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Saturday, January 30, 2010

The automobile manufacturer Toyota has said that it will recall up to 1.8 million cars across Europe, after a problem with the accelerator pedal was discovered.

According to the firm, eight models were affected by the problem — AYGO, iQ, Yaris, Auris, Corolla, Verso, Avensis, and RAV4 — after it was discovered that the accelerator may become stuck in a depressed position, resulting in uncontrollable speeding.

On Thursday, Toyota said it would recall 1.1 million cars in the US; a day previous, it had suspended eight models from sales. Last week, 2.3 million cars in the US were recalled due to the pedal issues.

The chief executive of Toyota Motor Europe commented on the recall. “We understand that the current situation is creating concerns and we deeply regret it,” said Tadashi Arashima. The firm, however, noted that it wasn’t aware of any accidents resulted by the malfunctioning accelerator pedals, and not many pedal problem incidents were reported in Europe. “The potential accelerator pedal issue only occurs in very rare circumstances,” Arashima added.

The National Automobile Dealers Association, meanwhile, commented that Toyota showrooms could lose as much as US$2.47 billion worth of revenue due to the incident.

“Toyota veterans will likely hear the news with disbelief and keep faith in the brand, but new customers could definitely be scared off,” remarked Robert Rademacher, who is the president of the trade group ZDK, as quoted by Business Week. “This recall has a dimension which we’ve never seen before.”

There are concerns that the problem may result in reduced consumer trust in Toyota. Hans-Peter Wodniok, an analyst for Fairesearch GmbH & Co. in Germany, noted: “If this is a one-time event, huge as it is, Toyota may be forgiven. But if something happens again in the next months and years, they will have gambled away customer trust in Europe as well.”

Analysts for Morgan Stanley, however, said they believed Toyota would not suffer much from the incident. “The company’s actions to correct the situation are timely enough to avoid major brand damage,” they remarked in a note to investors.

Saturday, January 5, 2008

A new study by researchers of Boston University’s School of Public Health and colleagues sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO) shows children with severe pneumonia can be effectively treated at home and do not need to be hospitalized. This finding is hugely significant for developing countries where children cannot be brought to a hospital easily or where no hospitals exist.

Per the study the change of treatment could save many children’s lives and take pressure off health systems. Every year pneumonia kills 2 million children under the age of 5. The researchers found that antibiotics given at home could significantly reduce deaths.

The group examined 2,037 children between 3 to 59 months in seven areas in Pakistan. About half of them were given antibiotics and sent home while the other ones got intravenous antibiotics in the hospital. Both groups were found to show equal progress in healing off the illness.

Current WHO guidelines recommend that pneumonia should be treated in a hospital with injectable antibiotics. With the new study there are indicators that pneumonia can be treated just as effectively at home with oral antibiotics.

Thursday, July 24, 2008File:December 2007 bombing of northern Iraq.jpg

Turkey’s military said in a statement posted on their website that warplanes bombed thirteen Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) targets overnight in northern Iraq.

In what the statement termed an “intensive strike,” Turkey targeted PKK hideouts along the Turkish frontier which is known as a major stronghold for the PKK. The statement claimed, “All thirteen targets were successfully hit,” though there were no estimates on casualties, they were said to be forthcoming.

“Operations as part of the fight against terrorism will continue with determination both at home and abroad,” said the military’s press release. Turkish planes have been bombing northern Iraq intermittently since December 16. Just last February 240 militants were killed and dozens of PKK hideouts and camps were destroyed when the army conducted a ground offensive against the PKK bases in the region.

Ahmed Danis, PKK, told Agence France-Press by phone: “The bombing lasted until midnight. The PKK forces have not suffered any casualties, because we have taken all the necessary precautions to reduce our losses.”

The Turkish Armed Forces have a one year authorization for cross-border military action against the PKK, which expires in October.

Saturday, October 7, 2017

Yesterday, German football club FC Bayern Munich announced reaching an agreement with Jupp Heynckes to be the club’s head coach until the season end. The 72-year-old came out of his retirement, and is to take the position on Monday. The contract runs until June 30, 2018.

Heynckes has previously managed Bayern in three spells — 1987–1991, 2009 and 2011–2013. In 2013, he led Bayern to treble, winning the German league (Bundesliga), German Cup (DFB-Pokal), and UEFA Champions League. In May 2013, then 68-year-old Heynckes said of retiring, “Clubs want to do a generation change and you can not really do it with a 68-year-old.” Pep Guardiola succeeded him as Bayern’s head coach in 2013.

Upon agreeing to coach Bayern again, yesterday, Heynckes said, “I wouldn’t have returned to any other club in the world, but FC Bayern München are very close to my heart.”^{((de))German language: Ich wäre zu keinem anderen Verein der Welt zurückgekehrt, aber der FC Bayern München ist eine Herzensangelegenheit für mich.}

Heynckes’ predecessor Carlo Ancelotti was sacked on September 28, after a 3–0 loss against French capital club Paris St-Germain (PSG) in the UEFA Champions League group stage match. The Italian manager joined Bayern in 2016 after Guardiola left for English side Manchester City FC. Ancelotti led Bayern to a Bundesliga title, the club’s fifth consecutive league title. But in the second season in charge of the German giants, Bayern is currently five points behind league table leaders and arch rivals Borussia Dortmund.

After 3–0 defeat at PSG’s home, Bayern’s CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said, “The performance of our team since the start of the season did not meet the expectations we put to them. The game in Paris clearly showed that we had to draw consequences.”^{((de))German language: Die Leistungen unserer Mannschaft seit Saisonbeginn entsprachen nicht den Erwartungen, die wir an sie stellen. Das Spiel in Paris hat deutlich gezeigt, dass wir Konsequenzen ziehen mussten.}

Willy Sagnol, Ancelotti’s assistant coach, handled the team last week against Hertha Berlin, which ended in a 2–2 draw.

Thursday, August 3, 2006

Preliminary tests performed on samples taken from six villagers in the Kabanjahe District of Sumatra in Indonesia have tested negative for the deadly H5N1 Avian Flu virus.

“Investigations by the ministry of health lab and Namru, too, on August 2 and 3 on all specimens collected from the suspected cases in Kabanjahe district came up negative,” said Indonesia’s health minister, Siti Fadilah Supari.

Final test results are expected in at least seven days from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia. “The World Health Organization (WHO) requires human samples to be sent to one of WHO’s six collaborative centres. So, we only need to send them to CDC Atlanta as it has worked with the U.S. NAMRU-2 lab here,” added Supari.

Supari also stated that all individuals are suffering from the “common flu.”

Sunday, November 11, 2007

Besides becoming a political stomping ground for the Pan-Green and Pan-Blue coalitions, there are other changes from past years of Taipei Audio Video Fair (TAVF). With those changes in mind, Wikinews reporter Rico Shen interviewed You-peng Wang, chairman of the Taipei Electrical Commercial Association (TECA), the main organizer of TAVF, about the 60th year anniversary of TECA and the changes to the show.

Tuesday, March 6, 2007

Manchester United will be taking on eleven of the top players in Europe in a celebration match next Tuesday at Old Trafford, and the lineup for the European XI is coming together nicely. The game is a UEFA-Manchester United collaboration created to commemorate not only the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Rome, but also the 50th anniversary of Manchester United entering into European club competitions. Funds raised in the match will go to support the Manchester United Foundation, which works with local charities as well as UNICEF to aid children in need. Italian Marcello Lippi will be in charge of coaching the European XI side, and his assistant will be Andy Roxburgh. Confirmed players have slowly been filing into the team, but with current Manchester United on-loan striker Henrik Larsson confirmed, the XI is now complete.

Saturday, January 29, 2011

U.S. Prohibition Party presidential candidate Jim Hedges of Thompson Township, Pennsylvania took some time to answer a few questions about the Prohibition Party and his 2012 presidential campaign.

The Prohibition Party is the third oldest existing political party in the United States, having been established in 1869. It reached its height of popularity during the late 19th century. The party heavily supported the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which banned the sale of alcohol, and resulted in the US period known as Prohibition (1919–33). It was repealed in 1933. The party has declined since this period, but has continued to nominate candidates for the presidential election.

In 2003, the party split into two factions. Preacher Gene Amondson and perennial candidate Earl Dodge were nominated for the presidency by their respective factions. After Dodge’s death in 2007, the party reunified and named Amondson as its sole presidential nominee for 2008. During the election, Amondson was interviewed by Wikinews. He died in 2009, leaving an opening in the party for 2012.

Jim Hedges is a longtime Prohibition activist, who holds the distinction of the first individual of the 21st century (and the first since 1959) to be elected to a political office under the Prohibition Party banner. In 2001, he was elected as the Thompson Township tax assessor, and was re-elected to the post in 2005. He served until his term expired in 2010. Hedges declared his intent to run for the Prohibition Party presidential nomination on February 18, 2010. This marks his first run for the presidency.