Veteran US newsreader, 92-year-old Walter Cronkite is reportedly gravely ill.
The former anchor of “CBS Evening News” has been ailing for some time, but now he has apparently taken a turn for worse, the Telegraph reports.
Cronkite was named “the most trusted man in America” in a 1972 “trust index” survey, and he ended each broadcast with the reassuring sign-off, “And that’s the way it is.”
He left the “Evening News” anchor desk in 1981, but after that …

Scotland Yard have launched criminal investigations into the expense claims of Members of Parliament, the Daily Telegraph reports.
The Metropolitan Police have announced that they will carry out inquiries into a small number of cases in the wake of the MPs’ expenses scandal. The Telegraph understands that they relate to claims based on “phantom mortgages” when an MP has potentially misled the Fees Office.
The politicians involved now face formal questioning under caution by police and possible …

Ireland agreed today to re-run the referendum on Lisbon Treaty that was rejected in the country a year ago.
Irish voters will be asked to try again in early October, after a series of legal guarantees stating that the treaty will not change Ireland’s taxation, abortion laws or military neutrality were agreed by the 27 EU leaders at their summit in Brussels, the Times reports.
EU leaders now hope that the Treaty will come into force in …

A federal jury ruled that a Minnesota woman, a single mother Jammie Thomas-Rasset has to pay £48,550 a song to record companies for illegally downloading tracks and violating copyright laws, the Times reports.
The jury ruled that Thomas-Rasset willfully violated the copyrights on 24 songs, and awarded record companies £1.16 million.
32-year-old mother of four had been convicted previously in October 2007, and ordered to pay £133,375 in damages, but the judge who presided over that trial …

Conservative leader David Cameron said that MPs’ expenses should be published without major areas being blacked out – including addresses.
He said only telephone numbers, bank details and “information with legitimate security concerns” should be routinely removed, according to the BBC.
“I have long argued that transparency is the key factor in restoring trust to our political system. The heavily censored publication yesterday of MPs expenses did nothing to improve the reputation of Parliament. After discussions with …

Foreign Office are to make a protest to the Iranian Ambassador to the UK, after Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called the UK Governement “evil”.
Khamenei said that Western nations were showing “their enmity against the Islamic Republic system and the most evil of them is the British government”, according to the BBC.
Foreign Office summoned Ambassador Rasul Movaheddian to a meeting after that. It’s not clear, however, whether Movaheddian would respond to the call.

US space administration NASA yesterday launched its first rocket to the Moon in a decade, sending up a pair of unmanned science probes that will help determine where astronauts could lad and set up a camp in years to come, the AP reports.
The liftoff of the unmanned rocket took place one month and two days shy of the 40th anniversary of the first lunar footprints. The mission is a first step in NASA’s effort to …

Remember this famous quote? Of course you do. And we all know what happened afterwards.
BBC’s claim that Sir Alan Sugar’s post as government’s “enterprise tsar” would not compromise the network’s impartiality is worth exactly as much as this quote.
Now the Tories have formally complained to the BBC Trust over the decision to let Sir Alan continue in his role on The Apprentice. The network say that according to Shadow Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt, Sir Alan’s …

The Members of Parliament are obviously not earning enough. And the public anger over their idiotic expense claims isn’t helping. Due to the scandal, they can’t afford patio heaters, loo seats and porn films any more. Because without writing things like that off on taxpayer, they’re just not earning enough. They’re poor, you see.
Fortunately, there is a solution to that problem. Considering all the circumstances, the amount of work they do and that they don’t …

Terrorist group ETA detonated a powerful car bomb on Friday near the Spanish city of Bilbao, killing a policeman.
According to the AP, the bimb went off in a parking lot in Arrigorriaga. It’s the first ETA killing since December.
The victim was a member of the Spanish National Police, said the Basque interior minister Rodolfo Ares.
The bomb was attached to the underside of the car and went off when the officer started the engine – a …

The new iPhone 3G S has finally arrived in Britain and is on sale on O2.
According to the company, one can buy the iPhone 3G S from their online shop and Business shop, O2 stores and over the phone with Customer Service. iPhone 3G S is also available from Apple stores and from The Carphone Warehouse.
O2 have also published the full list of the opening times of their stores in the UK.
iPhone 3G S prices …

82 percent (143 people) of the respondents of The Empire Chronicles‘ poll say the General Election should take place immediately.
11 percent – 19 people – say the election should be held in autumn, and only 7 percent – 12 people – answered the poll that election should take place next year.
The last poll saw 174 votes.
Naturally, it’s not anything scientific, but still, gives an indication of what people think.
New poll is up now in the …

Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei denied election fraud in his today’s speech, and voiced support for President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Khamenei insisted that there was no fraud in last Friday’s presidential election, the BBC report. He also said that Ahmadinejad’s views on foreign affairs and social issues were closed to his than those of the other candidates.
He said that official results showing a landslide for hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad were beyond question, according to the AP. …

Great War veteran, Briton Henry Allingham is believed to be the world’s oldest man following the death of a 113-year-old Japanese record holder, the Daily Mail reports.
Allingham, one of only two surviving First World War veterans in the UK and the last surviving founder member of the RAF, celebrated his 113th birthday on June 6. He has seen three centuries, and lives now at a care home for blind ex-servicemen.
The previous world’s oldest man, Japanese …

Only six percent of Jewish Israelis consider the views of the US President Barack Obama’s administration supportive of Israel, according to new poll. 50% of those sampled in a Jerusalem Post/Smith Research poll consider Obama’s policies more pro-Arab than pro-israeli, and 36% think the policies were neutral.
Before Obama’s arse-kissing event in Cairo, 31% said Obama’s administration is pro-Israel and only 14% considered it to be pro-Arab; 40% said the policies were neutral.
It’s a sharp contrast …

The Times has compiled a list of some more or less ridiculous, if not idiotic expenses the Members of Parliament have claimed from taxpayer.
So we find out that our dear Prime Minister claimed £176 for a CD of photographs of himself. He must like himself very much.
Liberal Democrat Jo Swinson claimed £19.10 for a tooth flosser. That was probably made of gold.
Shadow Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt put down a 1p phone bill. Yes, 1 penny. …