Word: backgrounder
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...military spokesman in Iraq said U.S. commanders largely agreed with the report and are following its recommendation to turn over the vetting of recruits to the Iraqis, who have postponed some training to redo background checks. The spokesman also said the Iraqi Interior Ministry has begun using a biometric database to track "ghost employees" who are on the rolls but don't show up for work. A senior U.S. military officer in Iraq, however, tells TIME that he disagrees strongly with one opinion included in the report--that the Pentagon was serving up unprepared Iraqi police as "cannon fodder...
...future and its relationship with the U.S. are people like the textile worker you highlighted, Liu Li. Today, ordinary people like Liu do not fear uncertainty or economic and social instability. These very uncertainties have created opportunities for China's Lius to escape from their humble social and economic background and realize their hopes. There is a degree of freedom of speech here today via the Internet. The people who fearlessly speak out online include new property owners as well as those who haven't yet joined the ranks of this class. Those Chinese want the government to hear their...
...from the boat onto a small wharf at Ughele village - to be greeted by a throng of children that appears to double in size by the minute. It's a common Melanesian scene: skylarking children enjoying their freedom, men in earnest discussion at disused market stalls, and in the background - nursing, gardening, forever at work - the village women...
...strangest thing has happened; my commute has become my favorite part of the day. I look forward to the 45-minute trip each way. With the right amount of skill and pushiness, I can usually get a seat for part of the ride. My iPod blocks out any background chatter, requests for money, or biblical verses. And I get to read for fun, which I never have time to do during the school year. I have reclaimed the commute and made it my time. No one bothers me, I am not forced to make small talk or talk...
...city like Sydney, which others envy for its combination of natural beauty, efficiency, food and architecture. Sydney is a place where visitors can sail a boat, swim in the harbor, smell the sea?and still do business. Will China's movie starlets want to be filmed against a background of smog? Will the new rich from China's interior, longing for a breath of fresh sea air, flock to a smelly city? An environment that should be one of Hong Kong's attractions is already driving business to Singapore, Sydney, even Tokyo...