G宝盘系统优化中。。。

今天，G宝盘进行系统优化，PoEngish在那的资料空间无法进入了。
所以，往期的资料没法下载了。
好在PoEnglish有个Google的空间，今天的内容都放在那。

对于G宝盘进行系统优化，我是欢迎的。
但，维护造成空间停用，会给很多用户造成不便影响，尤其是像我这样已经付费的正式用户。
希望几天后看到的是优化一新的G宝盘

US Defense Secretary Warns of Massive Bloodshed in Iraq if US Military Operations Curtailed

By Michael Bowman Washington 05 April 2007

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U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates says restricting U.S. military operations in Iraq could unleash massive bloodshed among the country's warring factions. VOA's Michael Bowman reports from Washington, where leaders of the opposition-led Congress are threatening to cut off most forms of military spending in Iraq if President Bush does not agree to a timetable for withdrawing U.S. forces from the country.

Robert Gates (l) and Gen. Peter Pace brief reporters at the Pentagon, 05 Apr 2007

Secretary Gates issued the latest verbal salvo in an increasingly fierce power struggle between America's executive and legislative branches of government over the future of U.S. military involvement in Iraq.

Speaking on a domestic radio program Thursday, Gates warned of "ethnic cleansing inside Baghdad or in Iraq more broadly," if U.S. troops curtail operations in the strife-ridden nation.

Speaking with reporters at the Pentagon hours later, the secretary used somewhat milder language, but his point was the same.

"I believe that if we were to precipitously withdraw from Baghdad at this point, there would be a dramatic increase in sectarian violence," he said.

Gates said, prematurely winding down U.S. military operations would allow bands of murderers to roam free in Iraq.

"Those who are being tortured and being killed are being killed by death squads," he said. "By hit squads. This is not a large number of people turning out onto the streets and killing each other."

"These are targeted killings by relatively small numbers of people, in an attempt to stoke the sectarian violence, and, frankly, to make the Baghdad security plan fail - by hampering the reconciliation process," he added.

The Pentagon says it needs a new infusion of funds within weeks to continue the war effort in Iraq and Afghanistan. Both houses of the Democratic Party-controlled Congress have passed emergency spending bills that provide the money, but also establish dates for withdrawing U.S. forces.

President Bush says he will veto any bill that sets a timetable for a troop pullout. Democratic leaders have responded by pressing for even-starker legislation that would cut off funding for most forms of military operations in Iraq.

Many Democrats say U.S. efforts in Iraq have failed. But President Bush maintains that his current plan, increasing the number of U.S. troops in Baghdad and one of Iraq's violence-plagued provinces, is beginning to show some positive signs.

Appearing next to Secretary Gates was the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Peter Pace.

The general said the troop build-up is on schedule, and will be completed by June. Secretary Gates said he is hopeful that the security plan for Iraq will succeed, thereby bolstering Iraq's fledging government. But he added, "there is a great reluctance to engage in 'happy talk.'"

Egyptian Man to Sue Over CIA Rendition From Italy

By Sabina Castelfranco Rome 05 April 2007

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The lawyer of an Egyptian imam, believed to have been illegally abducted from Milan in 2003 by the CIA, has been in Italy to meet with Italian prosecutors. Sabina Castelfranco reports from Rome the lawyer gathered information about an upcoming trial in which his client may lodge a civil case.

Montasser Al-Zayat (file photo)

Montasser Al-Zayat, the lawyer of Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr, also known as Abu Omar, has been in Italy for a week. He has been trying to learn more about a trial which opens June 8 in Milan.

The trial is the first in Europe for a case of what is alleged to have been an extraordinary rendition, the CIA practice of taking an individual from a foreign country to hand him over to another nation for questioning.

Italian prosecutors say Abu Omar was kidnapped from the streets of Milan in February 2003, and flown to Egypt where he says he was interrogated and tortured. At the time, Italian authorities say he was under investigation for allegedly recruiting Muslim men to fight in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Italian prosecutors have indicted 26 Americans, most believed to be CIA agents thought to have been involved in the rendition operation, and a number of Italian secret service officials, including the former chief of intelligence.

Lawyer Al Zayat said he would be back for the trial when it opens, but that it was useful for him to come now.

"This trip was very useful because I did not have sufficient information on the upcoming trial. But now I am clearer and have more details on the cases, which regard Abu Omar, the one in which he is the victim and the one for which he is under investigation," he said.

Al Zayat said he met with Armando Spataro, the leading Italian prosecutor in the case. Spataro has wanted to speak to Abu Omar, but Egyptian authorities have not responded to his requests.

Egyptian cleric Osama Hassan Mustafa Nasr, known as Abu Omar, shows a dark scar on his arm during his first public appearance since he was released from Egyptian custody, 22 Feb 2007

The Egyptian lawyer said he wants to give back Abu Omar his dignity, and safeguard his interests and rights. He also would like to see the case that involves the investigation into the activities of Abu Omar to be closed in the interest of his client and in the interest of the Italian state.

Lawyer Walid Mohamed represents Abu Omar's interests in Italy. He says he has sent a letter to the Italian government requesting that damages be paid for the kidnapping, but did not say how much Abu Omar was seeking. He said he would prefer to settle out of court, but was prepared to lodge a civil case.

For the time being, Abu Omar cannot leave Egypt because the authorities have confiscated his passport. But Mohamed said he thinks Abu Omar will eventually be able to return.

The lawyer said he does not believe that the Egyptian state is interested in permanently keeping Abu Omar in Egypt or barring him from leaving the country.

Mohamed added that Abu Omar is firm in his desire to return to Italy because he wants to show that he is innocent and that he was never involved in illegal activity. If the imam does return, Italian authorities would arrest him on suspicion of terrorist association.

Court Rulings Cast Shadow Over Crucial Vote in Nigeria

By Sarah Simpson Abuja 05 April 2007

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Vice President Atiku Abubakar is battling in the Nigerian courts to get his name on ballot slips for a crucial presidential poll on April 21. But after two courts this week issued divergent rulings, it looks increasingly unlikely that the matter will be resolved before voting day, casting a pall over the forthcoming ballot. Sarah Simpson has more from Nigeria's capital, Abuja.

Atiku Abubakar, 3 Apr 2007

Less than three weeks before election day, Vice President Atiku Abubakar is fighting in the courts to get his name back on the presidential ballot.

The April 21 polls are a crucial milestone for this unruly, oil-rich nation, marking the first time that power will pass from one elected civilian head of state to another. But Abubakar's series of unresolved court battles are throwing a shadow over the polls.

Abubakar, who was viewed as a leading contender for the presidency, was last month barred from running as a presidential candidate by the Independent National Electoral Commission - the body organizing the forthcoming polls. The commission said Abubakar could not stand because he is facing corruption charges.

This week, two Nigerian courts issued seemingly conflicting decisions regarding Abubakar's candidacy.

First, the Court of Appeal - Nigeria's second highest court - ruled Tuesday that the electoral commission has the power to remove candidates from the ballot for crimes, including corruption.

But later the same day, the lower Federal High Court ruled that Abubakar's name should be put back on the ballot as the panel that found the vice president guilty of corruption was not lawful.

Both decisions are to be appealed.

At a news conference in the capital, Abuja, Abubakar said that he would abide by the final decisions of the courts, even if their ruling is not in his favor.

"Of course, if that is the decision of the court, I will accept, why not," he said.

But it is uncertain whether the argument will be resolved before polling day, less than three weeks away.

The chairman of the electoral commission, Maurice Iwu, has repeatedly said that the polls will not be rescheduled or delayed.

A report by U.S.-based Human Rights Watch this week said that efforts to bar Abubakar have thrown doubt over how fair the polls will be.

Abubakar says that the electoral commission is partisan and is being used by his foe, President Olusegun Obasanjo, to destroy his presidential ambitions, threatening democracy.

"Our democracy is in serious trouble," he said. "Our democracy has been bastardized and turned into a government of one man by one man and for one man."

The president and vice president had a very public falling-out after Abubakar openly condemned a bid to change the constitution, which could have enabled President Obasanjo to run for a third term in office.

Umaru Yar'Adua, 30 March 2007

Obasanjo is backing a little-known northern governor, Umaru Yar'Adua, as ruling party candidate and his favored successor.

At a prior news conference, Yar'Adua told reporters that he is confident that the Nigerian courts could resolve the matter, and would do so in accordance with Nigerian law.

"What is really important is that we get the rule of law to be established and be respected and the personalities involved should take second place," he said.

Elections for state governors are to take place April 14. Presidential polls will be held a week later.

There are about 61 million registered voters in Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation. There are only 15 days left to produce and distribute ballot sheets, with or without Abubakar's name on them.

VOASE0405_Economics Report

05 April 2007

Economic Conditions: Trying to Read the Future
The Conference Board publishes leading economic indicators for the United States and several other countries.

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This is the VOA Special English Economics Report.

Economics and weather have a lot in common. Knowing what conditions will be like weeks or months in the future is not easy. One thing that helps economists predict the future is the index of leading economic indicators.

An index is a way to measure changes in a group of numbers over time. In financial markets, for example, an index of stocks will rise or fall with changes in the wider market. The changes measured by an index can be represented with a single percentage.

The index may start at a base period of time with a value of one hundred. Now say that a month later the value is recorded as one hundred one. That means it gained one percent. If the index lost one percent, however, the value would be ninety-nine.

The leading economic indicators are really ten indexes. Four deal with manufacturing activity. One deals with unemployment claims. Another measures people’s expectations of the economy. Still others involve financial information like the money supply and interest rates.

The index of leading indicators is just one of the tools used to measure the business cycle. Business cycles are the normal changes that happen in economic growth over time.

A measure called the coincident index provides information about current conditions. Employment rates are an important part of it. There is also a lagging index. It helps confirm economic changes that currently appear to be taking place. Interest rates are an important lagging indicator.

The Conference Board publishes economic indicators for the United States. The Conference Board is a non-profit organization based in New York. It brings together business leaders to learn new ideas from one another. It has member companies around the world.

The Conference Board also does economic research. Its work helps show business and government leaders what conditions might be ahead.

But this group did not always produce the index of leading economic indicators. It took over the job in nineteen ninety-five from the Bureau of Economic Analysis, part of the Commerce Department.

The Conference Board also publishes economic indicators for Australia, France, Germany and Japan. Others are Britain, Mexico, South Korea and Spain.

And that's the VOA Special English Economics Report, written by Mario Ritter. Read and listen to our reports at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember.

VOASE0405_American Mosaic

05 April 2007

A Small Horse and a Big Goal: Raising $1 Million for Groups That Aid Children
Also: learn about the water sport of wakeboarding. And a listener in China asks about singer and actress Hilary Duff.

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HOST:

Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC, in VOA Special English.

(MUSIC)

I'm Bob Doughty. On our show this week:

We answer a question about singer and actress Hilary Duff …

Tell about a young woman who does an exciting water sport ...

And report about the world's smallest living horse.

Thumbelina

HOST:

An extremely rare animal named Thumbelina is traveling around the United States this year. The goal of the trip is to try to raise one million dollars for organizations that aid children. Last summer, Guinness World Records named Thumbelina the world's smallest living horse. Faith Lapidus tells us more.

FAITH LAPIDUS:

Thumbelina next to an average size horse

Thumbelina is forty-four and one-half centimeters tall. She weighs less than twenty-six kilograms. Because she is such an unusual creature, Thumbelina could easily be the center of attention in a circus or zoo.

Instead, her owners are taking her to visit forty-eight states. She is appearing at children's hospitals, stores, schools, horse shows, camps and fairs. Thumbelina already has raised more than ten thousand dollars for children's aid groups. She is popular with both children and adults.

Thumbelina is a kind of small horse called a miniature horse. But she has an abnormal gene that made about her half the size of a normal miniature horse.

Thumbelina is named for a woman in a story by the Danish writer Hans Christian Andersen. The woman was the size of a person's thumb, the short, thick finger on a person's hand.

Kay and Paul Goessling own Thumbelina. They keep the little horse at their Goose Creek Farms in Saint Louis, Missouri. They raise miniature horses to sell and show at competitions. Their son, Michael Goessling, cares for Thumbelina.

The little horse is five years old. At birth, she weighed less than four kilograms. The family thought she might not survive. Today, she sometimes wears leg supports to keep her legs straight. Michael Goessling says they expect Thumbelina to live about seventeen years.

When Thumbelina is home, Michael Goessling says she does not spend much time with the other horses. Instead, she plays with the family's dogs. She also sleeps in a doghouse. Two times a day, Thumbelina eats a cup of grain and a handful of hay.

Her owners say Thumbelina will not have any babies. They want to protect the health of their famous little horse. They say there will never be another Thumbelina.

Wakeboarding

HOST:

Dallas Friday was only thirteen years old when her mother took her to an expert teacher to learn to ride a wakeboard. Today, seven years later, Miz Friday has won many awards for this action-filled water sport. Shirley Griffith tells us more.

SHIRLEY GRIFFITH:

Wakeboarding is similar to surfing and water skiing. Surfers stand on a board and try to ride it over the ocean waves. But wakeboarders hold onto a rope as they ride a board behind a specially equipped boat. The motion and speed of the boat create a "wake" in the water. The rider jumps, turns and twists over the wake.

Dallas Friday wakeboarding

Dallas Friday learned those skills on land, doing gymnastics at school. So she thought she might be good at wakeboarding. But at first, the expert did not want to teach her. He thought she was just a beginner. But then he watched Dallas perform in the water. The expert told her family that she could make a million dollars.

During the years since then, Dallas Friday has earned top honors in competitions. Last year, for example, she won the Wakeboard World Cup in China. She has bought several houses with her winnings. She has also paid a price in injuries. She returned to the water recently after breaking her leg in seven places.

Like Dallas Friday, some young adult wakeboarders compete for money. But children also wakeboard, and so do people older than sixty. Most take part in the sport just for fun.

Wakeboarding developed over a number of years, as people skilled at water sports experimented with their equipment. It took a big step forward in the nineteen eighties. At that time, two well-known sportsmen designed straps to hold a rider's feet onto the board.

About fifteen years ago, a sports company in the state of Florida started launching competitions for professional wakeboarders. Television sports channels showed some of the action.

Today, an estimated three million people ride wakeboards in the United States. They study which boats and boards work best. They read magazines like "Alliance Wakeboard." But mostly, like Dallas Friday, they love to fly over the water on their wakeboards.

Hilary Duff

HOST:

Our VOA listener question this week comes from China. Guo Xiaoyi wants to know about singer and actress Hilary Duff.

(MUSIC)

Hilary Duff is only nineteen years old. Yet she has had her own television show, appeared in movies and recorded albums. She also designs her own clothing line and has a perfume named after her.

Hilary Duff started appearing in local productions in her hometown of Houston, Texas. She moved to California with her mother and sister and appeared in several television commercials.

Her first major movie part was in "Casper Meets Wendy" in nineteen ninety-eight. Then she got the lead in a television show about a teenager named Lizzie McGuire. She appeared in the show from two thousand one until two thousand four. By that time, she had already recorded two albums of music.

In two thousand three, she appeared in three hit movies -- "Agent Cody Banks", "The Lizzie McGuire Movie" and "Cheaper By the Dozen." Here is a hit song from her album Metamorphosis -- “So Yesterday”.

(MUSIC)

Hilary Duff also works with an animal rights group and is involved with several aid organizations. She has given two hundred fifty thousand dollars to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina on the American Gulf coast. And she is still not even twenty years old!

We leave you now with another hit song from Hilary Duff. This one is from her new album "Dignity" that was just released this week. It is called “With Love.”

(MUSIC)

HOST:

I'm Bob Doughty. Last week, we told you about the college men's basketball championship series called "March Madness." The final game was played Monday. The team from the University of Florida defeated the team from The Ohio State University to become the college basketball champion for the second year.

Last January, the Florida football team defeated Ohio State to win the college football championship. That makes the University of Florida the first school to win championships in both football and basketball in the same school year.

Our program today was written by Nancy Steinbach and Jerilyn Watson. Caty Weaver was our producer. To read the text of this program and download audio, go to our Web site, voaspecialenglish.com.

Join us again next week for AMERICAN MOSAIC, VOA’s radio magazine in Special English.