FIdel Castro steps down as Cuban leader after 49 years in power; France, US, UK officially recognize Kosovo...

19 February :: At 81, Fidel Castro has announced his retirement as head of state, potentially opening door to political reform, after 49 years under the regime he founded when his revolution took power in 1959; Cuban exiles have expressed little enthusiasm as in past, due to his brother's apparently firm hold on power... US, France, UK, officially recognize new Kosovo independent state, with Sec. of State Rice saying the US "has today formally recognized Kosovo as a sovereign and independent state"; Spain, however has rejected the Kosovo declaration, its foreign minister Miguel Ángel Moratinos saying "The government of Spain will not recognize the unilateral act proclaimed yesterday by the assembly of Kosovo", due to perceptions that Kosovo's regional assembly declaring independence without Serb approval could lead to similar actions in Spain's Basque region, or in Catalunya; EU in Brussels voted to allow member states to choose their own position toward Kosovar independence, has made no official joint declaration...

Dallas Morning News breaks US media silence on Sibel Edmonds case; Serbia pledges "peaceful" resistance to Kosovo independence...

18 February :: Dallas Morning News becomes first "mainstream" or corporate-owned US media outlet to run the now partially corroborated story regarding allegations of US officials' selling nuclear secrets to foreign operatives, possibly to enemy, terrorists; DMN ran revised edition of Philip Giraldi's investigative report from The American Conservative magazine questioning the US media's role in keeping the story from public view; among the information Sibel Edmonds is allegedly prohibited from disclosing are contacts between State and Defense Dept. agents and foreign spies, involving a transfer of cash, and the sale of nuclear secrets:

Ms. Edmonds' revelations have attracted corroboration in the form of anonymous letters apparently written by FBI employees. There have been frequent reports of FBI field agents being frustrated by the premature closure of cases dealing with foreign spying, particularly when those cases involve Israel, and the State Department has frequently intervened to shut down investigations based on "sensitive foreign diplomatic relations."

Giraldi's report also states that:

Curiously, the state-secrets gag order binding Ms. Edmonds, while put in place by DOJ in 2002, was not requested by the FBI but by the State Department and Pentagon – which employed individuals she identified as being involved in criminal activities. If her allegations are frivolous, that order would scarcely seem necessary.

the scope of the allegations and the peril posed by the alleged corruption to international peace and security, US foreign policy, and American lives, can scarcely be overstated, if the details Edmonds and corroborating FBI leaks are true... Kosovo braces for Serb resistance to independence declaration; Reuters reports "Serbia's leaders pledged peaceful resistance after Kosovo's declaration of independence on Sunday, but angry protesters turned to violence in Belgrade and a Serbian stronghold in Kosovo", while Russia, China openly declare the independence move troubling, illegitimate; EU debating official policy, as western powers plan mission to help build, protect, new state... Though the original ballot measure proposing splitting California's Electoral College votes by population has been withdrawn, report suggests ballot initiative continues "full steam ahead", with aim to sway presidential election tally nationwide; California would be the only state with such a system, some aim to pressure Gov. Schwarzenegger to back a rival proposal that would commit California's electors to backing the winner of the national popular vote, a nationwide campaign that aims to end the relevance of a system some say was designed to protect slave-owners' political interests...

Costa Rica referendum appears to narrowly approve CAFTA; Serbian police arrest 56 neo-Nazis when they attack anti-fascist march...

8 October :: 65% of electorate reported to have participated in Costa Rica free trade referendum; preliminary data suggested likely rejection of proposed CAFTA trade deal with US; with 89% of precincts reporting, a narrow majority of 52% appeared to have passed the trade agreement with the US, Costa Rica's pres. declaring the deal had passed, while Eugenio Trejas, leader of the opposition to the deal said his group would demand a ballot-by-ballot manual recount of all votes cast... Police detain 56 neo-Nazis in Novi Sad, Serbia, when they attacked a protest against fascism; UPI reports "At least four people were injured, including a Belgrade B92 television cameraman and the head of Novi Sad’s Helsinki Human Rights committee, when about 80 neo-Nazis hurled stones and bottles on several hundred citizens protesting against the rise of fascism in Serbia"... New Mexico authorizes construction of world's first commercial spaceport; structure will house 7 spacecraft, be hub to Virgin Galactic, which hopes to launch its first commercial flight in 2009... Vandals broke into Musée d'Orsay, in Paris, tore hole Claude Monet's 1874 painting “The Argenteuil Bridge"; French minister of culture Christine Albanel said the act was "an attack against our memory and our heritage"; the vandalism is the latest in a series of attacks against and thefts of cultural objects in France this year... CNN reports WWII veterans dying at rate of 1,000 per day; Arlington National Cemetery has plans to expand its terrain in order to keep operating until 2060...