Al Gore in News

Davos: Gates And Gore Hold Court

Bill Gates and Al Gore forcefully challenge leaders to improve the world with brains and money.

Ollie North: Condi Rice, Saleswoman-in-Chief

At Davos, Ms. Rice tried to convince Bono, Al Gore and other assembled celebrities that the Bush administration really is Â“greenÂ” and that we care more than they know about global warming.

Bono confesses to Father Al

Bono said having Al Gore over for tea was like going to confession. "It's like being with an Irish priest. You start to confess...

Gore-Backed Cable Channel to Go Public

SAN FRANCISCO -- Cable television upstart Current Media Inc. plans to go public later this year, giving investors a chance to assess the entrepreneurial skills of its co-founder, Al Gore.

Lieberman Rejects VP Talk

Sen. Joseph Lieberman, Al Gore’s running mate on the 2000 Democratic ticket, said he won’t be Sen. John McCain’s running mate this year if the Arizona senator wins the Republican nomination. John McCain receives Joe Lieberman’s endorsement in December 2007 at the American Legion in Hillsborough, N.H. 'No, I’d tell him, ‘Thanks, John, I’ve been there, I’ve done that. You can find much better,’ ” Lieberman told the Associated Press. 'I’m not seeking anything else.” The Connecticut independent, who had switched from the Democratic Party after losing the Democratic presidential primary in 2006, had fueled speculation by endorsing McCain in December and campaigning with him in New Hampshire, Michigan, South Carolina and Florida. Lieberman also told the AP that his endorsement of McCain isn’t a step toward switching to the Republican Party. 'I don’t have any intention of leaving the Democratic Party,” he said. 'I want to be a senator.” Still, he left open the door to attending the Republican convention if McCain wins the nomination. 'I’d probably be more welcome there,” he said.

He’s baaaacccckkk....Nader forms presidential exploratory committee

Ralph Nader, the consumer advocate who has been accused by Democrats of helping hand the White House to George W. Bush in 2000, has formed a committee to explore another presidential bid.Sure to stir up a hornet’s nest, Nader launched an Internet site to recruit campaign workers, paid and unpaid, as well as to raise money for a possible White House run.Donors who give $300 will receive three books and two DVDs, including Michael Moore’s Sicko movie about the state of health care in the United States.He has run several times before, including in 2004 as an independent and in 2000 as the Green Party candidate. That year he was blamed by many for siphoning off votes from Al Gore and ultimately resulting in Bush securing the White House.Click here for more Reuters 2008 campaign coverage.- Photo credit: Reuters/Keith Bedford

A postcard from Singapore VIII

This week Iworked the9 to 5 shift justlike many others in Singapore and elsewhere.No big deal you mightsaybutpeak time taxi faresandtraffic jams make getting to the office a real pain. My colleague David Loh who was also on dayshift made a tempting offer,”buy a helmet and I’ll take youon my Ducati”. This sounded like a plan to me, so of I went toLittle India to buy my new helmet. After a little haggling - 50% off the first price -I left with my new silver motor cycle helmet.The nextmorning David picked me up and we whizzedpast all the jams to the office, faster and more thrillingly thanany taxi ride so far. For the whole week we explored routes and I noticed that many homes were decorated with red banners with big golden characters.David and othercolleagues told methis was already preparation for Chinese New Year which is inFebruary.The legend tells howlong, long ago in ancient China there was a furious man-eating beast from the mountains (orfrom under the sea), which lookedlike a dragon (or a unicorn). On the first and 15th day ofeach lunar month the monster, calledNian, came out to hunt people. On the days of its coming the people, in terror,locked their doors before sunset.In one village lived a wise old man who rallied the peopletogether to face theNian with loud noises andfireworks. On a moonlessfreezing cold night the monster appeared and the moment it opened its jawsthe peoplemadefrightening noises, beating drums and lightingfireworks. Wherever the monster went it was driven back by the din, time and time again until it fell down exhausted and was killedby the villagers.Savage as the monster was, the Nian was defeated by the concerted efforts of a small village. From that time on the people maintainedthe tradition by beating drums and gongs and lighting fireworkson the coldest day of winter to drive away imaginary monsters and to celebrate their victory over them. Today, Nian refers to the New Year’s Day or Spring Festival. You can hear people often say Guo Nian, meaning ’survive the Nian’. As Nian also means 'the year” Chinese often greet each other with Xin (means 'new ') Nian (”year”) Hao (”good”) - Happy New Year!Chinese New Year is the most important celebration in the Chinese calendar and year 4706 begins on February 7, 2008 - it is the year of the rat. Babies born before Chinese New Year are born in the year of the pig.The next day on a visit to ashopping mall theshops were covered in red. Red banners with golden letters, red rats in all shapes and sizes, red lamps, red envelopes and all kind of lucky symbols .... Red and gold wherever you looked.One of the shop owners nicely explained to my wife and I thatinancient times most people were illiterate which was whyanimals that influenced people’s lives were chosen to symbolize the terrestrial branches: the rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog and pig (or boar). Another legend tells how one day Buddha summoned all of the animals and honoured those who came by naming a year for them. When the cat and the rat heard they have to appear, the cat said to rat: ‘We should arrive early, but I usually get up late.’ Because they were neighbours and good friends the rat then promised to wake up his friend so they can go together. However, the next morning when the rat got up, it was much too excited and forgot his promise. The rat went directly towards the gathering place. On the way, it came across the tiger, ox, horse, and realized that the other animals are running much faster. As the rat did not want to fall behind it jumped on the ox and promised to sing for him if he carried him. They arrived first and the ox was happy thinking that he would be the first sign of the years. But the rat had already slipped in front and so the rat became the first lucky animal of the Chinese zodiac. Meanwhile his neighbour the cat was far too late and when it finally arrivedthe selection process was over. That’s why other animals appear behind the rat (in above mentioned order) and why the cats hate rats so much that every time they meet, the cat will chase and kill the rat.Then Buddha named a year after each one and announced that people born in each animal’s year would have some of that animal’s personality. Richard Nixon, George Bush, Marlon Brando, Al Gore, Shakespeare, George Washington, Jimmy Carter, Clark Gable, Charlton Heston, Lady Bird Johnson, Mozart and William Shakespeare were all born in the year of the rat (1912, 1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008, 2020, 2032, and 2044).Though in some people’s eyes the rat is not adorable andthere are manyderogatory references to rats, itheads the Chinese zodiac. Since the presence of a rat in a Chinese farmer’s home has historically been seen as an indicator of big harvests, the sign is known as a 'wealth animal”.Browsing the internet I found lots websites describing the character of rats:The rat is recognized as an animal with spirit, wit, alertness, delicacy, flexibility and vitality. Being the first sign of the Chinese zodiac, rat people are endowed with great leadership skills and are the most highly organized. They can be charming, passionate, charismatic, practical, hardworking and strong-willed people who are keen and unapologetic promoters of their own agendas, which often include money and power. Behind the smile rats can be terribly obstinate and controlling, insisting on having things their way no matter what the cost. These people tend to have immense control of their emotions, which they may use as a tool to manipulate and exploit others - both emotionally and mentally. Quick-tempered and aggressive, rats will not think twice about revenge on those that hurt them in any way. Rats need to learn to relax sometimes, as they can be quite obsessed with detail, intolerant and strict, demanding order and perfection.But now back to the Chinese New Year, which is observed as a public holiday in countries with a sizable Chinese population. Chinese months are based on the lunar calendar. Each month, and also the Chinese New Year begins on new moon, the darkest day of the month and festivities end when the moon is brightest with a Lantern Festival. In the Gregorian calendar, Chinese New Year falls on different dates each year, a date between January 21 and February 20. This means that the holiday usually falls on the second (very rarely third) new moon after the winter solstice.I was told that during that period Singapore slowsdown, shops are closed and many people travel home to visit their families. I understand that New Year celebrations may span over weeks before and after the official holidays and this is the time when businesses in the region operate in ‘holiday mode’ and its generally not the time for making important decisions or business negotiations.The shop owner told me that Chinese New Year celebrations are marked by visits to kin, relatives and friends, a practice known as 'new-year visits”. 'I wear new cloth” he adds and 'I already prepare the red envelopes” or red packets. These red envelopes, in Mandarin 'hÃ³ng bÄo” always contain money. Varying from a couple of dollars to several hundred, the notes have to be new and clean. The amount of money in the Hongbao should be of even numbers, as odd numbers are associated with cash given during funerals. Since the number 4 is considered bad luck (the word for four is a homophone for death) money in the red envelopes never adds up to $4 - and as the number 8 is considered lucky (for its homophone for 'wealth”) $8 are commonly found in the red envelopes. Traditionally Hongbao’s with the 'lucky money” are passed out from married couples or the elderly to unmarried juniors.As kind of general preparation people clean their house thoroughly, decorate it with lots of symbolic and lucky words and prepare lots of food. Everyone gets a haircut and everything and everyone looks new and fresh. Well prepared for the night of New Year’s Eve, Chinese families come together for a celebration or reunion-dinner. This custom is also called 'surrounding the hearth,” from the custom in earlier times of eating dinner around the family hearth. Children and adults eat together a dinner, which begins only when all family members are around the table. A table setting is placed for those unable to come home to symbolize their presence though far away. As I learned everything related to the Chinese New Year is symbolic or has a special meaning. Several of the dishes served have auspicious meaning and are indispensable to the night’s menu: mustard greens, the 'Long Year Vegetable” represents long life, as well as uncut noodles, which represent longevity and long life, though this practice is not limited to the new year; a 'Whole Chicken,” (must be a whole!!) symbolizing wealth for the whole family (since 'chicken” and 'family” sound the same in the Taiwanese dialect ); a type of clam called han is eaten since it sounds like the Chinese word for 'fat,” means 'becoming well-off”; and fish balls, shrimp balls, and meat balls are eaten to symbolize the three top scores earned during the civil service examination in ancient China. Although fish is on the New Year’s Eve dinner table it cannot be eaten on New Year’s Eve, since the Chinese words for 'fish” and 'surplus” sound the same and people wouldn’t want to eat the next year’s surplus - I also found sources saying it exact the other way around. In some areas it is customary to have dumplings for this dinner as they symbolize wealth because their shape is like a Chinese gold nugget. And last but not least: Mandarin oranges are the most popular and most abundant fruit during Chinese New Year. This New Years Eve dinner is comparable to Christmas dinner in the West, except the Chinese will have much more food.Here is a briefguide togood and bad luck.Good luck:- Fu is a lucky word. Fu - is very easy to say and is one of the most popular Chinese characters used during Chinese New Year. Around the Chinese New Year, people often put up a poster with this word on it - upside down! It’s the only time when a Chinese word is posted upside down intentionally.- Clean the house completely from top to bottom before New Year’s Day for good luck in the coming year- Opening windows and/or doors bring in the good luck of the New Year.- Switching on the lights for the night is considered good luck and ’scares away’ ghosts and spirits of misfortune- Eat sweets to make sure you have a 'sweet” year.- Some believe that what happens on the first day of the New Year reflects the rest of the year to come. Asians will often gamble at the beginning of the year, hoping to get luck and prosperity.- Wear a new pair of slippers that is bought before the New Year which means to step on the people who gossip about you.- The night before the New Year, bath in pomelo leaves and you will be healthy for the rest of the upcoming year.Bad Luck- Buying a pair of shoes is considered bad luck because the word 'shoes” is a homophone for 'rough” in Cantonese, or 'evil” in Mandarin.- Buying a pair of pants is considered bad luck because the word 'pants” is a homophone for 'bitter” in Cantonese. Although some look at it positive as ‘pants’ in Cantonese is also a homophone for the word for 'wealth”- Washing your hair could mean washing away one’s own luck, but modern hygienic concerns take precedence over this tradition- Sweeping the floor is usually forbidden on the first day because it will sweep away the good fortune and luck- Buying books is bad luck because the word for 'book” is a homonym to the word 'lose”.Avoid clothes in black and white, as black is a symbol of bad luck, and white is a traditional funeral colour.So there you are, a bit complicated but useful to know. I’m off now to Germany, back to spend time withmy family and friends,like the Chinese do at New Year but without the monsters.

More news:

Global climate burns bright in 2007

Forget drafting Gore, Bloomberg for White House run, group wants Lou Dobbs

Relax, Brady's ready