What Caught My Eye Today

Italy - Italian Premier Romano Prodi resigned today after his center-left coalition lost a Senate confidence vote, a humiliating end to a 20-month-old government plagued by infighting. Can you imagine the state of the U.S. government if the dude in charge had to submit to confidence votes? We'd have a new government every other day. Elected in April 2006, Prodi has had a shaky government from nearly the start. It lurched toward collapse this week after a small Christian Democrat party, whose votes were vital to his Senate majority, yanked its support in the latest coalition spat. Former Premier Silvio Berlusconi, the billionaire media magnate who lost to Prodi in 2006 and is eager to return to office, said Napolitano should call early elections. Although decades of revolving-door politics has produced 61 governments since World War II, Italy's political climate had stabilized in recent years, with Berlusconi's government lasting for a full five-year term starting in 2001. So if my calculations are correct, that would be 61 governments in just over 62 years. That's some serious turnover. I barely get my teeth cleaned as frequently as Italy changes governments.

2008 Presidential Campaign - Democrat Dennis Kucinich is abandoning his second, long-shot bid for the White House as he faces a tough fight to hold onto his other job — U.S. congressman. That and his crusade to impeach President Bush and Vice President Cheney. Good luck with that, bro'. Kucinich has received little support in his presidential bid; he got 1%of the vote in the New Hampshire primary and was shut out in the Iowa caucuses. Kucinich said he will not endorse another Democrat in the primary. Oh yeah, I'm sure that'll hurt the feelings of the remaining candidates. Dude was averaging less than 1% in the primaries that he actually managed to get his name on the ballot.

Switzerland - Fears of world recession briefly took a back seat today at the World Economic Forum, where leaders from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq focused on how to establish security in their volatile regions. Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf said poverty — especially when paired with illiteracy — was the key breeding ground for suicide bombers. The deputy prime minister of Iraq, described terrorism in his country as "efforts by extremists to hijack my religion." Afghan President Hamid Karzai, whose country has recently seen an upsurge in suicide bombings, said the practice "isn't religious, it's criminal." On Wednesday, the opening day of the annual meeting, the focus was the global economy and roiling stock markets as fears grew that the U.S. economic downturn would spread around the world. I suppose on the bright side, there seems to be consensus that the suicide bombings in the Middle East are reflective of a very small number of misguided individuals rather than the boarder population who consider themselves Muslim. Too bad, other than some nice sounding political rhetoric, no one seems to have a plan for addressing the problem.

Brazil - The clearing of Brazil's Amazon rain forest jumped dramatically in the final months of 2007, spurred by heavy market demand for corn, soy and cattle, the government and environmentalists. Government officials estimate as much as 2,703 square miles of rain forest was cleared from August through December, meaning that Brazil could lose 5,791 square miles of jungle by August of this year if the rate continues. That would be a 34% increase from the 4,334 square miles that was cut down and burned from August 2006 through July of last year. Jungle is typically cleared in the Amazon to provide pasture for cattle, then soy farmers move in later and cultivate their crops. Brazil also has a booming beef export industry, and cattle ranchers have been expanding operations in the Amazon. Corn is increasingly being grown in the Amazon because of high international prices brought on by U.S. President George W. Bush's decision to promote use of corn-based ethanol. Brazil has some of the strictest environmental laws on the planet, but enforcement is traditionally spotty. Yes, let's all blame the deforestation in Brazil on ethanol and those rat fink lobbyists who convinced Washington that ethanol was the solution to everything. Don't get me wrong. I have no problem with a country trying to make a buck (We do it all the time in the U.S.), but don't go pinning this increase in deforestation in Brazil on the Americans. We're guilty of a lot when it comes to the environment, but this particular issue is all on the Brazilian government.

China - In a blast of harsh rhetoric, China lashed out at the Dalai Lama and critics of Beijing's support for Sudan, saying attempts to link political issues to the Beijing Summer Olympics betrayed the spirit of the games. Beijing's tough approach illustrates its extreme sensitivity toward anything that might tarnish its staging of the Aug. 8-24 Olympic Games. Beijing has invested billions of dollars and national prestige in what it hopes will be a glorious showcase of China's rapid development from impoverished agrarian nation to rising industrial power. China has sold weapons to the Sudanese government and defended it in the U.N. Security Council. Resource-hungry China buys two-thirds of Sudan's oil exports and observers say Sudan's military receives up to 70% of oil royalties. China says it plays a constructive role in seeking to resolve the Darfur conflict, where more than 200,000 people have died since 2003, when local rebels took up arms against the Arab-dominated Sudanese government. You can't fault China for trying to protect its investment in the Olympics, but at the same time, what did the Chinese government expect the reaction would be regarding its support of the Sudanese government? Of course, it is a little difficult to criticize China's choice of nations to support. It's not like the U.S. has a stellar track record.

Tennis - Frenchman, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who won over the crowds with a contagious smile and a go-for-broke style, claimed his biggest victim yet today, dominating second-ranked Nadal in a 6-2, 6-3, 6-2 victory that carried Tsonga to his first Grand Slam final. Tsonga, who beat three top 12 players earlier in the tournament, had never gone beyond the fourth round in his four previous Grand Slams. Now, he will play the winner of Friday's semifinal between top-ranked Roger Federer and No. 3 Novak Djokovic. On the women's side, fourth-ranked Ana Ivanovic staged a dramatic comeback, losing the first eight games before ousting No. 9 Daniela Hantuchova 0-6, 6-3, 6-4 to reach her second Grand Slam final. She will meet No. 5 Maria Sharapova, who overwhelmed Serbia's Jelena Jankovic 6-3, 6-1. First off, the women's semifinals were, frankly, a big letdown. Admittedly, Jelena Jankovic is nursing an injury, but that match was little more than a practice session for Sharapova. As for the second women's semi, I was optimistic that Hantuchova might close the deal, what with winning the first 8 games, but then she imploded. Here's hoping the men can pick up the slack in the second men's semifinal. If you've following the tournament, how entertaining would it be to watch Tsonga duke it out against Novak Djokovic in the final?