TIME Person of the Year

As long as he was an anonymous cybergeek, Julian Assange was a genius.

Once he came in from cyberspace and set about the manipulation of media professionals, he was just another source, to be used and abused, diddled and discarded. Assange, 39, did not choose to be the face of WikiLeaks; it was decided that since he had less to lose than most of his anonymous co-geeks, having neither home nor chick nor child, he would be it.

The media were easily convinced that WikiLeaks was a person, and unaware of how vulnerable he really was, Assange played the part to the hilt. Egregious to the last, he is convinced that his prosecution for rape in the Swedish courts was engineered by vengeful U.S. intelligence, unable to grasp the plain fact that his callous treatment made two women angry enough to seek redress.

There were many scoops but few surprises amid what we learned from WikiLeaks. Regardless of what happens to Assange, which he will almost certainly not deserve, the construction of stateless, secure and indestructible Internet drop boxes cannot be undone. Secrets will never be safe again.

Greer is the author of The Female Eunuch (1970); her latest book is Shakespeare’s Wife

Read more: http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2066367_2066369_2066107,00.html #ixzz1LoqkvCKm

Motorbiking in Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia is home to some of the greatest adventures on earth. Throw a motorbike into the mix and you will have the time of your life. Here is our guide to a two-wheeled adventure in the Mekong region:

Vietnam and Laos: Sublime scenery from mountain to coast

To kick off, the infamous Ho Chi Minh Trail has been upgraded into a major highway that runs along the spine of the country and offers some sublime scenery. The stretch from the old US airbase of Khe Sanh north to Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park is a beauty, including a wide section that was apparently a secret jungle landing strip for MIG fighters during the war.

Elsewhere in Vietnam, Ha Giang is the final frontier for motorbiking aficionados in Indochina. Like Halong Bay on high, karst peaks protrude from the top of rolling mountains and secluded villages are home to a colourful mosaic of ethnic minorities. The gorge road from Dong Van to Meo Vac is the stuff of biker yore, its towering cliffs looming high above and plummeting to the Nho Que River in the distance below. Just remember to keep an eye on the road, despite the breathtaking scenery.

A word of caution, however, Ha Giang still requires an official permit to visit more remote areas. Choose to travel without one and accidentally stumble upon military exercises in the mountains and you may find yourself a guest of the local Vietnamese police, as I did for one unforgettable night in Meo Vac.

If the coast is more your cup of tea, then try the Top Gear thing and ride notorious Highway 1 between Saigon and Hanoi. The traffic can be daunting around major cities, but there are some remote and desolate stretches with empty beaches. Aim high over the Hai Van Pass, ignoring the tedious tunnel that has been conveniently burrowed through the mountain.

Take the Top Gear theme further and team up with some friends to ride a Minsk, a Vespa and a Honda Cub. Buy each other ridiculous presents along the way, but try not to have a major accident on the road to Halong Bay like Jeremy Clarkson. Converting the bikes to amphibious vehicles to explore Halong Bay might be a step too far for a holiday.

Back to the Ho Chi Minh theme, for experienced dirt bikers, it is possible to explore remnants of the old Ho Chi Minh Trail across the border in Laos. Rusting tanks and forgotten field guns litter the jungle of Southern Laos. Combine a ride through the region’s recent history with some of the most remote and wild regions of the country in Salavan and Attapeu.

Cambodia – the other Route 66 (and more)
Cambodia has long been the holy grail for dirt bike enthusiasts thanks to its network of crumbling roads. Many of these have been upgraded in the past decade, but there remain many parts of the country where potholes are the size of golf bunkers and tarmac is an endangered species.

Get your kicks on Route 66, an ancient Angkorian highway that runs due east from Angkor via Beng Mealea to the vast temple complex of Preah Khan. Ancient stone bridges from the time of Jayavarman VII acts as historical waymarkers along the route, including the dramatic Spean Ta Ong with more than 20 arches.

Or follow in the tyre treads of Charley Boorman who biked across Cambodia in 2008. Meander along the Mekong River through traditional villages in Kompong Cham and Kratie before making a diversion east to the elevated provinces of Mondulkiri and Ratanakiri. Still linked together by the infamous “Death Highway”, many an experienced biker has come unstuck on the sandy, muddy trails “linking” Koh Nhek in Mondulkiri with Lumphat in Ratanakiri.

And let us not forget the Cardamom Mountains in southwest Cambodia for remote jungle; the dramatic northeast of Laos, home to the Plain of Jars and the Vieng Xai Caves, a sort of Cu Chi Tunnels cast in stone; and the rural Mekong Delta, a gentle two-wheeled adventure set against a patchwork of emerald green.

Lonely Planet author Nick Ray has authored multiple guidebooks, including the classic Southeast Asia on a Shoestring. He also worked as line producer on the Top Gear Vietnam special and fixer for Charley Boorman’s trip across Cambodia for By Any Means.

Birds Migration and the Deadly Glass

90.000 is the estimated amount of birds which died from colliding with the windows in every year migrations.

This summer in Chicago Wills Tower, Rockefeller Center in New York, and dozens of skyscraper buildings in 15 towns in the Unites States and Toronto will decrease the usage of night lightings for the sake of birds massive migration.

The reason is:

Million lives of birds have become the victim of windows as they colliding head-on to the solid glass of windows in the run of their migration.

Every year, there are more than 100 million birds collided with the windows in Canada and Unites States. Those birds included the sparrows and other chirping birds. It’s hard indeed to distinguish between the realities and the shadows. They’re also having some kind of sight disorientation at night, especially in the run of spring and autumn migrations.

This jeopardy doesn’t happen in the big towns only, even the urban housings could have become one of the birds migration threat. Fortunately, the action of lights-reduction and patterned window manufactures reduction have currently been increased. If this prevention made to succeed, there will be many birds that made ​​it to the destination safely.

Many countries are nowadays implementing this method in order to maintain the birds population around the world. Some are come with the idea to deter people to build high buildings in the birds’ migration zone.

Sign of bird collision is still visible in the window – Indianapolis

Al–Qaeda Membenarkan Berita Kematian Osama Bin Laden Melalui Pesan di Internet

Jum’at, 7 Mei 2011. Al-Qaeda telah mengeluarkan pernyataan yang memebenarkan berita kematian pemimpin mereka Osama Bin Laden di tangan pasukan militer Amerika Serikat. Berita ini dilansir melalui tim intelijen Amerika Serikat, SITE (The Search for International Terrorist Entities),yang selama ini memonitori seluruh situs-situs Islam di internet.

Pembenaran oleh Al-Qaeda ini dikeluarkan tepat setelah satu hari pasukan Amerika Serikat menewaskan Osama Bin Laden dalam misi penggerebekan tempat persembunyian Osama di Abbottabad, Pakistan.

SITE menerangkan bahwa, dalam pesannya Al-Qaeda meneyrukan para militan untuk malakukan tindakan penyerangan balik terhadap Amerika Serikat atas kematian Osama Bin Laden, dan mendorong warga Pakistan untuk bangkit dan beraksi.

Pesan-pesan dari Al-Qaeda ini berisi kecaman terhadap AS atas tindakan mereka membunuh pemimpin Al-Qaeda Osama Bin Laden.

“Amerika dan seluruh agen-agen mereka akan mendapatkan laknat atas kematian beliau (Osama). Dan laknat itu akan terus mengikuti mereka baik di dalam maupun di luar negera mereka”.

Kutipan isi pesan Al-Qaeda yang dilansir oleh SITE.

“Kebahagiaan mereka akan berubah menjadi kesedihan dan darah mereka akan bercampur dengan air mata mereka. Allah akan memberikan pertolongannya kepada kami”.

Al-Qaeda menegaskan bahwa mereka akan terus melanjutkan jalan jihad seperti yang telah dilakukan oleh para pendahulu mereka, tanpa keraguan ataupun beban.

“Kami tak akan mengingkari sumpah ini sampai Allah mengkehndaki untuk menghakimi kami dan musuh-musuh kami dengan kebenaran. Hanya Allah-lah satu-satu nya yang dapat menghakimi. Dan kami tak akan takut sedikitpun sampai kami mendapatkan kemenangan”.

Al-Qaeda juga menegaskan bahwa Amerika tak akan pernah bisa menikmati keamanan dan kenyamanan sebelum orang-orang di Palestina dapat menikmatinya.

“Para prajurit Islam, grup, dan setiap individu akan terus menjalankan rencana ini tanpa sedikitpun merasa lelah ataupun bosan. Kami tak akan putus asa atau menyerah, dan kami tak akan berhenti sampai mereka (Amerika Serikat) menimbulkan bencana yang membuat anak-anak terlihat seperti orang tua”.

Al-Qaeda menyerukan warga Pakistan untuk membersihkan keaiban dari para “pengkhianat dan pencuri” yang selama ini menyertai mereka, dan juga dari kezaliman AS yang telah membuat kerusakan di dalamnya.

Osama Bin Laden dan para militan lainnya memanfaatkan media Internet untuk menyampaikan pesan kepada seluruh pengikut Al-Qaeda sehari sebelum dan sesudah penyerangan menara kembar WTC pada tanggal 11 September 2001 di New York, Amerika Serikat.

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