australian) (Australian) (Channelnewsasia)
• SCO v. IBM: BayStar Capital, an investment company, confirms tie between Microsoft and SCO. (Business Week) (CNet) (Newsforge) (Groklaw)
• Pop singer George Michael announces that he will stop selling his music. Instead, he plans to distribute it freely over the Internet and pass on any donations to charity. (E! Online)

11 March is the 70th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (71st in Leap year). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Artists Concept of Rover on Mars NASAs Mars Exploration Rover (MER) Mission (since 2003) is a unmanned Mars exploration mission that includes sending two Rovers (robots) to explore the Martian surface and geology. ... Image of the Wikimedia Commons logo. ... Earth, also known as the Earth, Terra, and (mostly in the 19th century) Tellus, is the third planet outward from the Sun. ... A planet (from the Greek πλανήτης, planÄ“tÄ“s which means wanderer or more forcefully vagrant, tramp) is an object in orbit around a star that is not a star in its own right. ... The scene of one of the Madrid bombings. ... Plaza de Cibeles (Cibeles square) and the Palacio de Comunicaciones (Communications Palace) Coat of arms. ... A Connex commuter train stands by the platform in Melbourne, Australia Regional rail systems, or commuter rail systems, usually provide a rail service through a central business district area into suburbs or other locations that draw large numbers of people on a daily basis. ... World map showing location of Europe Europe is geologically and geographically a peninsula, forming the westernmost part of Eurasia. ... 1988 is a leap year starting on a Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The cockpit landed in a farmers field near a tiny church in Tundergarth, Scotland Pan Am Flight 103 was Pan Ams daily Frankfurt-London-New York-Detroit evening flight. ... Map of Cuba with location of Guantanamo Bay indicated. ... Same-sex marriage, often referred to as gay marriage, indicates a marriage between two persons of the same sex. ... The Supreme Court of California is the state supreme court in California. ... This page is a candidate for speedy deletion. ... Same-sex marriage (also called gay marriage, and—less frequently—homosexual marriage) refers to marriage between partners of the same gender (for other forms of same-sex unions that are different from marriages, see the articles linked in that section). ... The United Nations, or UN, is an international organization established in 1945 and now made up of 191 states. ... The mushroom cloud of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan, 1945, rose some 18 km (11 mi) above the epicenter. ... General Name, Symbol, Number uranium, U, 92 Chemical series actinides Group, Period, Block ?, 7, f Appearance silvery gray metallic Atomic mass 238. ... Wikiquote has a collection of quotations by or about: United States Wikinews has news related to this article: United States United States government CIA World Factbook Entry for United States House. ... State nickname: Old Line State; Free State Other U.S. States Capital Annapolis Largest city Baltimore Governor Robert L. Ehrlich (R) Official languages English Area 32,160 km² (42nd)  - Land 25,338 km²  - Water 6,968 km² (21%) Population (2000)  - Population 5,296,486 (19th)  - Density 165 /km² (5th) Admission... The Democratic Party is one of the two major United States political parties. ... Susan Lindauer (born 17th July 1963), of Takoma Park, Maryland, is an American journalist accused of spying for Iraq. ... Espionage is the practice of obtaining secrets (spying) from rivals or enemies for military, political, or economic advantage. ... The 2003 invasion of Iraq was launched by the United States and the United Kingdom on March 20, 2003, with support from some other governments, making up what was described as the coalition of the willing. The invasions legitimacy has been disputed: the main officially stated reason was that... Australian Senate chamber Entrance to the Senate The Australian Senate is the upper of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia. ... Poverty is the state of being without, often associated with need, hardship and lack of resources across a wide range of circumstances. ... The current (25th) Prime Minister of Australia, John Howard (sitting, fifth from left), with his Cabinet, 1999 The office of Prime Minister is in practice the most powerful political office in the Commonwealth of Australia. ... John Howard John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939), is an Australian politician and the 25th Prime Minister of Australia, coming to office on 11 March 1996 and winning re-election in 1998, 2001 and 2004. ... On March 6, 2003, the SCO Group (formerly known as Caldera Systems) filed a $1 billion lawsuit in the US against IBM for allegedly devaluing its version of the UNIX operating system. ... Investment is a term with several closely-related meanings in finance and economics. ... Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) is the worlds largest software company, with over 50,000 employees in various countries as of May 2004. ... The SCO Group, Inc. ... This article mainly describes pop as used in its more recent sense, as a subgenre of popular music. ... George Michael George Michael (born June 25, 1963) is a Greek-British pop singer/songwriter born in East Finchley, London. ...

March 10, 2004

• ROC presidential election, 2004: Wei Chueh, one of four Buddhist masters in Taiwan, controversially endorses Lien Chan. (BBC)
• National Hockey League hockey player Todd Bertuzzi is suspended for the remainder of the season and for the entire Stanley Cup playoffs for his hit on Steve Moore, which left him with two broken vertebrae in his neck. The Vancouver police department is also looking into the incident. (TSN)
• Girls Gone Wild videos of minors exposing their breasts are not child pornography, according to a Florida court. (FOX) (AP)
• U.S. officials tell of their plans to impose sanctions against Syria under the Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act. The Bush administration accuses Syria of sponsoring terrorism and developing chemical and biological weapons. (CNN)
• Kodak sues Sony over alleged violations of Kodak's patents on digital camera technology. (USA Today)
• U.S. presidential election: The Bush reelection campaign charges that an anti-Bush ad campaign funded with "soft money" from billionaire George Soros funding violates campaign finance laws. The Bush camp plans to file a complaint with the Federal Election Commission regarding a planned anti-Bush advertising campaign by The Media Fund. (CNN)
• Canadian federal election: Monia Mazigh, the wife of former Syrian deportee Maher Arar, announces her run for candidacy with the NDP in the riding of Ottawa South. (Globe and Mail)
• Lee Boyd Malvo is sentenced to life in prison without parole by a Virginia judge for his role in the Beltway Sniper Attacks.(CNN)

March 10 is the 69th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (70th in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Elections for the President and Vice President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) were held on March 20, 2004. ... Statues of Buddha such as this, the Tian Tan Buddha statue in Hong Kong, remind followers to practice right living. ... Lien Chan Lien Chan (連戰, in pinyin: Lián Zhàn) (born August 27, 1936, in Xian) is a Taiwanese politician. ... The modernized NHL shield logo, debuting in 2005. ... Ice hockey, known simply as hockey in areas where it is more common than field hockey, is a team sport played on ice. ... Todd Bertuzzi - #44 Todd Bertuzzi (b. ... The Stanley Cup is inscribed with the names of all the players on the teams that have won it. ... Steve Moore (Born September 22, 1978 in Windsor, Ontario, Canada) was an ice hockey player in the National Hockey League. ... Members of Parliament Libby Davies, Ujjal Dosanjh, David Emerson, Hedy Fry, Stephen Owen Members of the Legislative Assembly Gordon Campbell, David Chudnovsky, Adrian Dix, Colin Hansen, Jenny Kwan, Lorne Mayencourt, Wally Oppal, Gregor Robertson, Shane Simpson, Carole Taylor Mayor Larry Campbell Governing Body Vancouver City Council Latitude: Longitude: 49°16... Girls Gone Wild, created by Joe Francis, is a series of videos by American company Mantra Entertainment, which depict young women removing their clothing. ... The video cassette recorder (or VCR, less popularly video tape recorder) is a type of video tape recorder that uses removable cassettes containing magnetic tape to record audio and video from a television broadcast so it can be played back later. ... In law, a person who is not yet a legal adult is known as a minor (known in some places as an infant or juvenile). ... A pair of female breasts The term breast can refer to the upper ventral region of the human torso. ... The term child pornography (sometimes referred to as kiddie porn) generally refers to pornography featuring a child; however, the precise definition of pornography and child varies by region and country. ... State nickname: Sunshine State Other U.S. States Capital Tallahassee Largest city Jacksonville Governor Jeb Bush (R) Official languages English Area 170,451 km² (22nd)  - Land 137,374 km²  - Water 30,486 km² (17. ... A court is an official, public forum which a public power establishes by lawful authority to adjudicate disputes, and to dispense civil, labour, administrative and criminal justice under the law. ... Sanctions is the plural of sanction (see also penalty). ... The Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act is a bill of the United States Congress passed into law on December 12, 2003. ... The neutrality of this section is disputed. ... Early detection of chemical agents Sociopolitical climate of chemical warfare While the study of chemicals and their military uses was widespread in China, the use of toxic materials has historically been viewed with mixed emotions and some disdain in the West (especially when the enemy were doing it). ... Biological warfare, also known as germ warfare, is the use of any organism (bacteria, virus or other disease_causing organism) or toxin found in nature, as a weapon of war. ... Eastman Kodak Company (NYSE: EK) is a large multinational public company producing photographic equipment. ... Sony Corporation (Japanese katakana: ソニー) (TYO: 6758), (NYSE: SNE) is a global consumer electronics corporation based in Tokyo, Japan. ... A patent is a set of exclusive rights granted by a state to a person for a fixed period of time in exchange for the regulated, public disclosure of certain details of a device, method, process or substance (known as an invention) which is new, inventive and useful. ... A SiPix digital camera next to a matchbox to show scale. ... Presidential election results map. ... George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the current President of the United States. ... Soft money refers to money used to advance a particular political campaign in such a manner as to skirt the legal limits on how much money individuals or organizations are allowed to contribute to political campaigns (termed hard money). ... George Soros George Soros (born August 12, 1930 in Budapest, Hungary as Soros György) is a Hungarian-born American businessman. ... Campaign finance reform is the common term for the political effort in the United States to change the involvement of money in politics, primarily in political campaigns. ... The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is an independent regulatory agency created in 1975 by Congress to administer and enforce campaign finance legislation in the United States. ... The Media Fund is a 527 Group, active in U.S. politics, which was supporting John Kerrys campaign for President. ... A Canadian federal election (more formally, the 38th general election) was held on June 28, 2004 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons. ... Monia Mazigh is best known as the wife of Maher Arar. ... Maher Arar (born 1970) is a Canadian software engineer born in Syria. ... The New Democratic Party (French: Nouveau Parti démocratique) is a democratic socialist political party in Canada. ... This page refers to a Riding as a unit in local government. ... This article is about the capital city of Canada. ... Lee Boyd Malvo Lee Boyd Malvo (alias John Lee Malvo) (born February 18, 1985), along with John Allen Muhammad, was arrested on October 24, 2002 in connection with the Beltway sniper attacks. ... State nickname: Old Dominion Other U.S. States Capital Richmond Largest city Virginia Beach Governor Mark R. Warner (D) Official languages English Area 110,862 km² (35th)  - Land 102,642 km²  - Water 8,220 km² (7. ... Locations of the 15 sniper attacks numbered chronologically. ...

March 9, 2004

• March 9, 2004 attack of Istanbul restaurant in Turkey by two Islamic suicide bombers killing one, injuring five. (Reuters) (ChannelNewsAsia)
• California electricity crisis: Federal prosecutors plan to indict a Reliant Energy subsidiary for its alleged role in the energy shortage of 2000 and 2001. These would be the first criminal proceedings related to the crisis. (Houston Business Journal)
• New Hubble Space Telescope images show deepest view of the universe yet. (NYT)
• Opposition members of South Korea's parliament undertake the first steps in impeachment proceedings against President Roh Moo-hyun. (Reuters)
• John Allen Muhammad is sentenced to death by a Virginia judge for his role in the Beltway sniper attacks. (Bloomberg) (CNN)
• A genetically modified crop, Bayer's Chardon LL maize, is approved for growing in England for animal feed from 2005 until October 2006. The Scottish Executive also approves the move, but asks Scottish farmers to hold off. MPs and farmers protest in anger as the science is questioned. The Welsh National Assembly's Environment Minister announces he is still opposed to approving the crop. (New Scientist) (BBC) (BBC) (BBC) (Evening Standard)
• Pakistan announces a successful first flight test of its Hatf VI / Shaheen II long-range nuclear-capable ballistic missile. The missile has a range of 2,000 km (1,250 mi) and can carry a payload of 1,000 kg (2,200 lb). (BBC) (CNN)
• Five of the nine Britons held by American authorities at Guantanamo Bay under suspicion of having links to terrorist organisations are returned to Britain. They are to be questioned by British anti-terrorism police on arrival.(Reuters) (CNN)
• The FBI arrests William Cottrell, a Caltech student and alleged member of the Earth Liberation Front, in connection with last summer's spate of arson attacks at a car dealerships which destroyed or damaged over one hundred vehicles, including many Hummer H2 luxury SUVs. (AP) (Reuters)
• In the United States, EchoStar's Dish Network stops carrying channels owned by Viacom (CBS, MTV, Comedy Central, and others) in a dispute over the pricing of those channels. Both companies have used text crawls and other information to influence viewers to call the opposing company to negotiate price. (NYT) (Dow Jones) (Reuters) (Financial Times) (Motley Fool)
• Belinda Stronach, candidate for leader of the Conservative Party of Canada, is nominated as the Conservative candidate for the next federal election in the riding of Newmarket-Aurora, Ontario. (CBC)

March 9 is the 68th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (69th in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... An attack of an Istanbul restaurant on March 9, 2004 killed one, and injured five. ... Islam ( Arabic al-islām الإسلام,  listen?) the submission to God is a monotheistic faith and the worlds second-largest religion. ... The California electricity crisis of 2000 and 2001 followed a failed partial-deregulation, in 1996, of the electricity market in the state. ... Reliant Energy, Inc. ... The Hubble Space Telescope is a telescope in orbit around the Earth. ... Depiction of the impeachment trial of Andrew Johnson, then President of the United States, in 1868. ... Roh Moo-hyun (born September 1 (August 6 in lunar calendar), 1946) has been the President of South Korea since February 25, 2003. ... John Allen Muhammad (born John Allen Williams on December 31, 1960) carried out the Beltway sniper attacks in an apparent attempt to extort $10 million dollars through terrorism. ... State nickname: Old Dominion Other U.S. States Capital Richmond Largest city Virginia Beach Governor Mark R. Warner (D) Official languages English Area 110,862 km² (35th)  - Land 102,642 km²  - Water 8,220 km² (7. ... Locations of the 15 sniper attacks numbered chronologically. ... Genetic engineering, genetic modification (GM), and gene splicing (once in widespread use but now deprecated) are terms for the process of manipulating genes in an organism, usually outside of the organisms normal reproductive process. ... Bayer may also refer to Bayer Leverkusen. ... Binomial name Zea mays L. Maize (Zea mays ssp. ... Royal motto: Dieu et mon droit (French: God and my right) Englands location within the UK Official language English de facto Capital London de facto Largest city London Area  - Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population  - Total (2001)  - Density Ranked 1st UK 49,138,831 377/km² Ethnicity... The term Scottish Executive is used in two distinct but closely related senses. ... The National Assembly for Wales (or NAW) (Welsh: Cynulliad Cenedlaethol Cymru) was established in 1998, following the approval by a small majority of Welsh voters in a referendum held in 1997 of the Labour Governments proposals for devolution. ... The mushroom cloud of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan, 1945, rose some 18 km (11 mi) above the epicenter. ... Polish missile wz. ... Map of Cuba with location of Guantanamo Bay indicated. ... The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is a Federal police force which is the principal investigative arm of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). ... California Institute of Technology The California Institute of Technology (commonly known as Caltech) is a private, coeducational university located in Pasadena, California, in the United States. ... The Earth Liberation Front (ELF) is a global radical environmental movement. ... Arson is the crime of setting a fire with intent to cause damage. ... This article is about the Hummer vehicle. ... A sport utility vehicle (SUV) or off-roader is a vehicle that combines the load-hauling and passenger-carrying capacity of a large station wagon or minivan with features designed for off-road driving. ... Echostar Communications Corporation (NASDAQ: DISH) is the parent company of Dish Network and the maintainer of the satellite fleet that provides the signal which Dish Network markets. ... Dish Network is a direct broadcast satellite (DBS) service that broadcasts digital satellite television and audio to households in the United States, owned by EchoStar Communications Corporation. ... Viacom (short for Video & Audio Communications) [pronunciation: pre-Redstone/pre-1987: vee-a-com; post-Redstone acquisition: vi-a-com] (NYSE: VIA), (NYSE: VIAB) is an international media conglomerate. ... CBS (Columbia Broadcasting System) is a major radio and television network in the United States. ... ‹The template below has been proposed for deletion. ... Comedy Centrals current logo Comedy Centrals old logo Comedy Central is a cable television channel in the United States. ... This article needs cleanup. ... Belinda Stronach The Honourable Belinda Stronach, PC, MP, (born May 2, 1966 in Newmarket, Ontario) is a Canadian businesswoman, politician, and a Liberal Member of Parliament (MP) in the Canadian House of Commons. ... The Conservative Party of Canada (French: Parti conservateur du Canada) is a right wing political party in Canada, formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in December 2003. ...

March 8, 2004

• Todd Bertuzzi of the Vancouver Canucks ice hockey team hits rookie Steve Moore of the Colorado Avalanche in the middle of a game, fracturing vertebrae in Moore's neck and probably ending his career. (National Post)
• Dr. Jiang Yanyong, who exposed the SARS coverup in the People's Republic of China, sends a letter to the National People's Congress calling the forceful suppression of the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 a "mistake." (BBC)
• United States marines shoot and kill a Haitian gunman in front of Port-au-Prince's presidential palace after the man fired rounds at the marines and protesters. Supporters of former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide had shot and killed several anti-Aristide demonstrators.(NYT)
• Iraq's governing council unanimously approves the country's new constitution. (AP)
• On International Women's Day, Afghan President Hamid Karzai encourages men to allow their female relatives to vote in the upcoming election, but also suggests that they control those votes. (Toronto Star)
• On a visit to Ottawa, Secretary-General of the United Nations Kofi Annan addressed a dinner, saying that Canada is a pillar of the United Nations. (National Post)
• The United Kingdom's House of Lords votes to send the Constitutional Reform Bill, which will abolish the office of Lord Chancellor, create a new Supreme Court, and create a Judicial Appointments Commission, to a select committee for scrutiny, defeating the government. Government MPs claim this is a "wrecking" move, and threaten to use the Parliament Act to force the measure through. (BBC)

March 8 is the 67th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (68th in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Todd Bertuzzi - #44 Todd Bertuzzi (b. ... The Vancouver Canucks are a professional National Hockey League (NHL) ice hockey team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. ... Ice hockey, known simply as hockey in areas where it is more common than field hockey, is a team sport played on ice. ... Steve Moore (Born September 22, 1978 in Windsor, Ontario, Canada) was an ice hockey player in the National Hockey League. ... The Colorado Avalanche are a National Hockey League team based in Denver, Colorado. ... Jiang Yanyong Jiang Yanyong (Traditional Chinese: 蔣彥永, Simplified Chinese: 蒋彦永, Hanyu Pinyin: Jiǎng Yànyǒng, Wade-Giles: Chiang Yen-yung) (born 4 October 1931) is a Chinese physician from Beijing who publicized a coverup of the SARS epidemic in China. ... Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) is an atypical form of pneumonia. ... The Great Hall of the People, where the NPC convenes The National Peoples Congress (全国人民代表大会 in Pinyin: Quánguó Rénmín Dàibiǎo Dàhuì, literally Pan-Nation Congress of the Peoples Representatives), abbreviated PNCOTPR, is the highest legislative body in the Peoples Republic of China. ... The Unknown Rebel — This famous photo, taken by Associated Press photographer Jeff Widener, depicts a lone protester whose actions halted the progress of a column of advancing tanks for over half an hour. ... United States Marine Corps Emblem The United States Marine Corps (USMC) is a branch of the U.S. military. ... Categories: Caribbean geography stubs | Capitals in North America | Haiti ... Jean-Bertrand Aristide Jean-Bertrand Aristide (born July 15, 1953) is a Haitian politician and former Roman Catholic priest who was President of Haiti in 1991, from 1994 to 1996, and again from 2001 to 2004. ... International Womens Day, or International Womans Day (IWD), is marked on 8 March every year. ... Hamid Karzai, (Pushtu: حامد کرزي Dari: حامد کرزی) (born December 24, 1957) is the current and first democratically elected President of Afghanistan (since December 7, 2004). ... The Elections and Parties Series Democracy Representative democracy History of democracy Referenda Liberal democracy Representation Voting Voting systems Ideology Elections Elections by country Elections by calender Electoral systems Politics Politics by country Political campaigns Political science Political philosophy Related topics Political parties Parties by country Parties by name Parties by... This article is about the capital city of Canada. ... The United Nations Secretary-General is the head of the Secretariat, one of the principal divisions of the United Nations. ... Kofi Atta Annan (born April 8, 1938) is a Ghanian diplomat and the seventh and current Secretary-General of the United Nations. ... The United Nations, or UN, is an international organization established in 1945 and now made up of 191 states. ... This article is about the British House of Lords. ... The Constitutional Reform Bill was introduced to the House of Lords on February 24, 2004, and proposed the following changes: Abolition of the office of “Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain”, generally known as the Lord Chancellor. ... The Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, or Lord Chancellor and in former times Chancellor of England, is one of the most senior and important functionaries in the government of the United Kingdom. ... The supreme court in some countries, provinces, and states, is the highest court in that jurisdiction and functions as a court of last resort whose rulings cannot be appealed. ... In the United Kingdom, Parliament Act refers to each of two Acts of Parliament, passed in 1911 and 1949 respectively. ...

March 7, 2004

• The New York City medical examiner reveals that a body pulled from the East River is that of actor/writer Spalding Gray, missing since January. (NYT)
• Greek legislative election, 2004: New Democracy, led by Costas Karamanlis, wins over the Panhellenic Socialist Movement, led by George Papandreou.(BBC) (BBC)
• An explosion rocks a Moscow apartment block. Initial reports from police suggest that the explosion was caused by a bomb, in spite of increased security in the run-up to the presidential election on March 14. Later reports state that the explosion was due to a gas leak. (BBC)
• The White House reports that all of Libya's remaining nuclear weapons-related equipment has been sent to the United States. (BBC)
• Palestinian sources say that 14 people died after an Israeli raid into the refugee camps of al-Bureij and Nusseirat. Israeli sources say it was a "pinpoint" operation against the "terrorist infrastructure". (BBC)
• The 2004 Formula One championship gets under way with the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne. Michael Schumacher wins. (BBC)
• In Sweden some 15,500 skiers compete in the 80th installment of Vasaloppet, the oldest and longest cross-country ski race in the world. Norwegian Anders Aukland wins. (Sports Illustrated) (Vasaloppet press release)
• In Austria there are elections in the states of Salzburg and Carinthia. In Salzburg, the SPÖ earns a majority for the first time. In Carinthia, the election is an unexpected success for Jörg Haider (FPÖ).
• It is announced that Peter Maxwell Davies is to be the United Kingdom's next Master of the Queen's Music. (Scotsman)
• The headquarters of the US-led coalition in Baghdad come under rocket attack from Iraqi guerillas, the day before the new Iraqi temporary constitution is due to be signed. (BBC)

March 7 is the 66th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (67th in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Midtown Manhattan, looking north from the Empire State Building, 2005 New York City (officially named the City of New York) is the most populous city in the United States, and is at the center of international finance, politics, entertainment, and culture. ... This entry is about the East River in New York City. ... Spalding Gray (June 5, 1941 - about January 10, 2004) was a U.S. actor, screenwriter and playwright. ... Legislative elections were held in Greece on March 7, 2004. ... For the Canadian political party that ran in the 1940 Canadian election see New Democracy (Canada) Party logo New Democracy or ND (Greek: Νέα Δημοκρατία, Nea Dhimokratia), founded in 1974, is one of the main center-right liberal political parties in Greece. ... Costas Caramanlis Costas Caramanlis (in Greek Kostas or Konstantinos Karamanlis, Κωστας or Κωνσταντινος Καραμανλης) (born September 14, 1956) became Prime Minister of Greece on March 10, 2004 following his partys victory in the March 7 parliamentary elections. ... Party logo The Panhellenic Socialist Movement, better known as PASOK (Greek: Πανελλήνιο Σοσιαλιστικό Κίνημα, Panellinio Sosialistiko Kinima, ΠΑΣΟΚ), is a Greek social democratic political party. ... George Papandreou could be George Papandreou, senior, Giorgos Papandreou (1888-1968) Three time Prime Minister of Geece (1944-1945; 1963; 1964-1965) George Andreas Papandreou, (1952- ), grandson of George Papandreou, senior, former Foreign Minister of Greece from 1999 till 2004. ... Saint Basils Cathedral and Spasskaya Tower of Moscow Kremlin at Red Square. ... Massive ordinance air-burst bomb. ... Presidential elections were held in the Russian Federation on March 14, 2004. ... March 14 is the 73rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (74th in Leap years) with 292 days remaining in the year. ... Natural gas (commonly refered to as gas in many countries) is a gaseous fossil fuel consisting primarily of methane. ... The southern side of the White House The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of the United States. ... Weapons of mass destruction (WMD) generally include nuclear, biological, chemical and, increasingly, radiological weapons. ... The West Bank The Palestinian National Authority (PNA or PA) is a semi-autonomous state institution nominally governing the bulk of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip (which it calls the Palestinian Territories). It was established as a part of Oslo accords between the PLO and Israel. ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Main Article: History of Formula One See List of Formula One Grands Prix for results from past seasons and individual races. ... The Australian Grand Prix is a Formula One race held at the Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit in Albert Park as part of the annual Formula One championship season. ... The City of Melbournes coat of arms Melbourne is the capital and largest city of the state of Victoria, and the second largest city in Australia (after Sydney), with a population of 3,600,650 in the Melbourne metropolitan area (June 2004) and 61,670 in the City of... Michael Schumacher (born January 3, 1969) is a German Formula One (F1) driver. ... Vasaloppet is named after Gustav Vasas aborted escape in 1520. ... Skiing by free technique/skating Cross-country skiing (aka XC skiing) is an adventure and fitness activity as well as a competitive winter sport popular in many countries with large snowfields, primarily in Europe and Canada. ... Anders Aukland (born September 12, 1972 in Tønsberg) is a professional Norwegian cross country skier holding both Olympic and World Championship gold medals. ... Salzburg (area 7154 sq. ... Carinthia (German Kärnten, Slovenian Koroška) is a federal state or Bundesland, located in the south of Austria. ... The Social Democratic Party of Austria (Sozialdemokratische Partei Österreichs, SPÖ) is a political party in Austria. ... Jörg Haider in Carinthia (promotional photo) Jörg Haider (born January 26, 1950) is an Austrian politician. ... The Austrian Freedom Party (Freiheitliche Partei Österreichs, abbreviated to FPÖ) is an Austrian political party usually associated with the name of Jörg Haider. ... Sir Peter Maxwell Davies (born September 8, 1934) is a British composer. ... Master of the Queens Music (or Master of the Kings Music) is a prestigious post in the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. ... A street map of Baghdad Average temperature (red) and precipitations (blue) in Baghdad *See Bagdad, Tasmania for the Australian town of a similar name. ... The Iraqi resistance are the groups fighting against the U.S. occupation of Iraq and the U.S.-installed interim government of Iraq. ...

March 6, 2004

• Tens of thousands demonstrate in Caracas, Venezuela, against what they see as the government's fraud committed by the Consejo Nacional Electoral related to the realization of a presidential referendum in mid-2004.
• The United States puts forth a UN Security Council resolution seeking to freeze the assets of Charles Taylor, the exiled former president of Liberia. The U.S. also announces that it is pledging $35 million to help rebuild Liberia's armed forces and that it supports the cancellation of Liberia's international debt, providing that economic reforms are implemented. (BBC)
• Singer David Crosby is arrested in New York City after marijuana and a handgun were found in a suitcase Crosby accidentally left behind at his hotel. (CNN)
• Palestinians are killed and wounded in attack on the main crossing point between the Gaza Strip and Israel. Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades claim responsibility. (BBC)
• Teenagers released from Guantanamo Bay's Camp X-Ray recall the place fondly. (Guardian)
• Turkish politicians claim that there is political consensus within Turkey to join the European Union, despite the EU's demands for changes before that can occur. (IHT)
• Up to 80,000 people march through the Turkish capital Ankara against plans to reform the country's civil service. The marchers fear that the reforms could lead to the civil service becoming politicised or losing its secular status. (BBC)
• Canadian federal election: Former deputy prime minister Sheila Copps loses the Liberal constituency nomination to current Transport Minister Tony Valeri by 311 votes. She will likely appeal; there is some speculation that if the loss remains, she will either run as an independent or for the NDP. (Toronto Star)
• The scientists of the Russian polar research station near the North Pole are evacuated from their shifting and cracking ice floe by two Russian helicopters via Norway's Spitzbergen island. (BBC)

March 6 is the 65th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (66th in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Cerro Avila, Caracas. ... The Consejo Nacional Electoral (National Electoral Council, or CNE) is the institution in charge of all electoral processes that take place in Venezuela. ... A session of the Security Council in progress The United Nations Security Council is the most powerful organ of the United Nations. ... Charles Taylor announces his resignation on Liberian TV, 2003 Charles Ghankay Taylor (born January 28, 1948) was the President of Liberia from 1997 to 2003. ... David Van Cortland Crosby (born August 14, 1941 in Los Angeles, California) is a guitarist, singer, and songwriter. ... Midtown Manhattan, looking north from the Empire State Building, 2005 New York City (officially named the City of New York) is the most populous city in the United States, and is at the center of international finance, politics, entertainment, and culture. ... Cannabis is a plant also known as Cannabis sativa, hemp, or marijuana. ... A handgun is a firearm small enough to be carried and used in one hand. ... The Palestinians are a mainly Arabic-speaking people with family origins in Palestine. ... The Hamas emblem shows two crossed swords, the Dome of the Rock, and a map of the land they claim as Palestine (roughly, present-day Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip). ... Islamic Jihad (Arabic: Harakat al-Jihad al-Islami) is a militant Islamist group based in the Syrian capital, Damascus. ... The Al_Aqsa Martyrs Brigades (كتائب شهداء الاقصى) are one of the militias of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafats al_Fatah faction. ... Map of Cuba with location of Guantanamo Bay indicated. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Camp Delta. ... The Elections and Parties Series Democracy Representative democracy History of democracy Referenda Liberal democracy Representation Voting Voting systems Ideology Elections Elections by country Elections by calender Electoral systems Politics Politics by country Political campaigns Political science Political philosophy Related topics Political parties Parties by country Parties by name Parties by... Ankara from the Atakule Tower, looking N-NE Ankara is the capital of Turkey and the countrys second largest city after Istanbul. ... A civil servant or public servant is a civilian career public sector employee working for a government department or agency. ... A Canadian federal election (more formally, the 38th general election) was held on June 28, 2004 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons. ... The Honourable Sheila Maureen Copps, PC , BA (born November 27, 1952, in Hamilton, Ontario) is a Canadian journalist and politician. ... The Liberal Party of Canada (French: Parti libéral du Canada) is Canadas current governing political party. ... Tony Valeri (born September 8, 1957) is the Canadian Leader of the Government in the House of Commons. ... This page is about the Canadian political party. ... A North Pole is the northernmost point on any planet. ... Spitsbergen is the largest island in the Svalbard archipelago, which is situated in the Arctic Ocean and administered by Norway. ...

March 5, 2004

• The U.S. Republican National Committee sends a letter to hundreds of television stations, warning the stations about airing anti-Bush advertisements sponsored by MoveOn.org. The letter warns that the ads may be financed with money raised in violation of the 2002 Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act. (CNN)
• U.S. Patent and Trademark Office invalidates patent claim to Web browser technology central to a case by Eolas against Microsoft. (CNet)
• The United States Department of Labor releases a report showing that job growth all but stalled in February. (PBS)
• Libya admits to having stockpiled 23 metric tons of mustard gas in its declaration to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons in The Hague. (AP) (OPCW press release)
• SCO v. IBM: U.S. District Judge Brooke Wells orders the two involved companies to produce, within 45 days, lines of code and documentation supporting their cases. (USA Today)
• U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft is hospitalized for gallstone pancreatitis. (Drudge) (CNN)
• The National People's Congress convenes in Beijing. Premier Wen Jiabao makes his first state address, saying that "solving the problems of agriculture, villages and farmers is one of the most crucial parts of our entire work". (BBC)
• Civilian Russian engineers may have secretly aided Saddam Hussein's long-range ballistic missile program, providing technical assistance for prohibited Iraqi weapons projects. (IHT)
• Last minute disagreement delays signing of Iraq's interim constitution. (Radio Free Europe) (USA Today)
• The Russian polar station will be evacuated. Russia launches rescue operation to evacuate 12 of its scientists stranded on a research station (which partially sank) near the North Pole. (Pravda) (BBC)
• Tony Blair defends the war in Iraq, stating that "global threat we face in Britain and round the world is real and existential and it is the task of leadership to expose it and fight it, whatever the political cost." (ABC) (Scotsman)
• Same-sex marriage in the United States: The Wisconsin State Assembly approves state constitution amendment (voted 68-27) to ban same-sex marriages or civil unions, to counter efforts elsewhere to legalize such partnerships. The Kansas House passes, by 88 votes to 36, a proposed amendment. (Pittsburg KS Morning Sun) (USA Today)
• Police hold a Haifa man, Eliran Golan, and his 54-year-old father in custody on suspicion of involvement in making and planting bombs over the last three years. Haifa Magistrate court extends for five days the remand of Yivgeny Grossman. Grossman denies any connection. (Haaretz) (Jerusalem Post)
• Martha Stewart is found guilty by a jury on charges of conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and two counts of making false statements regarding alleged insider trading in December 2001. She faces up to 20 years in prison, though it is considered unlikely that she would be sentenced to that maximum. Sentencing is set for June 17. (SF Chronicle)
• Nunavut general election, 2004: the new legislature returns Paul Okalik to office as premier of Nunavut, the largest territory of Canada. (CBC)
• Key Tokyo stock indexes (Nikkei 225 and Topix) hit 21-month highs.
• The trial of former Finnish Prime Minister Anneli Jäätteenmäki ends. She has been accused of leaking secret foreign ministry documents referring to her predecessor Paavo Lipponen's meetings with George W. Bush. (BBC)

March 5 is the 64th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (65th in leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Republican National Committee (RNC) of the United States provides national leadership for the United States Republican Party. ... A group of MoveOn volunteers helped the get-out-the-vote drive in Cincinnati in the run-up to the 2004 U.S. presidential election. ... The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (BCRA) is U.S. Congressional legislation which regulates the financing of political campaigns. ... The United States Patent and Trademark Office (PTO or USPTO) is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that provides patent and trademark protection to inventors and businesses for their inventions and corporate and product identification. ... A patent is a set of exclusive rights granted by a state to a person for a fixed period of time in exchange for the regulated, public disclosure of certain details of a device, method, process or substance (known as an invention) which is new, inventive and useful. ... A web browser is a software application that enables a user to display and interact with HTML documents hosted by web servers or held in a file system. ... // Technology [from Gr. ... Eolas is a United States research and development company and patent licensee. ... Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) is the worlds largest software company, with over 50,000 employees in various countries as of May 2004. ... The United States Department of Labor is a Cabinet department of the United States government responsible for occupational safety, wage and hour standards, unemployment insurance benefits, re-employment services, and some economic statistics. ... February is the second month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... Chemical Structure of Mustard Gas Compound Mustard gas (HD) is a chemical compound that was first used as a chemical weapon in World War I. In pure form, it is a colorless, odorless, viscous liquid at room temperature and causes blistering of the skin. ... The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is an agency of the United Nations. ... Arms of The Hague The Hague (with capital T; Dutch: Den Haag, or officially s-Gravenhage) is the administrative capital of the Netherlands, located in the west of the country, in the province South Holland of which it is also the capital. ... On March 6, 2003, the SCO Group (formerly known as Caldera Systems) filed a $1 billion lawsuit in the US against IBM for allegedly devaluing its version of the UNIX operating system. ... The United States Attorney General is the head of the United States Department of Justice concerned with legal affairs and is the chief law enforcement officer of the United States government. ... John David Ashcroft (born May 9, 1942) was the 79th Attorney General of the United States. ... Pancreatitis is inflammation of the pancreas. ... The Great Hall of the People, where the NPC convenes The National Peoples Congress (全国人民代表大会 in Pinyin: Quánguó Rénmín Dàibiǎo Dàhuì, literally Pan-Nation Congress of the Peoples Representatives), abbreviated PNCOTPR, is the highest legislative body in the Peoples Republic of China. ... Beijing   listen? (Chinese: 北京; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Pei-ching; Postal System Pinyin: Peking) is the capital city of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC). ... Wen Jiabao (Simplified Chinese: 温家宝; Traditional Chinese: 溫家寶; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Wen Chia-pao) (born September 1942) is the Premier of the State Council of the Peoples Republic of China. ... Polish missile wz. ... This article is about the profession. ... A North Pole is the northernmost point on any planet. ... The Right Honourable Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953 in Edinburgh, Scotland) is the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. ... The 2003 invasion of Iraq was launched by the United States and the United Kingdom on March 20, 2003, with support from some other governments, making up what was described as the coalition of the willing. The invasions legitimacy has been disputed: the main officially stated reason was that... The World in plate carrée projection The World In English, world is rooted in a compound of the obsolete words were, man, and eld, age; thus, its oldest meaning is Age of Man. ... In common usage, leadership generally refers to: the position or office of an authority figure, such as a President [1] a position of office associated with technical skill or experience, as in a team leader or a chief engineer a group or person in the vanguard of some trend or... Same-sex marriage, often referred to as gay marriage, indicates a marriage between two persons of the same sex. ... The Wisconsin State Assembly, similar to the United States House of Representatives, is the lower house of the Wisconsin State Legislature, larger than the Wisconsin State Senate. ... Ban could be: ban, a decree that prohibits something, a form of censorship ban, a barring of access of resources on the Internet Ban, a king from Arthurian legend. ... Since its coining, the term homosexuality has acquired multiple meanings. ... Same-sex marriage is marriage between individuals who are of the same legal or biological sex. ... A civil union is one of several terms for a civil status similar to marriage, typically created for the purposes of allowing homosexual couples access to the benefits enjoyed by married heterosexuals (see also same-sex marriage); it can also be used by couples of differing sexes who do not... An interpersonal relationship is some relationship or connection between two people. ... State nickname: The Sunflower State Other U.S. States Capital Topeka Largest city Wichita Governor Kathleen Sebelius (D) Official languages None Area 82,277 mi²; 213,096 km² (15th)  - Land 81,815 mi²; 211,900 km²  - Water 462 mi²; 1,196 km² (0. ... For the Lebanese singer, see Haifa Wehbe Haifa (Hebrew חֵיפָה Ḥefa, Ḥeyfa; Arabic حَيْفَا Ḥayfā) is the third-largest city in Israel, with a population close to 300,000. ... Massive ordinance air-burst bomb. ... Martha Stewart Martha Helen Stewart (née Kostyra) (born August 3, 1941) is a popular Polish-American television and magazine personality known for her cooking, gardening, etiquette, and arts and crafts projects, and as a general lifestyle guide and homemaker. ... Obstruction of justice, in a common law state, refers to the crime of offering interference of any sort to the work of police, investigators, regulatory agencies, prosecutors, or other (usually government) officials. ... There are two kinds of trading that are referred to as insider trading: Trading of a security of a company (, shares or options) based on material nonpublic information. ... June 17 is the 168th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (169th in leap years), with 197 days remaining. ... Nunavut, Canada conducted its second general election on February 16, 2004, to elect the 19 members of the Legislative Assembly. ... Paul Okalik Hon. ... Paul Okalik, current premier of Nunavut The Premier of Nunavut is the first minister for the Canadian territory of Nunavut. ... Motto: Nunavut Sannginivut (Inuktitut, Nunavut our strength / Our land our strength) Other Canadian provinces and territories Capital Iqaluit Largest city Iqaluit Commissioner Ann Meekitjuk Hanson Premier Paul Okalik (independent) Area 2,093,190 km² (1st)  - Land 1,936,113 km²  - Water 157,077 km² (7. ... Canada consists of ten provinces and three territories. ... Nikkei 225 (日経平均株価, 日経225) is a stock market index for the Tokyo Stock Exchange. ... Topix, along with Nikkei 225, is a major index for the Tokyo stock exchange in Japan, tracking 1645 companies. ... Anneli Jäätteenmäki, Prime Minister 2003, MEP 2004- Anneli Tuulikki Jäätteenmäki (Master of Laws, born February 11, 1955 in Lapua) was the first female Prime Minister of Finland, in office April 17th, 2003, to June 18th, 2003. ... Paavo Tapio Lipponen (b. ... George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the current President of the United States. ...

March 4, 2004

• The guilty verdict for Moroccan al-Qaeda suspect Mounir el Motassadeq's involvement in the September 11, 2001 attacks is overturned by the German appeals court, which orders a retrial. (Globe and Mail)
• Three American Muslims accused of using paintball games to train for a jihad (holy war) are found guilty of conspiracy charges. (FOX)
• Horst Köhler resigns as the head of the IMF in order to accept the nomination for Presidency of Germany.
• Michael Dell, head of Dell Computers announces that he will step down as CEO of the computer manufacturer. However, he will still retain his position as chairman of the board. Dell president and COO, Kevin Rollins will assume the role of CEO. (CNN)
• A significant copyright ruling by Supreme Court of Canada discusses fair dealing. (text of ruling)
• Chinese authorities release Wang Youcai, a day after Rabiya Kadeer's release (BBC)
• U.S. presidential election, 2004:
  • Controversy erupts over the US Republican Party's use of imagery from the September 11, 2001 attacks in campaign advertising, with some supporting the President, like Republican ex-New York mayor Rudolph Giuliani, and some victims' families objecting strongly. (AP) (Guardian) (BBC) (Scotsman)
  • US Democratic Party labels the Bush campaign an "attack machine" which they vow to thwart at every turn. "Fund raising and the race to define your opponent before he defines you that's what it's all about," said one Democratic strategist yesterday. (Washington Times) The White House defends the use of images from the 2001 terror attacks in adverts for President Bush's re-election campaign. Karen Hughes states, "It's a reminder of our shared experience as a nation ... not just some distant tragedy from the past. It really defined our future". (BBC)
• Israeli tanks (around 15 armoured vehicles escorted by several bulldozers) enter the town of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, exchanging gunfire with resistance and later demolishing a four-storey building, claiming "anti-terrorist operations". (Australian)
• The Prime Minister of Malaysia dissolves the national parliament and all state assemblies except Sarawak's, paving the way for the general election to be held within 60 days as dictated by the constitution. (BBC)

March 4 is the 63rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (64th in leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Guilt is a concept used in various ways in various contexts. ... In law, a verdict indicates the judgment of a case before a court of law. ... Al-Qaeda (Arabic: القاعدة, the foundation or the base) is the name given to a worldwide network of militant Islamist organizations under the leadership of Osama bin Laden. ... Mounir El Motassadeq stood trial in 2003 for participation in the September 11, 2001 attacks. ... The September 11, 2001 attacks were a series of coordinated attacks carried out in the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. ... A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم) is a believer in or follower of Islam. ... Paintball player Paintball team Two paintball players Paintball is a game whose participants use gas-powered markers to launch marble-sized gelatin capsules containing an oil based vegetable dye, which can come in many colors and variations, such as white, orange, yellow, green and glow in the dark . ... Jihad (ǧihād جهاد) is an Islamic term, from the Arabic root ǧhd (to exert utmost effort, to strive, struggle), which connotes a wide range of meanings: anything from an inward spiritual struggle to attain perfect faith to a political or military struggle to further the Islamic cause. ... Conspiracy, in common usage, is the act of working in secret to obtain some goal, usually understood with negative connotations. ... Horst Köhler (   listen?, born 22 February 1943) is the President of Germany. ... The flag of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is the international organization entrusted with overseeing global financial system‘s current trade account balances of member states. ... Michael Dell Michael Saul Dell (born February 23, 1965 in Houston, Texas) is an American businessman. ... Dell, Inc. ... Kevin B. Rollins is the president and CEO of Dell Computers INC. Prior to becoming CEO in July 2004, Mr. ... For copyright issues in relation to Wikipedia itself, see Wikipedia:Copyrights. ... The Supreme Court Building in Ottawa The Supreme Court of Canada is Canadas highest court and is located in the capital city of Ottawa. ... Fair dealing is a doctrine of limitations and exceptions to copyright which is found in many of the common law jurisdictions of the Commonwealth of Nations. ... This article needs to be wikified. ... Presidential election results map. ... The Republican Party, often called the GOP (for Grand Old Party, although one early citation described it as the Gallant Old Party [1]), is one of the two major political parties in the United States. ... The September 11, 2001 attacks were a series of coordinated attacks carried out in the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. ... State nickname: Empire State Other U.S. States Capital Albany Largest city New York Governor George Pataki (R) Official languages None (English is de facto) Area 141,205 km² (27th)  - Land 122,409 km²  - Water 18,795 km² (13. ... A mayor (from the Latin maÄ«or, meaning larger,greater) is the politician who serves as chief executive official of some types of municipalities. ... Rudolph William Louis Rudy Giuliani III, KBE (born May 28, 1944) served as the Mayor of New York City from January 1, 1994 through December 31, 2001. ... The Democratic Party is one of the two major United States political parties. ... The southern side of the White House The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of the United States. ... Rafah (Arabic: رفح Hebrew: רפיח) is a town in the Gaza Strip, on the Egyptian border, and a nearby town on the Egyptian side of the border, on the Sinai Peninsula. ... The Prime Minister of Malaysia is the elected head of government of Malaysia. ... The Parliament of Malaysia consists of the lower house (Dewan Rakyat or literally Peoples Hall, in Malay) and upper house (Dewan Negara or Nations Hall in Malay). ... State motto: no State motto Capital Kuching Governor -T.Y.T Tun Datuk Patinggi Abang Muhammad Salahuddin Chief Minister Y.A.B. Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Haji Abdul Taib Bin Mahmud / Pehin Sri Dr. Hj. ... General elections were held in Malaysia on March 21, 2004. ...

March 3, 2004

• Abdurahman Khadr, a suspected terrorist, and his family confess on CBC national television that "We are an al-Qaeda family" and that they lived with Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan.(CBC)
• Serious controversy in Greece over a flyer with propaganda against George Papandreou, just some days before the elections of Sunday, March 7, 2004. The opposition party New Democracy (ND) is accused by Anna Diamantopoulou (member of the currently ruling Panhellenic Socialist Movement - PASOK) that printed and mailed the controversial flyer to members of the Greek Eastern Christian Church's clergy. The flyer is describing George Papandreou as an Atheist who is against the Church and the national and religious symbols. (MPA) (IN.gr) (IN.gr) (MPA)
• At the Walt Disney Company's Annual General Meeting, about 43% of Walt Disney stockholders, including several prominent pension funds, vote to oppose the re-election of Chairman and CEO Michael Eisner. The board of directors replaces him as Chairman with George J. Mitchell. (CNN) (TheStreet)
• Researchers at Harvard University announce that they will give scientists free access to 17 human embryonic stem cell lines created without U.S. federal funding. This move is expected to boost stem cell research in the face of federal funding restrictions announced in 2001 by the Bush administration. (CNN)
• A new government of Serbia, headed by Vojislav Kostunica, is approved by parliament. (BBC)
• Israeli-Palestinian conflict:
  • Israeli aircraft destroy a car in the Gaza strip with missile fire, killing three people acknowledged by Palestinian officials as members of the militant group Hamas. (BBC)
  • A group of Israelis join a court challenge against the Israeli West Bank barrier out of concern it could turn their good Palestinian neighbors into deadly enemies. (Reuters)
• In the trial of Martha Stewart and her broker, Judge Miriam Goldman gives the jury its instructions. (TheStreet)
• New claims of bubble fusion are made, claiming that the results of previous experiments have been replicated under more stringent experimental conditions. (RPI press release) (NY Times)
• In an interview published today, former U.S. and U.N. weapons inspector David Kay says that President George W. Bush and his administration should admit the United States was wrong about the existence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. "It's about confronting and coming clean with the American people," he said. (The Guardian)

March 3 is the 62nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (63rd in leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Abdurahman Khadr (born 1983) is a United States at Guantanamo Bay after being detained in Afghanistan and alleged to have had connections to al_Qaida. ... The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known by the abbreviation CBC, is Canadas government-owned radio and television broadcaster. ... Al-Qaeda (Arabic: القاعدة, the foundation or the base) is the name given to a worldwide network of militant Islamist organizations under the leadership of Osama bin Laden. ... Osama bin Laden Usāmah bin Muhammad bin `Awad bin Lādin (born March 10, 1957) (Arabic: ), commonly known as Osama bin Laden (Arabic: ), is usually considered to be the figurehead of al-Qaeda, a Sunni Islamist terrorist network that has been involved in attacks against civilians and military targets... An early hand-drawn flyer advertising a Goa trance party from Israel. ... North Korean propaganda showing a soldier destroying the United States Capitol building. ... George Papandreou could be George Papandreou, senior, Giorgos Papandreou (1888-1968) Three time Prime Minister of Geece (1944-1945; 1963; 1964-1965) George Andreas Papandreou, (1952- ), grandson of George Papandreou, senior, former Foreign Minister of Greece from 1999 till 2004. ... See Election (movie) for the film directed by Alexander Payne. ... Sunday is considered either the first or the seventh day of the week, between Saturday and Monday, and the second day of the weekend in some cultures. ... March 7 is the 66th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (67th in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... For the Canadian political party that ran in the 1940 Canadian election see New Democracy (Canada) Party logo New Democracy or ND (Greek: Νέα Δημοκρατία, Nea Dhimokratia), founded in 1974, is one of the main center-right liberal political parties in Greece. ... Party logo The Panhellenic Socialist Movement, better known as PASOK (Greek: Πανελλήνιο Σοσιαλιστικό Κίνημα, Panellinio Sosialistiko Kinima, ΠΑΣΟΚ), is a Greek social democratic political party. ... Clergy is the generic term used to describe the formal religious leadership within a given religion. ... For information about the band, see Atheist (band). ... A church building is a building used in Christian worship. ... Alternate meanings: Disney (disambiguation) The Walt Disney Company (also known as Disney Enterprises, Inc. ... AGM can refer to: Annual General Meeting Air-to-ground missile Missile Range Instrumentation Ship (US Navy hull classification symbol) Attack Guidance Matrix Absorbed Glass Mat Area General Manager Association Genevoise des Malentendants Arithmetic geometric mean Assistant GameMaster This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages... Michael Dammann Eisner (born March 7, 1942) has been the head of The Walt Disney Company since 1984. ... George John Mitchell, GBE (born August 20, 1933 in Waterville, Maine) is Chairman of the Walt Disney Company. ... Harvard University is a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA, and a member of the Ivy League. ... Mouse embryonic stem cells. ... 2001: A Space Odyssey. ... George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the current President of the United States. ... Serbia and Montenegro  â€“ Serbia    â€“ Kosovo and Metohia        (UN administration)    â€“ Vojvodina  â€“ Montenegro Official language Serbian1 Capital Belgrade Area  â€“ Total  â€“ % water  88,361 km²  n/a Population  â€“ Total (2002)     (without Kosovo)  â€“ Density  7. ... Vojislav Koštunica [pronounced voy-ees-lahf kosh-TOON-ee-tsa] (born March 24, 1944) is the Prime Minister in the Government of Serbia and a lawyer from Serbia. ... // Israel, the West Bank and Gaza Strip are at the center of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. ... The Hamas emblem shows two crossed swords, the Dome of the Rock, and a map of the land they claim as Palestine (roughly, present-day Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip). ... The barrier route as of February 2005 The Israeli West Bank barrier (commonly referred to as a fence by its supporters and a wall by its opponents) is a physical barrier consisting of a network of fences, walls, and trenches, which is being constructed by Israel. ... Martha Stewart Martha Helen Stewart (née Kostyra) (born August 3, 1941) is a popular Polish-American television and magazine personality known for her cooking, gardening, etiquette, and arts and crafts projects, and as a general lifestyle guide and homemaker. ... Bubble fusion is the common name for a nuclear fusion reaction hypothesized to occur during sonoluminescence, an extreme form of acoustic cavitation. ... The United Nations, or UN, is an international organization established in 1945 and now made up of 191 states. ... David Kay David Kay is an American scientist who is best known for heading the Iraq Survey Group and acting as a weapons inspector in Iraq after the 2003 Invasion of Iraq. ... George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the current President of the United States. ... Weapons of mass destruction (WMD) generally include nuclear, biological, chemical and, increasingly, radiological weapons. ...

March 2, 2004

• Israeli-Palestinian conflict:
  • The Palestinian Authority's prisoners' affairs ministry states in its monthly statistical report that the number of Palestinian prisoners has risen to around 7,500. Of those 336 are children, 75 female and 943 in need of medical treatment. Of the 166 prisoners who died, 41% died as a result of medical negligence, while 18% died as a result of torture. (palestine-info.co.uk) (Jihad Unspun)
  • Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics reports 1,850 new housing units in the Jewish settlements Israel built in the West Bank and Gaza Strip in 2003, up by 35 percent from the previous year. (BBC)
• U.S. Democratic Presidential Nomination:
  • John Kerry wins the Super Tuesday primaries in California, Connecticut, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Ohio, and Rhode Island and caucus in Minnesota, effectively clinching the nomination. Howard Dean wins in his home state of Vermont even though he is no longer actively campaigning. John Edwards is reported to be withdrawing from the race three hours before polls close in California and just as the caucuses begin in Minnesota.(NC News & Observer)
  • Scattered problems crop up with electronic voting systems.(AP) (Tri-Valley Herald)
• Same-sex marriage in the United States:
  • Jason West, mayor of New Paltz, New York is charged with 19 criminal counts of solemnizing marriages without a license. If convicted, he faces up to a $500 fine and a year in jail on each count.(Newsday)
  • Multnomah County, Oregon prepares to begin solemnizing same-sex marriages, after its attorney issues a legal opinion deeming such marriages lawful. (SF Chronicle)
• Exploration of Mars: NASA announces that Mars rover Opportunity landed in an area where "liquid water once drenched the surface". (SF Chronicle)
• Bernard Ebbers, ex-CEO of Worldcom, is indicted on three counts of conspiracy for his alleged role in that company's $11 billion accounting scandal in 2002. Worldcom's CFO Scott Sullivan pleads guilty and is expected to cooperate with prosecutors against Ebbers. (CNN)
• Multiple explosions hit Shiite shrines in Baghdad and Karbala on the Shia festival of Ashura. Over 180 people are reported killed. A three-day long period of national mourning is announced. (BBC)
• Iraq gets a Bill of Rights, including guarantees of freedom of religion and press, in the form of the Law of Administering the Iraqi State for the Transitional Period. (Washington Times)
• The U.S. declares its 2,000-man force to have leadership over all foreign military forces in Haiti. President Bush chose not to wait for the UN Security Council but, instead, to intervene immediately to "restore order" in the western hemisphere's poorest country. (Washington Times)
• The European Union imposes additional 5% tariffs on a wide range of goods imported from the United States, such as honey, paper, and nuclear reactors. The tariffs were sanctioned by the World Trade Organization in 2002 as punitive measures after a ruling declaring that United States tax law unfairly favors U.S.-based companies. (BBC)
• The European Space Agency's Rosetta space probe is successfully launched aboard an Ariane 5 rocket on a mission to investigate the comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. (BBC)

March 2 is the 61st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (62nd in leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... // Israel, the West Bank and Gaza Strip are at the center of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. ... The West Bank The Palestinian National Authority (PNA or PA) is a semi-autonomous state institution nominally governing the bulk of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip (which it calls the Palestinian Territories). It was established as a part of Oslo accords between the PLO and Israel. ... The Iron Maiden of Nuremberg was a famous, but probably mythical, torture device Torture is the infliction of severe physical or psychological pain as an expression of cruelty, a means of intimidation, deterrent or punishment, or as a tool for the extraction of information or confessions. ... The 2004 U.S. Democratic Party presidential nomination process was a series of primaries and caucuses culminating in the Democratic National Convention that decided which pair of candidates would represent the Democrats in the 2004 election for President and Vice President of the United States. ... John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is the junior United States Senator from Massachusetts. ... In the United States, Super Tuesday commonly refers to a Tuesday in early March of a presidential election year. ... State nickname: The Golden State Other U.S. States Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) Official languages English Area 410,000 km² (3rd)  - Land 404,298 km²  - Water 20,047 km² (4. ... State nickname: The Constitution State Other U.S. States Capital Hartford Largest city Bridgeport Governor M. Jodi Rell (R) Official languages English Area 14,371 km² (48th)  - Land 12,559 km²  - Water 1,809 km² (12. ... State nickname: Old Line State; Free State Other U.S. States Capital Annapolis Largest city Baltimore Governor Robert L. Ehrlich (R) Official languages English Area 32,160 km² (42nd)  - Land 25,338 km²  - Water 6,968 km² (21%) Population (2000)  - Population 5,296,486 (19th)  - Density 165 /km² (5th) Admission... State nickname: Bay State Other U.S. States Capital Boston Largest city Boston Governor Mitt Romney (R) Official languages English Area 27,360 km² (44th)  - Land 20,317 km²  - Water 7,043 km² (25. ... State nickname: Empire State Other U.S. States Capital Albany Largest city New York Governor George Pataki (R) Official languages None (English is de facto) Area 141,205 km² (27th)  - Land 122,409 km²  - Water 18,795 km² (13. ... State nickname: The Buckeye State Other U.S. States Capital Columbus Largest city Columbus Governor Bob Taft (R) Official languages None Area 116,096 km² (34th)  - Land 106,154 km²  - Water 10,044 km² (8. ... State nickname: The Ocean State, Little Rhody Other U.S. States Capital Providence Largest city Providence Governor Donald Carcieri (R) Official languages None Area 4,005 km² (50th)  - Land 2,709 km²  - Water 1,296 km² (32. ... State nickname: North Star State Other U.S. States Capital Saint Paul Largest city Minneapolis Governor Tim Pawlenty (R) Official languages None Area 225,365 km² (12th)  - Land 206,375 km²  - Water 18,990 km² (8. ... Howard Brush Dean III, M.D. (born November 17, 1948) is a prominent American Democratic politician, currently serving as chairman of the Democratic National Committee. ... State nickname: The Green Mountain State Other U.S. States Capital Montpelier Largest city Burlington Governor Jim Douglas (R) Official languages None Area 24,923 km² (45th)  - Land 23,974 km²  - Water 949 km² (3. ... This article is about the American politician, former Senator, and 2004 Vice Presidential candidate. ... Electronic voting (also known as e-voting and including Internet voting and other online voting) is any of several means of determining peoples collective intent electronically. ... Same-sex marriage, often referred to as gay marriage, indicates a marriage between two persons of the same sex. ... Jason West is the mayor of New Paltz, a small town in the Hudson Valley region of New York. ... New Paltz is a village in Ulster County in the U.S. state of New York. ... Location in the state of Oregon Formed 22 December 1854 Seat Portland Area  - Total  - Water 1,206 km² (466 mi²) 79 km² (30 mi²) 6. ... Computer generated image of one of the two Mars Exploration Rovers which touched down on Mars in 2004. ... The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), which was established in 1958, is the agency responsible for the public space program of the United States of America. ... Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the solar system, named after the Roman god of war (the counterpart of the Greek Ares), on account of its blood red color as viewed in the night sky. ... MER-B (Opportunity) is the second of the two rovers of NASAs Mars Exploration Rover Mission. ... Bernard John Ebbers Bernard John Ebbers, also known as Bernie Ebbers (born August 27, 1941 in Edmonton, Alberta), is a Canadian-born businessman. ... Chief Executive Officer (CEO) is the job of having the ultimate executive responsibility or authority within an organization or corporation. ... For a time, WorldCom (WCOM) was the United States second largest long distance phone company (AT&T was the largest). ... In the common law legal system, an indictment is a formal charge of having committed a serious criminal offense. ... ... 2002 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... CFO is usually short for Chief Financial Officer, but may also mean: Carrier frequency offset Ceramic fiber optics Chief Fire Officer Chief of Flight Operations Conselho Federal de Odontologia (cfo. ... William Scott Sullivan is a pitcher currently with the Kansas City Royals and has a career ERA of 3. ... A street map of Baghdad Average temperature (red) and precipitations (blue) in Baghdad *See Bagdad, Tasmania for the Australian town of a similar name. ... Karbalā (Arabic: ; also transliterated as Kerbala or Kerbela) is a city in Iraq, located about 100 km southwest of Baghdad at 32. ... Shiʻa Islam (Arabic شيعى follower; English has traditionally used Shiite) makes up the second largest sect of believers in Islam, constituting about 30%–35% of all Muslim. ... The Day of Aashurah, sometimes spelled ‘Ashurah or Aashoorah, falls on the 10th day of Muharram in the Islamic calendar. ... A bill of rights is a statement of certain rights that citizens and/or residents of a free and democratic society have (or ought to have) under the laws of that society. ... The Law of Administration for the State of Iraq for the Transitional Period is the current Iraqi constitution signed on March 8, 2004 by the Iraq Interim Governing Council. ... A session of the Security Council in progress The United Nations Security Council is the most powerful organ of the United Nations. ... A tariff is a tax placed on imported and/or exported goods, sometimes called a customs duty. ... Honey honey comb A capped frame of honeycomb Honey is a sweet and viscous fluid produced by bees and other insects from the nectar of flowers. ... Piece of paper Paper is a thin, flat material produced by the compression of fibres. ... Nuclear power station at Leibstadt, Switzerland. ... The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an international organization which oversees a large number of agreements defining the rules of trade between its member states (WTO, 2004a). ... 2002 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A tax is a compulsory charge or other levy imposed on an individual or a legal entity by a state or a functional equivalent of a state (e. ... The European Space Agency (ESA), established in 1975, is an inter-governmental organisation dedicated to exploration of space with currently 16 member states. ... Conceptual drawing of the Rosetta orbiter and Philae lander Rosetta is a European Space Agency-led unmanned space mission launched in 2004 intended to study the comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. ... Ariane 5 liftoff from Kourou Ariane 5 is an expendable launch system, designed and manufactured under the authority of the European Space Agency (ESA) by EADS SPACE Transportation, the Prime Contractor, leading a consortium of many sub-contractors, and is operated and marketed by Arianespace as part of the Ariane... Comet Hale-Bopp, showing a white dust tail and blue gas tail (February 1997) A comet is a small body in the solar system that orbits the sun and (at least occasionally) exhibits a coma (or atmosphere) and/or a tail -- both due primarily to the effects of solar radiation... 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko is the designation of a comet with a current orbital period of 6. ...

March 1, 2004

• Prime Minister Ahmed Qurie blasted ongoing Israeli extra-judicial executions of Palestinian activists, which claimed two more lives on Sunday, and blamed Israel for the weekend of violence, whilst accusing his Israeli counterpart’s government of trying "to kill any possibility for (achieving a) mutual cease-fire". (BBC)
• The People's Republic of China puts in place new rules for the trading of derivative securities by financial institutions, part of a broader process by which China has in recent years sought to integrate its own economy with finance capitalism around the world. The China Banking Regulatory Commission receives praise from the New York-based International Swaps & Derivatives Association. (ISDA press release)
• Jean-Bertrand Aristide claims that his resignation as President of Haiti was forced and that he was kidnapped by American forces and forced to leave the country against his will. United States Vice President Dick Cheney rejects the accusation. (Democracy Now!) (Reuters) (CNN)
• The UK Conservative Party withdraws from the Butler Inquiry into intelligence on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction, claiming the way its terms of reference have been interpreted is too narrow. The Liberal Democrats claim that this was obvious from the beginning. (BBC) (Guardian) (Independent, UK)
• President of Russia Vladimir Putin names Mikhail Fradkov as his new prime minister. (BBC)
• Marc Dutroux, alleged Belgian child molester and murderer of four girls, goes on trial. (BBC)
• Same-sex marriage in the United States: President of the United States George W. Bush urges passage of a constitutional amendment to define marriage as between one man and one woman, as the only way to stop "municipal and judicial activists" from issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. "If we are to prevent the meaning of marriage from being changed forever, our nation must enact a constitutional amendment." John Kerry denounces the amendment as "toying" or "tampering" with the Constitution of the United States for partisan advantage. (Washington Times)
• The winners of the BAFTA Games Awards are announced. The controversial and popular Grand Theft Auto: Vice City sweeps the pool, with five awards. (Digit Magazine)
• Several hundred United States, French, and Canadian troops are deployed to Haiti. (Age)
• Palau National Congress' debate about whether to propose several constitutional amendments to Palau voters or ask them to consider more changes at a Constitutional Convention ended without an accord. (Guam Pacific Daily News)

March 1 is the 60th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (61st in leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Palestinians are a mainly Arabic-speaking people with family origins in Palestine. ... Activism, in a general sense, can be described as involvement in action to bring about change, be it social, political, environmental, or other change. ... In finance, a derivative security is a contract that specifies the rights and obligations between the issuer of the security and the holder to receive or deliver future cash flows (or exchange of other securities or assets) based on some future event. ... Capitalism has been defined in various ways (see Capitalism in Wikiquote). ... Midtown Manhattan, looking north from the Empire State Building, 2005 New York City (officially named the City of New York) is the most populous city in the United States, and is at the center of international finance, politics, entertainment, and culture. ... International Swaps & Derivatives Association is a trade association, headquartered in New York, that represents participants in the privately-negotiated derivative securities industry. ... Jean-Bertrand Aristide Jean-Bertrand Aristide (born July 15, 1953) is a Haitian politician and former Roman Catholic priest who was President of Haiti in 1991, from 1994 to 1996, and again from 2001 to 2004. ... This page lists presidents and other heads of state of Haiti. ... -1... Richard Bruce Cheney (born January 30, 1941), widely known as Dick Cheney, is an American politician and businessman affiliated with the U.S. Republican Party. ... The Conservative Party is the largest political party on the centre-right in the United Kingdom. ... On February 3, 2004 the British Government announced an inquiry into the intelligence relating to Iraqs weapons of mass destruction which played a key part in the Governments decision to invade Iraq (as part of the U.S.-led coalition) in 2003. ... Weapons of mass destruction (WMD) generally include nuclear, biological, chemical and, increasingly, radiological weapons. ... The Liberal Democrats, often shortened to Lib Dems, are a social liberal political party based in the United Kingdom. ... List of Presidents of Russia Boris Yeltsin1 ( July 10, 1991 – December 31, 1999) two terms. ... Term of office: December 31, 1999 – Preceded by: Boris Yeltsin Succeeded by: Date of birth: October 7, 1952 Place of birth: Leningrad First Lady: Liudmila Putina Political party: None Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (Russian: Владимир Владимирович Путин   pronunciation?; born October 7, 1952) is a Russian politician and the current President of the Russian Federation. ... Mikhail Yefimovich Fradkov (Russian: Михаи́л Ефи́мович Фрадко́в) (b. ... The Prime Minister of Russia is the current Head of Government of the Russian Federation. ... Marc Dutroux (born 6 November 1956 in Brussels) is one of the most notorious criminals in Belgian history. ... Sexual abuse is physical or psychological abuse or harm that involves sexual behavior. ... Same-sex marriage, often referred to as gay marriage, indicates a marriage between two persons of the same sex. ... The President of the United States is the head of state of the United States. ... George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the current President of the United States. ... The Federal Marriage Amendment (FMA) is a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution which proposes to define marriage in the United States as a union of one man and one woman. ... Marriage is a relationship and bond between individuals (termed spouses -- a male spouse is a husband and a female spouse, a wife) that plays a key role in the definition of many families. ... John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is the junior United States Senator from Massachusetts. ... Page I of the Constitution of the United States of America Page II of the United States Constitution Page III of the United States Constitution Page IV of the United States Constitution The Syng inkstand, with which the Constitution was signed The Constitution of the United States is the supreme... The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), is a British organization that hosts annual awards shows for film, television, childrens film and television, and interactive media. ... Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (released in October 2002) is the fourth video game in the hit Grand Theft Auto series. ... The Olbiil Era Kelulau, known in English as the Palau National Congress, is the chief form of government in Palau. ...

Past events by month

2004: January February
2003: January February March April May June July August September October November December
2002: January February March April May June July August September October November December 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- → January 31, 2004 The United States defence budget is set to exceed US$400 billion next year—an almost 7% increase—according to budget proposals inadvertently posted on the Pentagons website. ... 2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- → // February 29, 2004 Jean-Bertrand Aristide resigns as president of Haiti and flees the country for the Central African Republic. ... 2003 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2003: January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for January, 2003. ... 2003 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for February, 2003. ... 2003 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December - → A timeline of events in the news for March, 2003. ... 2003 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December - → A timeline of events in the news for April 2003. ... 2003 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December - → A timeline of events in the news for May, 2003. ... 2003 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for June, 2003. ... 2003 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for July, 2003. ... 2003 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for August, 2003. ... 2003 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for September, 2003. ... 2003 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for October, 2003. ... 2003 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for November, 2003. ... 2003: January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December - → A timeline of events in the news for December, 2003. ... 2002 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2002 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for January, 2002. ... 2002 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December February 27, 2002 Alicia Keys wins five Grammys. ... 2002 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for March, 2002. ... 2002 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for April, 2002. ... 2002 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for May, 2002. ... 2002 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for June, 2002. ... 2002 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for July, 2002. ... 2002 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for August, 2002. ... 2002 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for September, 2002. ... 2002 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for October, 2002. ... 2002 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for November, 2002. ... 2002 : January _ February _ March _ April _ May _ June _ July _ August _ September _ October _ November _ December _ → A timeline of events in the news for December, 2002. ...