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LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Jacob deGrom struck out 13 over seven scoreless innings in his postseason debut and Daniel Murphy homered off a star-crossed Clayton Kershaw to help the New York Mets defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers 3-1 on Friday night for a 1-0 lead in their NL Division Series. DeGrom (1-0) limited the Dodgers to five hits and walked one. The right-hander's strikeouts tied the franchise playoff record set by Tom Seaver in Game 1 of the 1973 NL Championship Series. "Before the game I was pretty nervous," deGrom said. "But once I got out there warming up, I kind of settled down. It really went away after the first pitch I threw." BOX SCORE: METS 3, DODGERS 1 Kershaw (0-1) endured his fifth straight postseason loss after giving up the seventh playoff homer of his career. Last season's NL MVP allowed three runs and four hits in 6 2-3 innings, struck out 11 and walked four. "I got outpitched, plain and simple," Kershaw said. Three of Kershaw's walks came in the seventh, before Mets captain David Wright had a two-out, two-run single off Pedro Baez that put New York up 3-0. "It's been nine years since I felt this," Wright said. "That's about as sweet as I thought it was going to be." Runs will likely again be at a premium when the Dodgers try to even the series Saturday night in Game 2. They start major league ERA leader Zack Greinke against Noah Syndergaard of the Mets. With a game-time temperature of 92 degrees, both pitchers came out throwing heat. Kershaw, the major league strikeout leader with 301 in the regular season, retired six of his first nine batters. DeGrom, last year's NL rookie of the year, struck out two batters in each of his first four innings. "He was unbelievable right from the get-go," Mets catcher Travis d'Arnaud said. "He had command of all four of his pitches and he was just being himself out there, having fun. There's a lot of good seats out there, but I had the best seat in the house." DeGrom became the first Mets pitcher with 10 or more strikeouts in the playoffs since Dwight Gooden in Game 1 of the 1988 NLCS at Dodger Stadium. DeGrom retired his final 11 batters, subduing the white towel-waving crowd of 54,428. "To have him go out there against Clayton tonight and win the game is a huge lift for us," said Mets manager Terry Collins, who got a victory in his postseason debut at age 66. "This is a good start for a team that hadn't been in the postseason for a long time. We needed a confidence boost and Jake gave it to us." Jeurys Familia got four outs to earn the save. Murphy homered leading off the fourth to give New York a 1-0 lead before Kershaw retired the next three batters. Kershaw stumbled in the seventh, giving up three walks before being relieved by Baez, who served up Wright's hit. Wright's hit whizzed past leaping second baseman Howie Kendrick and into center field, scoring Lucas Duda and Ruben Tejada The Dodgers finally scored in the eighth on Adrian Gonzalez's two-out RBI single that left them trailing 3-1. He struck out in his first three at-bats. Kershaw nearly helped himself in the fourth when the Dodgers trailed by one. With two runners on, he hit a long fly ball to center field that was caught by Yoenis Cespedes to end the inning. The left-hander threw 22 pitches in the first inning, including 12 on a walk to Wright. In the second, a ball hit by Duda went off Kershaw's right foot, but he didn't appear to be affected and struck out the next two batters to end the inning. Los Angeles lost its third straight postseason game, having been beaten in four games by St. Louis in last year's NLDS. The Dodgers lost the final two games, with Kershaw tagged for the loss while pitching on three days' rest in Game 4. CESPEDES' STRIKEOUTS Cespedes was hitless in four at-bats, including three strikeouts, just the second time this season he was fanned three times in a game. He was still playing for Detroit on June 24 at Cleveland when Carlos Carrasco struck him out twice and Cody Allen once. UP NEXT Greinke (19-3, major league-best 1.66 ERA) starts for the Dodgers against Syndergaard (9-7, 3.24). Greinke beat the Mets 4-3 on July 4 at home in his only start against them this season. Syndergaard had a no-decision in the Mets' 2-1 win at Dodger Stadium on July 3 in his only career start against Los Angeles.
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Sundar Pichai must have gotten used to his shiny, new CEO seat , because according to Recode , he's just announced the first exec shuffling under his leadership. By the looks of things, a number of Googlers are celebrating their promotions at the moment, one of the biggest winners being Hiroshi Lockheimer, who used to be the Android division's VP. While he's been overseeing Chrome OS' development and Android's expansion into cars and wearables since last year , he's now officially the Senior Vice President handling Android, Chrome and Chromecast. Android VP Dave Burke, on the other hand, has taken up more leader-level engineering duties. In the ads department, Mountain View's display and video advertisement division has a new SVP in Neal Mohan. He's been involved with Google's videos and YouTube business since it acquired his company DoubleClick in 2007. Recode says Mohan is an in-demand advertising exec and was almost poached by Twitter and Dropbox on separate occasions. He and Phillip Schindler, another ads VP who's now the SVP of Global Sales and Operations, are now responsible for expanding Google's display and video businesses in the face of growing competition. Recode
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Scare up some flavor and fun! It's almost Halloween, and if you're antsy to get baking, Instagram has a few sweet and spooky ideas! Krystin Goodwin (@krystingoodwin) highlights a few awesome Halloween-themed cakes!
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The Royals beat the Astros 5-4 on Friday. Kansas City scored three unanswered runs to tie the series at 1-1.
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Where previous robot hands might inadvertently smash delicate objects, this device can recognize the delicateness of each object.
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Check out the event coverage of the inaugural 2015 Hot Rod Dirt Drags and make plans to be there next year. You won't want to miss it! Mike "Nick" Nicholas has a knack for taking things that are old and forgotten and breathing new life into them. Whether it's building a traditional hot rod from dusty and rusty old parts, or recreating a vintage hot rodding event, Nick's got a keen eye for the nostalgic and a knack for the old-school way. Over the past few years, Nick's keyed in on recreating old time rodding events in the Rocky Mountain region, basing his operation in and around his hometown of Denver. He operates Nick's Hot Rod Garage in the suburb of Englewood, a rodder's oasis where he puts together some of the finest traditional machines west of the Mississippi. Nick's pathway to putting on traditional hot rod shows started with the Hot Rod Hill Climb, rousing celebrations of the 60th anniversaries of the legendary Georgetown, Colorado, Hot Rod Hill Climbs of 1953 and '54. HOT ROD magazine covered the original trials, and Mike used those vintage articles as inspiration to recreate the events more than half a century later. Follow MSN Autos on Facebook Following his success in Georgetown, Nick is revisiting history again with the return of classic dirt drag racing. Back in the day, Rocky Mountain racing pioneers Cal Kennedy, Ed Piz, Vern Holmes (of the Denver Timing Association), and Duayne Nusbaum (of the Boulder Timing Association) talked their way onto retired dirt air strips to do battle with their home-built machines. The Pikes Peak Timing Association also had a dirt strip east of Colorado Springs that was run by the Cam Winders in the early 1950s. It's a track that received some national notoriety, including a story in the February 1953 issue of HRM. To return to the grassroots of Rocky Mountain drag racing, Nick needed an old dirt airstrip to run the event. On Google Earth he found one, just behind the Best Western Movie Manor in Monte Vista, Colorado. As you'd guess from its name, Movie Manor has two drive-in theaters on site, surrounded by a modern 60-room hotel, and there was a perfect spot on the grounds for a car show. Without hesitation, Rio Grande County bent over backwards to plow, grade, and finesse the valley floor to perfection. Participants gathered at Johnny Martin's Auto Trim and Hot Rod Shop in Alamosa, a rodding hot spot about 20 miles east of Monte Vista, for tech inspection on Friday afternoon. Nick had about 50 cars registered to run as of Friday, but as the sound of hopped-up engines revved around Monte Vista, other local hot rodders joined the fray, eager to show their stuff. Another 25-plus cars signed up on Saturday, bringing a touch of indigenous hot rod flavor the brawl. A car show also sprung up on the Green, the expansive lawn next to the track, as bands played, dj's spun records, and race ready rods got ready to hit the track. Several prominent cars showed up for the races, including Cal Kennedy and the recreation of his T-33 drag car, a highly modified '33 Chevy roadster that he flogged at the original hill climbs and on dragstrips across the region. Dave Scroggs was also there in his Rolling Bones three-window, and Mark McCann represented the Deluxe Speed Shop in his Riley powered '29 banger roadster. Nighttime didn't slow the festivities at all. Downtown Monte Vista had a car show featuring the drivers and their rides, blending in with the local hot rod scene. Along with the featured movies at the Movie Manor, there was an impromptu drag session out on the dirt track in the pitch black, aided only by the headlights of the participants. Drivers hit the track again on Sunday. Onlookers cheered as the hot rods ramped it up, schooled and tutored in the ways of the dirt track after a day of experience driving on the dusty Colorado soil/clay. When all was said and done, the event was a complete head splittin' success. Nick has vowed to make this event bigger next year. It's something that a true hot rodder would not want to miss. Stay in the loop at www.hotroddirtdrags.com, and keep up with the garage at www.nickshotrodgarage.com. Make plans to be there next year. You won't want to miss it!
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About four miles from the world's largest Christopher Columbus parade in midtown Manhattan on Monday, hundreds of Native Americans and their supporters will hold a sunrise prayer circle to honor ancestors who were slain or driven from their land. The ceremony will begin the final day of a weekend "powwow" on Randall's Island in New York's East River, an event that features traditional dancing, story-telling and art. The Redhawk Native American Arts Council's powwow is both a celebration of Native American culture and an unmistakable counterpoint to the parade, which many detractors say honors a man who symbolizes centuries of oppression of aboriginal people by Europeans. Organizers hope to call attention to issues of social and economic injustice that have dogged Native Americans since Christopher Columbus led his path-finding expedition to the "New World" in 1492. The powwow has been held for the past 20 years but never on Columbus Day. It is part of a drive by Native Americans and their supporters throughout the country, who are trying to rebrand Columbus Day as a holiday that honors indigenous people, rather than their European conquerors. Their efforts have been successful in several U.S. cities this year. "The fact that America would honor this man is preposterous," said Cliff Matias, lead organizer of the powwow and a lifelong Brooklyn resident who claims blood ties with Latin America's Taino and Kichwa nations. "It makes absolutely no sense whatsoever." But for many Italian Americans, who take pride in the explorer's Italian roots, the holiday is a celebration of their heritage and role in building America. Many of them are among the strongest supporters of keeping the traditional holiday alive. Berkeley, California, was the first city to drop Columbus Day, replacing it in 1992 with Indigenous Peoples Day. The trend has gradually picked up steam across the country. Last year, Minneapolis and Seattle became the first major U.S. cities to designate the second Monday of October as Indigenous Peoples' Day. This month, Portland, Oregon, Albuquerque, New Mexico and Bexar County, Texas, decided to eliminate Columbus Day and replace it with the new holiday. Oklahoma City is set for a vote on a similar proposal later this month. Columbus Day became a U.S. federal holiday in 1937. The federal government and about half of U.S. states give public employees paid leave, according to the Council of State Governments. Schools and government offices are generally closed, but many private businesses remain open. Support for Indigenous Peoples Day has steadily risen in recent years, paralleling the growing perception that the wave of European settlement in the Western Hemisphere was genocidal to native populations. Gino Barichello, who attended Berkeley city council meetings in the 1990s that resulted in the establishment of Indigenous Peoples Day, said he viewed the trend with pride. "To have a recognition and celebration of all the indigenous cultures of the U.S., and Berkeley being one of the catalysts leading that charge, is very exciting," said Barichello, who says he is half Italian and half Muscogee, a Native American tribe based in Oklahoma. New York City, with the country's largest Italian American population at 1.9 million, attracts nearly 35,000 marchers and nearly 1 million spectators to its annual Columbus Day parade. The Columbus Citizens Foundation, a non-profit that organizes the parade, says on its website the event "celebrates the spirit of exploration and courage that inspired Christopher Columbus's 1492 expedition and the important contributions Italian-Americans have made to the United States." John Viola, president of the Washington, D.C.-based National Italian American Foundation, said renaming Columbus Day dishonors the country's 25 million Italian Americans and their ancestors. He said Italian Americans feel slighted by cities that are dropping Columbus Day. "By default, we're like the collateral damage of this trend," he said. The foundation's leadership council is scheduled later this month to take up the issue. One of the proposals expected to be floated at the meeting is to change the name to Italian American Day, taking the spotlight off Columbus and other European explorers. Under this proposal, Indigenous People Day would be celebrated on a different day. "I think many people believe there could be a middle road," Viola said. (Editing by Frank McGurty and David Gregorio)
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Islamic State fighters have seized villages close to the northern city of Aleppo from rival insurgents, a monitoring group said on Friday, despite an intensifying Russian air-and-sea campaign that Moscow says has targeted the militant group. News of the advance came as the United States announced it was largely abandoning its failed program to train moderate rebels fighting Islamic State and would instead provide arms and equipment directly to rebel leaders and their units on the battlefield. The Obama administration is grappling with a dramatic change in the four-year-old Syrian civil war brought about by Moscow's intervention in support of President Bashar al-Assad. The Russian defense ministry said stepped-up air strikes on rebel positions in Syria killed 300 anti-Assad rebels and that it hit 60 Islamic State targets over the last day. There was no independent confirmation of the death toll. About 200 insurgents were killed in an attack on the Liwa al-Haqq group in Raqqa province while 100 died in Aleppo, the defense ministry said. Two Islamic State commanders were among the dead in Russia's most intense raids since it launched strikes in Syria 10 days ago. In previous updates Russia has reported hitting 10 targets daily. However, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the fighting, said there had been no significant advances by government forces backed by allied militia in areas where ground offensives were launched this week. "It's back and forth," said Rami Abdulrahman, director of the Observatory. Iran's elite Revolutionary Guard Corps said separately that one of its generals had been killed near Aleppo, once Syria's most populous city. Iran, like Russia an Assad ally, says it has advisers in the country. Islamic State is now within 2 km (1.2 miles) of government-held territory on the northern edge of Aleppo, which has suffered widespread damage and disease during the civil war that erupted in the wake of protests against Assad. Syria's military, backed by Russia, Iran and allied militias, has launched a major attack in Syria's west to recapture land lost to non-IS rebels near the heartland of Assad's minority Alawite sect. That area is vital to Assad's survival. A senior regional official close to the Syrian government said: "The Iranians are at the heart of the battle, with strength and effectiveness. Yes they are participating." As the government operation in the west pushed ahead, Islamic State said its fighters had captured five villages in its northern offensive and had killed more than 10 soldiers or militiamen. Powerful insurgent group Ahrar al-Sham managed to recapture one of the villages, Tel Suseen, later in the day, the Observatory and online media affiliated with the rebels said, but the others appeared to remain in IS hands. The British-based Observatory said it was the biggest advance by Islamic State since it launched an offensive against rival rebels in Aleppo near the Turkish border in late August. "DAESH EXPLOIT RUSSIAN STRIKES" "Daesh has exploited the Russian air strikes and the preoccupation of the (rebel) Free Syrian Army in its battles in Hama, and advanced in Aleppo," said one rebel commander with fighters in the region, using an Arabic name for Islamic State. Russian warplanes and warships have been bombarding targets across Syria in a campaign Moscow says is targeting IS fighters, who control large parts of eastern Syriaand of Iraq. But the campaign appears to have mainly struck other rebel groups, some of which had been battling to stop the Islamic State advance across Aleppo province. U.S. and Russian warplanes are now flying missions over the same country for the first time since World War Two, risking incidents between the two air forces and their fast jets. Seeking to underline the dangers, U.S. officials said four Russian cruise missiles fired from a warship in the Caspian Sea had crashed in Iran, which drew a swift denial from Russia. Speaking in London on Friday, U.S. Defence Secretary Ash Carter said however that the United States had indications that Russian cruise missiles did malfunction. Washington said it was pulling the plug on a short-lived $580 million program to train and equip units of fighters at sites outside of Syria, after its disastrous launch this year fanned criticism of President Barack Obama's war strategy. The Pentagon said it would shift its focus to providing weapons and other equipment to rebel groups whose leaders have passed a U.S. vetting process to ensure they are not linked to militant Islamist groups. France has also been involved in the anti-Islamic State effort, launching its first air strike inSyria on Sept. 27. French Rafale warplanes attacked an IS training camp in their stronghold of Raqqa overnight. "We struck because we know that in Syria, particularly around Raqqa, there are training camps for foreign fighters whose mission is not to fight Daesh on the Levant but to come to France, in Europe to carry out attacks," said French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian. ALAWITE HEARTLAND The Observatory reported a new wave of Russian air strikes in the west on Friday morning on Hama and Idlib, apparently in support of the ground offensive against anti-Assad rebels. The offensive has focused around the Ghab Plain, next to Syria's western mountain range which forms the Alawite heartland and the important strategic main north-south highway running north from Hama towards the cities of Idlib and Aleppo. Securing those areas would help consolidate Assad's control over Syria's main population centers in the west of the country, far from the Islamic State strongholds in the east. Abu al-Baraa, a fighter with the Ajnad al-Sham rebel group, speaking to Reuters via Internet messenger from the Ghab Plain, said: "The regime has been trying since yesterday to advance ... and tried many times, with Russian jets paving their way, but ... most of the attacks are repelled. Also a number of heavy regime vehicles have been destroyed in the Ghab region." Alongside the Russian air-and-sea campaign, regional officials have told Reuters that hundreds of Iranian troops have arrived in Syria since late September to support the Syrian army and Lebanese Hezbollah fighters. Senior Iranian officials have been in Syria for several years as military advisers. The Iranian Revolutionary Guards said a senior general, Hossein Hamedani, was killed near Aleppo late on Thursday. Hamedani was a veteran of the Iran-Iraq war and was made deputy chief commander in 2005. Several senior Guard commanders have been killed inSyria. Turkey said on Friday it was concerned about a possible fresh wave of Syrian migrants arriving at its border as a result of Russian air strikes. The conflict has killed 250,000 people and displaced millions, causing a refugee crisis in neighboring nations and in Europe.
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In response to passenger complaints about limited overhead space, the world's biggest airliner is finally answering their calls with bigger and wider bins. Boeing is adding 50 percent more space overhead on their Boeing 737 series, sacrificing headroom to ensure there's more space for carry-on luggage. Alaska Airlines is one of the first major airlines outfitted with Boeing's bigger and wider bins. In 2014 alone, U.S. airlines together collected some $3.5 billion just from checking bags.
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LOS ANGELES How many nights had David Wright laid awake since 2006, envisioning a scenario just like this one? Bases loaded, two outs, and a chance to make another postseason opportunity worth the wait. And while he mashes left-handed pitching, to the tune of a career .340 average, Wright surely wasn't disappointed that Don Mattingly pulled Clayton Kershaw at that very moment, with the Mets leading 1-0. Wright had struck out his last two at-bats against Kershaw, but the Dodgers' lefty had just walked the bases loaded in the top of the seventh inning, and he'd thrown 113 pitches. In truth, he looked spent, but the Dodgers' bullpen, other than closer Kenley Jansen, has been shaky much of the season, so Mattingly had to be agonizing over the decision. In any case, he went with Pedro Baez, a former third baseman who throws 98-99 mph but, as one scout said recently about him, "doesn't look like he knows where it's going.'' So the suspense built as the count went to 3-1, then 3-2 after Wright fouled off a pitch. Finally, Baez threw 99 down the middle, and Wright had a great approach, shortening up his swing a bit and hitting it hard right back through the middle for a two-run single and a 3-0 lead. Upon reaching first base, Wright reacted emotionally, smashing coach Tom Goodwin's hand in a happy exchange. And Jacob deGrom did the rest. Well, not all of it, but in going seven innings he delivered a spectacular performance, outpitching Kershaw in a tight, tense duel for most of the night, striking out 13 Dodgers to match Tom Seaver's postseason team record, set in 1973. And as it turned out, he gave the bullpen just enough cushion to get out of Dodger Stadium with a 3-1 win and first blood in this five-game series. Indeed, on an otherwise joyful night, one problem continued to rear its ugly head, as Tyler Clippard continued to serve up fat changeups above the belt, and couldn't get out of the eighth inning. Jeurys Familia came on to get a four-out save, but Terry Collins has to consider using somebody else, presumably Addison Reed, for the eighth inning the rest of this series. One thing for sure, it's clear that, as promised, he intends to ride his young-gun starters as far as possible in this postseason. On this night he allowed deGrom to throw a season-high 121 high-stress pitches minus four for an intentional walk which might make the Mets reluctant to bring him back on three days' rest. That had been their tentative plan, at least if they were trailing 2-1 in the series. But all of that can wait. With his seven shutout innings deGrom, at worst, gives the Mets a chance to close out the five-game series at home even if they lose on Saturday. Perhaps even more significantly, he sent a message that the Mets' young pitching is ready for the challenge of the post-season and the likes of Kershaw and Zack Greinke. Noah Syndergaard, Matt Harvey, and perhaps Steven Matz have to back him up on that, but delivering such brilliance in Game 1 could do wonders for their own belief and that of this entire Mets' team. In doing so, deGrom left no doubt he deserves ace status on this Mets' staff, and made good on the way Collins described him here on Thursday. "Jake deGrom has as much confidence in his own ability as anybody I've ever known,'' said Collins. "I think he believes he can get anybody out. I think he proved something to himself at the All-Star Game, when he struck out the side on the big stage there. I think he trusts his stuff, no matter the situation." DeGrom aside, the early innings were playing out like a referendum on Collins' decision to start Michael Cuddyer over Michael Conforto in left field. Cuddyer looked bad striking out on a Kershaw curveball in his first at-bat, way out in front, and then his adventures in left field began. In the bottom of the second he misjudged Justin Turner's hard-hit liner, allowing it to go over his head for a leadoff double. Then the next inning he took a terrible route on Corey Seager's high fly down the left-field line, and allowed the ball to fall behind on the warning track for another double. Cuddyer even looked shaky coming in on a routine fly ball by Joc Pederson in the fourth, and at that point, with the Mets leading 1-0, it seemed to be time for Collins to think hard about putting Juan Lagares in center and moving Yoenis Cespedes to left for the sake of better defense. Finally Collins made that move after the Mets went ahead 3-0, but he'll really have to think about using Conforto the rest of the way. Why not? If deGrom is any indication, the Mets will count on youth to win this series. That and a dash of Wright on this night.
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Agility is not a trait that Texas Rangers first baseman Prince Fielder possesses. The 275-pound slugger gets a lot of power behind his swing and drives in runs like the best of them, but agile he is not. So when he tried to climb over the dugout railing to celebrate the team's thrilling 6-4 victory over the Blue Jays after the final out of the game on Friday, it didn't work out too well for him. Fielder tried to join his teammates who rushed onto the field to celebrate, but gravity was not on his side. He got stuck on the railing and just kind of rolled onto the field. Safety first, Prince. Safety first. #OwnOctober pic.twitter.com/UE7UuH1jCL MLB GIFS (@MLBGIFs) October 9, 2015 Fielder and his teammates likely had a good laugh about it in the locker room afterwards.
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DETROIT (AP) -- Mike Babcock bowed his head and rubbed his brow after seeing a fourth puck go in his team's net. There wasn't much else the Toronto coach could do while watching his former team rout the franchise he's trying to revive. Justin Abdelkader had a hat trick and Dylan Larkin scored in his NHL debut, helping the Detroit Red Wings beat the Babcock-led Maple Leafs 4-0 on Friday night. "A little extra special for us to get a win against Babs," Abdelkader acknowledged. Jimmy Howard stopped 22 shots for his 21st career shutout for the Red Wings, who won their season-opening game and dropped Toronto to 0-2. "I don't think I was surprised at how good Detroit played or anything like that," Babcock said quietly after the game. "I just think we have to be better." The Maple Leafs lured Babcock away from Detroit with an eight-year, $50 million contract that more than doubled what any other coach is making is making per season in the league. Abdelkader scored on Detroit's first shot, making the most of a power play 1:15 into the game. He had another goal midway through the first period off a centering pass from Larkin. Just 20 seconds into the second period, Larkin lifted a shot from the bottom of the left circle over goalie Jonathan Bernier and pumped his right fist while celebrating the moment in front of 20,000-plus fans at Joe Louis Arena. "It's an incredible feeling just to see it go in and see the Joe go pretty crazy," said Larkin, who is from suburban Detroit and played one season at Michigan. Abdelkader became the first Red Wings player to score three times in an opener since Brendan Shanahan did it in 2001, according to STATS, and joined Adam Brown (1945) as the only players who had a hat trick in a season- and home-opening game. Larkin, a 2014 first-round pick, drew two defenders as he skated down the middle of the ice and Abdelkader took advantage of the space to score his third goal 3:54 into the second period. NHL rookies Edmonton's Connor McDavid and Buffalo's Jack Eichel have generated a lot of buzz, but Babcock said more people should be talking about the 19-year-old Larkin. "He obviously gives them speed and he competes on every shift," Babcock said. Bernier was pulled after allowing Larkin's goal. He gave up three goals on nine shots. James Reimer stopped 12 of the 13 shots he faced in relief. During a break in the game when Detroit was up 2-0, Babcock and his accomplishments with the Red Wings -- a Stanley Cup and 525 wins -- were shown on the videoboards and the crowd gave him a standing ovation. Babcock acknowledged the cheers by raising his hands a few times. "It was nice of them to do," Babcock said. "I wish they wouldn't have to do that. I don't coach their team anymore. I'm glad this is all over with." The Maple Leafs are paying Babcock an unprecedented amount of money to turn around their once-proud franchise. Toronto, which hasn't hoisted the Stanley Cup since 1967, was among the NHL's worst teams last season and has made the playoffs only once since 2004. "I think we're all sick of losing," center Shawn Matthias said. The Red Wings are the only team that has earned a spot in the playoffs every year since the league emerged from a lockout in 2005 -- a run that coincided with Babcock's decade in Detroit -- and are aiming to be in a 25th straight postseason. With a mix of veterans and young skaters, such as Larkin, along with a pair of goalies, Detroit seems set up to be relatively successful again this season under first-year coach and Michigan native Jeff Blashill, who was promoted from the American Hockey League's Grand Rapids Griffins. "It's pretty neat to have an opportunity to be the head coach of the team you grew up cheering for so I took a moment to certainly enjoy that," he said. NOTES: Toronto opened the season Wednesday night with a 3-1 loss at home to Montreal. ... Red Wings general manager Ken Holland said as of Friday night, 36-year-old forward Dan Cleary has refused to report to Grand Rapids after being assigned to the minors.
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The Blackhawks beat the Islanders 3-2 in OT on Patrick Kane's second goal of the game. Artem Anisimov also scored for the Blackhawks while John Tavares added a tally for the Islanders in the loss.
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R OSEBURG, Ore. Gun-rights activists and others gave voice to strong emotions when President Barack Obama came to meet privately with grieving families whose loved ones were killed on a college campus in Roseburg, Oregon. During Obama's brief visit on Friday, many residents showed anger over the call he made soon after last week's shootings for more gun restrictions. However, there were also Obama supporters among the people waiting behind a security fence near the airport to catch a glimpse of the president. They included two men on bicycles Phil Benedetti and John Poole. "I want to support our president," said Benedetti, a Roseburg physician. "This isn't about gun control, it's about caring about the welfare of the small town and every small town when tragedy happens." He said he owns several guns for hunting and chasing deer from his garden, but he believes assault weapons shouldn't be available to the general public. More than 200 gun-rights activists also gathered outside Roseburg airport some carrying holstered handguns. "I'm here to tell Obama he is not welcome in our county. He is exploiting the local tragedy with his gun control agenda," said Bruce Rester, a retired truck driver who was wearing a handgun in a holster over his chest. "Everybody should carry a gun. An armed society is a polite society." As Roseburg buries its dead, it's also trying to heal. The complexities of residents' emotions were reflected in the signs that are everywhere around the community at fast-food places, cafes and churches. Some have messages like "Pray for UCC" and "UCC Strong." The signs refer to Umpqua Community College, where Christopher Harper-Mercer killed eight students and a teacher before turning the gun on himself after a shootout with police. Billie McMillian, a business owner from Eagle Point who attended the protest with her husband, said they came to support the families of the victims and because they didn't agree with the president. "We support the Second Amendment. It's our God-given right to protect ourselves," she said. Protesters also carried signs voicing support for Sheriff John Hanlin, who has been highly visible during press conferences about the college shooting. Three years ago, after 20 children and six adults were shot dead at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, Hanlin sent a letter to Vice President Joe Biden saying he would not enforce any new gun legislation he deemed to be unconstitutional. Poole, a retired property developer from Klamath Falls, said he too believes in the Second Amendment right to carry arms, but he also supports "rational, common sense gun laws." Funerals for the nine victims of Harper-Mercer have been held throughout the week, and more were scheduled in the days ahead. The college reopened Monday, and counselors have been on campus to help students, faculty and staff deal with the trauma that all of Roseburg is feeling. Grief counselors are also available at nonprofit organizations. During his visit to Roseburg, the president met with leaders of the community college to express his thanks and condolences. Obama made no public appearances during his visit to the city. It is not known what Obama told the families of those killed in the campus killings. Just before leaving Roseburg, he told a small group of reporters: "We're going to have to come together as a country, but today is about the families."
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Jon Kaase is synonymous with Ford-brand performance engines, but delving into Ford's forgotten Y-block was definitely an uphill battle for him at HOT ROD's 2015 AMSOIL Engine Masters Challenge. Kaase says that the choice of Y-block was enhanced by the availability of an aftermarket aluminum head. Unfortunately for Kaase's bank account, he used more than 10 pounds of welding rod reconfiguring the head to eliminate its most troublesome characteristic: stacked ports. Yes, rather than having side-by-side intake ports (like nearly every other American V8) the Ford Y-block head has its ports stacked, so all that you see is sidewall when you look down those long holes. Kaase completely reconfigured the head to give the fuel an unobstructed path to combustion glory. With a small-block Chevy intake adapted to the block, and side-by-side intake ports, it's almost as if Kaase started with a Y-block and finished with a small-block Chevy? Another aspect of this 400ci engine revealed during teardown is the unique oil system with nylon lines and Parker Prestolok ends. Through a nifty bit of machine work and construction of the log, the lines bring extra oil to the lifters. In effect, any deficiency in oil for any vintage engine can be overcome with this type of relatively straightforward setup. One other note is the high-compression pistons, which are egg-shaped for better sealing once the engine warms up. In all this engine came out with a three-pull dyno average of 477.6 hp and average peak torque at 557 lb-ft, with one pull at close to 600 lb-ft. How's that for an old-tech thumping? F ollow MSN Autos on Facebook
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BREAKING: Two suicide bombers likely carried out the twin explosions in Turkey's capital Ankara at a peace rally Saturday that left 86 people dead, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said. "There are very strong signs that the attack was carried out by two suicide bombers," he told reporters in Ankara, declaring three days of national mourning for those who lost their lives. This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates. EARLIER: At least 86 people were killed Saturday when two explosions ripped through groups of leftist and pro-Kurdish activists gathering for an anti-government peace rally in the Turkish capital Ankara. The attack, near Ankara's main train station, was the deadliest in the city's history and has ratcheted up tensions ahead of Turkey's November 1 snap elections, which were already riding high amid the government's offensive on Kurdish militants. Bodies of the slain activists were seen strewn across the ground after the blasts, with the banners they had been holding lying next to them for the "Work, Peace and Democracy" rally. Sixty-two people died at the scene of the blasts and 24 more then succumbed to their wounds in hospital, Health Minister Mehmet Muezzinoglu told reporters in Ankara. He said another 186 people had been injured in the attack. Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan denounced the "heinous attack", saying it was aimed at "our unity and our country's peace." A Turkish government official told AFP that the authorities "suspect that there is a terrorist connection," without giving further details. Reports said they were investigating if a suicide bomber was involved. There were scenes of chaos after the blasts, as ambulances raced to get to the wounded and police cordoned off the area around the train station. "We heard one huge blast and then one smaller explosion and then there was a great movement and panic. Then we saw corpses around the station," said Ahmet Onen, 52. "A demonstration that was to promote peace has turned into a massacre, I don't understand this," he said, sobbing. Turkish police fired in the air to disperse demonstrators angered by the deaths of their fellow activists from the scene, an AFP correspondent reported. - 'Barbaric attack' - Amateur footage broadcast by NTV television showed smiling activists holding hands and dancing and then suddenly falling to the ground as a huge explosion went off behind them. Initial reports spoke of a single explosion but Turkish media said later there had been two separate blasts in short sequence. Reports said that hundreds of people in Ankara had rushed to hospital to donate blood for the victims. With international concern growing over instability in the key NATO member, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini urged Turkey to "stand united against terrorists." French President Francois Hollande condemned the "odious terrorist attack" while Russian President Vladimir Putin passed his condolences to Erdogan. Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu was hosting a meeting of top officials, including powerful spy chief Hakan Fidan, in the early afternoon to discuss the attack. The pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) was to have been one of several groups that was to have taken part in the pro-peace protest. "We are faced with a huge massacre. A barbaric attack has been committed," said the HDP's leader Selahattin Demirtas. He blamed a "mafia state" and a "state mentality which acts like a serial killer" for the attack. - PKK suspends activities - The attack comes with Turkey on edge ahead of November 1 polls and a wave of unrest over the past few months. An attack in the predominantly Kurdish town of Suruc on July 20 targeting pro-HDP activists and blamed on Islamic State (IS) jihadists killed 32 people and wounded a hundred others. The militant Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) accused Ankara of collaborating with IS and resumed attacks on the Turkish security forces after observing a two-year ceasefire. Over 140 members of the security forces have since been killed while Ankara claims to have killed over 1,700 Kurdish militants in weeks of bombardments of PKK targets in southeast Turkey and northern Iraq. With conspicuous timing, the PKK Saturday announced it would suspend all attacks -- except in self defence -- ahead of the polls. "Heeding calls from Turkey and abroad, our movement has decided on a state of inactivity by our guerillas, unless our people and our guerilla forces are attacked," Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK), an umbrella movement that includes the PKK, said in a statement. The HDP performed strongly in the last election on June 7, winning 80 seats in parliament to deprive Erdogan's ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) of an outright majority for the first time since it came to power in 2002. The AKP then failed to form a coalition in months of talks, prompting Erdogan -- who had been hoping for a large majority to push through reforms to boost his powers -- to call another election on November 1. The office of Davutoglu said that he had cancelled election campaigning for the next three days.
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TestDriveNow.com Preview of the new 2016 Chevrolet Colorado Z71 Trail Boss Duramax Diesel by auto critic Steve Hammes. http://testdrivenow.com/2016-chevrolet-colorado-trail-boss-first-look/
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Autoblog Beauty-Roll, nothing but high-def video of the cars you're looking for. Today featuring the 2016 Chevrolet Camaro Coupe. Each episode comes with a hit of engine sound start-up and with a few revs to round out the package. Set your resolution to max, kick it into full-screen, turn up the sound, and enjoy today's subject the 2016 Chevrolet Camaro Coupe.
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Nick Carter Nick Carter says the Backstreet Boys "saved" him. The 35-year-old singer, who had a troubled childhood and is estranged from his parents, joined the group when he was 12 and credits his bandmates, A.J. McLean, Howie Dorough, Kevin Richardson and Brian Littrell, for giving him the family that he never had. The 'Dancing With the Stars' contestant said: "They became the family that I didn't really have at that time. All the other guys had great families and great morals, and things that I could connect to and learn from, and really reflect with my own family. I was really able to learn from the guys." Asked to pinpoint the troubled spot in his childhood, he said: "It was a lot about money and all the things we didn't have. It was just a lot of tension within the household and alcohol was definitely always around us all the time, so I was kind of tortured for so many years and had a lot of stress. I realized that I couldn't save them or actually have that family. "In a way though, I was saved by the guys and God gave me a new life." Nick admits his success and ability to earn a lot of money at an early age caused problems with his parents. The 'Everybody' hitmaker told 'Access Hollywood Live': "Money tends to be the root of a lot of problems and it can enhance it, and that's really what happened in my household." While he hasn't spoken to his mother or father in some time, Nick working on rebuilding a relationship with his siblings, including younger brother Aaron Carter, 27.
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One could spend hours examining the offensive inconsistency that has plagued the Ohio State Football team this year, whether the emphasis is the struggling offensive line, poor quarterback play, or just an overall lack of explosiveness. If you are an individual who hasn't been watching the games, the Buckeyes look to be playing pretty well. An offense that is averaging 452 yards per game isn't usually something to complain about, yet the Buckeyes have a lot of controversy surrounding their inefficiency on offense. Based only on the statistics, one can't see the overthrown passes, unnecessary penalties, and lack of production. The Buckeyes currently rank 16th in the country in average rushing yards per game with 239.6, 78th in the country in passing yards per game with 212.6, and they are currently tied at 71st in points per game with 34.0. In comparison, last year they finished 5th iin overall rushing yards, 22nd in overall passing yards, and 6th in points per game. With this is mind, the question remains; what happened to Ohio State's offense? There is not one answer that can save the Buckeyes on the offensive side of the football. Dangerous mixtures of undisciplined play, coaching changes, and an overloaded roster have all combined to make the Buckeyes look like a high school football team in comparison to themselves at this point last year. The Loss of Tom Herman Ohio State's loss has shown to be the University of Houston's gain after starting their season off 4-0. Though his successor, Ed Warinner, was also his apprentice for three years, his phenomenal play-calling and offensive brilliance has played a huge factor. Anyone watching the games has had a few moments of disbelief in play-calling this year. The Loss of Devin Smith If there was something Ohio State didn't need this off-season it was more receivers (or quarterbacks). The position was overflowing with talent, yet with injuries and a lack of leadership, Ohio State has still yet to find someone of Smith's caliber at stretching the field. The Dream Team A roster that includes four different Heisman-potential athletes combined with another four fighting for playing time could prove to be dangerous for the Buckeyes. A crowded backfield has ultimately made the play-calling run dry. A Lack of Discipline Urban Meyer has had a record number of turnovers under him in the first five games of this season. That combined with nearly eight penalties a game makes any individual question the discipline of this football team. The struggles in the red zone have also played a significant factor in the team's inability to score. With all of these factors in mind it is hard to make a case that Ohio State is doing just as well as last year. Many analysts have gone as far as saying that Ohio State is not only undeserving of a playoff spot, but a top-ten ranking as well. The Buckeyes have been slow out of the gate and have shown numerous weaknesses against teams of a lower caliber, but they are undefeated. They came out slow last year and lost to Virginia Tech, yet went on to win the National Championship. Though they have looked sloppy, don't count the Buckeyes out just yet.
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TORONTO (AP) -- Toronto Blue Jays reliever Brett Cecil tore his left calf muscle during Friday's AL Division Series game and might be done for the postseason. Cecil, Toronto's top left-hander in the bullpen, was injured while tagging Mike Napoli in a rundown that ended the eighth inning of a 6-4 loss to the Texas Rangers. He had to be helped off the field. Toronto manager John Gibbons said Cecil has a ''pretty significant tear in his calf, so that's not very good.'' Gibbons said left-hander Aaron Loup will have to step up. Toronto is down 0-2 in in the best-of-five ALDS.
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CONCORD, N.C. (AP) Austin Dillon was leaning on his No. 33 Chevrolet praying moments before the Xfinity Series race Friday night when fireworks came crashing down on his backside. A startled Dillon jumped away from his car along with girlfriend Whitney Ward. His fire suit was slightly singed but the 25-year-old wasn't injured. ''I don't know if it was a sign from God or what - but He got me going with a firework in the butt,'' Dillon joked. Dillon overcame the pre-race scare and wound up coasting to an easy victory, giving him a sweep of the Xfinity Series races this year at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Dillon led 61 laps and held off Erik Jones for his fourth victory this season in the second-tier series. Brad Keselowski was third, followed by Daniel Suarez and Regan Smith. Dillon said he saw a glimmer of light, but didn't think anything of it. Then he said he felt his buttocks burning. ''It hurt a little bit,'' Dillon said. In the post-game interview room, Dillon showed reporters where his suit was burnt his suit. Crew chief Danny Stockman Jr. was thankful the fireworks didn't do any harm to the car. ''It was like looking at a movie screen, seeing light crashing at you. It went in between the door and Austin's butt,'' Stockman said. Dillon started from the pole, but got off to a rough start and quickly gave away the lead. It appeared early on it was Kyle Busch's race to lose. Busch, looking for his ninth Xfinity Series win at Charlotte and 75th overall, led 102 laps before his night ended when he hit the wall after Kasey Kahne tapped him from behind with 50 laps remaining. Busch passed Mark Martin earlier in the night for the most career laps led at Charlotte in the Xfinity Series before a poor restart late in the race cost him the lead. Once he fell back in the pack, Busch began trading paint with his old rival Kahne. The two drivers got together several times before Kahne tapped Busch from behind, sending him into the wall. Kahne said Busch got mad because Busch got into it with teammate Jones on the restart, which cost him the lead. ''I don't know why he started beating on me,'' said Kahne, indicating that he did nothing to deserve Busch's attention. Kahne said he doesn't expect any emotions to carry over to the Sprint Cup on Saturday night, particularly with Busch competing for a Sprint Cup championship. ''I would hope not,'' Kahne said. ''I don't know why he would want to have that battle. He wrecked me five times a couple of years ago and put me in a bad position when he was doing that. I don't think he wants that battle.'' Kahne is not in the Chase. Chris Buescher finished seventh, expanding his series points lead to 26 over Chase Elliott, who was ninth. Buescher has previously said he's not a big fan of racing at Charlotte, but said ''we had a lot of speed in the car. We were able to move around a little bit. I had a good time, so I like Charlotte a little more.''
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A major military parade to commemorate the 70th anniversary of North Korea's ruling Workers' Party has kicked off in the capital, Pyongyang. The country's Korean Central TV showed thousands of marching soldiers in tight formations into Kim Il-Sung square on Saturday at the start of the parade, which is expected to also feature military vehicles and missiles installations. No world leaders were attending, but China sent a senior Communist Party official. The normally isolated and quiet North Korean capital has been flooded by tourists, international media and delegations ranging from ethnic Koreans living abroad to Russian and Mongolian groups dedicated to studying North Korea's political ideas. As the clock struck midnight on Friday, the third-generation North Korean leader Kim Jong-un marked the anniversary by paying respect to both his late father and grandfather at the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun in Pyongyang, according to the North's official Korean Central News Agency, or KCNA. Masses of Pyongyang citizens have for weeks been out in public plazas across the city practicing their roles for a torchlight parade in the evening. For the finale, a stage has been set up on a river running through central Pyongyang for a late-night concert featuring North Korea's most popular musical group, the all-female Moranbong Band. Tickets for foreigners hoping to attend the concert were going for about $114. The spectacle promises to be the most elaborate since Kim assumed power after the death of his father, Kim Jong-il, in late 2011, and the satellite imagery suggests the military parade could be the country's biggest ever. It's not known if Kim himself will speak at any of the day's events. Kim has yet to make a state visit abroad and although his visits to various farms and factories around the country are featured daily on North Korean news broadcasts, he rarely speaks at public events.
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A Michigan woman named Mary Hostein has been targeted by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) since 2013 after she attempted to bring a jar of apple butter through airport security. The agency has slapped her with a $2,000 fine, and has threatened litigation if she doesn't pay soon. Hostein didn't think that the near-solid spread counted as a liquid subject to the TSA's 3-ounce limit, so she tried to take her jar through two different TSA lines a decision the TSA claims indicates her intent to break the rules. For her part, Hostein is shocked that the agency has devoted so much time and levied so harsh a fine over apple butter. "I'm a nobody fighting a government agency that I feel is being relentless," she says . "Is this really what you [the TSA] pay your manpower to do? Is this really protecting our country?"
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Dylan McGorty explains why Rangers DH Prince Fielder's clumsy fall over the dugout fence is his Favorite Thing Tonight.
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Led by the bats of David Murphy and David Wright, the Mets pulled off a 3-1 win over Clayton Kershaw and the Dodgers on Friday. Mets ace Jacob deGrom recorded 13 strikeouts in his playoff debut.
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As we creep closer to the 2015 SEMA auto show, manufacturers are gradually revealing the radically modified cars they plan to display at the aftermarket show. Ford is no exception, and revealed three unique Ford Edge concepts, each with their own theme and style. 2016 Ford Edge "Ignition by Webasto" The "Ignition by Webasto" Edge ( pictured above ) promises "Mustang-like performance" from the crossover. Under the hood, Webasto installed a whole host of go-fast modifications, including a boost controller, throttle enhancer, ECU reflash, and an axle-back exhaust system. To handle all of this additional performance, the Ignition rides on an H&R Springs suspension. A big brake kit from Rotora, hidden behind AGL23 monoblock wheels wrapped in Toyo Proxes, keeps the speed in check. The Ignition Edge also features extensive use of carbon fiber throughout the car, including front chin spoiler, side rockers, rear diffuser, and engine cover. 2016 Ford Edge by Vaccar The Ford Edge by Vaccar "puts style first." An eye-catching orange-on-silver color scheme sets the pace for the concept, with many surfaces trimmed in the orange color. While the Vaccar may be focused on visuals, the Vaccar Edge still features performance modifications under the hood, including a Vaccar dual exhaust system, Vaccar intake, and Flowmaster stainless steel piping. Vaccar installed a prototype air suspension kit, alongside a new rear strut bar. Aggressive Rovos Pretoria orange blade wheels accentuate the design well, alongside Vaccar's brushed flat-silver paint. Orange two-tone accents line the exterior of the Edge as well, contrasting with the demure silver. On the inside, Vaccar added a prototype triple-gauge pod in the center of the dash, alongside what they call a "custom 'floating' air suspension display," and an Alea Leather upholstery kit. 2016 Ford Edge Tjin Edition Finally, the Tjin Edition Ford Edge, focuses on a special exterior blue color scheme and substantially lowered ride height. Upgrades on the Tjin Edition are primarily visual, with the only powertrain performance additions being a special front-mounted intercooler, Motiv downpipe, and a Magnaflow exhaust. The chassis of the Tjin Edition features a special Air Lift suspension, which allows the Edge to ride extremely low. Special ADV.1 wheels wrapped in extremely-low profile Falken tires brings the package together. The trio of Ford Edges can be seen at Ford's display at the 2015 SEMA auto show later this year in Las Vegas. Follow MSN Autos on Facebook
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CARY, N.C. (AP) -- Authorities have arrested former Carolina Hurricanes player and TV analyst Aaron Ward following a domestic incident. Capt. Don Hamilton with the Cary Police Department said police arrested Ward after responding to a house Friday. Hamilton says Ward was charged with assault on a female and interfering with emergency communications, both misdemeanors. Hamilton said authorities initially cited Ward's wife, Kelly, for misdemeanor simple assault on him, but they rescinded the citation Friday afternoon after further investigation, and she faces no charges. Police did not ask for medical assistance. Cary is near Raleigh, where Ward helped the Hurricanes win the 2006 Stanley Cup. In a statement, TSN communications director Greg McIsaac said the TV network was ''aware of the situation'' and Ward wouldn't appear on-air ''until further notice.''
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SN NBA Writer Sean Deveney talks about the Raptors upcoming season.
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Becca Lane talks about her experiences in sports as she poses in her shirt for Surfing Magazine.
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Floyd Mayweather has more cars than he can count, so chances are he won't even notice that four of them just went up in flames! According to TMZ Sports, four of Mayweather's luxury cars including two Roll-Royces, one Bentley, and one custom Jeep burned up in a bad trailer fire in Phoenix, Arizona early Wednesday morning.
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Take a closer look at Friday's best plays on the diamond, including Jose Bautista's sliding catch and Hanser Alberto's clutch RBI for the Rangers.
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Relive Friday's top stories, including the Cardinals shutout win over the Cubs, the Royals rally and the Blackhawks overtime triumph over the Islanders.
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WASHINGTON (AP) Speaker John Boehner wants out. He really does. But the Ohio House Republican is staying put, for now and that could improve the chances for a debt limit increase by early next month to avoid a market-shattering government default. His continued presence also might help lawmakers reach a bipartisan budget deal to head off a government shutdown in December. The tea party forces that pushed Boehner to plan his exit after nearly five years in the top job now have less leverage against a man with nothing to lose. Conservative hard-liners have caused further chaos by blocking the ascension of Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. What are they going to do now, threaten to force a vote to immediately oust Boehner? Nope. "Sometimes the dog catches the car and doesn't know what to do," Rep. Steve Stivers, R-Ohio, a Boehner ally, said of the House Freedom Caucus and other hard-right lawmakers. Boehner insists he wants to leave as scheduled at the end of October, but if Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., won't agree to replace him, it may take a while for a consensus to form around an alternative. "While we go through this process, we've got to continue to address the people's priorities. This institution cannot grind to a halt," Boehner told Republicans Friday morning in a closed-door session. "It is my hope and indeed it is my plan for this House to elect a new speaker before the end of October. But at the end of the day, that's really up to the people in this room." Excerpts of Boehner's remarks came from an official who was in the room. Not authorized to disclose them publicly, the official requested anonymity. Facing a fall of fiscal fights with the Obama administration, Boehner has said he doesn't want to leave a "dirty barn" for his successor. The toughest item, by far, is legislation that must pass by early November or so to increase the government's borrowing cap so it won't default on its bills. Last year, Boehner orchestrated a debt ceiling increase by relying on just 28 Republicans and 193 Democrats the exact opposite of the way the House is usually run. Then there are ongoing talks about easing spending curbs that have frozen the budgets of both the Pentagon and domestic agencies. "John is going to try to clean the barn up as best he can," said Rep. Charlie Dent, R-Pa. "He's not going to clean the whole thing, but we can probably dispose of the debt ceiling. I hope we can reach a budget agreement." Boehner's penchant for relying on Democrats to make up for tea party defections on legislation like a 2013 tax increase and last month's temporary government funding bill got him in trouble with the right. There's little they can do if he follows the same strategy on the debt limit and a budget deal. "It is ironic how smart John Boehner's looking," said Rep. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D. "Frankly, all this talk of a fresh new face sounds very sweet on the surface, but we're not electing a student council president. His stock rises with the prospects of an alternative and the steadiness of his hand, the clarity of his positions whether you like them or not and the fact he's not prone to panic. It's all looking really good right about now." Conservatives suffered a setback on Friday when emboldened GOP moderates orchestrated a rarely successful petition drive to force legislation reauthorizing the Export-Import Bank onto the floor agenda later this month. The roster of more than three dozen GOP signatories included many Boehner loyalists. The 13-term lawmaker not only supports reviving the bank, which helps overseas sales of U.S. goods, he called an additional minutes-long House session on Monday that, under the arcane rules governing such petition efforts, sped up the House vote on the measure to the end of October rather than into November. His office says that wasn't the motivation for the unexpected pro forma session. A Boehner aide noted that the speaker has said he won't change his way of approaching this fall's treacherous set of issues. For instance, Boehner marched ahead last month with legislation to temporarily fund the government and rejected tea party calls to "defund" Planned Parenthood at the risk of a government shutdown. Typically on tough votes it often looks like many GOP lawmakers cast "no" votes to insulate themselves against criticism from conservative talk radio and Washington-based outside groups while secretly rooting for the legislation to pass. The crowd that votes "no" but roots for bills to pass, however, appreciates it when Boehner turns to Democrats to extricate them from a tough spot. "That's what we're dealing with: Hope yes, vote no," said Dent. "Same thing will happen on the debt ceiling, same thing will happen on a budget agreement." Boehner's political maturity is a commodity that's sometimes in short supply in the House, making some Republicans wistful. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., said the speaker's election should be postponed until next year, with Boehner remaining as speaker in the meantime. "I hope he can stay if he's willing to forgo some of his golf games and time with his grandbaby," she said, adding that she thinks Boehner would agree to serve into next year.
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The idiot's guide to wine with Madeline Puckette of the blog and book Wine Folly (colorful graphics included). The idiot's guide to wine with Madeline Puckette of the blog and book Wine Folly (colorful graphics included). I can recall the single moment when I became fascinated with wine. Believe me, it wasn't classy. I was slouching in this $5 Goodwill velveteen swivel chair (that I'd rolled home on a skateboard) while clinching a glass of wine. A 22-year-old art school grad living in Los Angeles with a low-paying, creatively exhausting day job who was lucky enough to have been gifted a wine subscription from my dad. It was the highlight of my month: dinner with my best friend Justin and a bottle of wine. That particular night, I tasted my first-ever Côtes du Rhône and it smelled like black olives. This was the first time I can remember really tasting more than "wine" in a wine. The disarming flavor quickly turned into an obsession the only problem was: I had no idea what to explore next. How does one easily find their way into wine? As diverse as wine is, most wines can be categorized into 9 different styles. Once you taste an example from each of these 9 styles you'll have a good understanding of the range of all the wines in the world. Yes, there are many nuances and subtle differences, but if you're a beginner, the perspective is the first thing to gain before zooming in. Consider it a homework assignment. Taste a wine from the 9 different styles over the next month and a half and take notes. Sparkling Wine Background: If you already love sparkling wine, give yourself a pat on the back for your exquisite taste. Despite the lowly appeal of many grocery store options (e.g. Cook's), sparkling wines are the most technically challenging and time intensive wines made in the world. What to try: Champagne is often too price restrictive, so instead keep your eyes peeled for Brut-level sparklers (i.e. not sweet) like Cava, Prosecco, Crémant or perhaps a $12 to $16 American bubbly. Light-Bodied White Wine Background: These light, easy-drinking, dry white wines are some of the most-sold wines in the world (even if red wines get more attention). Light whites are like the "beer of wine" and because of it, they are perfect to drink with most foods. Some of these wines are perfect for savory lovers (Sauvignon Blanc and Grüner included) with green herbal flavors of gooseberry and bell pepper. What to try: Wines that fit into this category include Pinot Gris (aka Pinot Grigio) and Sauvignon Blanc, but they also include many lesser known like Grüner Veltliner, Albariño, and Soave ("swah-vay"). I would highly recommend looking for a wine from a cool climate region (imagine the places with a rainy month of June) because they produce some the best examples of this light, zesty style. Full-Bodied White Wine Background: Full-bodied white wines are perfect for red wine lovers because of their rich smooth taste with subtle creaminess. What makes them different than light white wines usually involves special winemaking techniques including the use of oak-aging (just like aged whiskeys, wine becomes smoother with barrel aging too). What to try: The classic choice for this wine is Chardonnay and particularly Chardonnay from a warmer climate (like California, Spain, or Italy). Beside Chardonnay, another great option in this style is Viognier. Aromatic (Sweet) White Wine Background: Aromatic grapes are some of the oldest wine varieties in the world. In fact, Cleopatra is noted for her love of Muscat of Alexandria from Greece, a lovely rich aromatic white wine. These wines have explosive, almost perfumed, aromas that spring out of the glass into your nose. They can be either dry or sweet, but most will taste a touch sweet due to all those aromas. What to try: There are many great aromatic wines to try, and most are shockingly affordable. A few examples of these include Moscato d'Asti, Gewürztraminer, Torrontés (great if you like a more dry style), and Riesling. Rosé Background: Rosé is a true winemaker's wine because it's made by "dying" a wine for only a short time with the skins of red wine grapes. Rosé wines were first popularized in the late 1700s when French wines imported in England were called "Claret" (sounds like "Clairette") to describe their pale red color. Today, you can find rosé wines of all styles (sweet or dry) made from many different grapes from Cabernet Sauvignon to Zinfandel (known commonly as White Zinfandel). What to try: Instead of the sweet version, try a more dry style rosé to taste its subtle elegant flavors. Some of the most classic versions of dry rosé come from Southern France in Provence and the Pays d'Oc region. The varieties used to make these wines include Grenache, Syrah, Carignan, and Mourvèdre, which are all red wine varieties! Since rosé is made everywhere, perhaps stick to one made with one or several of the aforementioned varieties to experience a classic rosé. Light-Bodied Red Wine Background: Light red wines are pale in color (you can see through them in a glass) and have very light tannin. Tannin tastes astringent in wine and dries your mouth out in the same way that putting a wet tea bag on your tongue would, so light red wines are some of the most coveted wines in the world. What to try: The classic light red wine that most people know is Pinot Noir, but besides that, Gamay Noir is another great wine to try in this category. Gamay is most known by the name of a region where it grows called Beaujolais. Medium-Bodied Red Wine Background: Medium red wines are what I like to call "food wines." They offer up tons of flavor with a balance of zesty acidity which makes them match with a wide variety of foods (from zesty salads to rich and cheesy lasagna). These are the perfect mid-week wines for red wine lovers. What to try: There are many varieties that span the mid-weight red wine category, so, to name a few familiar ones, check out Grenache, Sangiovese, Merlot, Zinfandel, Montepulciano, Cabernet Franc, and Barbera. Full-Bodied Red Wine Background: Full-bodied red wines are the deepest, darkest, and most tannic of all the red wines. Tannin might sound weird and bitter, but you see, the tannin in wine binds to proteins in our saliva and has a palate cleansing effect. This is why a bold red wine goes so wonderfully with a juicy, fatty steak like ribeye. Full-bodied red wines are also quite pleasing and stand on their own as a cocktail wine. What to try: You've no doubt experienced one of these wines if you're a wine lover; they include Syrah/Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, and even Pinotage. These are perfect examples of how bold a wine can be. Dessert Wine Background: In the mid to late 1800s, sweet wines were more popular than dry wines. In fact, several of the most exalted wines in the world, from Sauternes in Bordeaux to Essencia from Hungary, are practically as thick as maple syrup. Dessert wines today now range from dry to sweet and are some of the boldest, most intensely flavored (and aromatic) wines in the world. What to try: There are many different types of dessert wines to explore; however, if you can start with a Port or a Sauternais-styled wine (a late harvest white wine), you'll have a great preview of what dessert wines can give. The More You Know It's time to get tasting! I highly recommend finding wines through a local specialty wine store. They tend to be more curated and will take the time to help you find wines you'll like. As you get into it, you'll quickly hone in on your favorite style. Happy drinking and Salut! Madeline Puckette is a certified sommelier, graphic designer and the co-founder of winefolly.com , an entertaining and educational site that offers answers to wine questions. Puckette is also the author and designer of Wine Folly: The Essential Guide to Wine (Avery, 2015). Photos by James Ransom; infographics by Wine Folly.
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foodanddrink
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BEIJING (AFP) - Rafael Nadal stared down his nemesis Fabio Fognini on Saturday with a spirited 7-5, 6-3 victory to reach the China Open final and set up a shot at a redemptive title in Beijing. Nadal has lost three times to Fognini this year, including at last month's US Open, but he redressed the balance with a tight win and will now play Novak Djokovic or David Ferrer for the trophy. The 14-time Grand Slam winner has been far from his best this year but he was clearly buoyed by the victory as he ripped off his bandana and saluted the crowd in the Chinese capital. On a chilly, breezy day, both players started unconvincingly, suffering two breaks of serve each in the opening games with Nadal also sending down three double-faults. They steadied to take it to 6-5 for Nadal but Fognini wobbled as he served to stay in the set, wilting in the rallies as he finally gave up the decisive break and smashed the ball into the stands in anger. The second set was attritional until Nadal leapt ahead with a break for 4-2, and the suddenly invigorated Spaniard won the next game to love to stand on the brink of victory. Fognini saved two match points before holding serve in a gripping eighth game, but by now the Nadal juggernaut was fully in motion and he ploughed across the line in the next game. In Sunday's final, Nadal will be seeking his fourth trophy of a season in which he has failed to win a Grand Slam title for the first time since 2004 and has seen his ranking drop to eighth.
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sports
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Rafael Nadal stared down his nemesis Fabio Fognini on Saturday with a spirited 7-5, 6-3 victory to reach the China Open final and set up a shot at a redemptive title in Beijing. Nadal has lost three times to Fognini this year, including at last month's US Open, but he redressed the balance with a tight win and will now play Novak Djokovic or David Ferrer for the trophy. The 14-time Grand Slam winner has been far from his best this year but he was clearly buoyed by the victory as he ripped off his bandana and saluted the crowd in the Chinese capital. In Sunday's final, Nadal will be seeking his fourth trophy of a season in which he has failed to win a Grand Slam title for the first time since 2004 and has seen his ranking drop to eighth.
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sports
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Surfer Filipe Toledo doesn't nail every run on his first shot, he has to practice until he's perfect. And with practice comes failure. High flying failure that end in awesome wipeouts.
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sports
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ICYMI: Celeb news for Oct. 4-9 The past week in celebrity news saw one celebrity sentenced to jail and another land in the hospital, but there was happy news for Tom Cruise's daughter. She's married! Isabella Cruise tied the knot in London last month, but the secret nuptials were just made public. Tom footed the bill, but there are differing reports as to whether he was actually there. Nicole Kidman was definitely not. "The wedding was a Scientology ceremony," a source said. "Nicole wasn't there -- she didn't even know about it at all." Sentenced " Jackass " star Steve-O is headed to jail . The prankster was sentenced to 30 days behind bars for his one-man SeaWorld protest atop a crane in Hollywood, California, in August. Steve-O said he actually requested jail time to bring more attention to Orca whales in captivity. Health Issue When Kim Zolciak-Biermann had her mini stroke, doctors discovered that she also had a pre-existing health issue : She has a hole in her heart that never closed. Kim called the stroke a "blessing in disguise." Leaked Pics Now we've officially seen it all from Justin Bieber... No, really, we have! Earlier this week, naked images of the Biebs were leaked online. The images are an absolute invasion of privacy, considering they were shot by paparazzi with a long lens while the pop star was on vacation. After the Internet weighed in and congratulated the singer for his, well, assets, he wasn't so angry about the violation. Harassed Lance Bass revealed that he was sexually harassed during his *NSYNC days by someone who worked with the group. "This guy was a pedophile and he was touching me oddly, but I didn't feel victimized at the time because I was very aware of it," Lance said. He did not reveal the name of the individual who allegedly molested him. Lyme Disease Reveal Yolanda Foster isn't alone in her battle with Lyme Disease. Model daughter Bella Hadid and son Anwar have also been affected. During a speech while accepting the Power of One award at the Global Lyme Alliance Gala in New York City, Yolanda revealed the news . "This award is for Anwar and Bella. This is my token and my promise to you that I will not allow you to live a life of pain and suffering," she said. "I will walk to the end of the earth to find a cure so that you can live a healthy life that you deserve. No child should suffer the way that you do." GHB DUI It's official: The D.A. will charge John Stamos with DUI. The actor reportedly had the drug GHB in his system when he was arrested last June for driving under the influence. John was apparently using GHB (known by many as the date-rape drug) as a fitness supplement. Stork Report Congrats are in order for Brooklyn Decker and Andy Roddick! The couple welcomed their first child , a son, whose name they've yet to reveal. The tennis star said that he and his wife are going back and forth on what to call their child. DUI Arrest Malika Haqq, of " Dash Dolls " and " Keeping Up With The Kardashians " fame, was arrested for DUI after she crashed her car in Los Angeles. Khloe Kardashian's BFF failed a field sobriety test. Baby News! Carey Mulligan and Marcus Mumford have apparently welcomed a child . Little is known about the birth, which is par for the course for the fiercely private couple. Nasty Fall Jenelle Evans was rushed to the hospital with a nasty head and knee injury. The reality star fell in her driveway and had to get stitches. Get well soon!
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entertainment
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Actresses Salma Hayek and Gwyneth Paltrow talk about their hopes for equal pay for women at Variety magazine's Women in Power event. Rough Cut (no reporter narration)
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And they look freaking great! 1.Alie - Sexy Jellyfish Sexy Jellyfish Costume , YANDY, $130 "I found the idea of this costume so wonderfully hilarious that I wasn't even that nervous about having my boobs out for the first time in 30 Halloweens. It was basically just a surprisingly supportive bathing suit with googly eyes." 2. Mylan - Sexy Olaf Sexy Olaf Costume ,YANDY, $37 "I felt like I was wearing hardly anything, but I was confident. Well, as much as anyone who is perpetually awkward can be." 3.Sexy Darth Vader Sexy Darth Vader Costume, YANDY, $57 "Wearing that Darth Vader costume made me feel kind of like a badass. I felt good, which I didn't think would be the case since it looked ridiculous on the site." Sexy Darth Vader Sexy Darth Vader Costume, YANDY, $57 "Wearing that Darth Vader costume made me feel kind of like a badass. I felt good, which I didn't think would be the case since it looked ridiculous on the site." 3. Danielle - Sexy Shark Sexy Shark Costume, YANDY, $120 "I have never worn a sexy costume before because the women in the ads seem to take themselves too seriously and I like to have fun, but anything can be fun if you want it to be." Sexy Taco Sexy Taco Costume , HALLOWEENCOSTUMES.COM, $45 "That costume was so silly that I didn't feel any pressure to look sexy, so, if I did look sexy, it was purely by accident." 4. Stephanie - Sexy Goldfish Sexy Goldfish Costume, HALLOWEENCOSTUMES.COM, $39 "The huge hood made it hard to see." Sexy Patrick Star Sexy Patrick Star Costume, YANDY, $95 "It was warm. I liked that." 5. Amanda - Sexy Pizza Sexy Pizza Costume YANDY, $70 "Talk about a hot slice! I'm just a sexy piece of pizza, looking for my New York subway rat." Sexy French Fries Sexy French Fries Costume , YANDY, $48 "At least I could wear my bra underneath this one!" 6. Elisa - Sexy Piñata Sexy Piñata Costume , HALLOWEENCOSTUMES.COM, $39 My Halloween costumes are always handmade and un-sexy, so I was nervous that this experiment would require me to put on spandex and pose with sexy-face - two things that fill me with dread. But I loved being a sexy piñata. You can tell I'm having fun wearing it, and I think that's what makes it sexy, even if it's not sexy sexy." 7. Elizabeth - Sexy Popcorn Sexy Popcorn Costume , YANDY, $45 "I literally couldn't stop making terrible puns about how I felt so hot I could pop. And what's sexier than a lame sense of humor?!" 8. Carly - Sexy Lobster Sexy Lobster Costume, HALLOWEENCOSTUMES.COM, $65 "Believe it or not, this was my first time dressing as a lobster." 9. Emily - Sexy Yoda Sexy Yoda Costume , YANDY, $170 "Chance of me wearing this out? Zero percent. Chance of me wearing this robe on my couch? One hundred percent." 10. Eliza - Sexy Donald Trump Sexy Donald Trump Costume , YANDY, $170 "If the shorts zipped up far enough to cover my butt crack, I might actually wear this on Halloween just so I could run around calling all my enemies losers." Sexy Minion Sexy Minion Costume , YANDY, $60 "Never in a million years would I wear this. I fell down while putting this on and taking it off, and while trying to pose in it. The hat was cozy though. " Sexy Sriracha Sauce Bottle Sexy Sriracha Costume , YANDY, $30 "I felt like a sausage. A hot sausage who makes eggs taste really good, but still a sausage. I did text a photo of myself in this to my boyfriend, who told me I looked hot. Not sure if he meant hot like sexy or hot like a bad pun about hot sauce, but I'll take it either way." Get non-boring fashion and beauty news directly in your feed. Follow Facebook.com/CosmoBeauty . Follow Charles on Twitter and Instagram .
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lifestyle
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"If I hit you, does he feel it?"
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The White House was lit up pink Friday evening to highlight Breast Cancer Awareness Month in the U.S. This time-lapse video shows the illuminated building standing in stark contrast to the thick rain clouds rolling overhead as a storm approached. (Oct. 9)
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US and Russian military officials held preliminary talks last week to avoid accidents between the two countries' air force jets, and follow-up discussions are now likely to take place this weekend. Initial proposals, outlined during a secure video conference, included maintaining a safe distance between US and Russian aircraft and using common radio frequencies for distress calls. The Kremlin had initially failed to respond to the suggestions, leading Washington to rule out further discussions. But the Pentagon now says Russia has answered points raised during the initial talks. "The Department of Defense (DOD) has received a formal response from the Russian Ministry of Defense regarding DOD's proposal to ensure safe air operations over Syria," Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook told reporters, before confirming the new round of talks. The issue of pilot safety in Syrian airspace has come to the fore after Russia stepped up its military involvement in the Syrian conflict, independently of the US-led coalition fighting the self-declared "Islamic State" (IS) militant group. The US opposes Moscow's support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the civil war against Syrian rebel groups and has ruled out joint military operations to fight IS militants. On September 30, Russian jets began air strikes on targets in Syria, which Washington said targeted mostly Syrian rebel strongholds and not positions held by the jihadist group. The West also denounced Russia for repeatedly violating Turkish airspace and launching cruise missiles from the Caspian Sea. US Defense Secretary Ash Carter has said Russian aircraft came within miles of a US drone and criticized Moscow for launching cruise missile strikes without warning. Officials say the US military has had to reroute some flights to avoid any close calls.
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My friend John turns white four days before any flight and green two days later. But an MIT scientist once explained to me that I'd have to fly every day for 10,000 years to be in with a real chance of crashing, so it's not the flying that fuels my fear so much as the thought of going down … before the flight. I'm afraid of the bombs gliding along floors of airports around the world, just waiting to trip up some 3 billion passengers a year. Air and railway terminals are full of them, and yet nobody runs screaming. The objectionable horror? The rolling carry-on bag. I'm declaring a shoulder-strap revolution and demanding that millions of time bombs get rolled out from underfoot. Yes, I know. They're cute, colorful sometimes polka-dotted and ever so handy. A few of the kiddie varieties even light up. And they carry everything , from clothing, laptops and books to my cousin's dumbbells and divers' weight belts. They've replaced the modest purse, backpack and briefcase, enabling us to schlep heavy loads at breakneck speeds inside their 14-by-22-by-9-inch frames. Which would be fine if these vehicles hung harmlessly from hands, shoulders or even teeth. But, instead, their 2-foot handles put their wheels far away from their owners and in closer contact with countless others, who have no control over how, when or where they swing. This, says Virginia lawyer Doug Landau, who specializes in transport injury, "makes them dangerous because they're moving wrecking balls." Rugby players know they must aim low to take out opponents, and OZY's own martial arts expert, Eugene Robinson, agrees, noting that "anything from the knees on down … [means] someone's going to be hitting the floor." Travelers are starting to speak up about the danger, with a third of British passengers admitting that they've been hurt inside airport terminals half of them by luggage, some of them by tripping over bags. Airports, after all, are confusing places, where everyone's wandering around with their chins cast skyward, staring at acres of digital signs overhead. And they're prone to change direction at a moment's notice, with their bags flying around like loose trailers on a lawless interstate. Requests for injury figures from the big airports Heathrow, Dulles, Atlanta, the NYC hubs and even London's King's Cross railway station didn't get me far. But Landau agrees that I may be on to something. Though h e hasn't had any cases related to in-terminal tripping over other people's suitcases, it "probably happens much more frequently than is reported," he says, noting that airport incidents go undocumented a lot. Folks don't stop to fill out reports "because they're trying to catch a plane, a connection or a ride home," Landau says. Or because they're embarrassed. And to bolster my case, he offers, "I've seen them cause near-falls several times recently." New York City injury lawyer Abram Bohrer agrees that rollerbags are hazardous, but not for trip-and-fall reasons. "I think that the bigger health hazard … is bags falling from overhead," he says, referring to the "dozens and dozens of calls a month" his firm receives on the subject. Landau admits this makes up the bulk of his cases too, along with airline staff injuries linked to helping passengers hoist their luggage. Thirty years ago, he says, it was tray and drink carts causing the most injuries; today it's the ubiquitous rolling bag. Flight attendants have been concerned by such injuries for years, and while sizes were reined in slightly by some airlines last year, they'll do little to stop grandma from filling her carry-on with photo albums and then asking for a bit of help lifting the bag. Worldwide, there were an estimated 3.2 billion air passengers in 2014, up from 2 billion just six years earlier. Multiply all those dive belts and photo albums by the skyrocketing passenger rates, and we have ourselves an epidemic. As volume increases and we "pack more people into the same space, invariably more injuries occur," Bohrer says. So it's time to start packing the old-fashioned way: lighter. Carry-ons should include pill boxes, diapers and crosswords not 30 pounds of dumbbells, several changes of clothes or buoyancy aids. Dust off your backpacks, duffels, satchels and giant handbags , because I'm declaring a shoulder-strap revolution and demanding that millions of time bombs get rolled out from underfoot. Today. And I don't want to hear about your aching back. Tell us: Are rollerbags a scourge?
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travel
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Budgets are some of the best financial tools around when planned properly and followed faithfully.
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finance
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ST. LOUIS Mike Matheny sat behind his desk, nearly an hour after the St. Louis Cardinals' 4-0, victory over the Chicago Cubs, too exhilarated, or maybe it was too relieved, to take off his uniform, let alone move from his chair. He was the guy who walked out to the mound in the eighth inning of a one-run game, and pulled Lackey out of the game, with the crowd of 47,830 at Busch Stadium, showing their disgust.In a game dominated Cardinals ace John Lackey, it was Matheny, the Cardinals manager, who made one of the gutsiest decisons of his managerial career. Lackey glared at him, glared again, and then walked off the mound, having thrown just 86 pitches. RELATED: Lackey dominates, Cardinals beat Cubs 4-0 in NLDS opener Matheny was setting himself up for the greatest second-guessing decision since Washington Nationals manager Matt Williams pulled Jordan Zimmermann in last year's Division Series, and Nats fans can tell you how that turned out. "I knew it wasn't going to be popular, and it wasn't," Matheny said in the privacy of his office. "You just do what you feel is right, regardless of the outcome." It turned out to be a stroke of genius, with left-hander Kevin Siegrist striking out Chris Coghlan and Addison Russell, turning the game over to All-Star closer Trevor Rosenthal in the ninth, preventing Lackey from perhaps burning down his office, with Cardinals fan bringing the gasoline. And Matheny exhaled. "Man, was he good," Matheny said. "He was incredible. You know, you put a guy in a situation like this, and we talk about him being a big-game pitcher, how he thrives in these situations, and then he just takes it there and goes a step further. "It was exactly what we needed. "I don't know if you could ask him to do any more than what he did." Lackey, who took a no-hitter into the sixth inning, gave up just two hits in 7⅓ innings, striking out five batters. The Cubs had no prayer. They managed to hit the ball out of the infield just three times during Lackey's stint. "I saw him as a young man in 2002," said Cubs manager Joe Maddon, who was on the Anaheim Angels' coaching staff when Lackey helped lead them to their first World Series title, "and he was always kind of fearless. "He comes from Texas. He kind of does the John Wayne strut out there. He's that guy." Lackey may be 36 years old, but he's still ornery than ever, and as he showed all night, is just as nasty as he's ever been on the mound. He was throwing 95-mph fastballs, 92-mph sinkers, four-seamers, sliders and curveballs. The man was so good he looked like Jake Arrieta, who the Cardinals don't have to face until Game 3 at Wrigley Field. "I call him OG," said Cardinals rookie outfielder Tommy Pham. "He's fearless. He's an original gangster, sort of, you know?" Certainly, Lackey set the stage for the Cardinals. This may have been just the first game of the NL Division Series, in the first postseason game between these two storied franchises, but to the Cardinals, this meant so much more than just a 1-0 Series lead. This was a game they felt they had to win, not only giving them confidence, but stopping the Cubs' steam-rolling momentum, having not lost a game for 13 days. "It gives everyone in here confidence," Siegrist said. "Takes pressure off. Going to be a big series." Lackey carried that pressure all game, knowing that one pitch could cost them the game, particularly with the way Jon Lester was pitching. He had retired 21 of 23 batters until the Cardinals broke open the game in the eighth, when rookies Stephen Piscotty and Pham hit home runs. It was such a classic pitcher's duel that it reminded Cardinals veteran pitcher Adam Wainwright of Game 5 of the 2011 NL Division Series, when Chris Carpenter outdueled Roy Halladay. Every Cardinals fan and Philadelphia Phillies fan can tell you what happened next. The Cardinals went onto win the World Series, and have been back to the NLCS every year since that day. The Phillies never again returned to the postseason, and lost 99 games this past season, the most in the major leagues. "I thought about that game a lot," Wainwright said, "from about the fourth inning on." Lackey and Lester suffocated both offenses with their arsenal, and once Matt Holliday drove in the game's first run in the opening inning, Lester was just as lethal as Lackey. He gave up only two hits until Pham's pinch-hit homer, the first by a Cardinals player in the postseason since the late Oscar Tavares in last year's NLCS against the San Francisco Giants. "It's kind of hard to talk about because for me," said Pham, a career minor-leaguer, "it's something I dreamed about as a little kid. And now, you know, it's happening. It's truly a blessing, kind of surreal, you know." For Lackey, this is nothing new. He has already won two World Series games. He has started 19 postseason games, the most by any active pitcher, going 8-5, with a 2.90 ERA. It's October. It's his time of year. "Playoffs, man, this is what you play for," Lackey said. "I've been playing awhile, and this is pretty much the only reason I'm still going. "I'm trying to win rings, and trying to be part of something special as a team." But to win, Lackey knew he had to out-pitch his good friend, Lester, his former teammate from the 2013 World Series championship Boston Red Sox. It was only the third time in history that two World Series teammates faced one another in a postseason game. The only major difference between the two guys is their bank accounts. Lackey earned just $507,500 this year because of a unique clause that gave the Cardinals the right to exercise an option for the minimum salary after he missed the 2012 season with elbow surgery. Lester is in the first year of a six-year, $155 million contract, the richest in Cubs' history. Instead, it was Lackey who made history this night, becoming only the fourth pitcher in history to throw at least seven shutout innings against the Cubs in a postseason game. He joins Ed Walsh, Babe Ruth and Josh Beckett. "I knew I was going to have to pitch well because Lester threw the ball outstanding," Lackey said. "He was really tough on our guys. I knew it was going to be a challenge." Now, these young Cubs have to regroup. They managed just three hits, and struck out five times in the last two innings. Why, take away right fielder Kyle Schwarber's two hits, and the Cubs batted 1-for-25 (.040) with 10 strikeouts and one walk. They were angry with home-plate umpire Phil Cuzzi's wide strike zone, with four of their six called-third strikes actually outside of the strike zone, according to Inside Edge. Yet, the Cubs refused to use it as an excuse. "I voiced my opinion a couple times," Maddon said, "but it was the same strike zone for both sides, and I really can't complain about that. "That's just something I really want to stay out of…but you can report on that as you choose." Would a tighter strike zone have made a difference? "That's a tough question," Coghlan said. "I'm just going to get into trouble if I say anything." The way Lackey was pitching, really, it didn't matter. They could have shrunk the strike zone by six inches, and he still would have been painting the corners and blowing away the hitters. "I know everyone was impressed," Cardinals first baseman/outfielder Randal Grichuk said, "but really, we expect this out of him every night. He's that good." The Cubs found that out the hard way. Follow Nightengale on Twitter: @Bnightengale
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ATLANTA Donald Trump is a brash New Yorker who knows the path to the Republican presidential nomination runs through a swath of Southern states where residents pride themselves on graciousness and gentility. He leads many state polls in the region just as he does nationally. In the last few weeks he's hired staff members in Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia to go along with staff in South Carolina, which hosts the South's first primary. "It's almost like we're running a campaign for president of the United States," quipped Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski when asked about the expansion. Lewandowski said the hires and Trump's schedule he'll be in metro Atlanta on Saturday are proof that Trump is in the race for good. Trump and his aides are pushing back on suggestions fueled by his own comments that he is plotting an exit in case his poll numbers continue to slide, as they have recently. Lewandowski declined to talk about advertising plans and side-stepped questions on whether any firms have been hired to help with ballot access work. But he and political players in the South say Trump shouldn't be taken lightly in the region, even if it may not seem like a natural fit. "Look, the idea that only Southerners appeal to Southerners and Northerners appeal to Northerners is overdone," said David Mowery, an Alabama-based consultant who has worked for both Republicans and Democrats in multiple states. "He may not sound like us, but he's saying the things that people in the Republican base and even disaffected, frustrated voters outside that base want to hear." South Carolina is accustomed to its place immediately after Iowa and New Hampshire. But the rest of the South is enjoying a newfound prominence in the nominating process, driven by Georgia and others moving up for a March 1 Super Tuesday dubbed the "the SEC primary" after the college athletics league. Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Virginia will have 471 delegates at stake that day. Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina and Florida follow in the next two weeks with a combined 301 delegates. With the earlier votes, the candidates have followed. Trump is expected to draw thousands to a campaign rally Saturday in Norcross, Georgia. In August, he set the high mark for Republicans this campaign when he drew about 30,000 to a rally in Mobile, Alabama. Among the Southern states voting in March, only Florida is winner-take-all, with the rest using varying proportional distributions of delegates. That means the region won't put any single candidate on the cusp of the necessary 1,236 delegates necessary for nomination. But it will winnow the field. If anything, Trump's anti-establishment rants may resonate more strongly in the region that has long been the nation's most conservative and most distrustful of the central government. "He comes in and plays smash-mouth football, and it fires people up," says Henry Barbour, a Mississippian and influential member of the Republican National Committee. Barbour said Trump would be well-served to add more policy specifics to his personality and style-driven pitch, but he said it's obvious Trump's initial approach has worked, animating a wing of Southern Republicans who look at the establishment and say "not only no, but hell no." Barbour, who is neutral in the primary, initially backed Rick Perry, a former Texas governor who was at ease with Southerners but dropped out. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, an ordained Southern Baptist preacher who also fits the Southern politician prototype, previously called the SEC primary "manna from heaven" and won several primaries in the region in 2008. But he's found a tougher path this year. So, too, have Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham. For his part, Huckabee, without directly addressing Trump, has boasted of his grassroots organization in South Carolina and neighboring states as more important than Trump's standing months from voting. And, indeed, candidates like Huckabee, Jindal and Graham appear to devote much more energy than Trump to the meet-and-greet affairs that occur away from the big rallies. If any candidate has managed to produce both large crowds like Trump and build a nuts-and-bolts organization in the region, it's Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, another conservative who appeals to the region's anti-Washington bent. Barbour said Trump should try for the same balance if he hopes to sustain momentum. But Roger Villere, Louisiana's longtime Republican Party chairman and vice chairman of the national GOP, said it may not matter in 2016. With so many states bunched close together, he said, it may be a campaign won largely on television and sweeping visits just the race for a bombastic billionaire. "Sure, you need some help on the ground," Villere said, "but I'm sure Mr. Trump or any of the rest of them who are doing well coming out of South Carolina will find everything they need." ___ Associated Press writer Jill Colvin in Newark, New Jersey, contributed to this report. ___ Follow Barrow on Twitter at https://twitter.com/BillBarrowAP
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CONCORD, N.C. Imagine how different Round 2 of the Chase for the Sprint Cup would be if Talladega Superspeedway was the opening race. The fear factor of Talladega would diminish greatly, since getting caught in the Big One would be a recoverable setback with two more races yet to come. It wouldn't be the sudden, unlucky circumstance the actual Talladega race in two weeks threatens to be. But Saturday night's Bank of America 500 is at Charlotte Motor Speedway not Talladega which leaves Charlotte and next week's race at Kansas Speedway in a unique situation. Win at Charlotte or Kansas to earn a free pass into Round 3 or risk running your fate through Talladega's frighteningly unpredictable spin cycle. "We have three-race series; this one's a two-race series, really," Carl Edwards said. "If you have a shot and you can see the win at one of these next two races, you're going to see some really tough racing for that win because nobody wants to go to Talladega with uncertainty." For at least 10 drivers, though, that will be reality. So who needs to a win the most on Saturday night, knowing Talladega looms on the horizon? The answer clearly isn't Dale Earnhardt Jr. or Brad Keselowski who have proven they can go out and win at Talladega at will or Kevin Harvick, who can simply shrug and go win at Kansas if Charlotte doesn't work out. But some drivers might feel a bit uncomfortable if they leave Charlotte without a win. Here's a look at three contenders who could really use a victory Saturday night: 1. Jeff Gordon Plenty of people thought Gordon would already be eliminated by now, since his team isn't running well enough in his final year to compete for what would be his fifth championship. But under the survive-and-advance style Chase format, Gordon actually has a decent shot at the title if he can just make it past this round. Why? Because Martinsville Speedway where Gordon has won eight times is the first race of Round 3. And a win there would catapult him straight into the championship race at Homestead-Miami Speedway. So if Gordon can somehow sneak out of Charlotte with a win, it could set him up nicely for the rest of the Chase. 2. Denny Hamlin Remember what we said about Gordon? That's what Hamlin essentially did last year, and it nearly resulted in his first career championship. From the moment the Chase format was unveiled in January 2014, Hamlin eyed the schedule and concluded the first two rounds would give him the most trouble. Make it to Round 3, which contains some of his better tracks, and he would have a chance to win the title. Hamlin points-raced his way into the finale last year thanks to top-10 finishes at Martinsville, Texas Motor Speedway and Phoenix International Raceway and could do so again. But winning at Charlotte sure would be a good first step. 3. Kyle Busch Industry insider Mike Siberini conducted his monthly "Century Poll" of 100 people in the garage and media this week that named Busch as one of the four favorites to make the championship race, along with Harvick, Joey Logano and Matt Kenseth. So why is Busch on this list? Because he has a history of bad luck in the Chase. In the second round of last year's Chase, Busch started off with a pair of top-five finishes and was second in the point standings entering Talladega. Then, while racing in the back to avoid any trouble, Busch was crushed from behind by Austin Dillon. The resulting 40th-place finish knocked him out of the playoff. Busch counts Charlotte as his favorite track but has never won a Cup race there, so his first victory would come with great timing along with peace of mind for two more weeks.
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Brett Simpson rides the waves at home in Southern California.
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TORONTO The Texas Rangers hand out their own player of the game award in the clubhouse, a replica world heavyweight title belt, that sat prominently and unexpectedly in the locker of Hanser Alberto six hours after the first pitch of Game 2 of their American League Division Series. The 22-year-old reserve infielder entered the series with two at bats since the end of August, only saw the field because of an injury to third baseman Adrian Beltre in Game 1, made an error that cost his club two unearned runs in the second inning and became hero with a borrowed bat he didn't ask to use. That error, however, was just one-seventh of the way into a playoff classic in which Alberto lined a game-winning single into right-center off Jays reliever LaTroy Hawkins as Texas won 6-4 in 14 innings to take a 2-0 series lead. RELATED: Rangers beat Blue Jays in 14th, lead ALDS 2-0 "You know, I've been 0-4, a couple strikeouts, but in the postseason everybody's really important," said Alberto, who had a sacrifice fly as well. "I just looking for fastball every time, so finally I get it, put a good swing and thank (Rougned) Odor because he's hustling, that's the whole matter." Odor scored that run his second of the game and fifth of the series moments after a long replay reviewing whether he had been tagged out at second after advancing on Chris Gimenez's single. The New York replay official confirmed the safe call, much to the booing chagrin of Jays fans. "I was safe," Odor said. "I know I never got off the base." Odor had homered and reached base three times in Game 1 to earn the title belt, which he presented to Alberto in the celebratory postgame clubhouse. The game-winning hit merited the award, but partly because it's impossible to split it five ways, to the relievers who threw seven shutout innings against the most potent offense in baseball. "It's not surprising that somebody at the end of that bench or end of that lineup contributes to what we've got going on because that's how we play the game," Texas manager Jeff Banister said. "It defines the way our season's went," first baseman Mitch Moreland said, before later adding with a chuckle, "(Shin-Soo) Choo told me I couldn't celebrate because I only played seven innings." Mike Napoli pinch hit for Moreland in the eighth and promptly delivered a game-tying RBI single off Toronto's top left-handed reliever, Brett Cecil and then Napoli subsequently played seven innings in the field in the 4-hour, 57-minute marathon that ranked in the top-10 longest postseason games of all-time and required 14 pitchers to record 84 outs. Texas lefty Jake Diekman and righty Shawn Tolleson each threw two innings in relief of starter Cole Hamels, with Diekman retiring all six batters he faced for the second straight game thanks to his 100-mph gas. "I didn't throw too many pitches (in Game 1), and I feel like, in this atmosphere, you can just feed off the crowd," Diekman said of the second straight nearly 50,000-fan sellout. "Every game is the most important game of the year. That just jacks you up a little bit." While the Blue Jays made their first playoff appearance in 22 years with a runaway division title, the Rangers only clinched the AL West on the season's final day and had a losing record as recently as Aug. 13. The benefit and peril depending on the vantage point of the division series is its brevity. These were the two hottest clubs in the AL over the last two months, and now the Jays are heading to Texas while having to win three straight games. Only twice in 29 tries has as team lost the first two games of the division series and then won three straight to take the series. "It won't be easy, they got a great team over there," Toronto manager John Gibbons said. "They outplayed us both games." The Rangers even outplayed the Jays without major contributions from their top four hitters. During the season, Beltre, Moreland, Choo and Prince Fielder had the four highest OPS's, yet those players are a combined 3-for-20. Then again, it's been a balanced lineup all season. No player scored 100 runs, drove in 100 or had more than 23 home runs; only Fielder had more than 163 hits or batted better than .287. The real spark plugs this series have been Odor and Delino DeShields, the rookie leadoff hitter who went 3-for-7 while scoring twice in Game 2 and is now 5-for-11 in the ALDS. "I'm not really thinking about how we score, how much I'm producing," DeShields said. "Just going up there trying to have quality at-bats and make an impact as much as I can. When I get on base, good things happen." DeShields has been such a catalyst, in fact, that it was his bat Alberto used for the very first time to smack the game-winning hit. "I don't know," Alberto said, "just good swing."
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Dave Meyers, the captain of the 1975 UCLA team and No. 2 overall pick in the 1975 NBA Draft, died from cancer Friday. He was 62. Meyers, a 6-8 power forward, played on the 1973 UCLA squad that won the NCAA Tournament as a sophomore, but he gained more acclaim his senior year when he became a starter. He led the Bruins to a 92-85 win over Kentucky in the 1975 tournament final, where he had 24 points and 11 rebounds. Condolences to the family of @uclambb legend Dave Meyers, who passed away today after battling cancer. #RIP pic.twitter.com/i8eq7mPjZw UCLA Athletics (@UCLAAthletics) October 10, 2015 MORE: Notable sports deaths of 2015 He was picked second overall in the 1975 NBA Draft by the Lakers, but was quickly traded to the Bucks with Junior Bridgeman, Elmore Smith and Brian Winters in exchange for Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Walt Wesley. Meyers was with the Bucks for five seasons (1975-80); he was sidelined for one of them with a back injury. He averaged 11.2 points and 6.3 rebounds in 281 games. He made the surprising decision in 1980 to retire from basketball to focus on his family and his faith as a Jehovah's Witness. Meyers is the older brother of former Pacers player Ann Meyers, who is the only woman to sign with an NBA team.
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ST. LOUIS (AP) -- John Lackey lived up to his reputation as a pitcher who craves the ball in October, helping the St. Louis Cardinals cool off the upstart Chicago Cubs. Lackey outpitched old teammate Jon Lester, allowing two hits into the eighth inning, and rookies Tommy Pham and Stephen Piscotty each homered late for the Cardinals in a 4-0 victory Friday night in the opener of their NL Division Series. "Tonight was special, for sure," Lackey said. "The atmosphere was outstanding, the crowd was really into it, and I knew I'd have to pitch well." BOX SCORE: CARDINALS 4, CUBS 0 He did it in front of a standing room only crowd of 47,830 -- the second-largest at 10-year-old Busch Stadium -- with thousands of Cubs faithful mixed into the red throng for the first postseason game between the two long-time rivals. "Incredible. I thought his fastball was about as good as we've seen. Period," manager Mike Matheny said. "Anything you wanted to do, he pretty much had it." Yadier Molina did his part behind the plate, too, wearing a splint to protect a strained left thumb ligament that sidelined him since Sept. 20. He was 0 for 3 but seemingly had no issues. "You can tell he's been anxious to get in there," Matheny said. "The way he moved behind the plate, the way he and John were working, he is so valuable to our club in so many ways." Lackey protected a 1-0 lead by holding the Cubs hitless for five innings, getting help from Kris Bryant' double-play ball by to end the fourth. Addison Russell ended the suspense with a solid single up the middle to open the sixth and Kyle Schwarber's bunt hit leading off the seventh was the only other hit allowed by Lackey in 7 1-3 innings. Kevin Siegrist struck out two to end the eighth, when it was still a one-run game. Trevor Rosenthal gave up a single and a walk but fanned three in finishing the three-hitter. Game 2 of the best-of-five series is Saturday. The Cardinals turn to lefty Jaime Garcia (10-6), who made 20 starts coming off risky thoracic surgery. Kyle Hendricks (8-7) makes his postseason debut for the NL wild-card winners. Matt Holliday had an RBI single in the first, giving St. Louis a lead after just three at-bats. Pinch-hitting, Pham homered off Lester with one out in the eighth to snap a string of 13 straight outs for the lefty. Piscotty had a two-run shot off Pedro Strop in the eighth. The 36-year-old Lackey outdid Lester, with whom he formed a potent 1-2 punch on the 2013 Red Sox, the team that knocked off the Cardinals in the World Series. "Lester did his thing as well," Lackey said. "A really fun game, and fun to be a part of." Lackey is 3-0 with an 0.93 ERA in four starts against Chicago overall. Lester is 1-4, but he has a 2.79 ERA against St. Louis. Including their wild-card victory at Pittsburgh, the Cubs had won nine in a row. They haven't scored since the fifth inning of that 4-0 victory, however. Manager Joe Maddon interrupted the game briefly in the sixth, but said he'd just asked plate umpire Phil Cuzzi to have the ball replaced because it had been in the dirt. "We could not get anything generated," Maddon said. "They've pitched really well all season, that's a big reason they won 100 games." Lester, the Cubs' big offseason free-agent pickup, settled in for an impressive night after the first. Piscotty doubled with one out and scored on Holliday's single. Lester struck out nine and gave up three runs on five hits in 7 1-3 innings. "Lack made really one more pitch than I did," Lester said. "I know obviously the grand total doesn't show that, but that's kind of the way I feel." St. Louis finished three games ahead of the Cubs, who had the third-best record in the majors and are making their first postseason appearance since 2008. The Cardinals were outscored 12-0 the final three games at Atlanta after wrapping up their third straight NL Central title. BIG PITCH Reggie Sanders threw a strike to the plate on the ceremonial first pitch. Ten years ago, Sanders hit a grand slam off San Diego's Jake Peavy in the opener of the Division Series. TRAINER'S ROOM Cubs: OF Jorge Soler hasn't played much since coming back from a left oblique strain in mid-September, getting four starts the last 17 games counting the wild card game. Cardinals: Matt Adams was left off the division series roster because he's still rounding into form following surgery for a torn quadriceps. UP NEXT Cardinals: Garcia has made a full recovery from thoracic outlet surgery that cost him much of the previous three seasons. "Every time I take that mound, basically take it as if it's your last time ever to pitch in a major league game," Garcia said. Garcia didn't face the Cubs in the regular season but he's 2-1 with a 2.00 ERA in five career starts against them. Cubs: Hendricks worked six scoreless innings each of his last two starts. He had a major-league high and franchise record 17 no-decisions. Matt Carpenter is 6 for 10 with a homer and three RBIs and Holliday is 6 for 12 with two homers and four RBIs against the right-hander, making his first postseason appearance.
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A lot has been made about how well the Cubs rookies have played this season, but what about the Cardinals rookies? Danny Graves and Bo Porter discuss.
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PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) North Korean leader Kim Jong Un took center stage at a military parade and mass rally in Pyongyang on Saturday to mark the 70th anniversary of the country's ruling party by declaring in a rare speech that the North has no intention of straying from the socialist track established by his grandfather and is ready to stand up to any threat posed by the United States. With the eyes of the world upon him, Kim, the youngest and most enigmatic head of state, confidently and firmly delivered the speech from the balcony of the palatial People's Grand Study House as tens of thousands of his countrymen and an unusually large international media contingent watched from their places below on the capital's iconic Kim Il Sung Square. To punctuate his rhetoric, thousands of goose-stepping troops, tanks, armored vehicles, rocket launchers and a variety of missiles mounted on trucks then rolled through the square. Military aircraft flew in formation above head, forming the symbol of the Workers' Party of Korea a hammer, brush and sickle. Another group of planes formed the number 70 in the sky. Kim, who is in his early 30s, walked down a red carpet and saluted his honor guard before taking the podium to deliver the often fiery speech. "Our revolutionary force is ready to respond to any kind of war the American imperialists want," he said, flanked by visiting Chinese official Liu Yunshan and senior North Korean officials. He said North Korea's policy of putting its military first has made it "an impenetrable fortress and a global military power." Brightly colored floats and thousands of civilian marchers waving red and pink bouquets of plastic flowers followed the military show. Others held up cards to spell out Kim's name. As the parade ended, Kim waved to the crowd and raised clasped hands with Liu. The afternoon rally, delayed by heavy rains the night before that required extensive mopping up of the square, was followed by torchlight rally and fireworks display. The finale was a concert on a special stage set up on a river running through central Pyongyang. Tickets for foreigners hoping to attend the concert were going for 100 euros ($114) a pop. Altogether, it was the most elaborate spectacle North Korea has feted since Kim assumed power after the death of his father, Kim Jong Il, in late 2011. Though military parades fell out of fashion for about a decade starting in the 1990s, Saturday's was somewhat more elaborate than a similar anniversary event held two years ago, an indication that rolling tanks and missiles through the center of the capital is still seen by the North Korean government as an attention-getting way of showing the world and its own people the Kim dynasty is firmly in control and its military a power to be reckoned with. But, reflecting North Korea's international isolation, no world leaders were present. Liu, the No. 5 leader in the Chinese Communist party, was the most senior foreign dignitary, though Cuba, Vietnam and other countries sent delegations. Kim has yet to make state visit abroad his highest-profile visitor to date was former NBA star Dennis Rodman and he chose not to attend recent anniversary ceremonies held by his country's two closest allies, Russia and China. China's official Xinhua News Agency reported that Liu told Kim China was willing to work with North Korea for a quick resumption of six-party nuclear talks. The talks, which aim to end the North's nuclear program and also involve the U.S., South Korea, Russia and Japan, stalled seven years ago and Beijing has grown increasingly vocal about its discomfort with Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions. North Korea has shown no interest in giving up its nuclear capability, which it considers the crown jewel of its national defense strategy. Kim didn't specifically comment on North Korea's nuclear or long-range missile capabilities at Saturday's event and also didn't have anything to say about relations with rival South Korea. He spent most of his speech touting the party's successes in improving the lives of the North Korean people in the face of external threats since the armistice that ended fighting in the 1950-53 Korean War. An expert at the Korea Institute for Defense Analysis, a security think tank in Seoul, Jin Moo Kim, said North Korea revealed a new 300-millimeter rocket launcher. It also displayed drones and a KN-08 ballistic missile, with an estimated range of 10,000 kilometers (6,200 miles) that the country had previously shown off in 2012. Kim said the presence of Liu might have prevented the North from revealing its most provocative weapons. Even so, further analysis of the missiles and other weapons on display which in the past have included mock-ups or fakes could give experts clues to the North's actual capabilities. Some foreign analysts also believe that by putting the particularly strong emphasis this year on making the anniversary of the party's foundation such a lavish fete, and in delivering his own lengthy speech, Kim was trying to build up his own stature along with that of the party relative to the military. Keeping potentially powerful institutions carefully balanced against each other is a key to the stability of Kim's dictatorial leadership. North Korea maintains that its "military-first policy" is necessary to counter threats from South Korea and the United States, but officials have recently stressed the role of the party in improving the standard of living for the people, who are increasingly aware of how far they lag behind their affluent cousins south of the Demilitarized Zone and in economic giant China. In the run-up to this year's anniversary, large-scale construction and development projects have been launched and hailed with great fanfare in the state media. But it is unclear how much of North Korea's limited financial resources have been put into improving the lot of the majority of its citizens who are not fortunate enough to live in the showcase capital. __ Associated Press writer Kim Tong-hyung in Seoul contributed to this report.
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Drinks Made Easy presents how to make the Donald Trump Comb Over Shot mixed drink cocktail. ONLY ON MAKER.
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Drake and Serena Williams damn near broke the internet yesterday after OK Magazine reported that the two were engaged after only three months of dating. Now sources close to both camps have confirmed that these engagement rumors are "completely and utterly untrue."
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JPMorgan Chase Institute CEO Diana Farrell on a study showing people are spending their savings from lower gas prices.
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KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- The Kansas City Royals whipped out the same formula that carried them to last year's World Series to turn back the Houston Astros and tie their AL Division Series at a game apiece. Some clutch hitting. Stingy defense. An unflappable bullpen. Even a little help from replay. "Just battling," first baseman Eric Hosmer said. "That's what this team does so well." BOX SCORE: ROYALS 5, ASTROS 4 The Royals rallied from a three-run deficit Friday, getting a go-ahead single from Ben Zobrist in the seventh inning, and then watched Wade Davis and the bullpen make it stand in a 5-4 victory that brought back memories of their nip-and-tuck postseason of a year ago. The Royals knotted the game at 4 off Scott Kazmir and relievers Oliver Perez and Josh Fields in the sixth. Kansas City took the lead in the seventh when Alcides Escobar led off with a triple against Will Harris (0-1) and Zobrist followed with his single through the left side. Kelvin Herrera (1-0) and Ryan Madson each tossed a scoreless inning for the Royals, and Davis came on to close it -- though the real drama was only beginning. Davis walked Preston Tucker with one out, and speedy Carlos Gomez came in as a pinch-runner. Davis snapped a throw to Hosmer at first, and he neatly snagged it on one hop as Gomez made a dive back to the bag. Gomez was initially ruled safe, but the call was overturned upon review. "That play that Hos made on the pickoff, I don't know if there's a lot of first basemen that can make that play," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "It was tremendous." Jose Altuve then grounded out to end it, giving Davis the save. It was a crucial victory considering what awaits Kansas City in Game 3 on Sunday: Astros ace Dallas Keuchel, who was 15-0 at home this season. Edinson Volquez will start for Kansas City. "We were in position to win that game. Their bullpen did a very good job of shutting us down," Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. "We've got some work to do to win this series. It's going to be a good series. These are two really good teams." Two starters acquired with October in mind, Kazmir and Royals counterpart Johnny Cueto, pitched mostly to a stalemate Friday, which meant the outcome hinged on the bullpens. Kansas City's relief corps was simply better, preserving the first win by a home team this postseason. "They compete," said Salvador Perez, who homered for the Royals. "Pretty good stuff." Colby Rasmus homered, doubled and drove in two runs for Houston, becoming the first player in major league history with an extra-base hit in his first six postseason games. George Springer had a pair of RBIs after hitting a solo shot in the series opener. "Just to let it slip away late is kind of a downer," Astros reliever Tony Sipp said. "We had a lead late and let it slip away. We had the momentum going." The Astros jumped on Cueto right from the start, just as they did Yordano Ventura in Game 1 on Thursday night. Rasmus doubled in a run in the first inning, and Springer added a two-run knock in the second as restless Royals fans began to shower their ace with boos. Perez got one back for Kansas City with his homer to left in the bottom half, but Rasmus matched him with his third home run in three games this postseason. Cueto finally settled in, but it looked as if it would be too late. Kazmir allowed a run in the third, but otherwise had Kansas City off balance until the sixth inning. Still trailing 4-2, Lorenzo Cain got the Royals' tying rally started with a double, and Hinch called for Oliver Perez. He allowed back-to-back singles and a walk to leave the bases loaded for Fields, who walked Salvador Perez on four pitches to tie the game. When the Royals took the lead the following inning, their shutdown bullpen made it stick. "I'm happy we're going home," Hinch said. "We've got home-field advantage for the rest of this series. We have to take care of business in our own yard." CORREA HOBBLED Astros rookie Carlos Correa fouled a pitched off the inside of his back knee in the fifth inning, and for a while appeared as if he might leave the game. He remained in and struck out, but came back with a single off Herrera in the seventh. UP NEXT Keuchel threw six shutout innings in the Astros' wild-card win over the Yankees, and tossed eight shutout frames against the Royals in June. Volquez tossed two scoreless innings of relief in Kansas City's regular-season finale in Minnesota to tune up for the playoffs.
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The island of Socotra, located about 220 miles off the southern coast of Yemen, has been given the nickname "Galápagos of the Indian Ocean" due to the high number of unique plant and animal species found there.
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Former Sunderland manager Gus Poyet says the Premier League has an unhealthy surplus of foreign stars.
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SOCHI, Russia (AP) -- Mercedes' Nico Rosberg took pole position for the Russian Grand Prix on Saturday ahead of his teammate and title rival Lewis Hamilton. Rosberg set an unbeatable time of 1 minute, 37.113 seconds midway through the final qualifying session in Sochi, more than three tenths of a second faster than Hamilton. The top drivers had been in an uncertain situation ahead of qualifying after rain and various incidents, including a heavy crash for Toro Rosso's Carlos Sainz, reduced dry practice time to a minimum. ''Very happy. It's been a difficult weekend because of the little running we got,'' Rosberg said. ''Qualifying worked out really well. We found a good balance on my car, thanks to my engineers as well. We had to guess a bit.'' Hamilton challenged for the top spot with an aggressive final lap but ran off track and aborted the attempt. He said he was pleased to see Mercedes defy predictions that the team's car could struggle in Russia as it had on the similar Singapore circuit last month. ''Coming into the weekend, people were making assumptions that we'd have a repeat of Singapore,'' Hamilton said. ''Honestly, I had no idea what it was going to be like and to think that now we're the other way, it's very, very strange. I don't have an answer for it.'' Hamilton has a lead of 48 points over Rosberg with five races remaining. The Mercedes team can secure the constructors' title Sunday. Rosberg's fast lap denied Hamilton what would have been his 50th career pole position and 12th of this season. At the last race in Japan, Rosberg also started on pole but was overtaken by Hamilton in the first two corners. Rosberg said his approach to the start would not be affected by the way he had lost the lead in Japan, saying his procedure would be simply to ''work on the start, get everything right there, look at last year's start (in Sochi), learn from that.'' Last year in Russia, Rosberg started second behind Hamilton and challenged his teammate for the lead but misjudged the move and damaged his tires. Hamilton went on to take the win. Even though Rosberg's attempt last year had not worked out, Hamilton said he was confident he could pass his teammate in Sunday's race. ''It's a long, long way down to turn one, probably one of the longest ones of the whole year, so it should create opportunities,'' he said. In cool, cloudy conditions, Williams' Valtteri Bottas took third ahead of the two Ferraris of Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen. ''I think we got it right. We got the max out of the car and tires,'' Bottas said. Force India's Nico Hulkenberg and Sergio Perez were sixth and seventh, with Romain Grosjean eighth for Lotus and Toro Rosso's Max Verstappen ninth. Amid concerns the team may not return next season, the two Red Bull cars were off the pace in qualifying, with Daniel Ricciardo 10th, one place ahead of Daniil Kvyat, who disappointed his home crowd in Russia by failing to reach the final qualifying session. Toro Rosso driver Carlos Sainz did not compete in qualifying after a high-speed crash in the final practice session. His team says he is uninjured but will spend the night in hospital as a precaution. Sainz's Twitter account posted a picture of him giving a thumbs-up sign from his hospital bed with the caption: ''Already thinking how to convince the doctors to be on the grid for tomorrow.'' Sainz lost control of his car on a high-speed stretch heading into a steep right-hand corner, before scraping along the wall and crashing head on into the barriers. The car went through impact-absorbing barriers and buckled the metal barrier behind. Rosberg said he had not seen the accident but suggested it could give rise to new concerns over driver safety. ''Apparently it's not good, not ideal, so let's see if we can make progress on that,'' he said. It is just over a year since a heavy crash at the Japanese Grand Prix left French driver Jules Bianchi in a coma. He died in July.
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Andy Dalton is having the best season of his five-year career, but the Bengals quarterback will face his toughest test yet Sunday. Cincinnati plays host to the Seahawks, and Seattle's "Legion of Boom" secondary presents a significant challenge. STEELE: Week 5 predictions | IYER: Picks against spread | SN: Power Rankings After four games, Dalton has thrown nine touchdown passes with just one interception and leads the AFC with a 123.0 passer rating. That number far surpasses his career rating of 87.1 and a big reason is wide receiver A.J. Green. The only other time Dalton and Green faced the Seahawks was in 2011 when they were rookies. Though the Bengals were 34-12 victors in Seattle and Green scored a touchdown, Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman also a rookie at the time picked off a Dalton pass intended for Green. Also recording an interception in that game: Kam Chancellor, who will be key on Sunday. During Seattle's 0-2 start, while Chancellor was holding out , the Seahawks allowed 61 points and three passing touchdowns against the Rams and Packers. Since Chancellor's return, Seattle has not surrendered a touchdown pass and has given up only 10 points in wins over the Bears and Lions. The defense is also allowing two fewer yards per play when Chancellor is on the field. Without Chancellor, Dion Bailey got the start against the Rams in the opener and struggled. He has since been released. Bailey stumbled while trying to cover Rams tight end Lance Kendricks, who tied the score in the final minute with a 37-yard touchdown as safety Earl Thomas was late to come over. Chancellor is such an intelligent player, and his ability to recognize plays will help. He rarely is wrong when breaking on a pass, whether it's a swing pass to a back in the flat or dropping a receiver for a short completion both of which he did well against the Lions. What the Bengals will want to do is lure Chancellor to one side and target the opposite receivers. Assuming Sherman is lined up on Green, it could open things up for Mohamed Sanu or Marvin Jones against Cary Williams. While Green caught 10 passes for 227 yards and two scores against the Ravens, Jones caught eight passes for 94 yards and his second-quarter touchdown was a result of isolating him one-on-one with Ravens cornerback Rashaan Melvin. With Green part of a twins formation on the left, Jones was on the right with tight end Tyler Eifert on the same side. Eifert ran an out route to take safety Will Hill with him while safety Kendrick Lewis was shaded to the twins side to provide help on Green. With Sanu in the slot against the Chiefs, who were in a two-deep zone, and Green on the outside in the second quarter last week, Sanu was given a clean release by Ron Parker and found an open space in the zone for a 52-yard catch-and-run before he was finally tracked down by safety Husain Abdullah. Creating matchup problems is exactly what the Bengals will likely try to do against the Seahawks. That's easier said than done because Richard Sherman is not Rashaan Melvin or Ron Parker and Will Hill and Kendrick Lewis are no Kam Chancellor or Earl Thomas.
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The Jayhawks were no match for Baylor's high-powered offense. Check out highlights of the Bears' big win.
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The Day in Sports Photos Explosive arm Jacob deGrom of the New York Mets pitches against the Los Angeles Dodgers in game one of the National League Division Series at Dodger Stadium on Friday in Los Angeles, California. IMAGES:2015 MLB PLAYOFFS Lefty in the swing of things Phil Mickelson hits out of a bunker on the 18th fairway during the four ball matches of the 2015 Presidents Cup golf tournament in Incheon, South Korea, on Friday. Meyers passes away Dave Meyers, the captain of the 1975 UCLA team and No. 2 overall pick in the 1975 NBA Draft, died from cancer on Friday. He was 62. Chasing it down Rafael Nadal plays a forehand in his match against Jack Sock on day 7 of the 2015 China Open at the National Tennis Centre on Friday in Beijing, China. Pucked in Jonathan Toews #19 of the Chicago Blackhawks watches a shot by Patrick Kane #88 go into the net at 1:49 of overtime against Thomas Greiss #1 of the New York Islanders at the Barclays Center on Friday in Brooklyn borough of New York City. The Blackhawks defeated the Islanders 3-2 in overtime. Cards celebrate Thomas Pham celebrates with Stephen Piscotty after hitting a solo home run in the eighth inning against the Chicago Cubs during game one of the National League Division Series at Busch Stadium on Friday in St Louis, Missouri. IMAGES:2015 MLB PLAYOFFS The winning post Austin Dillon, driver of the #33 Rheem Chevrolet, leads the field past the green flag to start the NASCAR XFINITY Series Drive for the Cure 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Friday in Charlotte, North Carolina. Falling and flying Washington Wizards forward Toure' Murry (4) shoots between New York Knicks forward Lou Amundson (17) and forward Thanasis Antetokounmpo (43), from Greece, in the second half of an NBA preseason basketball game, on Friday in Washington. The Knicks won 115-104. On cloud nine International team members Danny Lee (R) of New Zealand and Bae Sang-moon of South Korea celebrate after Bae sinks his putt to defeat U.S. team member Rickie Fowler and Jimmy Walker on the 18th hole during the four ball matches of the 2015 Presidents Cup golf tournament at the Jack Nicklaus Golf Club in Incheon, South Korea, on Friday. Down and out Clayton Kershaw #22 of the Los Angeles Dodgers reacts in the dugout after being taken out of the game in the seventh inning against the New York Mets at Dodger Stadium on Friday in Los Angeles, California. IMAGES:2015 MLB PLAYOFFS Tangled Minnesota Lynx forward Rebekkah Brunson (32) gets tangled up with Indiana Fever forward Tamika Catchings (24) during game three of the WNBA Finals at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday. Red haze Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes GP drives during practice for the Formula One Grand Prix of Russia at Sochi Autodrom on Friday in Sochi, Russia. That's a foul David Silva of Spain is fouled by Lars Gerson of Luxembourg during the UEFA EURO 2016 Qualifier match between Spain and Luxembourg at Estadio Municipal Las Gaunas on Friday in Logrono, Spain. Ready to roll Yamaha MotoGP rider Valentino Rossi (C) of Italy rides during a free practice session at the Twin Ring Motegi circuit ahead of Sunday's Japanese Grand Prix in Motegi, north of Tokyo, Japan, on Friday. Benches clear The benches for the Toronto Blue Jays and Texas Rangers clear in the 13th inning in game two of the ALDS at Rogers Centre on Friday. IMAGES:2015 MLB PLAYOFFS Towering presence Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant shoots between Fenerbahce Ulker's Luigi Datome, left, and Jan Vesely in the first quarter of an NBA basketball preseason game in Oklahoma City, on Friday. Sending it over Michelle Wie of USA plays her bunker shot on the 6th hole during round two of the Sime Darby LPGA Tour at Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club on Friday in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. All Blacks score Nehe Milner-Skudder (L) of the New Zealand All Blacks scores their fourth try during the 2015 Rugby World Cup Pool C match between New Zealand and Tonga at St James' Park on Friday in Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom. Phil's better half Phil Mickelson and his wife Amy leave the 18th green after the four ball matches of the 2015 Presidents Cup golf tournament in Incheon, South Korea, on Friday. Happy fans Fans of the U.S. team cheer on the first hole during the four ball matches of the 2015 Presidents Cup golf tournament in Incheon, South Korea, on Friday. Justin's the hero Detroit Red Wings' Justin Abdelkader celebrates his goal against the Toronto Maple Leafs in the second period of an NHL hockey game in Detroit on Friday. It was Abdelkader's third goal of the game. Light and shadow Fabio Fognini (L) of Italy returns a ball against Pablo Cuevas of Uruguay on day 7 of the 2015 China Open at the National Tennis Centre on Friday in Beijing, China. New coach Jurgen Klopp new manager of Liverpool at Anfield on Friday in Liverpool, England. In pain Carlos Correa of the Houston Astros lays on the ground after getting hit with his own foul ball in the fifth inning against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium on Friday in Kansas City, Missouri. IMAGES:2015 MLB PLAYOFFS Let's dance Sara Ghislandi and Giona Terzo Ortenzi of Italy skate during the junior ice short dance of the ISU Junior Grand Prix at Dom Sportova on Friday in Zagreb, Croatia. Rooney's golden boot Wayne Rooney of England is presented with the Golden Boot by Sir Bobby Charlton after breaking his record of 49 goals during the UEFA EURO 2016 Group E Qualifier match between England and Estonia at Wembley Stadium on Friday in London, United Kingdom. Doused Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez is doused by a teammate after their 5-4 victory over the Houston Astros in Game 2 of baseball's American League Division Series, on Friday in Kansas City, Mo. IMAGES:2015 MLB PLAYOFFS Sneaking away Virginia Tech Hokies running back Travon McMillian (34) runs the ball against North Carolina State Wolfpack safety Germaine Pratt (31) on Friday. IMAGES: 2015 COLLEGE FOOTBALL SEASON Waving to their heroes Kansas City Royals fans cheer and wave towels in game two of the ALDS against the Houston Astros at Kauffman Stadium on Friday. IMAGES PREVIOUS DAY'S PHOTOS
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Witnesses in the lakeside city of Baga Sola reported that there were at least three explosions on Saturday, one in a fish market and the other two at a refugee camp. Medical and military sources put the number of dead at 38, with more than 50 others injured. The Associated Press news agency quoted General Banyaman Cossingar, director general of the gendarmerie, as saying that more than one female suicide bomber had blown themselves up at the market, killing at least 16 people. He said a second group were involved in the attack on the refugee camp, which killed at least 22 people. Military spokesman Colonel Azem Agouna Bermandoua said Boko Haram extremists from neighboring Nigeria were suspected of being involved. The lake is shared by Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Nigeria and has reduced in surface area in recent years due to climate change. Dense vegetation along the banks has made infiltrations by Boko Haram extremists easier. The Chadian army has been involved in a regional offensive against Boko Haram since the start of the year. Since the Boko Haram insurgency began in 2009, least 17,000 people have been killed, mainly in Nigeria, and more than 2.5 million have been made homeless. Benin, Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Nigeria are all involved in the fight against Boko Haram, having decided to deploy a force of some 8,700 soldiers. However, training has taken longer than expected. Chadian President Idriss Deby has said the force could be operational this month. rc/cmk (AFP, AP, Reuters)
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Ohio State is once again not playing with the level of dominance you'd expect from the No. 1 team in the country in Week 6 against Maryland. To that point, players on Maryland's sideline are not impressed with the Buckeyes, even as they are losing 35-21 in the fourth quarter. According to a Big Ten Network sideline reporter, players on Maryland's sidelines described Ohio State players as "spoiled, entitled not No. 1." BTN sideline reporter: Maryland offensive linemen on sideline are describing Ohio State as "spoiled, entitled and not No. 1." Jon Solomon (@JonSolomonCBS) October 10, 2015 Ohio State hasn't looked like a No. 1 team since Week 1. Offensively, the team is sputtering, rather than plowing through opponents like you'd expect from an Urban Meyer-coordinated effort. Maryland's players are simply stating the obvious.
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NEW YORK (AP) A 23-year-old baseball prospect who was shot last month in a fast-food parking lot in New York has died. A spokeswoman for the New York City medical examiner's office says Mike Nolan's death was reported to the office on Friday. The Journal News says (http://lohud.us/1VKHENw ) Nolan was declared brain dead on Thursday. Nolan was shot Sept. 18 in the parking lot of a Burger King in Yonkers. Police have made no arrests. He had been hospitalized in New York City since the shooting. Nolan was drafted by the Oakland A's in the 18th round of the 2014 Major League Baseball draft. The left-handed pitcher's mother, Donna Nolan, said the A's sent flowers to the family's home. Nolan's father, Jimmy Nolan, said the young man's family planned to donate his organs. --- Information from: The Journal News, http://www.lohud.com
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Nico Rosberg seized pole position for the Russian Formula One Grand Prix with world champion Lewis Hamilton joining team mate on the front row in a perfect qualifying for Mercedes. The pole was Rosberg's third of the season with championship leader Hamilton, who is 48 points clear of the German with five races remaining, denied his 50th for the third race in succession. Hamilton, who had hoped for his 12th pole in 15 races, aborted his second and final lap of the final phase after making a mistake on a clear afternoon in the Olympic Park. The front row lockout was still just what Mercedes had ordered, with the team needing to score three points more than Ferrari to clinch their second successive constructors' title this weekend. Finland's Valtteri Bottas qualified third for Mercedes-powered Williams with Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen fourth and fifth. Hamilton won last year's inaugural race in Russia from pole, with Rosberg runner-up after also starting on the front row, but he could not get close to Rosberg's time of one minute 37.113 seconds. "We didn't get much practice but qualifying worked out really well and a good balance on the car," said the German after his second pole in a row. "We had to guess a little bit...it all worked out well, I felt comfortable. Of course the constructors' championship is a really important target for us this weekend, it would be amazing to clinch it for a second time so early on in the season, and so we are out to do that. "At the same time of course I'm out here to reduce the gap to Lewis in terms of points." Sainz in hospital Saturday's final practice was halted after just 35 minutes when Toro Rosso's Spaniard Carlos Sainz, who remained in hospital during qualifying and is doubtful for the race despite escaping serious injury, crashed heavily. Friday's two sessions, on a track that skirts around the 2014 Winter Olympic venues, were also limited due to a diesel spillage in the morning and rain through the afternoon. Rosberg got alongside Hamilton at the start last year but made a mistake that sent him back to 20th place. The German then did 52 laps on one set of tyres and fought back to finish second. Qualifying result (top-10): 1. Nico Rosberg (Germany) Mercedes 2. Lewis Hamilton (Britain) Mercedes 3. Valtteri Bottas (Finland) Williams-Mercedes 4. Sebastian Vettel (Germany) Ferrari 5. Kimi Raikkonen (Finland) Ferrari 6. Nico Huelkenberg (Germany) Force India - Mercedes 7. Sergio Perez (Mexico) Force India - Mercedes 8. Romain Grosjean (France) Lotus - Mercedes 9. Max Verstappen (Netherlands) Toro Rosso - Renault 10. Daniel Ricciardo (Australia) RedBull - Renault
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Check out these super kitchen hacks to keep your fruits and vegetables from browning or wilting and make them stay fresher for longer periods. We know that sliced apples, when left in the open for a few minutes, turn brown. Check out these super kitchen hacks to keep your fruits and vegetables from browning or wilting and make them stay fresher for longer periods. Lemon juice An effective anti-oxidant, lemon juice contains citric acid which prevents the oxidization process and thus, prevents browning. Squeeze fresh lemon juice over fruits or vegetables to keep them fresh. You could also soak the cut pieces in a bowl of cold water and lemon juice (one teaspoon juice for one cup water) for 3-5 minutes, before rinsing and draining. Pineapple juice Pineapple juice has similar anti-oxidant properties like lemon, and can be used as a substitute to prevent browning. Soda water In case, lemon or pineapple juices are not available, keep your fruits from turning brown by using soda water or club soda. What more, this preservative does not affect the taste of the fruits at all. Salt Salt is a natural preservative; sprinkle some over a plate of sliced fruits to keep them from browning. Another way is to dissolve 1/8 teaspoon of salt into one cup of water and soak the slices for a few minutes. After draining, rinse them off with fresh water to avoid any taste of salt. Citric acid Citric and ascorbic acids are naturally forming organic compounds with antioxidant properties. Sprinkle them on freshly cut fruit slices and keep them fresh for as long as eight hours. Vinegar This can be used as an easy replacement for citric acid, but it is important to dilute the vinegar considering its strong sourness. Add a tablespoon to a bowl of water and soak the cut fruit slices for a few minutes before serving or storing them. Thermotherapy To prevent berries from growing mouldy overnight, give them a hot bath to kill off mould spores. Next, spread them on a towel to dry and then store them in refrigerator. Plastic wrap Plastic wraps cut off the air contact with a sliced fruit thus preventing oxidizing and browning. Just make sure that the wrap is covered tightly with no air pockets left. Honey Mix two tablespoons of honey in a cup of water and soak the sliced fruits in the mixture for 30 seconds. Honey keeps the fruits from browning by deactivating the enzymes responsible for oxidization. Lime soda and ginger ale Carbonated drinks like lime soda and ginger ale contain citric acid. Soak the fruit slices for a few minutes in a bowl containing the carbonated drink. After draining, rinse them with fresh water or let the added flavor make your fruits taste a little different than usual. Now, let's take a look at ways of keeping specific fruits and vegetables fresher for longer. Avocados Pip the avocado, squeeze lemon juice on the fleshy surface and then tightly cover the pieces in plastic wrap to last longer. Apples This method can be used only if the apple's outer layer is left intact. After cutting the apple in half longitudinally, hold the slices together using a rubber band. This prevents the apple flesh's exposure to air, and keeps it from browning. Apples This method is best for apples that you plan to use for cooking or baking purposes. Put the apple slices in a pot of boiling water for around five minutes. Next, rinse them under running cold water and drain. The blanching process deactivates the enzymes that react with oxygen and turns the fruit brown. Bananas For bananas to last for a few days, seal them in a plastic bag and keep in them in the fridge. The peel might turn brown or black due to enzymes present in them, but the cold temperature will keep the flesh within from ripening further. Leafy greens If lettuce, spinach or any other leafy greens appear wilted after being refrigerated for around two days, you can still regain their freshness with an ice-bath. Dip the leaves in a bowl with ice and water and shake them gently for a few minutes. After draining, spread the leaves on a dry towel to get rid of any extra moisture. Broccoli To make broccoli and celery last longer, wrap them in aluminium foil before storing in the refrigerator. This will keep them from wilting, thus maintaining freshness. Tomatoes Always store tomatoes at room temperature as putting them in a refrigerator results in wrinkled skin and reduced flavor. Keep them in a bowl lined with paper towel with their stems facing upward. Mushrooms Mushrooms' freshness can be made to last longer by packing them in styrofoam with plastic wrap and then storing in a refrigerator. Potatoes Store potatoes in a dry place at room temperature to keep them fresher for longer.
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Eight years after the Virginia Tech massacre led to tighter security at colleges across the U.S., some schools make "active shooter" training mandatory for incoming students, while others offer little more than brief online guidance on what to do if there's a gunman on the loose, a review by The Associated Press finds. The AP looked at public colleges and universities in more than 40 states after yet another shooting rampage, the killing of nine people at an Oregon community college Oct. 1. On Friday, there was more bloodshed, with one person killed and three wounded at an Arizona university. At some institutions, such as the Colorado School of Mines and Arkansas State University, training on how to respond to an armed intruder has become as much a part of fall orientation as lessons on alcohol abuse. Students hear presentations covering their options, such as running, hiding or fighting back. Other schools have purely voluntary training. Or they put information on what to do in an emergency on websites, where it can easily be overlooked by students and staff members. Many public college and university systems leave it up to their individual campuses to draw up emergency plans and decide what level of training, if any, to give employees and students. In the wake of the recent violence, some professors, students and administrators are asking whether schools need to do more to deliver potentially life-saving messages to those on campus. The challenges are particularly acute at two-year community colleges, which often do not have their own police forces to conduct training exercises for staff and students. They also tend to have lots of older, working students who can be hard to reach. "That it's actually happened recently with the frequency and danger it has, I think everyone is frightened and asking a lot of questions about how well-prepared we would be as a campus," said David Morse, an English instructor who is president of the Academic Senate for California's 113 community colleges. The 2007 slaughter of 32 people by a student at Virginia Tech prompted Congress to require colleges and universities to adopt procedures for notifying the campus of an immediate threat. Under the law, schools also must publicize their emergency response plans "in a manner designed to reach students and staff." The AP review found that most schools have set up sophisticated alert systems that use text messages, social media or technology that can remotely take over computers tied to campus servers. Many also have added armed officers, conducted drills with law enforcement authorities and created threat-assessment teams that try to determine whether an overheard remark or violence-tinged essay is a genuine danger sign. Some of these measures are credited with saving lives. When a gunman shot students at a Florida State University library a year ago, campus police responded within minutes of the first 911 call and fired a barrage of bullets that killed him. Less than two weeks before, the police had participated in active shooter training that included a scenario with a gunman at the library. Umpqua Community College, site of the Oregon mass shooting, also did many things right to prepare, and experts said its efforts may well have saved lives. A small, rural school, Umpqua didn't have its own police force, but administrators brought in local officers so they would be familiar with the layout. Professors and staff regularly discussed how they should respond if someone started shooting, and where in their buildings would be the safest place to hunker down. The school also had emergency notification and lockdown procedures in place. But in general, educating students and employees about what to do in the event of an attack has proved something of a stumbling block. While most schools have created posters, brochures and online guides, some of them have yet to figure out how to get people to read, much less absorb, the material. Richard Turton, chairman of West Virginia University's Faculty Senate, said he wasn't familiar with his school's active shooter plan until a reporter's question prompted him to do some digging. He found a PowerPoint presentation and videos on the university's website. "I would suspect many faculty who are very busy would tend to not look at those things unless they're sort of prompted several times," Turton said. Matt Barnes, 30, a civil engineering student who just transferred to the University of Minnesota's Twin Cities campus, received a booklet during orientation that outlined the school's emergency notification procedures. He realized it didn't mention anything about an active shooter situation. Barnes said he gets emails any time there is a crime on campus with details about the incident. But he said he's not sure what he's supposed to do if something happens in a building where he happens to be. University spokesman Steve Henneberry confirmed the booklet doesn't specifically mention active shooter situations and said it was written from an "all-hazards planning point of view." On some campuses, some of the advice itself isn't detailed or even particularly helpful. The website of 20,000-student Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, advises students that in the event of a shooter or sniper, "listen for instructions from authorities such as whether to remain inside or to evacuate." Campus security director Melissa Jensen said more specific training videos also are available. The instructions can vary from campus to campus. Many schools have adopted the run, hide or fight-back training developed by the city of Houston and promoted by the FBI. Others have embraced the procedures developed by the I Love U Guys Foundation, which urges students to lock themselves in classrooms if it all possible. At Arkansas State University in Jonesboro, the active shooter training that is mandatory for new students is voluntary for the faculty. "How many faculty have availed themselves of these trainings? Unfortunately, the answer is not many," said Greg Phillips, chairman of the Faculty Senate, which will take up the issue during the coming week. Ron Hackenberg, a security consultant and former police chief at California State University-San Marcos, said the slayings in Oregon should spur more schools to go beyond voluntary training. "In real life, unless you are a combat veteran, most people will freeze if they are not prepared," he said. In California, community college campuses historically have been given wide latitude in drawing up emergency preparations. Gov. Jerry Brown signed a law in July that calls on the system to add active shooter training to the emergency planning it recommends for campuses. ___ Leff reported from San Francisco, and Foley from Iowa City, Iowa. Associated Press writers Amy Forliti in Minneapolis; Gene Johnson in Seattle; Claudia Lauer in Little Rock, Arkansas; and John Raby in Charleston, West Virginia, contributed to this story.
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Turkish authorities are investigating claims that a suicide bomber was behind the twin explosions that killed at least 86 at a rally in Ankara. Pavithra George reports.
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Toronto Maple Leafs $50 million coach Mike Babcock must feel as if he is trying to win a NASCAR race driving a 2015 Ford Focus. No matter how hard he pushes on the throttle he's not going to get this vehicle up to speed enough to win in the foreseeable future. Here's what you need to know about the rebuilding 0-2 Maple Leafs heading into tonight's home game against the Ottawa Senators: Critical players in Toronto's rebuild aren't here : The Maple Leafs have skillful youngsters Mitch Marner, William Nylander, Kasperi Kapanen and Connor Brown who could probably be playing now. But the Maple Leafs are opting to use the crock pot, not the microwave, in building this team. They are exercising patience when it comes to developing players. Fan base accepts the pain : Toronto fans are passionate and vocal, but they are also among the most knowledgeable NHL fan bases. They understand the route to long-term success is to rebuild from the chassis up. After years of complaining about the team's lack of success, they are willingly supporting president Brendan Shanahan rebuilding efforts. Their attitude: it's about time we did this. Babcock is making a difference : While the Maple Leafs have been out-scored 7-1 in their first two games, it feels as if this team is playing with more pride than what we saw last season. The Leafs played a solid game in the opener against Montreal, and Babcock's return to Detroit on Friday had too many mitigating factors to be used for any meaningful analysis. But anyone familiar with Babcock knows that he will not accept anything less than this team's best. Goalies have something to prove : Babcock will put pressure Jonathan Bernier and James Reimer to perform at a high level. He historically doesn't have patience for sub-par goaltending. More importantly, he knows quality goaltending is the only way his team can stay competitive this season. Bernier is under contract this season and next season. If he wants to be in Babcock's master plan, he must play splendidly. Entering Auston Matthews Sweepstakes : Arizona native Matthews has scored six goals in his first seven games playing in the Swiss Elite League. Scouts view him the same way they viewed Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel last season. Matthews is the star every rebuilding team needs. However, NHL draft lottery rules have changed. Starting this season the last place NHL team is guaranteed only to pick no later than fourth overall. Lottery balls will be pulled for the first three picks. But the worst team still has a 20% chance of picking No. 1 overall. Toronto fans all know that. The Leafs lack scoring. They may not average two goals per game this season. Even Babcock can't spin yarn into gold when it comes to creating offense. PHOTOS: Best performances of October
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Andy Dalton's proving ground vs. Seattle Seahawks For a quarterback whose career still will be shaped by his postseason success, Andy Dalton enters Sunday's game against the Seattle Seahawks with the chance to change the way he's viewed. The Cincinnati Bengals signal-caller already has given his detractors reason to re-evaluate their criticisms this season. His quarterback ranking of 123 trails only that of Aaron Rodgers, and he's been more catalyst than caretaker for the NFL's second-ranked offense. A solid performance and win against the Seahawks' second-ranked defense would legitimize Dalton's progress and send the Bengals to a 5-0 start. A loss would resurface doubts that have followed Dalton, whose career has been marked by flops against the NFL's elite. Some of Dalton's success this season can be credited to an offensive line, which has kept away the pressure that previously unraveled the quarterback. But Dalton's decision-making is also faster and better than ever. That will be paramount against a Seahawks defensive line that has shaken opposing signal-callers even when it hasn't sacked them. Dalton will have to be careful testing the "Legion of Boom" secondary, but one of his biggest strides this season has been in the deep passing game. The Bengals seek out opportunities to gain yards in chunks, and they should pick their spots on Sunday. Outside of the passing game, Cincinnati appears to have the pieces in place to beat Seattle. The running game, powered by Jeremy Hill and Giovani Bernard, can carry the offense in stretches. A deep receiving corer (A.J. Green, Marvin Jones, Mohamed Sanu and tight end Tyler Eifert) can challenge the Seahawks secondary. And a strong defensive line should create problems for a Seattle offense missing Marshawn Lynch. Once again for the Bengals, it all comes down to Dalton. Here are four other matchups that could define Week 4 in the NFL: St. Louis Rams RB Todd Gurley vs. Green Bay Packers front seven Under Jeff Fisher, the Rams have developed a reputation for being an inconsistent team capable of playing up to the level of top competition. Ending the Packers' 11-game home win streak, however, would solidify them as a potential playoff contender. St. Louis' defensive line has become its signature, with defensive tackle Aaron Donald emerging as a front-runner for all-pro honors in just his second season. Yet one of the Rams' biggest assets in stopping the Packers might be on their offense. Gurley paced an efficient yet opportunistic attack with 146 yards on 19 carries in last week's win over the Arizona Cardinals. A similar performance will be needed to keep Rodgers and the Packers offense, which ranks second in time of possession, off the field. Green Bay has kept opposing running games in check by building big leads, but the defense has allowed 4.8 yards per carry. Inside linebacker Nate Palmer has to prove he's not a liability as a fill-in for Sam Barrington. Tennessee Titans QB Marcus Mariota vs. Buffalo Bills defensive line The Bills' uneven defense hasn't lived up to Rex Ryan's standards, but the group has confidence heading into its matchup with the rookie Mariota. "I don't think the kid's gonna have his way against us," Ryan said Wednesday. Mariota shows impressive patience and willingness to hang in the pocket, but he'll need a quick trigger against Buffalo. The Titans line has been shaky in pass protection, and it hasn't faced the likes of Mario Williams and Marcell Dareus yet. The Bills likely will stick to their blitz-heavy ways and seeking to rattle Mariota with different looks. That could provide big-yardage opportunities, but only if Mariota can keep plays alive. Oakland Raiders WR Amari Cooper vs. Denver Broncos CB Aqib Talib Cooper will be in for the toughest matchup of his early career against the Broncos cornerbacks, whether he draws Talib, Chris Harris or Bradley Roby. The Raiders will need their standout rookie to have a big day against the league's top-ranked pass defense. Oakland's offensive line has held its own in protecting Derek Carr, but no unit has kept Broncos pass rushers DeMarcus Ware and Von Miller under control for a full game this year. Carr could focus on targeting Cooper early after turning away from him late in last week's loss to the Chicago Bears. But the Broncos defense is not afraid to gamble and has 11 takeaways this season. Still, there's reason to believe that Cooper can put a dent in Denver's chances if given the opportunity. Rookie receiver Stefon Diggs of the Minnesota Vikings posted six catches for 87 yards last week and positioned himself well against the Broncos' secondary. San Francisco 49ers RB Carlos Hyde vs. New York Giants front seven Colin Kaepernick's struggles have infected the 49ers offense, making life difficult for Hyde in what seemed like a possible breakout season. Since running for 168 yards and two touchdowns in the season-opening win over the Vikings, Hyde has rushed for a combined 114 yards in his last three games. A diminished workload and stacked boxes are holding Hyde back from fulfilling his role as a feature back. Sunday presents a significant challenge for the 49ers: The Giants defense ranks first in rushing yards allowed per game (69.8) but last in passing yards allowed (316). There might be a natural inclination to exploit that weakness and build confidence for Kaepernick, but that's still a risky proposition for San Francisco. The Giants might not need to stack the box against the 49ers. But their pass rush could be in trouble with linebacker Devon Kennard and defensive ends Robert Ayers and George Selvie out. Follow Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz on Twitter @MikeMSchwartz .
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Donald Trump at a rally in Norcross, Georgia says Hillary Clinton should not be allowed to run for president because of her email controversy.
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AUSTIN, Texas An Army officer is recommending that Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl face a lower-level court martial and be spared the possibility of jail time for leaving his post in Afghanistan, his lawyer said Saturday. Bergdahl was captured by the Taliban after leaving his post on June 30, 2009, and held until last year, when he was exchanged for five Taliban commanders. His commanding officers in Afghanistan say a 45-day search for Bergdahl put soldiers in danger. Military prosecutors charged Bergdahl in March with desertion and misbehavior before the enemy, a charge that could carry a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. But defense attorney Eugene Fidell said Lt. Col. Mark Visger has recommended that Sgt. Bergdahl's case be referred to a special court martial, which is a misdemeanor-level forum. It limits the maximum punishment to reduction in rank, a bad-conduct discharge and a term of up to a year in prison. Fidell also said that Visger recommended that there be no prison time or punitive discharge against Bergdahl. In light of Visger's recommendations, the defense is asking that the case be disposed of non-judicially, rather than by any court martial. Visger presided over last month's Article 32 hearing in Texas that reviewed evidence against Bergdahl. Visger submitted a report with his recommendation on Monday, but the Army hadn't said what Visger recommended. Gen. Robert Abrams, the commanding general of U.S. Army Forces Command, will ultimately decide whether the case should be referred to a court-martial. No timeline has been given for a decision from Abrams. "These are highly discretionary matters and, needless to say, I hope General Abrams does the right thing, but it's his call," Fidell said by phone Saturday. The Obama administration's prisoner swap was sharply criticized by many Republicans and some Democrats, who said it was politically motivated and counter to the U.S. policy against negotiating with terrorists. Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump said Thursday that Bergdahl should have been executed for leaving his post in Afghanistan and called him a "no-good traitor," which he also said in August. Paul Boyce, a spokesman for the U.S. Army's Force Command, released a statement Saturday that didn't confirm Visger's decision. "As legal action is ongoing, we continue to maintain careful respect for the military-judicial process, the rights of the accused, and ensuring the case's fairness and impartiality," Boyce said. Philip Cave, a retired Navy judge advocate now in private practice in Virginia, said commanders often follow the officer's recommendation. "The real issue here is the politics. That's the elephant in the room. How much is Abrams going to be affected by the politics?" Cave said. "I think the answer is, fairly little at this point." Fidell released a memorandum addressed to Visger. It said the defense team is "grateful for the balanced, judicious, and humane approach you have taken to this complex case, and for the evenhanded way you conducted the public hearing." It added that Visger's report should be made public "so the American people can be fully informed of your findings." "The pity is, there's no reason for not having transparency," Fidell said Saturday, adding that Bergdahl's defense team planned to file a written appeal next week seeking to have the full report released. "It's a self-inflicted wound for the Army." ___ This story has been corrected to delete reference to case being handled by a civilian system.
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WASHINGTON The Republican leaders of a House committee who have been in a bitter partisan battle with Democrats are enmeshed in a new fight with one of the committee's former staff members. A former investigator for the Republicans on the House Select Committee on Benghazi plans to file a complaint in federal court next month alleging that he was fired unlawfully in part because his superiors opposed his efforts to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the 2012 attack on the American diplomatic mission in the Libyan city rather than focus primarily on the role of the State Department and former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. The former investigator, Bradley F. Podliska, a major in the Air Force Reserve who is on active duty in Germany, also claims that the committee's majority staff retaliated against him for taking leave for several weeks to go on active duty. If true, the retaliation would violate the federal Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994, which Major Podliska plans to invoke in his complaint, according to a draft that was made available to The New York Times. The case is now in a confidential mediation phase, limiting what the Republican-led staff can publicly say about the matter. The committee firmly disputed Major Podliska's allegations, saying Saturday that he had been "terminated for cause." A committee spokesman, Jamal Ware, cited Major Podliska's "repeated efforts, of his own volition, to develop and direct committee resources to a PowerPoint 'hit piece' on members of the Obama administration, including Secretary Clinton, that bore no relationship whatsoever to the committee's current investigative tone, focus or investigative plan." Sign Up For NYT Now's Morning Briefing Newsletter "Thus, directly contrary to his brand-new assertion, the employee actually was terminated, in part, because he himself manifested improper partiality and animus in his investigative work," Mr. Ware said. "The committee vigorously denies all of his allegations. Moreover, once legally permitted to do, the committee stands ready to prove his termination was legal, justified and warranted on multiple levels." In countering the complaints, Mr. Ware said Major Podliska had "never previously raised any allegation with respect to his work involving Secretary Clinton (other than that he was not allowed to do it) throughout." In his complaint, Major Podliska, 41, acknowledges that he was told that he was being fired for three infractions, the most serious of which was mishandling classified information, although he disputes the charge. Major Podliska is seeking compensation for lost wages, reinstatement in his former job if possible and, if not, future wages that he will forgo as a result of his termination. He is also seeking an injunction requiring the committee to follow the uniformed employment law. The House committee is under increasing criticism for what critics say is the partisan nature of its investigation. In late September, Representative Kevin McCarthy of California, the House majority leader, rekindled these suspicions when he suggested that damaging Mrs. Clinton's presidential prospects was a welcome byproduct of the committee's investigation. "Everybody thought Hillary Clinton was unbeatable, right?" Mr. McCarthy said on Fox News. "But we put together a Benghazi special committee, a select committee. What are her numbers today? Her numbers are dropping." Major Podliska, a lifelong Republican, holds a doctorate in political science from Texas A&M University and spent more than 15 years working at a federal defense agency, as an intelligence analyst for much of that time . In September 2014, he began working for the Benghazi committee, on which his role was to investigate the way that various federal agencies in Washington responded to the attack, in which four Americans, including Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens, were killed. Major Podliska claims that through February, he was repeatedly praised for his work by his superiors, including Phil Kiko, the staff director for the Republican majority. But two things changed in March, Major Podliska said. First, after revelations that Mrs. Clinton relied exclusively on a private email server for her State Department correspondence, the committee became preoccupied with the State Department's role in the controversy surrounding the Benghazi attack and less interested in a comprehensive investigation. Second, Major Podliska informed his superiors around the same time that he would need to perform 39 days of active duty for the Air Force in Germany in a handful of intervals, beginning with the middle of that month. (The length of the leave later rose slightly.) According to Major Podliska's complaint, Mr. Kiko responded to his email saying, "wow." The complaint alleges that another senior staff member, Dana Chipman, who had served as the Army's judge advocate general, questioned whether he "really needs to go to Germany." Major Podliska said in an interview that he believed they were both skeptical of his obligations as a reservist and annoyed that he would take time off just as the committee had received its biggest break since being formed in May 2014 the Clinton email revelations. Major Podliska said that when he returned from active duty in late March, much of the committee staff, which had been investigating a variety of leads across numerous agencies, had been redeployed to focus primarily on Mrs. Clinton and the State Department. Despite the change in focus, Major Podliska continued to work on his examination of the response in Washington to the attack, only to meet escalating resistance from his superiors, according to his complaint. In his view, they felt he was not focusing enough on Mrs. Clinton's alleged mistakes, a criticism he considered odd given that his findings were far from favorable to her. "My thing was actually related to Hillary I just wasn't all in on Hillary," he said in the interview. "I was finding other officials at other agencies that bore responsibility for the post-attack piece." Major Podliska was fired late that month. In addition to the alleged mishandling of classified information an accusation that Major Podliska, who once worked for several years on classification-review issues, said reflected a misunderstanding of classification protocols the committee cited two other reasons for his firing: He had sent an email to colleagues inviting them to a reception sponsored by an industry trade association, and he had assigned a project related to his work to an intern without authorization. "The Benghazi committee fired Major Podliska because of his service in the Air Force Reserve and because he insisted on conducting a fair and impartial investigation of all the agencies involved in the aftermath of the Benghazi attacks," said Joe Napiltonia, Major Podliska's lead lawyer. "The committee fabricated reasons to justify Major Podliska's termination that have no basis in reality." Assuming that Major Podliska can establish that his military service played a role in his ouster, it would fall to the House committee to demonstrate that it would have fired him for resisting the direction of the investigation, or for the three specific violations his supervisors identified.
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North Korean leader Kim Jong Un declared Saturday that his country was ready to stand up to any threat posed by the U.S. as he spoke at a lavish military parade to mark the 70th anniversary of North Korea's ruling party, and his third-generation leadership. (Oct. 10)
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At least 30 people were killed in the Turkish capital, Ankara, early Saturday after two explosions occurred outside the city's train station.
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Almost a week after the flooding rains, residents in Georgetown, South Carolina were still evacuating their homes as high waters rushed downstream. (Oct. 10)
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Juventus and Spain striker Alvaro Morata has calmed fears he could be sidelined for a month with a message on social media claiming he hopes to be fit for next week's trip to Inter Milan. Morata was feared to have suffered a fractured fibula when he was stretchered off in a Euro 2016 qualifier against Luxembourg on Friday. But the Spaniard, who underwent scans in Turin on Saturday, claimed in a message on Facebook he was hoping to be fit for next week's San Siro clash. "Neither a month, nor four...working hard to be on the teamsheet for next Sunday," wrote Morata. AFP
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TOKYO (AP) -- Unseeded Benoit Paire of France beat defending champion Kei Nishikori 1-6, 6-4, 6-2 Saturday to advance to the Japan Open final where he faces top-seeded Stan Wawrinka. After breezing through the opener when he broke Paire twice, Nishikori struggled in the second set and failed to convert any of his five break points. Paire won the set with a powerful backhand winner down the line to break the second-seeded Nishikori, who was bidding for his third Japan Open title. ''I beat myself and that's why I lost,'' Nishikori said. ''I made some basic mistakes. If I had been aggressive the way I was in the first set, the result of the match would have been different.'' Paire, who had 11 aces and saved seven of nine break points, raced ahead 4-1 in the third set and secured the win on his first match point when Nishikori hit a lob long. ''In the third set, it was different. I was playing very well, aggressively and serving well,'' Paire said. I think I was better in the third set.'' Paire, who captured his first ATP title at Bastad in July, also beat Nishikori in the U.S. Open first round this year. French Open winner Wawrinka had eight aces to beat Gilles Muller 6-4, 7-6 (5). The Swiss reached his fourth final of the year when Muller angled his backhand volley wide in the tiebreaker. In Sunday's final, Wawrinka will be looking to add to his wins at Chennai, Rotterdam and Roland Garros.
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When it comes to experience in baseball, few people in the history of the game have more than Cal Ripken Jr. But despite that on-field experience, baseball's Iron Man is still waiting on a call to become a manager. MORE: Top 6 candidates for Nats' job | Mariners manager candidates "Certainly the baseball background that I have, you're a student of the game there's a lot said about experience or lack of experience in managers coming through," Ripken told Rich Eisen, via the Baltimore Sun. "To me, it's all about your philosophy, how you handle things, what you're going to do. And then, it's being able to apply it. And so, I haven't had a chance to apply that, so no one knows." Ripken said that he'd "answer the phone" if the Nationals called to talk about their managerial opening. The 19-time All-Star seems eager to prove that he has what it takes to run a team, despite not having done it before. "So that would be a risk, I suppose. But I'm in the business world now and all the time, it seems like I'm asking for experts to come around and tell me what to do because I don't have that background to fall back on. But in baseball, I have that background to fall back on and I would know how to deal with whatever situations there because I've seen it." The Nationals are looking for a replacement for Matt Williams who was fired after compiling a 179-145 record in two seasons. Ripken has said he had " serious discussions " with Washington general manager Mike Rizzo before Williams was hired two years ago.
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Activists focused on eliminating racial profiling, police brutality and officer-involved killings have chanted, tweeted and held signs saying #BlackLivesMatter for more than a year as the nation debates criminal justice reforms and people of color. Now, Louisiana-based Lamar Advertising has donated more than 150 company-owned billboards nationwide to a new campaign to put the slogans #BlueLivesMatter and #thankublu in public spaces, WXMI-TV and other outlets report. The billboards have already shown up in Memphis, Tenn., Toledo, Ohio, Grand Rapids, Mich., and Hartford, Conn. "We wanted to recognize the local police departments and men and women that put their lives on the line every day," Stephen Hebert of Lamar Advertising told WVIT-TV. "I don't know how they do it, and we just wanted it to be part of the community." As the #BlackLivesMatter hashtag became increasingly popular, other similar slogans followed including #AllLivesMatter, which many see as a counter to the movement focused on people of color, #ChristianLivesMatter, which focuses on religious freedoms, and #BlueLivesMatter, which focuses on police officers. Hebert told the station that Lamar Advertising has now placed 302 #BlueLivesMatter billboards across the nation with the message. However, some see the campaign as a means of belittling the #BlackLivesMatter movement and co-opting activists' messaging. "I think in some aspects it's shameful that the brand is being co-opted, but once again it was never meant to say 'only black lives matter,'" Darel Ross, co-executive director of LINC Community Revitalization Inc, told WXMI-TV. "Black lives matter was simply to call attention to a unique set of circumstances that was happening in the black community; and to any way undermine that, or belittle that, ultimately in no way shape or form adds to the relationship between police officers and the black community, or the community at large, because most people get it," Meanwhile, in 2011, Lamar Advertising was involved in another controversial campaign. The company put up a billboard sponsored by anti-abortion group, Life Always, showing a young black girl in a pink dress and the words "the most dangerous place for an African-American is in the womb," according to The New York Times . After a few days, the company took the billboard down because workers at a restaurant attached to the building housing the sign were being harassed by patrons who objected to the message and a planned protest by people who opposed to the billboard prompted public safety concerns, CNN reported.
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ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) The season is over for reliever Brett Cecil, who has a torn left calf muscle and has been replaced on Toronto's postseason roster. Rookie right-hander Ryan Tepera was added to Toronto's roster on Saturday. Tepera had a 3.27 ERA in 32 appearances over three stints with the Blue Jays this season. Cecil said Saturday that he won't need surgery and will be ready for spring training. He got hurt while tagging out Mike Napoli in a rundown than ended the eighth inning of the Blue Jays' 6-4 loss to Texas on Friday that gave the Rangers a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five series. While Cecil initially thought he only had a cramp, he said the ''pain took over'' once the adrenaline quickly wore off after the inning-ending play.
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China is becoming a smoker's paradise and a doctor's nightmare. Cigarettes are an increasingly gendered health risk in China, according to a new study that reports 68% of Chinese men smoke, compared to just 3.2% of women. The study of male and female smoking trends, published in medical journal The Lancet on Oct. 8, doesn't mince words when it comes to health risks. The authors conclude that smoking will cause roughly one in five adult male deaths in China during the current decade. And the fatality rate will rise steadily without preventative action. "About two-thirds of young Chinese men become cigarette smokers, and most start before they are 20. Unless they stop, about half of them will eventually be killed by their habit," study co-author Zhengming Chen from the University of Oxford wrote in a statement. The report, which studied a total of 730,000 people in China, warned that tobacco caused about one million deaths in 2010. Unless smokers give up the habit en masse, the death toll will rise to two million in 2030 and three million in 2050. A separate Lancet article on how to reduce smoking in China warned that although men are most obviously at risk, they are not the only ones affected. Young women are an attractive target to the tobacco industry, and hold "the allure of increasing sales by crafting appeals based on themes of independence, glamour, sophistication, sexuality, and social acceptance." The authors of that study, Jeffrey Koplan and Michael Eriksen of the Emory Global Health Institute in Atlanta, noted that while still only a relatively small percentage of total smokers, young women have increased their tobacco usage "substantially" since the 1980s. The report also notes several political issues that make it difficult to reduce China's fondness for tobacco: Complicating any efforts to reduce the public health burden of tobacco is the fact that China is the world's largest grower, manufacturer, and consumer of tobacco and has the largest workforce devoted to tobacco farming, manufacturing, and sales. Being a government monopoly, China Tobacco (the Chinese National Tobacco Corporation) provides over 7% of the Central Government's annual revenue through both taxes and net income. Widespread misinformation about tobacco in China is not helping public information efforts. Popular myths claim that smoking is less hazardous to Asian people and that tobacco is an "intrinsic and ancient part of Chinese culture," according to Koplan and Eriksen. To combat the health risk, earlier this year Beijing introduced a smoking ban in all offices, shopping malls, restaurants, bars and airports. Some four million smokers live in Beijing, smoking an average of 14.6 cigarettes per day, according to Global Times. But an earlier attempt to ban the practice in 2008 was widely ignored and it remains to be seen whether the latest ban will have an effect.
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Consumers, take note. This week saw several recalls, affecting a wide range of popular products from cheese to Cheerios to highchairs. Here's what you need to know: Cheerios Item recalled: Cheerios and Honey Nut Cheerios cereal that were produced at one location on certain dates are being recalled. Why: General Mills (GIS) is voluntarily recalling the cereal due to an undeclared wheat allergen. More details: Consumers with wheat or gluten sensitivity or intolerance should not consume the affected items and should contact the company to replace the item or refund the purchase price. For more information, click here . Highchairs Item recalled: The Safety 1st Décor Wood Highchair recall includes three models. They were sold at a range of retailers including Babies R US, Toys R Us, Amazon.com (AMZN) and Wal-Mart's (WMT) website. Why: The company has received 68 reports of children removing the trays. This has resulted in 11 reports of injuries, including lacerations, chipped teeth and bruises. How many: About 35,000 chairs are affected. More details: Buyers should immediately stop using the highchairs and contact Safety 1st to get new trays with labels. For more info about models involved and additional details, click here . Whole Foods cheese Item recalled: The grocery chain (WFM) recalled all cut, wrapped and weighed Papillon organic Roquefort cheese. Why: The cheese has the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, an organism that can cause serious infections in at-risk groups. Routine FDA sampling found the organism in a whole, uncut cheese wheel. More details: No illnesses have been reported yet. Whole Foods has pulled all affected items from shelves. Customers who bought the cheese will get a full refund from the store once they bring in their receipt. For more info, click here . Trader Joe's granola Item recalled: New England Natural Bakers issued a voluntary recall of certain Trader Joe's Coconut Cranberry Granola boxes Wednesday. Why: The packages of coconut cranberry granola contain pecan praline granola, which contains milk, wheat and tree nuts. These ingredients could cause a serious, life-threatening reaction in those who are allergic. How many: The recall affects one lot, or 747 cases. The items were distributed to Trader Joe's stores in Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Utah, Virginia, Vermont and Washington D.C. More details: One allergic reaction has been reported to date. The grocery chain has removed it from store shelves. Click here for more info. Recreational off-highway vehicles Item recalled: This recall involves the 2015 Polaris RZR recreational off-highway vehicles (ROV): RZR 900, RZR S 900, RZR 900 XC, RZR 4 900, RZR XP 1000 and RZR XP4 1000 recreational off-highway vehicles. Why: Due to a fuel tank vent line problem, the fuel tank poses a fire hazard if it becomes pressurized and leaks fuel. How many: Roughly 53,000 vehicles are affected. More details: The company has received 29 reports of fuel leaks and two reports of vehicles catching on fire and one minor burn injury. Customers should immediately stop using the vehicles and get a free repair from a local Polaris dealer. Click here for more info.
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Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, accused of deserting his post in Afghanistan six years ago before his capture by the Taliban, should get no jail time, the investigator looking into his case says. Bergdahl's attorney, Yale Law School lecturer Eugene Fidell, released a document late Friday that cited comments from the investigating officer in a preliminary hearing held weeks ago at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston that suggest prison isn't an option in the case. The Army has not released the recommendation from Lt. Col. Mark Visger, and a spokesman for the service's Fort Bragg, North Carolina-based Forces Command, Paul Boyce, declined to confirm the report Saturday, saying "we continue to maintain careful respect for the military judicial process, the rights of the accused, and ensuring the case's fairness and impartiality." The head of Forces Command is free to follow Visger's recommendation or take a different course of action under military law. The filing by Fidell and military defense counsel Franklin Rosenblatt didn't cite a specific statement from Visger stating that Bergdahl should be spared jail time, even though the desertion count carries a five-year sentence and another change, misbehavior before the enemy, carries a maximum of life in prison. However, the defense filing issued Friday stated that "(Rule for Court-Martial) 306(b) requires that offenses be disposed of at "the lowest appropriate level of disposition." Given your conclusion - with which we agree - about whether confinement or a punitive discharge are warranted, and the factors you cited in support of that conclusion, nonjudicial punishment under Article 15, UCMJ, is the appropriate disposition." Fidell has repeatedly pointed to testimony during the Article 32 hearing at Fort Sam from a two-star general who investigated the case in arguing that Bergdahl, 29, of Hailey, Idaho, should not get jail time. The defense wants Bergdahl released from the Army with his veterans benefits intact so he can continue to receive government care for health problems that were brought about by his captivity. [email protected]
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Apple has released its flagship phone for the next year. Here's how it's different. The new Apple iPhone 6S , released in September 2015, follows the company's distinct "Tick-Tock" pattern when it comes to smartphones: refresh the phone's look one year ("Tick") while improving internal specs and features the next ("Tock"). Both parts of the iPhone cycle often bring new features. But while one iPhone gets its foot in the door with the help of an updated look, its younger but supercharged successor is frequently met with one recurring question: "how's it different?" It's true that iPhone 6S looks very familiar, but it's not an exaggeration to say the changes introduced along with it could affect the smartphone experience forever. Here's how it's different. Design Many saw the iPhone 6, released just over a year ago in September 2014, as a callback to the original iPhone's physical design . For the first time since 2007, the flagship iOS device had an all-aluminum back with rounded edges. That device's antenna lines were reminiscent of HTC's M8 and the phone was Apple's first voyage into larger phone territory sticking with 4 inches and below claiming single-handed usability trumped all. Well, good news for those that liked that design: Apple's giving it an encore. But also making sure to address a few of its most glaring shortcomings. The iPhone 6S looks exactly like the iPhone 6. Minus those ugly markings at the bottom Last year, some iPhone 6 Plus users noticed their device was bending through standard use around the area where the volume buttons were located. Popular gadget journalist Lewis of Unbox Therapy put a spotlight on the "Bendgate" issue pointing out that thinner aluminum has a harder time retaining its shape. In response, Apple has opted for 7000 Series aluminum alloy this time (which the company happily points out is used in the aerospace industry). iPhone 6S owners will probably notice the same-looking phone now feels heavier, and it is: the iPhone 6S weighs 5.04 ounces while the iPhone 6 weighs 4.55 ounces, though that difference is due to other factors as well as the case. But I personally preferred this change. Though it's not entirely about looks. " Design is how it works " as the late Apple founder Steve Jobs once famously said. What functionality has been added? 3D Touch The Apple Watch's Force Touch made way for 3D Touch on the iPhone 6S When the iPhone debuted in 2007, Apple touted the device's inclusion of multi-touch allowing touchscreen users to pinch the screen with two fingers and zoom-in. Cupertino didn't invent multi-touch, but it made it a default feature for nearly every smartphone after it. The original iPhone didn't have copy/paste, 3G or even video recording. But if you planned on making a phone anytime after 2007, multi-touch was now mandatory. This year on the iPhone 6S, Apple's inclusion of a new touchscreen interactivity feature called 3D Touch is on this same level of significance. The traditional desktop has matured to allow multiple avenues to arrive at the same destination. Menu bar options, menus activated by right-clicking your mouse cursor, and keyboard shortcuts all allow you to copy, paste, highlight, preview and overall bend the computing experience to what's most comfortable for you. 3D Touch (which if you're like me, you'll continue to call Force Touch for a while , as it is the name of the feature as originally introduced on the Apple Watch) brings a similar paradigm shift when it comes to adding more functionality to the touchscreen beyond the familiar actions of tap, tap and hold ("long press"), and pinch. Pushing quickly but firmly into a homescreen icon causes a stylish translucent menu to appear over that icon, letting you select between various options. These let you jump directly into the section of the app you want from the homescreen itself. But this is just the tip of the iceberg, and relatively boring compared to what 3D Touch allows for inside of apps. Now, for example, when someone texts you a link in the Apple Messages app, pushing into it previews the webpage in a separate window. Pushing with even more force fully opens up the website in the Safari app. Apple calls these actions "Peek" and "Pop," and they work in a few third-party apps too, like Instagram and Dropbox. But I'm expecting more third-party developers to take advantage of the new functionality in the coming weeks and months, and that will truly make 3D Touch not just cool to use, but nearly indispensable. Live Photos capture motion from before and after you snap a photo Apple's also bringing GIF-style animated photo creation to iOS with Live Photos. On by default, camera users can use 3D Touch to push into their photo and reveal a few seconds before and after the shot was taken. As we see above with BB-8. The new multitasking gesture I previously criticized makes much more sense when used with 3D Touch. Similar to the right-swipe to move back gesture, swiping right and pushing inward reveals the most recently used apps. Doing it quickly brings you straight to your last app. Based on the new affordances of this feature, I can almost see a future where Apple doesn't include a home button at all, relying solely on 3D Touch for navigation in and out of apps. But I can't talk about 3D Touch without mentioning text selection. Push into the keyboard to move the cursor, let up and push in again to select text. Game-changer. Touch ID Apple introduced their fingerprint reader alongside the iPhone 5S back in 2013. Instead of requiring a four or more digit passcode to enter the device, TouchID allowed Apple to integrate a fingerprint scanner into the home button allowing you to wake your device and enter it with just one tap. Many of the competition like Samsung's latest devices have caught up and added fingerprint sensors to their phones as well. The iPhone 6S one-ups the competition by making it nearly instantaneous. The new fingerprint sensor is good. Almost too good, actually. Your first week or two, new iPhone 6S owners are bound to accidentally enter the phone multiple times when they simply wanted to view their latest notifications. Thankfully, Apple also clearly thought about this when designing the software for the new iPhone as well: the new Notifications Center in iOS 9 presents your notifications in chronological order, ensuring that you don't miss the latest information when waking the phone and quickly entering with Touch ID. 3D Touch is a novel feature. Though the faster TouchID sensor is the most important aspect of the iPhone 6S right now. The iPhone 5S and 6 required users to deliberately leave their finger to let it be scanned when entering the device. The 6s, however, feels like it employs an invisible barrier to keep out strangers there when you need it, seemingly invisible when you don't. TouchID on the iPhone 6S is overeager. At first this was kind of annoying, but a week in I now appreciate the speed. It's especially noticeable when going back and forth between Apple's latest iPads or the iPhone 6. Hopefully Cupertino adds the faster Touch ID to its tablets soon. Hey Siri The iPhone 6S uses optimizations to Apple's M9 processor to keep the device always listening for the phrase "Hey Siri," so you no longer need to long press the home button on your new iPhone to access Apple's digital assistant. "Hey Siri" is also available to older iPhone users when their devices have been updated to iOS 9 and remain plugged in via a charging cable. So now won't all iPhones sound off when someone says "Hey Siri" in a crowd of people? Thankfully, no. The iOS 9 software update also asks you to "train," Siri to recognize only your voice. Similar to TouchID, users say a few phrases so Siri can get accustomed to the sound of your voice, and identify it from everyone else's. Apple's assistant may still not be as feature-filled as Google Now's voice features , being able to summon Siri using only your voice feels right. While I now never use the home button to access Siri, I actually use her more than before. Also, the new Siri waveform animations and splashes of color in the background look cooler than ever. Camera After four entire years of the iPhone's 8-megapixel shooter, Apple's flagship device has finally received an increase. The rear iSight shooter now weighs in at 12 megapixels while the front-facing FaceTime camera measures up to 5 megapixels now up from 1.2. For the past few years, Apple has claimed that many phone manufacturers put too much emphasis on increasing the pixel count and not addressing other areas that matter pixel size, for example. Here's the iPhone 6S camera in action: iPhone 6 above. And now iPhone 6S. Very similar shots from this distance. Though the increase to 12-megapixels now makes 4K video a possibility on the iPhone. A feature video enthusiasts will surely appreciate down the road. iOS 9 There are many new features that come standard with iOS now in the latest iteration, iOS 9. So much so that it's almost deserving of its own, separate post. But there a few new features here that greatly affect using the new iPhone 6S. Abilities like the app switcher 3D Touch gesture and Live Photos are 6S-specific iOS 9 features. And options like "Back To" your previous app in the top left of the screen, or Siri searching your email for phone number caller ID, are useful (even if the latter only works with Apple's Mail client). But the most striking aspect in terms of using the phone day-to-day comes in the form of iOS 9's ad blockers. In short: Browsing the web on the iPhone is now inherently faster than on Google's Android devices . To the chagrin of some web publishers and advertising companies, Apple has built-in the ability for apps to plug into the Safari web browser and other web views on the iPhone, and block the advertisements that ordinarily would show up on webpages. Apps like Crystal, Purify and (formerly) Peace prevent the browsing experience from being muddied by distracting advertisements. Meaning your favorite sites will probably see less revenue, since you're not seeing or clicking on those ads, but also browsing the web on iOS is now a much smoother experience, since the ads no longer have to download onto your device. We saw Apple play this card in the war against Adobe Flash . When the iPhone was first released Apple argued similar to ads today that Flash added unnecessary cruft to websites and, therefore, had to go. Flash was tightly integrated into most websites, but it was in the name of a better browsing experience. The difference between Flash and ads is it's also in Apple's best interest monetarily: ads are a huge revenue source for, you guessed it, Google. The search company last year made 75% of its revenue $9 billion from Apple's iOS. Very bad news for Alphabet . Anyway, back to the phone review. Battery The iPhone 6S battery is largely similar to the iPhone 6 battery. Unlike "S" releases, the 6S battery is smaller than the option before it: the 6S 1715 mAh is down from the iPhone 6's 1810 mAh. Though while smaller than before, the iPhone still gets about the same lifespan presumably due to software optimization on Apple's part. We should note, our iPhone 6S review unit is of the TMSC variety. Whew . The iPhone was never one to win the spec race. It's important to note you'll probably find beefier batteries on the Android side. You'll have to plug in at least once a day with the iPhone 6S still. Apple has made quality over the years. But quality comes with a price... Price Apple's iPhone 6S, like most iPhones before it, isn't cheap. But there are more options than ever in affording one. Apple divvies up the iPhone price in a few ways. If you're willing to sign a two-year contract, the 6S starts at $200. If you can't sign one or don't want to, the device starts at $650. But if you really want to be on the cutting edge, Apple has a new option for you. The Apple Upgrade Program lets you get the newest iPhone for starting at $32 a month. It comes with AppleCare (usually costs $130 on its own), the device is unlocked and users can upgrade to the new iPhone each year if they give back the previous one. Some may prefer their carriers leasing programs or buying the phone outright. Though it could be cost effective for Apple users who know which phone they are upgrading to each year. It's always good to have more options. But what isn't good is Apple's $650 option still ships with only 16GB. It's easy to see why Apple positions their lineup as 16/64/128GB: spending an extra $100 for 64GB versus 16GB is a no-brainer in a way 64GB versus 32GB isn't. There's a reason Cupertino counts its profit using billions . But screwing over your budget buyers isn't okay. Especially not for a company who prides themselves on their sharp focus on user experience. I can only imagine how many entry-level Apple users enter in at 16GB and exit the same way they came because Android phones, not only start at 32GB, but support micro-SD cards for expandable memory. Change this when the iPhone 7 launches, Apple. Final Word The iPhone 6S is last year's 6 with a better camera, silky smooth Touch ID and 3D Touch capabilities. At the moment, the most noticeable improvement will be the twice as fast fingerprint sensor. But going forward like the swipe-right-from-the-edge back gesture in iOS 3D Touch will be most interesting when every app supports Apple's pressure sensitivity option. On occasion an app developer will add in an idea that becomes ubiquitous for all apps after it. Along with actions like Apple's pinch to zoom come third party solutions like Tweetie's Pull To Refresh technique both now a standard part of apps. What will be the 3D Touch equivalent of these essential inclusions? With the iPhone 6S, Apple has given app developers the power of the force and that's what makes this phone different. You know, along with the bad a** text selection. Text selection with 3D Touch
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A video posted to a social media website shows the moment a huge blast exploded in a crowd of protesters holding a peace rally in Turkey killing 30 people and leaving hundreds wounded. Rough Cut (no reporter narration).
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High up in one of Hong Kong's ubiquitous skyscrapers a group of women are being put through their paces, straining against the weight of a novel training accessory -- their children. Dubbed 'Mumba' these exercise classes are a new twist on the baby-wearing trend gripping mothers in the city. Once the preserve of traditional communities, the art of wrapping a baby across a caregiver's body so it can be carried during daily activities is being taken up by modern parents. In Hong Kong, where narrow hilly streets and unforgiving urban landscape often render strollers and prams useless -- many frustrated parents are now going back to basics out of necessity. Proving the old adage, invention has followed. 'Mumba' fitness, baby-wearing bellydance, ballet, yoga and pilates classes, and even suspension training (TRX) classes have sprung up in recent months -- all allowing parents to exercise while their baby is strapped to them in a carrier. "There is huge demand from mums who wanted to get back in shape and to get strong again after the challenges of labour, but who also didn't want to leave their young babies behind while they spent time exercising," explains Ifat Hindes, co-founder of Mumba Fitness. "We have combined different types of exercise including yoga, dance, TRX, and pilates, and the bonus is that you are using your baby for weight training," she says. "There's no need for expensive gadgets -- it's just you and your baby, with other parents, being guided by a professional. You know everyone is in the same boat. Hong Kong can be a difficult and unwelcoming city for new mothers." - Back in vogue - While in many cities frazzled parents can soothe their baby -- and stretch their legs -- by strolling through the park with the pram, Hong Kong's high-rise living and unwieldy streets can leave many here feeling trapped and lonely in relatively small apartments. New mother Angela Gou explains: "I was looking for a way to get out and meet other mums. I always want to exercise but it's hard to leave the baby at home. So these sessions solve the problem. Plus my baby likes it and thinks we're playing a game." Most baby-wearing exercise programmes recommend infants are three months or older to take part to ensure adequate neck control, and check positioning to ensure babies hips are protected. Chartered physiotherapist Helen Binge, who runs paediatric firm Physiobaby, told AFP: "The growing trend to exercise whilst baby-wearing is fine, as long as the baby sling is very supportive, and the activity level of the baby wearer is not too vigorous." From structured types for sport to traditional woven cloth style, there is now a baby-wearing option for every occasion. "Carriers have been used across cultures for thousands of years, but, like breastfeeding, went out of 'vogue' for a long period as people moved toward a more product-driven approach toward caring for small babies," says Trish Kelly who co-founded Hong Kong's Babywearing group. She adds that renewed interest in natural birth and breastfeeding has meant traditional approaches to child-rearing are back in fashion. "But for Hong Kong I think it comes down to practicality. Moms like what works. Baby-wearing is a practical way of getting around. It is notoriously wheelchair and stroller unfriendly -- I feel like every ramp has a set of stairs at the end." - On every parent's list - Retailers and fitness services in the city have picked up on this desire for a practical solution. Mey Jen, director of Oasis Dance Centre, adapted her traditional belly-dancing class to incorporate baby-wearing after requests from mothers desperate to keep up with their hobby once their children were born. She says: "The mothers want to belly-dance and they want to be with their babies at the same time. The little ones react very naturally to the beats and the movement. Often the babies become very calm and fall asleep." Hong Kong retailer Bumps to Babes has seen carrier sales jump by nine percent in 2015. Director Katrin Walker comments: "Virtually every new parent who comes into the store has it on their list and we highly recommend them. Parents that think a pushchair is the only thing they need invariably come back within the first month to buy one anyway." Victoria Chuard who runs local boutique Petit Tippi adds demand for activewear wraps is rising. "Since we began selling the Wrapsody Duo -- which is perfect for exercise, swimming, even showering if you can't put your baby down and desperately need one, as well as normal use -- we have seen a 200 percent increase in sales," she explains. Brands such as Ergo, which has a carrier that allows the baby to be carried on the hip, on the front or at the back, are now as well known to parents as big stroller names such as Bugaboo and Maclaren in the city. Mother-of-two Kelly says: "I have three high-end strollers that have sat mostly unused since I began wearing. It's simplified things." © 1994-2015 Agence France-Presse
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US President Barack Obama meets with relatives of victims of a deadly rampage at a community college in Oregon, as shootings on two other university campuses leave two people dead and four wounded.
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An organization called the Global Rally for Humanity is organizing a series of events this weekend in at least 20 U.S. cities to protest Islam, targeting mosques, community centers and government offices. "Standing up against Islam does not mean you're a racist or a bigot, it simply means you're not an idiot and can see the reality of Islam around the world," rally organizers wrote on their Facebook page. "The world is saying no to Islam." Numerous mosques have upped security because of the rallies, which are being organized via social media. The Council on American-Islamic Relations is working with Islamic community leaders to notify local authorities in the cities where rallies are planned. Rally organizers in New York City suggest demonstrators target mosques in all five boroughs. In Dearborn, Michigan, protesters are being asked to bring their weapons for an "open carry, anti-mosque, pro-America rally." "Organizers of the hate rallies have indicated that participants in states with open carry laws may be armed and that provocations such as the use of live pigs and Quran desecrations may occur," the Council on American-Islamic Relations said in a statement. "The anti-Islam rallies come at a time of increased hate-motivated crimes and bias incidents nationwide targeting persons and property associated, or perceived to be associated, with Islam and the American Muslim community."
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This year, Donald Trump has been running the first true Twitter presidential campaign. As the New York Times's Michael Barbaro wrote on Monday , he's using the platform "as a tool of political promotion, distraction, score-settling and attack" distributing his message, or whatever the hell else is on his mind, in short bursts for free. Trump has gone far beyond what other politicians or campaigns have done and developed his own unique Twitter style. The Trumpiest tweets have some combination of braggadocio about the billionaire's supposed awesomeness, personal and petty insults aimed at people he's feuding with, and disciplined recitation of campaign talking points with some bizarre, unpredictable, offensive, or factually inaccurate twist. All of that has to be packed into a mere 140 characters. So we're going to periodically check in and evaluate how Trump's latest Twitter efforts are going by rating selected tweets of his on a scale of "one Trump" to "five Trumps." Now, a rating of "five Trumps" should not be construed as an endorsement of these tweets. Instead, it is an impartial metric of their Trumpiness level. Read on for the first ratings. Trump insults and perhaps defames Erick Erickson of RedState Wow, great news! I hear @EWErickson of Red State was fired like a dog. If you read his tweets, you'll understand why. Just doesn't have IT! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 8, 2015 Trump tweeted insults at several people or groups he was feuding with this week Politico , political consultant Stuart Stevens , the Club for Growth but this one, aimed at Erick Erickson of the conservative website RedState , rises above the rest and is easily the Trumpiest of the week. The diss tweet the latest salvo in a months-long feud that started back in August when Erickson disinvited Trump from a RedState gathering due to his sexist comments about Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly features some genuine-sounding enthusiasm ("Wow, great news!") and a gratuitous personal putdown ("just doesn't have IT!"). It also appears to be factually inaccurate, which is often the case with Trump Erickson says he wasn't fired and has called the tweet "defamatory." But the real difference-maker here is Trump's use of the bizarre phrase "fired like a dog." Can dogs be fired? Does Donald Trump fire his dogs due to poor performance? Is it because they don't love him enough? This tweet leaves the reader with all of these intriguing questions, and for that reason, it earns the coveted five-Trump rating. Trump tweets about the House speaker election Great, Kevin McCarthy drops out of SPEAKER race. We need a really smart and really tough person to take over this very important job! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 8, 2015 The details of legislative politics are not Trump's strong suit. When he first heard that John Boehner planned to resign the speakership and was asked who should replace him, Trump attempted to disguise his ignorance by saying , "They probably have four or five good choices," but refusing to name any. Accordingly, this tweet is a perfunctory effort from Trump one might even call it "low-energy." The random capitalization of "SPEAKER" is only mildly bizarre. A Trumpier tweet would have tried to claim personal credit for McCarthy's downfall, even though he obviously had nothing to do with it (Trump did just that at a later campaign event). Or perhaps he could have included a more direct personal insult at someone, anyone. So my view is that this tweet fell short of its Trump-y potential, and I award it a mere one Trump. Trump brags that "many Hispanics" love him Just leaving Las Vegas. Unbelievable crowd! Many Hispanics who love me and I love them! https://t.co/t7hzDV9wEr Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 8, 2015 There are no insults here, but this is a pretty Trump-y tweet all the same. There's the bragging about his crowd size, which is common by now. But more importantly, Trump makes a racially tinged remark about "Hispanics" that bears a close resemblance to his extremely awkward 2011 statement that he has "a great relationship with the blacks." The tweet also advances a campaign talking point Trump's bonkers, alternate-reality assertion that he'll "win the Latino vote" despite his slurs against Mexican immigrants . As such, it's sufficiently bold and self-impressed to earn the rating of three Trumps. Trump preps for a poll party Heading to a packed house in Waterloo, Iowa! Will celebrate today's great poll numbers together. See you soon! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2015 Most politicians pretend they're above such grubby things as polls but not Donald Trump. He constantly measures the worth of himself and his rivals by whether they're "winners" or "losers" in the latest numbers. So of course Trump would consider a campaign rally an occasion to "celebrate today's great poll numbers." This tweet could only be made Trumpier by adding a gratuitous insult or a related boast about his TV ratings . As it is, it merits an impressive four-Trump rating.
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Although SEC competition is fiercely competitive, play on the gridiron will always take a backseat to humanity. LSU raises the South Carolina flag at Tiger Stadium: http://t.co/SEZgMBA6k0 pic.twitter.com/GD2MdEpWC1 NCAA Football (@NCAAFootball) October 10, 2015 In the week leading up to the contest with South Carolina, LSU has demonstrated immense acts of kindness in honor of those affected by the catastrophic flooding in Columbia. This axiom continued on gameday in Baton Rouge. The Red Cross is here and will be accepting donations for South Carolina at the north & south sides of the stadium. pic.twitter.com/t4Ta4cRL1h Tiger TV (@lsutigertv) October 10, 2015 The South Carolina state flag has been prominently displayed on all jumbotrons within Tiger Stadium. An actual South Carolina state flag has also been raised at the top of the stadium. Red Cross donation areas have been played at the north and south sides of the stadium. LSU is truly attempting to recreate a Columbia-like atmosphere for the Gamecocks. The university deserves considerable credit for its classy gestures. Tiger Stadium jumbotrons displaying the South Carolina state flag. #LSU pic.twitter.com/2xH22zJfxd Marcus Rodrigue (@RodrigueAdv) October 10, 2015
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WASHINGTON The Republican scramble for the next Speaker of the House will top discussions on the Sunday talk shows. California Rep. Kevin McCarthy shocked fellow Republicans Thursday when he abruptly dropped his bid for speaker. McCarthy, the majority leader, had hoped to replace Rep. John Boehner of Ohio, who plans to step down at the end of the month. Republicans are trying to persuade Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan, chairman of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee and a former GOP vice presidential nominee, to run for speaker. Ryan has said he isn't interested in the job. Republican Reps. Jason Chaffetz of Utah and Daniel Webster of Florida are competing for the post. The leadership battle has thrown the party into chaos. The 2016 presidential election will also be a topic on the shows. Republican presidential hopefuls Donald Trump and Ben Carson, who are leading in the polls, will be guests. Louisiana Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal, who is also running for president, but trailing far behind them in the polls, will also appear. Here are some of the guests in the lineup: • CBS' Face the Nation : Trump, Carson, Rep. Mick Mulvaney, R-S.C. • NBC's Meet the Press : Republican Reps. Dave Brat of Virginia and Charles Dent of Pennsylvania on the GOP leadership race. • CNN's State of the Union : Martin O'Malley, former governor of Maryland and Democratic presidential candidate. • Fox News Sunday : Former Republican Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, head of the conservative Freedom Caucus. • ABC's This Week: Jindal, Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, who is running for speaker of the House and Michael Leiter, former top counterterror official. • WUSA's Capital Download with Derek McGinty and Susan Page (Washington, D.C. bureau): Carson and Ben Bernanke, former Federal Reserve chairman. Contact Deborah Barfield Berry at [email protected] . Twitter: @dberrygannett
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Ezekiel Hernandez of Pahokee High School hits this RIDICULOUSLY long field goal.
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FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. One of three Northern Arizona University fraternity members wounded in a campus shooting had never met the student suspected of opening fire on the group, the victim's mother said Saturday. Kimberly Prato said one of the first things she asked her son, Nicholas, when she saw him in a Flagstaff hospital was who shot him. "He said 'Mom, I don't know the kid. I never saw him before in my life," Prato told The Associated Press. "He said 'I saw him for a second and then saw a flashlight and heard the gunshots.'" Authorities say freshman Steven Jones opened fire with a .40 caliber handgun after a brawl erupted between two groups of students early Friday. Student Colin Brough was killed. All four victims belonged to Delta Chi fraternity. Nicholas Prato suffered a gunshot wound to his neck in the early Friday shooting but was released by the afternoon. "It completely went through his neck. If it was a quarter inch to the left, it would have hit his carotid artery," Kimberly Prato said. The other two victims, Kyle Zientek and Nicholas Piring, remain hospitalized. NAU spokeswoman Janea (jah-NAY') Laudick said the victims' families requested privacy and that no additional information be released. Brough and Prato were best friends, according to Kimberly Prato. Nicholas Prato, a junior, attended a candlelight vigil Friday held by the fraternity. "Nicholas felt a very strong urge to pay tribute to his best friend and to be with his brothers," Prato said. "He got up and dressed himself and was really adamant about not missing the vigil. He emotionally needed to do that." Brough's father, Doug Brough, visited a makeshift memorial at the shooting site Saturday. Brough, of Castle Rock, Colorado, told The Arizona Republic (http://bit.ly/1R4AbaO) that he didn't understand why an 18-year-old had a pistol in his car. "The only thing I have to say is somebody needs to do something about the gun laws," Brough said. Jones was booked Friday on one count of first-degree homicide and three counts of aggravated assault. Jones told police he shot the group of students only after they hit him in the face and chased him, according to court documents. He also said he tried to administer first aid to one of the victims. Prosecutors, however, said the suspect's account amounted to a "self-serving" statement and alleged Jones was the aggressor. Despite defense attorney Burges McCowan's request that Jones be released to his parents in Glendale, Arizona, a judge ordered him held on a $2 million bond. McCowan declined to comment Saturday. Northern Arizona University has more than 25,000 total undergraduate students at the campus in Flagstaff, a city about two hours north of Phoenix that is surrounded by mountains and ponderosa pines. The city of 70,000 people has a reputation for being a safe place and typically records only one murder per year.
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Unravel marks a big change for Sweden-based developer Coldwood Interactive. Announced at E3 2015 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Windows PC, the game follows a cuddly red creature made of yarn (aptly named Yarny). Players navigate Yarny through a lively world based on the dev's homeland; however, Yarny can only move as long as he has spare string to tug along. The result is a mix of planning and platforming, with players searching for more string as they explore and using what they have to reach new areas. Yarny's thread serves as both a tool for players and a metaphorical interpretation of the game; Unravel tells the story of a woman losing her family. It's a tale of emotional bonds that falls far from the dev's previous games, which include titles such as Move Fitness , The Fight - Lights Out and onGolf . Creative director Martin Sahlin told Polygon that while past games did well for the studio, he's happier to focus on something different. "it's about reaching out, trying to mend a broken bond" "For me, it feels like I'm kind of done with that other type of game," Sahlin said. "It is also an emotional investment to do something like this. It can be quite draining as well as it is rewarding. It's not like I'm against the other type of game, which is why that I think it's important that both kinds exist. "But working on this has been so very different from all the other stuff we've done before. It's been so much better in so many ways." Sahlin goes back to the idea that Unravel is about connections. Working on the game is in some ways an emotional drain, he said, but he declines to answer specifically for fear of "getting too personal." "Since the whole game is about trying to mend broken bonds, it's obviously inspired by watching people who don't quite do what you think they should be doing," he said. Later, he added, "Internally, I've been joking at the studio that if we make one person call their mom, it's a success." From hands-on time with the game, it seems at first like a strange goal. Yarny uses his threads to make trampolines and rocket through the air, and he moves like a climber scaling trees and walls. It's a surprisingly difficult game in which I found myself puzzled on what to do next until I found use for an apple on the ground, or figured out where to tie specific knots. According to Sahlin, it's not meant to be difficult, but in some ways it's essential to Unravel 's personality. "It's a matter of getting people stuck in the right places, rather than the wrong places," he said. "I want things to be easy to do, once you figure them out. "The thing about difficulty for me is that since the game is very symbolic it's about reaching out, trying to mend a broken bond, you don't really do that without effort. I think there has to be some level of effort into it. You have to work for it, in order for it to mean something. If it was just like watching a pretty movie, I think it wouldn't connect with you in the same way. But it's a balancing act, because you don't want it to be frustrating." For Sahlin, Unravel 's achievements will depend on a different metric than a typical game. Selling copies is nice, but he'll consider it a successful project if it can make people happy. "If people don't smile after playing it," he said, "if they aren't moved, if they aren't in some way touched by it, then I guess we didn't do our jobs."
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KANSAS CITY, Mo. Alex Rios bounced through four organizations and played nearly 1,700 games before he finally appeared in a postseason game with the Kansas City Royals on Thursday night. It hasn't taken Kyle Schwarber or Carlos Correa nearly as long. The Cubs slugger and slick-fielding Astros star headline a wave of youngsters making their playoff debuts this year. But there are also plenty of players that are finally getting a taste of October baseball after years spent toiling on losing clubs. Rios spent most of six seasons with Toronto, and even made a pair of All-Star appearances, but never reached the playoffs. He failed to accomplish it in parts of five seasons with the White Sox, and while playing for the Rangers over the past couple of years. Ironically, the Blue Jays and Rangers are playing each other in this year's postseason "Finally," Rios said before the Royals played Houston in Game 1. "This was one of the things I considered when I was about to sign my deal. So I think I made the right choice." The Royals rolled to the World Series a year ago, and returned most of the key pieces from that club. So, Rios figured the one-year, $11 million deal he signed with Kansas City would give him a good chance of playing truly meaningful games he played 1,691 contests in the regular season before this postseason. That total is by far the most of anybody making his playoff debut this year. "He's a big part of why we're here, and what he was able to do for us was huge," Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas said. "Last year, (Josh) Willingham hadn't made it to the postseason and this year it's Rios. It's pretty cool. We're happy for him." Joe Bautista played in 1,403 regular-season games, and Edwin Encarnacion in 1,353, before the Blue Jays finished as AL East champs this year. Chase Headley played in 1,122 before reaching the wild-card game with the Yankees, where he went 0 for 2 in their 3-0 loss to Houston. Meanwhile, guys such as Schwarber and Correa are relishing their rapid rise. The Cubs called up the 22-year-old Schwarber in June, which means he played in a whopping 69 games before his club reached the playoffs. Chicago second baseman Tommy La Stella has appeared in 126 over two seasons, and rookie Kris Bryant in just 151 regular-season games. The trio combined? Just 346 games or about a fifth of what Rios has played. "Coming out to the ballpark there are butterflies, and listening to the national anthem and listening to the crowd roar, there's going to be butterflies," said Schwarber, whose two-run homer helped Chicago beat Pittsburgh in the NL wild-card game. "But once that first pitch happens, it's game time. It's time to go. Everything starts to slow down." That professional approach is a big reason why so many young players are playing on such a big stage. None of them seem to be intimidated by the magnitude of the moment. Perhaps they don't know any better. "I mean, this is obviously a hard game," said the Astros' George Springer, a veteran of 180 big league games. "But you have to do anything you can to kind of slow it down and just enjoy the game, and not get stuck on, I guess, the stage or who you're playing, stuff like that." Besides, it takes some players a decade to finally reach the postseason. Might as well enjoy the ride.
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