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Inspired: Ginnifer Goodwin's Updated Black

casasugar — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 05:30:24 -0800

Ginnifer Goodwin is one of my favorite characters on Big Love, and she doesn't disappoint off the set either. I love the way that her basic black skirt and sheer top, which she wore at the Dolce and Gabbana flagship boutique opening earlier this week, is given an updated twist, thanks to these unexpected tribal beads.

I was inspired to create a room that employed the same style strategy: basic black, with a tribal twist. In much the same way that Ginnifer has updated her classical black with tribal beads, the Jayson Gilt Kuba Chair ($2,695) is a classically shaped, antique French chair that's been upholstered in vintage African Kuba cloth. Unexpected and elegant — just like Ginnifer.

To see how this chair figures into my look,

New Intelligence Report: US Dominance Set to Wane by 2025

LibertySugar — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 13:30:57 -0800

If you wish you could see into the future, US intelligence officials are here to hand you a crystal ball. The National Intelligence Council just released Global Trends 2025, an unclassified intelligence report put out every four years, and assesses the opportunities and problems that lie ahead in the next 15 years. One tip: Americans might need to start practicing being humble, because by 2025 the US could lose its position of global supremacy.

Other findings include:

Global warming will have a positive economic impact in Russian and Canada because it will make seasons longer, as well as increase their access to oil fields.
Russia's rise could be hindered by a lack of investment in the energy sector, crime, and corruption.
Governments in Africa and South Asia could collapse due to security problems or water and food shortages caused by a population boom of 1.5 billion and global warming.
There will be a greater potential for war in 2025, thanks to increased global competition for food, water, and energy.
The transfer of wealth from West to East will continue for the foreseeable future.
Thanks to economic growth in the Middle East, and growing unpopularity of al Qaeda, the terrorist network will collapse sooner than people think.

To see some other predictions regarding Iran, nuclear weapons, and US dominance,

Obama to Lift Ban on Abstinence-Plus AIDS Prevention

LibertySugar — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 00:01:59 -0800

Barack Obama has plans to put US global AIDS policy on a different path, leaving abstinence-only requirements for funding in the dust. The co-chair of his advisory committee for women's health said that the president-elect is committed to "changing the policies so that family-planning services — both in the US and the developing world — reflect what works, what helps prevent unintended pregnancy, reduce maternal and infant mortality, prevent the spread of disease."

Conversely, on the first day of his presidency, George W. Bush reinstated the "Mexico City Policy," which denies US funding to international groups that perform abortions, provide counseling or referral for abortions, or lobby to make abortion available. The gag order applies to those who use non-US funding to support abortions, too. As a result, many organizations in Africa lost funding, thus, losing means to provide contraception to prevent pregnancy and the transfer of HIV.

Barack Obama's step away from abstinence-only programs and toward a more inclusive approach still keeps US policy a far cry away from teaching sex-ed to kindergartners. Do you think lifting the gag order is the best way to stop the global spread of HIV/AIDS?

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Somalia: Is the Chaos There a US Problem?

LibertySugar — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 11:00:00 -0700

An exaggerated fear of "Islamofascism" ignores a complex reality, causing the US to overreact and damage its own interests. So says columnist Nicholas D. Krsitof, who argues that the situation in Somalia is one of the least-known Bush administration failures. Kristof explains that in 2006, a movement made up of moderate and extremist Islamic groups was close to uniting the country. Fearful of an uncooperative government in Somalia, the US supported Ethiopia's invasion of its rival, crushing the best hope for peace.

Events this week bolster the argument that paranoia of Islamic extremists has led to disaster. Today in Somalia, five suicide bombs hit government security posts, UN offices, and an Ethiopian consular unit, killing dozens.

On Monday, the human rights chaos came to a head as well. A rape victim was stoned to death for adultery in an Islamist-controlled region. Buried up to her neck, thousands gathered at a soccer field to help execute her.

Perhaps extremists win when international powers stubbornly refuse to reach out to moderates. Would you rather see the US abandon a strictly ideological viewpoint, instead opening its eyes to nuanced reality, or does security require zero tolerance?

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Niger Found Guilty of Allowing Slavery By West African Court

LibertySugar — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 00:00:50 -0700

An ex-slave in Niger, who was sold at the age of 12, made to worked for 10 years, and forced to bear the children of her master, has won a case against her country, which now must pay her $19,750 in damages. A West African Court found the Niger government guilty of failing to protect Hadijatou Mani from slavery, sending a message loud and clear that Niger must do more than nominally outlaw slavery. Activists hope the case will improve the lives of thousands kept in slavery throughout the region.

According to BBC, after her master freed her in 2005, Hadijatou tried to marry. To find out how that got her in jail,

International Flotilla, Maybe Mercenaries, to Take on Pirates!

LibertySugar — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 09:00:23 -0700

Warships from 10 countries are joining together to take on some of the world's most dangerous, and successful, pirates. (Can you say "arrrrrrrr" in 10 languages?) Not even the presence of US military vessels is enough to prevent these hijackers from seizing commerce ships, grabbing booting, and demanding ransoms.

Since 250 international ships use the pirate-infested waters to move goods each day, the world's trading powers worry that it could be too expensive to conduct business. The pirates also pose a threat of increased terrorism, as they use their proceeds, as much as $30 million this year, to fund more crime and extremist groups.

But officials in Somalia, which has a weak central government, have little faith in the flotilla. To see who they might hire to fight the pirates,

Colin Powell Gets Down — and Could Be Ready to Endorse?

CitizenSugar — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 11:00:57 -0700

Glee. This pictures of Colin Powell getting down with his soberly respectable self fill me with utter glee. The former secretary of state hip-hopped on stage with the Nigerian group Olu Maintain at the Africa Rising Festival at the Royal Albert Hall last night. After proving a suit and tie is no match for the funkiness of his moves, he turned more serious. He said that his own black identity matters now more than ever, and told the audience that with work and foreign investment, Africa could start to succeed like Asia and Eastern Europe.

Powell said:

I stand before you tonight as an African-American. Many people have said to me you became secretary of state of the USA, is it still necessary to say that you are an African-American or that you are black, and I say, yes, so that we can remind our children. It took a lot of people struggling to bring me to this point in history. I didn't just drop out of the sky, people came from my continent in chains. . . .Asia is expanding, it created jobs for people, and Eastern Europeans are doing the same . . . it's now Africa's turn.

Christina and Seal were at the festival too, but Powell? Clearly the showstopper. Could he be ready for an encore? There are rumblings that he could be ready to endorse a candidate, and perhaps not the one from the party he served. Possible?

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Good News Out of Africa: The Ten Best Governed Countries

CitizenSugar — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 09:00:57 -0700

Amid worsening economic news flying at us almost constantly, there is some good news and it’s coming from a surprising corner of the globe: Africa. The continent that has been the metaphor for human misery because of continual wars, poverty, and famine in some respects is recording healthier economic growth than in the industrialized world according to the International Monetary Fund.

The IMF estimates that Africa’s economy may expand by 5 percent this year and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development reports that a bigger portion of money entering Africa since 2006 has been investment rather than aid. Even more optimistic is that the Mo Ibrahim Foundation found that 31 out of 48 sub-Saharan African countries, governance is improving. Most improved over the past year was Liberia which saw more than a quarter of a million of its own citizens perish in two civil wars between 1989 and 2003, but has now risen six places to 38th.

To see why some conditions are improving and the 10 best governed African countries,

Right Direction? Pentagon Launches Africa Command

CitizenSugar — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 00:00:40 -0700

Before September 11th, 2001, American military strategy in Africa was little more than a cursory investment to buffer its interests against those of the Soviet Union, then Russia, China, and the Middle East governments. Now the Pentagon is taking a new approach to the African continent, one that may be especially welcome.

Part of the new strategy is to create a new regional headquarters called “Africa Command” responsible for coordinating American military projects on that continent. The idea is that the Pentagon will forge a “civilian-military partnership” in which the Defense Department will work with the State Department and Agency for International Development and the host nation’s security and development agencies as well. They hope to assign military personnel to train local anti-terrorism forces, dig wells, build sewers, and assist with inoculations of the local citizenry.

Not everyone is excited about the development. To see why,

Video Game Hopes to Give Ugandan Victims Traces of Hope

LibertySugar — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 10:00:26 -0700

The British Red Cross has created a video game to raise awareness for child victims of the conflict in Uganda. Last week, the UN called for the release of 90 children abducted from school by LRA army. Crimes against children have been a constant during the 20 year battle; but the Red Cross believes that its Internet game "Traces of Hope" will help shine the spotlight on the vulnerable.

Players aim to help Joseph, a boy whose home and family has been torn apart by rebels, find his missing mother. The game site says: "He has a satellite phone, you have the web – together you’ll make a great team. Time is running out; guide Joseph through sickness, fire and violence as together you follow his traces of hope."

By placing clues for the game around the Internet, the game creators hope to blur the boundary between the game and the real world conflict. Since atrocities in the region often go unnoticed, perhaps this educational entertainment will help some wake up.

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