'I'm not allowed an iPhone': Obama.

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President Obama and his daughters Sasha (left) and Malia (right)
 during a shopping trip in Arlington, Virginia, Nov 24, 2012
 with a bulky super secure Blackberry.

The troubled mobile phone maker BlackBerry still has at least one very loyal customer: U.S. President Barack Obama.

At a meeting with youth on Wednesday to promote his landmark healthcare law, Obama said he is not allowed to have Apple's smart phone, the iPhone, for "security reasons," though he still uses Apple's tablet computer, the iPad. He added that his daughters Sasha and Malia spend a lot of time on their iPhones.

Apple was one of several tech companies that may have allowed the National Security Agency (NSA) direct access to servers containing customer data, according to revelations by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden. The companies deny the allegation.

Obama fought to keep his BlackBerry after coming to the White House in 2009, though he said only 10 people have his personal email address. Neither George W. Bush nor Bill Clinton used email during their presidencies.

BlackBerry, a Canadian company formerly known as Research In Motion Ltd, renowned for its strong security encryption, virtually invented the idea of on-the-go email, but lost its market stranglehold as rivals brought out more consumer-friendly devices, like Apple's iPhone and phones using Google's Android software.

The company recently halted plans to be sold and is trying to chart a new course by focusing on large business and government clients.

Source.

US Congress gives Obama authority to use military force against Syria

Hmmm...wahala dey for Syria o. A
US Senate panel voted today to give
President Barack Obama the
authority to use military force
against Syria in response to a deadly
chemical weapons attack in
Damacus on August 21 that killed
over 1,400 people as they slept in
their homes.
The vote in the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee was the first in
a series as the president's request
makes its way through
congressional panels before coming
before the two chambers of
Congress for a final vote.
The full Senate is expected to vote
on the measure next week.
Obama's top advisers on
Wednesday took the argument for
action to the Republican-controlled
House of Representatives, where
the support seen in the Senate will
be harder to find.
The resolution would permit Obama
to order a limited military mission
against Syria, as long as it doesn't
exceed 90 days and involves no
American troops on the ground for
combat operations. (Associated
Press)
Meanwhile some Arab countries
have offered to pay for US military
invasion in Syria.
Secretary of State John Kerry said at
Wednesday’s hearing that Arab
counties have offered to pay for the
entirety of unseating President
Bashar al-Assad if the United States
took the lead militarily.
“With respect to Arab countries
offering to bear costs and to assess,
the answer is profoundly yes,” Kerry
said. “They have. That offer is on
the table.”
Asked by Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen
(R-Fla.) about how much those
countries would contribute, Kerry
said they have offered to pay for all
of a full invasion.
“In fact, some of them have said
that if the United States is prepared
to go do the whole thing the way
we’ve done it previously in other
places, they’ll carry that cost,” Kerry
said. “That’s how dedicated they are
at this. That’s not in the cards, and
nobody’s talking about it, but they’re
talking in serious ways about getting
this done.