China will not hesitate to protect Iran even with a third World War

On November 21st, America, UK and Canada announced more sanctions against Iran. France also proposed to adopt new sanctions to force Tehran to stop it's nuclear project. On Nov 23rd, the spokesman of Chinese Communist Party (CCP)'s Foreign Ministry said in a regular press conference held in Beijing that China is opposed to unilateral sanctions against Iran.

Scholars believe that, being isolated, China and Iran need mutual support. Meanwhile, the CCP government, with internal and external difficulties, may express an even tougher diplomatic "voice".

"Reuters" reported on Nov 23rd: "The United States, UK and Canada have announced new sanctions against Iran in the areas of energy and finance. France proposed 

'unprecedented' new sanctions, including freezing the assets of the Central Bank of Iran and suspending the purchase of Iran's oil.

Earlier, the "International Atomic Energy Agency" (IAEA) ad issued a report that Iran may be secretly developing nuclear weapons.

On Nov 23rd, the CCP's Foreign Ministry expressed opposition to the imposition of unilateral sanctions against Iran.

In this regard, Xia Ming, a political professor from "City University of New York" in America, believes that since the Cold War, the United States and Western 

society's biggest challenges have been seen as being from China and Iran. They are both isolated by the United States and the West. Therefore, China's policy is foreseeable.

Xia Ming says: "China and Iran are facing strong Western challenges within politics, economy and culture. So these two countries basically have a kind of coordinatio 

on the international stage, to support each other. So we can see that China and Iran coordinate a lot, with a lot of cooperation in matters of energy, arms and so on."

"Associated Press" also reported on Nov 23rd: "Since 2006, the United Nations have carried out 4 rounds of sanctions against Iran. But with export of energy, Iran has not been severely affected by the sanctions."

"AFP" said: "China supports Iran and purchases large quantities of oil from Iran. Meanwhile, China is Iran's biggest trading partner. Their bilateral trade totals up to $ 30 billion.

"Voice of America" reported, according to Chinese customs' data, this year (2011) Iran could become China's second largest crude oil supplier.

However, Iran disdains the new round of sanctions. Israel and Washington said in the event that other efforts were not effective, the possibility of military action would not be ruled out.

It's puzzling to some that Major General Zhang Zhaozhong, a professor from the Chinese National Defense University, said China will not hesitate to protect Iran even with a third World War.

Professor Xia Ming: "Zhang Zhaozhong said that not hesitating to fight a third world war would be entirely for domestic political needs. To some extent though, this would be completely ridiculous to encourage"

Professor Xia Ming pointed out that the United States and Western societies may deal with Iran by a method of "Jasmine Revolution", similar to what happened in Libya. From the perspective of the Libya model, NATO could not possibly involve itself in large-scale military action, and it would be impossible to start a new war.

In fact, a senior European diplomat with anonymity in Tehran said that the Iranian government was actually very worried about a military strike. Analysts also say that ordinary people don't worship their leaders so much any more.

But Professor Xia Ming said that the CCP regime itself is facing a much bigger crisis than Iran. The CCP regime not only faces challenges from Southeast Asia, the South China Sea, South Asia countries and so on, but also faces the pressure from America for the RMB exchange rate, export, and human rights issues, as well as the pressure of domestic issues meanwhile.

Professor Xia Ming says : "China is facing pressure from America. Meanwhile, current domestic pressure is also very considerable. In particular, we can see in civil society, the challenge to the Chinese government and resistance forces are growing. Therefore, the Chinese government is indeed facing the arrival of a big power shift in the 18th session. So, China may express a tougher diplomatic voice. On the one hand, it is a reaction to pressure from America. On the other hand, it needs to meet the demand of domestic nationalist groups.

Russia is another ally of Iran, with similar policy to that of China. Toward Iran.

Source: YouTube

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Finally, Google Adds Free Phone Support For U.S. And Canada AdWords Customers

While email and online support is becoming more prevalent for customer service responses, sometimes phone support is the fastest way to get a question answered. Today, Google is rolling out free phone support for its popular Internet advertising service AdWords in U.S. and Canada.

Because of the overwhelming demand from users, Google is keeping AdWords specialists on call between Monday-Friday, 9am-8pm Eastern Time for AdWords advertisers who need help with a question or problem. The search giant plans to add phone support out to advertisers in other countries in the coming months.

Frankly, I’m surprised that Google is only rolling out phone support now. AdWords is one of Google’s most popular advertising products and one of its major businesses. I guess better late than never.

Source: Tech Crunch

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Travel Picks: top ten spring break destinations

Sun, sand, surf and a sea of friends and possible dates is the recipe for a successful Spring Break holiday for North American university students.

Online travel advisor Cheapflights.com (www.cheapflights.com) provides a list of the top 10 Spring Break destinations. Reuters does not endorse this list:

1. Punta Cana, Dominican Republic

With 24,000 hotel rooms and counting, Punta Cana is the tourist haven of the Dominican Republic. Rife with some of the best beaches in the Caribbean, all-inclusive deals and buffets galore, this destination has a lot to offer in terms of value. Nightlife abounds too, with free VIP passes to the island's top-rated clubs when you look through student programs like Student City, which has two headquarters there - Grand Paradise Bavaro and Barcelo Punta Cana.

Tourists walk on Caracol beach in Cancun February 1, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/Gerardo Garcia

2. Cancun, Mexico

If you didn't know it already, Cancun is the unofficial Spring break capital of North America. With an average daily temperature of 80 degrees, this Mexican mother city is unapologetic in its mass-tourism reputation. Students love it for its accessibility to nightlife and the plethora of all-inclusive resorts that include food and drink. Add in the fact that the dollar is standing strong against the peso, and you've got yourself a deal.

3. Montego Bay, Jamaica

The island's busiest airport and cruise-ship port bring loads of tourists to Montego Bay all year round, but a certain clientele appreciate it most during Spring break season. Sunny days are well-spent along Fletcher Beach and Doctor's Cave Beach, while partygoers find countless clubs on Gloucester Avenue, (referred to as "hip strip") at night.

4. Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

An alternative to Cancun, Puerto Vallarta is known by some as the liveliest and most sophisticated resort destination. It brims with stylish restaurants and shops along cobblestone streets, and holds the elegance of beach vacations in high esteem. So, whether you're in the mood to explore tequila manufacturing, or chill out within the local dining scene, Puerto Vallarta offers a new edge on discovering Mexico.

5. South Padre Island, Texas

Any location that offers Mardi Gras Tuesdays -- every Tuesday -- screams spring break to us. Just off the Gulf Coast of Texas, South Padre Island is all the fun of sun and social scandal, but right at home within the States. Students love Coca-Cola Beach, open every day for festivities and revelry (so, choose another beach for peaceful sunbathing). Lots of cheap food and all-inclusive offerings are available here for an economical week of celebrating.

6. San Diego, California

Sunny SoCal rarely fails for a mix of beaches and outdoor activities. Trail along the boardwalk and scope out the incredibly fit packs of residents, or stretch out along Balboa Park for a greener view. More than 70 miles of beaches make San Diego an easy target for sun seekers and surfers. Once the sun goes down, head to nightlife areas of Garnett Avenue or the Gaslamp District.

7. Miami, Florida

While it's perfect for partying, Miami is also an upscale city, with world-renowned cuisine, culture, art and shopping, so students with more complex agendas will enjoy the Latin rhythm here. High-priced hotels are the norm here, but there are low-cost accommodations and inexpensive food options for those willing to dig. Remember though you're still in the U.S., so the drinking age remains at 21.

8. Panama City Beach, Florida

If Cancun were in the U.S., it would have to duke it out with Panama City Beach for the title of best spring break city. Celebrities like Kenny Chesney, 50 Cent and Sean Kingston have made appearances in the past to hail this Floridian locale as a party mecca. Walk along the main strip, and you'll find a steady concoction of beach bars, hotels, mini golf centers, souvenir shops, and more beach bars. Dive into its renowned wreck-diving site for an alternative daytime activity.

9. Orlando, Florida

Think Orlando is just a minivan destination? Think again. With plenty of all-inclusive resorts with glamorous pools and lots of food and drink, Orlando makes spring break a secret hot spot for students. Universal Orlando is more than just kiddies and snow-cones, too: The attraction hosts multiple Mardi Gras nights with parades, street performers, Cajun cuisine, free concerts and other free events with your ticket purchase.

10. Montreal, Quebec Canada

Go ahead, buck the trend. You won't find sun and sand here, but you will get a better exchange rate, a legal drinking age of 18, and a whole lot of "European" charm on top of amazing food. It's like Paris on the cheap, but without the jetlag. Ski the Laurentians by day, and hit one of 300 nightclubs, bars, pubs or lounge at night.

Source: Reuters

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Usage-Based Billing Hits Canada: Say Goodbye To Internet Innovation

O, Canada, what have you done? The country’s Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, the CRTC, has passed sweeping new regulations that will force Internet Service Providers to switch to so-called usage-based billing—metered pricing, in less flowery language. That means ISPs there will charge customers by the gigabyte for Internet access, and that’s on top of a flat service fee. There’s nothing particularly new about metered pricing, but the fact that it’s being implemented on a country-wide basis surely merits a quick discussion.

It should be obvious that the only “winners” here are the ISPs (and even then, only the big ISPs who have established, old methods of content delivery to protect) who now stand to make a cool mint as a result of the new fees. Data caps have been drastically lowered—one small, independent ISP was forced to slash its cap from 200GB per month to 25GB per month—and the CRTC has set overage rates at CAD$1.90 per gigabyte over the cap. (Heaven forbid you live in the French-speaking region of the country, as you’ll be expected to cough up CAD$2.35 per gigabyte.) All that means is that you’re free to browse the Internet to the tune of 25GB per month, but the second you break through that barrier you’ll have to pay through the nose. Not fun.

The move couldn’t possibly come at a worse time for companies like Netlix and Apple, or for the everyday people who rely on them.

Services like Netflix’s video streaming chew through bandwidth like chlorofluorocarbons through the ozone layer, or like fire through Fernando Torres shirts. The average Netflix film will use around 1GB of data—and that number will only increase as Netflix improves the quality of its streams. It’s not impossible to imagine a scenario in which a casual movie viewer can quickly brush up against the aforementioned 25GB bandwidth limit.

And that’s just for Netflix, mind. What if you’re a modern Netizen who uses services like Rdio, watches funny YouTube videos, or catches up on the latest Portlandia or SNL skit? What if you use the Internet to download video games from Steam? Napoleon: Total War is something like a 20GB download in and of itself—and that’s without the fantastic Peninsular Campaign add-on!

This simply isn’t a case where “tech geeks” will be the only people negatively affected by the CTRC’s decision. You, your neighbor, and your neighbor’s neighbor are all in the same boat. And it is sinking, fast.

People have already started doing the math. It will actually be cheaper to physically ship a hard drive’s worth of data than it will be to download that same amount of data under the new usage-based billing regime. Already at your monthly bandwidth allocation but want to download the EA’s Dead Space 2 from Steam? Well, the game clocks in at 10GB, meaning that you’re looking at CAD$19 to download it, plus the price of the game itself—around $60. That’s nearly CDN$80 to download a game whose disc-based collector’s edition retails for $80 online. It’s bonkers.

How are you supposed to survive in that environment if you’re someone like Valve (the company behind Steam) or Netflix?

Or maybe that’s the whole point? The big ISPs that stand to make money hand-over-fist as a result of usage-based-billing also have their hands in plain ol’ TV distribution. A sort of: “Hate that you have to pay X-Amount per month just to watch all those Netflix films? No worries, our on-demand system has you covered!”

Either way the big ISP, and its parent company, make out just fine.

And, like always, the consumer is worse for wear. Typical.

Source: Crunch Gear

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The Lost Villages (Canada)

"The Lost Villages" are ten communities in the Canadian province of Ontario, in the former townships of Cornwall and Osnabruck (now South Stormont) near Cornwall, which were permanently submerged by the creation of the St. Lawrence Seaway in 1958.

The flooding was expected and planned for. In the weeks and months leading up to the inundation, families and businesses in the affected communities were moved to the new planned communities of Long Sault and Ingleside. These negotiations were controversial, however, as many residents of the communities felt that market value compensation was insufficient since the Seaway plan had already depressed property values in the region.

The town of Iroquois was also flooded, but was relocated 1.5 kilometres north rather than abandoned. Another community, Morrisburg, was partially submerged as well, but the area to be flooded was moved to higher ground within the same townsite. A portion of the provincial Highway 2 in the area was flooded; the highway was rebuilt along a Canadian National Railway right-of-way in the area.

At 8 a.m. on July 1, 1958, a large cofferdam was demolished, allowing the flooding to begin. Four days later, all of the former townsites were fully underwater. Parts of the New York shoreline were flooded by the project as well, but no communities were lost on the American side of the river.

In some locations, a few remnants of sidewalks and building foundations can still be seen under the water, or even on the shoreline when water levels are sufficiently low. Some high points of land in the flooded area remained above water as islands, and are connected by the Long Sault Parkway. Lock 21 of the former Cornwall Canal (since replaced by the Saint Lawrence Seaway) is a popular scuba diving site, a few feet from the shore along the Parkway.

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