'Defined Voices': Giap, Wallace, and freedom

'Defined Voices': Giap, Wallace, and freedom By Ramzy Baroud

"Nothing is more precious than freedom," is quoted as being attributed to Vo Nguyen Giap, the Vietnamese general who led his country through two liberation wars. The first was against French colonialists, the second against the Americans. And despite heavy and painful losses, Vietnam prevailed, defeating the first colonial quest at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu (1954) and the second at Ho Chi Minh Campaign (1975).

General Giap, the son of a peasant scholar, stood tall in both

He died on Friday, October 4, at the age of 102.

On the same day, the former black panther Herman Wallace, who had spent 41-years of his life in solitary confinement in Louisiana State Penitentiary, died from incurable liver cancer at the age of 71. Just a few days before his death, Judge Brian Jackson had overturned a charge that robbed Herman of much of his life. According to Jackson, Herman's 1974 conviction of killing a prison guard was 'unconstitutional.'

Despite the lack of material evidence, discredited witnesses and a sham trial, Wallace, who was a poet and lover of literature, and two other prisoners known as the Angola Three, were locked up to spend a life of untold hardship for a crime they didn't commit.

Now that Wallace is dead, two remain. One, Robert King, 70, was freed in 2001, and the other, Albert Woodfox, 66, is still in solitary confinement and "undergoes daily cavity searches," according to reported the Independent newspaper.

"When his conviction was overturned it cleared the slate - he could die a man not convicted of a crime he was innocent of," King said of the release of Wallace, who died few days later.

One of the last photos released while on his hospital bed, showed Wallace raising his clinched right fist, perpetuating the legendary defiance of a whole generation of African Americans and civil rights leaders. While some fought for civil rights in the streets of American cities, Wallace fought for the rights of prisoners. The four decades of solitary confinement were meant to break him. Instead, it made it him stronger.

"If death is the realm of freedom, then through death I escape to freedom" Wallace quoted Frantz Fanon in the introduction to a poem he wrote from prison in 2012.

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'Defined Voices': Giap, Wallace, and freedom

PH upholds freedom of navigation amid China warning

by Paterno Esmaquel II Posted on 10/07/2013 3:10 PM |Updated 10/07/2013 4:40 PM

PH VS CHINA. The Philippines claims that Panatag, a disputed area in the South China Sea, lies within its exclusive economic zone. China says it's theirs.

MANILA, Philippines The Philippines upheld freedom to navigate the South China Sea after China on Monday, October 7, blasted the United States, Japan, and Australia for interfering in maritime disputes.

There's such a thing as freedom of navigation. A big percentage of world trade passes through our waters waters that are a subject of dispute right now, Philippine Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda said in a press briefing.

Referring to the US, Japan, and Australia, Lacierda said: Do they have an interest? Yes, they have an interest because of freedom of navigation.

Lacierda issued this statement after China on Monday criticized the 3 countries.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said: The alliance between the US, Japan, and Australia should not be used as an excuse to interfere in disputes over territorial sovereignty; otherwise, it will only complicate the situation and hurt the interests of relevant parties. We urge these countries to respect facts, tell right from wrong, be discreet, and refrain from any word or deed that is not conducive to the proper handling of relevant issues and to regional stability."

She added China upholds a long-standing and clear-cut position on South China Sea disputes.

This position includes rejecting third parties in settling maritime conflicts, such as the United Nations (UN) tribunal before which Manila filed an unprecedented case against Beijing.

READ: PH-China dispute 'acid test' for int'l law - Carpio

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PH upholds freedom of navigation amid China warning

Monster iSport Freedom

By Tim Gideon

In an attempt to bring a touch of luxury and high performance to the realm of exercise headphones, Monster recently released the wireless Bluetooth iSport Freedom. At $279.95 (list), there's nothing subtle about these on-ear headphonesthe price is as eye-catching as the design. Exercise buffs will enjoy the iSport Freedom, which is built to withstand a tough workout. Audiophiles should steer clear, howeverthis is one of the more wildly sculpted, bass-boosted sound signatures we've heard in this price range, and the results are not always positive. The price seems high for exercise headphones, and especially a pair that provides such a lopsided audio experience.

DesignVisually, the iSport Freedom is very striking. Dark gray accents are offset by neon yellow-green, rubberized sweatproof material. The earpads are made of this same material, and are not uncomfortable but lack the plush, cushioned feeling many on-ear headphones go for. They opt instead for a secure, sweat-proof fit that should serve you well during intense workouts.

Controls for playback, answering calls, adjusting volume and skipping tracks are located on the outside panel of the right earcup. The Power button is also located here. Hold the Power button down to pair the headphones with your mobile device. The pairing process with an iPhone 4s was quick and painless.

On the left earcup, there are two covered ports: a micro-USB charging connection and a 3.5mm connection for the included optional audio cable. This cable is a nice touch, as it allows you to use the iSport Freedom as a traditional pair of headphones when you have no battery power. It also includes a single-button remote for easy control of playback and track navigation, as well as answering calls through the headphones' built-in microphone. When it's connected, Bluetooth streaming capabilities are disabled, so you won't waste battery power when listening via the cable in passive mode.

The headphones fold down easily, collapsing at hinges just above each ear. You get a drawstring carrying pouch, a USB charging cable, and the aforementioned audio cable.

PerformanceOn tracks with intense sub-bass content, like the Knife's "Silent Shout," the iSport Freedom delivers serious bass response. At top volumes, it does not distort, and the deep lows are delivered with subwoofer-like intensity. It sometimes sounds as if the boosted bass lacks contour and definition, though. There's such a tremendous presence in the very low frequencies, it seems that some of the low-mids and mids that help define these sounds are a bit lost in the mix.

This isn't to say the iSport Freedom is muddyif anything, it can sound a bit too bright. Basically, the very deepest and very highest frequencies seem overly sculpted. On Bill Callahan's "Drover," we hear this plainly. Too often, his baritone vocals can sound muddy on this track if there has been a lot of bass boosting applied. But in the case of the iSport freedom, the bass boost, though tremendous, does little to his voicethat's because it's not boosting much in the low-mids. The drums, on the other hand, get a huge dose of deep bass, and sound overly bass-heavy and thumpy on this track. Callahan's voice is never lost, however, because the high-mids and highs are so seriously tweaked. In fact, his voice and guitar strumming sound too bright and occasionally tinny.

On Jay-Z and Kanye West's "No Church in the Wild," the iSport freedom sounds a bit better. The attack on the kick drum loop here gets a bunch of added high-mid edge, and it cuts through the mix with intensity, while the sub-bass synth hits that punctuate the beat are delivered with booming low-end. The extremes of the crisp highs and deep lows make for quite a dynamic mix, but for the sound signature is extremely unnatural.

Classical tracks also sound a bit too bright, though they do get a bit of extra low-end richness. On John Adams "The Chairman Dances," the higher register strings own the spotlight and sometimes sound too strong in the high-mids and highs, but the lower register strings do balance things out a bit, and the large drum hits that end this piece receive a nice bit of low-end roundness.

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Monster iSport Freedom

Tito Ortiz: UFC Protecting 'Little Brat' Ronda Rousey from Fighting Cyborg

Bellator light heavyweight Tito Ortiz remains one of the most outspoken competitors in the fight game, whether he's talking about his career or one of his clients.

The self-proclaimed "People's Champion" tore into UFC women's bantamweight titleholder Ronda Rousey in an interview with Fighters Only, saying the UFC was protecting her from a showdown with his star client, Cristiane "Cyborg" Justino.

They (the UFC) pushed this fight of her and Ronda at 135 so much. The last time I saw Ronda call out Cris Cyborg, Ronda was actually at 145. So she cut down to 135 to stay avoid Cris ...I think her head is getting to her. I watched a couple episodes (of The Ultimate Fighter)and she seems like a little brat, likes shes too good for everybody else. Thats the attitude you dont want, especially as a coach. People see me on The Ultimate Fighter season three, season eleven, I never thought I was better than anybody else ...Shes being protected by the UFC and if she keeps being protected she will always be known as second-best.I havent seen any great stand-up skills. I have seen her closing the gap and taking a girl down and arm-barring her. I dont think she even knows any moves other than an armbar.

Ortiz, who returns from a 16-month layoff from the cage to fight follow ex-UFC champ Quinton "Rampage" Jackson at Bellator 106 on November 2, asked to have Justino released from her UFC contract in February, per MMA Weekly.

The two sides parted ways after an agreement could not be reached for a Rousey-Cyborg superfight.

Justino has fought her entire career at featherweight, while Rousey cut down to bantamweight for the first time in March 2012, where she won the Strikeforce strap from rival Miesha Tate.

Rousey is currently 7-0 as a professional mixed martial artist, finishing each opponent with a predictable, yet seemingly unstoppable, armbar.

She next defends her title against Tate again at UFC 168, with the women's title bout serving as the co-main event of the December 28 pay-per-view.

Meanwhile, the equally dominant Cyborg hasn't lost since her pro debut in May 2005, though her record was tarnished when she tested positive for the anabolic steroid stanozolol in December 2011, per MMA Junkie.

After serving her nine-month suspension, the hard-hitting Brazilian has rallied back with three straight technical knockouts, capturing the Invicta Fighting Championships featherweight title in July and also winning her first Muay Thai fight in nearly seven years late last last month.

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Tito Ortiz: UFC Protecting 'Little Brat' Ronda Rousey from Fighting Cyborg

The cleanest beaches in the state are right here

Oct. 8, 2013, 4:07 a.m.

Fishermans Beach, an unpatrolled beach, was one of eight Wollongong beaches graded as very good in the State of the Beaches 2012-13 report.

The water quality at Illawarra beaches is among the best in the state, according to a report released to coincide with the start of the summer swimming season.

All 13 Wollongong beaches monitored for the annual State of the Beaches 2012-13 report were graded "very good" or "good" in 2012-13, giving the council area a 100 per cent success rate.

That is well above the state average, with 81 per cent of swimming locations reviewed across the state achieving very good or good gradings.

Only three beaches were reviewed in the Shellharbour council area and while Warilla and Shellharbour beaches were graded as very good, the water quality at Entrance Lagoon Beach was "poor" meaning swimming should be avoided for three days after heavy rain.

However most lake/lagoon sites did not fare well in the report compared to ocean beaches, as when the entrances to the ocean are closed they can become a collection point for stormwater runoff.

The "poor" grading didn't bother visitors to Entrance Lagoon Beach over the long weekend, with the sheltered area a favourite among families and other beachgoers.

The Razov family from south-west Sydney are regular visitors to the region, and this is one of their top sandy spots.

"It's perfect for the kids as there's no big waves and it's fairly shallow so they can splash around and enjoy themselves," mum Michelle Razov said.

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The cleanest beaches in the state are right here