And related to the monkey-hugging story we saw the other day:
Stroking reveals pleasure nerve

Somali pirates release German, Japanese ships: maritime group

“We have reports that they brought ransom and were coordinating its payment,” he added.

Sources close to the pirates in the northern Somali breakaway state of Puntland told AFP that a ransom of 1.5 million dollars was paid for the Japanese vessel but the information could not immediately be confirmed.

NASA Mars Rover Update: Farewell, “Victoria”!
Ares I Passes Critical Design Review In preparation For 2015 Space Mission

Conflict fear over Arctic borders

Russian troops dismantle west Georgia checkpoints
War wounds Georgia economy
Looting, fires rage in S. Ossetia – rights groups

“Currently the (ethnic) Georgian villages we visited…are practically burnt to the ground. Now, a month after military operations, the final houses are being torched, and every day we saw new fires.”

Separatists in Russia see hope in South Ossetia and Abkhazia

Russia slams ‘unfriendly’ Ukraine
Ukrainian PM questioned over president poisoning
Ukraine in suspense over Tymoshenko’s Nato position

For its part, the Kremlin appears in the mood to deal. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has been travelling in Central Asia to bolster support for Russia and in addition to agreeing to up the price of Central Asian oil and gas, also signed off on new pipeline deals. The Kremlin would certainly be open to softening a price hike in Ukraine’s gas bill if Tymoshenko would back Russia in its standoff with the West.

Russia and Turkey tango in the Black Sea
Kyiv to host Black Sea Fleet talks September 25 – 26

“Chile is still a pretty timid country,” said her manager Gustavo Pradenas. “People aren’t very extroverted and we want to take aim at that and make Chile a happier country.”

Your Bastille day assignment is to decide what you want to break open, and what you want to set free….

Interpreting the Largest ICE Raid in U.S. History: A Personal Account

A Spanish-language interpreter in Postville, Iowa battled with his own ethical decisions about how to stay neutral during the largest single-site raid in U.S. history. He says nothing could have prepared him for the prospect of helping our government put hundreds of innocent people in jail.

U.S. terrorism watch list tops 1 million

“America’s new million-record watch list is a perfect symbol for what’s wrong with this administration’s approach to security: it’s unfair, out-of-control, a waste of resources (and) treats the rights of the innocent as an afterthought,” ACLU technology director Barry Steinhardt said in a release.

Moving on, it’s the usual escalations in Georgia:
Georgia says will down Russian jets
Georgia to Expand Military to Counter Russian Threat in Regions

Kosovo Serbs feel heat from all sides

Corporate Accountability International: Blackwater, Archer Daniels Midland, and Wal-Mart Inducted into Corporate Hall of Shame

Pirate king revealed (sort of):
‘Royal father’ behind kidnapping in N-Delta uncovered!

Finally, here are some stories about Afghanistan. The real danger of empire is becoming quite apparent. Just as holding Iraq means increasing conflict with Iran, holding Afghanistan (which we barely do anyway) is drawing us into conflict with Pakistan. They talk about the Pax Romana, but there was only peace if you lived in the center of the empire. There was constant warfare along the periphery, and a constant drive to expand in order to protect what they already had. The British had a similar problem, which is how they famously “acquired an empire in a fit of absent-mindedness.” Let’s pay a little more attention than they did.

Deadly U.S. Army outpost assault in Afghanistan underscores growing threat
Pakistan fears over US air raids
NATO: Insurgents try to pit Afghanistan against Pakistan

Meanwhile, back on Mars:
Mars Soil Sample Finally Delivered to Phoenix Instrument

Pirates attack cattle ship bound for Western Australia
Pirates attack Cameroonian military convoy in Bakassi
Will piracy never be sunk?

Piracy is as old as seafaring and even ancient states suffered from this evil. Julius Caesar was probably one its most famous victims. Captured in the Aegean Sea in 75 BC, he was released for the princely ransom of 50 talents (the pirates had only asked for twenty, but Caesar insisted he was worth more), and promised his captors to come back and execute them, which he promptly did.

Danger Room debunks activist folklore:
Protesters Panic Over ‘Crap Cannon’

They had sex WHERE?

An Italian couple who were caught having sex in a church confessional box while morning Mass was being said have repented and made peace with the local bishop.
…
Their lawyer said they had been drinking all night and realized they had gone too far.

OK, real news some other time.

D.C. Police to Check Drivers In Violence-Plagued Trinidad
D.C. Police Chief Cathy L. Lanier announced a military-style checkpoint yesterday to stop cars this weekend in a Northeast Washington neighborhood inundated by gun violence, saying it will help keep criminals out of the area.

The toxic ‘wonder plant’ that split world food summit

RAND study finds increase in piracy and terrorism at sea
Little evidence supports fear the 2 crimes are merging

The objectives of the two crimes remain different — piracy is aimed at financial gain while the goal of terrorism is political. Although both events are increasing, piracy is growing much faster and remains far more common than seaborne terrorism, according to the report.

…

Chalk said the study’s findings suggest U.S. policymakers focus too much on responding to worse-case terrorist scenarios rather than crafting policies to combat lower consequence (but more probable) attacks that could strike cruise ships or passenger ferries. Just as seriously, the U.S. government has paid comparatively little attention to combating piracy, despite its proven cost in terms of human lives, political stability and economic disruption.

Sex in space would be ‘a flailing exercise’
Proving that you should never ask the experts if you’re looking for a good time.