Wed, Aug 26, 2009 at 8:45 PM
David --Michelle and I were heartbroken to learn this morning of the death of our dear friend, Senator Ted Kennedy.For nearly five decades, virtually every major piece of legislation to advance the civil rights, health and economic well-being of the American people bore his name and resulted from his efforts.His ideas and ideals are stamped on scores of laws and reflected in millions of lives -- in seniors who know new dignity; in families that know new opportunity; in children who know education's promise; and in all who can pursue their dream in an America that is more equal and more just, including me.In the United States Senate, I can think of no one who engendered greater respect or affection from members of both sides of the aisle. His seriousness of purpose was perpetually matched by humility, warmth and good cheer. He battled passionately on the Senate floor for the causes that he held dear, and yet still maintained warm friendships across party lines. And that's one reason he became not only one of the greatest senators of our time, but one of the most accomplished Americans ever to serve our democracy.I personally valued his wise counsel in the Senate, where, regardless of the swirl of events, he always had time for a new colleague. I cherished his confidence and momentous support in my race for the Presidency. And even as he waged a valiant struggle with a mortal illness, I've benefited as President from his encouragement and wisdom.His fight gave us the opportunity we were denied when his brothers John and Robert were taken from us: the blessing of time to say thank you and goodbye. The outpouring of love, gratitude and fond memories to which we've all borne witness is a testament to the way this singular figure in American history touched so many lives.For America, he was a defender of a dream. For his family, he was a guardian. Our hearts and prayers go out to them today -- to his wonderful wife, Vicki, his children Ted Jr., Patrick and Kara, his grandchildren and his extended family.Today, our country mourns. We say goodbye to a friend and a true leader who challenged us all to live out our noblest values. And we give thanks for his memory, which inspires us still.Sincerely,President Barack Obama---http://davidsradiotv2000.blogspot.com
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Thursday, August 27, 2009
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Some Dealers Stop Taking 'Clunkers'
By Dana HedgpethWashington Post Staff Writer Friday, August 21, 2009; 7:45 PM
Some car dealers stopped accepting new vehicles under the U.S. government's "Cash for Clunkers" program Friday because they said they want time to finish processing their paperwork before it shuts down Monday.
The program, which gave consumers vouchers worth up to $4,500 toward the purchase of a new, more fuel-efficient vehicle when they traded in a gas guzzler, has been considered a success by the Obama administration for stimulating the downtrodden auto industry. But the $3 billion program has nearly run out of money since it started a month ago and government officials said they would shut down the effort at 8 p.m. on Monday.
Auto dealers have made 489,269 sales under the clunkers program, according to data released Friday by the Department of Transportation. The total value of the rebates claimed by dealers is at $2 billion.
The program requires dealers to essentially front the rebates until they get reimbursed from the government. But many dealers have not yet been reimbursed. On Friday, many found it difficult to even reach the Web site for filing paperwork, perhaps because of the crush of submittals. The delays prompted the National Automobile Dealers Association to push the government to extend the deadline beyond Monday night for accepting paperwork.
Still, many dealers are not taking a chance.
Auto Nation, the biggest U.S. auto retailer in the country, said it stopped the clunkers program Friday night to make sure it had enough time to get its deals through the government's system. It is owed about $45 million for sales from the government.
Tammy Darvish, one of the largest car dealers in the Washington region, with more than two dozen stores, said she had 30 employees trying to input 400 applications into the government's site. She put up a notice on the company Web site Friday morning, stating she would not accept any more clunker deals after midnight Sunday so that her staff could process the sales they've done so far.
Darvish said the government's closing the program has meant "they've pushed the panic button," as consumers came to her dealerships Friday. She said she took in 69 clunker trade-ins. Since the program kicked off July 24, she taken in more than 1,300 clunkers and is owed $5.5 million from the government.
Other auto dealers said they were preparing for a last-minute rush of customers coming in over the weekend to get the clunker deal, even as some are short on inventory.
"We're expecting an onslaught of people," said Geoff Pohanka, who has 15 dealerships around the region.
Some car dealers stopped accepting new vehicles under the U.S. government's "Cash for Clunkers" program Friday because they said they want time to finish processing their paperwork before it shuts down Monday.
The program, which gave consumers vouchers worth up to $4,500 toward the purchase of a new, more fuel-efficient vehicle when they traded in a gas guzzler, has been considered a success by the Obama administration for stimulating the downtrodden auto industry. But the $3 billion program has nearly run out of money since it started a month ago and government officials said they would shut down the effort at 8 p.m. on Monday.
Auto dealers have made 489,269 sales under the clunkers program, according to data released Friday by the Department of Transportation. The total value of the rebates claimed by dealers is at $2 billion.
The program requires dealers to essentially front the rebates until they get reimbursed from the government. But many dealers have not yet been reimbursed. On Friday, many found it difficult to even reach the Web site for filing paperwork, perhaps because of the crush of submittals. The delays prompted the National Automobile Dealers Association to push the government to extend the deadline beyond Monday night for accepting paperwork.
Still, many dealers are not taking a chance.
Auto Nation, the biggest U.S. auto retailer in the country, said it stopped the clunkers program Friday night to make sure it had enough time to get its deals through the government's system. It is owed about $45 million for sales from the government.
Tammy Darvish, one of the largest car dealers in the Washington region, with more than two dozen stores, said she had 30 employees trying to input 400 applications into the government's site. She put up a notice on the company Web site Friday morning, stating she would not accept any more clunker deals after midnight Sunday so that her staff could process the sales they've done so far.
Darvish said the government's closing the program has meant "they've pushed the panic button," as consumers came to her dealerships Friday. She said she took in 69 clunker trade-ins. Since the program kicked off July 24, she taken in more than 1,300 clunkers and is owed $5.5 million from the government.
Other auto dealers said they were preparing for a last-minute rush of customers coming in over the weekend to get the clunker deal, even as some are short on inventory.
"We're expecting an onslaught of people," said Geoff Pohanka, who has 15 dealerships around the region.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
G.M. Puts Electric Car’s City Mileage in Triple Digits
By BILL VLASIC and NICK BUNKLEY
Published: August 11, 2009
WARREN, Mich. — General Motors said Tuesday that its Chevrolet Volt extended-range electric vehicle, scheduled for release in 2011, would achieve a fuel rating of 230 miles a gallon in city driving.
The rating number, based on methodology drafted by the Environmental Protection Agency, is somewhat abstract, one auto specialist said, given that much of the city driving of electric vehicles will rely solely on the battery charge.
And as eye-popping as the number was, a rival automaker, Nissan, said last week that its all-electric vehicle, the Leaf, which is scheduled to come out in late 2010, would get 367 m.p.g., using the same E.P.A. standards.
Figures for highway driving and combined city and highway use have not been completed for the Volt, but G.M.’s chief executive, Fritz Henderson, told reporters and analysts at a briefing on Tuesday that the car was expected to get more than 100 miles a gallon in combined city and highway driving.
“Our Chevrolet Volt extended-range electric vehicle will achieve unprecedented fuel economy,” Mr. Henderson said. “I’m confident that we will be in triple digits.”
The Volt can travel up to 40 miles on a single battery charge, at which point a small gasoline engine kicks in and starts to recharge the battery. The battery can be also charged in eight hours using a regular electrical outlet, Mr. Henderson said.
Nearly eight in 10 Americans commute fewer than 40 miles a day, the company said in a statement, citing Department of Transportation data. The mileage calculation for the Volt assumes that most drivers will stay within that range and not need the gasoline engine.
“Depending upon how you use the Volt, it can get mileage approaching that or much less,” Jack Nerad, executive editorial director of Kelley Blue Book, said. “It almost becomes an abstract number. If you are the Volt target guy who is driving under 40 miles per day, then theoretically your miles per gallon is infinite.”
The high mileage figure, though not a meaningful number to many consumers, represents “a great technical achievement” for G.M., Mr. Nerad said.
“They would like to take back the banner of technology leader,” he said. “This is certainly a shot over the bow of Toyota and Honda and others that they are serious about that.”
The E.P.A., in a statement Tuesday, said it had not tested the Volt and could not vouch for the accuracy of G.M.’s estimate. But the E.P.A. “does applaud G.M.’s commitment to designing and building the car of the future — an American-made car that will save families money, significantly reduce our dependence on foreign oil and create good-paying American jobs,” the agency said.
Several rivals, including Chrysler and Ford, are planning plug-ins and electric cars; Toyota is developing a plug-in version of its gas-electric hybrid.
But whether the Volt can live up to its billing has been a matter of debate. Some industry analysts note that G.M. has a poor track record of introducing green technology to the market.
G.M. is trying to persuade consumers to return to its showrooms after filing for bankruptcy on June 1 and emerging as a reorganized company with fewer brands, models and dealers.
Mr. Henderson and other G.M. executives met with groups of consumers on Monday to hear their thoughts on the company’s product lineup.
“We need to communicate what we have,” Mr. Henderson said. “The only way we’re going to make G.M. great again is to win in the market.”
Determining the cost to operate battery-powered vehicles is more complex than for those with only gasoline engines. Electricity costs can vary widely, depending on location and even the time of day when a vehicle is charged.
G.M. said the typical Volt driver would pay $2.75 for electricity to drive 100 miles and that a single overnight charge, for a customer whose utility charges less at off-peak times, could cost as little as 40 cents. Nissan estimated the cost of recharging the Leaf, which has a range of up to 100 miles, at $1 to $3.
G.M. has previously suggested that the Volt would cost about $40,000, but Mr. Henderson said Tuesday that the price had not been set and that the car would price “as it comes to market.” He was also quick to highlight a $7,500 tax credit.
Nissan says the Leaf will be cheaper than the Volt, in the range of $25,000 to $33,000.
Another issue that G.M. and Nissan are struggling to figure out is how to accommodate people who live in an urban area or an apartment without a garage and cannot easily recharge an electric car, yet could benefit the most from one.
“If you’re going to park it on the street, I don’t know what to do actually,” Mr. Henderson said. “I don’t know how to address that situation.”
Larry Dominique, Nissan’s vice president for product planning in the United States, told reporters at an automotive conference last week, “A lot of those people aren’t going to be able to get an electric vehicle initially.”
Mr. Henderson said the Volt would be a critical part of G.M.’s strategy. “Having a car that gets triple-digit fuel economy will be a game changer for us.”
The Volt is expected to be both a so-called halo car to draw consumers to the Chevrolet brand and a technological foundation for future electric models.
The company has built about 30 Volts so far and is testing them in various conditions.
Interest has been building in the Volt since it was introduced at auto shows in recent years. But with G.M. now 60 percent government-owned, the car has become a symbol of the company’s rebirth after its 40-day trip through bankruptcy.
Mr. Henderson said most of G.M.’s new products would be either passenger cars or fuel-efficient crossover vehicles. While the company will still build trucks and large sport utilities, the bulk of its investments will go toward smaller vehicles.
“I think the fundamental premise of planning for higher fuel prices is the right premise,” he said.
--http://davidsradiotv2000.blogspot.com
Published: August 11, 2009
WARREN, Mich. — General Motors said Tuesday that its Chevrolet Volt extended-range electric vehicle, scheduled for release in 2011, would achieve a fuel rating of 230 miles a gallon in city driving.
The rating number, based on methodology drafted by the Environmental Protection Agency, is somewhat abstract, one auto specialist said, given that much of the city driving of electric vehicles will rely solely on the battery charge.
And as eye-popping as the number was, a rival automaker, Nissan, said last week that its all-electric vehicle, the Leaf, which is scheduled to come out in late 2010, would get 367 m.p.g., using the same E.P.A. standards.
Figures for highway driving and combined city and highway use have not been completed for the Volt, but G.M.’s chief executive, Fritz Henderson, told reporters and analysts at a briefing on Tuesday that the car was expected to get more than 100 miles a gallon in combined city and highway driving.
“Our Chevrolet Volt extended-range electric vehicle will achieve unprecedented fuel economy,” Mr. Henderson said. “I’m confident that we will be in triple digits.”
The Volt can travel up to 40 miles on a single battery charge, at which point a small gasoline engine kicks in and starts to recharge the battery. The battery can be also charged in eight hours using a regular electrical outlet, Mr. Henderson said.
Nearly eight in 10 Americans commute fewer than 40 miles a day, the company said in a statement, citing Department of Transportation data. The mileage calculation for the Volt assumes that most drivers will stay within that range and not need the gasoline engine.
“Depending upon how you use the Volt, it can get mileage approaching that or much less,” Jack Nerad, executive editorial director of Kelley Blue Book, said. “It almost becomes an abstract number. If you are the Volt target guy who is driving under 40 miles per day, then theoretically your miles per gallon is infinite.”
The high mileage figure, though not a meaningful number to many consumers, represents “a great technical achievement” for G.M., Mr. Nerad said.
“They would like to take back the banner of technology leader,” he said. “This is certainly a shot over the bow of Toyota and Honda and others that they are serious about that.”
The E.P.A., in a statement Tuesday, said it had not tested the Volt and could not vouch for the accuracy of G.M.’s estimate. But the E.P.A. “does applaud G.M.’s commitment to designing and building the car of the future — an American-made car that will save families money, significantly reduce our dependence on foreign oil and create good-paying American jobs,” the agency said.
Several rivals, including Chrysler and Ford, are planning plug-ins and electric cars; Toyota is developing a plug-in version of its gas-electric hybrid.
But whether the Volt can live up to its billing has been a matter of debate. Some industry analysts note that G.M. has a poor track record of introducing green technology to the market.
G.M. is trying to persuade consumers to return to its showrooms after filing for bankruptcy on June 1 and emerging as a reorganized company with fewer brands, models and dealers.
Mr. Henderson and other G.M. executives met with groups of consumers on Monday to hear their thoughts on the company’s product lineup.
“We need to communicate what we have,” Mr. Henderson said. “The only way we’re going to make G.M. great again is to win in the market.”
Determining the cost to operate battery-powered vehicles is more complex than for those with only gasoline engines. Electricity costs can vary widely, depending on location and even the time of day when a vehicle is charged.
G.M. said the typical Volt driver would pay $2.75 for electricity to drive 100 miles and that a single overnight charge, for a customer whose utility charges less at off-peak times, could cost as little as 40 cents. Nissan estimated the cost of recharging the Leaf, which has a range of up to 100 miles, at $1 to $3.
G.M. has previously suggested that the Volt would cost about $40,000, but Mr. Henderson said Tuesday that the price had not been set and that the car would price “as it comes to market.” He was also quick to highlight a $7,500 tax credit.
Nissan says the Leaf will be cheaper than the Volt, in the range of $25,000 to $33,000.
Another issue that G.M. and Nissan are struggling to figure out is how to accommodate people who live in an urban area or an apartment without a garage and cannot easily recharge an electric car, yet could benefit the most from one.
“If you’re going to park it on the street, I don’t know what to do actually,” Mr. Henderson said. “I don’t know how to address that situation.”
Larry Dominique, Nissan’s vice president for product planning in the United States, told reporters at an automotive conference last week, “A lot of those people aren’t going to be able to get an electric vehicle initially.”
Mr. Henderson said the Volt would be a critical part of G.M.’s strategy. “Having a car that gets triple-digit fuel economy will be a game changer for us.”
The Volt is expected to be both a so-called halo car to draw consumers to the Chevrolet brand and a technological foundation for future electric models.
The company has built about 30 Volts so far and is testing them in various conditions.
Interest has been building in the Volt since it was introduced at auto shows in recent years. But with G.M. now 60 percent government-owned, the car has become a symbol of the company’s rebirth after its 40-day trip through bankruptcy.
Mr. Henderson said most of G.M.’s new products would be either passenger cars or fuel-efficient crossover vehicles. While the company will still build trucks and large sport utilities, the bulk of its investments will go toward smaller vehicles.
“I think the fundamental premise of planning for higher fuel prices is the right premise,” he said.
--http://davidsradiotv2000.blogspot.com
Friday, August 07, 2009
Contrasts with court transcend ethnicity
Sotomayor will bring a host of different experiences to bench
By David G. Savage Tribune Newspapers
August 7, 2009
WASHINGTON - -- Justice Sonia Sotomayor will bring something new and different to the Supreme Court, beyond the fact that she will be its first Latina. Her background and experiences undoubtedly will affect her thinking and influence her decisions, but they are likely to do so in ways that were hardly mentioned during the Senate fight over her confirmation.She will be the only justice whose first language was not English. She will join a court that oversees a federal law that calls for equal opportunity in schools for children who do not speak English.She has had diabetes since childhood, a medical condition that is classified as a disability under federal law. Disabled-rights advocates have suffered big defeats in the court, and they have high hopes for her. "We're very excited. We don't feel we have had a champion on the current court," said Andrew Imparato, president of the American Association of People with Disabilities. She was raised in a housing project where drugs and crime were more common than scholarly success. Sotomayor refers to herself proudly as an "affirmative-action baby," having been admitted to Princeton University with less-than-stellar SAT scores but graduating with highest honors.She will "change the conversation on affirmative action" within the court, said University of Maryland law professor Sherrilyn Ifill. The only other minority on the court, Justice Clarence Thomas, is a staunch foe, maintaining that affirmative-action policies taint the accomplishments of all minorities."Her story of how hard she worked to graduate first in her class from Princeton makes her really the poster child for the benefits of affirmative action," Ifill said. Sotomayor is also divorced with no children but has a close relationship with an extended family. "She is a modern woman with a nontraditional family," said Sylvia Lazos, a University of Nevada at Las Vegas law professor. "She is much more reflective of contemporary American society than the other justices like (Samuel) Alito and (John) Roberts." Even her personal finances look more like contemporary America compared with those of her new and wealthier colleagues at the high court. Friends say Sotomayor has struggled to pay her mortgage and credit card bills, and her financial disclosures show she has no substantial savings or stock portfolio.Before she was a judge, she served on a New York board that enforced the city's campaign finance laws, but she will be joining a court whose conservative justices are skeptical of limiting the role of money in politics. And unlike any other current justice, she has both tried cases as a prosecutor and presided over trials as judge. Friends say those experiences have given her an up-close look at how the criminal justice system works. By contrast, most of the justices have spent their careers as law professors, government lawyers and appellate judges. "She is intensely focused on the facts, not the ideology," said Los Angeles lawyer Nancy Gray, who worked with Sotomayor as a prosecutor in New York. Until now, most of the debate involving Sotomayor has focused on her ethnicity and sex. The impact of those aspects of her background may be subtle, many lawyers say, but could influence her fellow justices.After Justice Thurgood Marshall retired, several justices wrote that the first African-American justice had a powerful influence through the stories he told in their private conferences.
As a young lawyer, he traveled throughout the South to represent black defendants who often faced a white prosecutor, white judge and all-white jury. If his white colleagues had not thought much about how race could infect the criminal justice system, Marshall made sure they understood. No one suggests Sotomayor will transform justices' views. But on issues such as Immigration, drugs, sentencing and sex discrimination, Sotomayor is likely to bring a fresh perspective to the court's debates.Her first major case, due to be heard Sept. 9, will decide the constitutionality of part of the McCain-Feingold Act that forbids the broadcast of corporate-funded campaign ads. This week, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., co-sponsor of the law, voted against Sotomayor because, he said, she was not a "believer in judicial restraint." But the newly confirmed justice is more likely to uphold his measure than her more conservative colleagues whom McCain supported, including Roberts and Alito.
--http://davidsradiotv2000.blogspot.com/
By David G. Savage Tribune Newspapers
August 7, 2009
WASHINGTON - -- Justice Sonia Sotomayor will bring something new and different to the Supreme Court, beyond the fact that she will be its first Latina. Her background and experiences undoubtedly will affect her thinking and influence her decisions, but they are likely to do so in ways that were hardly mentioned during the Senate fight over her confirmation.She will be the only justice whose first language was not English. She will join a court that oversees a federal law that calls for equal opportunity in schools for children who do not speak English.She has had diabetes since childhood, a medical condition that is classified as a disability under federal law. Disabled-rights advocates have suffered big defeats in the court, and they have high hopes for her. "We're very excited. We don't feel we have had a champion on the current court," said Andrew Imparato, president of the American Association of People with Disabilities. She was raised in a housing project where drugs and crime were more common than scholarly success. Sotomayor refers to herself proudly as an "affirmative-action baby," having been admitted to Princeton University with less-than-stellar SAT scores but graduating with highest honors.She will "change the conversation on affirmative action" within the court, said University of Maryland law professor Sherrilyn Ifill. The only other minority on the court, Justice Clarence Thomas, is a staunch foe, maintaining that affirmative-action policies taint the accomplishments of all minorities."Her story of how hard she worked to graduate first in her class from Princeton makes her really the poster child for the benefits of affirmative action," Ifill said. Sotomayor is also divorced with no children but has a close relationship with an extended family. "She is a modern woman with a nontraditional family," said Sylvia Lazos, a University of Nevada at Las Vegas law professor. "She is much more reflective of contemporary American society than the other justices like (Samuel) Alito and (John) Roberts." Even her personal finances look more like contemporary America compared with those of her new and wealthier colleagues at the high court. Friends say Sotomayor has struggled to pay her mortgage and credit card bills, and her financial disclosures show she has no substantial savings or stock portfolio.Before she was a judge, she served on a New York board that enforced the city's campaign finance laws, but she will be joining a court whose conservative justices are skeptical of limiting the role of money in politics. And unlike any other current justice, she has both tried cases as a prosecutor and presided over trials as judge. Friends say those experiences have given her an up-close look at how the criminal justice system works. By contrast, most of the justices have spent their careers as law professors, government lawyers and appellate judges. "She is intensely focused on the facts, not the ideology," said Los Angeles lawyer Nancy Gray, who worked with Sotomayor as a prosecutor in New York. Until now, most of the debate involving Sotomayor has focused on her ethnicity and sex. The impact of those aspects of her background may be subtle, many lawyers say, but could influence her fellow justices.After Justice Thurgood Marshall retired, several justices wrote that the first African-American justice had a powerful influence through the stories he told in their private conferences.
As a young lawyer, he traveled throughout the South to represent black defendants who often faced a white prosecutor, white judge and all-white jury. If his white colleagues had not thought much about how race could infect the criminal justice system, Marshall made sure they understood. No one suggests Sotomayor will transform justices' views. But on issues such as Immigration, drugs, sentencing and sex discrimination, Sotomayor is likely to bring a fresh perspective to the court's debates.Her first major case, due to be heard Sept. 9, will decide the constitutionality of part of the McCain-Feingold Act that forbids the broadcast of corporate-funded campaign ads. This week, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., co-sponsor of the law, voted against Sotomayor because, he said, she was not a "believer in judicial restraint." But the newly confirmed justice is more likely to uphold his measure than her more conservative colleagues whom McCain supported, including Roberts and Alito.
--http://davidsradiotv2000.blogspot.com/
Saturday, August 01, 2009
Bodies litter streets after Nigeria unrest
By Aminu Abubakar (AFP) – 7 hours ago
MAIDUGURI, Nigeria — Bodies littered the streets here Saturday after Nigerian forces crushed an Islamist sect's uprising two days earlier and controversially gunned down its leader following his capture.
Dozens of armed soldiers and riot police also guarded strategic points in the northern city of Maiduguri, where troops carried out a brutal assault on the base of the self-styled Taliban earlier this week.
On Saturday, authorities searched cars and questioned passers-by in the city, where an AFP reporter saw more than 30 decomposing bodies in three different districts.
The air was pungent behind a Maiduguri hospital, whose morgue, according to hospital sources, was overflowing with corpses.
International Committee of the Red Cross official Halima Bulama said her organisation was concerned about a possible disease outbreak if the decaying corpses were not collected.
"We are really worried about a possible outbreak of diseases like cholera due to the presence of decomposing corpses on the streets of Maiduguri which is constituting a serious health risk," she told AFP.
Government spokesman Usman Chiroma said efforts were underway to pick up the corpses, a task he described as "enormous".
"The government is making efforts to evacuate the dead bodies from the streets of Maiduguri. We have mobilised men and equipment for this job.
"However, it is a an enormous task given the paucity of our human resources," he told AFP.
A grocer in the area, Usman Madi, 35, said: "We pray that authorities either give these decomposing bodies a mass burial or make a public announcement for relations to pick them up for burial."
Security forces this week put down the uprising in four northern states in clashes that killed more than 600 people, according to police and witnesses.
The chief of defence staff, Air Marshal Paul Dike, on a visit to Maiduguri on Friday vowed that "the military will leave no stone unturned in ensuring that no such incidents occur."
"We are up to the task, as we have the capability to crush any breach of Nigerian security," he said after touring Maiduguri, the scene of the worst fighting over the past week.
Security forces' killing of the sect leader, Mohammed Yusuf, has been condemned by rights groups.
A senior police officer said the leader of the movement, which is also known as Boko Haram, was killed in a shootout as he tried to escape, but another officer said Yusuf had pleaded for mercy before being gunned down.
Army sources had said he had been seized earlier in a hideout near his house.
Information Minister Dora Akunyili said the shooting of Yusuf had prevented violence from spreading across the country's Muslim north.
"It's the best thing that could have happened to Nigeria," she told AFP.
Amnesty International on Friday condemned "illegal killings" by the security forces as they quelled the uprising and called for an investigation into the killing of Yusuf.
"Anyone responsible for illegal killings should be brought to justice, including officials with chain-of-command responsibility who order or tolerate illegal killings by those under their command," Amnesty said in a statement.
"The use of excessive force by the military when dealing with clashes is a frequent occurrence, often resulting in the death of bystanders," the London-based rights organisation also said.
Nigerian security forces have often been accused of extra-judicial killings and rights violations, charges which authorities in Abuja have always refuted.
---http://davidsradiotv2000.blogspot.com
MAIDUGURI, Nigeria — Bodies littered the streets here Saturday after Nigerian forces crushed an Islamist sect's uprising two days earlier and controversially gunned down its leader following his capture.
Dozens of armed soldiers and riot police also guarded strategic points in the northern city of Maiduguri, where troops carried out a brutal assault on the base of the self-styled Taliban earlier this week.
On Saturday, authorities searched cars and questioned passers-by in the city, where an AFP reporter saw more than 30 decomposing bodies in three different districts.
The air was pungent behind a Maiduguri hospital, whose morgue, according to hospital sources, was overflowing with corpses.
International Committee of the Red Cross official Halima Bulama said her organisation was concerned about a possible disease outbreak if the decaying corpses were not collected.
"We are really worried about a possible outbreak of diseases like cholera due to the presence of decomposing corpses on the streets of Maiduguri which is constituting a serious health risk," she told AFP.
Government spokesman Usman Chiroma said efforts were underway to pick up the corpses, a task he described as "enormous".
"The government is making efforts to evacuate the dead bodies from the streets of Maiduguri. We have mobilised men and equipment for this job.
"However, it is a an enormous task given the paucity of our human resources," he told AFP.
A grocer in the area, Usman Madi, 35, said: "We pray that authorities either give these decomposing bodies a mass burial or make a public announcement for relations to pick them up for burial."
Security forces this week put down the uprising in four northern states in clashes that killed more than 600 people, according to police and witnesses.
The chief of defence staff, Air Marshal Paul Dike, on a visit to Maiduguri on Friday vowed that "the military will leave no stone unturned in ensuring that no such incidents occur."
"We are up to the task, as we have the capability to crush any breach of Nigerian security," he said after touring Maiduguri, the scene of the worst fighting over the past week.
Security forces' killing of the sect leader, Mohammed Yusuf, has been condemned by rights groups.
A senior police officer said the leader of the movement, which is also known as Boko Haram, was killed in a shootout as he tried to escape, but another officer said Yusuf had pleaded for mercy before being gunned down.
Army sources had said he had been seized earlier in a hideout near his house.
Information Minister Dora Akunyili said the shooting of Yusuf had prevented violence from spreading across the country's Muslim north.
"It's the best thing that could have happened to Nigeria," she told AFP.
Amnesty International on Friday condemned "illegal killings" by the security forces as they quelled the uprising and called for an investigation into the killing of Yusuf.
"Anyone responsible for illegal killings should be brought to justice, including officials with chain-of-command responsibility who order or tolerate illegal killings by those under their command," Amnesty said in a statement.
"The use of excessive force by the military when dealing with clashes is a frequent occurrence, often resulting in the death of bystanders," the London-based rights organisation also said.
Nigerian security forces have often been accused of extra-judicial killings and rights violations, charges which authorities in Abuja have always refuted.
---http://davidsradiotv2000.blogspot.com
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