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(BBC News) -- The Prince of Wales has warned of the "catastrophic" consequences of inaction on issues such as climate change, at a UN sustainability conference in Brazil. Prince Charles said he had "watched in despair" at the slow pace of progress on the "critical issues of the day," in a pre-recorded video address in Rio. He urged world leaders to adopt a more integrated approach to issues such as climate change and food security. Waiting for the worst to happen would be "too late to act at all", he said.

Now comes citizen Newt, clear of voice, deepened in his determination to tackle an issue that is basically his alone to tout; because unlike his leading rival Romney who can not get his arms around something that he can’t take two different positions on; Newt is the real solid constitutional deal. Iowa is not the only state where this should be stirring some turbulent political waters. Conservatives in states like South Carolina, Florida, Ohio, Nevada, Arizona, Colorado, and Michigan, as well as other GOP political king making states, should be taking careful notes. Core values issues like preserving life, a...

A DAD grabbed a drunken teenager he thought was trying to break into his home, handed him to police – and was arrested. Now Mark Goldberg fears he could lose his Ministry of Defence job if he is prosecuted. The head chef, who has children aged five and 15, heard a noise at the window of his townhouse at around 10.30pm. He opened the curtains and spotted the yob teetering on the window ledge. Mark, 38, said: “He must have jumped over railings and climbed up a drainpipe. But when I went out he tried to say he was looking...

The American magazine Time has recommended the little-known sport of yak skiing in India as one of the 10 best ways in Asia to relax the mind. The magazine's Asian edition says this "implausible extreme sport" involves going at rocket speed uphill attached by rope to a yak charging downhill. The skier attracts the yak from up high by shaking a bucket of nuts, which must be put down fast before the fun begins. "The sport may be a barmy injunction to even barmier tourists," Time says. Nervous wait According to the article, yak skiing is carried out in the...

A Glimpse Ahead Timothy Snodgrass The Impossible Will Come Alive In 2005 01/28/05 In January of 2004, as we began to intercede for the New Year the Holy Spirit gave us the prophetic slogan, "The Seas will Roar in 2004". This year we were given a new slogan, "The Impossible will come Alive in 2005". As the veil of darkness begins to come down over nations and regions, along with great shakings will come great breakthroughs; signs, wonders, healings and a spectacular release of miracles in impossible circumstances. This year, although we are ultimately poised to gain much ground, there...

What's the deal with all the dead scientists?

Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, the Muslim cleric currently on a controversial visit to Britain, believes that female rape victims should be punished if dressed "immodestly" when assaulted. The 78-year-old Egyptian-born scholar, allowed into the country despite his open support of Palestinian suicide bombers and his extreme views on homosexuality, says that women can be guilty of provoking a sexual attack if their dress or behaviour arouses a man. Dr al-Qaradawi's views on rape appear on a website called IslamOnline, which purports to give a modern interpretation of Islam. He is the website's chief scholar and leader of a group of Islamic...

North Korea has described last week's talks on its nuclear weapons program as "positive," but said a U.S. proposal to defuse the issue was unacceptable. A statement by North Korea's Foreign Ministry Monday described last week's talks in Beijing as positive. But Pyongyang said the wide differences that remain between it and Washington still stand in the way of real progress. While praising U.S. negotiators for their flexibility, the statement said an American proposal that North Korea shut down and seal its nuclear facilities over a three-month period lacked a "scientific and realistic nature." The statement said Washington had still...

This is LONDON 26/05/04 - News and city section EU bans giving bones to dog owners By Nigel Rosser, Evening Standard Butchers are being threatened with fines if they give bones away to dog owners. They are being sent letters telling them that a new European directive bans the traditional practice. In future, Britain's 10,000 butchers will have to pay for the bones to be incinerated rather than hand them free to customers for their pets. The Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs today confirmed the Brussels ban. It said the bones are now considered "waste" which must...

IN HIS book Les Cent-Jours, Dominique Galouzeau de Villepin recounts Napoleon Bonaparte’s return from exile on the island of Elba, his triumphant march across France and final defeat by the Duke of Wellington. It is a book that enshrines the Foreign Minister’s hopes and ideals. Take, for instance, his account of Waterloo, a battle inexplicably won by the English: “And yet this defeat shines with an aura worthy of victory. The final opus of the unfinished symphony of the greatest military composer ever, it only just failed to turn to France’s advantage.” He adds: “This Napoleon guides and transcends. He...

In the run-up to what looks likely to become known as the First Gulf War, American planners were haunted by a "nightmare scenario". That was, that Saddam Hussein would suddenly see sense and start acting in his own best interests. By simply withdrawing from Kuwait he could preserve his military strength, claim a moral victory and establish himself as the new Nasser, the champion of the Arab world. Similar concerns must now be troubling hawks in the Bush administration. Saddam has everything to gain, including life itself, from moving to pro-active co-operation with the weapons inspectors. But now, as 12...

Scott Ritter, the former United Nations arms inspector, has become increasingly irascible in his attempt to challenge America's case for going to war with Iraq. His ill-temper was all too apparent yesterday when an interview on the BBC's Today programme on Radio Four turned into a long exchange of accusations with the presenter, Jim Naughtie, over who was "playing games". Mr Ritter has become a hate figure in America, where he is increasingly asked whether he is a "traitor" for arguing that Saddam Hussein does not pose a threat and that his weapons of mass destruction have been largely destroyed....

Thousands of demonstrators have marched to the World Development Summit venue in Johannesburg, in the first mass protest to take place since it opened on Monday. Singing apartheid-era songs, an estimated 20,000 people protesting about issues ranging from Aids to globalisation, arrived at the convention centre in the rich white suburb of Sandton from the shanty township of Alexandra. At their head were some of the most radical groups - Muslims marching in support of the Palestinians, and members of the Landless People's Movement, demonstrating for jobs, land and everything they say they were promised before the change of government...