Wikipedia:In the news/Candidates/June 2006

I really question whether this is a story of international importance or interest, in the spirit of the ITN guidelines. It doesn't seem to be listed on the BBC (International template) at all, not only on the headlines page but also on the specific Americas and Asia-Pacific sub-sections. I can't find it on CNN or Reuters either. It seems like this 'international importance' criterion really is very inconsistently invoked, to be frank. Badgerpatrol 03:49, 25 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Just being a mirror of the international press is not a part of the ITN guidelines. I can't see how these huge wargames in the Pacific are objectively not of international importance; not only is this something of a landmark in Sino-American relations, it also occurs in the context of heightened North Korean tension with the US and Japan. Perhaps the press is just not as interested in military affairs not involving actual conflict, but this has been on CNN at least.--Pharos 15:21, 25 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Well, a cynic might question exactly why the Chinese observers were invited and thus to what extent this really represents a landmark in Sino-American relations. It isn't Nixon in China. The only objective metric of a story's international importance is the amount of attention paid to it by international news organisations (emphatically NOT the same as Wikipedia being a mirror of international press)- this particular item aroused virtually no interest at all, so far as I can tell. Too many of these items are slipping into ITN; we either need to change the rules for inclusion, or start sticking to them consistently. Currently the criteria are much too nebulous and are applied much too arbitrarily. The more I think about it, the more I think ITN is in need of a serious overhaul. Badgerpatrol 18:12, 25 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

• President George W. Bush has issued an executive order stating that he will limit taking of private property by the federal government and that it must "benefit... the general public...and not merely for the purpose of economic interest of private properties..." (White House Press Release)
  • Not huge news; the feds have never, so far as I know, been accused of using eminent domain in the egregious fashion that New London, et.al. have. --Golbez 23:14, 23 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

22 June 2006

• At the
  Germany's all-time World Cup scoring record, with a brace against Japan taking his tally to 14. Badgerpatrol 02:11, 23 June 2006 (UTC)[reply
  ]
• chemical weapons have been found in Iraq since 2003, and saying that more weapons of mass destruction are likely to be uncovered. AFP FOX NewsSantorum Press Release

I'm not sure that is entirely true... Batmanand | Talk 09:46, 22 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

There, I've updated this story with the appropriate links to the document and the Senator who declassified the intelligence. Now get over your bias that Bush lied to go into Iraq and publish this MAJOR news story! Rapierian | Talk 2:35,22 June 2006 (EST)

Minor edit, including link to Santorum's press release Rapierian | Talk 2:38,22 June 2006 (EST)

I do not have an anti-Bush bias, but I think it would be fair to mention two things. One is that all the weapons found are thought to be pre-1991 production WMD. The second is that none of them would have been capable of being used as battlefield weapons. But if others think this is a "MAJOR" news story, go ahead and post it. Batmanand | Talk 20:59, 22 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I don't see it as being a major story. --Golbez 21:45, 22 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I think this is very big news. - Johntex\^talk 02:36, 23 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

It will be big news if/when the verifiable sources include more than a press release. -Fsotrain09 02:54, 23 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Here's an official statement from Rumsfeld [4] verifying the document. Is that official enough for you when the original document linked off a U.S. Senator's webpage wasn't, or is the NYT the only official source you'll trust? And yes, I realize that these aren't the primary WMDs we listed as one of our reasons for going to war (although they do qualify as part of the cache that was supposed to have been destroyed and we claimed wasn't), and that the mustard gas filled canisters are likely not useable anymore (although the Sarin canisters still probably are). This is still a major major story!Rapierian | Talk 9:20,23 June 2006 (EST)

Thumbs-down here. The Tom 04:30, 23 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Golbez 06:29, 15 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

• • • I think that a simple statement of facts should suffice. They raided the farm; there's no hint to good or bad there. FBI goes on "drug raids" all the time, with little connotation either way. We had a bit about Canadians and a counter-terrorism raid awhile ago, too. We could change that word maybe? We could try to work "eviction" into there, but that doesn't really cover it, or the actions taken. Canæn 06:39, 15 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]
      • Actually, "drug raid" does give context. "raid" does not. Perhaps if it said "LAPD evict squatters" or perhaps "trespassers". And the Toronto terrorism thing was a bit more major than Darryl Hannah in a tree. --Golbez 07:01, 15 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]
        • Well, I find both "Tresspassers" and "squatters" to be extremely bias. It takes a stand on the situation. The law is not always a neutral body. We must not take a stance, simply give information. I wasn't trying to say anything about the torronto terrorism thing; simply trying to give context for the word. Would "LAPD evicts occupants" be better? Personally, I think it's fine to say they raided the place. Farmers are still there, afterall. Canæn 05:10, 16 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]
          • However it's phrased, it still doesn't seem very much like an international story. We should definitely have a note about it on Current events in the United States, though.--Pharos 05:22, 16 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

June 12, 2006

• Albania officially signed a Stabilisation and Association Agreement with the EU today, thus completing the first major step towards joining the bloc.

The agreement was signed at 12:40pm CET during an EC summit in Luxembourg between the Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha, Austrian Foreign Minister Ursula Plassnik, and the rest of the EU member states' Foreign Ministers. VOA

• Albania signs a Stabilisation and Association Agreement, a first step toward joining the European Union. (revised blurb)--Pharos 19:04, 12 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

June 11, 2006

• Asafa Powell of Jamaica equals his own world record for the 100m sprint at Gateshead. Powell ran it in 9.77 seconds at a legal windpeed of +1.5. This increases the fastest ever result in Britain by 0.12s.
  • Tying his own record is not news. Breaking his record is news. --Golbez 20:33, 11 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]
    • OK. How about: Asafa Powell of Jamaica equals his own world record for the 100m sprint at Gateshead Stadium, a supposedly impossible feat, as the stadium is thought to be too far north and too cold. Powell ran it in 9.77 seconds at a legal windpeed of +1.5. This record is shared by American sprinter Justin Gatlin. This increases the fastest ever result in Britain by 0.12s. -- Macphisto12 (original submitter). 22:30, 11 June 2006.
      • Kind of a verbose and specific update. --Golbez 21:58, 11 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]
• Scientists in Greece announce to have revealed more than 1000 previously hidden ancient Greek letters on the Antikythera mechanism, thought to be one of the world's first known analog computers.
  • ITN already contains an item on the
    AmiDaniel (talk) 07:13, 11 June 2006 (UTC)[reply
    ]
    • I dont think they announced they now think it is a computer.Possibly when asked about the significance of the revealed characters, they hinted at ascertaining the function of the Antikythera mechanism. The theory of the device being a computer is definitely not a new one, something which the main page statement somehow implies.So yes, the title is misleading at the main page, and i think it should be rephrased.
      • Okay, well how about merging the two together? I'm thinking something along the lines of: "Scientists in
        AmiDaniel (talk) 07:40, 11 June 2006 (UTC)[reply
        ]
        • I like your idea of merging, but the problem is the newly-revealed letters haven't learned us yet anything. Nevertheless, your title is much better compared to the original one or what i wrote at the top. Maybe something like "Scientists in Greece discover previously hidden letters on the 2,000-year-old Antikythera mechanism (pictured), possibly the world's first analog computer."
          • Alright, let's try this: "Scientists in
            AmiDaniel (talk) 08:33, 11 June 2006 (UTC)[reply
            ]
            • I erased the "1000" only to make the title sound more mysterious (it's a virtual newspaper after all and we want to "sell")..:) But i'm nitpicking. "Scientists in Greece discover previously hidden letters on the 2,000-year-old Antikythera mechanism (pictured), possibly the world's first analog computer, hoping to shed new light concerning the purpose of the machine.". But I trust your judgment, pick whatever you prefer. By the way, that ITN article you mentioned, any links?Couldn't find it.
              • Okay, I had to draw the line somewhere: "Scientists in
                AmiDaniel (talk) 09:25, 11 June 2006 (UTC)[reply
                ]
                • Actually, I trimmed it down to ""Scientists in
                  AmiDaniel (talk) 09:28, 11 June 2006 (UTC)[reply
                  ]
                  • Much better! Compare it with the 5th line.;) About that...ITN article,oops!

June 10, 2006

• Women's Singles title at the 2006 French Open. -- 64.229.207.10 13:41, 11 June 2006 (UTC)[reply
  ]