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253,094 | d393844a51417fd5119b161ede0ebf5c0297c387 | (TIME.com) -- It's one thing to find a strategy that works in the lab, but quite another to prove that it's effective in the real world as well. A decade ago, researchers at the National Institutes of Health made headlines when they published the results of the Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP). The study, which was designed to compare the effects of diet and exercise against the best medications to control the chronic disease, surprisingly showed that diet and exercise were better than the best drugs scientists had developed to protect those at highest risk from developing diabetes. The results were encouraging and disheartening at the time, however, since lifestyle changes are notoriously the most difficult to implement. It's too challenging for patients to stick with a diet and exercise program, and even if they did, their motivation typically wanes after six months. TIME.com: Type 2 diabetes is tougher to treat in kids and teens . But the findings -- the diet and exercise group lowered their risk of getting diabetes by 58% compared to those on medications -- were too stunning to ignore. The DPP relied on intensive and highly individualized coaching to help the patients stay on their diet and fitness regimens. How could the strategies used in the DPP be modified to work in the real world, where personal nutritionists and trainers aren't always at our beck and call? Dr. Jun Ma, an associate investigator at the Palo Alto Medical Foundation Research Institute and a consulting professor at Stanford University, was eager to find out. As a primary care physician, she says, "we know there are huge numbers of patients out there who need this type of intervention. We just don't have the manpower and resources to deliver interventions such as the one tested in the DPP. That motivated me and my collaborators to find practical ways of delivering the principles of DPP in a more realistic manner." TIME Video: Competing in the Olympics with Type 1 diabetes . Ma joined forces with scientists at the University of Pittsburgh who had participated in the government's DPP study and were already tackling that very question. They had developed the Group Lifestyle Balance, a curriculum culled from the DPP that they were testing in both group-based and home-based settings. The 12-week program involved either weekly face-to-face sessions with a registered dietitian and fitness instructor in a class setting in which participants learned and discussed healthy diet and exercise techniques, or a self-motivated program based on DVDs that taught participants similar healthy living techniques. Ma used the same Group Lifestyle Balance curriculum and DVD in her study involving 241 people with pre-diabetes, but modified what the self-motivated group received by adding online and e-mail counseling as well. After three months of intensive training and a year of maintenance sessions, the coach-led group lost an average of 14 pounds, while the DVD group shed 10 pounds; the control group, which received usual care but no specific weight-loss goals, lost only five pounds. More than double the proportion of people using the coach-led sessions (37%) reached the DPP goal of losing 7% of their starting body weight, while 36% of those using DVDs and only 14% of those getting usual care reached that goal. TIME.com: Heart risk for diabetics may be exaggerated . The findings confirm that new strategies for helping at-risk people to control and even reverse impending symptoms may be just as effective, if not more so in some cases, than currently available treatments. "I would want to encourage national initiatives to consider alternative ways for lowering diabetes risk, such as the ones we tested," says Ma. "Based on the evidence, face-to-face interventions seem to have the strongest effect, but there is data accumulating to support alternative delivery strategies such as through DVDs or online. And considering the number of people at risk of diabetes and heart disease, we need to find meaningful and sustainable ways to reach these people." Ma says she and her colleagues intentionally tested strategies such as using e-mail reminders, online counseling and self-initiated DVD sessions because they rely on already-existing resources and would not require extensive investment in infrastructure. While the study only followed the participants for 15 months, Ma says continued research on such alternative strategies may lead to methods that are even longer-lasting and inspire even stronger compliance in the future. "Longer-term follow-up and longer-term success is something that is attracting a lot of research interest right now," she says. And as the results suggest, for good reason. This story was originally published on TIME.com. Diet strategies show promise in lowering risk of diabetes . © 2012 TIME, Inc. TIME is a registered trademark of Time Inc. Used with permission. | Researchers aimed to make the Diabetes Prevention Program strategy more realistic .
In the study, a group led by a fitness coach lost an average of 14 pounds .
Alternative strategies could be an important tool in the fight against diabetes . |
158,226 | 58943c705f18f291d45423935c572afbd4f3c253 | By . Lydia Slater . PUBLISHED: . 17:42 EST, 27 November 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 09:21 EST, 28 November 2013 . Wrapping up warm should be easy this winter. Women have never had such a huge choice of coat styles to wear. Plenty of choice for a woman looking to make a style statement, surely. But beware. Femail has identified the seven coat shapes dominating the shops this winter, and not all of them are flattering to your curves. Big coats dominate. While we women spend hours worrying about whether our jeans make our bottoms look big, or whether our blouses make our arms look chubby, we don't pay as much attention to our outerwear and that's a mistake. The wrong coat could make you look much larger. At first glance, these big beauties shrug on effortlessly over winter woollies and there'd be no trouble doing the buttons up after Christmas dinner. What's more, they keep you lovely and warm. At last, you might think, a fashion trend that works with, rather than against, the needs of real women. But slip them on, and their one disadvantage quickly becomes apparent: they really can make you look enormous. So how does a normal, size 12 woman solve this dilemma? LYDIA SLATER tried on seven of this season's must-have coats over the same little black dress to find out which winter coats slim you - and which pile on the pounds... Maroon mohair coat, £200, topshop.comAn expensive coat which is properly lined, this feels luxurious, and I like the rich colour. In every other respect, it is hideous. The dropped sleeve makes my arms look short and fat, and gives me the shoulders of an American footballer. The cocoon shape curves out over my waist and stomach, and the fuzziness of the mohair fabric adds even more unwanted inches all over. Dress sizes gained: 4Verdict: I have the figure of a portly orangutan. 0/5 . Military coat, £279, HobbsThis coat is cleverly structured to make the most of feminine curves. The waist is nipped in by three rows of buttons, and the skirt flares out to skim gently over the hips, falling to just below the knee. The epaulettes add extra definition to the shoulder, giving an hourglass shape. It does nip around the arms a bit, but could slip over a bulky jumper fairly easily. I feel like a heroine in a black-and-white film. Dress sizes gained: 0Verdict: I feel so trim, and like it so much I've bought it myself for Christmas. 5/5 . KIMONO COAT - LOOKS LIKE A DRESSING GOWN . OVERCOAT - SWAMPED BY SWATHES OF PINK . Powder blue Danielle cape, £195, Coast This elegant cape feels glamorous and expensive, and hurray, it has a tie waist, so it's bound to be more flattering. Or so I thought before I put it on. But the bunched up, draped material doesn't flatter, the hem looks fussy and the abbreviated sleeves make my arms look short. This would make a lovely dressing gown, but it doesn't make me look remotely good enough to consider wearing outdoors. Dress sizes gained: 2Verdict: Surprisingly disappointing. 2/5 . Pink coat, £85, M&SSupposed to be one of the season's must-haves, but I’m disappointed. The wide rolled-up cuffs and dropped shoulder shorten my arms from both ends. I don't like the big, clumsy popper fastenings, but if I wear it done up, the straight shape is swamping. There's not a hint of waist in it. No wonder the model in the advert wears it casually slung over her shoulders to avoid the problem.Dress sizes gained: 1 Verdict: Don't believe the hype. 3/5 . COCOON COAT - DO I LOOK LIKE JACKIE O? NO! Cocoon coat, £450, JaegerThis has a soft, metallic shimmer and a loose, elegant shape with flared sleeves. I hope the effect will be rather Jackie O, but I look like I'm wearing overalls. It feels huge and I look as though I’ve put on at least a stone. It's made worse by the unnecessary patch pockets which add bulk and fussiness to the front. A useful party standby if worn open over a tight little dress, but at this price it ought to work harder than that. Dress sizes gained: 3Verdict: Lovely on the hanger, not so great on the body. 2/5 . Light grey Daisey coat, £279, HobbsA . boyfriend coat that looks elegant and understated on the hanger, but it . swamps me the moment I put it on. There’s acres of spare material under . the arms. The deep V-neck does show off some skin, but the on-the-knee . length means the coat isn’t very versatile — I can’t see it working well . with trousers. It’s relatively wearable, but it makes me look very . broad. Dress sizes gained: 2Verdict: A nice coat, but there’s too much bulk for my liking. 2/5 . OPTICAL ILLUSION - I INSTANTLY FEEL INCHES SLIMMER . 'Mallow' coat, £229, Damselinadress.co.ukThe . optical illusion dress has become a red carpet regular for A-listers; . now here's the equally clever coat version. Black panels on the . shoulders and down the sides slim the waist and hips and make the wearer . seem inches narrower than they are. The cut is similarly flattering, . but I fear the shape would be spoiled over anything more bulky than a . formal dress. Dress sizes gained: 0. Verdict: Elegant but not very warm. 3/5 . STYLING: ELIZA SCARBOROUGH / PICTURES: L+R / HAIR AND MAKE-UP: JULIE READ USING BUMBLE & BUMBLE AND GUERLAIN/ FASHION ASSISTANT: ANTONIA MAGOR . | We've identified the seven coat shapes dominating the shops this winter .
But not all are flattering to your curves .
The wrong coat could make you look much larger .
Size 12 Lydia Slater tested seven to see which will pile on the pounds . |
5,567 | 0fcf42d04efbd42ca0ec1ec598b23916d73c5d65 | There are no brutal climbs, terrifying descents or ferocious man-eating beasts, but walking London's Thames Path has been named one of the world's greatest escapades. The capital's section of the trail that runs from its source in the Cotswolds almost to the North Sea came second in Lonely Planet's top 10 'city hikes'. The 29-mile section of Thames Path from Kingston . eastwards to Greenwich is described in the book as 'a London highlights . reel, passing Kew Gardens, Battersea Park and power station, . Westminster and Big Ben, the Millennium Eye, Shakespeare's Globe and so . on'. Scroll down for video . An ultimate adventure: The Thames Path between Kingston and Greenwich, pictured looking towards Richmond Bridge, has come second in a Lonely Planet list of the world's best city hikes . A world away from London: Cyclists ride along a peaceful section of the Thames Path near Kew . It adds: 'Expect . surprising contrasts: the leafy emptiness of the riverbank through . Richmond and Kew against the chaos of the Southbank, where the entire . world seems to come to meet.' It features in a new Lonely Planet guide book of 1,000 ultimate adventures, which consists of 100 'top 10' lists, showcasing 'the world's most daring, exciting and breathtaking experiences'. The walk was second out of the top 10 'city hikes' behind Tijuca Forest in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It was followed by the Great Coastal Walk in Sydney in third place, the Hoerikwaggo Trail in Cape Town, the Berlin Wall trail, the Seawall in Vancouver, the South Mountain Park in Phoenix and the Coast to Coast walk in Auckland. Starting point: Hampton Court Palace near Kingston Upon Thames is one of the main tourists spots along the route . A quiet corner of London: The section of the path near Richmond, pictured, is described as being leafy and quiet in sharp contrast to the bustling chaos of the Southbank . Runner-up: The Thames path footpath, pictured near Richmond, London, came second behind the Tijuca Forest in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil . The list also included Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh in ninth place followed by the Hong Kong trail in tenth place. Arthur's Seat, a volcanic outcrop overlooking to Scottish capital, was praised for its views of the city landscape. Scotland as a whole was also named as one of the best destinations in the world for adventure travel, as it featured in 20 of the 100 top 10 lists. The country was praised for its treks, mountains and festivals, 'making it one of the best destinations for active travellers and adrenaline junkies'. Looking towards the Thames Barrier, the world's second-largest movable flood barrier, on the southern banks of the Thames on the Thames Path . Award-winning route: The 29-mile section of the Thames Path between Kingston Upon Thames and Greenwich is described as a 'London's highlights reel' Number one: The statue of Christ the Redeemer towers over the 8,150 acre Tijuca National Park, in Rio de Janeiro city, Brazil, which came top of the list for the world's best city walks . The world's best city hikes according to Lonely Planet's 1000 Ultimate Adventures: . 1 Tijuca Forest, Rio de Janeiro . 2 Thames Path, London . 3 Great Coastal Walk, Sydney . 4 Hoerikwaggo Trail, Cape Town . 5 Berlin Wall Trail, Berlin . 6 Seawall, Vancouver . 7 South Mountain Park, Phoenix . 8 Coast to Coast Walk, Auckland . 9 Arthur's Seat, Edinburgh . 10 Hong Kong Trail, Hong Kong . | Section of the Thames Path from Kingston .
eastwards to Greenwich came second in Lonely Planet's top 10 'city hikes'
Tijuca Forest in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, claimed the number one spot .
Other walks to make the list included the Hoerikwaggo Trail in Cape Town and the Coast to Coast walk in Auckland . |
272,251 | eca495dd32f6a0116baa495ed5cf740a74eb4658 | (CNN) -- "Celebrity Apprentice" will stay on the NBC prime-time schedule even if Donald Trump hits the presidential campaign trail, the network's entertainment chairman said Sunday. The show's "big success" is "due in part" to Trump, Bob Greenblatt said, but he predicts it can go on without him. "If he decides to run for president and is unavailable to do the show, we will bring the show back and there will be somebody else sitting at the head of the boardroom table," NBC's Bob Greenblatt said. "Who that is, we're not even going to really entertain because I'm still hoping we will have Donald in the seat." Trump, who has flirted with a 2012 presidential bid, is expected to make his intentions known on the final episode of the reality show's current season. NBC has enjoyed a ratings bump from the Trump presidential buzz, Greenblatt said. "We couldn't be happier," he said. "There may be headaches down the road but at the moment we're feeling really good about it." While he wants Trump to be available to host "Celebrity Apprentice," Greenblatt said, "It is the right and privilege for every American-born citizen in this country to run for the highest office in the land. "Nothing would make me happier to see somebody reach that dream," he said. The show will fill the 8-10 p.m. ET slot on NBC's Sunday night schedule for the 2011-12 season, he said. CNN's Henry Hanks contributed to this report. | NBC renews "Celebrity Apprentice" despite Donald Trump's possible White House bid .
If he runs, somebody else will sit "at the head of the boardroom table," NBC's Bob Greenblatt says .
Trump says he'll make his intentions known at the end of the current season . |
44,098 | 7c61805f987df1eb662b2f4e836d5dc7f6633901 | Research suggests that some Arctic lakes store more greenhouse gases than they emit into the atmosphere. This counters a widely-held scientific view that thawing permafrost accelerates atmospheric warming. The study shows that permafrost rich in organic material will see the growth of mosses and other plants flourish, leading to greater amounts of carbon absorption. Scroll down for video . A study says ice-rich lakes in Alaska and Siberia are cooling the atmosphere. The research challenges the widely-held view that thawing lakes cause warming. Found in the Arctic and cold mountain regions, thermokarst lakes (shown) occur when permafrost thaws and creates surface depressions that fill with water . Rising levels of water vapour high above the Earth are likely to intensify the effects of global warming in coming decades, say scientists. The increasing amounts of water in the upper troposphere are a direct result of human activity, research suggests. Computer simulations predict that as burning fossil fuels warms the climate, concentrations of water vapour will rise. The moistening of the atmosphere in turn absorbs more heat and raises the Earth’s temperature further. To investigate these effects scientists measured levels of water vapour in the upper troposphere, a region three to seven miles above the Earth’s surface. Their findings were compared with climate model predictions of water circulation between the ocean and atmosphere. The results showed that increasing levels of atmospheric water vapour could not be explained by natural forces such as volcanoes or changes in solar activity. But they did appear to be linked to emissions of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide. Lead scientist Professor Brian Soden, from the University of Miami, US, said: 'The study is the first to confirm that human activities have increased water vapour in the upper troposphere.' Supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF), the study was published this week in the journal Nature and focused on thermokarst lakes. These occur when permafrost thaws and create surface depressions that fill with melted fresh water, converting what was previously frozen land into lakes. The research suggests that Arctic thermokarst lakes are 'net climate coolers' when observed over longer time scales, namely several thousand years, although they initially warm the climate. 'Until now, we've only thought of thermokarst lakes as positive contributors to climate warming,' said lead researcher Dr Katey Walter Anthony, associate research professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks Institute of Northern Engineering. 'It is true that they do warm climate by strong methane emissions when they first form, but on a longer-term scale, they switch to become climate coolers because they ultimately soak up more carbon from the atmosphere than they ever release.' The researchers observed that roughly 5,000 years ago, thermokarst lakes in ice-rich regions of North Siberia and Alaska began cooling, instead of warming the atmosphere. 'While methane and carbon dioxide emissions following thaw lead to immediate radiative warming, carbon uptake in peat-rich sediments occurs over millennial time scales,' the authors write. They found that high rates of carbon absorption in lake sediments were stimulated by several factors including erosion and nutrient release from thawing permafrost. 'Until now, we've only thought of thermokarst lakes as positive contributors to climate warming,' said lead researcher Dr Katey Walter Anthony (shown), associate research professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks Institute of Northern Engineering . 'These lakes are being fertilised by thawing yedoma permafrost,' explained co-author Dr Miriam Jones, a research geologist for the US Geological Survey. Yedoma is a type of permafrost that is rich in organic material, which means mosses and other plants flourish in the lakes. This leads to increased carbon uptake rates that are among the highest in the world. The study also revealed another major factor of this process: when the lakes drain, previously thawed organic-rich lake sediments re-freeze. The new permafrost formation then stores a large amount of carbon processed in and under thermokarst lakes, as well as the peat that formed after lake drainage. Researchers note that the new carbon storage is not forever, since future warming will likely start re-thawing some of the permafrost and release some of the carbon in it via microbial decomposition. As roughly 30 per cent of global permafrost carbon is concentrated within 7 per cent of the permafrost region in Alaska, Canada and Siberia, this study's findings also renew scientific interest in how carbon uptake by thermokarst lakes offsets greenhouse gas emissions. | Study says ice-rich lakes in Alaska and Siberia are cooling the atmosphere .
Research challenges the widely-held view that thawing lakes cause warming .
Suggests so-called thermokarst lakes that form when permafrost thaws are net climate coolers over thousands of years .
This is because mosses and other plants flourish, absorbing carbon .
But when the lakes first form their methane emission does warm the climate according to the scientists . |
118,798 | 2566f94ebdbab6c0773d9f0701084da460477f2a | A wannabe police office has undergone surgery to reduce the size of her 32GG breasts in the hope that it will increase her chances of getting her dream job. Former model Hannah Sadowska, 33, paid £3,700 to increase her chest from a B-cup in 2007 after an eating disorder left her 'flat-chested'. However, the mother of one, from Wrexham, Wales, found that her huge cleavage was a barrier to being taken seriously in the business world, and in October she had them reduced to a D-cup. Hannah paid for a second surgery on her breasts to remove her implants, taking her from a 32GG (left) to a D and is now confident in pursuing her dream of becoming a police officer . Last week, glamour model Price revealed she'd had her breasts reduced from a 32FF (left) to a C-cup (right) Hannah says she wants to warn other women against making the same 'mistake that Katie Price and I did'. Last week, glamour model Price revealed she'd had her breasts reduced by five sizes to a C-cup. She has had seven boob jobs in total, at her biggest she was a 32FF. Hannah said: 'When I heard that Katie Price has had a breast reduction too, I wasn't surprised - I know exactly what it feels like when no one can see past your boobs. Hannah (pictured left) always felt self-conscious about her chest after teenage battle with bulimia . 'Now I want to warn other girls not to make the same mistake that Katie and I did. Buy a nice new car or treat yourself to a holiday, but don't waste thousands on massive new breasts.' Hannah is now applying for a job in the police force, and is currently studying for a criminology degree at Glyndwr University. She said: 'I could never have wrestled a criminal to the ground with my implants - they were far too large for my frame. I want to be taken seriously, not look like a stripper in a fancy dress copper's outfit.' Hannah said she always felt self-conscious about her chest after teenage battle with bulimia shrank her breasts from a C-cup to a B-cup. 'I was really chubby when I was 13 and I got really badly bullied for it - which turned me bulimic,' she explained. 'Over a period of eight months, I went from 13 stone to seven stone and my chest never developed. 'Even when I managed to put weight back on my breasts never grew. I resorted to stuffing my bra with tissues and chicken filets. 'I was really self-conscious, I never took my top off in front of a man and never wore vests.' Hannah said she always dreamed of having a glamour model's body, with a bra size to match. In 2007, she took out a £7,000 loan and used more than half of it to pay for a boob job. She said: 'As I went under I said to the surgeon "make my breasts as big as you possibly can - even if I die". 'I'd gone through years of bullying so to wake up from surgery with a pair of Katie Price breasts felt incredible. Hannah's huge bust meant that despite running her own business and studying for a degree she struggled to be taken seriously and said people made assumptions about her based on her appearance . Hannah also suffered scarring from where her uncomfortably large breasts had rubbed against her bra . 'It took me hours to get up as they were very heavy. I had to get used to carrying all this extra weight around in front of me.' Busty Hannah embarked on a career as a model and launched her own business designing and selling supportive sports bras for women who have undergone breast enlargement surgery. In 2008, she gave birth to her son Alexander, now six. But, struggling to be taken seriously in the business world, Hannah decided her large bust had to go. She said: 'When I walked into a room everyone just saw my boobs and not me. 'People always assumed I was going out every night and would sleep with anyone - that could not be further from the truth. I was a mum, studying for a university degree while running my own business - but I looked like a stripper. In October Hannah Sadowska had a private operation to reduce her breasts by four cup sizes . 'I also had some really horrible scarring where from where my uncomfortably large breasts had rubbed against my bra. 'I brought it upon myself. I wanted the glamour girl look and I got it. But it had a negative impact on my health and my life.' In October this year, Hannah had a private operation to reduce her breasts by four cup sizes. She said: 'I feel like a different girl - I feel calm, content and quiet. I'm a lot more together, now when I walk into a room I know people are looking at me and not my chest.' Hannah has now has taken the entrance exam for a job in the police force - she has been to an interview and passed the medical examination. She said: 'If I didn't change my look then no one would take me seriously as a police officer. 'But it isn't just the way I look, it is a very physically demanding job. My giant breasts would put me and my colleagues at risk as I would not be able to fulfil my role as a police officer. 'Once I pass my degree I will hopefully be accepted to the job and now I also have the look to go with it.' | A teenage battle with bulimia shrank Hannah Sadowska's bust size .
A small B cup, she always felt self-conscious and decided to have surgery .
Former model paid £3,700 in 2007 to increase her breasts to a 32GG .
However found it difficult to be taken seriously and paid for reduction .
Wants to warn others not to make 'mistake' she and Katie Price made . |
134,867 | 3a77ef2dd1c346f155de4d556b5c4a79f9ff7e06 | Cairo (CNN) -- One person died and more than 300 were injured Friday when clashes broke out in Cairo as protests against the country's military government turned violent, state media reported. Video from the scene showed some protesters throwing rocks at security forces, and the security forces spraying water cannons at the demonstrators, who were protesting near the country's Defense Ministry. The protests erupted amid a backdrop of frustration about the pace of reform since Hosni Mubarak was ousted as president last year and over concern that Egypt's military leadership is delaying the transition to civilian rule. One person was killed and 373 were injured in the clashes in the Abbasiya area, said Ahmed Ansari, director of Cairo's emergency medical services. Egypt's ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces said a curfew will be enforced in Abbasiya Square and streets leading to it from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. "Those involved in (the) Abbasiya clashes and inciting them will be dealt with according to the law," the Supreme Council said. Egypt's state-run Nile TV showed at least two members of the military police suffering injuries and being carried away from the front line of the clashes. Thousands of people descended on downtown Cairo on Friday after several parties urged supporters to voice their outrage about deadly clashes this week and demand the resignation of Egypt's interim military government. At least 11 people were killed and scores injured Wednesday in violence in Abbasiya, where a sit-in protest has been going on for a week outside the Defense Ministry. As the latest clashes gathered steam, Nader Abdel Aziz, a human rights lawyer, reported seeing warning shots fired in the air by security forces, as well as military helicopters hovering over the scene. Some military officers have been injured by rocks thrown by protesters, he said. Alaa Al Iraqi, Supreme Council spokesman, said officials warned protesters that the Defense Ministry was "a red line" that shouldn't be crossed. "They threw rocks first at the military police soldiers, insulted them and pushed through barbed wire," the spokesman said. The rock-throwing injured several soldiers. "No live ammunition of any kind was used except for standard protocol for dealing with riots," he said. The Muslim Brotherhood's political wing, the Freedom and Justice Party, was among those taking part in another protest in Tahrir Square, the heart of Egypt's protest movement, under the banner of "stopping the bloodshed." At least three stages had been set up in the square, where a mostly Islamist crowd planned to demonstrate, according to Nile TV. Many are supporters of Islamist candidate Hazem Abu Ismael, who is among a number of candidates disqualified from the May 23 presidential election. Ahmed Maher, founder of the liberal April 6 movement, which was among those to join the protests in Abbasiya, said it was urging its supporters to pull back. "We are withdrawing from Abbasiya to avoid and limit bloodshed. Some of our field medics will remain behind to assist only," he said. The April 6 movement wants accountability from the Supreme Council for the Armed Forces for the deaths of protesters in the Abbasiya clashes Wednesday. The Ministry of Health earlier dispatched 70 ambulances to the Abbasiya protests, dubbed the "Final Friday" march. And the Arab Doctors Association set up two makeshift clinics. The Al Nour Salafi party has boycotted the Abbasiya protest. The Supreme Council said on its Facebook page Thursday that the clashes in Abbasiya were aimed at delaying the presidential elections and stalling the formation of a constituent assembly. The Supreme Council also said that certain "unnamed" groups have used verses from the Quran calling for jihad, or holy war, to try to draw the military into an armed conflict. The military had tried to persuade the protesters to move from their position near the Ministry of Defense to Tahrir Square, but they refused, the Facebook statement said. Controversy about the approaching presidential elections has been growing. The Muslim Brotherhood's preferred candidate, Khairat El Shater, who was disqualified from running last month, was referred to the country's general prosecutor Friday for insulting the election commission. Abu Ismael was also referred to the general prosecutor for alleged forgery. He was disqualified from standing because of evidence that his late mother had U.S. citizenship, an assertion he has denied. On Thursday, three other presidential candidates also were referred for alleged violations of election campaign law. The three candidates -- leading independent Abdel Monein Aboul Fettouh; Mohamed Mursi of the Islamist Freedom and Justice Party; and Amre Moussa -- were accused of breaking the law by holding meetings on college campuses. "These infringements by the presidential candidates will be taken very seriously, and they will be questioned as soon as possible. They could be fined," Adel Saeed, the official spokesman for the general prosecutor, told CNN on Thursday. The election commission has disqualified about 10 of the 23 presidential contenders, its chief has said. The disqualifications have prompted widespread anger. International powers urged all sides to exercise restraint after the clashes Wednesday. Assailants targeted the protesters in Cairo early Wednesday, medical sources said. At least 150 people were injured, Dr. Ahmed Thabet, a physician working in a field hospital near where the clashes took place, said Thursday. It was unclear who the attackers were, but they were not wearing uniforms, witnesses said. The Freedom and Justice Party blamed the Supreme Council for the deaths and injuries in the Abbasiya clashes, and it said that the council, not the protesters, wants to delay the transition of power. A government official denied reports that the military was involved in Wednesday's violence. Clashes have erupted in Egypt since an uprising led to the toppling of Mubarak in February of last year, with protesters demanding the military leaders who took over hand over power to a civilian administration. Journalist Mohamed Fadel Fahmy and CNN's Amir Ahmed and Saad Abedine contributed to this report. | Death, injuries reported in the Abbasiya area, state media says .
The military rulers announce an overnight curfew .
Political parties have urged their supporters to voice outrage over deadly clashes Wednesday .
Many are concerned about slow transition of power from Egypt's military to civilian rule . |
129,099 | 32d4a0858255ebb9928384f8b427fbfb953a3e21 | (CNN) -- Does anyone know how to say "Did that really just happen?" in Russian? Who can predict how the women's figure skating will turn out? Who just won his record-setting 13th medal? It's in the nyet . What a strange day if you are a Russian Olympics fan. The hockey team got knocked out; amazing figure skater Julia Lipnitskaya tumbled during her short program; and you saw a home-nation gold medal from a foreign-grown snowboarder. The country is in shock over the hockey team's 3-1 loss to Finland. Remember the Russians (or Soviets) used to own the gold medal, but they haven't won one in 12 years. More than one hour after the loss, a Sochi bear mascot sat in the empty hockey arena stands, head in paw. The media ganged up on Russian coach Zinetula Bilyaletdinov at the news conference. Steve Politi of the Star-Ledger of Newark, New Jersey, said two of the best early questions were "How guilty are you feeling?" and "Is it a catastrophe?" "I take full responsibility for our team's performance," the coach said, according to a translator. It's hard to say the Games have been ruined for a country that has won a second-best 22 medals, buuuuuuuuuut ... At least in the case of Lipnitskaya, she didn't fall out of medal contention. She has the ability to lift the nation's spirits if she can perform magnificently in Thursday's free program and get a bronze or silver. Gold seems out of reach, but it is up to the judges. And there's probably a little bit of pride in the husband-and-wife combination of Vic Wild and Alena Zavarzina. They competed 15 minutes apart in the parallel giant slalom with Wild, who became a Russian citizen two years ago, winning gold. His wife won bronze in the women's event. "It was incredible to win with Alena. We are together all the time. If one of us has success and the other doesn't it's great but it's not that great, but for both of us to have success on the same day is a dream come true. Maybe I will wake up soon," he said. Within reach . South Korea's Yuna Kim has a lot to think about. This is her last Olympics. She has skated only a few times in competition since winning a gold medal in Vancouver, leading to constant questions about her trying to repeat as champion. She's also trying to inspire young figure skaters in the country that will host the next Winter Olympics. And now she's less than a point ahead of two other skaters after the short program in women's figure skating. Adelina Sotnikova of Russia and Carolina Kostner of Italy are second and third, respectively. Kim, who has only skated in four international events since winning in 2010, is retiring after these Games. She will skate last on Thursday. It's not a position she likes. "But I have had this experience before. It won't be a big problem," she said. U.S. skaters Gracie Gold, who is six points behind and fourth, and Ashley Wagner have outside chances at medals. "Tonight was definitely nerve-racking, I'll be honest about that. But I'm set up well for the long program," said Wagner, who is in sixth and trails by nine points. Hot diggity, Ligety! They call Ted Ligety "Mr. GS." It should be amended to "Mr. Golden GS." The overwhelming favorite in the men's giant slalom gave the opposition no chance at winning Wednesday with a sizzling first run and a steady, self-assured second run that had the crowd congratulating him before he even reached the finish. "This is really awesome. This is the event I wanted the most. This is the event I have been putting so much pressure on myself to win, so to pull through is an awesome feeling," he said. Ligety became the first American man to win the event and joined Andrea Mead Lawrence as the only two U.S. skiers with two golds in alpine skiing. The 29-year-old led by almost a full second after the first run, but wasn't totally comfortable with such a huge margin. "If you blow out taking too much risk, you look stupid. If you go too easy and blow your lead, you look even more stupid." he said. We would say you looked stupendous instead. Hope you ski as well in the slalom. Hope you mess up -- but not much . Kaillie Humphries and Elana Meyers are friends. Meyers even invited her Canadian rival to her wedding in April. But as Humphries stood with her teammate Heather Moyse at the bottom of the bobsled track Wednesday, waiting for Meyers to make her final run, she did hope for her pal to have a bobble here or hit there. "I never wish bad on people, but I was thinking, 'Just make a few mistakes, please,' " she told reporters. And in a sport where it takes four runs to crown an Olympic champion, it was a tenth of a second that came between the winning Humphries and Meyers. It was a hit at the top that Meyers blamed for the loss. "I know I'm going to get crap, and people will say it's a disappointment, but I'm not disappointed," said Meyers, who along with teammate Lauryn Williams led after three runs. "I couldn't be prouder. I'm glad for silver, I didn't deserve the gold medal today." Williams became the fifth Olympian to medal in the Summer and Winter Games. "This has been the most exciting experience of my life," she said of her recent immersion into the sport. "I am so happy to have fallen into bobsled. Who would have thought six months ago I would be bobsledding, let alone on the podium at the Olympics?" Eight golds, four silvers, one bronze . He won his first medal in 1998 in the biathlon sprint. Four Olympics later he is still adding to what is now a record-setting personal medal table. Ole Einar Bjoerndalen won his 13th Olympic medal Wednesday, putting him alone atop the all-time individual medal table for the Winter games. His eight gold medals are also a record. He raced the third leg in the new mixed relay competition and put Norway far ahead, where it stayed, beating the Czech Republic by 32 seconds. "I'm really grateful for this victory," he said, in typical understated fashion. "I'm happy for my team." Is there one more podium in the bag? The men's relay is Saturday. | Husband: How was your day? Wife: Great, I got a bronze. You? Husband: A gold .
Bobsled buddies separated by slimmest of margins .
Norwegian biathlete needs to build addition for trophy case .
Mr. GS leaves field in his snowdust . |
67,589 | bfc03a5d3e5f6456fb66d2241acc6366eb4bc9c6 | By . Lydia Warren . An abandoned dog whose fur was so badly matted that he couldn't walk when he was found has been adopted by a new family. Ziggy the Shih Tzu-type dog has been welcomed by the family two weeks after being taken to an animal shelter in Babylon, New York by a man who found him at a vacant home in Lindenhurst. The 11-pound dog, who is estimated to be five or six years old, struggled to walk when he was found at the house - which had been empty for about a year - on July 17, SPCA officials. When he was taken to the Town of Babylon Animal Shelter, vets shaved off nearly four pounds of knotted fur and clipped his inches-long nails. Scroll down for video . Cruel: Ziggy could barely walk under the weight of his thick, matted hair when he was found last month . Abused: The Shih Tzu-type dog was found by a passerby in an abandoned house on July 17 . 'It took two staff members three hours late into the evening with simultaneous clippers going to get the job done,' a staff member wrote on the shelter's Facebook page. 'We were incredibly disappointed after freeing Ziggy from his suffering, only to find that he was still unable to walk due to the distress his body had endured for such a long period of time.' Ziggy was then sent to extensive physical therapy - where he quickly improved. He learned how to walk properly again at the New York Veterinary Specialty & Emergency Center by walking on an underwater treadmill, SPCA officials explained. The services were pro bono. 'We were ecstatic to see what an amazing job they have done with his physical therapy and he was even able to get up to a little trot today!' staff wrote on Facebook, six days after he was found. He was also neutered and microchipped, and staff said he was friendly, although apprehensive. Looking good! Ziggy has re-learned how to walk with physical therapy and is heading to a new home . On the mend: Vets said he was a friendly but apprehensive dog following his ordeal . He is now going home with a couple in western Suffolk County who do not want to be identified. They have considerable experience with dogs with special needs, Newsday reported. 'I am very, very happy that this dog is . going to get the home he deserves after the torment he's been suffering . for many years,' said Roy Gross, chief of the Suffolk SPCA. Even though the last tenants moved out of the home a year ago, officials do not believe Ziggy had been there for all of that time. Neighbors said they never saw the dog with the previous tenants. Authorities are still looking for his former owners. A $2,000 reward is being offered for information about the person who neglected the dog, officials said. Anyone with information can contact the Suffolk County SPCA at 631-382-7722. | The Shih Tzu-type dog was found in an empty home on July 17 and it took staff three hours to remove four pounds of matted fur from his body .
He underwent intense physical therapy on an underwater treadmill so that he could learn how to walk again .
He is now going to live in a new home and authorities are on the hunt for his previous owners . |
146,396 | 494de0a85a9b70ea8c940e2f95afffc3e9a46881 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 05:32 EST, 12 November 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 05:29 EST, 13 November 2012 . Anti-royalist: Sam Bracanov,74, was arrested . A 74-year-old anti-royalist protester was arrested moments before Prince Charles and Camilla arrived to greet thousands of people as part of their New Zealand tour. The pensioner was named by One News as Sam Bracanov and they reported he was arrested after he was allegedly captured on CCTV in downtown Auckland preparing to commit an assault. Bracanov has admitted planning to throw a bucket of horse manure over the Prince and Camila. 'I was going to mix it with water, stir it around and make it easy to throw and then throw it at them,' he said. 'Royalty smells, so what difference does it make if I hit them?' But if he tries anything like it again he will go straight to jail for disobeying a magistrate's order to stay at least 500 yards from the royal couple. When Charles and Camilla arrived they made their way along the crowds shaking hands and a small group of protesters could be seen holding up placards. One read 'Get a Job Royal Bludgers' - New Zealand slang for someone who avoids work. A statement on the New Zealand Police . website said the man from the Mangere suburb of Auckland was arrested . at 12.40pm - around 50 minutes before the royal couple arrived. It added: 'Arresting officers had identified . the man as a known anti-royalist who was, when arrested, at a royal . itinerary venue although neither of the royal visitors was in the . vicinity at the time.' Scroll down for video . Royal encounter: Prince Charles meets Dame Kiri Te Kanawa at a Diamond Jubilee Trust reception in Auckland during the last leg of their tour marking Queen Elizabeth II's diamond jubilee . Close enough: The pair have a slightly awkward peck on the cheek at the reception . The Prince and Duchess are on a seven-day Diamond Jubilee tour of New Zealand. Meanwhile Prince Charles had some . close encounters during the final stop on his and the Duchess of . Cornwall's Diamond Jubilee Tour. The Royal couple are on the last leg . of their tour visiting New Zealand where The Prince of Wales broke . protocol by hugging a rugby player. However . later the same evening Charles behaved with royal grace and kept his . distance as he greeted Dame Kiri Te Kanawa at a reception and dinner for . the Diamond Jubilee Trust in Auckland. Entrance: Prince Charles and Camilla arrive at the Diamond Jubilee Trust reception and dinner in Auckland, New Zealand . Earlier today the Prince of Wales had a much closer encounter with a female rugby player during a visit to New Zealand's national training center for high performance sports, in Auckland. Upon meeting Charles, Linda Itunu ignored protocol and took an unconventional approach to the standard handshake and curtsey and hugged the Prince. The 27-year-old sportswoman was delighted when Charles hugged her back but had to help him wipe his forehead once they let go and apologised . to the royal for leaving him a little damp. As Camilla chatted to Olympic medallists . Charles headed over to the women’s rugby sevens team and held out his . hand to Ms Itunu but got a hug instead. Sweaty hug: Rugby player Linda Itunu throws the standard curtsey out of the window and goes for a hug when visited by Prince Charles . Wiped out: Rugby sevens player Miss Itunu wipes sweat off Prince Charles face after their hug during the Royal's visit to the national team's training centre . Good girl: One team member plays by the rules and shakes the Prince's hand during his visit to the AUT Millennium, New Zealand's national training center for high performance sports, in Auckland . The sportswoman, who is a prop in the New Zealand women’s rugby sevens team, said: “I just saw him and he looked like he needed a hug. 'I said to the Prince, "Can I give you a hug" and he said he didn’t mind.' Before Charles left the rugby player said she issued an ultimatum to the royal: 'I told him he better be supporting us - not England.' As Charles walked away he joked with the women telling them: 'If you don’t win I shall be very disappointed.' Final stop: Prince Charles and Camilla visits the Auckland traning centre during the last leg of their Diamond Jubilee Tour . On tape: Charles chats with Manu Vetuvia of the Warriors Rugby League as one of his teammates films the encounter on his phone . Over there: The Prince and the Duchess of Cornwall also visited the swimming pool and chatted to the athletes . The . royal couple toured the sporting complex where the local community and . top athletes alike have access world-class facilities, training and . healthcare services. Charles . and Camilla also tried their hand at netball when they met some of New . Zealand’s top women players who towered over the royals. They . both hit the rim a number of times as they tried in vain to score a . goal and netball player Maria Tutaia, 25, who is 6ft 2ins tall, joked: . 'Let’s just say he’s pretty good with a crown on his head but his . shooting needs some work. But it was good he had a go and nice to see . him speak to all the athletes as he went round.' Ballin': Charles tries to impress Camilla with a netball shot after meeting the New Zealand Silver Ferns netball team at the Millenium Sports Institute . Hit the net: The Royal couple had a ball with the New Zealand Netball team teaching them how to play . After their workout the Royal pair met . well-wishers in Auckland city centre where huge crowds had gathered . despite and despite the torrential rain which started soon after the . royals appeared. The hugging . theme continued when the Prince came across a person in fancy dress . wolf costume, arms open wide for a hug, but Charles simply laughed and . walked on. As the royals . made their way along the crowds shaking hands a small group of . protesters held up placards, one read 'Get a Job Royal Bludgers' - New . Zealand slang for someone who avoids work. Rain or shine: The Duchess of Cornwall escaped the rain as she greeted well-wishers from under an umbrella in central Auckland . Meet and greet: Charles greets well-wishers in Queen Street in Auckland . Big bad wolf: Prince Charles backs away from a man dressed in a fancy dress costume . Charles later wielded a handheld rug . making machine as he learned about a special project to create a wool . rug featuring his coat-of-arms. He . was handed the tufting machine that resembled an electric drill by Sam . Maloney, 30, who has been contracted to make the textile artwork. The . half-completed coat-of-arms rug was hung from a large frame and just . outside the border of the piece Charles tried sowing tufts of wool into a . thread mesh. The Prince . joked with Mr Maloney and said 'I’ll write my name', but his first . attempt left a tangled mass of wool but he soon perfected the technique . and wove a couple of straight lines. Charles’ efforts came as he toured an exhibition showcasing a diverse range of . wool products in his role as patron and founder of the Campaign for . Wool, a project launched in 2010. Bad knit: Britain's Prince Charles struggles with a tufting machine during his visit to the New Zealand Shear Brilliance Event . Right Royal mess: Prince Charles found it difficult to work the tufting gun on a wool carpet . In a speech Charles joked: 'I don’t know if you also realise according to GQ magazine I am a fashion icon.' In an article written for . the December issue of GQ Australia, he admits it’s funny to be back in . fashion at his age, but said it seems to happen every 25 years. He . also unveiled that he does not make an effort to keep up with new . styles, but waits for it to come around and catch up with him again . after . every two decades or so. But he added that one commentator had . recently called him ‘beyond fashion’, which added to his confusion. ‘I . am still not sure if he she meant it as a compliment.' The Prince of Wales and Camilla present a poster to some of the younger cast members of Hairy Maclary after their performance at the Bruce Mason Theatre today . Furry friends: Charles and Camilla met the cast of Hairy Maclary after a performance in Auckland . Royal gift: One of the members of the cast was overjoyed to meet Prince Charles and Camilla as they attended the performance in Takapuna, Auckland . ‘Clothes have to combine style with . sustainability and I find good tailoring more than meets that challenge, . much to the amusement of my staff who are sometimes surprised to find . that what I’m wearing turns out to be as old as or even older than they . are.’ In the GQ piece the Prince laments about being listed on both . the Best Dressed and Worst Dressed lists over the years, but reveals . that it’s his body shape more than anything which dictates his style. ‘I simply had to go my own way and stick to what I felt suited me,’ he writes. ‘As that happens to involve what many . once considered to be old-fashioned double breasted suits, I can only . expect to be considered unfashionable.’ In today's speech he referred to his double breasted suit made from New Zealand wool saying: 'I am a walking demonstration of the ability of New Zealand wool to disguise a rapidly disintegrating and ageing body.' VIDEO: Camilla 1: Charles 0! Watch the royal couple shoot a basket on their Jubilee Tour... | Pensioner arrested after he was allegedly captured on CCTV in downtown Auckland preparing to commit an assault .
Prince Charles met Dame Te Kanawa at a dinner in Auckland, New Zealand .
Prince Charles and Camilla are on the final leg of the Diamond Jubilee Tour . |
87,337 | f7cb576cfd05b671d629104c1fae637985dc711e | By . Sam Greenhill . PUBLISHED: . 18:12 EST, 24 February 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 02:13 EST, 25 February 2013 . Byron Myers claims he was forced out of the BBC after blowing the whistle on suspected fraud . The BBC threatened one of its own staff with prison when he blew the whistle on suspected fraud to the Daily Mail, a tribunal has heard. Byron Myers, a former head of human resources, discovered that a BBC manager was signing off lucrative payments to his girlfriend’s company, First Positions. The suspected conspiracy involved payments worth tens of thousands of pounds, it was claimed. Mr Myers said that when he reported his suspicions, in 2011, there was ‘a cover-up’. In 2012, Mr Myers decided to alert the public by taking his evidence to the Daily Mail, which conducted an investigation and published an article. But the BBC responded by threatening him with ‘a prison sentence’ for leaking information. Mr Myers, 39, of Central London, told the tribunal: ‘I contacted the Daily Mail newsroom. I met with a journalist. At our meeting I told him the whole story of my employment with the BBC. 'I explained the matter around First Positions and what had happened. He asked me if I had raised the First Positions matter with the BBC. I confirmed that I had repeatedly. ‘The BBC had been very aggressive because I had leaked the story. ‘The BBC’s lawyers had written to me and attached a copy of the Computer Misuse Act, with prison sentence attached to it.’ He added: ‘This was potentially a fraud allegation. There was a cover-up. There was an organisational cover-up.’ The evidence came in an employment tribunal at Watford between Mr Myers and the BBC. He accuses the corporation of forcing him out after he turned whistleblower. Mr Myers had discovered that £70,000-a-year BBC manager Craig White, 47, was signing off payments to studio staff supplied by private firms, one of which was run by his lover, 47-year-old Jane Fleury. Mr White personally authorised payments of £69,000 to Miss Fleury’s First Positions Ltd. And over a three-year period, staff in his department had paid a total of £1.6million to the same company – before Mr White declared a ‘conflict of interest’ to the BBC. Mr Myers discovered that Craig White, left, was signing off payments to studio staff supplied by private firms, one of which was run by his lover Jane Fleury, right . Miss Fleury is a former BBC manager and First Positions is an agency she set up seven years ago to supply studio crew. They have worked on some of the BBC’s most popular programmes. The couple are both listed on the electoral roll at Miss Fleury’s Grade-II listed Cotswold stone townhouse in Burford, Oxfordshire. Corporation chiefs were urged to investigate suspicions of a possible conspiracy over the payments, which had soared 2,500 per cent in two years. The tribunal heard that one of the BBC’s own lawyers, Laura Juliet, advised in May 2011: ‘The important thing now is to carry out a full investigation... to establish whether there has been any conspiracy’. But this legal advice was allegedly ‘ignored’ on the orders of the BBC’s highest-paid boss, John Smith, who at the time was the £1million-a-year chief executive of BBC Worldwide. Mr Myers claimed the BBC’s audit . department ‘had been told by John Smith to ignore the legal advice and . simply do a review’, the tribunal was told. Mr Smith, who left the corporation last year after 23 years, is about to join luxury retailer Burberry as chief operating officer. Mr Smith is due to give evidence later, and it is understood he will strenuously reject the suggestion he ignored legal advice, and will say he ordered an independent investigation. The BBC’s investigation into the dealings between it and First Positions produced a single-page report, exonerating all concerned. Mr White told the Mail he had been cleared of any wrongdoing. At the tribunal, Caspar Glyn QC, for the BBC, repeatedly accused Mr Myers of fabricating conversations to bolster his claims, suggesting he had ‘made up a series of wholly untrue fictional lies’. Mr Myers insisted he was telling the truth. Last night the BBC said: ‘We are vigorously contesting the Employment Tribunal claim made by Mr Myers. It is inappropriate for us to comment further during the tribunal.’ The tribunal continues. | Byron Myers said he was forced out of job when he turned whistleblower .
The former head of human resources discovered a BBC manager was signing off lucrative contracts to his girlfriend's company .
He reported matter in 2011 but claimed there was a 'cover-up' |
207,191 | 9841b2d5917f03684a7b1b2ce262e85b85c9a2e3 | The first day of The View's earthshaking new host lineup saw the triumphant return of cantankerous former emcee Rosie O'Donnell after an eight-year absence, along with two completely new co-hosts who will no-doubt make this relaunch one of the most memorable yet. Appearing for the first time on the panel was token blonde Nicolle Wallace, who conservative credentials beat even Bush-loving Elisabeth Hasselbeck since Wallace actually worked for George W. And in the third corner, the wildcard: known for her voice as much as for her no-holds-barred New York City attitude--actress Rosie Perez. Scroll down for video . Shoeless: Rosie was sure to get a pedicure over fears her unkempt feet might draw attention from the new improved show as she recovered from some sciatica. The first day of The View's earthshaking new host lineup saw the triumphant return of the cantankerous former emcee after an eight-year absence, along with two completely new co-hosts who will no-doubt make this relaunch one of the most memorable yet . Two Rosies! Rosie O'Donnell is back after a contentious exit and several years absence and she's brought another Rosie with her--actress and activist Rosie Perez . Barbara gave her blessing: The queen herself made an appearance in a pre-taped segment as the ladies of her show held court and each kissed her hand . But don't expect too many screaming matches or claims that the world is flat (here's looking at you Sherri Shepherd): O'Donnell says the new View will be smarter, calmer and an all-around better show. The live show began calmly, with introductions and a nod to creator and news media queen Barbara Walters, who held court from a throne and had her hand kissed by each of the hostesses, including the only one remaining from the previous season, Whoopi Goldberg. 'Welcome to the newer view,' joked Whoopi, before introducing Rosie O'Donnell. O'Donnell kicked things off by catching up with viewers, including a discussion of her heartache and the gastric bypass surgery that followed. Up next, an introduction of the other Rosie--actress Rosie Perez, who plugged her upcoming Broadway show and memoir. Then came Nicolle Wallace: former George W. Bush press secretary for six years. 'I am a Republican, I should get that out of the way,' she said through a smile to audience uproar on both sides of the aisle. Before things got too out of control, fiery liberal Rosie O'Donnell piped in: 'And I like her, I swear!' True to form, though, the group jumped right into a contentious topic--the Ray Rice domestic abuse saga and further questions over child and sex abuse. 'All about money, all about the brand being jeopardized,' politico Wallace chimed in first on the Rice issue. Perez agreed there's no excuse for hitting women, used her sports hero, convicted abuser Floyd Mayweather, to make the point that one's environment could be at fault as much as the individual.'[You] Respond the way you were taught,' said the actress. But should one continue to support the likes of Mayweather and Rice by paying for event tickets? O'Donnell didn't think so. 'I haven't seen a Woody Allen movie since the allegations came out,' O'Donnell said, moving the conversation along to her own struggles with abuse. Though she did say she continues to appreciate Chris Brown as an artist, despite his violent past. Values clash? Whoopi is back, of course, but a woman with decidedly different politics from hers is on this year, too. Not just a mom-first, mouthy conservative like former host Elisabeth Hasselbeck, new token blonde conservative Nicolle Wallace actually worked George W's White House . Pulling her weight: All the ladies on the panel were fascinated as former Bush staffer turned Sarah Palin wrangler recalled her days in the controversial White House and ill-fated McCain campaign trail . Perez and O'Donnell introduced a new audience participation game they will play each day together, a play on their identical names called Ro or Ro? In the game, the audience members tries to win a prize by deciding which Rosie does the thing being described on a card. In one of the inaugural game's questions, O'Donnell asked which of the Rosies practices tae kwon do. 'O'Donnell!' replied the contestant. 'Wrong,' O'Donnell belowed to the young lady's chagrin. With two comedians and a funny lady actress on the panel, the group also addressed the recent tragic deaths of Robin Williams and Joan Rivers. 'I've been at that place,' O'Donnell said, empathizing with her depression-plagued late friend Robin Williams. O'Donnell suggested that, for the depressed, leaving grieving children behind isn't enough to stop someone bent on suicide. Ask Me Anything: A new segment gave the ladies and their viewers some time to catch up and get to know the panel--for instance: Wallace hates Hillary, Rosie O'Donnell has a gastric bypass, Perez has a forthcoming memoir, and Whoopi, well, she's been enjoying her shoes . Another new segment came in the form of an audience participation game called Ro or Ro? where contestants must decide which Rosie is being described on a card . Loss but a win: While this episode's contestant lost Ro or Ro? with only one correct answer, the game did reveal a little known and astonishing fact about Perez--she practices tae kwon do! When the topic had turned to politics, all eyes turned to Wallace. 'Hillary Clinton and I were not good friends,' she said as the group touched on the Clintons' recent trip to Iowa. She's definitely running 100 percent, though, said the Washington insider. While Hillary is today's hot topic, the group was more interested by far to hear Wallace's stories about her days as Sarah Palin's wrangler during the the McCain campaign. Wallace kept her cool but did reveal that Palin blamed her completely for the VP candidate's infamous interview with Katie Couric and said the candidate and aide's relationship was irreparably damaged that day in 2008. She also gave a comic rendition of the day she learned Vice President Cheney had shot a man during Bush II's already unpopular second term that left the ladies in stitches. The show concluded with a tribute to Rivers that began with a song in the comedienne's honor by Broadway diva Kristin Chenoweth. A best-of montage of some of Rivers' over 30 appearances then followed, to much applause and teary eyes. 'She gave and gave and gave,' Perez said as O'Donnell joked about the snarky comments Rivers made to her regarding her unconventionally feminine persona. 'Loved it,' she said. Big fans of Joan: The show concluded with a tearful tribute to a dear friend of the View, the recently passed Joan Rivers, who appeared on the show over 30 times . Tribute: Guest Kristin Chenoweth gave a beautiful tribute to Joan Rivers through song to help close out the show . | Rosie O'Donnell is back and promises a lot more smart talk and a lot less squabbling (and no mentions of the earth being flat)
The controversial comedian had some complaints of recent sciatica .
Another Rosie's on, too--wise-cracking actress Rosie Perez .
The token Republican blonde has far better conservative credentials than former host Hasselbeck--Nicolle Wallace actually worked for George Bush .
Whoopi's back as the head-screwed-on tight moderator and all four ladies bowed to the queen at the start of the show . |
150,579 | 4ea9cf2b3fdd9486cb0575e7ad23a0bde0621eb5 | By . Meghan Keneally . A New York City councilman has been arrested on corruption charges after investigators found that he has allegedly been misusing tens of thousands of dollars of public funds. Ruben Wills and his relative Jelani Mills were taken into custody in Queens on Wednesday morning and has being charged with grand larceny and other theft charges. The arrests come after an investigation that started in 2012 when it was reported by The New York Daily News that a $33,000 grant that had been awarded to a charity Wills was involved with went unaccounted for. In custody: Ruben Wills was arrested on Wednesday morning and will be charged with grand larceny and crimes related to the theft of about $30,000 in public and federal funds . Under scrutiny: The investigation into the missing funds was launched in 2011 and now the state comptroller's office and the office of the attorney general have charged Wills and a relative for their role in the scheme . Before being elected as a city councilman, Wills worked as the chief of staff for state Senator Shirley Huntley, who was convicted in connection to the theft of $88,000 from a different not-for-profit. The New York Post reports that before that arrest, Huntley directed tens of thousands of dollars-worth of legislative grants to NY4Life, a group founded by Wills in 2006 which was supposed to help single parents. He has served on the board of the group- which does not have it's own website- since he founded the charity in 2006 and has been the chairman since 2009. Questions started being raised in 2011- a year after he was elected to the City Council- when the Office of Children & Family Services inquired about how the $33,000 grant was being spent but they never got a response. According to state records, the $33,000 in question was earmarked by Will's former boss in 2008. Dealings: Investigators claim Wills' former boss directed funds to a fake not-for-profit that Wills launched in 2006 and Wills has repeatedly refused to hand over forms accounting for where the money went . When the OCFS never got a response or the specific accounting of how the money was spent that they had asked for, so they referred the case to New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman's office. That same year, Wills pled guilty to misdemeanor criminal mischief in an unrelated incident that happened more than a decade earlier. He admitted that he stole and damaged property in relation to a business dispute in 1998, and was ordered to pay restitution and do community service for three days. Schneiderman's office teamed up with the State Comptroller's office and issued a subpoena in February 2012 after another letter demanding the funds be accounted for or repaid went ignored again. Wills met with investigators from the attorney general's office that February and brought no such documentation. The Daily News cites court papers that say he only brought one undated invoice for $980 but it was unclear when that money was even spent. The New York Post claims that the Democrat used his Fifth Amendment rights to avoid speaking for fear of self-incrimination during a 2013 meeting with investigators. Punishment: Both Wills (left) and his relative Jelani Mills (right) face a maximum sentence of seven years in jail if they are found guilty on their most serious charge- grand larceny . The nature of the relationship between Wills and Jelani Mills remains unclear, but Mills is being called Wills’ relative and is charged with conspiring with him on the grand larceny scheme. If convicted of grand larceny, both men face a maximum sentence of seven years in jail. In a joint release from the attorney general and the comptroller's office, officials said that Wills and Mills have been indicted for allegedly pocketing about $30,000 in both grant money and public campaign funds. It goes on to specify that the New York City Campaign Finance Board handed his staff $11,500 in funds that matched the amount he raised through public campaigning. He claimed that the money was paid to Micro Targeting, a campaign literature translation and distribution service, but the investigators assert that it is simply a shell company. From there, Mills allegedly transferred the funds to NY4Life and Wills withdrew cash from those accounts, which he then used to buy personal items like a $750 Louis Vuitton bag. 'The crimes Mr. Wills is accused of committing represent a shameful breach of the trust his constituents placed in him,' Attorney General Schneiderman said in the statement. 'New Yorkers are repeatedly asked to have faith in our leaders, and it appears that faith has been shattered once again. Every time my office arrests a corrupt public official, it sends the message that elected office does not come with a blank check or a license to break the law.' | Councilman Ruben Wills and a relative have been arrested and will face grand larceny charges .
New York Attorney General's office accuses them of taking both government grants and campaign matching funds from a 'fake' charity .
Wills, a Democrat from Queens, launched a not-for-profit in 2006 but they don't have a website and have little record of running any programs .
Wills' relative, Jelani Mills, helped move funds into the not-for-profit's account where Wills would make cash withdrawals for personal use .
One purchase included a $750 Louis Vuitton bag .
Both men face up to seven years behind bars if convicted of grand larceny . |
14,217 | 2856af955eb35fbb369fc88dc8d542296df73779 | The ultra-bronzed woman dubbed Tanning Mom - following claims that she took her then five-year-old daughter into a tanning booth - has big sunbathing plans now that the criminal case against her has been dropped. Patricia Krentcil, 44, a mother-of-five from Nutley, New Jersey, told NBC News that she wants to go 'somewhere . hot so I can fry like a bacon and come back and say, ''Ha! Ha! You can't . arrest me for lying in the sun.'' She also revealed that she has been working on a tanning lotion line, titled Real Tan Mom Healthy Glow, in a bid to pay back the thousands in legal bills she owes. Scroll down for video . Tanning Mom Patricia Krentcil appeared on This Morning via webcam to defend herself and her tanning habits . Mrs . Krentcil was arrested last April and charged with second-degree child endangerment for allegedly bringing her young daughter into a tanning booth. The girl, who has fair skin and red hair, told a school nurse she had 'gone tanning with mommy' when staff at her school asked her about burns on her skin. However a jury in Newark, New Jersey did not indict her in the end. Moving . on from the dropped charges last week, Mrs Krentcil is now looking at ways to cash in on her notoriety, and along with her tanning lotion line she is working on a book and launching herself as a comedian. 'My love of tanning started when I was about 23... Everyone has some form of addictions and I liked to tan' Following the reports in the press she was dubbed the world's worst mother in the U.S. and today Mrs Krentcil appeared on This Morning to defend herself. 'My love of tanning started when I was about 23. Everyone has some form of addictions and I liked to tan - but I never put Anna in the room. 'But I'm not tanning anymore and I was thinking how stupid it really is,' she said from a studio in New York. Speaking about the accusations that she took her red-haired daughter in the tanning booth following burns on her pale skin, Mrs Krentcil said: 'It's not a booth, its a room like what I'm sitting in right now with a tanning table - but she was never in the booth, I don't know how many times I have to say it.' Patricia vehemently denied taking her daughter tanning when speaking to Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby . The New Jersey mother was arrested for child endangerment after she took her five year old daughter to a tanning salon . The saga surrounding Mrs Krentcil began when her fair-skinned, red-haired daughter Anna's teacher noticed serious burns . on the then five-year-old's body . Explaining the burns she said: 'She had a half a day, she's out in the pool and she's a redhead and had just a little bit of sunburn on her back and if she would have been in a tanning booth it would have been her whole body.' She added: 'I was set up in this whole mess - its not true. When you ask about justice over here, I don't think there isn't any - there are liars and its very upsetting. 'If we go to court, I have witnesses. This is a big misunderstanding on everyone's part - I know exactly what happened, there's a camera in the place, the owners know I didn't do that. Living hell: Patricia Krentcil, pictured left, said her life had become 'a living hell' since she was arrested for allegedly taking her six-year-old daughter, right, to a salon last April . In the spotlight: The tanning addict made headlines last year after being accused of taking her then five-year-old daughter to a tanning booth . 'It's very frustrating. We just want to be left alone. I didn't do it - there's evidence that I didn't do it, and if they proceed on with it, so will I.' After a month abstaining from her sunbed habit, the New Jersey mother revealed a lighter new look in an issue of In Touch last month. Although the 44-year-old says most people think she looks better less bronzed she said she felt 'weird and pale.' On the show today, speaking about her love of tanning beds, she said: 'I haven't been there in six months.' Tanning Mom has made quite a name for herself because of her brash behaviour. She was recently kicked off the stage . during an alcohol-fuelled appearance at a New York drag show, where . witnesses claim she shouted expletives at the audience, kicked over her . wine glass, and even tried to 'attack' the drag queen hosting the event. Her tanning days have taken a toll and she is barely recognisable compared to a fresh-faced photo of her in her twenties . Her latest look is a far cry from a fresh-faced twenty year old shown in a series of monochrome shots taken in her twenties. The cleavage-baring swimwear photos are thought to have been snapped as she tried to break into the world of glamour modelling. The shots serve as evidence of how the 44-year-old's excessive tanning habit has affected her skin over the past two decades. | ''Tanning Mom' can't wait to go sunbathing now her court case is over .
She only wants to tan her body, not her face, for the time being .
She is launching a self-tan range called Real Tan Mom Healthy Glow . |
105,016 | 1378f0777d6ba7451a5e61ccaadc8f4d93f6ba9d | Cairo (CNN) -- Egyptians will vote in two weeks to approve, or reject, a new constitution -- a potentially pivotal moment for the North African nation that underwent a revolution a year ago and, more recently, has seen its president become the target of fierce protests. President Mohamed Morsy on Saturday announced a December 15 referendum date on what could become the nation's constitution, shortly it was presented to him by the Islamist-dominated assembly that crafted it. While his supporters cheered the move, there was little indication the vote or anything Morsy said would placate the opposition. "(Morsy) put to referendum a draft constitution that undermines basic freedoms & violates universal values," said Mohamed ElBaradei, a Nobel laureate and head of Egypt's Constitution Party, on his Twitter account. "The struggle will continue." The proposed constitution will be published Sunday in government newspapers, said Hossam al-Gheryani, head of the 85-person group that pushed through its 234 articles Friday after 21 hours of haggling. Egypt effectively has been without a guiding constitution, as well as a legislature, since the 2011 revolution marked by the ouster of its longtime leader Hosni Mubarak. Thousands of the president's supporters packed streets around Cairo University on Saturday, taking part in marches and a massive rally organized by the Freedom and Justice Party, the Muslim Brotherhood's political branch that Morsy once led. They carried banners featuring Morsy's photo, waved the Egyptian flag and chanted their support. An even larger rally took place just south of Cairo in the city of Giza. It involved Brotherhood members, fellow Islamist groups and others including the Egyptian Revolution's Alliance, the Revolutionary Front to Protect the Revolution and the Coalition of the January 25th Youth. Other pro-Morsy rallies were held in the northern port city of Alexandria and the central city of Asiut. These events aimed to bolster Morsy after more than a week of protests against him, during which stones flew, demonstrators and police clashed and clouds of tear gas wafted through, among other places, Tahrir Square in central Cairo. That landmark square, which is across the Nile River from one large pro-Morsy rally, remained buzzing Saturday night with people who have camped out there and marched elsewhere to vent their anger at the president. They have called Morsy a dictator, even worse than Mubarak, for his edict declaring that his past and future decisions are immune from judicial oversight -- new power that the president insists is only temporary. They responded to his speech, which was blared over loudspeakers, by chanting, "Leave, leave" -- suggesting that, whatever comes of the constitutional referendum, their goal remains removing Morsy as president. Morsy's controversial edict, issued November 22, energized the opposition and led them to reoccupy Tahrir Square, as dissidents did in the winter of 2011. Seeds of Egypt's past sown long ago . Many saw it as an overbearing, undemocratic grab for power that left the president in charge without any checks and balances. Morsy described it as a necessary move to fight judges loyal to Mubarak's regime who were blocking progress in government. It engendered sharp opposition within Egypt's judiciary, with many courts basically shut down as judges and prosecutors went on strike. Despite the order, the nation's high administrative court has indicated it will review the proposed constitution -- though it's not clear, if they rule it invalid, if that will prevent the referendum. As part of his edict, Morsy had also given the constitutional assembly up to six more months to craft the pivotal document. But amid the raging discontent, the president spurred the group to speed up its work -- an expedited process that prompted Christian, liberal and leftist members of the group to walk-out in protest, with many of them later replaced by Islamists. Essam El-Erian, a senior Morsy adviser, insisted all viewpoints -- including the need to safeguard freedoms when it comes to things like gender and religion -- were taken into account nonetheless. But critics are unconvinced. Opinion: Don't blame Muslim Brotherhood for Morsy power grab . A quick glimpse at the constitution's articles show language dealing with individuals' civil rights, particularly how security forces and the justice system treats them. There is wording prohibiting arbitrary arrest and detention and ensuring due process, a sensitive topic in Egypt. Mubarak and his loyalists are blamed for jailing and harshly mistreating innocent people in the years before and especially during last year's uprising. One article stipulates no one in jail can be interrogated without a lawyer present, and if detainees don't have one, the judicial system must appoint one. Phone conversations, electronic correspondence and other communication could not be taped without a warrant. Protesters to Morsy: Roll back your decree or leave . While many of the articles sound democratic, the fine print indicates otherwise, some human rights advocates say. "Moving a flawed and contradictory draft to a vote is not the right way to guarantee fundamental rights or to promote respect for the rule of law," said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch. Mohamed Naeem, a member of the Egyptian Social Democratic Party, said he fears the proposed constitution would open the way for a theocracy by moving the country closer to Sharia law. The preamble includes language pertaining to women, saying they are equal to men, but it also accentuates their role as mothers. And the United Nations' high commissioner for human rights, Navi Pillay, has urged Morsy to reconsider the draft, saying a number of measures contained in it are incompatible with international human rights law. Beyond the details about the constitution itself, some see this month's vote more generally as a referendum on the government. Morsy took office in June as Egypt's first popularly elected president, following decades in which Mubarak held vast powers and limited dissent (including by banning the Muslim Brotherhood). But Morsy's recent moves have stirred suspicions that he and his Islamist allies are intent on amassing powers at the expense of others. Opinion: A new Egypt must learn political compromise . CNN's Reza Sayah, Amir Ahmed and Ben Brumfield contributed to this report. | NEW: President's supporters cheer proposed constitution at rallies in Cairo, elsewhere .
NEW: But an opposition leader rips the document and says "the struggle will continue"
Egyptians can vote in a referendum on the proposed constitution on December 15 .
Protesters have criticized Morsy for what they call an undemocratic power grab . |
37,796 | 6afe5a118f6dc8eeaf80116d485f8f8dd2671883 | By . Alasdair Glennie . The BBC has lavished more than £10million on consultants in the past year. Its total consultancy bill doubled in just 12 months as executives spent thousands of pounds on personal ‘advisers’ from firms such as Deloitte, Accenture and KPMG. But despite awarding hundreds of contracts - at huge expense to licence fee payers - the corporation refused to provide any details of what they were hired to do. 'Not an easy ride': Director-general Tony Hall promised to tighten spending on consultants just last month - but the cost to the BBC has increased . Figures released under the Freedom of Information Act show the BBC paid a total of £10.4million to external consultants in the financial year up to March. The bill in 2011/12 was £5million. The five biggest recipients were Accenture, Deloitte, KPMG, PriceWaterhouseCoopers and McKinsey. Only last month director-general Tony Hall promised to reduce spending on consultants. He told the Commons culture, media and sport committee: ‘I want to reduce the amount of money that we pay on consultants, I really do. I am not an easy ride when it comes to consultants.’ But the BBC is already on course to rack up another huge bill this financial year, spending £4.7million in the six months between April, when Lord Hall took up his role, and September. Last night Margaret Hodge, chairman of the Commons public accounts committee, threatened to drag Lord Hall to the House to explain the enormous bill in person. She said: ‘This is public money. You’ve got to account for it properly. They better have a jolly good explanation for why they need so much consultancy in an organisation that is slimming down on management anyway. ‘They have to say what the consultants were hired to do. They can’t carry on with this secrecy.’ In the past two years, 22 divisions of the corporation – including the BBC Trust, the human resources department and the finance team – have employed the help of management consultants. The corporation refused to release details of what projects any of the consultancy firms were hired for, or how much each was paid. Deloitte alone earned £5.7million in BBC fees between January and August this year, it emerged yesterday. It is thought much of the recent increase in consultancy fees has been driven by senior executives hiring external advisers to help them do their jobs rather than rely on the BBC’s own staff. It is believed the BBC’s £300,000-a-year director of operations, Dominic Coles, employs a Deloitte consultant as his ‘chief adviser’. In September, the BBC’s £295,000-a-year strategy chief James Purnell was criticised for recruiting former Labour spin chief Godric Smith to provide PR advice. The BBC already had 140 staff in its PR department with a salary bill of around £5million. Tory MP Conor Burns, who sits on the culture, media and sport select committee, said the consultancies’ bill was a ‘staggering waste of money’. He added: ‘It is an extraordinary, unnecessary bill. We have a new director-general appointed with a clear mandate to draw a line under the past and get a grip. ‘He has recruited a team of hand-picked managers who he says are the best people to sort out the BBC’s problems, and they are paid hundreds of thousands of pounds a year. ‘Why, if this phalanx of managers are so good, can’t they do their jobs without the help of external consultants?’ A BBC spokesman said: ‘The BBC in common with other large organisations does employ consultants when we need specialist advice and guidance on projects that are outside of the normal course of our business and where it would not be cost-efficient to maintain these specialist skills in-house. | Corporation has doubled its spending on advisers in just one year .
The increase comes after director-general Tony Hall promised to spend less .
It has been described as 'a staggering waste of money' |
3,254 | 096b0034a1834df5374d60c5b7c18162c21218ff | By . Ruth Styles . PUBLISHED: . 04:16 EST, 25 September 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 05:41 EST, 25 September 2013 . A morbidly obese bus inspector who tipped the scales at 31st 7lb has shed more than half his body weight after being shamed for taking up multiple seats on the tube. Philip Kettle, 52, from Romford, was carrying around the equivalent of 128 bags of sugar in weight after eating unhealthily for almost two decades. But after warnings from doctors and daily angry stares from commuters, Philip decided to overhaul his diet and now weighs a trim 14st 7lb. Slimline: Bus conductor Philip Kettle poses in one of his old XXXXXL blazers after losing a colossal 17st . Big change: Philip now weighs just 14st 7lb but used to weigh a mighty 31st 7lb and was morbidly obese . 'When you are that size you become . withdrawn, withdrawn from society, you don't want to go out to things . because people will look at you,' Phillip revealed. 'You . become very self conscious that you are being scrutinised. Looks are . one thing but the emotional side also takes a right pounding. 'I was ashamed. I was not proud of what I had done to myself over the years.' At his biggest, Philip had a 60in waist and struggled with simple activities such as climbing the stairs and keeping up with his five-year-old grandson. 'I was eating chocolate bars and various junk food all the time - I have a very sweet tooth,' he added. 'But my health started to deteriorate. I had very high blood pressure. It was quite a shock to hear what the GP said. I was at that point in my life that I realised I had put my family through a lot by being this way.' Particularly hard for Philip was the realisation that he might not live to see his grandson grow up, which made him increasingly desperate to shed the pounds. 'I was very overweight throughout my daughter's lives but now I have a grandson,' he said. 'I . didn't want him remembering his grandfather like that. I couldn't do . anything about the past but I could so something about the future. Relieved: Wife Denise, 52, is thrilled that her husband has finally managed to shift the pounds . Unhealthy: Philip was warned that he might not see his grandson grow up unless he lost weight . 'I . had just carried on and put off doing something about it for years. But . it got to a point where I could not carry on. It was becoming too much.' Philip's solution was to join Weightwatcher's where he was swiftly put on a programme that replaced daily English breakfasts and carb-laden sandwiches with healthy salads, fruit and vegetables. Snacking was banned, while weekly weigh-ins helped to keep him on track as the pounds slowly but surely dropped off. He also started walking everywhere and two years later, he now weighs just 14st 7lb and has a trim 34in waist. 'My . blood pressure is back to normal, I am physically fit and I'm off all . my medication - the doctor said I have got my health back,' said Philip. 'I used to go . everywhere in the car, even short journeys, but now I walk everywhere. I . walk to work and as much as I can and only use the car once a week. 'I'm even doing a 26-mile walk for charity, which before was something I could never of imagined doing. 'Everything has changed now. I have . changed so much as a person and really come out of my shell. I've never . been so happy. I look at myself in the mirror now and I can't believe . it. 'My wife says I now . turn heads for the right reasons. There are so many things I can do now . that I would not do before.' Happy ending: Philip says his impressive weight loss has made a huge positive difference to his life . BreakfastFull English breakfast . LunchTwo large sandwiches and a cake. SupperLarge pizza . SnacksSweetsTea and a packet of biscuits.Chocolate . BreakfastScrambled egg with a crumpet . LunchMixed salad . SupperLow fat curry sauce, chicken breast, rice and chick peas. SnacksSix pieces of fruits a day.Tea, coffee and diet drinks. | Philip Kettle, 52, from Romford, weighed 31st 7lb at his heaviest .
The bus inspector has now lost 17st and weighs a slim 14st 7lb .
He was shamed after receiving cross looks from commuters .
Doctors also warned he was at risk of serious health problems .
Swapped snacking and junk food for three healthy meals a day . |
79,399 | e11870733ad437b5acc3f818310c9e262ec00f51 | London, England (CNN) -- A law banning the use, production, and stockpiling of cluster munitions came into effect Thursday in Britain. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown urged other countries to enact similar legislation, saying a global ban is needed to fight such "cruel and indiscriminate weaponry." The Cluster Munitions (Prohibitions) Act received royal assent Thursday after it passed through both houses of Parliament. "Cluster munitions cause immense suffering to civilians caught in conflict zones, and leave a deadly post-conflict legacy for future generations," Brown said in a statement. "I am hugely proud that with this bill receiving royal assent, Britain is leading the world in banning the use of these munitions and moving to end the harm they cause." The act also bans direct financing of cluster munitions production. The British government has already said it plans to work with the financial sector, non-governmental organizations and others on a voluntary code of conduct to prevent indirect financing of the weapons. Cluster munitions, which break apart in flight to scatter hundreds of smaller bomblets, are described by the International Committee of the Red Cross as a "persistent humanitarian problem." Most of a device's bomblets are meant to explode on impact, but many do not. Credible estimates show the weapons fail between 10 percent and 40 percent of the time, leaving civilians at risk of harm from unexploded ordnance, the ICRC says. During the 34-day war in Lebanon in 2006, the United Nations estimated that Israel dropped 4 million bomblets, 1 million of which may not have exploded, according to the ICRC. More than 250 civilians and bomb-disposal operators have been killed or injured by them in southern Lebanon since the war ended. Cluster bombs were also used in the 1999 war in Kosovo. In more than 20 countries, according to the ICRC, cluster bombs have created lasting "no-go" areas, rendering them as dangerous as minefields. Laos is the most affected country, where millions of bomblets dropped during the Vietnam War continue to kill civilians more than three decades later. Britain is among 104 nations that have agreed to a treaty banning all cluster bombs. Thirty of those nations have ratified it, and Brown said he hoped passage of the new law would pave the way to U.K. ratification of the ban. Four of the world's biggest cluster bomb makers -- Russia, China, Israel and the United States -- have not signed the ban, claiming the devices are a vital part of their defense strategy. "We want all other users and producers of these munitions around the world to follow in our footsteps," said Brown. "We want nothing less than a full global ban on cluster munitions, with all countries signing up to the international convention. There can be no place in the international community for cruel and indiscriminate weaponry such as cluster bombs." In addition to calling for a total, immediate ban of the weapons, the treaty calls for strong standards to protect those injured. It urges that contaminated areas be cleaned up quickly and weapons immediately destroyed, the Cluster Munition Coalition has said. The agreement, due to come into force in August, also requires the destruction of stockpiles of the weapons within eight years, the coalition has said . | New UK law bans use, production, and stockpiling of cluster munitions .
Cluster bombs break apart in flight scattering hundreds of smaller bomblets .
ICRC describes bombs as a "persistent humanitarian problem"
104 countries have agreed to a treaty banning all cluster bombs . |
249,216 | ce7f1e2e05dc889ee05d29a3d7d0d5cd2d4b2ca5 | Davos (CNN) -- RICHARD QUEST SAYS: The U.S. bank robber Willie Sutton once famously answered the question on why he robbed banks with the reply, "because that's where the money is." The same should be said for Davos and the issue of inequality. It may stick in Nina's throat but it is an undeniable truth that it is the people who are attending Davos who can make changes. Frankly, no amount of shouting and protesting will make any difference if those in charge of policy and agendas aren't persuaded by the arguments and decide to do something. And frankly, when it comes to getting all the right people in the same place at the same time, Davos is unique. In Davos during the WEF we have government heads like David Cameron, Shinzo Abe, Tony Abbott and Dilma Rousseff. These are the people who can actually get something done. There is a reason why Pope Francis sent his Cardinal to Davos, and who gave us the quote of the day when he said we must ensure "humanity is served by wealth and not ruled by it." This was not a quixotic message ... he knows that if he wants to create the change of greater fairness and equality, those who have power must be on board rather than just bleating about unfairness and hoping someone might listen. This is all about reality rather than fantasy... From the corporate world, there are CEOs here like Muhtar Kent of Coca Cola, Carlos Ghosn of Renault-Nissan, Bob Dudley of BP and Aliko Dangote Africa's richest man. Between them they employ hundreds of thousands of people all across the globe. Their companies set working conditions and wage standards for whole sectors of industry, frequently amongst the low paid. Where they lead others will follow, creating a multiplier effect out of proportion to their individual company. Then there are the extra governmental groups like the International Labour Organization and NGOs like Oxfam International who push these agendas hard. Oxfam International's conclusion that the 85 richest people own half the world's wealth generated huge interest. The director told me Oxfam came to Davos to warn if we don't break out of this power and wealth privilege and opportunity then it "is dangerous." Nina, with all the players in the same place, at the same time this is the perfect venue to raise such issues. Of course there is the risk that leaders and CEOs choose to ignore these calls for greater equality. If they do that they will be closing their eyes to the warnings from groups like the WEF itself. In its latest Global Risks report WEF says inequality is now the greatest threat to global stability. "Income disparity is also among the most worrying of issues. It raises concerns about the Great Recession and the squeezing effect it had on the middle classes in developed economies," opines the WEF. Bearing in mind most companies rely on the middle classes in developed countries to sell goods and services throughout the value chain, dealing with inequality is a matter of brutal enlightened self-interest. It's simple economics: Global stability equals global growth equals profits. So -- Nina -- you tell me a better place where you can advise, consult and ultimately warn those with so much at stake of the risks of doing nothing. Or perhaps you would like to stand out in the cold. Talking to yourself. I think I would prefer to talk to those who can actually do something. NINA DOS SANTOS SAYS: From 1,500 meters above sea level you get a great view of the world's big issues. And if you occupy the lofty upper echelons of the ladder -- which many Davos attendees do -- the picture's even clearer right? Wrong. You see, Richard, while you may consider yourself at home among the world's 1%, the very attributes that make a Davos guest so ideal -- power and money -- often clash with some of the subjects those very delegates are here to tackle. That's especially true when it comes to this year's "theme du jour": Inequality. Of course getting so many of the world's decision makers in the same room affords its opportunities. But when they have a vested interest in maintaining the status quo, you have to ask what appetite -- if any -- they would have for change. Also how credible would their views actually be? Take a look at the thorny subject of executive remuneration, which helps feed today's inequality spiral and should keep the corporate crowd on their toes this year. In the UK, for instance, the average blue chip boss can earn up to a staggering 185 times the salary of their ordinary worker. And in the U.S., the chasm looms even wider. I was surprised to hear the CEO of accountancy firm Ernst & Young confess to me on air that he had never investigated the gap between his compensation and that of his more junior staff. "Should you know this?" I asked. He protested that he created jobs all around the world. As if that, somehow, makes it okay. Job creation is a valid argument but it doesn't detract from the fact that some Davos attendees are so high up the food chain they are either divorced from reality or willfully blind to what doesn't affect them. Until it costs them money or votes, which is why, as you point out Richard, the "squeezed middle" has made its way up the agenda, arguably decades too late. Pope Francis' decision to send a papal envoy to Davos was a game changer this year. But his message -- read out by Cardinal Turkson -- wasn't just about lobbying those in power, it was also about making sure those suffering hardship and financial strain are also represented among the World Economic Forum elites. You see recessions and recovery have a habit of treating the "haves" and the "have nots" differently. And while those further down an organization are more likely to face the ax when times are lean, they don't benefit as much as their bosses when business is better. But don't take my word for it, Richard. Let the figures speak for themselves. Oxfam's report about the top 85 fortunes having a stranglehold over the world's riches has certainly captured public attention but the trend was already well known. A few years ago Branko Milanovic of the World Bank estimated that between 1988 and 2008, around the world, the highest earners saw their income rise by 60% while the lowest 5% haven't witnessed any uptick at all. And that's just income. Don't get me started on the wealth gap, where inheritances, better access to capital and contacts amplify the trend. Richard, you say you would prefer to talk to "those who matter" but I caution you, one can learn a lot from the 99% who actually staff their firms and fund their government's trips to Davos. They do the doing rather than the talking. And guess what? They count just as much. Global economic recovery feeds growing inequality . Opinion: Will global elite listen to Pope of poor? | CNN anchors Richard Quest and Nina dos Santos disagree as to whether Davos can make a difference to inequality .
Quest argues this meeting of power players is the best forum to make big decisions about global issues .
Dos Santos argues it is ironic this is where the super-rich are gathering -- and wonders if they will create change .
Do you believe Davos can make a difference to global inequality? Tell us in the comments . |
277,820 | f3e56d00036c361b3609a79a711f55cfce062e76 | By . Mark Prigg . PUBLISHED: . 07:58 EST, 12 April 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 10:22 EST, 12 April 2013 . Microsoft is developing a smaller version of its Surface tablet with a 7inch screen, it has been claimed. The tablet is expected to go on sale later this year, and will go head to head with Apple's iPad Mini, Google's Nexus 7 and the Amazon Kindle Fire in the lucrative small tablet market. It is hoped the devices could reverse the disappointing sales of the larger Surface tablet which Microsoft launched this year. The Surface tablet was unveiled earlier this year to a lukewarm reception - Now Microsoft is believed to be developing a smaller version to take on Apple's iPad mini . Samsung's new Galaxy Mega has a 6.3-inch HD screen - although the firm claims it is 'ultra-thin and portable enough to put into your pocket.' The Mega comes with an enhanced 8 megapixel rear-facing camera with a 1.9 megapixel front-facing camera, and runs Google Android software. 'The software giant is developing a new lineup of its Surface tablets, including a 7-inch version expected to go into mass production later this year,', The Wall Street Journal said people familiar with the company's plans had claimed. It claims the 7-inch tablets weren't part of the company's strategy last . year, but Microsoft executives realized they needed a response to the . rapidly growing popularity of smaller tablets like Google 7-inch Nexus, . which was announced last summer, and the 7.9-inch iPad Mini introduced . by Apple last October, along with Amazon's Fire HD. Seperate reports have specualted the new tablet could be designed primarily as a games and media device, and be branded as an 'Xbox tablet' to accompany Microsoft's hugely successful games console. It comes amid growing concern for the future of the PC industry as consumers move towards tablets. PC sales have have gone into freefall with a 14 per cent drop last year - the biggest slump in history. HP, the world's largest PC maker, saw the sharpest decline with 24 per cent fewer machines sold in 2012 compared to 2011. Dell also saw an 11 per cent slump and even Apple, which saw a seven per cent fall, was unable to buck the trend. Research firm IDC said it was the biggest decline overall since it began began tracking this data in 1994. Analysts . said that ‘the days seem to be numbered for the humble PC’ and that in . the future we would all be using portable devices. Even . the launch of Windows 8 failed to stop the trend with some saying the . negative response to the software may have exacerbated the trend. PC . makers have in recent years tried a string of innovations to breathe . life into the market including Ultrabooks which were poorly received. How the competition stacks up . Experts say the success of the iPad and smartphone has led to the slump in PC sales, with people preferring gadgets they can carry with them . Windows 8 was also criticised for making too many changes and getting rid of the iconic start button. The figures show that the late Apple founder Steve Jobs’ prediction that we are headed for a ‘post-PC era’ is coming true. Bob . O’Donnell, program vice president for clients and displays at IDC, said . that what he called the ‘radical changes’ made to the PC in recent . years had done it more harm than good. He . said: ‘At this point, unfortunately, it seems clear that the Windows 8 . launch not only failed to provide a positive boost to the PC market, but . appears to have slowed the market. ‘Microsoft will have to make some very tough decisions moving forward if it wants to help reinvigorate the PC market’. Microsoft also came under fire for the slump, with critics saying its Windows 8 software confused users . Some 350 million personal computers are sold each year, but the numbers are nothing compared to more portable options. Some 919 million smartphones will be sold this year and 200 million tablets, taking their total comfortably over one billion. Research firm Gartner also released similar figures which showed a 11 per cent decline in PC sales, the biggest drop since 2001. The company has already predicted that by 2017 the main operating system for all computing devices will be Google’s Android. Marcus Jewell of tech company Brocade said: ‘The days seem to be numbered for the humble PC’. | Smaller version of the firm's Surface tablet expection to go on sale later this year .
Will have a 7 inch screen, and compete against similar sized tablets from Apple, Google and Amazon .
Could be designed for games and carry the Xbox logo . |
50,563 | 8f14d56e2fd554ff9267e29540b10fbbe46fa6f9 | (CNN) -- Nissan has just joined Google in the race to make driverless cars a reality. The Japanese automaker is aiming to have such driverless autos on the road by 2020. "Nissan Motor Company's willingness to question conventional thinking and to drive progress is what sets us apart," said CEO Carlos Ghosn, in a press release. "In 2007 I pledged that --- by 2010 --- Nissan would mass market a zero-emission vehicle. Today, the Nissan Leaf is the best-selling electric vehicle in history. Now I am committing to be ready to introduce a new ground-breaking technology, Autonomous Drive, by 2020, and we are on track to realize it." SEE ALSO: Tesla Opens First Plant in the Netherlands . Nissan intends to start testing such vehicles by 2014. It's unclear how long Nissan has been testing the technology, though the release refers to "years." Google began road-testing its self-driven autos in 2010. The search giant has no stated intention to use the cars for commercial purposes. However, the company could benefit from selling its technology to automakers. The automaker does not appear to be working with Google on its Autonomous Vehicles as it dubs them. However, it has developing the technology "alongside teams from the world's top universities, including MIT, Stanford, Oxford, Carnegie Mellon and the University of Tokyo," according to the release. Meanwhile, Nissan's not the only automaker looking into driverless cars: Audi and Toyota have both displayed driverless car prototypes. This article originally appeared on Mashable. © 2013 MASHABLE.com. All rights reserved. | Nissan says it will have a driverless car on the road by 2020 .
Google began road-testing self-driving cars in 2010 .
Audi and Toyota have displayed prototypes . |
79,150 | e05c70732f386a7f49c48a21e20404ba35e4e3e1 | Google's controversial Glass wearable computer can be used to steal people's PIN codes from ten feet away simply by looking at them, it has been claimed. Researchers developed special software to analyse the shadows and movements of peoples’ fingers in order to decipher PIN codes entered into tablets and smartphones. The team also showed the same technique would work using an iPhone 5, Samsung Smartwatch and webcam. Scroll down for video . Look out! Researchers say Glass can capture a PIN number using a new analysis app that looks at how a person moves their arms . A range of gadgets was tested including Google Glass, an iPhone 5, a Samsung smartwatch and a Logitech webcam. Video captured by Glass produced a correct four digit PIN from three metres away with 83 per cent accuracy (this was improved to more than 90 per cent with manual corrections) while the webcam was accurate 92 per cent of the time. The research team led by Professor Xinwen Fu of the University of Massachusetts Lowell are set to show off their software at the Blackhat hackers conference. 'Our spying camera, including Google Glass, can take a video of the victim tapping on the touch screen and automatically recognize more than 90% of the tapped passcodes from three meters away, even if our naked eyes cannot see those passcodes or anything on the touch screen,' they wrote. The basic idea, the team said, is to track the movement of the fingertip and use the fingertip's relative position on the touch screen to recognize the touch input. 'We carefully analyze the shadow formation around the fingertip, apply other computer vision techniques to automatically track the touching fingertip and locate the touched points.' The team can then estimate exactly where on the screen the finger is touching. They say their hack could easily be used in conferencesor even in bars where there are people entering PIN numbers. The researcher's diagram showing how they were able to reliably capture PINs with a camcorder from 44 meters away - from a third floor window . 'We are interested in scenarios such as conferences and similar gathering places where a Google Glass, webcam, or smartphone can be used for a stealthy attack.' The team is also working on a solution - a secure keyboard which appears in a different part of the screen each time iit is used. 'Any camera works, but you can’t hold your iPhone over someone to do this,' Fu told Wired magazine. 'Because Glass is on your head, it’s perfect for this kind of sneaky attack.' In response to the research Google issued a statement saying: 'Unfortunately, stealing passwords by watching people as they type them is nothing new. We designed Glass with privacy in mind. The UMass researchers testing PIN-spying with Google Glass: they found that codes could easily be captured from ten feet away using Glass . 'The fact that Glass is worn above the eyes and the screen lights up whenever it’s activated clearly signals it’s in use and makes it a fairly lousy surveillance device.' The research team were also able to record PIN codes using the same software from a distance of nearly 150 feet by using a more expensive camcorder with an optical zoom, and were able to capture a target’s PIN from a fourth story window on the other side of the road. | Software can analyse video taken ten feet away and reveal PIN number .
Technique also works using an iPhone 5, Samsung smartwatch and webcam . |
201,146 | 90689749adffbbe22098d11277c59c9755c7167d | (CNN) -- Lawmakers drew battle lines for a fresh round of sparring over U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl after a classified briefing Monday on the prisoner swap that led to his release. Authorities released an update about his condition. And more details emerged about his time in captivity. Details about why he disappeared off a military base nearly five years ago and ended up in Taliban hands remain murky. One thing is clear: the political debate over Bergdahl's release is showing no signs of dying down. Here's a cheat sheet on the latest developments, based on CNN's reporting: . After classified briefing, lawmakers have 'more concerns' Monday it was the House of Representatives' turn to hear the Obama administration's explanation of how it handled Bergdahl's case, as top White House deputies tried to convince lawmakers they made the right call when they didn't notify Congress in advance about the controversial exchange of Bergdahl for five Taliban figures. But it didn't seem like many minds were changed after the classified briefing, CNN's Dana Bash reported. "If anything, I have more concerns," said Rep. Peter King, R-New York. "Probably the most distressing thing or the most disturbing thing I heard was at least 80 to 90 people in the administration were aware of this proposed deal, and yet they couldn't notify anyone in Congress." After Monday's briefing, National Security Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden said that figure was the number of people in the administration authorized to get intelligence information about the Taliban in Qatar. "The specifics of the detainee exchange and the related military operation were more closely held," she said. Why wasn't Congress told about the deal beforehand? Lawmakers at Monday's briefing said they were told concerns over possible leaks made the White House keep them in the dark over the deal. Rep. Adam Schiff, D-California, told CNN's "Erin Burnett: Outfront" that the White House should have told congressional leaders, even if the law gave them wiggle room. "I think the President had the constitutional authority ... to make this decision without consulting with Congress, but I think it would have been wiser, far wiser, for the administration to have notified certainly the leadership of Congress in the interest of having good relations," he said. "Most of the leaks that have taken place have come from the administration and not from Congress," he added, "so they really should have brought at least the leadership within their confidence, and I think that was a mistake." And that's not all. Some lawmakers are also steamed about the terms of the deal. They say they're worried that the five Taliban figures released could end up back on the battlefield -- a concern administration officials have downplayed in their public comments defending the deal. Don't expect the sparring to stop any time soon. A briefing of the Senate Armed Services Committee is scheduled for Tuesday. And the real fireworks are expected to come Wednesday, when Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel is scheduled to testify before the House Armed Services Committee, where he'll likely face questions about the administration's decision not to seek congressional input on the deal that secured Bergdahl's release. Bergdahl hasn't spoken to his parents yet . Bergdahl is "continuing to improve every day" as he recovers at a military hospital in Germany, Pentagon spokesman Col. Steve Warren said Monday . But he hasn't spoken with his family yet. The "decision to speak with the family is a decision the returnee has to make when he or she is emotionally in the right place to make the phone call," Warren said. Doctors at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, where Bergdahl was taken after his handover, have said he's in stable condition but not ready yet to travel to the United States. "There is no predetermined timeline for Sgt. Bergdahl's recovery process," a hospital statement said Friday. "The duration will continue to be based on the pace of his healing and reintegration process." When he is ready, Bergdahl will be flown to the San Antonio Military Medical Center in Texas, where he may be able to reunite with his parents. He was kept in a cage . As Bergdahl recovers, details are slowly emerging about the conditions he endured during five years of captivity. Citing an American official, The New York Times reported Sunday that Bergdahl told medical staff that the box he was kept in for weeks at a time was pitch black and like a shark cage. CNN reported Friday that Bergdahl has said he was kept in a small box after trying to escape, according to a senior U.S. official, who spoke on the condition of not being identified. The official also told CNN that Bergdahl suffers from psychological trauma caused by physical abuse. A Taliban source with knowledge of Bergdahl's captivity told CNN's Nic Robertson on Sunday that Bergdahl escaped at one point and was on the run for three days. When he was recaptured after that attempt, according to the Taliban source, he was not punished with a cage or cell, but was taken to a more secure location where he had no chance to escape. A U.S. official told CNN last week that Bergdahl may have tried to escape his Taliban captors on at least two occasions. He wants to be recognized by his old rank . The Times report added that Bergdahl has taken walks outside his hospital room while wearing his Army uniform, according to the American official. Bergdahl, who was promoted twice on schedule while in captivity, objects to being called sergeant, the Times reported. Bergdahl said he wants to be recognized by his old rank, a senior U.S. official told CNN Pentagon Correspondent Barbara Starr on Sunday. Bergdahl was a private first class when he went missing on June 30, 2009, in Afghanistan's Paktika province, where he was deployed with the 1st Battalion, 501st Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division. "In his mind, he's a Pfc," the official told Starr. His parents have received threats . The FBI is investigating threats against Bergdahl's parents, who have not been seen publicly since sending their son messages of love through a news conference days after his release. "We are working jointly with our state and local partners and taking each threat seriously," FBI Special Agent William Facer told CNN in an e-mail Saturday. Facer declined to detail the nature and severity of the threats, and a military representative for the Bergdahls declined to comment. Bergdahl's father received threats in three messages via e-mail at his home, according to a law enforcement official familiar with the contents of the e-mail. The first threat came on Wednesday, the official said, adding that FBI investigators will be tracing the messages to pinpoint who sent them. Since Bergdahl's release, critics, including a former member of his unit, have contended that Bergdahl deserted. The Army concluded in a 2009 report that he left his post deliberately. But the Army has no definitive finding that Bergdahl deserted because that would require knowing his intent -- something Army officials can't learn without talking to the soldier, a U.S. military official told CNN. CNN's Elise Labott, Barbara Starr, Kevin Liptak, Jake Tapper, Qadir Sediqi, Ed Lavandera, Devon Sayers, Shimon Prokupecz, Deirdre Walsh, Ashleigh Banfield and Chloe Sommers contributed to this report. | NEW: Lawmakers say they're still skeptical after a briefing on Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl's case .
NEW: King: "At least 80 to 90 people in the administration were aware of this proposed deal"
NEW: White House official: Specifics of the prisoner swap "were more closely held'
Bergdahl was kept in a pitch black cage for weeks at a time . |
165,001 | 615d5c10342f75fe552bcc1488fd6f775ace37c7 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 01:59 EST, 6 March 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 01:59 EST, 6 March 2014 . Several participants in the Carnival parade in the Dominican Republic marched wearing Ku Klux Klan outfits - and the island nation's Ministry of Culture has come out in defense of the outfits following an outpouring of criticism. The culture ministry is tasked with approving groups that are permitted to march in the annual parade, so when a group showed up wearing Klan outfits - which represent hate, fear and oppression against African Americans in the Southern United States - people expressed their outrage. In a series of post on Twitter on Monday, the ministry defended the group's attire by explaining that it was for a portion of the parade dedicated to commemorating historical events. Hate: The Ku Klux Klan represents a dark, painful episode in U.S. history. KKK imagery is widely regarded as offensive (File photo) 'Every group is free to choose their themes, whether using elements of the Dominican identity or universal culture in their costumes,' the ministry tweeted. Another tweet noted that the Dominican Republic is a 'free country' where people are at liberty 'to express their creativity.' The controversy was first reported by El Caribe. In a followup statement, the ministry claimed that the costumes were intended to be critical of the KKK in the U.S., which has a history of violence against blacks, and still exists - albeit in a much smaller capacity than in the past - today. Not everyone was convinced, and many took to social media to voice their disdain. 'If the point was to demonstrate the obscurantism of a historical period, the message didn’t come through!' write Twitter user Nieves Peguero. The Latino Rebels blog caught wind of the story after it gained traction in the Dominican media on Monday. The bloggers were equally outraged. Disgrace: The KKK still exists in the U.S. today, although in much smaller, isolated, powerless sects (file photo) 'If the KKK procession was meant to be humorous or satirical, it obviously failed,' Iris Estrada wrote, as initially reported by the Huffington Post. The Dominican Republic is no stranger to controversial racial issues. Last year, the Supreme Court issued a ruling that eliminated the birthright citizenship to be applied retroactively. This ultimately jeopardized the immigration statuses of thousands of Haitian immigrants and their Dominican-born children, the majority of which are black. According to the Huffington Post, human rights groups estimate that the ruling could strip more than 200,000 people of their citizenship. The Dominican government says those estimates are too high. | The ministry of culture claims the outfits were part of the parade commemorating historical events .
Officials said the Dominican Republic is a 'free country' and groups in the parade are free to choose their themes .
Tweets from the ministry later said the outfits were intended to be critical of the KKK in the U.S. |
61,546 | aedcd09336c5429d810185fd7b3c47bd86e8f9f2 | By . Amanda Williams . Two thousand Cambridge University students have descended on to a city centre park for the 'Caesarian Sunday' annual drinking party - despite being warned by their colleges to stay away. The undergraduates spent the afternoon playing boozy drinking games in fancy dress on Jesus Green - just yards away from families picnicking in the Bank Holiday sunshine. It comes just one week after college chiefs urged students not to attend the drinking party, which has taken place for the last 80 years. Two thousand Cambridge University students have descended on a city centre for the 'Caesarian Sunday' annual drinking party - despite being warned by their colleges to stay away . The high-spirited students - some in fancy dress - appear to be 'funelling' alcohol as they are surrounded by empty drinks bottles and cans . Around 2000 undergraduates spent the afternoon playing drinking games at the 'Caesarian Sunday' party on Jesus Green, just metres away from families picnicking in the spring sunshine . A group is pictured trying to make a human pyramid. It comes just one week after college chiefs urged students not to attend the drinking party, which has taken place for the last 80 years . Caesarian Sunday is seen as the birth of the drinking parties for the summer term which ends with the notorious after-exams party, Suicide Sunday, in June. The university had warned students not to bring shame on the institution, but many ignored the advice and celebrated the start of the summer term by downing alcohol using funnels and vomiting. The students arrived at midday, wearing university blazers or fancy dress, and carrying alcohol in buckets and trollies. They were seen drinking throughout the afternoon, spraying each other with beer, bottles of wine and water pistols and taking part in wheelbarrow races. Some of the students were dressed as Where's Wally character, whilst others wore black curly wigs and moustaches or stripped down to their shorts. Caesarian Sunday is seen as the birth of the drinking parties for the summer term which ends with the notorious after-exams party, Suicide Sunday, in June . They were seen drinking throughout the afternoon, spraying each other with beer, bottles of wine and water pistols and taking part in wheelbarrow races . A man carries a beer keg across Jesus Green. Caesarian Sunday historically takes place at Jesus Green in Cambridge's city centre, on the first bank holiday of the summer term . Extra police were drafted in to control the event. By the end of the afternoon many of the students could barely stand and had to be supported by their friends, others were seen vomiting on the grass and litter was left strewn across the park. The event is historically held on the first May bank holiday of the summer term. It usually begins with a wrestling match between the Caesarians and their Girton College drinking rivals. But this year the traditional fight was banned by the colleges. Caesarian Sunday is seen as the birth of the drinking parties for the summer term, which ends with the notorious after-exams party, Suicide Sunday, in June. Girls appear to be wearing bin liners and masks as the male students relcine on the grass, covered in whipped cream and with plastic cups balancing on their stomachs . The blindfolded female students appear to have licked the cream off and picked up the cup with their teeth . The afternoon of drinking games included wrestling and undergraduates at the prestigious institution soaking each other with water pistols and bottles of wine . Five years ago the Suicide Sunday garden party, organised by the Wyverns, an all-male Magdalene College drinking society, had to be held in a new location for the first time in 80 years after officials banned students from holding the event on university land . A girl appears to have fallen asleep on the grass as her friends check on her. The park was strewn with litter after the event was over . The park was packed with revellers making the most of the Spring sunshine. The Caesarians society has a tradition whereby any initiated member can point at an invited male, or 'Legionary' as they call it, keeping with the Roman theme, and he must then down his drink . Police speak with some of the students. There were no arrests during the course of the day . Five years ago the Suicide Sunday garden party, organised by the Wyverns, an all-male Magdalene College drinking society, had to be held in a new location for the first time in 80 years after officials banned students from holding the event on university land. The controversial decision was made after a 23-year-old student was arrested the previous year during the infamous jelly wrestling contest for punching a spectator. The Wyverns drinking society has a reputation for its hard partying and excessive drinking. Its initiation ceremony involves eating a 15-course meal with delicacies such as a pig's snout with wasabi sauce and a pint of water with a goldfish swimming inside. The Caesarians society has a tradition whereby any initiated member can point at an invited male, or 'Legionary' as they call it, keeping with the Roman theme, and he must then down his drink. There is no limit to the number of times this can be done to any one individual, and it has been reported that many don't make it much past the end of the meal. | Undergraduates spent afternoon playing boozy drinking games on Jesus Green - just yards away from families .
It comes week after college chiefs urged students not to attend drinking party, which has taken place for last 80 years .
Caesarian Sunday is the birth of .
drinking parties for summer term - ending with after-exams party, Suicide Sunday . |
163,609 | 5f8f7dd7ee474d8498b240694119b777ee46b8e8 | From delicate swirls of raised flesh to intricate dotted patterns, the scars that decorate the bodies of Ethiopia's Bodi, Mursi and Surma tribes are more than just the sign of an old injury. For these aren't just any scars: They're an elaborate part of local culture and signify everything from beauty to adulthood or even, in some cases, are simply a mark of belonging. But Ethiopian tribes aren't the only ones to embrace scarification. In Uganda, the Karamojong are famous for their elaborate scar patterns, while across Ethiopia's border with Sudan, Nuer men bear scarred foreheads and consider getting them a key part of the transition from boy to man. Scroll down for video . Adornment: Along with intricate scar patterns, many Surma women also embrace piercings and traditional lip plates (right) Markings: A Mursi man shows off the scar patterns on his chest. Mursi people regard scars as a sign of beauty and strength . Neighbours: Both the Menit (both images) and Surma tribes bear facial scarifications but despite living only a few miles apart, regularly oppose each other . Beauty: . A woman from the Menit tribe who live close to the Surma in the Omo . Valley. Both are currently under threat of being displaced by . encroaching plantations . Now the stunning scar markings of Ethiopia and Sudan are the subject of an incredible set of photographs by French snapper, Eric Lafforgue, who travelled through the country observing cutting ceremonies and meeting the locals. During a visit to the Surma tribe, who live in the country's remote Omo Valley, he witnessed a scarification ceremony, which involved creating the patterns using thorns and a razor. 'The12-year-old girl who was being cut didn't say a word during the 10-minute ceremony and refused to show any pain,' he revealed. 'Her mother used a thorn to pull the skin out and a razor blade to cut the skin. 'At the end, I asked her whether having her skin cut had been tough and she replied that she was close to collapse. It was incredible as she didn't show any sign of pain on her face during the ceremony as that would have been seen as shameful for the family.' What's more, he explained, despite the pain, the girl herself initiated the ceremony as Surma girls aren't obliged to take part. 'Scars are a sign of beauty within the tribe,' he added. 'Children who go to school or convert to Christianity don't do it but the others see the ability to cope with pain as a sign that they will be able to cope with childbirth in future.' Varied: While some tribes such as the Dassanech, also from the Omo River Valley, focus on the shoulders, the Surma and others also include the face and head (right) Ceremony: A Surma scarification ritual using thorns and a razor is carried out on a 12-year-old girl who volunteered to be scarred . Painful: Although the process isn't without pain, Lafforgue says the girl kept a straight face throughout in order not to shame her family . End result: After the initial cut, scars have organic sap or ash rubbed into them in order to make them heal as raised bumps . Intricate: Scar patterns aren't reserved solely for Surma women - men, as pictured right, also have intricate patterns made from dotted scars . Other tribes who live in the Omo Valley, among them the Bodi, also embrace scarification and often use sap or ash to make the resulting wounds more prominent when they heal. But it seems that not everyone is impressed. 'People wearing scarifications are seen as "primitives" by many urban Ethiopians and suffer from this,' Lafforgue explains. 'Those who have had them but have been to school as well often try to hide them.' Others, such as the Mursi tribe, consider scars a sign of beauty and strength, although as Lafforgue relates, thanks to an influx of workers from other parts of Ethiopia, scarification is becoming an increasingly risky business. 'Using shared blades is a huge problem in the south Omo region,' explains Lafforgue. 'Hepatitis is starting to become a problem as workers from other parts of Ethiopia arrive to work on the new giant [government-sponsored] plantations. AIDS is also becoming a threat.' Bodi: Ana, pictured on the left, now hides her elaborate scar markings after being ridiculed for having them at school. Others such as this woman (right) embrace them . Tradition: Other tribes to embrace scarification include the Afar people, who live in Northern Ethiopia and are famous for using butter in their hair . Popular: Facial tattoos are particularly common among the Afar, especially for women, and can include both dot and line patterns . Tradition: Although this Mursi man (left) and Karrayyu woman live in different parts of Ethiopia, both have embraced their respective tribe's scarification rituals . Despite the risks, scarification continues to play a huge role in tribal life, not least across the border in South Sudan where scars are a distinctive feature of life for the Nuer people. South Sudan's second largest ethnic group after the Dinka, the majority of adult Nuer men have 'gaar' markings - six lines carved on either side of their foreheads - as a sign of maturity. Other Nuer, particularly the Bul Nuer of the Nile Valley, create a dotted version of gaar and women sometimes have them too. The neighbouring Toposa tribe, which lives in both Ethiopia and South Sudan has also embraced scarification but combine facial dot patterns with elaborate body etchings as well. Although the Toposa etchings remain popular with younger generations, the Nuer's gaar markings are becoming increasingly rare as conflict between them and other South Sudanese tribes becomes more frequent. 'This tradition isn't done as much anymore,' explains Lafforgue. 'Partly, it's because of better education and the increasing number of people who have turned to Christianity but also because it is a too visible sign of tribal belonging in an area that has suffered many disputes.' Distinctive: Many Nuer men are eschewing 'gaar' lines such as these because they are a clear indication of belonging to the tribe - dangerous when conflict looms . Elaborate: The markings adopted by the Toposa tribe of South Sudan are among the most intricate and involve serried rows of dotted lines . Delicate: The dotted patterns that encircle the eyes of Toposa men and women are just as beautiful as their elaborate body markings . | Tribes who scarify include Ethiopia's Bodi and Surma tribes, South Sudan's Nuer and Uganda's Karamojong .
Surma girls choose to go through the process voluntarily and must not show pain during the 10-minute ritual .
Gaar scars are a sign of maturity for Nuer men but fewer are doing it thanks to inter-tribal conflict . |
90,810 | 00c8e5ddfb090cf06830bb1a7fda320add185429 | By . James Rush . PUBLISHED: . 05:27 EST, 24 July 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 09:06 EST, 24 July 2013 . To many, William Shakespeare could lay claim to being a genius and possibly the greatest writer of all time. But according to one ITV boss, the Bard would have struggled to get a job writing for Coronation Street. Soap creative director John Whiston made the remarkable statement as he defended using Shakespeare's poetry in an advert for Coronation Street and Emmerdale. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO . Shakespearean romance: ITV soap creative director said the Bard would struggle to get a job on Coronation Street, featuring characters known in households up and down the country, including Rita Sullivan . Lady Macbeth? Michelle Keegan plays Tina McIntyre in the soap, which William Shakespeare, possibly the world's greatest ever writer, would have apparently been lucky to get a job on, according to one ITV boss . He said: 'Having read a lot of his stuff, I think Shakespeare would be lucky to get a job on either of our soaps.' Mr Whiston made the comments at a screening of an Emmerdale special in which Gennie Sharma, who is played by Sian Reese-Williams, falls to her death, according to The Mirror. He said the channel felt it could use Shakespeare's Sonnet 18 to advertise the soaps as they were both 'at their peak'. Corrie characters David Platt, Hayley Cropper and Rita Sullivan all read out lines of the poem, along with Emmerdale's Cain Dingle and Cameron Murray, as part of the advert. The trailer finishes with the line: 'The greatest drama: Every day'. Meanwhile, . the world's longest running soap is continually looking to the future - . it was announced earlier this year that Coronation Street could soon be . filming life on the Weatherfield cobbles in 3D. Sonnet: David Platt, played by Jack Shepherd, features in the advert, where stars of Coronation Street and Emmerdale recite lines from Shakespeare's Sonnet 18 . Recital: Mr Whiston said the channel felt it could use Shakespeare's Sonnet 18 to advertise the soaps as they were both 'at their peak'. Pictured is Hayley Cropper, played by Julie Hesmondhalgh, in the advert . In February bosses said they were planning a 'future-proof' set at its new studio at MediaCity in Salford Quays, paving the way for 3D technology to be used in special episodes. And the show, which was first broadcast in black and white in 1960, was also named as one of the 50 most influential international TV programmes of all time in April. The list was compiled to mark the 50th anniversary of Mip TV, a TV trade show held in Cannes each spring. Trailer: The advert also features characters including Emmerdale's Cain Dingle (played by Jeff Hordely, pictured in the soap with Emma Etkins as Charity Sharma) reading lines from the sonnet . The Woolpack: Mr Whiston made the comments at a screening of an Emmerdale special . VIDEO: Stars of Coronation Street and Emmerdale recite Shakespeare in advert . 'The Rovers is the east, and Tina is the sun,' from Romeo and Juliet (Act II, Scene II). 'Not that I loved Marlon less, but that I loved The Woolpack more,' from Julius Caesar (Act III, Scene II). 'Deirdre doth protest too much, methinks', from Hamlet (Act III, Scene II). 'Chesney hath eaten me out of house and home', from King Henry (Act II, Scene I). 'Yond Cain has a lean and hungry look; He thinks too much: such men are dangerous', from Julius Caesar (Act I, Scene II). | Soap creative director made comment as he defended using poetry in advert .
He said Shakespeare would 'be lucky to get a job on either of our soaps'
ITV uses Bard's Sonnet 18 to advertise Coronation Street and Emmerdale . |
270,887 | eadfc1d1c812ae0d5c27b2e6117837909a317b93 | The bread and butter of Twitter is getting more followers, but to get more followers you ultimately need to get more retweets. A new study has looked into the science behind what makes a tweet popular and therefore more likely to be shared, and has discovered it may be as simple as just adding a photo. Dan Zarrella, HubSpot's social-media scientist, discovered that tweets including photos, and in particular photos hosted by Twitter's own picture service, are 94 per cent more likely to be shared. The study looked at 400,000 tweets and compared their retweet rates. It discovered tweets including photos, and in particular photos hosted by Twitter's own picture service, are 94 per cent more likely to be shared, left. Tweets with Instagram photos attached had a negative effect and were 42 per cent less likely to be retweeted . At the other end of the scale, tweets that include links to Instagram pictures are 42 per cent less likely to be retweeted. Zarella studied 400,000 randomly selected tweets and compared their retweet rates. After discovering that photo tweets received more retweets on average than tweets only containing text, Zarella compared where each of these photos were hosted. Every time a photo is posted online, the original image is hosted on a particular service which then creates a clickable link. This makes it possible to share images without having to send the original files. Zarella looked at photos tweeted using Twitpic, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter's own picture service, pic.Twitter. Every time a photo is posted online, the original image is hosted on a particular service which then creates a clickable link. This makes it possible to share images without having to send the original files. Zarella looked at photos tweeted using Twitpic, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter's own picture service pic.Twitter . Instagram was 64 per cent less likely to be shared, while Facebook was 47 per cent. Twitpic came out in second place with a retweet rate 64 per cent more likely. Zarella said: 'Using a dataset of 482,865 randomly selected tweets, I found that using Twitter's native image uploading system greatly improved the odds of a tweet being retweeted. 'Twitpic had a less powerful, but still positive effect, while Facebook and Instagram image links had negative effects.' Zarrella is an author of four books including The Science of Marketing, Zarrella’s Hierarchy of Contagiousness, The Social Media Marketing Book and The Facebook Marketing Book. | Study looked at 400,000 random tweets to see how many were retweeted .
Retweet rates of different image hosts, including Facebook, Instagram, Twitpic and Twitter's own service were compared .
Photos posted using Twitter's service were most likely to be retweeted .
While Instagram photos were 42 per cent less likely to be shared . |
285,372 | fdcaf72c85e2c6310d2de95897de20e39abc9072 | At least 876 American children aged 10-19 took their own lives in 2013 with a gun, marking a 12-year peak in firearm suicides according to a new report from the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence. The study, released on Monday and based on data from the CDC, found that the majority of the deaths - 82 percent - involved a weapon that belonged to a family member, in most cases a parent. The increase in gun suicides by young people reflected a growing rise in the number of suicides generally among that age group. Suicides have grown for the past three years after dipping after 2001 and now it is the second leading cause of death among children and teenagers after car deaths. It replaced homicide as the number two cause. Twelve year peak: Using data from the CDC the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence study reveals suicides by guns are at a level not seen in more than a decade . The data on the number of young gun suicides was taken from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and according to the Brady Center is proof many of the death's are preventable. 'Millions of Americans have a gun in their homes thinking that it makes their family safer, but every day in our nation, dozens of these families learn just how dangerous and tragic that miscalculation can be. 'The bottom line is: having a gun in the home dramatically increases the danger that a child will be shot and killed.' Indeed, with more than 80 percent of the deaths caused by a gun owned by a family member, the center said that removing weapons from the home or better gun education is key to reducing this figure. On the rise: The study also showed that suicides by firearms are on the rise and have been on the increase for three years . Correlations: In states where there are least weapons the suicide by gun rate is lowest. In states where there are more guns, it is highest . 'One of the most significant ways we can address this serious public health and safety issue is to educate parents about the risks of unsafe access to guns in the home,' said Gross. 'Parents are the first line of defense against gun violence, so we all need to realize the risks and take the appropriate steps to make sure our kids do not have unsafe access to guns.' 'Every day, 48 children are wounded or killed by gunfire.' said Dan Gross. The report also revealed that most annual total gun deaths occurred in states with the highest rates of gun ownership such as Louisiana and Wyoming. Conversely it showed that the states with the fewest number of annual firearm deaths such as Hawaii and New York had the lowest gun ownership rates. 'One of the most significant ways we can address this serious public health and safety issue is to educate parents about the risks of unsafe access to guns in the home. 'Parents are the first line of defense against gun violence, so we all need to realize the risks and take the appropriate steps to make sure our kids do not have unsafe access to guns.' | Study from Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence released on Monday .
Used data from the CDC and showed a 12-year peak in firearm suicides in 2013 .
Suicides have now replaced homicide as the second most common cause of death among children and teenagers . |
205,455 | 95f99ef3ac36f0682e000c5372db09fdbb6d8b36 | By . Liz Jones Column . PUBLISHED: . 20:03 EST, 13 October 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 02:56 EST, 17 October 2012 . Nigella Lawson was a bit in the bain-marie last week for saying that French food is all about fancy sauces and plate decoration, and that she far prefers Italian food. This was perfectly reasonable, I thought. This is not Russia, and she should be able to voice a preference without being put in prison. I'm a huge fan of Nigella, not because I ever cook any of her recipes – I have a phobia about ingredients, and do not possess an oven, nor much like food – but because she is so breathtakingly beautiful. Breathtaking: 'She looks Italian with a teeny waist and hair colour of liquorice' I once had lunch with her, and it was like being seated opposite a great Hollywood star, like Sophia Loren in her prime, or Gina Lollobrigida. She looks Italian, with a teeny waist and hair the colour of liquorice, so why shouldn't she cook Italian? She was nice, too, grabbing my hand and exclaiming that neither of us was wearing a huge diamond engagement ring (I was married then). 'I hate women who show off,' she said. And now along comes a French chef, Jean-Christophe Novelli, a man who has a greasy slick of black hair that falls into his eyes, like an apron-clad Shakin' Stevens. He said of the goddess Nigella and her favouring Italian food: 'Having witnessed her for the last 30 years of my life, it's rather amazing for someone who has looked well over 60 for more than two-thirds of her life from behind, and who has scavenged a big part of her starting life on mostly amazing basic French cooking. Greasy: 'How dare' Jean-Christophe Novelli say Nigella looks old . 'She is not even capable of supporting her own native cuisine.' Nigella looks 60 years old! From behind! This from a man who might have Italian roots, but comes from a country that drowns wild birds in alcohol, then eats them, bones and all. A country where people eat horse, and foal stew, and foie gras. I once sent a young female food writer to interview Novelli when he was running the restaurant at a country house hotel, and he was rude and monosyllabic. He raises money for the British Heart Foundation (and also charges £695 and upwards for his masterclasses where you have your photo taken with him), but have you seen his recipes? Baked Vacherin cheese, wrapped in ham. Crispy ham and cheese pork chops, fried in a knob of butter.Why not use the sebum from your dreadful bonce to fry a wild hare's heart? He is stupid, too. On his website, he spells Eton Mess with an 'a', as in Eaton, and uses brands that sponsor him, such as Carte D'Or ice cream. How dare you say our Nigella looks old from the rear, when she doesn't remotely look her age from any angle? Women in Paris, in their fur pelts and with their hoisted faces, emaciated bodies and lack of humour, look ancient. Nigella is both creamy and dreamy. I hate male chefs, all of them. Isn't Paul Hollywood arrogant on The Great British Bake Off, while Mary Berry is so encouraging, sweet as an English strawberry? Gordon Ramsay once cooked me dinner: baked little gem hearts. Translated, that means hot lettuce. Seriously. Even I can do better than that. He once made marks on my virgin kitchen table, too, cutting pasta shapes. 'What are you!' I yelled. 'A toddler? Use a chopping board! Do you scribble on walls as well?' Jamie Oliver invited me to lunch, then served me an entire meal made of truffles. Everything was foamy. Who wants that? The worst meal I ever ate was cooked by Marco Pierre White – he of the dead shark's eyes. When I told him I don't eat meat he sent out a plate of asparagus, with nothing on top. Female chefs are more open to new ideas, to people who are altogether less carnivorous than they are. I sat next to Lorraine Pascale last week – we were both in a studio having our make-up done – and I told her I don't own an oven. 'What on earth do you eat?' she said, eyebrows in her ironed hair. 'I'm sad that there is no woman in the final of The Great British Bake Off' 'Um, muesli with rice milk. Anything cold, like an avocado.' 'I think we should all eat less meat,' she said gravely. Male chefs regard women who dare to have flesh on their bones as a sign of matronhood, of letting the side down, of not being attractive enough. But Nigella is bigger than Jean-Christophe in every way: he is merely jealous. I'm sad that there is no woman in the final of The Great British Bake Off, which airs on Tuesday. It's the women of this country who have to cook, day in, day out, without plaudits. Men merely make a mess, then expect to be praised like puppies who have used a puppy training pad. | 'I'm a huge fan of Nigella Lawson, not because I ever cook any of her recipes, but because she is so breathtakingly beautiful' |
41,146 | 741130b6b3a069c9380df6df09f72797f708c48b | A group of young men in Saudi Arabia have been arrested for 'playing loud music and dancing inappropriately' at a private party. The men were celebrating one of the group's birthdays when police stormed the apartment they were in in the city of Buraydah in Qassim province. Officers of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice, commonly referred to as the morality police, were acting on a tip off, local media reported. A group of men were arrested in the city of Buraydah in Saudi Arabia (above) after a resident phoned police to report their loud music and 'inappropriate dancing' Buraydah is home to some of the kingdom's most conservative clerics with many residents observing Wahhabism, a strict interpretation of Islam. An unnamed official told the news website Ayn al-Youm the men were found 'in a compromising situation' by police. There was cake and candles at the apartment, he added, but there were no signs the men had been drinking or cavorting with women which are both against the law. None of the men were dressed traditionally, he said, before urging parents in the area to prevent their children from engaging in such behaviour 'because it can lead to immorality and even homosexuality'. Critics took to Twitter to condemn the raid, pointing out that the men had not committed any crimes. Others ridiculed their arrests by sharing photographs of royals performing the traditional Saudi sword dance which is widely accepted as being masculine. The Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice is tasked with enforcing Islamic law in the region and is known to take action against residents they consider to be inappropriately dressed. In 2008 the force arrested an American businesswoman for having a coffee with a male colleague in a Starbucks in Riyadh. King Abdullah (left), who died last month, had appointed a reformist police chief. Upon ascending to the throne however, King Salman (right) gave the position to a different cleric . The 37-year-old mother-of-three said she was strip searched and forced to sign a false confession after the incident which, she said, left her fearing for her life. Police issued a statement defending her arrest, condemning her behaviour as against Sharia law. In October 28 people were arrested after attending a 'depraved' party near Madinah. Officers seized alcohol and musical instruments in the raid which came after 30 people were arrested on suspicion of Satanism and debauchery the previous year. Former police chief Sheikh Abdullatif al-Sheikh was considered as trying to reform the force's practices under the then reigning monarch, King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz. Following his death last month, the newly crowned King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud relieved Sheikh Abdullatif al-Sheikh from the position and appointed Sheikh Abdulrahman al-Sanad as the new agency executive. Critics ridiculed the raid on Twitter, sharing photographs of royals performing a traditional sword dance which is considered masculine. Above, the Prince of Wales takes part in the dance during a tour of Saudi Arabia earlier this year . | The men, thought to be in their 20s, were arrested at a raid in Buraydah .
A police source said they were found in 'a compromising situation'
The group had been celebrating someone's birthday with cake and music .
Official warned against the behaviour which 'could lead to homosexuality' |
213,171 | a010f5f0089d5fb6cfb4e6c33c9c423cb2b1e2f9 | By . Luke Garratt . Chinese parents have admitted to putting their son in chains and refusing to let him go as a punishment for constant stealing. Father Wen Yuan, 47, chained up his son, Chuang, 24, because he believed his thieving habits had brought shame on the family. As a result he tied his son to his bedroom in their house in Xibianban village in south China's Jiangxi province, for fear that if he didn't stop his son from stealing, he would soon end up in jail. Chuang Wen Yuan (pictured) with his neck in chains in an attempt by his parents to get him to stop stealing . Chuang was chained by the neck to a heavy concrete block, which he placed in the boy's bedroom so that he couldn't do anything but move around the room and sit in his bed. Wen Yuan said: 'It isn't exactly a large community here, when something is stolen . everybody knows who's to blame. 'I always had to compensate my neighbours . and apologise for what he had stolen if I couldn't return it and I just . got fed up with it. 'I can't keep paying compensation all the time . because I just can't afford it and eventually someone was can call the . police and he would have been locked up. Chuang Wen Yuan had been stealing things around the neighbourhood to the point that his parents could no longer keep bailing him out . Chuang's parents tied him by the neck to a concrete block that his father found, so that he could not leave his room . 'I don't think once you been . jailed would be any chance of correcting him and so we have kept him at . home and chained him up to remind him exactly what a wonderful thing is . to have freedom.' He said that every time the youngster had stolen something he had given him repeating warnings. But he explained that nothing had helped over the years. His parents claim the did not have the money to keep bailing their son out of his scrapes, it appeared that there would be no end to the thievery, so they turned to a unique brand of parenting . His parents intend to keep him chained up until they are convinced he has 'learned his lesson' So Chuang's parents felt they only had one option: a prolonged stay in chains. Wen Yuan added: 'I don't know how long they will people like that, we need to be convinced he's learned his lesson and is prepared to become a proper part of the community.' | Wen Yuan, 47, chained up his son Chuang, 24, for constantly stealing .
They had been paying off the people in the neighbourhood after his crimes .
Father decided they could no longer afford to keep paying them .
They decided to chain him to a concrete block in his bedroom .
Chuang's father said it was the only way he would learn his lesson . |
184,663 | 7b2ffa137c64cdd7f7d2e2688ecc4e9dce2a369e | The boy was scared, angry, insecure. His dad was away in prison, and the son didn't know how to grapple with his loss. "Everybody says my father is so bad, but I really love him," the boy said. Sharon Content still recalls that conversation -- a reminder of her life's calling. She worked on Wall Street for five years before realizing that she needed something more meaningful. "I just didn't feel satisfied," she said. Content is the founder of the Brooklyn, New York-based Children of Promise organization, aimed at helping children cope with having a mother or father in prison. Her organization works with about 200 children between the ages of 6 and 16, all of whom have at least one parent in prison. "I call them the silent victims of incarceration," Content said. "They're not the victim who the crime was committed against, but they are feeling the ramifications of their parents doing time." More than 2.7 million children in America have a parent in prison, according to a 2010 study (PDF) by The Pew Charitable Trusts. For the vast majority, there are few outlets for the kids. Children are left to be reared by grandmothers, aunts, moms -- themselves often already struggling below the poverty line. Sometimes, they fall into the hands of the state. In some countries, children actually grow up behind bars with their parents because no one else can raise them and there isn't a social safety net large enough to take care of them all. Pushpa Basnet, one of this year's top 10 CNN Heroes, runs a home in Nepal where dozens of these children can live a more normal life, even in their parents' absence. At her organization in Brooklyn, Content says separation from parents often leads to depression, anxiety and anger. In some cases, the kids witnessed the crimes their parents committed, so the group works with the children to remove the stigma they may feel. "There's so many different scenarios that these young people go through," Content said. "But the one thing that's consistent is, there's a level of embarrassment of what your parent did, and they shoulder that level of shame." Across town from Content, Christopher Watler runs the Harlem Community Justice Center, a nonprofit group that works with the state court system in helping inmates re-enter society. It helps about 250 inmates a year find jobs, get mental health treatment and strive for a life beyond crime. "Lots of times when a guy comes home, there's a lot of excitement, and the families welcome them back home," Watler said. "But very soon after the honeymoon phase of the release ends, the reality starts to sink in: When are you going to get a job? "For some, those pressures can lead them back. We don't want that." Many times, a parent has missed large chunks of his child's most formative years while serving time. That can create awkward and tense moments upon his or her return. Watler's organization works with a "family re-entry" social worker and interfaith groups to help ease that transition by providing help with rent, food and little things like diapers. "If you're arguing because you don't have Pampers to contribute to the household," Watler said, "we want to help solve that problem in the short term until you get on your feet." They especially focus on men and women 18 to 24 years old, who are at the highest risk of committing crimes again. Watler's group provides counseling to give them the skills to be a successful parent while emphasizing that staying crime-free is an important lesson for their kids to witness. "They want to have those relationships with their children," he said. At Children of Promise, more than 100 letters of thanks adorn the walls. They are notes from parents in prison thanking the organization for keeping them in contact with their children. "They're happy that we still respect this very important relationship," Content said. The children in the after-school and summer programs write to their moms and dads every two weeks. They include photographs, report cards and other items going on in their lives. Often the kids will ask each other: What did you tell your dad? In Nepal, Basnet also wants to preserve the bond between parent and child. During school holidays, she sends the younger children to the prisons to visit, and she brings them food, clothing and fresh water during their stay. She also started a program to teach the parents how to make handicrafts, which she sells to raise money for the children's care. "Often, they think that they're useless because they're in prison," Basnet said. "I want to make them feel that they are contributing." Who's your CNN Hero of the Year? Cast your vote now! Content believes that programs tailored to children are vital in breaking the generational cycle of incarceration. "The cycle doesn't continue because (the children) saw behavior and repeated it," she said. "From my experience working with the population, the cycle repeats itself because of the lack of support that this young person now has after going through these traumatic experiences." The children are allowed to still be kids at her program. They play sports and other recreational activities. But the children also talk in groups about their feelings, and they are allowed access mental health support. "Young people who have lost a parent to military deployment or death or even divorce, society has a level of compassion and understanding for that," Content said. "But for a child who loses a parent to incarceration, that same level of empathy doesn't exist." She recalls consoling the one boy who wondered about whether it was OK to love his father. "Your dad is not bad," she told him. "He made some bad decisions and ... is paying for those mistakes. You can feel good about loving him." Content knows that helping 200 children is "just a drop in the bucket" compared with millions of kids with incarcerated parents. But she hopes her organization grows, first statewide and then nationwide, to bring attention to society "about a population they may not even think about." "If I'm able to give a bit of a voice to the population," she said, "I feel like I'm doing my part." | More than 2.7 million children in America live with a parent in prison, says a recent study .
In some countries, children even have to live in prison with their parents .
These children often become depressed and angry; some repeat the cycle of crime .
Top 10 CNN Hero Pushpa Basnet and others are reaching out to support these kids . |
157,265 | 5756209ff85f7dcf01915c78197c60830b006c12 | (CNN) -- Andrew Dawson has nice hands, and he knows it. He's fussy about moisturizing them and takes extra caution around the oven, although he uses power tools without hesitation. These hands are the stars of "The Articulate Hand," a piece of performance theater about how various people's hands have become impaired and what effect that's had on them, both practically and psychologically. It's a collaboration between Dawson and neuroscientist Dr. Jonathan Cole, and supported by the Wellcome Trust. "I mix up performance and lecture and basically talk about human stories," Dawson says. "It just happens that I'm using my hand as a vehicle, but really I'm talking about what it is to be human." In the show, which he hopes to perform again this year, he talks about various people who have lost complete use of their hands and demonstrates to the audience, through his own body's movements, what these people's lives are like. "I am looking for that unique balance between science and art, so that medial practitioners and researchers learn something about the work they are doing from a new perspective, without feeling that the performance is 'not for them,' Dawson said. "And that the art audience in turn learn something about their very structure, of what it takes to be a human without confusing them with science. " In October at TEDMED, a gathering of notable researchers, thinkers and other professionals in the health care space, Dawson performed a few powerful segments of "The Articulate Hand." For one portion he takes on the movements of Debbie Graham, a woman who injured her spine when she dove into a swimming pool, glided across it and hit the wall. Graham broke her neck, and is quadriplegic as a result. Graham received bionic hand technology called the Freehand System, which involves electrodes under her skin connected to a receiver driven by a radio transmitter on the skin. In this way, moving her shoulder backwards and forwards makes her hand open and close. Cole wrote about Graham in a book called "Still Lives: Narratives of Spinal Cord Injury." "She can hold her fork herself or a brush and brush her hair, and that's what gives her what she desires the most, and that's independence," Dawson says. Dawson and Cole met after Dawson saw the neuroscientist's documentary about a man who cannot sense the relative position of his own joints and limbs. The pair worked together on a piece called "Process of Portrayal," which deals with experiences of people who are paralyzed, or for whom movement is difficult. Recognizing Dawson's "extraordinary hands" and artistic talent, it made sense for Cole to focus on that for their subsequent collaboration. "Human hand function really reflects the evolution of the movement and creative [areas of the] brain, and one way to reflect on how we are defined by our hands is to look at the consequences of loss of function," Cole told CNN. "So our next project had to be about the hand and neurology." Cole explains on "The Articulate Hand" website that there are parts of the brain called the motor and sensory cortex areas that are critical for the hand's coordinated action, as well as sensation that helps you to act -- for instance, when you reach into your pocket for coins, and you have to feel and grasp them in order to pick them up without seeing them. He supplied the scientific insights and the patients that inspired "The Articulate Hand." Cole and Dawson also created short videos with the patients so that people can see what they are like in real life, in addition to Dawson's portrayal. "We never pathologize the conditions but rather show you individual people living with their altered hands, so asking the audience to look beyond the problem to the person," Cole said. The show has been performed in the United Kingdom in 2010 and at the World Science Festival in June 2011. Dawson took it to India last year also at a Wellcome Trust event. He is exploring multiple possibilities for 2012. Dawson started out wanting to be an actor, and then got interested in dance, studying with the legendary dancer and choreographer Merce Cunningham. He also studied theater in Paris. His interest in mime illusions started at 16 or 17, but he credits that more to his imagination than to his hands. Besides "The Articulate Hand," he's also created and performed "Space Panorama," which depicts the Apollo 11 moon landing with Dawson's hands alone, and a hand-based dance performance called "Quatre Mains." He's also a hand model. If you want to try your hands at this sort of performance, Dawson has this advice: keep them moving, and keep them agile. "There's a lot of bones there. You have more bones in hands and feet than you have in whole of the rest of your body. You need to keep them supple." | 'The Articulate Hand' is a piece of performance theater about living with impaired hands .
Artist Andrew Dawson and neuroscientist Jonathan Cole collaborated on it .
More than half the bones in the body are in the hands and feet . |
128,815 | 326dd4f4388b6bf64796e0f88dc06204424f6e43 | The wait is nearly over. The much-anticipated fragrance from One Direction - Our Moment - goes on sale on August 25th at Harrods and is being described as the biggest ever celebrity perfume launch. The store has held off doing any additional promotion as the fragrance is likely to sell out within the first few days of going on sale. The celebrity fragrance market grows bigger every year - with last year's sales worth £255 million in the UK - and this year's figures looking like they will top that. We've come a long way from the first celebrity fragrance - L'Interdit - designed for Audrey Hepburn by Hubert Givenchy in 1957. To date, the most successful celebrity fragrance ever is Elizabeth Taylor's White Diamonds, which followed the launch of her first fragrance, Passion, in 1989. Scroll down for video . One Direction's first scent is called 'Our Moment' and comes in a hexagonal shaped bottle with what looks like Barbie's upside-down tutu topped with a tiara as a stopper . The scent is designed to appeal to fans of Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson . Now it seems that everyone has their own fragrance - Justin Bieber, Beyonce, Lady Gaga, Nicki Minaj and Mariah Carey's fragrances have been huge hits. And like One Direction, they all say they are hands-on with every aspect of the production of their perfumes, from the all-important packaging to the shape of the bottle to what goes into it to produce the actual scent. There are only four sample bottles of Our Moment available in the UK - but I've managed to get my hands on one, so can tell you precisely what it's like. The pale pink box features black and white pictures of the boys on one side and silvery grey roses - a hint of what's inside the bottle. This is definitely one for the girls - and very girly girls at that. Hardly surprisingly there is a waiting list for this - but the real surprise is that the ages range from 16 to 68 - so it's not just for very young fans, . The bottle is a bit of a surprise - in that it's a hexagonal shape with what looks like Barbie's upside-down tutu topped with a tiara as a stopper. To date, the most successful celebrity fragrance ever is Elizabeth Taylor's White Diamonds . Actually it's meant to be a pink flower, made of netting, that reflects the blend of jasmine petals and frangipani, which combined with pink grapefruit, wild berries and red currants make up the actual fragrance. If that's not enough - dry woody notes of musk and patchouli add to the overall effect. It's certainly a scent that you won't forget in a hurry as it doesn't wear off. I liked getting perfume when I was a . little girl. In those days, it came in teddy shaped glass bottles from . Woolworth's and was either lavender water or eau de cologne. I . found Our Moment very sweet and a tad too heavy for daytime for . grown-ups - and even an hour after first spraying this, the smell still . lingered over me like a huge cloud of frangipani and candyfloss. I have . nothing against frangipani, it's just combined with everything else that . the overall effect is a bit cloying. Now it seems that everyone has their own fragrance; Justin Bieber's scent is called 'Girlfriend' (right) Lady Gaga poses naked in the ad campaign for her perfume, Fame. The singer has miniature scantily-clad men crawling over her body to save her blushes . It's designed to appeal to One Direction fans and I have no doubt that this will be flying off the shelves. The least expensive bottle is £21 for 30ml, but it's truly a smell you'll need to fall in love with before you part with a penny of your pocket money. Harrods has held off doing any additional promotion as the fragrance is likely to sell out within the first few days of going on sale . | Band's first perfume 'Our Moment' to launch this week .
Available exclusively at Harrods from 25th, nationwide 2nd September .
Costs £21-£39 and comes in a pink glass hexagonal bottle .
Currently only 4 testers in existence .
Daily Mail's beauty editor got her hands on one and gives her verdict .
One Direction Our Moment Eau de Parfum, .
£21 to £39. Available from August 23rd, exclusively at Harrods.com. The boys will not be attending the in-store launch at Harrods on August 25 . |
163,326 | 5f2fcc031a61f61cb27a331177ff868ab42d1784 | (CNN) -- A federal appeals court Thursday allowed four states to prohibit same-sex unions -- a decision that could force the U.S. Supreme Court to take up the issue. In a 2-1 ruling, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reversed lower court rulings in Ohio, Michigan, Tennessee and Kentucky that struck down same-sex marriage bans. "When the courts do not let the people resolve new social issues like this one, they perpetuate the idea that the heroes in these change events are judges and lawyers," Judge Jeffrey Sutton wrote in the ruling. "Better in this instance, we think, to allow change through the customary political processes, in which the people, gay and straight alike, become the heroes of their own stories by meeting each other not as adversaries in a court system but as fellow citizens seeking to resolve a new social issue in a fair-minded way," Sutton wrote. The ruling . Sutton, who was appointed by President George W. Bush, said that it's not the responsibility of the judicial branch of government to make "such a fundamental change to such a fundamental social institution." "Process and structure matter greatly in American government," Sutton wrote. "Our judicial commissions did not come with such a sweeping grant of authority, one that would allow just three of us—just two of us in truth—to make such a vital policy call for the thirty-two million citizens." Judge Deborah L. Cook joined Sutton's decision, while Senior Circuit Judge Martha Craig Daughtrey dissented. "This is a very important decision from the federal court of appeals in Cincinnati, which disagreed with every other circuit court that has decided this case so far," said CNN senior legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin. "[The court said] there is not a constitutional right to same-sex marriage." Daughtrey said that Cook and Sutton's decision read more like a piece of political philosophy than a court decision that grappled with a constitutional question. "Instead of recognizing the plaintiffs as persons, suffering actual harm as a result of being denied the right to marry where they reside or the right to have their valid marriages recognized there," Daughtrey said, "my colleagues view the plaintiffs as social activists who have somehow stumbled into federal court." 'They can't duck it anymore' In October, the Supreme Court announced it would not hear appeals to same-sex marriage cases filed by a handful of states -- effectively paving the way for same-sex unions to become legal in Indiana, Oklahoma, Utah, Virginia and Wisconsin. A handful of states later followed suit. The high court's decision left the door open for future challenges -- such as one that could result from Thursday's decision. Missouri judge overturns state's ban on same-sex marriage . Many observers of the high court said they believed it did not take up same-sex marriage cases because there seemed to be a consensus on the issue on the circuit court level since the Supreme Court struck down the federal law that defined marriage as between one man and one woman -- the Defense of Marriage Act. "[The ruling] sets up an almost-certain fight before the Supreme Court," Toobin said. "They can't duck it anymore." The American Civil Liberties Union said it will appeal the appeals court's decision to the high court. "We believe it's wholly unconstitutional to deny same sex couples and their families access to the rights and respect that all other families receive," Chase Strangio, staff attorney in the ACLU LGBT Project, said in a statement. "We will be filing for Supreme Court review right away and hope that through this deeply disappointing ruling we will be able to bring a uniform rule of equality to the entire country." This ruling is the first by a federal appeals court to uphold a state's same-sex marriage ban since DOMA. The Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative organization, praised the decision. "The people of every state should remain free to affirm marriage as the union of a man and a woman in their laws," ADF senior counsel Byron Babione said in a statement. Holder expands federal recognition of same-sex marriage to 5 states . CNN's Bill Mears and Kevin Conlon contributed to this report. | U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reverses rulings striking down 4 bans .
The ruling could force the Supreme Court to take up the heated issue .
Reaction pours in . |
90,859 | 00daf3e506e2daf9e6567e7f10916b6c2f8a3dd0 | (CNN) -- Malaysia's opposition leader has urged his supporters to wear black at a rally to be held in the capital Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday to protest Sunday's vote, which he claims "was marred with unprecedented election fraud." "Our conscience cannot allow us to accept election results conjured through frauds and cheating. A fight for clean and fair election remains the single most important fight that any Malaysian should relate to," Anwar Ibrahim said in a statement released Monday. Prime Minister Najib Razak, the leader of the Barisan Nasional coalition that has ruled for 56 years, took his oath of office on Monday after winning 133 out of 222 parliamentary seats, Malaysia's national news agency Bernama reported. Anwar's Pakatan Rakyat coalition won 89 seats, handing Barisan Nasional its worst ever electoral showing. A government spokesperson said on Tuesday that allegations of fraud in the election process were "unsubstantiated" and the government's victory was in line with independent polling. "Anwar claimed the only way he could possibly lose was if there was 'massive fraud'," the spokesperson said in a statement. "This is entirely contrary to pre-election opinion polls, including those by Pew Research and the Merdeka Center, which showed significant support for both the Prime Minister and his ruling party and suggested they were on track for a victory." The weeks leading up to Sunday's election saw reports of firebombs, texted death threats and beatings and there were widespread reports that indelible ink used to mark the fingers of advance voters was washing off. Other allegations surfaced on polling day, with Anwar's party and election observers alleging the government exchanged cash for votes and flew in foreigners to cast their ballots in favor of Barisan Nasional -- a charge denied by the government. "We were told that 40,000 foreigners were being flown across Malaysia to vote. However, passenger manifests prove that a few hundred Malaysian citizens were flown to their home states, entirely legally," it said in a statement. Investors reacted favorably to the election outcome, sending Malaysia's stock index up more than 8% on Monday and strengthening the currency. Liam Hanlon, senior political analyst at Cascade Asia Advisors, said the government should interpret its reduced margin of victory as a warning from voters that reform is needed. "The government must heed this warning and understand that it needs to be more forward-looking in order to survive," he said. "It would be a shame if the opposition's strong showing actually propelled the country back into more pronounced race-based policies." In the 1970s, Malaysia introduced policies that effectively split the country along ethnic lines, giving preferential treatment to the so-called Bumiputera, or ethnic Malays and natives of Sarawak and Sabah. According to the CIA Factbook, just over 50% of the country is Malay. Chinese make up 23.7% and Indians 7.1%. Anwar appealed to voters with a promise to change race-based policies to make them more inclusive and needs-based. James Chin, a professor of political science at the Malaysian campus of Australia's Monash University, said the results showed that Malaysia's ethnic Chinese population had voted in a bloc against the government for the first time. He added that some urban Malays had also voted for the opposition. He said that Anwar's efforts to address election irregularities would depend on whether he drew support from across Malaysia's multi-ethnic population. "Elections in Malaysia have never really been free and fair but the big difference this time was for the first time in Malaysian history, the Chinese on both sides of the South China Sea voted together against the government," he said, referring to Peninsular Malaysia and Malaysian Borneo. "The key to tomorrow's attendance is to see if the Malays are willing to come out. If only the Chinese come out it will look like a racial protest. It needs to be a multiracial protest if it's going to have any effect." | Malaysia's opposition leader calls on supporters to attend rally on Wednesday .
Anwar Ibrahim says Sunday's poll marred by unprecedented fraud .
Election was won by ruling coalition, extending its 56 years in power .
A government spokesperson says allegations of fraud unsubstantiated . |
269,442 | e902046f9365591de9a16daec50bc10d05e77355 | By . Jill Reilly . and James Tozer . A woman who lost a two-year court battle over a family heirloom has claimed the ‘cursed’ £230,000 vase ruined her life – and that she is now being forced to sell her home. Andrea Calland, 47, found the Chinese ornament in her garage and decided to sell it, expecting it to raise a few hundred pounds. But the vase sold for a staggering £228,000 at auction – and Miss Calland became embroiled in a lengthy legal fight with her former mother-in-law over who should keep the money. Andrea Calland, 47, found the 'ugly' pot in her garage and decided to sell it, but was shocked to discover it was a rare antique . Her former mother-in-law, Evelyn Galloway, launched a legal bid for the money, claiming she had only lent the vase to Andrea and it was not hers to sell. After a lengthy court case Miss Calland was made to pay £180,000 to Mrs Galloway and the legal costs have left her with massive financial problems. The mother-of-three has claimed the five inch, gilt-copper vase is 'cursed' after the cost of the case left her bankrupt and facing eviction. Miss Calland, from Ruthin, North Wales, said she has now been forced to put her home up for sale to clear her debts. The 250-year-old decorative vase, made of gilt copper, was commissioned by the Chinese emperor Qianlong, and was looted from the Summer Palace in Peking during the Second Opium War of 1860 . She . said: 'It was an ugly piece of china, it was five inches high and . tacky. It was something you would see in a Chinese takeaway. 'It . has ruined my life, I wish I had never set eyes on it really, I’ve lost . everything I’ve ever owned in the world because of it. 'I owe over £100,000 in legal fees, as well as all the money I have lost on the vase already.It’s ridiculous, I just wanted a few quid for my daughter’s laptop that was all. 'I can’t believe I had got myself into such a mess, over a stupid vase. Andrea Calland with daughter Sophie George and her former mother-in-law, Evelyn Galloway as they pose in a photo taken in late 1990s . 'If I go bankrupt it won’t be through choice, all my bills are up to date and I don’t have that much debt. 'I haven’t had a family Christmas with my children for two years, I’ve used all my savings, pawned my jewellery, sold my car, I don’t own a computer, and most of the contents of my house have gone. 'I emailed the new owner, who is a revered Chinese antiquities buyer. He believes it could be cursed because despite advertising it heavily around the world he couldn’t get shift of it.' Andrea Callar (second from left) from Ruthin in North Wales who sold a vase at auction which fetched £228,000. However she was forced to give the proceeds to Evelyn Galloway, her former mother-in-law (centre) Miss Calland’s nightmare first began in 2009 when she decided to sell a number of items of bric-a-brac at auction to buy her daughter Phoebe, 17, a laptop for her birthday. She took the items to Byrne’s, in Chester, where the vase was given a reserve price of just £500. To her surprise it was bought by a leading Oriental art dealer for £228,000, who whisked it off to be displayed in New York. Andrea Callard's only asset left is her beloved home, a pink stone cottage in the Welsh market town . Miss Calland with her former husband Steven and his mother at a family Christmas . But, after reading about incredible sale price on the front of her local paper Mrs Galloway recognised it as a missing family heirloom and began the lengthy two year legal battle. The 250-year-old decorative vase, made of gilt copper, was commissioned by the Chinese emperor Qianlong, and was looted from the Summer Palace in Peking during the Second Opium War of 1860. It was bought by Mrs Galloway’s father, James Alker, a keen art collector, at a sale in Birkenhead, Merseyside, in 1956. He passed it on to his daughter Mrs Galloway, who claims to have loaned the heirloom to her son, Steven, 52, and Miss Calland in the early 1990s. Following their split Miss Calland claimed the family never asked for the vase back. In 2011 however a judge ruled she was not entitled to the windfall because the 18th century case was never hers to sell in the first place. A wooden ornament that a couple used as a doorstop for 40 years has turned out to be a Chinese relic worth £250,000. The nine-inch tall item is a carved brush pot dating back to the late 18th century, when it would have been used to store calligraphers’ brushes. The unnamed couple inherited the ornament, which propped open their living room door. A heavy wooden ornament an unnamed couple used a doorstep in their Hertfordshire home for 40 years, turned out to be a Chinese relic worth over £250,000 . But when they invited an auctioneer to their home in Hertfordshire to look at some other items, they discovered its true value. Expert Richard Harrison spotted the doorstop on the floor and instantly recognised it as an 18th century Chinese brush pot. He said: ‘The carving is three dimensional almost, and shows figures of little boys doing things like setting off fire crackers. ‘It is in superb condition, which is remarkable given what it was being used for.’ Miss Calland's former conservatory where the Chinese vase used to sit on a table by the back door . Although the case came to an end the freelance science tutor now faces financial ruin after she was unable to cover the extortionate legal costs, despite selling her possessions. Her only asset left is her beloved home, a pink stone cottage in the picturesque Welsh market town. Andrea Calland lost a legal battle with her former mother-in-law over rights to a £228,000 vase . 'I have no sofa, no TV, no fridge, all that is left in my house is a bed, washing machine, and a one-ring camping gas stove to cook off,' she said. 'The next stage is that they are going to force my house to auction. 'I put my house on the market for £210,000 in 2009 straight after the court date. 'It’s now reduced to £170,000 because it won’t sell. The flooding has put a lot of people off, it is a known flood risk area. 'The next stage is that their solicitors have sent a formal letter saying that I have had all the time in the world with things and it is still not sold. 'I have done everything, fitted a new carpet, kept it decorated, it is in a good form. 'If it is not gone by the end of April they will force me back into court which is yet more fees I can’t afford. 'If it goes to auction and doesn’t raise enough to cover everyone else’s bills I have a serious problem.' Speaking in 2011, Mrs Galloway said: 'The whole thing has been appalling. 'We could not stand by and let Andrea walk away with all that money. It is an awful lot and we had no idea the vase was worth that amount.' View of Andrea Calland's former conservatory where the Chinese vase used to sit on a table by the back door (circled) | Andrea Calland, 47, found the 'ugly' pot in her garage and decided to sell it .
She was shocked to discover it was an antique - sold at New York auction .
Ex mother-in-law found out about sale in newspaper and launched legal bid .
Miss Calland has put her North Wales home up for sale to clear her debts . |
191,334 | 83c20605c6f4dd8de14b75904d385329ddec3201 | NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- Ten fraternity members at Tulane University face criminal charges in an alleged hazing incident in which pledges were repeatedly burned with hot water, cayenne pepper and vinegar, police said. Tulane University has suspended the Pi Kappa Alpha chapter, a spokesman says. Two pledges were treated at a hospital for severe burns resulting from the April 25 incident at the Pi Kappa Alpha house, authorities said. Seven students made their first appearance in court Wednesday and were released on their own recognizance, said Dalton Saywoir Jr., spokesman for the Orleans Parish District Attorney's office. It was unclear whether the three remaining students had been arrested or surrendered to police. The arrested students range in age from 20 to 22. All 10 students face charges of aggravated second-degree battery, New Orleans and Tulane police said in a statement. New Orleans attorney Frank D'Amico Jr., who represents one of the two pledges severely burned, said it happened at a "Hell Night" ritual involving the 10-member pledge class. "What they were doing was burning the young men," he said. Fraternity brothers were said to have used boiling water containing pepper spray and a "crab boil" seasoning mixture containing cayenne pepper. The water was poured on the pledges' backs, he said. "The ones who screamed first didn't get burned as badly," he said. But as the evening wore on and the water grew hotter and hotter, the ones who had not screamed were severely burned. D'Amico said his client, who was attending Tulane on scholarship, suffered second- and third-degree burns to his back, chest, buttocks and genitals. He is "bandaged up," D'Amico said, and must have twice-daily burn treatments. The young man is unable to travel or take his exams and is attempting to negotiate with Tulane on postponing them, he said. The young man is "obviously extremely traumatized," D'Amico said. Tulane University has suspended the Pi Kappa Alpha chapter and will investigate the incident in accordance with its anti-hazing policy, school spokesman Michael Strecker said in a statement. "The university has zero tolerance for any type of hazing or other incident which can potentially endanger the well-being of any student," the statement said. "Any fraternity member found to be in violation of the Student Code of Conduct will be held accountable." Tulane is also cooperating with police, Strecker said. "Such actions are nothing short of reprehensible, and are completely contrary to the mission, vision and purpose of our fraternity, if true," the fraternity said in a statement issued from its headquarters in Memphis, Tennessee. "These types of actions represent a betrayal of our core values and the trust that the men who were hurt by these events placed in their fellow students." But it said, "these injuries appear to be the result of a few unauthorized, misguided individuals and not the entire chapter." The arrested students did not comment as they were led into a police vehicle while handcuffed, according to video footage from CNN affiliate WWL. Pi Kappa Alpha headquarters did not immediately return a call seeking comment. D'Amico said he is pleased that Tulane and law enforcement have taken swift action on the matter. His client's parents sent their son to Tulane thinking he would be safe, he added, "and they boil [the pledges] alive." CNN's Cristy Lenz contributed to this report. | NEW: All 10 students face charges of aggravated second-degree battery .
Two pledges treated for severe burns in Tulane fraternity hazing, police say .
Pledges were doused with boiling water, hot pepper, vinegar, attorney says .
Tulane suspends Pi Kappa Alpha chapter, promises investigation . |
17,465 | 316dca4fdebe671d97375ad787421eab9389822b | Simon Danczuk MP says the Rochdale Council inquiry into wrongdoing at Knowl View school is a 'whitewash' An MP who helped expose the late Cyril Smith as a paedophile has criticised council bosses, calling their inquiry into a school where boys were abused a ‘whitewash’. Rochdale Council is looking into its dealings with residential school Knowl View, where boys as young as seven were abused by the Liberal MP Smith and his cohorts. But MP Simon Danczuk – whose revelations in his book Smile for the Camera: The Double Life of Cyril Smith were serialised in the Mail last week – has called the inquiry a ‘bogus’ exercise designed to exonerate the local authority of any wrongdoing. He went on to say: ‘I don’t know why they’re calling it an independent review because the council commissioned it, they’ve set the terms of reference. ‘It is a whitewash. There is nothing independent about it and I think it is wrong that the council should be investigating serious allegations of abuse that they had responsibility for preventing.’ Whistleblower Martin Digan, the former head of care at Knowl View, has said the Rochdale school was like a ‘sweet shop for paedophiles’. And Greater Manchester Police revealed that two more alleged victims of abuse at the school came forward following the serialisation of Mr Danczuk’s book in the Mail. A spokesman for the Labour-run council, which was Tory-led when the allegations were first aired in 1979, said: ‘Like the police, we continue to ask anyone with information to come forward. Cyril Smith's abuse of young, vulnerable boys was exposed in the MP's book - Smile for the Camera: The Double Life of Cyril Smith . ‘This administration is treating the historic allegations very seriously. We are being completely open and transparent.’ Mr Danczuk says he is considering using parliamentary privilege to name a former senior politician who allegedly had sex with boys at the Elm Guest House in Barnes, South-West London. He said: ‘It would be best for him to come forward of his own volition, but I would consider using privilege to name him.’ Whistleblower Martin Digan, the former head of care at Knowl View, has said the Rochdale school was like a 'sweet shop for paedophiles' | Rochdale Council held inquiry into its dealings with Knowl View school .
Boys as young as seven were abused by the Liberal MP Smith and cohorts .
MP Simon Danczuk called local authority inquiry a 'bogus' exercise .
Says it was designed to exonerate council of any wrongdoing . |
147,911 | 4b434e7b4953eb3e482615e6d892ef9c7433d400 | (CNN) -- "Who do you want to see?" asked the Salafi Jihadists holding their AK-47s at the gate. "Hamas leaders," I replied. "Why Hamas? Why not our Jihadi brothers?" the guard asked. "Well, Hamas are in government in Gaza." "They won't be in future," he responded. "They have sold out and become agents of the Israelis, and in years to come we will govern Gaza. Be sure to meet our brothers here in the camp, too." The guard then gave me directions to a safe house where someone could take me to Hamas. This was last summer. I was visiting a Palestinian refugee camp in Beirut for book research. It took me two more days to locate Hamas leadership. Inside the camp, just as in Gaza, Hamas had a wide network of schools, financiers, mosques, makeshift hospitals, readily available doctors, banking services, and support for orphans and widows. We in the West deem Hamas a terrorist organization. Yes, one part of it is committed to terrorism, killing innocent civilians in the pursuit of political aims, but we are mistaken if we continue to limit our definition by one aspect of Hamas. Unless we better understand Hamas, we cannot help halt the killings of Israelis and Arabs in the Middle East. Hamas is not a monolith, nor is it only a terrorist group: It is a social movement, with a mass membership, a popular message of resistance that resonates across the Muslim world, and a political party with which we must negotiate. "When the Israelis were fighting Yasser Arafat and the PLO, the Arabs were losing," the Hamas leader -- whose name I must withhold -- told me. "We saw them abandon anti-aircraft missiles here in Beirut in the 1980s. But now, with Hezbollah and Hamas, we fight to die, to kill. We believe in martyrdom. We don't flee from the battlefield." To my Hamas hosts, Israel's operation in Lebanon in 2006, or its attack on Gaza in 2009, were huge victories. "We are now winning. We fight Israel and want to fight again and again." This strong belief that they are victorious is in itself a loss for Israel: It has failed to weaken Hamas. Fighting and killing have been a curse to Israel's existence over the last six decades. The trajectory has been to make Israel weaker and more hated around the world; to popularize the ideology of radicalism amid Muslims and fuel anti-Americanism in the Middle East. Israel cannot kill itself into security or survival. It must learn the language of peace and co-existence. For how much longer will we in the West continue to damage our own standing in the nearly 2 billion-strong Muslim world as our ally Israel delivers dead children and destroyed schools to Muslim television screens? Israel killed Hamas founder Sheikh Ahmed Yassin in 2004, along with several bodyguards, and then his successors, promising us that this would help reduce violence and terror. Almost a decade later, Hamas is not only strong and vibrant, in government since 2007, but lobbing rockets at Jerusalem and kidnapping Israeli soldiers. In short, Hamas is strong and growing psychologically stronger, while Israel has failed to achieve its peace and security. Worse, contrary to what many believed, Hamas was not weakened when Egypt's President Mohamed Morsy, a supporter, was toppled in July 2013. Morsy made many mistakes, but President Obama's telephone calls to him helped bring Hamas to the table and secure a cease-fire in 2012 much sooner. Israel does not deserve all the blame. Arab political and religious leaders, despite historic grievances, have a duty to recognize that Israel is their neighbor. Israel is part of the mosaic of the modern Middle East. A change in tone and tenor and a public embrace of Israel by religious leaders will calm the nerves of an anxious Israeli population. In the end, Israel has limited options. Peace is not possible without Hamas, and Hamas is not a simple terrorist outfit. Its political arm, its leadership inside and outside Gaza, despite their tensions, are open to indirect talks with Israel. Just as the British and American governments negotiated peace in Northern Ireland by reaching out to IRA terrorists through their political wing of Sinn Fein, we must tame Hamas through politics, not the failed strategy of war. Hamas and Islamic Jihad were among the Palestinian groups that met in Cairo Sunday and reached a 72-hour humanitarian cease-fire agreement brokered by Egyptian officials. Here, the European Union and the United States can work through Fatah, Qatar, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and negotiate along the 2002 Arab peace plan suggested by Saudi Arabia. Hamas must be brought in. Almost 2 million people in Gaza need our support. If we fail to bring in Hamas and create a sustained peace that leads to prosperity for Palestinians and Israelis, then we must prepare for an enemy who is worse: Salafi Jihadis. And with Gaza, the popularity of the Salafi Jihadi message will spread far and wide. My guard at the refugee camp insisted I speak with his brothers-in-arms. I did not, but I fear he might be right. Will Israel help itself and us, or hinder? | Ed Husain: Hamas is not just terror group: It has schools, banks, mosques, doctors .
Husain: West damages standing in Muslim world as TV shows dead children, blasted schools .
Peace is not possible without Hamas leaders, he says, who are open to indirect talks .
Husain: If we don't deal with Hamas, we might have a worse enemy: Salafi Jihadis . |
248,400 | cd66e1041067b4d352a7c27bdae45461a7dfdd26 | Washington (CNN) -- A former U.S. soldier accused of fighting with terrorists against Syrian forces pleaded guilty to a lesser charge and was released from custody. Eric Harroun was sentenced to time served by a federal judge in Alexandria, Virginia, on Thursday. Court documents showed he pleaded guilty to an export charge involving conspiracy to transfer defense articles and services. The Phoenix man entered into a plea agreement with the government which remains under seal. Harroun was arrested in March and charged with conspiring to use a rocket propelled grenade while fighting with the al-Nusra Front, an alias name for the terrorist group al Qaeda in Iraq. If convicted of that charge, he faced a possible sentence of 30 years to life. Harroun allegedly posted videos on the Internet showing him with weapons. At a court hearing the next month, a federal prosecutor took the unusual step of revealing Harroun had been on a "no-fly" list and had been removed so he could fly from Turkey to the United States where he was arrested. This allowed U.S. authorities to take custody of Harroun without asking Turkey to arrest him and hand him over. The prosecutor did not say how long Harroun had been on the "no fly" list or whether he was aware of it. FBI agents observed him during the flight although he was not taken into custody until after he arrived in the United States. It's also not clear whether Harroun's name is back on the list. According to an FBI affidavit made public at the time of his arrest, Harroun crossed into Syria in January where he received training from the al-Nusra Front on how to use rocket propelled grenades and posted still photos and videos of himself on the Internet handling the RPGs and other weapons. The FBI interviewed him three times in Istanbul about his activities before he flew to the United States. The case appeared to present the United States with a thorny problem -- Harroun allegedly was fighting against the Syrian government which the United States also opposes. But the United States considers the al-Nusra Front a terrorist group. At the April hearing, federal public defender Geremy Kamens noted an FBI agent who testified said there was no evidence Harroun was involved in any terrorist activities. Harroun served in the Army from 2000 to 2003. | Eric Harroun initially charged with fighting alongside group affiliated with al Qaeda .
He allegedly posted videos on the Web showing him with weapons .
U.S. said he had been on 'no fly' llist, but was removed to fly him home where he was arrested .
Harroun, who is from Phoenix, released from custody after being sentenced to time served . |
271,979 | ec4da8c22fe4ba0597e50a501e96fb2dcd1d9e0d | Beloved: West Virginia science teacher David Foggin (picture) was suspended from his job last week after posting a homophobic rant on Facebook. However, most of his students have voiced their support of him and his statements . A high school teacher was suspended from his position last week after writing a homophobic rant on Facebook. David Foggin was put on suspension last week after posting an advertisement for a meeting of Parkersburg South High School's gay-straight alliance club on his Facebook, including the following typo-laden comment: . 'Club meeting at PSHS. Rally around them and show ur support. We are also considering a drunks-t totaller club, drugged/sober club, smokeless tobacco v smokes club, street racing, and deer poaching clubs. Please donate and support us. Thank u!!! I think I hear the drag already zinging' Mr Foggin was put on suspension after high school administrators found out about the post, but he'll likely return to the classroom soon. The students go on spring break next week, and the school board is set to review the suspension after that to decide whether the suspension is paid or unpaid. 'It will be until spring break. He's not in the classroom this week,' Wood County Schools Superintendent Pat Law said. 'That's up to the board as to whether to approve it or not.' The incident is still under investigation. Opinionated: Mr Foggin was placed on suspension last week after posting this homophobic comment about the school's gay-straight alliance on his Facebook page . 'Our main concern here is our students and student rights,' Board of Education President Tim Yeater added, 'but we also have a vested interest in our employee rights.' However, many Parkersburg students are outraged Mr Foggin was suspended than offended by the comments he made on Facebook. Last Friday morning, a large crowd of students, parents and other community members gathered outside the school to voice their support of Mr Foggin. Less than a dozen turned out to speak out against the homophobic rant. 'This is stupid. He got suspended for no good reason,' one student told WTAP. 'It's all about his personality. If you actually knew him, you wouldn't be offended by that,' another student added. Standing by him: A large group of students, parents and other school community members held a protest Friday morning to support Mr Foggin . The minority: A small group of less than 12 turned out to protest against the teacher on Friday . Many held up signs reading 'Freedom of Speech' and 'We Love Foggin' while others wore orange t-shirts with 'Team Foggin' emblazoned on them. Even openly gay students came out to support the suspended science teacher. 'I'm gay myself and I didn't see the problem with it, half the gay kids in this school don't see a problem with it,' one student said. Picketing: The protesters held up signs reading 'Freedom of Speech', 'We Love Foggin' and 'Team Foggin' Not offended: Even openly gay students like the one above came out to support Mr Foggin on Friday . One of the other signs of support from Friday's protest . Supporters: Many involved in the rally on Friday wore t-shirts with 'Team Foggin' printed on them . However, a small minority of students did turn out calling for Mr Foggin's dismissal. 'I'm standing up for the kids in the school that are afraid. I think if he apologized it would be a lot better,' one student said. 'I feel if he gets fired, everyone that is gay or bi-sexual would feel a lot better.' Following his suspension last week, Mr Foggin responded with another comment on Facebook. 'I love everyone and I promote fairness and equality. I have difficulty with favoritism and bias given any person or group,' he wrote, adding that he planned to run for sheriff of Wood County in 2020. 'Thanks to all of u who promote equality and protection of the 1st amendment. PS....THAT'S WHY WE HAVE THE 2ND AMENDMENT!!! To make sure it stays that way. 'Love u all. Get a concealed carry permit while u still can. Protect urself and ur family. Thanks God for every breath he gives you,' Mr Foggin wrote. In addition to teaching science, Mr Foggin owns a side business selling guns and ammunition in Belleville, West Virginia. He also issued a statement to West Virginia Public Broadcasting, saying he loves his students and his stance was simply on 'equality and fair treatment'. 'If a student need someone to turn to for any situation they face in their life, I hope they know the staff at PSHS is always there for them. I also feel their parents/guardians should be aware they are seeking guidance and they maybe trained, licensed counselors should be involved,' he said. | Parkersburg South High School teacher David Foggin was put on suspension last week after writing a homophobic comment on Facebook .
The West Virginia science teacher made a negative statement about the school's gay-straight alliance club .
Most of the school community are in support of Mr Foggin, and held a rally on his behalf last Friday morning .
The protesters held up signs reading 'Freedom of Speech' and 'We Love Foggin' while wearing shirts with 'Team Foggin' printed on them .
Only a small group of students turned out to protest against the teacher .
His suspension will be reviewed by the school board after Spring Break, and they will decide whether the suspension is paid or unpaid . |
214,352 | a1963920d57c37813d37e1a2b595ae36ccf8bbe2 | They might not have had Botox or Photoshop at their disposal, but the Hollywood icons of yesteryear still reign supreme in the beauty stakes. That's according to a new survey, which named Hollywood star Audrey Hepburn as the ultimate beauty icon of all time. The screen legend – best known for her role in Breakfast at Tiffany’s – fought off tough competition from Beyoncé, who despite being the most googled female of 2014, came fifth. Beyonce (left) was voted fifth most beautiful woman of all time, while Kate Moss (right) came eighth . A new survey, which named Hollywood star Audrey Hepburn as the ultimate beauty icon of all time . Sitting in second place is Marilyn Monroe, while fellow Hollywood star Grace Kelly came third in the survey which quizzed over 2,000 Brits. Even Scarlett Johansson couldn’t compete with the big beauty hitters from Hollywood’s golden age to make the top five. Kate Moss only scooped two per cent of the votes, which placed her in eighth position on the list. The survey carried out by leading cosmetics and skincare brand Artistry by Amway also asked 2,000 women across the UK to reveal their views about beauty and their beauty regime. Scarlett Johansson (left) came tenth but couldn’t compete with the big beauty hitters from Hollywood’s golden age, including Marilyn Monroe (right) , who came in second, just ahead of Grace Kelly . American actress and sultry stunner Ava Gardner (1922-1990) was voted ninth top beauty icon of all time . Asked what is it that makes women feel more beautiful more than two thirds (68 per cent) said confidence is the holy grail of beauty. Over half (57 per cent) claimed being in love makes woman more attractive and 38 per cent said they felt better about themselves when they have their make-up on. Rather than being negative about the impact of ageing, women aged 55 and over are more content with their own beauty (26 per cent) versus younger women aged 18 to 24 (22 per cent). Grace Kelly (left) and Sophie Loren (right) came third and fourth in the list of ultimate beauty icons . 1. Audrey Hepburn . 2. Marilyn Monroe . 3. Grace Kelly . 4. Sophia Loren . 5. Beyoncé . 6. Brigitte Bardot . 7. Jean Simpson . 8. Kate Moss . 9. Ava Gardner . 10. Scarlett Johansson . Also, younger ladies aged 18 to 24 admit to wearing a lot of make-up to help them feel more beautiful (20 per cent) while the more mature lady is less inclined to rely heavily on cosmetics (4 per cent). And as the old adage goes, wisdom comes with age. Women aged 55 and over understand that a healthy diet and exercise regime contributes to one’s own beauty (62 per cent) compared to women aged 35 to 44 (55 per cent). On the spending front, Brits still remain pretty thrifty when forking out on beauty products. Almost half said they spend less than £10 a month on beautifying themselves. Demonstrating some national confidence, the survey also found Brits ranked themselves first for being the most beautiful, whilst placing the French in fifth place. Swedes, Brazilians and Spanish came in third, fourth and fifth place. A spokesperson at Amway UK said: ‘The study reveals some great insights into what defines beauty and what makes a women feel beautiful.' | Grace Kelly voted third and Sophia Loren fourth in beauty list .
Brigitte Bardot, Jean Simpson and Ava Gardner also in top ten .
Survey found being in love makes women feel more attractive .
Two- thirds of women surveyed believe confidence is holy grail of beauty . |
151,776 | 502b3b50937ba498060e1e9d7d3929c5887396eb | By . Rob Draper . PUBLISHED: . 09:57 EST, 30 January 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 10:51 EST, 30 January 2014 . Barcelona are unlikely to allow Cristian Tello to move on loan to Arsenal for the rest of the season - meaning Arsene Wenger will have to look elsewhere to supplement his squad in the next 24 hours. Arsenal are still negotiating with Schalke over a £37million move for Julian Draxler and are expected to complete the deal on Friday. But with injuries to Theo Walcott, who is out for the rest of the season, Aaron Ramsey, out for another month and Jack Wilshere, who is doubtful for Sunday's game against Crystal Palace with an ankle injury, Wenger is keen to make further additions to his squad to shore up a title challenge. VIDEO: Scroll down for video of Morata and Draxler . Going nowhere: Barcelona are unlikely to allow winger Cristian Tello (right) join Arsenal on loan . Target: Arsene Wenger is hoping to revive a loan move for Real Madrid striker Alvaro Morata (right) Wanted man: Wenger sees Juventus striker Mirko Vucinic as competition for Frenchman Olivier Giroud . He is now expected to return to earlier loan targets, Real Madrid's Alvaro Morata and Juventus' Mirko Vucinic. Tello is an attacking wide player while Morata and Vucinic are centre forwards to provide cover for Olivier Giroud - but there is a desire at Arsenal to deepen the squad to ensure they can negotiate a difficult February fixture list, which sees them play Liverpool twice, Manchester United and Bayern Munich. Draxler, who is currently sidelined, would provide cover on the left and behind the strikers when he recovered from an ankle injury next month - though Wenger sees him as a centre forward in the long term. On the hunt: Wenger (right) wants to strengthen his squad to help challenge for honours . On his way? Arsenal are expected to complete a deal for Schalke's Julian Draxler before Friday's transfer deadline . | Barcelona unlikely to let forward Cristian Tello join Arsenal .
Arsene Wenger will return to loan targets Alvaro Morata and Mirko Vucinic .
Either or both of them would provide cover for Olivier Giroud .
Gunners still negotiating with Schalke over Julian Draxler .
Jack Wilshere an injury doubt for Sunday's game against Crystal Palace . |
267,715 | e6b73a2db0ca27acd7f62f089a7b46dd583bb3f6 | ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- A gaggle of reporters pushed their microphones and cameras toward the North Korean official shortly after he arrived at a college campus here. North Korean diplomat Kim Myong-gil gathered with other officials to discuss North Korea's energy needs . But Kim Myong-gil's comments were off the record -- a sign of the sensitive nature of openly discussing concerns about North Korea's nuclear program. The U.S. State Department's director of Korean affairs, Kurt Tong, also agreed to participate in Thursday's conference as long as his statements were not published. Tong and Kim, a North Korea representative at the United Nations, gathered with others including former diplomats and academics at the Georgia Institute of Technology to discuss North Korea's energy needs and the status of the six-party talks on its nuclear program. Although the two top-level diplomats kept their remarks private, other participants in the conference at the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs aired their opinions openly. Much of the Korea conference focused on the scientific details of North Korea's infrastructure and how it could be improved to handle sources of energy other than nuclear, such as an oil pipeline or utilizing its significant mineral resources. But all those ideas will never be realized without a change in relations between North Korea, its neighbors and the United States, and that is why diplomacy was also part of the discussion. Thursday's conference coincided with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's announcement that her new envoy to North Korea, Stephen Bosworth, will travel to Russia, China, South Korea and Japan next week "to consult on the next steps to move the six-party process forward." Senior administration officials said Bosworth is considering heading to Pyongyang on that visit, but only if the leaders of the other parties involved in the talks are comfortable with that overture. Speaking at a joint news conference with Clinton, Bosworth said there is no doubt the United States plans "to engage with North Korea." "The question as to whether we're going to engage with them on this particular trip remains to be decided," he said. "That will depend upon our consultations in the region, and it will depend upon what we hear back from the North Koreans." Thursday's conference also coincided with reports that North Korea is apparently preparing to test-fire its long-range missile, the Taepodong-2, under the guise of launching a satellite into space. Leon Sigal, a specialist on North Korea who used to work for the State Department, stressed that President Obama is at a "starting point" with North Korea. Mindful that the new U.S. leader is preoccupied with his country's economic recession, Sigal said Obama must act swiftly and decisively with regards to North Korea to avoid the mistakes of the previous administration. "The only way to fix this problem is to negotiate," said Sigal, who is currently director of the Northeast Asia Cooperative Security Project at the Social Science Research Council in New York. Part of Sigal's proposal includes helping North Korea construct conventional power plants as it moves toward denuclearization. He outlined two "troubling questions" facing the Obama administration: how to avoid having to constantly react under pressure to North Korea's provocations, and how the scenario could change, possibly for the worse, if there is a change in leadership, "now that Kim Jong-Il's health is at issue." "It seems to me the answer to both is for Washington to put a bigger deal on the negotiating table now," Sigal proposed. That drew a couple of comments and questions from the audience. One graduate student asked why the United States should "put more oil in a leaky bucket," referring to the idea of sending more fuel oil shipments to North Korea when the previous shipments -- part of an agreement to get Pyongyang to shut down its nuclear facility -- have done little to deter the country from abandoning its nuclear program. North Korea maintains that it is due the oil shipments because it fulfilled its obligation to disable its Yongbyon nuclear complex. The United States has demanded Pyongyang verify that by allowing U.N. inspectors to inspect the facility, which it has refused. At Thursday's conference, former U.S. ambassador to South Korea James Laney cautioned against resorting to the same rhetoric about which side had violated previous agreements. "I can understand how we want to score points ... but there are times when prudence or better wisdom or real strategy dictates that we have to (have) some sort of engagement," he said. Laney, who was instrumental in defusing the North Korean nuclear crisis in 1994, suggested that the United States propose a peace treaty to replace the 1953 armistice which effectively ended the Korean War. "A peace treaty would mean there are two nations on the Korean peninsula," said Laney. "There are two nations now, but a treaty would recognize (this)." Victor Cha, who was the White House's director of Asian affairs under the Bush administration, cautioned against moving forward on securing a peace treaty before North Korea takes further steps toward denuclearization. "Even if there are some (in North Korea) who would want to give up nuclear weapons in exchange for a peace treaty, there may be others that say, 'Once we have a peace treaty ... we can be recognized as a nuclear state,'" according to Cha. Cha, who said he routinely has to apologize for being a member of the Bush administration, praised Obama's government, which he said has "none of the hang-ups" in dealing with North Korea's leadership that the previous administration had. Laney urged the new administration to "move beyond sticks and carrots," which was the stated approach of the Bush administration. While there is no guarantee that a peace treaty or any other overture to North Korea would work, Laney and Sigal said the administration has to try a new approach. "You see, I'm 81 and I want to see something (happen) before I die," said Laney, who worked in U.S. Army counterintelligence before serving in the Korean War. "Fifty-five years is a long time." Sigal concurred, saying that "diplomatic give-and-take is the only policy" for North Korea. "But sustaining diplomacy ... will be difficult," he added.. "Kim Jong-Il wants to force America to be his friend," he said, referring to the North Korean leader. "He seems unwilling to unclench his fist and shake Obama's hand. We may have to settle for a fist bump." | Officials, academics gather to discuss North Korea's energy needs .
Diplomacy was part of the discussion at Georgia Tech conference .
Conference coincided with reports North Korea is going to test-fire missle . |
176,277 | 703338c92a2e51bb65691ba16ec4d3f0e0ac4d3e | Two people taken in a jewellery store in Montpellier, southern France, have been released after being held hostage for eight hours. The suspect reportedly held the hostages at gunpoint when special police forces, along with the region’s prosecutor and the city mayor, arrived on the scene and the area was surrounded. People from the surrounding shops were evacuated by police and the electricity was cut briefly to prepare them for the attack. The suspect gave himself up in the early hours this morning. The hostages were reportedly two women - a 30-year-old and a 40-year-old - who work in the shop, according to Russian broadcaster RT. Scroll down for video . A police officer takes aim with a rifle outside the jewellery store where two people were being held hostage . It is reported that nearly 100 police officers were involved in the operation. Montpellier prosecutor Christophe Barret said: 'This man entered the jewellery store but there was no attempted robbery and his motive is not known.' Authorities did not provide explanations as to the gunman's motives, but said it had 'no connection' with the recent terrorist attacks in Paris. The siege happened just hours after the Charlie Hebdo suspects were killed and the siege on a kosher store in east Paris, which left four hostages dead and the gunman being killed. Police wearing protective gear arrive at the site where two people were held hostage in a jewellery store . The suspect gave himself up in the early hours this morning after armed police surrounded the area . Specialist police officers get their gear ready as negotiations with the captor began in the small French town . Special police forces arrived on the scene along with the region’s prosecutor and the city mayor . | Two people taken in jewellery store in Montpellier have been released .
They were held hostage by the gunman for eight hours in the city store .
Siege happened just hours after the Charlie Hebdo suspects were killed . |
204,586 | 94dd00418468575b5e2c2b8341924aaae24fa047 | Manny Pacquiao is prepared to treat Floyd Mayweather Jnr as the ‘A side’ in an attempt to finalise their £200m mega-fight. After six years of wrangling, an agreement for a fight between two of the best pound-for-pound boxers in the world has never been closer. Mayweather visited Pacquiao’s hotel suite in Miami on Tuesday night, hours after they had exchanged phone numbers during a basketball match. VIDEO Scroll down to watch Manny and Floyd finally meet... at Miami Heat . These pictures posted on Twitter show Manny Pacquiao (left) and Floyd Mayweather meeting in Miami . The pair, pictured together for the first time, spoke and swapped phone numbers at the Heat game . Fight fans will be hoping the exchange leads to the mega-bout the world is waiting for . During an hour-long conversation, both men showed a desire to stage the fight at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on May 2. The only outstanding issues raised during the meeting related to the broadcast of the bout. Mayweather is contracted to Showtime while Pacquiao’s fights are shown on HBO. But Pacquiao’s adviser Michael Konz said those have been resolved and that any announcement about the fight will be made by Mayweather. A handshake brought an end to the brief encounter between Pacquiao and Mayweather in Miami . Camera crews were all over the unexpected meeting between the two boxing legends . A huge bodyguard can be seen keeping a close eye on events at the American Airlines Arena . All eyes were on Mayweather and Pacquiao despite the cheerleaders strutting their stuff in the background . ‘For the most part, it was just Floyd, Manny and I in the room and it was a very good conversation,’ Koncz told Yahoo. ‘I think Floyd is sincere about wanting the fight, I really do. I know Manny has wanted it and he’s ready to fight and has been for a while. So I’m very optimistic. I really am. ‘Nobody can stop this. I can’t stop it. [Pacquiao’s promoter] Bob [Arum] can’t stop it. HBO can’t stop it. Showtime can’t. [Mayweather advisor] Al [Haymon] can’t. The only ones who can stop it are Floyd and Manny, and right now, they’re both saying they want the fight. ‘We’re treating him as the A side in this because we just want to get it done and we want to give the fans what they’ve been asking for, for years.’ Mayweather has accepted a 60/40 split of the purse in his favour and could break the news over the Super Bowl weekend. Mayweather and Pacquiao (centre) were pictured together for the first time at the NBA game - the man on the right of the shot is the Filipino fighter's adviser Michael Koncz . Mayweather and Pacquiao spoke during half-time as Miami Heat faced the Milwaukee Bucks game . The pair hugged and swapped phone numbers but there wasn't much smiling during the exchange . Mayweather looked happier when he was able to sit and take in the action at the American Airlines Arena . Pacquiao was also all smiles when he wasn't face to face with the man he could get in the ring with this year . Pacquiao and Mayweather sat on opposite sides of the court during the action in Miami . The Milwaukee Bucks beat the Miami Heat 109-102 but the game was overshadowed by the boxers . Mayweather won his rematch with Marcos Maidana in September and is due to fight again in May . Mayweather is undefeated in his 47-fight career and considered the best pound-for-pound boxer on the plane . | Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather are keen to fight on May 2 .
Pacquiao's adviser Michael Konz is 'optimistic' a deal can be reached .
Outstanding issues over contracts with broadcasters Showtime and HBO have been resolved .
Click here for more boxing news . |
36,707 | 68009d839eeb0d71f5ba12a308c15ddf858a1e6e | (CNN) -- His eyes stinging with pepper spray, a developmentally disabled 21-year-old man was hit and forced to the ground before being taken into custody by California sheriff's deputies in an incident that left his family Thursday demanding justice. Antonio Martinez was taken to a hospital and detained for possible obstruction of justice, but there was no citation or charge filed on that or other counts, said San Diego County Sheriff's Department spokeswoman Jan Caldwell. His father is considering suing the department and the city of Vista, California, the young man's sister, Jessica Martinez, said. "But really, all we want is for the sheriff's deputy who did this to my brother to get fired," Jessica Martinez, 20, said. "That's all we want. We want justice." The incident occurred Tuesday evening in Vista, where sheriff's deputies were looking into a domestic violence incident, Caldwell said. One of them saw Martinez cover his head with his hood and, believing he might be involved in the incident, tried to talk with him, said the spokeswoman. The 21-year-old -- who weighs 158 pounds and stands 4 feet, 11 inches tall, according to a Sheriff's Department document -- didn't respond to the commands, she added. Martinez is well-known around the Vista neighborhood, where he lives and his family has a bakery, his sister said. He was out walking between his home and the bakery when the deputy called out to him, at which point neighborhood men explained that the young man had Down Syndrome and wasn't doing anything wrong, according to Jessica Martinez. The deputy didn't back off. Instead, while trying "to gain compliance and prevent a possible escape," he used pepper spray on Antonio Martinez, said Caldwell from the Sheriff's Department. The deputy began using a baton as an agitated crowd approached, the spokeswoman added. The deputy hit Antonio Martinez with it, forcing him to the ground, then levied "a couple more strikes to get his hands free," Sheriff's Department Capt. Joe Rodi told CNN affiliate KGTV. Jessica Martinez said she joined the crowd after a nearby business owner had run into her bakery, telling them police were beating up her brother. "I heard my brother screaming mine and my sister's name," she said. "He was screaming for help. "My brother wasn't fighting. He was crying and screaming. He was scared." Two deputies got on top of Antonio Martinez as he rubbed his eyes from the pepper spray, eventually handcuffing him and putting him in a police car, his sister said. He was taken to Tri-City Medical Center in Oceanside, California, where Jessica Martinez and her father found him with scratches but no broken bones. The family asked to take Antonio Martinez home from the hospital, but a sheriff's deputy refused, Jessica Martinez said. It wasn't until around 11:30 that night -- at the Sheriff's Department, after being brought back from the hospital -- that he was released, she said. "When I asked my brother if he was sad, Antonio told me his heart hurt," his sister said. "He's just really sad right now, and he doesn't want to go to the bakery any more." The San Diego County Sheriff's Department has opened an investigation, according to Caldwell. Rodi met with the family Wednesday and acknowledged the situation should have been handled differently. "We made a mistake here," Rodi told KGTV. Troubling legacy of Sandy Hook may be backlash against kids with autism . | Police: Antonio Martinez was between his home, family bakery when deputy approached .
The developmentally disabled man, 21, didn't respond to calls and was pepper sprayed .
He was hit and cuffed, despite others' pleas he had Down Syndrome, sister says .
Martinez was never charged, and a sheriff's captain says, "We made a mistake here" |
77,180 | dacd1e8d6a2b9b0de7e8ab6dbbada5fccc1070a4 | By . Lizzie Parry . An HIV-positive teenager has today called for lessons about the virus to become compulsory in all schools, claiming he learned nothing of it in sex eduction classes. Luke Alexander has written an open letter to Education Secretary Michael Gove, declaring he 'did not know much' about the disease before contracting it. The 19-year-old appeared on ITV's This Morning, where he called for greater awareness 12 months after he received his devastating diagnosis. In his letter, published as a petition . on the Change.org website, Mr Alexander claims the 'vast majority of . young people today have little or no common knowledge', of the virus. HIV-positive Luke Alexander is calling on Education Secretary Michael Gove to make HIV a compulsory part of sex education in all schools . He said: 'I myself strongly believe that if I had learnt about HIV during my secondary education, I might have avoided being infected with HIV myself at just 18 years old,' the Independent reported. Mr Alexander, from Oldbury in the West Midlands, said education is vital if a younger generation are to be as aware of the condition as men who were exposed to the major awareness campaign of the 1980s. He said: 'Before my diagnosis I didn't really know a lot about it (HIV). 'When they diagnosed me last year, my first reaction was "Oh my God, I'm going to die". 'I knew it existed but I didn't know a lot about treatment.' Mr Alexander, who was around 13 when he came out as being gay, said he became sexually active at the age of 15. When he turned 18 his life took a downwards turn. Having been made redundant, he turned to alcohol and recreational drugs. Appearing on ITV's This Morning, the 19-year-old - who was diagnosed last year - said he learned very little about the virus at school, adding had he had more information he might not have contracted the illness . It was during that time, he says, that he 'went off the rails' becoming less careful in his sexual life, adding that he can 'count on one hand' the number of times he has practised unsafe sex. Had he been told more about the dangers of HIV while at school, he claims it could have made a real difference. The teenager said his sex education lessons at school had a tendency to focus on the dangers of becoming pregnant and contracting chlamydia, but missed out the link between wearing a condom and protecting against HIV and other infections. 'We did talk about condoms,' he said. 'But it was more in the context of getting pregnant and bacterial infections. Mr Alexander said he wants to raise greater awareness, especially among young homosexual men . 'We never really went into anything else. I have always known it was necessary (to use a condom) but it wasn't stressed (in the context of HIV).' It was in April 2013, while he was in Manchester, that Mr Alexander first fell ill, showing the signs of HIV. 'All of a sudden I came down with a horrific fever, it was very instant, I had sweats and could not sleep. 'The next thing I knew I was off my food and very, very fatigued. It was awful. 'Before my diagnosis I didn't really know a lot about it. When they diagnosed me last year, my first reaction was "Oh my God, I'm going to die"' - Luke Alexander . 'I found out later it was sero-conversion illness, where my body was trying to reject the virus.' In May last year, Mr Alexander said he had a free sexual health test offered by a charity at the Birmingham Gay Pride event. Thinking nothing of the tests, he said he was shocked when he received a call to say his results showed 'cause for concern'. Enduring the 'worst five days' of his life, Mr Alexander was forced to wait for further test results before his diagnosis was confirmed, he was HIV positive. Speaking about his experience of sex education at school, Mr Alexander said he did not 'get the information I felt I needed at the time'. 'Being gay, HIV is up there on the list of things affecting men across the world. Dr Ranj Singh, who appeared alongside Mr Alexander, supported his call for greater awareness in schools . 'We heard a lot about chlamydia and pregnancy but nothing in much depth, the teachers were embarrassed to talk about it. 'I felt they were speaking about it because they had to, because the government were telling them to. 'But it left no impression.' He called for more information to be made available around treatment of the virus. On diagnosis, Mr Alexander said he thought he would be resigned to a short, bed-ridden life in pain, facing stigma from society. But the reality is very different, with great leaps forward in treatment during the 1990s and 2000s. The 19-year-old now takes just one pill a day. Dr Ranj Singh, who appeared on the show with Mr Alexander, said a survey by the National Aids Trust in April 2014 found the level of knowledge about HIV in young gay men is 'shockingly low' - and worse than in older men. He said 100,000 people in the UK are living with the virus, though 20,000 of those are unaware they have the condition. A Department of Education spokesman said: 'Pupils must learn about sexually transmitted infections such as HIV/AIDS as part of sex and relationship education.' | Luke Alexander, 19, was diagnosed with HIV last summer .
Claims had he learned more at school, he might not have contracted HIV .
Teen has written an open letter to Michael Gove calling for lessons about the virus to be made compulsory in all schools .
He said when he was told he was HIV positive he thought 'Oh my God, I'm going to die', not knowing of treatment advances in the last 20 years . |
45,549 | 80627541c47406fc338a4b11a6ff377c53093f89 | A 24-year-old man whose body was found in the Missouri River behind Black Eagle Dam was featured in the 2006 HBO documentary 'Montana Meth' and was sober as recently as 2011. Toward the end of the film, the then 16-year-old Graham Macker is asked by his mother, 'How does it end?' Macker says, 'I don't know.' On Wednesday his body was found as PPL Montana workers broke up ice near the dam. Cascade County officials said he drowned. Macker was 16 when he appeared in the HBO documentary 'Montana Meth' in 2006 . 'Our condolences, thoughts and prayers go out to his family,' Amy Rue, executive director of the Montana Meth Project, told the Billings Gazette on Friday. 'Meth use continues to be a serious issue in our communities. It is a highly addictive substance that destroys lives.' On Nov. 14, Macker was reported as a walk-away from the pre-release center. It was suspected that he hid in vegetation along the south side of the Missouri River. Sheriff's deputies, Great Falls police dogs and a Homeland Security helicopter were unable to find Macker. There was no indication he went into the river that evening, authorities said. Macker had been sent to the pre-release center for probation violations relating to 2009 forgery and bad-check charges in Kalispell. 'He was a son, a brother and a wonderful friend to so many people,' Rue said. 'There is so much more to Graham than just this one experience.' In the documentary, Macker told filmmaker Eames Yates that he used to be an athletic kid. His drowned body was found in the Missouri River behind Black Eagle Dam . End: Authorities had to break up the ice to reach Macker's body in the area known as 'the pond' 'I'd run the mile, and now I run a block and I'm tired as hell,' he said. 'I have stretch marks on my back. I lost, like, 30 pounds.' He also lamented the money he spent on drugs. 'I could have so much stuff right now,' he said. 'Just the amounts of money I spend on drugs and people I owe.' While the documentary ended on a unresolved note, CBS Evening News caught up with Macker and his mother after the show in September 2011 - and Macker was sober at the time. 'We're doing a day at a time right now,' he said. 'At the rate I was doing, I would not still be here.' Rue said she was grateful Macker took part in the documentary and spoke about his troubles. Off the wagon: hen CBS followed-up Macker's story in 2011, he said he was sober but it appears he relapsed again. Mother Wendy Macker pictured on the right . 'Countless teens have learned as a result of learning his life story,' she said. The documentary, in addition to a ad campaign, have helped radically curb teen meth use in the state. Teen meth use went down 63 per cent after the ad campaign launched in 2005 . Man attribute the campaign and documentary's effectiveness to the non-preachy tone. 'It doesn't just tell you "no don't do this." It shows you why you don't do this,' said teen Emily Dean, who was in middle school when the ads started running. Montana is now ranked 39th in the nation for meth use, a dramatic fall from its previous ranking of 5th. Macker had been sent to the pre-release center for probation violations relating to 2009 forgery and bad-check charges in Kalispell . | Graham Macker starred in the documentary 'Montana Meth' when he was 16 years old .
Macker was addicted to the drug, lost 30 pounds, and spent almost all his money on drugs at the time that the documentary was made .
On Nov. 14, Macker was reported as a .
walk-away from the pre-release center. It was suspected that he hid along the Missouri River .
Police say that Macker drowned .
Macker spoke about being sober with CBS Evening News in 2011 . |
44,141 | 7c81141ecf7519b089902395b7b354ccb5bf8575 | This is the terrifying moment a racist thug waved a samurai sword in the street threatening to 'kill all the Poles' before slashing a man in the back. In photographs handed to police by a bystander, Gareth Devlin is seen with the weapon in his hand while walking in the street in Teesside. The 28-year-old was jailed for five years after a court heard how he frightened children by waving the weapon around one summer afternoon. Gareth Devlin was photographed waving a samurai sword in the street before striking it down on the back of a Polish national he threatened to kill . Polish nationals had been drinking on the afternoon in question, when many of the residents on the quiet street were enjoying the Brazil v Netherlands third-place playoff in the FIFA World Cup. Devlin and his friend, 24-year-old Joseph Smithson, approached the men, shouting: 'Come on!' Teesside Crown Court heard. Threatening: 'I will kill you,' he struck the sword down on one man's back as he tried frantically to flee the scene. 'One of the witnesses, to their great credit, grabbed a camera,' prosecutor Paul Cleasby said. 'He was a keen photographer and he was able to take photographs of the assailants. 'That at the time proved to be the best evidence. 'Your Honour sees Gareth Devlin with a sword in his hand in broad daylight walking down the street. The 28-year-old threatened the group of Poles shouting: 'I will kill you' before striking one of them . Devlin was jailed for five years for the attack after a bystander handed in the photographs to police . 'He has attempted to disguise himself with a hood over his face.' 'Were it not for his quick thinking and good work, the Crown would not have the case that they have,' Gazette Live. Sentencing the father-to-be to five years in jail, Judge Simon Bourne-Arton QC, the Recorder of Middlesbrough, said: 'You, Mr Devlin, took part in a very bad attack upon this Polish gentleman for reasons only you can understand. 'You know, and you’ve set out in your letter, that only a sentence of custody can be considered, and a lengthy sentence at that.' He told Smithson the time he had spent on remand - equal to an eight-month sentence - was enough custody for his crime. Outside court, Detective Constable Alan O’Donoghue, of Cleveland Police, said: 'We very much welcome the sentence given today. 'It sends a clear message that people cannot behave in this way, threatening people in broad daylight in the street. 'We will always do all we can to bring offenders before the courts.' | Gareth Devlin was photographed waving weapon around in the street .
The 28-year-old threatened Polish national before slashing him in back .
Photos were used as evidence in case against the father-to-be .
He was jailed for five years over racially aggravated attack . |
283,816 | fbb445278eb3dd2e285f4ce678065d931292d08e | Thousands of Eurostar passengers are stranded again for a second day after a power outage was claimed to have brought the Channel Tunnel to a halt. Travellers were hoping to take journeys they abandoned yesterday after the route was shut by a lorry fire, causing chaos and triggering compensation bills running into the millions. But just as services were back up and running, 11 more Eurostar trains with room for up to 8,000 people were cancelled. Eurostar appeared to blame operator Eurotunnel - which issued a heated denial. Cancelled: Another 11 Eurostar trains have been cancelled after the firm claimed there was a problem with the overhead power supply inside the Channel Tunnel which led to it being shut for two hours . Dispute: Eurostar appeared to blame Eurotunnel, which operates the route - but Eurotunnel denied it had experienced any power problems when called by MailOnline. 'No, we haven't,' said a spokesman . Trains were already only running through one of the twin tunnels today, while firefighters inspected possible damage to the other from yesterday's lorry fire. That meant trains were having to run close together in batches in one direction before the line was cleared for a batch running in the opposite direction. Eurostar said the only available tunnel had to be closed for two hours this morning after 'Eurotunnel experienced new power supply problems'. But a Eurotunnel spokesman told MailOnline: 'No, we haven't. We've been running single-line services throughout the day as we said we would. '[For Eurostar] there were issues with having to manage the timetable. As far as our business is concerned we said we would run single-line services throughout the day. We have done that and we continue to do that. 'The media are trying to create another event, another disruption, to services in the Channel Tunnel.' Eurostar, however, stuck to its version of events - saying it believed the problem involved overhead power lines inside the tunnel itself. Queues: More than 100 stranded Eurostar passengers queued from 6am at London's St Pancras station today as they tried to rebook onto a train today. Many services were full as priority was given to previous bookings . Waiting around: Thousands of passengers were again left stranded in the St Pancras terminal today . Eurotunnel operates the tunnel itself and runs Le Shuttle, a car and freight service, through it. It is true that the firm's timetable has not been disrupted today, because it was not running to a published timetable in the first place. Instead passengers were told to turn up at their pre-booked time, to be put on the first available train. At one point there was a five-hour wait, according to Eurotunnel's website, up from a predicted 90 minutes this morning. By 5pm Eurotunnel passengers still faced a three-and-a-half hour wait for a train in Folkestone and a five-and-a-half hour wait in Calais. Six Eurostar trains from London, two from Paris and three from Brussels were cancelled today. The cancelled departures from London St Pancras were the 2.04pm, 3.31pm, 5.04pm, 6.04pm, 6.31pm and 8.04pm. The firm admitted some stranded passengers could face a second night away from home - with official advice being to avoid London's St Pancras station altogether and book for another day. A spokesman said: 'Eurotunnel experienced new power supply problems this morning which meant that both tunnels were again closed for two hours. 'This closure was a separate incident, unrelated to the problems experienced yesterday.' French couple Etienne and Charlie Soren - whose train was cancelled yesterday - rebooked onto the today's 5.04pm only to find it, too, had been wiped from the schedule. 'We made five phone calls yesterday to get places, but now we are told we have to start the process again because our train has been cancelled,' said Mr Soren, 35. 'I have never experienced anything like this. It is a disaster. Spending one more night here was okay, it was the weekend, luckily we could afford another night. 'Now we have come from the hotel with all of our luggage and baby things expecting to get on a train and they just say there is absolutely no way we are getting on another train. 'Now we have to spend money on a hotel. Flights would cost us hundreds of euros and we would have to wait until Eurostar decides to refund us. They should pay for our bills. 'I do not believe that they can't just put more trains on into the night. They say the service stops at 8pm - that is ridiculous. How are all these people ever going to get home?' Calm after the storm: The scene at 8.30am beyond the check-in terminals as those stranded headed home . Eurostar strongly advised passengers to come in person only if they were booked on a specific seat, with all trains delayed by up to an hour as one of the twin tunnels remained shut. More than 100 people defied advice to queue up at London's St Pancras station from 6am to exchange yesterday's tickets, only to be told the next train was full. But later the terminal at St Pancras was quiet as others appeared to have heeded advice not to turn up without a new booking. Staff insisted more services would be running tomorrow, with engineering works planned to take place overnight to make more sections of the tunnel functioning again. 'Eurostar plans to run a full service and passengers are advised to check-in as normal. 'As Eurotunnel will not be completely operational Eurostar services may be subject to delays of up to about 30 minutes.,' a spokesman said. But the company is facing a compensation bill running into the millions for the widespread disruption over the past two days. Aside from the cost of refunding tickets and laying on an extra service at 8am today, it was offering passengers £250 - £50 for meals, £50 for taxis and £150 for a London hotel. One passenger, photographer and musician Laurent Fritz, said: 'I arrived at St Pancras at 6:20am. There were around 150 people waiting to exchange tickets, but the service opened at 7am. Chaos: Thousands of Eurostar passengers faced queues yesterday for refunds and compensation . Which Eurostar trains are cancelled today? London to Brussels 14:04 train 9136 . London to Paris 15:31 train 9036 . London to Brussels 17:04 train 9148 . London to Brussels 18:04 train 9152 . London to Paris 18:31 train 9048 . London to Brussels 20:04 train 9162 . Brussels to London 15:56 train 9145 . Paris to London 16:43 train 9045 . Brussels to London 17:56 train 9153 . Paris to London 18:43 train 9053 . Brussels to London 18:56 train 9157 . Will other trains run? Yes. Eurostar trains were leaving up to an hour late while Eurotunnel passengers faced waits of up to five hours, which later reduced. Eurostar bookings for today . Anyone who was already booked on a train for today (Sunday) will not lose their seat, unless it's on one of the cancelled services. Turn up as normal half an hour before departure. Eurostar bookings from yesterday, or bookings cancelled today . Passengers need to refund their ticket or exchange it for another one. Passengers should call 03432 186 186 and are 'strongly advised' against going to the station in person. How to claim compensation . Those stranded can claim £50 per night for taxis, £50 for meals and £150 for a London hotel. Receipts can be presented to Eurostar in person or in the post to claim the money back. Eurotunnel bookings . Customers were offered a transfer to a ferry yesterday. If still stranded they should turn up today to exchange their ticket. 'At 7.30am they told us that the first train from St Pancras to Paris was full, so they added a new train with 800 seats for all passengers that couldn't leave London yesterday. 'They were saying the train would leave at 9.05am.' Services resumed on Eurotunnel at 2.45am UK time from Britain and 4.30am French time from France. Empty trains were sent through the tunnel to ensure it was clear and customers were being offered transfers to ferries until the service restarted. Previous delays on the car and lorry shuttle have forced Kent Police to implement Operation Stack, lining up thousands of vehicles along the M20 motorway as they wait for a departure. A spokesman said: 'It's always in place ready to go but we are not expecting to have to do it today.' One witness claimed passengers were given gas masks yesterday after two of the north tunnel's carbon dioxide alarms sounded at the French end just before noon. A 'smouldering load' was found on board a truck which was being carried in one of the vehicle shuttles, and although the fire was not serious the tunnel is still being checked for damage. Huge queues built up at St Pancras as services were cancelled and similar scenes were reported in Paris, with many holidaymakers forced to look for alternative transport or hotels. A Eurostar spokesman said: 'As Eurotunnel has advised us that its north tunnel will remain closed all day, Eurostar services will be subject to delays of between 30 and 60 minutes. 'All passengers who are booked to travel today (Sunday 18 January) should check-in as normal half an hour before departure. 'Services are already very busy and availability is limited. If you were on a cancelled train and need to travel urgently, please call our contact centre on 03432 186 186 and we will try to re-book you on a service departing after 12.00 (GMT). 'We would strongly advise passengers whose journeys were impacted by the problems in Eurotunnel not to come to our stations unless they have rebooked through our contact centre. 'We are sorry for the inconvenience that passengers have experienced.' | Trains resumed after all were cancelled yesterday stranding thousands .
But more cancelled today after 'power outage shut tunnel for two hours'
Some Eurostar passengers could face a second night away from home .
Firm faces bill in the millions with those stranded paid up to £250 each .
Eurostar said issue was with operator Eurotunnel - which denied claim .
'We've been running throughout the day as we said', said a spokesman .
Officials insisted more services would be available tomorrow . |
274,603 | efb67ae341478903427bb15e12034f66507255ea | A group of women sitting outside Costa coffee look shocked. They’re turning around to see who is screaming at the top of their voice, disturbing their quiet lunch. I would look around, too, but I’m incapable of turning — or stopping for that matter. I also know exactly who is disturbing the peace — it’s me, hurtling through the shopping centre, gathering speed, narrowly missing pensioners and office-workers on their break. In truth, I’m probably barely hitting 10mph, but that’s how it feels on this hare-brained contraption called the Air Wheel — a kind of electric unicycle. This new must-have has been flying off the shelves at Harrods, has sold out at various outlets online and is, apparently, going to transform the way we travel. Scroll down for video . Marianne Power, pictured, attempts to use the amazing 14mph Air Wheel in a Hampshire park . The device has a range of 24 miles on a single charge and changes direction by the user leaning . The Air Wheel, pictured, costs £429 and can hit a top speed of 14 miles per hour . A bit like a Segway, this little machine is designed to help us zip around town at up to 14mph, but crucially doesn’t have the handlebars of its counterpart. With nothing to hold on to, mastering the Air Wheel is far from easy. Yet the promotional videos show people whizzing through their office reception area or flying along city streets on their wheel, holding a coffee. They’ve sold 300,000 of the Chinese-made machines since the launch last year. Walking, it seems, is so last century. Unfortunately, I don’t have a good track record of being in charge of wheels. When I tried riding a bike for the first time in years, I went flying off after hitting a pothole. I am such a nervous driver that, despite having passed my test 20 years ago, I still won’t go on the motorway. Yet here I am on a wheel, with no brakes, no steering column and no safety belt. What could possibly go wrong? Setting off can be difficult for the new user . My adventure began at the company’s base in Basingstoke, Hampshire, where the team showed me the ropes. The makers say you can get the basics in a couple of hours, and be proficient in a day or two. You turn it on via a button on the wheel. The idea is that you stand your feet on two pedals either side of the wheel and simply lean forward to move, back to stop and left and right to turn. Sounds simple — but it isn’t. Just getting on is impossible. It’s so unstable, I need to lean on Fabio, one of the Air Wheel team. The instructions suggest leaning against a wall at the beginning, but I find a handsome Italian man always works better. And when I say lean, I mean cling on for dear life. Even though the pedals are only three inches off the ground, I am terrified. I feel as wobbly as you’d expect from a novice on a unicycle. Balancing seems impossible and for half an hour I do more squealing than a teenage girl at a Justin Bieber concert. After mastering standing on the Air Wheel, the next ‘step’ is to start moving for a respectable distance. A tiny tilt forward and it starts to move. The more you press the faster it goes. I feel like I’m four years old when Mum took the stabilisers off my bike — I’m trundling along but I just want to get off. Fabio and his friend hold on to me, on either side, as they try to move down the path. I keep shrieking and they keep telling me to ‘relax’. I feel so scared that I keep jumping off. The trick, apparently, is to stand straight and look in the direction you’re going in — but I keep looking at my feet, which makes me wobble. Finally, after 20 minutes, the boys lighten their grip and, bit by bit, I find that I’m doing it on my own . . . it feels thrilling, fast, and dare I say it fun. I get confident enough to up the speed — the faster you go the more steady you feel, like a bike. The cold air is rushing through my hair and actually, I love it. But after a few minutes, it is possible to safely navigate on the high-tech device which is imported from China . There is only one problem: stopping. You’re supposed to be able to slow down enough that you simply step off and grab hold of the wheel before it falls but going slowly means wobbling, so I panic and jump off instead. As for turning, the theory is you simply lean in whatever direction you want to go, but every time I try, I panic and jump off. Fabio tells me it can take a few days to get the hang of that, so for now the Air Wheel and I will be going in a straight line only. Fabio boasts he regularly goes shopping on his Air Wheel and even navigates the London Underground on it. Inspired by his claims, I decide to give the Air Wheel a go on a busy pedestrianised street. There are people, and benches, and broken glass, and I am on edge. There are shop windows to bang into, signs to knock over, children to injure. Fortunately, those in my path are all taking one look at me and stepping far away. And you do get looks on this thing. A bloke munching on a sausage roll says: ‘You’re not gonna lose any weight on that, are you?’ Charming. I’d turn and mow him down, but I don’t know how. I’m like a beginner on a ski slope: I cannot move out of your way, so you’ve got to move out of mine. The Air Wheel will travel up to 24 miles on one charge. And although at 13kg (28lb), it feels like carrying a very heavy brick, it’s about the same weight as a fold-up bike. The makers say people are buying them for dog walking, shop runs and days out. Their youngest user is ten and their eldest is 70. Seventy! Meanwhile, the gadget is getting rave reviews online and I can see why. It’s fun, fast and will get you places quicker than your feet can. But I, for one, will be keeping my feet on solid ground. From £429, theairwheel.com . | The Air Wheel costs £429 and can travel for 24 miles on a single charge .
The device weighs approximately 13 kgs - similar to a fold-up bicycle .
The company behind the device claim a user can be proficient in two days . |
107,135 | 162b4b1c021dd04a2f35070e8edaeb12b1def2f9 | Venus Williams will face a player she inspired to take up tennis after reaching her first grand slam quarter-final since 2010 in the Australian Open. Williams defeated sixth seed Agnieszka Radwanska 6-3 2-6 6-1 on Rod Laver Arena to set up a last-eight clash with American teenager Madison Keys, who had earlier beaten compatriot Madison Brengle in straight sets. Keys, 19, has made no secret of her admiration for the Williams sisters, although it is something the siblings might not like being reminded of too often. VIDEO Scroll down for Australian Open: Venus Williams wins 6-3 2-6 6-1 vs Radwanska . Venus Williams has reached her first Grand Slam quarter-final since the 2010 Australian Open . The elder Williams sister celebrates after dispatching sixth seed Agnieszka Radwanska 6-3 2-6 6-1 . 'Apparently she started playing because she watched Serena and I,' said the 34-year-old Venus. 'She was watching me in diapers.' Serena Williams (1) vs Dominika Cibulkova (11) Madison Keys vs Venus Williams (18) Ekaterina Makarova (10) vs Simona Halep (3) Eugenie Bouchard (7) VS Maria Sharapova (2) Venus' last quarter-final appearance in a grand slam came in the US Open in 2010, the year before she was diagnosed as suffering from Sjogren's syndrome, a debilitating autoimmune disease. Keys was just five years old when Venus won the first of her seven grand-slam singles titles at Wimbledon in 2000 and is relishing the prospect of facing one of her childhood heroes. 'I'm just really excited,' she said. 'I think it's a huge opportunity for me. I haven't been in this situation before. I'm going to make the most of it. I want to be at the end of the tournament holding the trophy up. That's my goal in the long run. 'I think Venus has helped the sport, especially the women's side with equal prize money. She was a huge part of that. Just watching her is inspirational. She's had her health battles but she loves tennis. She's still out here and she's doing it remarkably well. I hope I can be someone similar to that.' 19-year-old Madison Keys will come up against her childhood hero in the last eight in Melbourne . The American youngster signs autographs after beating compatriot Madison Brengle in straight sets . Keys could have to face both Williams sisters if she wants to win the title, with Serena taking on Dominika Cibulkova in the other quarter-final in the top half of the draw. Top seed Serena had some help from her fans to thank for overcoming another slow start - and a coughing fit - to defeat Spain's Garbine Muguruza in three sets and gain a measure of revenge for her defeat at the hands of the 24th seed in the second round of last year's French Open. Muguruza won 6-2 6-2 at Roland Garros and threatened to do the same here as she won four games in a row from 2-2 in the opening set. Williams, who had to save three set points against Vera Zvonareva in round two and then came from a set down to defeat Elina Svitolina, won the second set 6-3 to level the match and then crucially held serve at the start of the decider. The world No 1 had to save six break points in an epic game lasting 13 minutes and promptly broke a disheartened opponent on her way to taking the set by a flattering 6-2 scoreline. Williams admitted the shouted advice of one spectator to 'use spin' helped her turn the match around, adding: 'She (Muguruza) played so well and she did everything she needed to do in the first set. Serena Williams overcame a slow start to gain revenge over her French Open conqueror Garbine Muguruza . The world No 1 stretches for a shot en route to a comeback 2-6 6-3 6-2 victory in the fourth round . 'I just decided to do my best and stay focused and stay relaxed. She hits the ball really, really big and hard, but someone in the crowd was like 'Use spin'. I was like 'Okay' and it really helped me.' Williams struggled with a cough during the match and the 33-year-old said she had been 'a little sick the past couple of days'. She added: 'I've been fighting it with vitamin C and all kinds of stuff. I definitely feel better than yesterday.' Cibulkova reached the last eight after a see-saw battle with former champion Victoria Azarenka under the roof on Rod Laver Arena. A morning rain shower quickly cleared but the roof remained closed for the duration of a hard-fought fourth-round clash which Cibulkova eventually won 6-2 3-6 6-3. 'I just walked on court and all the great memories come to my mind,' said Cibulkova, who lost to Li Na in last year's final. 'I just have to believe in myself and that's what I am doing right now. 'The first set I was killing her from the forehand and then she started stepping inside the court and to serve much better. I felt like I had to put in something extra and play really, really good and that's what I did.' Williams will face Dominika Cibulkova (right) after she defeated former champion Victoria Azarenka (left) Azarenka, who won the title in 2012 and 2013 but was unseeded this year due to an injury-plagued 2014, led 2-0 in each set but lost six games in a row in the opening set and six out of seven in the decider. 'I take it as progress,' she said. 'I think there are a lot of positive things to take from here. It's a good start. There was some good quality tennis, even though the result is not the one that I wanted. 'But I need to be realistic a little bit and keep working hard and try to sharpen my game. I need to be more consistent and I need to be able to take my opportunities when I have them. Overall I can be pretty happy but I'm such a perfectionist that I don't want to be satisfied.' | Venus Williams defeated Agnieszka Radwanska 6-3 2-6 6-1 in Melbourne .
American Madison Keys will play her former idol in the quarter-finals .
Serena Williams will play Dominika Cibulkova in her last eight match . |
110,890 | 1afd9ce46125a401c0c5bf8eccaf9260f8814ddf | A U.S. drone strike targeting al Qaeda suspects in Yemen killed 13 civilians, including three women, three security officials in the restive Middle Eastern country said. "This was one of the very few times when our target was completely missed. It was a mistake, but we hope it will not hurt our anti-terror efforts in the region," a senior Yemeni Defense Ministry official told CNN. The official asked not to be named because of the sensitivity of the issue. The United States typically does not comment on reports it has used unmanned aircraft to target terror suspects, but is widely believed to be doing so in Yemen, a key battleground against al Qaeda. More: Suspected U.S. drone strike kills 4 in Pakistan . Families of the victims closed main roads and vowed to retaliate. Hundreds of angry armed gunmen joined them and gave the government a 48-hour deadline to explain the killings, which took place on Sunday. Eyewitnesses said that families attempted to carry the victims' corpses to the capital, Sanaa, to lay them in front of the residence of newly elected President Abdurabu Hadi, but were sent back by local security forces. "You want us to stay quiet while our wives and brothers are being killed for no reason. This attack is the real terrorism," said Mansoor al-Maweri, who was near the scene of the strike. The strike took place near the town of Rada in al-Baitha province on Sunday, Yemeni officials said. A senior Defense Ministry official said the strike initially targeted two members of al-Thahab clan who lead the terror network's operations in the province. He said the militants were in a vehicle near the one that was hit, and fled unharmed. At least 200 suspected al-Qaeda fighters are believed to be hiding in the province. Earlier this year, militants occupied Rada and declared it as an Islamic emirate. But two weeks later, they evacuated the town after authorities released al Qaeda prisoners. Residents are not denying the existence of al Qaeda elements in their region but say that misdirected strikes work in favor of the militant group, helping them recruit new operatives. "I would not be surprised if a hundred tribesmen joined the lines of al Qaeda as a result of the latest drone mistake," said Nasr Abdullah, an activist in the district of the attack. "This part of Yemen takes revenge very seriously." The latest attack was the fourth drone strike reported this week. The first three hit their targets, killing at least 12 suspected al Qaeda militants, according to Yemeni officials. Radical American-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, who was killed in September 2011, is the highest-profile target of an American drone hit in Yemen to date. He was linked to several terror plots, including the shootings at Fort Hood in 2009. | 13 people are killed in a strike that missed its target, an official says .
Angry relatives try to bring the victims' bodies to the capital, Sanaa .
The U.S. is widely believed to be using drones against al Qaeda in Yemen . |
104,795 | 133145e77954d32c986ae95c18f9719a82b95391 | By . Mail Foreign Service . PUBLISHED: . 10:07 EST, 4 February 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 02:43 EST, 5 February 2013 . A Brazilian city is facing an unusual crime spree - where the criminals are called John Lennon. Police in Belo Horizonte have arrested three bandits bearing the Beatles star’s name in little over a month - and found the body of a fourth after a suspected revenge killing. The phenomenon has been blamed on the popularity of the band in Brazil - leading to thousands of mothers to name their newborn sons after him in the years after he was shot in 1980. John Lennon Fonseca Ferreira, left, is described by police as one of the most wanted criminals in the state. He is one of three suspects arrested in the past two months who bear the name of The Beatles legend, right . Decades later, many of those offspring are now finding themselves in trouble with the police. The most recent arrest came on Friday, when John Lennon Ribeiro Siqueira, 19, was caught as he prepared to rob a lottery shop in the the city, the capital of Minas Gerais state in south-east Brazil. 'He was armed and dangerous', a police spokesman said. Meanwhile, John Lennon Fonseca Ferreira, 22 - described by police as one of the most wanted criminals in the state - was arrested during an attempted robbery at a house in the city on January 8. And on December 19, police arrested John Lenon Camargos Gomes, 22, who is accused of five murders in Belo Horizonte. The phenomenon in Belo Horizonte, pictured, has been blamed on the popularity of The Beatles in Brazil. Thousands of newborns were named after John Lennon following his death in 1980 . The convicted drug trafficker is also accused of two attempted murders. Some John Lennons are even less lucky. On January 9, the body of John Lennon Sebastiao da Silva, 18, was found in the back seat of a car in the city. Police have arrested a suspect and believe it was a revenge killing. | Three people bearing The Beatles legend's name have been arrested .
The Lennon arrests all happened in Belo Horizonte in the past two months .
A fourth namesake was found dead after a suspected revenge killing .
Police blame phenomenon on popularity of The Beatles in Brazil .
Thousands of children were named after Lennon following his 1980 death . |
209,104 | 9ac9fa68a1816fd9ee1650d8bd457a145dd784c9 | Freight distribution firm boss replaces James Caan . Admitted that her first show was 'nerve-wracking' Had a stroke after a tummy tuck went wrong . By . Daily Mail Reporter . Last updated at 7:06 PM on 21st July 2011 . The new girl: Businesswoman Hilary Devey is replacing James Caan on the Dragon's Den judging panel . She's the hard-working, tough-talking businesswoman who overcame difficult obstacles on her way up the ladder. But despite her confidence and fiercely-ambitious nature, Hilary Devey said she felt nervous taking her seat as the new judge on Dragon's Den. Devey, 54, has replaced James Caan for the ninth series of the reality TV show, and said she was delighted when the BBC asked her to join the panel. In her first interview since joining the team, Hilary, who is the boss of a . Leicestershire-based freight distribution firm, spoke to the Sun and said: 'I have always . been a fan of the show and I was so pleased when the BBC asked me to be . on it.' And how does she think she was received by the wannabe entrepreneurs? 'Viewers . will have to decide for themselves,' she said, 'but I hope they think I . have brought flair and flamboyance to the Den. Humour too. 'I have brought a competitive edge to proceedings. I enjoy the rivalry. It's fun.' 'I lost my rag a few times as I . thought people were trying to pull one over me. I don't like that. I am . tenacious and I have not been afraid to work hard. She told the newspaper that she was made to feel at ease . by her fellow judges - Duncan Bannatyne, Peter Jones, Deborah Meaden . and Theo Paphitis - but added: 'I was still very nerve-racking on the . first day. I felt like the new girl at school and it did take a few . pitches to find my feet.' Bolton-born Hilary runs Pall-EX which pulls in £100million in revenue every year. But she revealed that she worked hard to . get where she is now, even sacrificing her personal life for the job, . but she said her determination to succeed was spurred on by some . horrible times in her life. Hilary, who has divorced twice, had a tummy tuck that gave her a stroke and helping her son battle his heroin addiction. The new line up: Hilary joins Duncan Bannatyne, Peter Jones, Deborah Meaden and Theo Paphitis . Two years ago she went for the cosmetic procedure and said: 'I wanted a flat stomach, like a lot of women, but I did not rest much afterwards and I had a stroke. I am OK now.' She then had to tackle her son Melvin's £600-a-day heroin habit - which he funded by stealing from his mother. She said: 'For a long time I had to lock every door behind me. 'He would steal my clothes, food, electrical household items - anything he could sell for money to get a fix.' But Hilary said he has overcome his addiction and said: 'Time is a healer and he is going back to college. 'We are really close and I will always be there for him.' Looking forward, she said: 'I really loved doing Dragons' Den. 'I really hope the BBC will want me back.' Tough at the top: Hilary hard at work in her Pall-Ex office . | Freight distribution firm boss replaces James Caan .
Admitted that her first show was 'nerve-wracking'
Had a stroke after a tummy tuck went wrong . |
10,744 | 1e893f28d198cfe04141ee9362a9facd743aad22 | (CNN) -- Legendary Ukraine striker Andriy Shevchenko called time on an 18-year soccer career back in July in order to concentrate on a new profession -- politics. But just four months after turning his back on football, Shevchenko has been offered the chance to immerse himself in the beautiful game once again, as coach of the national side. As Ukraine's most capped player and their highest goalscorer of all time, with 56 goals in his 111 games, Shevchenko is the finest player the country has produced since gaining independence in 1991. He won five consecutive league titles with Dynamo Kiev between 1995 and 1999 before joining Italian giants AC Milan, where he played his part in their 2003 European Champions League triumph. Shevchenko was signed for English club Chelsea by Jose Mourinho in May 2006 for a reported fee of $47 million but failed to make an impact in his two years at the club. After another loan spell with Milan he returned to Dynamo Kiev for three final seasons and signed off from the national team after they failed to get out of their group in Euro 2012, which Ukraine co-hosted with neighbors Poland. Though the 36-year-old has no previous coaching experience, he is the Ukrainian Football Federation's (FFU) first choice to take over from Oleh Blokhin, who left the post to coach Ukrainian club side Dynamo Kiev. A statement on the FFU's official website read: "President of the Football Federation of Ukraine Anatoliy Konkov has decided to invite Andriy Shevchenko to take the post of head coach. "Andriy had a prominent schooling at renowned clubs such as the Dynamo Kiev, Milan and Chelsea, led by legendary coaches Valeriy Lobanovskiy, Carlo Ancelotti and Jose Mourinho. "He had a unique ability to absorb their talent, their knowledge and their experience. "It should be noted that at one time Andriy Shevchenko debuted in the youth national teams under the leadership of Anatoly Ridge. And today the FFU president offers Shevchenko a new debut!" The statement quoted Konkov as saying: "I'm sure Shevchenko will also be able to conquer great football countries as head coach of this country. He has enough experience and character. "The federation, in turn, will ensure to give him all the help he needs with the national team." | Andriy Shevchenko invited to take charge as coach of Ukraine national team .
Former Chelsea and AC Milan star retired after an 18-year career after Euro 2012 .
The 36-year-old captained Ukraine 56 times and scored 56 goals in 111 games . |
260,639 | dd7e56de5f3b8626add75d5238905b7e23bf4516 | The Dark Lady who inspired some of Shakespeare’s romantic sonnets may have had a rather unladylike profession. An expert on the Bard suggests she may have been a notorious prostitute called ‘Lucy Negro’ or ‘Black Luce’ who ran a brothel in Clerkenwell, London. Shakespeare scholar Dr Duncan Salkeld said he had unearthed documents that indicate she is ‘the foremost candidate for the dubious role of the Dark Lady’. New research claims The 'Dark Lady' of Shakespeare's sonnets was a notorious London prostitute named Lucy Negro or Black Luce - a dark-skinned madam who ran a licentious house in Clerkenwell. Above, the Bard in London . Many of the sonnets 127 to 152 are addressed to an unidentified woman with whom Shakespare imagines having an affair. In Sonnet 144 the temptress is . referred to as ‘my female evil’ and ‘my bad angel’. The identity of the . Dark Lady has mystified academics for years. To her contemporaries, she was known . as 'an arrant whore and a bawde’, catering for everyone from ‘ingraunts’ (immigrants) to ‘welthyemen’ and the aristocracy. The sonnets give few details describing her, apart from her dark eyes, hair and complexion, with hints that she was married. This identity was tentatively suggested in the 1930s but Dr Salkeld has now found public records that convince him that she is 'the foremost candidate for the dubious role of the Dark Lady', the Independent reported. Dr Duncan Salkeld discovered part of the evidence in the diary of Philip Henslowe, the theatre owner who built the Rose Theatre (right) and whose acting company was a rival to Shakespeare’s. Left, Geoffrey Rush as Henslowe in the film Shakespeare In Love . The first of the so-called 'Dark Lady' poems... In the old age black was not counted fair, . Or if it were, it bore not beauty's name; . But now is black beauty's successive heir, . And beauty slandered with a bastard shame: . For since each hand hath put on Nature's power, . Fairing the foul with Art's false borrowed face, . Sweet beauty hath no name, no holy bower, . But is profaned, if not lives in disgrace. Therefore my mistress' eyes are raven black, . Her eyes so suited, and they mourners seem . At such who, not born fair, no beauty lack, . Sland'ring creation with a false esteem: . Yet so they mourn becoming of their woe, . That every tongue says beauty should look so. The Bard imagines an unidentified . woman - known as the 'Dark Lady' but not actually named by him in that . way - in an adulterous sexual relationship. She is the inspiration for many of the sonnets 127 to 152. She is 'my female evil' and 'my bad angel' in sonnet 144. Dr . Salkeld discovered part of the evidence in the diary of Philip . Henslowe, the theatre owner who built the Rose Theatre and whose acting . company was a rival to Shakespeare’s. Within its pages, there is mention of both Black Luce and her associate Gilbert East, who operated another Clerkenwell brothel. Henslowe, who staged at least one of Shakespeare’s plays - Titus Andronicus - recorded 30 occasions when he dined with a Gilbert East who was also Henslowe’s bailiff for properties that he owned. The discovery that Luce and East were also Henslowe’s tenants adds a definitive link to Shakespeare’s world, according to the scholar. Dr Salkeld said: 'The name "Gilbert East" is rare in London parish records and we are on safe ground in taking the brothel-owner to be East. It proves the connection between East and Henslowe.' He adds: 'To my knowledge, no one has spotted this connection before.' Lucy also appears in a list of bawdy entertainments – the Gray’s Inn Christmas entertainments of 1594 – and in a few plays and literary texts of the period. Apart from a midnight raid on her premises, Luce is not recorded as being arrested, though her girls were, and court documents include references to her successful brothel. He says: 'Black Luce’s bad name was so well-known that anyone reading Shakespeare’s… sonnets… in the 1590s and early 1600s is likely to have brought her to mind, and Shakespeare must have known this.' Lucy Negro also appears in a list of bawdy entertainments - the Gray's Inn Christmas entertainments of 1594 - and in a few plays and literary texts of the period. Above, Hogarth's A Harlot's Progress from the 1700s . During Britain's involvement in the slave trade in the 16th century, thousands of African and Afro-Caribbean slaves were ferried to London ports - on the same ships that brought imperial products such as tea, sugar, cotton and rum. Those who came to Britain were often brought in by naval officers and government officials returning to the UK. Some black people were offered to the commanders of slaving vessels as gifts, and were later sold into domestic service. Slavery was legal in Britain until 1772, and many of these Africans found themselves working as butlers or other household attendants in noble families. In 1764 The Gentleman's Magazine reported that there was 'supposed to be near 20,000... Negroe servants' in London: the magazine went on to say that 'the main objections to their importation is, that they cease to consider themselves as slaves in this free country, nor will they put up with an inequality of treatment, nor more willingly perform the laborious offices of servitude than our own people'. Acknowledging that trying to unravel . the Dark Lady is controversial, he concludes that there is sufficient . 'circumstantial' evidence: 'Whoever that person was, Shakespeare painted . her with the reputation of Luce… This is new evidence.' The link to Clerkenwell is further strengthened by Shakespeare’s own connections with the area. Not only did he know people who lived there, but he may also have had his own relatives there. In parish records, Dr Salkeld found several Shakespeares, including a Matthew Shakespeare who was married to an Isabel Peele – sister of the dramatist George Peele, who probably collaborated with the Bard on Titus Andronicus. In a London with only 200,000 population, such connections are significant. Dr Salkeld also notes the lack of evidence for the supposition that prostitutes circulated around Southwark and Bankside, the site of the Elizabethan Rose and Globe theatres: 'The stews were closed down by Henry VIII in 1546 and that drastically inhibited prostitution activity in the area. 'The majority of cases were north of The Thames, including Clerkenwell.' His new research will be published by Ashgate in Shakespeare Among the Courtesans in October. | Madam, also known as Black Luce, was 'an arrant whore' who ran a brothel in Clerkenwell, north-east London .
Inspired many of Bard's sonnets 127 to 152 .
Bard had friends, and possibly relatives, who lived in Clerkenwell .
Dr Duncan Salkeld cites evidence in diary of Philip Henslowe, who built Rose Theatre .
Henslowe knew Lucy Negro and her associate Gilbert East, another brothel owner .
They were both tenants of Henslowe, who had a rival acting company . |
25,288 | 47a6677b72f229d2bced2c7364ab786522ce47b5 | By . Sarah Dean . A retail chain has been slammed by shoppers for allegedly 'promoting bullying' after splashing the slogan 'You can't sit with us' across a range of products aimed at young people. A children's charity has also condemned the quote, which they say is classed as 'covert bullying'. Australian fashion chain Cotton On has removed t-shirts and accessories, branded with the line from the 2004 film Mean Girls, from its shops after shoppers expressed their outrage. Jess Bridson, from Gisborne, a city in northeastern New Zealand, first spotted a black clutch bag in her local store featuring the offensive quote. Offensive: One shopper was outraged when she spotted this bag in a Cotton On store in New Zealand . Writing on Facebook on Saturday, she said: 'Way to promote bullying Cotton On! This is really s***, why can't it say "would you like to hang with us?".' The image was quickly shared online by people who were outraged that the bag was being sold in a shop aimed at the teen market. Sandie Farr wrote: 'Promoting bullying to the demographic that suffers most from it - massive fail Cotton On.' 'Not cool at all Cotton On - bullying is NEVER fashionable,' Tina Ngata said. Angry: A woman accuses the store of promoting bullying, in a Facebook comment on the picture of the black bag . 'Not cool': A woman comments on Facebook over the products which are aimed at the youth fashion market . 'Retail fail': A woman explains that 'we have enough trouble with bullying' already . Ema Vincent Logan added: 'Way to promote bullying guys... 'I don't really care what movie it came from it's disgusting and I had heard it far too many times as a kid and growing up.' Liz Tibbutt also said it was irrelevant whether the line 'You can't sit with us' came from a film. 'Really, Cotton On? I know it's a quote from Mean Girls and I know it is meant to be cute but don't we have enough trouble with bullying?' In the film, starring Lindsay Lohan and Amanda Seyfried, one of the Mean Girls, Gretchen, shouts 'you can't sit with us' at Regina because she is wearing sweatpants on a Monday - it's against the rules to wear them on that day of the week. Regina replies: 'These sweatpants are all that fits me right now.' Not the only one: Other popular fashion retailers also stock products with the Mean Girls slogan on them. This vest top is on sale at online retailer Misguided . 'A statement like "you can't sit with us" is a form of exclusion which we categories as covert bullying,' a representative for children's charity The Alannah and Madeline Foundation, Katina Astles, told Daily Mail Australia. 'Being left out can affect all aspects of young people's lives... including their academic performance.' She explained that bullying is a serious issue in Australia. 'Our research shows 1 in 4 kids in Australian schools experience bullying every fortnight. It can happen on the way to school, during class activities and in the playground.' 'I think it's really good Cotton On have listened to the feedback from the community and recognised the impact the products could have and taken action,' Ms Astles added. Cotton On Group spokeswoman Greer McCracken told the New Zealand Herald that the products have been 'voluntarily with drawn from sale, pending a formal investigation'. She added: 'This is a business underpinned by a sound moral and ethical code. The Cotton On Group does not condone bullying on any level and takes matters such as this very seriously.' Cotton On are not the only company who have used the the 'mean' line on its products. Online fashion retailer Misguided, which operates in Australia, the UK and the US, is currently stocking a black and white 'You can't sit with us' vest. Popular: Lots of online retailers sell the slogan on tops in the US. This one can be purchased from Me and My Tee for $21.93 AU . Baby version: A Mean Girls 'you can't sit with us' pink high chair organic baby bodysuit is available to buy from US online shop Spunky Stork . The top can be bought for $19.98 AU and the product description reads: 'Make a mean girl statement in our "You can't sit with us" boyfriend vest. In white with a monochrome ribbed trim, this slouchy style looks amazing with sports luxe leggings and black heeled sandals.' Plenty more online retailers have also borrowed the quote to be used on tops, hats and sweaters around the world. In the US, Fairtrade retailer Spunky Stork, sells white baby bodysuits with the slogan written in pink and accompanied by a picture of a high-chair. The Daily Mail Australia has contacted Cotton On and Misguided for comment. | Australian fashion chain Cotton On has removed t-shirts and accessories branded with the line from Mean Girls from its stores .
Shoppers used social media to express their anger with the products .
Cotton On are not the only company to use the quote on their clothes .
Anti-bullying charity says the statement is classed as 'covert bullying' |
41,781 | 75d357874f067f901f01ab71c99458d44750f45b | (CNN) -- In January, Bashar al-Assad sat down for a long interview with the Wall Street Journal. That was noteworthy in itself; the Syrian leader doesn't spend much time with the Western media. He was in confident mood -- saying that Syria would not succumb to the unrest then spreading in Tunisia and Egypt. That same month Vogue ran an effusive feature on Syria's first lady, Asma al-Assad, describing her as a "rose in the desert." But in his interview, al-Assad also recognized "anger and desperation" in the region and the need for reform in Syria, to "open up the society," as he put it. Change was needed, he said, but "if you do it just because of what happened in Tunisia and Egypt, then it is going to be a reaction, not an action; and as long as what you are doing is a reaction you are going to fail." Now, after 10 days of deadly protests in Syria, that "reaction" is well and truly under way. The government has responded with a mixture of aggression and appeasement. It has announced a substantial rise in wages for public employees, and has proposed ending the decades-long state of emergency and opening up Syria's cramped political space to other parties. The current Syrian constitution enshrines the leadership of the Baath Party, which both al-Assad and his father, Hafez al-Assad, who died in 2000, have led. At the same time, security forces have swamped Daraa and other towns in the south; witnesses speak of a mysterious group of men dressed in black patrolling the streets of Latakia. Amnesty International reports widespread arrests of political activists. But the protests have continued, and one Facebook page following the unrest -- SyrianRevolution -- now has nearly 100,000 followers. The regime's carrot-and-stick approach may work in the short term but the widely respected International Crisis Group says President Assad has two starkly different options. "One involves an immediate and inevitably risky political initiative that might convince the Syrian people that the regime is willing to undertake dramatic change. The other entails escalating repression, which has every chance of leading to a bloody and ignominious end. " While it has tinkered with reform over the past 10 years, al-Assad's government is hamstrung by internal disagreement, endemic corruption and competing goals at home and in the region. That at least is the picture that emerges from analyzing the U.S. diplomatic cables obtained by WikiLeaks. The cables acknowledge that al-Assad has allowed greater media freedom since he became president 11 years ago "with Al Jazeera, the local favorite, and al-Arabiya readily available via satellite." Local journalists spoke of shifting red lines, adding wryly that "it was much simpler under Hafez al-Assad; we always knew where the red lines were." Caution has been the watchword in other spheres, including a tentative "reset" of Syria's frosty relationship with the United States since President Barack Obama took office and a gradual reassertion of Syria's role in Lebanon. The younger al-Assad has blamed a rough neighborhood for slow progress at home. "We are not the only captain," he told the Wall Street Journal. "We were affected by the situation in Iraq or in Lebanon. There are many things that we wanted to do in 2005 we are planning to do in 2012." The cables shed light on how Syria has been run -- with powerful and often competing cliques dominating economic and political life, and intrigue trumping open debate. Part of the diplomatic traffic is devoted to the power of "regime financiers" like telecom magnate Rami Makhluf, al-Assad's cousin. A U.S. contact is quoted in a cable as saying "most Syrians viewed Rami in a negative light and his strong-arm business tactics had earned him many enemies." The same cable says corruption "was rife in Syrian government and society and had undermined the president's credibility with the Syrian people." There is also evidence of serious rifts within the security apparatus, with one cable from 2008 reporting that "Syrian Military Intelligence and General Intelligence Directorate officials are currently engaged in an internecine struggle to blame each other for the breach of security" that occurred in Damascus when Hezbollah's military commander, Imad Mughniyah, was killed by a car bomb. Several months later, a top adviser to al-Assad -- Gen. Mohammed Suleiman -- was shot dead at his vacation home on the Syrian coast. His killers have never been identified, although the Syrians blame Israel. Syria's long-term alliance with Iran and its sponsorship of the Hezbollah militia in neighboring Lebanon are also sensitive issues at home. Some reports from Daraa say protesters have raised their voices against both. Syrian officials quoted in U.S. cables say Hezbollah is a legitimate resistance movement and part of the overall Middle East peace process. In other words -- Syria's (and Iran's) insurance card against Israel. In 2009, the top U.S. diplomat in Damascus sharply criticized Syria's alleged delivery of ballistic missiles to Hezbollah. "Syria's actions have created a situation in which miscalculation or provocative behavior by Hezbollah could prove disastrous for Syria and the broader region," he wrote. Other cables suggest constant juggling by al-Assad as he tries to keep the alliance with Iran intact while not closing the door to negotiations with Israel. Fawaz Gerges at the London School of Economics says Syria is a critical regional player. "Instability in Syria means there will be instability in Lebanon, which is a divided country along sectarian lines." Iran, too, would be affected were Assad to go, he said: "Syria is a critical player that supports a non-Arab state. The West has tried to wean Syria off Iran but has failed." Barak Seener, a research fellow with the Royal United Services Institute in London, agrees that events in Syria could alter the Middle East landscape. "A liberal democratic Syria would be more susceptible to peace with Israel, irrespective of the status of the Golan Heights," he said. "In light of the opposition that removed Mubarak, it is questionable whether peace can be made with autocratic leaders that can be removed and not with liberal societies." Seener says the violence so far does not threaten the regime's existence but "will embolden the majority-Sunni population and Kurdish minority, who deeply resent the political dominance of the Alawi minority, to protest." Al-Assad is an Alawite. But so far, none of Syria's major cities has seen the sort of unrest witnessed in Daraa. Some Syria-watchers say al-Assad may even turn the crisis to his advantage by pushing through reform despite the hardliners and bureaucratic inertia. He may also benefit from a fractured opposition. Syrian analyst Murhaf Jouejati at George Washington University says that civil society has been stifled by decades of emergency rule. "The protesters are not organized. The opposition is fragmented," he said. "Civil society is not developed enough to be a counterweight to the state" even if intellectuals leading the opposition enjoy a certain amount of moral authority. Other analysts say the sudden announcement of extensive concessions smacks of panic, and that endemic corruption and high unemployment are beyond the government's capacity to fix. In addition, as the International Crisis Group notes, "as a result of events elsewhere in the region, a new awareness and audacity have materialized over the past several weeks in myriad forms of rebelliousness." Fear, if not gone, is no longer so pervasive. The International Crisis Group says much hinges on al-Assad, who is due to address the nation in the next couple of days. "He alone can prove that change is possible and already in the making, restore some sense of clarity and direction to a bewildered power apparatus and put forward a detailed framework for structural change," it says. As al-Assad also told the Wall Street Journal in January: "This is the Middle East, where every week you have something new." | Despite concern, al-Assad forced to react to opposition .
The regime's carrot-and-stick approach may work in the short term .
In the long term, there is risk in any strategy, the International Crisis Group says .
WikiLeaks cables show a government hamstrung by internal disagreement . |
210,346 | 9c737c21fb113d74aa51e4a554b8ee470b6b93b9 | By . Ryan Gorman . Dead: Hernan Gutierrez was killed when his body was pulled completely through a wood chipper . The Florida man who died Monday after falling into a giant wood chipper wanted to start his own roofing business, according to his girlfriend. Hernan Gutierrez, 42, was working Monday with two other men near a Davie home when he somehow ended up inside the machine. It then pulled his entire body through and instantly killed him, police said. Girlfriend Karen Gamez-Pereira told the Sun-Sentinel that he 'didn't deserve to die' that way and wanted to leave landscaping for his own roofing business. 'It is horrible to think of,' she said. 'He didn't deserve to die like that. Nobody in this world deserves to die like that. I'm in shock.' Police arriving at the scene were horrified and needed grief counselors to cope, according to reports. Gutierrez came to the U.S. from Guatemala 14 years ago, she said, and hoped to one day earn enough money to introduce her to his family back home. She will meet them when she travels this week to Central America for his funeral. 'Our plan was to marry,' she said. 'His dream was to save his money, buy a truck and start his own business. 'For me, he was everything. A good man, a good husband.' Horrifying: The mulch inside the truck is shown covered in blood after the man's body was pulled through the wood chipper . She recalled receiving the horrifying news from one of Guiterrez's coworkers. 'He just kept saying, 'You have to be strong,' said the grieving woman. 'He could hardly talk.' Gamez-Pereira described him as 'always happy, hard-working, humble, with a great sense of humor.' She said many questions are still left unanswered. Both she and his family want to know how and why this could possibly have happened. 'It was a hot day,' Gamez-Pereira said. 'Maybe he was exhausted. Maybe he fell. We don't know.' Tree Techs owner Rafael Toledo told the paper he is 'sorry and saddened by what happened,' but declined to comment further, citing the investigation. Police are unclear on many details surrounding the shocking late afternoon incident, but footage from the scene showed the mulch covered in blood after the man’s body passed through the massive wood chipper. He was working to clear brush when he died, officials said. Cheryl Appel, who lives nearby, told the paper she saw a landscape worker in an orange vest running down the street shouting. ‘He was obviously extremely distraught, yelling and flailing his arms around, screaming’ to another co-worker at a nearby fence and ‘collapsed against it, his knees buckled. Mortifying: A police officer stands at the mouth of the killing machine . ‘He looked like he was in shock,’ she added. ‘It was obvious something happened.’ Emergency responders were on the scene shortly after. Police do believe it was an accident, but were still shocked by the grisly death. I've been in police work 20 years. I've never seen anything like this,’ Davie Police Captain Dale Engle told the Sun-Sentinel. ‘It was a gruesome scene.’ Authorities are not commenting on the investigation other than to acknowledge the wood chipper is in their possession. | Hernan Guiterrez, 42, died when his body was pulled completely through the giant wood chipper .
Girlfriend Karen Gamez-Pereira said the pair planned to get married and he was going to start his own roofing business .
He wanted to take her to his native Guatemala to meet his family - she will instead meet them this week when she attends his funeral .
The scene was so disturbing that grief counselors had to meet with the responding officers . |
172,021 | 6aa7b6106b11ea4cfaa97dc54f1a9a55605db2cb | Los Angeles and London (CNN) -- Can the roof of your house help you breathe easier by reducing the amount of harmful pollutants from urban air? "Yes," claims John Renowden, vice president of technology at Boral Roofing, a U.S. company that has introduced a line of roof tiles that they say have pollution-busting properties. Based near Los Angeles, the most ozone-polluted city in the U.S., according to 2012 rankings by the American Lung Association, the company says its "Smog-Eating Tiles" improve air quality by neutralizing smog-forming nitrogen oxides released by most vehicles (read more about smog in our fact box). The tiles are coated with titanium dioxide, a photocalyst that can oxidize harmful air pollutants emitted in the burning of fossil fuels. When exposed to natural light, the titanium dioxide breaks down nitrogen oxides in the air and turns them into harmless calcium nitrate. "Calcium nitrate ... washes off your roof with normal precipitation and is a regular garden fertilizer," said Renowden. He notes that the tiles typically add between $600-$1000 to the price of tiling an average roof. He adds that over a one-year period, the tiles on a 2,000 sq/ft house can oxidize nitrogen oxides "equivalent to driving 10,000 miles a year in your car." Read more: Ancient 'air-conditioning' cools building sustainably . Boral Roofing claims to be the first construction company in the U.S. to introduce titanium dioxide coatings to roofing products. The technology originates in Japan and has been adopted in Europe by a number of industries. In the last few years, it has been used in the production of several products, including eco-friendly cement, architectural panels and paints. The de-polluting properties of titanium dioxide, a compound commonly used as a white pigment in paints and plastics, were tested in a European Commission-backed project in 2005. "Tests in urban settings determined that some pollutants, such as nitrogen oxides, which are a major pollutant contained in exhaust gases, could be reduced by 20-70%," according to the European Commission's Environmental Technologies Action Plan. Read more: The eco artists turning trash into treasure . Air pollution is one of today's biggest urban problems. It poses a serious threat to the health of city dwellers, according to experts. Air pollution -- outdoor and indoor -- is estimated to cause more than two million deaths a year worldwide, according to Maria Neira, director of health and environment at the World Health Organization. "It is definitely one of the biggest health challenges we are confronted with today," she said. Exposure to urban air pollutants can increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases and cancer as well as trigger asthma attacks, she added. A recent study on the UK's air quality by MIT pollution experts Steve Yim and Steven Barrett found that traffic pollution is killing more people than road accidents per year, causing 13,000 premature deaths on an annual basis. A brief uptick in traffic-related air pollution may also be enough to increase a person's short-term risk of stroke, another report found in February this year. Four in 10 Americans live in counties with dangerous levels of either ozone or particle pollution, according to the American Lung Association. The organization's recent State of the Air 2012 report found that California is home to many of the country's most polluted cities, with Los Angeles continuing to top the list of ozone-polluted cities thanks to its heavy road traffic and trade ports. Renowden says that more sustainable solutions are needed in the fight against urban air pollution. "We have to move past our oil dependence but it won't happen overnight," he said. Read more: Hacking the city for a greener future . Janice Nolen, national policy adviser at the American Lung Association, says that rather than dealing with the harmful effects of air pollution, the focus should be on tackling the problem at source. "What we have found historically in any kind of pollution is that the best way to tackle the problem is to clean up the sources," she said, "rather than trying cleaning it up afterwards when it's in the air." "If you can keep those raw ingredients that make up ozone from coming out of the tailpipes and the smokestacks, then you don't have to worry so much about cleaning it up later on," adds Nolen. Isha Sesay, CNN contributed to this story. | "Smog-eating tiles" can oxidize the smog-forming nitrogen oxides released in the air .
The technology is used in a number of industries for the creation of eco-friendly products .
Experts warn air pollution poses a serious threat to the health of city dwellers .
Los Angeles has the highest levels of ozone pollution in the United States . |
147,941 | 4b4eee17643bf8ff091dd2e8047303445bf80914 | Los Angeles (CNN) -- Science fiction author Ray Bradbury, whose imagination yielded classic books such as "Fahrenheit 451," "The Martian Chronicles" and "Something Wicked This Way Comes," has died at 91, his publisher said Wednesday. Bradbury was a writer of perils, possibilities and wonder . Bradbury "died peacefully, last night, in Los Angeles, after a lengthy illness," HarperCollins said in a written statement. Bradbury's books and 600 short stories predicted a variety of things, including the emergence of ATMs and live broadcasts of fugitive car chases. Sci-fi legend Ray Bradbury on God, 'monsters and angels' "In a career spanning more than 70 years, Ray Bradbury has inspired generations of readers to dream, think and create," the statement said. "A prolific author of hundreds of short stories and close to 50 books, as well as numerous poems, essays, operas, plays, teleplays and screenplays, Bradbury was one of the most celebrated writers of our time." Overheard on CNN.com: Ray Bradbury was 'very down to Earth,' or maybe Mars . Bradbury wrote the screenplay for John Huston's classic film adaptation of "Moby Dick." He adapted 65 of his stories for television's "The Ray Bradbury Theater" and won an Emmy for his teleplay of "The Halloween Tree." Top five Bradbury films . "In my later years I have looked in the mirror each day and found a happy person staring back." he wrote in a book of essays published in 2005. "Occasionally I wonder why I can be so happy. The answer is that every day of my life I've worked only for myself and for the joy that comes from writing and creating. The image in my mirror is not optimistic, but the result of optimal behavior." Favorite quotes from Bradbury's 'Fahrenheit 451' Bradbury's death brought immediate reaction from his literary and film peers, as well as the White House. "For many Americans, the news of Ray Bradbury's death immediately brought to mind images from his work, imprinted in our minds, often from a young age," President Obama said. "His gift for storytelling reshaped our culture and expanded our world. But Ray also understood that our imaginations could be used as a tool for better understanding, a vehicle for change, and an expression of our most cherished values. There is no doubt that Ray will continue to inspire many more generations with his writing, and our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends." "He was my muse for the better part of my sci-fi career," director Steven Spielberg said. "He lives on through his legion of fans. In the world of science fiction and fantasy and imagination he is immortal." My last conversation with Ray Bradbury . "Ray Bradbury wrote three great novels and 300 great stories," author Stephen King said. "One of the latter was called 'A Sound of Thunder.' The sound I hear today is the thunder of a giant's footsteps fading away. But the novels and stories remain, in all their resonance and strange beauty." Bradbury received the 2000 National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, the 2004 National Medal of Arts and a 2007 Pulitzer Prize Special Citation. Bradbury had lived in Los Angeles since his family moved there from his native Waukegan, Illinois, to look for work during the Great Depression. He is survived by his four daughters, Susan Nixon, Ramona Ostergren, Bettina Karapetian and Alexandra Bradbury, and eight grandchildren. His wife of 57 years, Marguerite, died in 2003. Rainn Wilson, others tweet tributes to Bradbury . The biography released by his publisher quoted a story in which Bradbury recounted meeting a carnival magician, Mr. Electrico, in 1932. Electrico touched the 12-year-old Bradbury with his sword and commanded, "Live forever!" "I decided that was the greatest idea I had ever heard," Bradbury said. "I started writing every day. I never stopped." Sam Weller, Bradbury's biographer and friend, said in a posting on his website Wednesday, "I'll never see you again. I'll never see you again. I'll never see you again. "The problem with death, you once said to me, is that 'it is so damned permanent,' " Weller's statement said. Weller, in one of his books about Bradbury, quoted him as saying he would sometimes open one of his books late at night and cry out thanks to God. "I sit there and cry because I haven't done any of this," he told Weller. "It's a God-given thing, and I'm so grateful, so, so grateful. The best description of my career as a writer is, 'At play in the fields of the Lord.' " He discussed how many of his best friends were no longer around. "My personal telephone book is a book of the dead now," Bradbury told Weller in his book of interviews. "I'm so old. Almost all of my friends have died, and I don't have the guts to take their names out of the book." Did Ray Bradbury have an influence on your life? Share with us on CNN iReport! CNN's Carolyn Sung contributed to this report. | "I started writing every day. I never stopped," Bradbury once said .
The writer "died peacefully ... in Los Angeles, after a lengthy illness," his publisher says .
Bradbury "inspired generations of readers to dream, think and create," HarperCollins says .
His stories predicted ATMs and live car chase broadcasts . |
57,447 | a2c8310926ac097156c15bbd772fdd84eb4911b4 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 18:23 EST, 30 September 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 10:50 EST, 2 October 2013 . The battle to stop foreign invaders killing off native British wildlife is costing £1.7billion a year. Among the biggest culprits are Japanese knotweed, American grey squirrels, Russian zebra mussels and Eastern European ‘killer’ shrimp. BBC research revealed that the total bill for defending British animals and plants from the ‘alien’ invasion costs £1.7billion a year – or more than £25 for every person in the country. Only humans do more harm to native biodiversity than foreign species. 'Foreign killers': American grey squirrels were listed among other alien invaders as dangers to British wildlife . Tackling Japanese knotweed costs the economy £165million a year, according to figures from the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. The most costly problem is the European rabbit, with damage to crops and measures to control it adding up to more than £260million a year, the Defra data showed. BBC1’s Countryfile said other major culprits include mink, which were imported from the US by fur farms but escaped to wreak havoc, and American signal crayfish. The programme highlighted how zebra mussels have so infested Rutland Water in Rutland that Anglian Water has had to spend £500,000 to install special filters to sift them out because they spread so quickly, clogging pipes. Cambridge University zoologist Dr David Aldridge explained how the mussels – which have distinctive striped shells – arrived in the UK about ten years ago on the hulls of ships from Eastern Europe. Infected: The Olympic Park site was covered in Japanese knotweed. Organisers spent £70m removing it . Costly: BBC1's Countryfile claimed Brits would have to pay £25 each to remove killers like Russian zebra mussels . They reproduce so rapidly they kill off local mussels by growing all over them, starving them of food. Rutland Water now contains millions of zebra mussels, he said. ‘A single individual can produce a million offspring in a year. ‘They are probably the dominant organism now in this water. What we are finding in the UK is where zebra mussels are established, native mussels are declining very rapidly.’ Chris Featherstone, from Anglian Water, said: ‘Every year we have to take tons of these shells away to keep the water flowing.’ American mink is another creature noted in the programme, which warns we need £1.7bn to save the wild . Countryfile reporter Tom Heap said: ‘From the grey squirrel, American crayfish, mink driving water voles from our river banks and the small but scarily-named “killer shrimp”, a whole host of animals and plants are playing their part in colonising our countryside. ‘Luckily, of the 2,000 non-native species living among us, only a few hundred are actually harmful.’ The water vole – often associated with the character Ratty in Wind In The Willows – is Britain’s fastest declining native mammal. In 1990, there were seven million living on the riverbanks. By 1998, there were fewer than one million and numbers are continuing to decline. As well as falling prey to escaped mink, they have seen changes in farming destroy their habitats. Trevor Reynolds, invasive species adviser at the Environment Agency, said: ‘Our priority has to be tackling non-native species, because they lack natural pests and enemies.’ Japanese knotweed, brought to Britain by Victorian botanists as an ornamental pond plant, is one of the fastest spreading invaders. During building of the Olympic Park in East London it cost an estimated £70million to remove the plant and dispose of it. Red squirrels are only just starting to increase their numbers after nearly 140 years of losing out to grey squirrels introduced from North America. Plantlife is also at risk, with warnings that the native bluebell could disappear within a decade. It is being squeezed out by a cross between the British bluebell and a Spanish cousin introduced more than 300 years ago. Some invaders even pose a health risk. The sap of giant hogweed can cause painful blisters and the caterpillar of the oak processionary moth can cause a fatal allergic reaction. | It would cost every Brit £25 each to save our wildlife from foreign 'killers'
BBC1's Countryfile revealed American mink and crayfish are also culprits .
The government spent £70m removing knotweed from the Olympic Park . |
238,530 | c0bfc8ba721876d260d32dc8c4d27c96120638b7 | Authorities expect to complete the autopsy Friday for a Colorado woman who went missing in Texas last month after traveling the world with her husband, police said. There will be no further updates in the case until the autopsy is complete, Garden Ridge, Texas, Police Chief Donna O'Conner said. Leanne Hecht Bearden had recently returned to the United States after 22 months crisscrossing the globe with her husband, Josh Bearden. Police said Thursday her life may have ended in the woods near a home in central Texas. The couple, who got married at the Denver Zoo and joked on their blog that they epitomized the adage "opposites attract," had traveled with just carry-on backpacks to some of the world's most rugged locations. The couple's blog indicates they left in January 2012, traveling across the United States and visiting Canada before venturing on to Oceania, Asia, Africa, Europe and South America. The trip included stops in New Zealand, China, Singapore, Myanmar, Cambodia, India, Rwanda, Egypt, Serbia, Ukraine, Lithuania and Bolivia. Bearden documented trips to a Mount Everest base camp, the Dead Sea, an Indian wedding, Tanzania's Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa's Victoria Falls and Serengeti, South America's Patagonia and Bolivia's salt flats. Authorities announced Thursday that a body believed to be the 33-year-old woman had been found in Garden Ridge, where she was last seen January 17 heading out from her in-laws' house for what was supposed to be a one-hour walk. Family members later confirmed her death, saying on a Facebook page dedicated to finding her that they were "understandably devastated." "Leanne was a lovely and remarkable young woman," the family said, "and we will all miss her greatly." Just a few hours earlier Thursday, a post on the same page echoed the optimism and energy that had marked the family's efforts to find Bearden. "DON'T LET UP!" they urged all those who had joined them in looking for Bearden. "We are still hopeful." That hope was dashed after a phone call from a man to police around 12:15 p.m. (1:15 p.m. ET) Thursday, saying there was a body "in a wooded area near his home in Garden Ridge," O'Conner said. O'Conner said responding officers "located what we believe to be the body of Leanne Bearden." "We will reserve any information regarding the cause of death until an autopsy has been performed," the chief said. "Our thoughts are with the Bearden and Hecht families, and (we) ask that you respect them in their time of grief." The Beardens returned from their world travels in December, spending a short time in Georgia before heading to visit his family in Garden Ridge, just northeast of San Antonio, according to her brother Michael Hecht. Family: Strong possibility Bearden meant to leave . Coming back to her native country wasn't necessarily easy, her family suggested. "The pressure of transitioning from her two-year trip back into what we consider 'normal' life seems to have left her very anxious and stressed," they said. After she went missing, relatives and friends worked intently to spread the word as the search for her -- on the ground and from the air, using helicopters -- expanded. One such search in January covered 23 acres. Garden Ridge police noted their concern about Bearden that month, while adding "there is no indication at this time that (her disappearance) is criminal in nature." Her family, meanwhile, acknowledged on Facebook that "there is evidence that Leanne may have voluntarily left the area." Whether or not that was true, the family pleaded for the public's help finding her given that -- for all her travels -- the 5-foot-3-inch Bearden "is extremely vulnerable" and "her mental and physical status is uncertain." "We fear for her greatly," her family said. | Police chief says there will be no updates until after Friday's autopsy .
Leanne Hecht Bearden had recently returned to the U.S. after a 22-month global trek .
Bearden's family is "understandably devastated" and "we will all miss her greatly"
She was last seen January 17, leaving her in-laws' house in Texas for a walk . |
223,352 | ad2713572cabea3efa10cb49b3de3446a756cc17 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 02:01 EST, 6 December 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 03:16 EST, 6 December 2013 . Dead bottlenose dolphins are continuing to wash up along beaches along Florida’s east coast. Since Sunday, officials say the Georgia Aquarium’s Conservation Field Station has picked up three dead dolphins along Flagler County beaches. Capt. Tammy Marris, of Volusia Beach Safety and Ocean Rescue says a 3-foot dolphin was found in Wilbur-by-the-Sea Monday. Scroll down for videos . Sad sight: This was one of three dolphins that turned up dead along Flagler County beaches since last weekend . Silent killer: Scientists with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration say morbillivirus is likely causing the deaths . Last month, at least seven dolphins were . recovered on Volusia County beaches and another four on beaches in . nearby Flagler County. Scientists with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration say morbillivirus is likely causing the deaths, The Daytona Beach News-Journal reported. A team of researchers is investigating. The measles-like virus affects the marine mammals' lungs and brain, causing skin infections, pneumonia and brain disorders, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The dolphins can infect one another when they come up for air and breathe together. The average number of strandings between New York and Florida from July 1 to December 1 is 113. This year 936 strandings have been reported. Since January, more than 1,200 dolphins have stranded in that area. Experts say it is impossible to vaccinate the animals for morbillivirus, according to ClickOrlando, and they expect to find more dead dolphins in the coming months. No end in sight: This year 936 strandings have been reported, and scientists expect to continue finding dead dolphins . But there was also some good news this week for marine creatures that have found themselves stranded on Florida shores. Pods of 35 pilot whales slowly swam Thursday into deeper water off Florida’s southwest coast, raising optimism that the strandings of whales on Everglades National Park beaches may soon end on a positive note. NOAA fisheries official Blair Mase said this afternoon that the three whale pods were nine miles north of their original location and continuing to move offshore. They were in 18 feet of water about six miles offshore, still several miles from the 900-to-1,000 foot depths they usually call home, Mase said. ‘They are in deeper water, and they are getting closer to their normal home range,’ Mase said. ‘Even though we are hopeful, this situation could go either way. There is a chance they could come back inshore again.’ Silver lining: A U.S. Coast Guard inflatable boat guides a group of stranded short-finned pilot whales to deeper waters in Everglades National Park, Florida December 5 . Majestic creatures: A pod of pilot whales that were stranded in the Florida Everglades swam out into deeper waters while rescuers tried to chase the rest out to sea by banging on pipes and revving their boat engines . Heartbreaking: Dead pilot whales lie on the beach in the Florida Everglades . Mase said the total of dead whales has reached 11, with five still unaccounted for. She said wildlife workers were surprised Thursday morning to discover that most of the live whales had moved out of the shallows on their own sometime during the night. By early evening Thursday, most crews had left the scene, but a Coast Guard cutter was to remain stationed with the whales overnight Thursday. About 15 vessels carrying about 35 personnel were involved in the effort to track the whales, which were first spotted Tuesday in extremely shallow water in the Everglades park south of Naples. Wildlife workers had planned to try using noises such as banging on pipes and revving boat engines to herd the whales out to the open ocean. But that turned out to be unnecessary, and the workers simply used positioning of the boats to prevent any of the whales from turning away from the open sea, Mase said. Teams from NOAA, the National Park Service, the Coast Guard and state wildlife agencies were working to prevent any more whales from stranding. The animals had not been cooperating Wednesday, when most were in about 3 feet of water. Casualties: The total of dead whales has reached 11, among them 4 that had to be euthanized . Circle of life: Vultures and dead pilot whales that beached themselves and became stranded in Everglades National Park, are seen on the southwestern Florida coast December 5 . The short-finned pilot whale is known for its close-knit social groups: If one whale gets stuck or stays behind, the others are likely to stay or even beach themselves as well. Escort: The whales were in 18 feet of water about six miles offshore, with some 15 vessels tracking their progress . Pilots are among the smaller of the whale species, with adult males reaching up to 18 feet in length and females 12 feet. The species is also the one most commonly involved in mass strandings. According to NOAA, there was a stranding of 23 pilot whales at Ft. Pierce, Florida, in September 2012 and one involving another 23 whales at Cudjoe Key, in May 2011. The last one in the Everglades area was in 1995. Federal officials were notified about the whales Tuesday around 4pm. Because of the remote location, workers were unable to access the site before dark. They arrived Wednesday morning and discovered 45 whales still alive. ‘There were some that were very compromised and in very poor condition,’ Mase said. Federal officials euthanized four whales Wednesday, but no more were put down Thursday. Mase confirmed Thursday that sharks had begun to feed on the dead whales. Necropsies were completed Thursday, and scientists will look for disease or other signs to indicate how whales got stuck in the shallow Everglades waters. ‘It may take weeks and weeks and even months to get those results back,’ she said. | In November, at least seven dolphins were recovered on Volusia County beaches and another four on beaches in Flagler County .
NOAA experts say the measles-like morbillivirus is likely causing the deaths .
This year 936 dolphin strandings have been reported between July 1 and December 1 .
In Everglades National Park, pods of 35 stranded pilot whales slowly swam Thursday into deeper water .
Total of dead whales reached 11, with five still unaccounted for . |
222,989 | acacb8b42e5303739fb2c586af328a24df76ff55 | (CNN) -- Here in Boston, people will grieve for many days. How could anyone be so evil as to plant a bomb that would murder an 8-year-old child, rip the legs off parents and devastate a celebration of athletics that is pure joy. These were murders that wrench the soul. But if these cowards thought they would scare this city -- that their acts of terror would actually terrorize -- they picked the wrong place. Boston, as President Barack Obama so rightly said Monday night, is a "tough and resilient town" -- always has been and always will be. It will heal but will not forget; it will care for the wounded but will make the murderers pay their price. Boston has a reputation as an intellectual town, and it is that. Two of the world's best universities are here, along with a dozen other fine colleges and universities. It is electric with creativity and innovation. As they showed again after the bombing, its doctors and hospitals are world-class. Citizens can find a great concert or art gallery anytime they want. No wonder that in contrast to most other aging cities, young and old are streaming here to live these days. But that doesn't mean Boston is soft. Just the opposite. Boston has plenty of fight, too -- just ask any team that has banged up against the Patriots, Red Sox, Celtics or Bruins. Since 2004, don't forget, Boston has won championships in all four major sports. That doesn't happen to softies. Rothkopf: In the face of terror, keep calm . The graveyards here are full of glorious men and women -- brave souls who carved the first communities out of wilderness, stood up first against British oppression, stood up first against the abomination of slavery, stood up early for the rights of women, and in recent years has stood up early and often for the rights of gays and lesbians. Harvard has lots of Nobel laureates, but it is also proud that it has the largest number of Medal of Honor winners of any university, save the military academies. Traditionally, the marathon itself occurs on Patriots' Day in Massachusetts -- a moment when people take time off to remember Lexington and Concord. One can watch re-enactments of the British marching to rid themselves of rebels -- and men without uniform but deadeyes with a rifle picking them off from the woods. If you want to remember the grit of the early men and women of Massachusetts, pull down your copies of David McCullough's histories. Reread "1776" and its fabulous stories of Bunker Hill and lifting the British siege of Boston (when men pulled cannons all the way across Massachusetts to chase away the most powerful navy in the world). Or reread "John Adams," the book that was originally intended to be about Adams and Jefferson -- until McCullough fell out of love with Jefferson and into love with Abigail. One of my favorite episodes in the Adams book occurs when her husband insists on taking their teenage son, John Quincy, on a perilous voyage to England. Abigail writes a farewell letter to John Quincy that captures the New England spirit: . "It is not in the still calm of life, or the repose of a pacific station, that great characters are formed. The habits of a vigorous mind are formed in contending with difficulties. Great necessities call out great virtues ... qualities which would otherwise lay dormant wake into life and form the character of the hero and the statesman." In most of the country, that spirit is called toughness; in New England, it is often called hardiness. And with the passage of time, it has not disappeared. LZ: It can happen anywhere . Monday's bombings cap a 50-year period for Boston that has been marked by violence, tragedy and grief. It started with the assassination of a favorite son, John F. Kennedy, in 1963, and continued with the assassination of his brother Robert, later the plane crash of young John Jr. and the loss of another brother, Ted. So much sadness across these years. Yet there has been more. Massachusetts lost 1,537 in Vietnam, 12 in the first Gulf War, and 118 so far in Iraq and Afghanistan. On 9/11, two of those planes flew from Boston's Logan International Airport. Violence has also stalked the streets of Boston, but as they have done so often, people here stood up against the tide. In the late 1980s, gang violence and murder were rampant; by 1990, Boston felt like Chicago today as it had the highest number of killings in its history, many among the young. Opinion: Our 'greatest day' turns to horror . But even if it is occasionally knocked down, as it was by these bombings, the real Boston story is how it always gets up again. That spree in the '80s and early '90s of kids killing kids, even at funerals, so shocked the city that leaders of all stripes -- political, religious, business, nonprofit -- initiated a comprehensive, community-based strategy to reach at-risk youth early, and over five years, the rate of youth homicides dropped 80%. There was an upward spike in the mid 2000s, but the numbers are now again falling steadily. War, violence, tragedy -- Boston won't surrender to darker forces. Monday's bombings shattered any feeling of safety. People here looked with horror into the abyss. But count on it: Boston is still alive with the spirit of Abigail Adams. Great necessities will call out great virtues, and qualities that may seem dormant will wake into life, forming the character of new heroes and new leaders. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of David Gergen. | David Gergen: Bostonians will grieve, but terrorists picked the wrong city to try to frighten .
He says the city is an intellectual, cultural bastion but it's not soft .
He says Abigail Adams' letter to son heading into peril captured tough New England spirit .
Gergen: Difficulties "call out great virtues," she said in letter . |
78,816 | df53d3ae466c16319fc3c5d1d43dc29903a64943 | By . Paul Bentley, Paul Harris and Keith Gladdis . PUBLISHED: . 18:22 EST, 30 May 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 01:27 EST, 31 May 2013 . Google and Microsoft last night faced demands to act over the shocking ease with which child killer Mark Bridger used the internet to fuel his perversion. Bridger, sentenced yesterday to spend the rest of his life in jail for murdering five-year-old April Jones, had a sickening library of violent child pornography. It follows the revelation that Stuart Hazell, the man convicted earlier this month of killing 12-year-old Tia Sharp, regularly downloaded child abuse images on his mobile phone. Locked up: April Jones's killer Mark Bridger is pictured in drag. He had a sickening library of child pornography . Jailed: Sexual predator and murderer Mark Bridger is taken from court to start his whole life sentence in jail . Children’s charities and online protection experts are now calling for search sites to crack down on the way paedophiles can feed their fantasies with simple online searches. The verdict on 47-year-old Bridger, a former slaughterman, was delivered as: . Bridger used the search engines Google and Bing, which is owned by Microsoft, to look up terms including ‘naked five-year-old girls’, ‘nudism five-year-olds’ and ‘pictures of naked virgin teens’. Mother and daughter: Coral Jones cuddles smiling April tightly. She described how the family will never recover from her death . He also used Facebook to access photographs of local girls, including April and her half-sisters aged 13 and 16, and went online to save images of murdered Soham schoolgirls Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman. Child safety charities, including the NSPCC, demanded that the internet giants introduce immediate controls to stop paedophiles gaining access to child pornography. John Carr of the Children’s Charities’ Coalition on Internet Safety said: ‘If these images were not available on the internet then men like Hazell and Bridger might not go on to kill. ‘We cannot blame the internet for these people but it has opened pathways that lead them on to violent pornography and paedophile material.’ After five weeks of horrifying evidence at Mold Crown Court in North Wales, the jury of nine women and three men unanimously found Bridger guilty of abduction, murder and perverting the course of justice. Mr Justice Griffith Williams told him: ‘You are a pathological and glib liar. There is no doubt in my mind that you are a paedophile who has for some time harboured sexual and morbid fantasies about young girls, storing on your laptop not only images of pre-pubescent and pubescent girls, but foul pornography of the gross sexual abuse of young children.’ Bridger stared ahead blankly and nodded as the judge imposed a whole life order, which condemns him to die behind bars. Only 47 other criminals in the UK have been handed such a sentence. Fantasist: Mark Bridger, who is 'pathological liar and cold-blooded killer', will never leave jail and waiting people yelled 'b******' as he was taken in cuffs to the man . Brave: April Jones's mother Coral spoke outside court, beside her husband Paul, and said they were relieved that Mark Bridger was found guilty . Bridger abducted April on the evening . of October 1 last year as she played on her pink bicycle with her best . friend close to their homes on the Bryn-y-Gog estate in Machynlleth, . Mid-Wales. He lured April . into his Land Rover Discovery and drove her to Mount Pleasant Cottage, . the remote rented home where he had been living alone since his . girlfriend dumped him. There, police believe, Bridger murdered her, dismembering her body before disposing of it in different locations. Despite . a huge effort by police and volunteers, April has never been found. Tiny fragments of a child’s skull, however, were discovered in Bridger’s . wood burning stove, alongside a boning knife. On . his Acer laptop, detectives found an incriminating library of vile . images. He had found the violent child porn by searching on Google for . simple terms, including: ‘France: British schoolgirl raped and . murdered.’ Trial: Mark Bridger faces life in prison for the murder of April Jones, . after the jury accepted compelling evidence he had abducted and murdered . her in a 'sexually motivated' attack . Happier times: Paul and Coral Jones, hold April and their other children on their wedding day, before their 'beautiful daughter' was taken from them . Bridger saved . photographs of various child murder victims, including ten-year-olds . Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman, murdered by paedophile school caretaker . Ian Huntley in 2002. He had also downloaded numerous sadistic cartoons representing ‘extremely young girls’ suffering sexual abuse. Facebook . photographs of local young girls were also found on his laptop, with . files specifically dedicated to April’s half-sisters aged 13 and 16. Pictures . of April, who had cerebral palsy and was born with a hole in her . heart, were accessed just eight days before she was abducted. Bridger . admitted killing April, but insisted he accidentally ran her over . before ‘blacking out’ and forgetting what he did with her body. Brave: Paul and Coral Jones, the parents of April Jones arrive at Mold Crown Court, where they have been every day during their daughter's killer's murder trial . Tragic: April Jones was abducted while she played on her bike (pictured), probably lured by Bridger into his car with the promise of a sleepover with his daughter . Cold-blooded: Killer Mark Bridger had pictures of himself holding this gun on his Facebook profile . Grim discovery: Mark Bridger's burnt knife recovered from his property in Ceinws, where April may have died . But . his despicable web of lies was destroyed by April’s best friend. The . seven-year-old girl became the central witness in the case, bravely . describing seeing April climb into Bridger’s car, ‘happy and smiling’. Yesterday, as the jury dismissed his pathetic cover story, experts . spoke about how his obsession with online porn, and the ease with which . he could access the vile images, contributed to his ‘sexually . motivated’ attack on April. Jon Brown of the NSPCC said: ‘Internet companies make millions and millions of pounds every year. ‘Google . need to do more in terms of blocking searches for child abuse imagery . but they also need to alert the authorities if someone is blatantly . doing these searches. Arrival: The media watch as Mark Bridger arrives in a prison before he is found guilty of killing the five-year-old . ‘We are very concerned that the ease with which they can get child abuse images to fuel their fantasies.’ A . report by the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre has . identified a link between viewing child porn online and ‘contact’ sexual . offences against children. Scott . Rubin, director of communications and public affairs at Google, said: . ‘Google has a zero-tolerance policy on child sexual abuse content. When . we discover child abuse imagery or are made aware of it, we respond . quickly to remove and report it to the appropriate law enforcement . authorities.’ A spokesman . for Microsoft added: ‘When we are made aware of any illegal content we . remove it from our services, including our search engine, and report it . to the police.’ Upsetting: April Jones was shown on CCTV inside her local leisure centre after going swimming. The time shows almost 5.30pm and within two hours she had disappeared . Video: April is then seen heading through the doors after swimming with her sister and best friend - the last image that exists of the missing schoolgirl . Evil: The jury saw images of Bridger's Land Rover Discovery heading away from town - April would already have been in the passenger seat after being abducted near her home . Images: The jury were show Mark Bridger leaving his house and walking his dog on the day after he took April Jones . Lounge: This is Mark Bridger's living room, where forensics found blood and bone fragments, a room which was shown to jurors . Monday, October 1 . 17.20 After spending morning watching child porn, Mark Bridger attends parents evening at Machynlleth Junior School. One teacher thinks he may have had a 'couple of drinks' 17:55 - 19:10 numerous sightings of Bridger on the Bryn-y-Gog estate in his car, including by a 10-year-old girl who was asked by Bridger if she wanted to go on a 'sleepover' at his house. Around 19:00 April Jones is playing on her bike with friends near her home on the Bryn-Y-Gog estate when she goes missing. According to a child witness, she is taken away in a van or a four-wheel drive vehicle and there are no apparent signs of a struggle or an accident. 19:19 Camera sees what is believed to be Bridger's vehicle at the war memorial in Machynlleth and then past a nearby garage with April probably inside. 22:40 Dyfed-Powys Police issue a statement saying they are "increasingly concerned" for April. Tuesday, October 2 . 08.42 Bridger spotted carrying a rolled up plastic binbag on a riverbank or in Ceinws. 10:42 Police helicopter footage shows him walking a dog. Footage also focuses on his house. There is smoke coming from his chimney. The jury was told that fragments from a 'juvenile skull' were found in his wood burner. 14.10 Bridger joins a group of 20 people who are searching for April telling them he had been searching all morning near his home for her. 15.00 Police search his house, finding it had been cleaned from 'top to bottom' and the heating cranked up . 15:30 Bridger is arrested walking on the road between Ceinws and Machynlleth in connection with April's abduction and is later charged with her murder. | Mark Bridger had a sickening library of violent child pornography .
Follows revelation that Tia .
Sharp's killer downloaded child abuse images .
Calls for search sites to crack down on how paedophiles can feed fantasies .
April's parents sat silently during verdicts - Bridger nodded and stared up .
Murderer given rare 'whole-life' prison term, meaning he will never leave jail .
Judge calls him 'paedophile' with 'sexual and morbid fantasies about girls'
April’s parents begged him to reveal where he dumped her body, adding they would forever live with guilt for allowing her out to play that night; .
The heartbroken family asked for the return of 17 fragments of skull from Bridger’s home, the only traces of April that have been found, so they can lay her remains to rest; .
The Mail reveals Bridger’s history of lies and deceit, taking on multiple identities, cross-dressing and using brute force during a series of violent relationships with vulnerable young women; .
The mother of one of Bridger’s six children tells how he punched her in the stomach when she was a pregnant 17-year-old to try to force a miscarriage; .
The financial cost of his lies is exposed, with his refusal to confess costing the public up to £9million to cover exhaustive police searches for April, as well as lawyers’ fees and court costs. |
264,483 | e28e42b7faafe36d5c601cf261690c73f8bdf93d | Hayley was 'too young' for bowel cancer to be considered . Hayley . Hovey was 23 weeks' pregnant with her first baby when she suddenly woke . in the middle of the night with a sharp, shooting pain in her side. She . visited her GP's out-of-hours service but was reassured to hear her . baby's heartbeat and be told all was well. The pain was probably . 'ligament strain' caused by the weight of the growing baby. 'I was . ecstatic to be having a baby - I've always wanted to be a mum,' says . Hayley, 34. 'All my scans showed my baby was healthy, so I didn't think . anything more about that pain.' She now knows it was the first sign . there was a grave threat to her baby's life, and her own. Four weeks . later her daughter, Autumn, was born prematurely and later died. Then . Hayley was found to have bowel cancer. Doctors now think Autumn's . death was linked to her mother's cancer, with a blood clot breaking away . from the tumour, damaging Hayley's placenta and cutting off the food . supply to her unborn baby. However, it took four months after . Autumn's death for Hayley to be diagnosed. The problem was her age - she . was 'too young' for bowel cancer to be considered. Hayley, who lives . in Fareham, Hants, with her husband Paul, a 35-year-old IT consultant, . says: 'Looking back, I had textbook symptoms - exhaustion, intermittent . stomach pains, increasingly bad diarrhoea, blood in my stools and . bleeding. The disease is Britain's second-biggest cancer killer, . claiming 16,000 lives a year. The number of under-50s diagnosed has been . gradually rising - to around 2,100 a year. But a recent survey by . the charity Bowel Cancer UK of patients under 50 found that 42 per cent . of the women had visited their GP at least five times before being . referred for tests. Indeed, Hayley, a supply planner for an IT firm, . was examined five times by different doctors and midwives, who all . missed her symptoms, despite a golf ball-sized lump appearing on her . stomach after her pregnancy. By the time she was diagnosed, Hayley had . stage three to four cancer, meaning the tumour had broken through her . bowel wall. She had to undergo a seven-hour operation to remove the 6cm growth, followed by six months of chemo and radiotherapy. But . her experience is not uncommon, says Deborah Alsina, chief executive of . Bowel Cancer UK: 'We hear from many younger people who express . frustration at not getting a diagnosis and support.' ‘Bowel cancer is often associated with older patients over 50 - but younger people can, and do, regularly get it, as the tragic story of Stephen Sutton recently highlighted,' adds Kevin Monahan, consultant gastroenterologist at West Middlesex University Hospital, London. Stephen Sutton, 19, raised more than £3million during his three-year battle against multiple tumours . Stephen Sutton, . the 19-year-old fundraiser who died last week from the disease, told the . Mail earlier this month of his anger that he was not diagnosed for six . months after his symptoms started. This was despite his family history . of Lynch syndrome, a genetic condition that raises the risk of bowel . cancer. 'If it had been caught earlier, it could have led to a . better prognosis,' he said. Hayley, too, eventually discovered she had . Lynch syndrome. Bowel cancer is very treatable if detected early - 93 . per cent of patients who are found to have a small tumour on the bowel . wall live for five years or more. Yet only 9 per cent of cases are . diagnosed at this stage - most are diagnosed at stage three. So, the . overall five-year survival rate for bowel-cancer patients is just 54 per . cent. Because patients and many doctors assume that young people . won't get bowel cancer, they are particularly likely to have . advanced-stage tumours at the time of diagnosis. Bleeding or blood in faeces . A change in bowel habits lasting more than three weeks . Exhaustion . Unexplained weight loss . Abdominal pain . See bowelcanceruk.org.uk; beatingbowelcancer.org (phone 08450 719 301); and familyhistory bowelcancer.wordpress.com/ . Cancer charities are . campaigning to improve diagnosis for all ages - they want new . diagnostic guidelines for GPs and earlier screening procedures. Sean . Duffy, NHS England's national clinical director for cancer, says: 'The . UK lags behind much of Europe in terms of survival from bowel cancer. We . need to change this, and this includes identifying it better in . patients under 50.' National GP guidelines state only patients aged . 60 and over should be automatically referred to hospital for tests if . they have one symptom. Patients aged 40 to 60 must exhibit two or more . symptoms. For under 40s, there is often an assumption the symptoms . must be something else, says Mark Flannagan, chief executive of the . charity Beating Bowel Cancer. 'We've had patients with red-flag symptoms . - such as blood in their stools - being told "you've got IBS" or . "you're too young to have cancer" by their GPs.' Four weeks after . Hayley's initial scare, she was unable to feel her baby moving. Tests . revealed Autumn had stopped growing, and she had to be delivered by . emergency caesarean. After her birth, in July 2011, she was taken to a . specialist neo-natal unit at Southampton General Hospital but died in . hospital a few weeks later. Two weeks afterwards, Hayley experienced . more shooting pains. With her pregnancy bump gone, there was also a . noticeable lump on the side of her waist. Her midwife said it was . probably an infection, and Hayley was given antibiotics. But her . health deteriorated rapidly and she had to take six weeks off work with . exhaustion, which her GP put down to depression. Within three months . of Autumn's death, Hayley was suffering from nausea and abdominal pain. Unable to get a GP's appointment, she went to A&E but was told the . lump was possibly an infection related to her caesarean. Doctors . performed a cervical smear test (which was subsequently lost) and sent . her home with paracetamol. Stephen Sutton with his mother Jane whilst Prime Minister David Cameron visited him . 'I got the impression they didn't take me very seriously,' she recalls. Soon . after, she was vomiting up to ten times a day, feeling dizzy and weak, . passing blood and experiencing chronic diarrhoea. At an emergency GP . appointment, she was examined by a different doctor who immediately . referred her to hospital; after several days of tests, she was diagnosed . with cancer. Four days before Christmas, Hayley underwent surgery. 'We thought we'd be enjoying our first Christmas as a family, but . instead I was in hospital, grieving for the loss of our little girl and . terrified about the future,' she recalls. 'My treatment might have been . less of an ordeal if my cancer had been picked up sooner. It makes me . quite angry to think if I'd been 60, it would have been picked up more . quickly.' But even obvious symptoms are often missed by doctors, . says Mr Flannagan. 'I am not blaming GPs, but we need to not be shy of . pointing out where things are going wrong. The default position should . be for a GP to rule out cancer, just to be safe.' 'It can also be problematic if patients don’t have obvious symptoms such as bleeding', says Dr Monahan. ‘They may instead have vaguer symptoms such as tiredness, unexplained weight loss or abdominal pain, which could be attributed to being symptoms of other conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome or Crohn’s disease.' Public awareness . is also an issue. A survey in March by health insurer AXA PPP found . nearly half of men couldn't name one symptom of bowel cancer. Indeed, . Martin Vickers, 49, had never heard of it before his diagnosis in 2008. 'I was totally shocked,' says the father of four, who lives in . Burton-on-Trent with wife Andrea, 48. 'I didn't know bowel cancer . existed. It was hugely traumatic.' Martin visited his GP five times . in nine months with extreme tiredness and loose stools. His symptoms . were attributed to stress - his mother had recently died and he has a . high-pressure job as head of capital investment for Cambridge and South . Staffordshire Water - and then IBS. Joining friends and family to complete a Guinness Book of Records challenge creating hearts with hands . 'But I knew something wasn't . right,' says Martin. 'It was instinctive.' He was finally diagnosed with . stage three bowel cancer in November 2008, after his GP did an internal . examination and felt a lump. Martin underwent three months of . chemotherapy and radiotherapy, followed by surgery, another six months . of chemotherapy and a second operation. He now has to use a colostomy . bag but has been in remission for five years. Currently, screening is . only available to people aged 60-plus. They are sent home tests, which . involve sending a stool sample to a lab. But the Department of Health is . now looking at a new procedure, bowel scope screening, which involves a . partial colonoscopy -examining only the lower bowel. A major UK . trial of 55 to 64 year olds showed that people screened this way were 43 . per cent less likely to die from bowel cancer, and 33 per cent less . likely to develop it. This is because the procedure is usually successful at detecting small growths known as polyps, which can become cancerous. The . screening - which would be offered to everyone aged 55 and over - is . now being piloted. Campaigners hope it will be made available nationally . by 2016. ‘This is a really important development and should make a big difference to bowel cancer outcomes,’ says Dr Monahan, who runs the Family History of Bowel Cancer clinic at West Middlesex University Hospital, specialising in hereditary components of the disease. It won't, however, help younger patients such as Hayley. Before her chemotherapy, she and Paul had nine embryos frozen via IVF. However she is worried she may pass on Lynch syndrome, so the couple are . considering what to do. But she says: 'I am still here, I have a life ahead of me - and I hope my story will help others to be diagnosed in time.' | Stephen Sutton died after a four-year battle with bowel cancer .
19-year-old raised millions for the Teenage Cancer Trust before his death .
Number of under-50s diagnosed is gradually rising to around 2,100 a year . |
190,769 | 83053f758a8cf00a1989db7cd83abb4d0e7ff0e7 | Washington (CNN) -- The Supreme Court unanimously ruled against the National Football League over its exclusive contract with an apparel maker in one of the most important sports law cases in decades. In a 9-0 decision Monday, the justices said the league can be considered 32 separate teams, not a single business. The court allowed a lawsuit against the league to continue, saying the licensing of intellectual property "constitutes concerted action" that is not part of the broad antitrust protection enjoyed by professional baseball. Such protection allows individual teams to act as one business when making a host of financial decisions, including marketing their logos and trademarks. The outcome could affect other sports franchises with similar limited antitrust exemption, as well as businesses that have cooperative networks, such as credit card companies. The National Basketball Association, the National Hockey League, the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NASCAR, professional tennis and Major League Soccer backed the NFL in its appeal, seeking similarly broad antitrust protection. "Decisions by NFL teams to license their separately owned trademarks collectively and to only one vendor are decisions that 'deprive the marketplace of independent centers of decisionmaking,' " Justice John Paul Stevens wrote for the court, "and therefore of actual or potential competition." The case involves a lawsuit from American Needle Inc., an Illinois-based sports apparel maker that was one of several companies with long-standing contracts with NFL Properties, a separate corporate entity that develops, licenses and markets the intellectual property of each team. But in 2001, the league entered into an exclusive 10-year contract with Reebok to manufacture hats, jackets and other clothing featuring team logos. American Needle is no longer able to negotiate with individual teams. Some fans have complained that the prices on such gear have skyrocketed in the absence of competition from other apparel makers. A Baltimore Ravens "replica jersey" with the name of star quarterback Joe Flacco, for example, now is listed for $108 on the team's Web site. American Needle complained that the deal violated a 120-year-old antitrust law designed to limit cartels and monopolies, and to foster fair competition in the marketplace. The key section of the law bans business rivals from conspiring to blunt competition or hurt consumers, by either increasing prices or limiting choices. "The court vindicated the position of American Needle," said Glen Nager, attorney for the company. The ruling reinstates the firm's lawsuit against the NFL. Nager said the result of the Reebok deal was that the league's 32 teams "put all of their intellectual property under the control of a single licensee, Reebok, and prices [went] up by 150 percent." "The case has to go forward, and American Needle is entitled to its day in court," Nager added. He said he was not surprised by the unanimous decision. The ruling overturned of a 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision that the league was one, not 32. Baseball is the only sports league that enjoys complete antitrust protection. The NFL has long sought similar status. The dilemma is acute because of the unique nature of pro sports, including American football and its 32 teams. Those teams, including top apparel sellers the Dallas Cowboys and the Pittsburgh Steelers, compete against each other on the field and off -- for victories, for players and for their own brands. But the league maintains unilateral rules and structure that all teams must follow to ensure parity and an equal playing field. The NFL negotiates national television contracts and deals with the players' union through collective bargaining. The league says trademark licensing primarily benefits the on-field competition. "A sports league produces a single entertainment product," the league told the high court, "a structured series of athletic competitions leading to a championship, that no member club could produce on its own." But American Needle countered that the structure does not erase the fact that "the teams are separately owned and controlled profit-making enterprises. They are actual and potential competitors in numerous areas, including the licensing of intellectual properties." The Obama administration supported neither side, saying the league can be considered a single business in some areas but not others. Stevens noted that the ruling will not completely hamstring the league. "Football teams that need to cooperate are not trapped by antitrust law," he wrote. "The fact that NFL teams share an interest in making the entire league successful and profitable, and that they must cooperate in the production and scheduling of games provides a perfectly sensible justification for making a host of collective decisions. But the conduct at issue in this case is still concerted activity under the Sherman Act." The ruling throws the dispute back to the lower federal courts to sort out the parameters of a possibly reworked licensing agreement that presumably would favor American Needle. Retail sales of NFL-licensed merchandise in the United States and Canada was about $3.2 billion in 2007, according to the trade journal Sports Licensing Report. The combined total for football, baseball, hockey, basketball and soccer is more than $9 billion annually. Among those backing the league are credit card companies, fearing that a ruling against the NFL could set a precedent that would hurt the federation of banks that constitutes the credit card network for companies like Visa and MasterCard. Workers' rights groups feared that a win for the sports league could have boosted its power in other off-field activities, perhaps giving owners immunity from lawsuits in areas like television rights, video-game licenses, franchise relocation and possibly athlete salaries. Unions also expressed concern that the current legal fight could lead to labor unrest and possible player strikes, since the leagues might be protected legally from accusations owners conspired to keep down salaries. Athletes say salaries, free agency rights and pensions could also have been affected by a ruling against them. The NFL Players Association backed American Needle in the high court appeal. The case is American Needle v. National Football League (08-661). CNN Radio's Bob Costantini contributed to this report. | American Needle says NFL deal with Reebok violates antitrust law .
Court says licensing of intellectual property is not part of antitrust protection .
Manufacturer's lawsuit against league can continue .
Outcome of case could affect other sports franchises . |
107,833 | 1701e0170de8a142ece144ec01d63a8e2469b4c7 | By . Alex Ward . A desperate jobseeker has promised an iPad to anyone who can find him work, resorting to attention grabbing stunts to land a job. Dan Conway, 27, was made redundant just days before the birth of his second child in June last year and after sending hundreds of CVs applications with little success, decided to go the extra mile to grab employers’ attention. Calling himself the Extreme Job Hunter, Mr Conway set up a website promising new outlandish stunts each week until he finds paid work. Scroll down for video . Extreme job hunter: Dan Conway (left) has resorted to outlandish stunts to find a job after being made redundant a year ago including filming his daughter Lucy (right), 2, with signs saying 'please give my daddy a job' During the arts graduate’s year-long job hunt so far, he has posted a video of his two-year-old daughter Lucy asking to ‘please get my daddy a job,’ delivered CVs hidden in party piñatas, posted himself for sale on ebay and sent donuts with offers to work for free. Now he is appealing to the public to help him land a job by launching a competition to win an iPad Mini. He has promised to buy a brand new tablet with his first month of wages for anyone who can find him work. The attention-grabbing attempts have . attracted plenty of attention, including a radio interview, several . interviews and work placements, as well as boosted his failing . confidence after his tough job hunt living on benefits. Search stunts: After sending out hundreds of job applications with little response, Mr Conway set up a website promising new stunts each week until he finds paid work . He said: ‘My wife was just days away from giving birth to our second child Jack so it was a massive blow. ‘We were devastated but I was confident that I would find a job again quickly. ‘Anyone who’s been unemployed will tell you how awful it is. I have a beautiful family that I just want to provide for. ‘I know publicity stunts won’t get me a job, but may get the attention of the right person so I can prove I have the skills.’ Tough times: Mr Conway was made redundant just days before his wife Natalie (top right) gave birth to their second child Jack (bottom left) in June last year and has been surviving on benefits . Helping daddy: Daughter Lucy featured in a YouTube video appeal, Mr Conway's first attempt to catch employers' attention . Mr . Conway graduated with a degree from Leeds College of Art and Design . studying creative advertising but began working as a youth support . worker four years ago. He was a senior project manager at a school for . children with additional needs when he was made redundant in June last . year. After responding to hundreds of job adverts and sending out CVs, Mr Conway found he barely received one response. Mr . Conway said: ‘It was soul destroying. I was desperate to find work but . couldn’t even get a foot in the door. I knew I had to try and tackle it . head on or lose my confidence all together.’ Sell yourself: Mr Conway even posted an advert on ebay selling himself for £25,000 in a bid to get a job until the site took down the ad, which breached their guidelines . Sweet bribery: Mr Conway landed a work placement after mailing a box of donuts with an offer to work for free. He hopes this will lead to his dream job . When he set up the website, his first appeal was a video made with his daughter in which the toddler helps her father chalk messages onto the floor explaining why he would make a good employee. He said: ‘I know not everyone likes this approach, in fact I think you love it or hate it. But the field in which I’ve studied and trained is creative so I figured I had nothing to lose by trying to demonstrate how creative I can be.’ After several other stunts he decided to start the competition. The jobseeker said: ‘People hear about jobs but I needed an incentive for them to take the time to tell me about them or tell their employers about me. Everyone wants an iPad mini so I started the competition to win one and had a brilliant response.’ ‘I would love to take someone into the Apple store and buy him or her a tablet for helping me get a job,’ he says. 'Money talks': He even sent out Monopoly money with covering letters and hid CVs in party pinatas in his hunt for a job . His distinctive idea of hiding his CV in piñatas, inspired by his daughter’s birthday party, led to an appeal on radio but no job offer. He said: ‘Everyone loved the piñata and I was looking for a way to make my CV stand out. I was writing and sending so many covering letters that I was bored of reading them myself so I imaged how bored the employers must be.’ Dan has been offered a work placement after mailing a box of donuts with an offer to work for free. He hopes it will help him land his dream job. Other stunts include sending Monopoly money with his covering letters and a covering letter jokingly warning employers they need to employ more red heads by law and offering his services. He said: ‘This is one of my favourites because it jokingly suggests they will get fined if they don’t have the right number of ginger employees and urging them to take me on quickly to avoid prosecution.’ He’s currently dreaming up more stunts and plans to continue posting stunts until he gains employment. He said: ‘I have to stay confident that I will eventually get noticed by the right person. In the meantime the support from all my followers helps keep me positive and give me fresh ideas.’ Employ more red heads: Mr Conway also sent this cover letter, warning potential employers that they must by law employ more workers with red hair, offering his services . | Dan Conway was made redundant in June last year and survives on benefits .
He set up website Extreme Job Hunter promising stunts until he gets a job .
Stunts include hiding CVs in pinatas, advertising himself on ebay and sending donuts with offers for free work . |
273,649 | ee7b98ce2e326e83089c5d8be391e994e440fca8 | (CNN) -- Authorities have officially dropped all charges against an American who tried to snatch back his children from his ex-wife in Japan, the Fukuoka prosecutor's office said Thursday. Charges had been technically "on hold" since Christopher Savoie was released from jail in October, though legal experts had said the move essentially meant the charges had already been dropped. The prosecutor's office said at the time that Savoie was released after he promised not to take his children back to the United States "in this manner." It was not clear whether he had a chance to see his children after his release. Savoie, 38, a Tennessee native and naturalized Japanese citizen, allegedly abducted his children -- 8-year-old Isaac and 6-year-old Rebecca -- as his ex-wife walked them to school on September 28 in Yanagawa. With the children, Savoie headed for the nearest U.S. consulate in Fukuoka to try to obtain passports for them. Screaming at guards to let him in the compound, Savoie was steps from the front gate but still standing on Japanese soil when he was arrested. Savoie and his first wife, Noriko Savoie, were married for 14 years before a bitter divorce in January. The couple had lived in Japan, but moved to the United States before the divorce. Noriko Savoie received custody of the children and agreed to remain in the United States. Christopher Savoie had visitation rights. On the day that the children were to start school in August, Savoie learned that his ex-wife had fled with them to Japan. Savoie later filed for and received full custody of the children, and police in Franklin, Tennessee, issued an arrest warrant for his ex-wife. But Japan is not a party to the 1980 Hague convention on international child abduction -- though the government has expressed interest in reconsidering -- so the warrant was not recognized by Tokyo. Japanese law follows a tradition of sole-custody divorces. When a couple splits, one parent typically makes a complete and lifelong break from the children. Complicating the matter is the fact that the couple is still considered married in Japan, because they never divorced there, police said. The children also hold Japanese passports, Japanese authorities have said. Foreign parents have had little luck in regaining custody, the U.S. State Department said. Savoie's current wife, Amy, said in October that her family has been ripped apart. "Isaac and Rebecca had a very, very happy situation here in Tennessee," she said. "They have people who love them here." She said she did not think the parties could work out an agreeable arrangement regarding the children. "There are two parents who love these children and one of them has just been -- just cast aside." CNN's Kyung Lah contributed to this report. | Christopher Savoie was jailed in Japan after trying to get kids back from mother .
Noriko Savoie was granted custody of kids, later fled to Japan .
Christopher Savoie was steps away from U.S. consulate when he was arrested .
Authorities released Christopher Savoie after he said he would not take kids "in this manner" |
123,461 | 2b974e2427178a94d2a4994dda559224ff996ff9 | The average house in the UK earned more than the average worker in the last year, as house prices rose at their fastest rate in almost a decade. A study found that house prices increased by 12 per cent – or £29,339 - over the last twelve months, while the average worker took home earnings of £27,271. The research, compiled by the Centre for Economics and Business Research for the Post Office, shows that more than 60 per cent of the working population earned less than the average home. A study found that house prices increased by 12 per cent – or £29,339 - over the last twelve months, while the average worker took home earnings of £27,271. File picture . A typical home’s earnings now outpace those of a number of our most-relied upon professions, and significantly exceed the starting salaries of a junior hospital doctor (£22,636), a graduate nurse (£21,388), a teacher (£22,023), a police officer (£23,317) and a soldier (£17,945). Commenting on the findings, John Willcock, head of mortgages at Post Office said: 'Property prices have soared over the last year, following a long period of recovery – and are set to increase further over the next five years. 'Whilst this is good news for those that already own their home, our study highlights the struggle that buyers and movers looking to climb the property ladder face, especially in getting on that all-important first rung.” Growth: A typical home’s earnings now outpace those of a number of a graduate nurse - £21,388 . Homeowners in the East, South East and London saw their earnings outclassed the most – with properties in each region earning £34,002, £35,188, and £80,462 respectively. Houses in the nation’s capital earned £80,462 – almost twice as much as the average London salary (£41,095). They now earn more than the average earnings of a fully qualified doctor in the UK (£70,648). It also emerged that the rate at which houses earn is climbing. The average home earned more than £20,000 more this year than it did in the previous one (£8,954 compared to £29,339) as the market boomed. In contrast, while house prices grew 12 per cent over the last 12 months, the average worker saw their pay increase by just 0.6 per cent. Mr Willcock adds: 'Forecasts indicate that this year’s strong house price growth will most likely be followed by a slight contraction of 0.8 per cent in 2015, as the market responds to the Mortgage Market Review (MMR) guidance. 'One of the impacts of MMR is a lengthening in transaction times and more rigorous criteria, meaning the overall process of buying and moving is taking longer. 'However, as demand for properties remains high those on the hunt for first homes and dream properties will continue to face substantial costs. Another factor contributing to this contraction is the decline in demand from overseas buyers which has affected house prices in the capital.' Property inflation: The ONS chart from its most recent report shows how house prices have climbed . | The average UK house price increased by £29,339 over the last year – more than the average UK wage (£27,271)
More than three in five workers earned less than the average UK property appreciated in value over the last 12 months .
The average UK house earned £20,000 more than in the previous year – while workers’ earnings increased by just £169 .
London homes earned £80,000 in the last year – nearly twice as much as the average salary in the capital . |
243,502 | c72b3a3cac9c204d5d496bbfc9fd6b771ef5f0c6 | Come the end of Sunday, one lucky golfer will go home at least $10 million richer. That same man may also pocket another cool $1.44 million, depending on whether he manages to win the PGA Tour's season-ending Tour Championship. Some $8 million will be on offer to the elite 30-man field at Atlanta's East Lake course, and a handful of those players will be hoping to grab the bumper jackpot bonus for being top of the FedEx Cup playoffs standings. Brandt Snedeker did so last year, taking home $12.5 million from the final four tournaments after winning the decider. The U.S. circuit can potentially make instant millionaires at 34 of its sanctioned events -- 35 if you count the $990,000 on offer to the winner of the Tampa Bay Championship. But it was not always so and prize purses have come a long way in the past two decades -- especially since the advent of a certain Tiger Woods.. "The tour when I started in 1956 was for about $650,000 total purse for 40 tournaments," recalls Billy Casper, one of professional golf's pioneers -- a man who was something of an unsung hero compared to the well-marketed "big three" of Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player. "It started growing in '58 and we grew along with it," Casper told CNN. "It took Palmer about 12 years to become a millionaire. I was the second millionaire and it took me 14 years." Now 82, Casper can look back on a 45-year playing career in which he won three major titles and 51 PGA Tour events -- putting him seventh on the U.S circuit's all-time list. But it says something about the development of the game that the most money he ever won came in his final victory on the seniors' Champions Tour -- a $60,000 first prize. "I played about 45 years and I won $7 million. If I'd played 45 years from, say, 1960 on I'd have made a couple of hundred million." In order to start out as a professional, Casper had to go into considerable debt, borrowing $15,000. "I had no money to start with, my wife had no money. I had a three-year contract and at the end of three years I paid back the people who'd advanced me the money and gave them a large percentage (reportedly 30%) of what I won," he says. "I had a small sum in the bank, a little house and I owned a '57 Cadillac and I was on my way." Known as "Buffalo Bill" due to a strict diet of organic meat and vegetables that slimmed him down to a more athletic figure, Casper set about his golf career with the discipline he had learned in a four-year stint in the U.S. navy. "It was really a different time of training and building one's life. There wasn't a lot of money available. You had to stay with it," he says. "I approached golf tournaments the same way -- I was never worried about majors, I just wanted to play the best I could each week. I wasn't like Nicklaus -- he geared himself to winning majors and he played for the majors. I wanted to play every week. I always played for my family." A devoted family man and devout Mormon, Casper says he still has a "close relationship" with the military. In the 1960s he visited U.S. troops ("hitting golf balls off aircraft carriers") at bases in Vietnam, Thailand and Japan. Even now, he is giving back to the armed forces through his charity work -- in the past three years Casper's golf facility operations company has helped raise more than $1.1 million for the Wounded Warrior veterans project via the "World's Largest Golf Outing" event. Last month's staging, held at 110 of the 150 courses run by Billy Casper Golf -- the largest domestic operator in the U.S. -- brought in $725,000. Casper says the abolition of conscription in the early 1970s has led to some of the United States' present social problems. "There was a time when it was mandatory, they had a draft. Young people spent a certain amount of time in the military and it gave them a wonderful base to launch their lives by," he says. "They got their feet on the ground, they understood what life was all about and they could make a decision as to what they wanted to do -- stay in the military or get out and follow something else. "When that was abolished, that's when we started having problems with our young people. I think it was a wonderful program and it helped young people to build their talents, skills and abilities to go into society and be productive and carry on for their lives and education. I think we missed a lot when that was stopped." While golfers these days earn massive amounts of money, they also give a lot back -- this year the PGA Tour's total charitable donations have reached almost $2 billion, dating back to 1938. Everyone from world No. 1 Woods to your average tour pro seems to have a cause celebre, and Casper believes they are a breed apart from their fellow athletes in other sports. "Most of them do a lot of charity work. I had my own tournament for 22 years and we've given over $3 million to kids," he says. "Everybody seems to have something they're involved in -- they're raising funds and they're grateful for the life they're leading and they're willing to share what they earn. "Other sports are nowhere near as close to this. I think it's a top class of people who play the game. They have the chance to be involved with all the big companies and are very interested in helping people." Despite the recent years of economic hardship, Casper says his company has actually grown -- taking over struggling public courses in 24 states and turning them around. "Everybody is having problems right now and they're looking for ways to keep afloat," he says. "There are a lot of courses that have gone to grass, they've shut down." Casper says the secret to his business success is down to traditional values. "We run our courses as if we are dealing with family -- all of our clients and clientele we deal with like they're family. When you deal with people that are family you deal differently than if you're in business," he says. "We develop this wonderful relationship that if you come to one of our courses then you feel wanted and you want to come back." Casper, who has achieved so much for so long, hopes that he can continue "to be of service to my fellow beings through the game of golf." "Recently I gave a lecture and a gentleman came to me and asked how I'd like to be remembered. I'd never been asked that before, so I thought for a few seconds, and I said I want to be remembered that I had a great love for my fellow man." | This weekend the winner of the PGA Tour's lucrative playoffs will be crowned .
A $10 million jackpot is available following 2013's fourth end-of-season tournament .
PGA Tour makes multiple millionaires each season -- a far cry from its formative years .
It took Billy Casper almost a decade and a half to become golf's second millionaire . |
270,860 | ead69e07b30a66ac76c92023dc4574d1ce08281c | An Indiana mother high on drugs kidnapped her daughter during a supervised visit, placed the child on her lap, and led police on a high-speed chase with the woman's car reaching 75 miles per hour at times during the 7-mile chase. Aubrey Coy, 34, of Syracuse, took her five-year-old daughter during the visit in Warsaw, Indiana. After she kidnapped her daughter, police there were able to locate her in St. Joseph's County, Michigan, just across the border from Indiana using signals from her mobile phone. Kosciusko County police then notified the Michigan State Police. Once the police in Michigan spotted her driving along a road in White Pigeon, a state trooper pulled her over. Scroll down for video . As a Michigan state trooper approaches Aubrey Coy, the mother, still grabbing her five-year-old daughter, tries to flee . Coy doesn't get far from the trooper as he places her under arrest . Even after other state troopers arrived at the scene, Coy refused to give up control of her daughter . In a shocking video taken from the dashcam on the police cruiser, the officer is seen trying to open the driver's side door. All of a sudden, Coy pulls away and the chase begins. 'He asked her to step out of the car and at that point she told him that "He wasn't going to take her child,"' Detective Sergeant Todd Petersen of the Michigan State Police, White Pigeon Detachment, told WNDU. 'She put it in gear and took off, so the trooper initiated the pursuit.' During the chase, Coy is seen in the video weaving through traffic. The video also shows Coy fumbling in her front seat with her daughter on her lap. A mug shot of Aubrey Coy, who has been charged with seven felonies and one misdemeanor as she led police on a car chase while high with her five-year-old daughter on her lap . In an attempt to stop her, the police laid out spike strips along the road to punctures her tires. That works as her tired are blown out and the car ends at the side of the road. She then exits the car -- with the small child holding on to her mother -- as an officer approaches her vehicle. The officer and the mother struggle briefly, and the woman then gently falls to the ground. Later on in the video, as other officers are on the scene, she is still struggling with the officers and holding her child. 'She came to a stop...then attempted to jump out of the car with the child in her arms and run,' Petersen said. "She kind of fell into the roadway and that's when the trooper that was in pursuit of her grabbed on to her. It was a prolonged 2 to 3 minutes to get the child away from her because she had her arms and was squeezing so tightly -- they didn't want to hurt the child.' He also backed the trooper's decision to chase Coy. 'At that point you have another jurisdiction saying she kidnapped her daughter and now is in another state,' Petersen said. 'How do you let that child go with that person and she takes her somewhere and does something to her? I think it was necessary to pursue.' Police found cocaine in the car. A photo of Aubrey Coy and her daughter from Ms. Coy's Facebook page taken during happier times . Coy was charged with seven felonies and one misdemeanor Michigan, including child abuse, resisting arrest, possession of cocaine, obstruction of justice, fleeing and eluding police and operating under the influence of drugs. Though the visit with her daughter was supervised by Coy's mother, police say she is not in trouble, as she didn't know what her daughter was going to do. The mother apparently let Coy out of her sight for a couple of minutes, which is when she took off with her daughter. She was arraigned on Monday afternoon. 'I wanted to go to Oaklawn because I feel like I’m dreaming or something,' Coy told the judge, 'I have no idea how I got here.' Coy has been in trouble with the law before. Records show convictions in Indiana for methamphetamine and cocaine possession, drunk driving, resisting arrest and speeding, according to WSBT. Last week, she was just pulled over in Indiana for allegedly not wearing a seat belt. | Aubrey Coy, 34, of Indiana kidnapped her five-year-old daughter during a supervised visit with the girl's grandmother .
Coy drove from Indiana into Michigan, where police caught her driving and the pursuit began .
Michigan police laid out spike strips to finally stop the chase after seven miles .
After Coy exited the vehicle, she refused to give up control of her daughter, who was clinging to her mother .
Coy charged with seven felonies and a misdemeanor, including child abuse, possession of cocaine and eluding police .
Coy has a long rap sheet with convictions for drunk driving, methamphetamine possession and resisting arrest . |
1,332 | 03cad1b45c50c299dd306f57282fbd8b5e1d4e39 | By . Eleanor Harding . PUBLISHED: . 10:07 EST, 8 September 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 19:34 EST, 8 September 2013 . Defence: Lord Saatchi defended his brother Charles today over allegations he grabbed his wife Nigella by the throat . Lord Saatchi has defended his brother Charles over allegations he grabbed his wife Nigella Lawson by the throat, claiming he was the victim of ‘persecution mania’. Maurice Saatchi said it was impossible for anyone outside of any marriage to know what was really going on – and that would continue to be the case ‘unless CCTV is installed in people’s bedrooms’. His comments come two months after Nigella and Charles were granted a decree nisi in the High Court – the first legal step to ending their ten-year marriage. Pictures emerged in June showing Mr Saatchi apparently grabbing her throat during a heated exchange at a Mayfair restaurant. Since then, the 70-year-old millionaire art collector has accused his wife of ‘illegal acts’, while his daughter Phoebe, 18, said she had felt ‘abandoned’ by her stepmother. Lord Saatchi, the 67-year-old founder of advertising agency Saatchi and Saatchi, was on The Andrew Marr Show yesterday to discuss his new book Brutal Simplicity of Thought when the host decided to quiz him on his brother’s marriage. Marr said: ‘I can’t end without asking you about your brother, Charles, who has been through a very torrid time of it, and ask how he is and how you feel he has been treated by the media and public opinion?’ Lord Saatchi appeared to suggest that ‘persecution mania’ had played a role. He said: ‘There are many aspects of human life, let’s consider them – persecution mania, love, sex, marriage, work. 'These are all areas which produce great difficulties in people, and family and marriage is certainly one of the most complex areas.’ Interview: Lord Saatchi was on The Andrew Marr Show to discuss his new book 'Brutal Simplicity of Thought' when the host asked him about his brother Charles . Referring to his late wife, Josephine . Hart, he added: ‘As Iris Murdoch said to Josephine Hart on many . occasions, marriage is a private place. What Iris Murdoch was saying or . suggesting was that it’s impossible for anybody, even the best friends . or relatives of the people involved cannot know what really happens . between a man and a woman. ‘When . somebody installs CCTV in people’s bedrooms, which may be the next step . of our surveillance state, then we’ll have the answer, but until then . we don’t know.’ Celebrity chef Miss Lawson, 53, applied to divorce Mr Saatchi on the grounds of unreasonable behaviour. The end of a marriage: The photo of Charles Saatchi with his hands round the throat of his wife Nigella Lawson led to their divorce . He . dismissed the throat-grabbing incident as ‘a playful tiff’ but then . accepted a police caution for assault. She has denied any illegal . activity. Yesterday, . viewers took to Twitter to criticise Marr’s line of questioning on a . show which aims to deal with politics and current affairs. One . wrote: ‘Andrew Marr crosses the line. Invasive cheek asking Maurice . Saatchi about his brother’s private relationship with wife!’ Mystery: Lord Saatchi said no one, not even close friends or relatives, know what really goes on in a relationship when asked about his brother's split from celebrity chef Nigella . | Maurice Saatchi was on The Andrew Marr Show to discuss his new book .
At the end of the interview, Marr asked him how his brother Charles was .
Lord Saatchi said relatives don't even know what goes on in a relationship .
Marr has been criticised for 'allowing Saatchi to apologise for his brother' |
238,262 | c06488e0e5c3eae89c637629c1302308581bf74e | James Rodriguez won the battle of the No 10s, but it is Neymar's Brazil who live to fight another World Cup day. In the most bruising of all the encounters at these finals – 54 fouls is a record – it was hardly the setting for the tournament poster boys to shine. But while Neymar showed flashes, Rodriguez burned brightly. VIDEO Scroll down to watch Neymar arrive at hospital as his World Cup dream is crushed . In the shadow: Neymar failed to outperform James Rodriguez but Brazil were 2-1 winners over Colombia . Bugged: Not even a giant insect could distract Rodriguez as he converted from the penalty spot . Pain game: Neymar, tended to by Rodriguez, left the field on a stretcher with a back injury . He created the opening for Colombia to win their late penalty and duly kept his cool to convert from the spot, despite the presence of a giant bug on his shoulder. Rodriguez, though, had bugged Brazil throughout. He recovered from each attempt to maim his frame – Fernandinho the chief culprit – and was the heartbeat of his side’s forward forays. Brazil were already two goals to the good - Thiago Silva and David Luiz on target - by the time Rodriguez’s sixth goal of the finals halved the deficit with 11 minutes remaining and, try as he might, a deserved equaliser eluded the Monaco star. Neymar, who had assisted Silva’s early opener, did eventually fall foul amid the rough stuff and, after Juan Zuniga’s knee landed in the small of his back, he left the field in tears on a stretcher. It later emerged that Neymar had broken a vertebrae in his back. His World Cup is over, as is Rodriguez’s. Both of them will be sorely missed. Here, Sportsmail runs you through the most anticipated head-to-head of the finals so far... Danger: Rodriguez's heat map demonstrates the pockets he was populating . Hot: Neymar's involvement was not as concentrated but he still got on the ball in good areas . Head-to-head: Neymar and Rodriguez's stats compared . On the front foot: How did they compare in the final third? Clock watch: Neymar versus James Rodriguez . 3min – The pair have to wait three minutes for an involvement of note and on players find team-mates with ease – nerve-settlers, if they needed them that is. 4min – Neymar sizes a free-kick 25 yards out but, despite beating the Colombia wall, his effort also evades the target and drifts harmlessly wide. He is human, after all. 7min – GOAL: Brazil 1 Colombia 0 – Neymar wins the corner and takes the corner from which skipper Thiago Silva bundles home from close range. That’s his first assist of the finals, although to be fair he’s scored most of Brazil’s goals. Lucky charm: Neymar receives a kiss from the player escort before the game . Flying: Neymar enjoyed a bright start to the game but faded as the first half wore on . 12min – Neymar is at the heart of everything and, after skipping clear of a red shirt on halfway, he attempts to spring the front-running Maicon clear but the pass is intercepted, just. 14min – Rodriguez has seen precious little of the ball but when he finally does he’ll probably be wishing he hadn’t, Brazil’s Fernandinho upending him after a hefty challenge on the halfway-line. A little reducer from the Manchester City enforcer. Marked man: Rodriguez feels the force of Fernandinho's challenge again . 20min – Neymar delivers another pair of teasing flag-kicks but this time Colombia are alert to the danger and clear. 21min – Rodriguez escapes down the left and steals a yard for the cross but his final ball is poor and is hacked clear at the near post. 22min – Rodriguez shows his class with a mazy run and neat pass but Juan Cuadrado fails to match his comrade’s enterprise and his contribution comes to nothing. The No.10 is just starting to work his way into the game. Eventually: Rodriguez escapes his minders but it comes to nothing . 31min – It has been break-neck stuff and, amid the frenzy, Neymar’s radar has malfunctioned as he is guilty of a couple of wayward passes. We can forgive him that, though. 37min – Rodriguez takes an age to measure a free-kick 20 yards out but his curler is blocked by two yellow shirts who broke suspiciously early from the wall. 42min – Colombia are still to fashion a real chance and Rodriguez is again let down by his team-mates having drove forward and found Ibarbo on the left, who miscontrolled. 44min – Neymar wriggles free of his minder on the fringe of the penalty area and is duly impeded, winning a free-kick which he curls wide of Ospina’s goal. Replays show it wasn’t as close as the Brazilian’s pained expression had suggested. Same again? Rodriguez had shaped to repeat his wonder goal from the last 16 but instead teed up a team-mate . HALF-TIME: Brazil 1 Colombia 0 . 47min – Neymar showboats inside the Colombia half with an outrageous piece of skill to evade his man but then beats himself with a step-over too many and possession is lost. It’s been that sort of night for him. 50min – With shades of Johan Cruyff, Rodriguez buys himself two yards of space 25 yards from goal but rather than shoot elects to play in Armero only for his through-ball to deflect into the grateful arms of Julio Cesar. 55mins – Neymar continues to be careless with his distribution and another pass goes astray. 63min – It’s Neymar’s turn to feel the force of some heavy treatment as Cuadrado sends his crashing to the turf on the left-wing. Neymar dusts himself off to deliver a lofted free-kick to the far post but Ospina claims. The delivery had too much height on, if anything. 67min – Rodriguez sees yellow for a sliding challenge which fells Hulk and the Colombian makes a point – quite rightly – of reminding the referee of the five fouls committed on himself which went unpunished. Fall guy: Rodriguez's foul on Hulk led to Brazil's second goal . 68min – GOAL: Brazil 2 Colombia 0 – And from the resulting free-kick David Luiz steps up to dispatch an absolute stunner into the top corner, all but booking the hosts’ place in the last four. Rodriguez and Co contest the award of the free-kick but it matters not. 73min – Neymar wants in on the act but the measurements of his carefully-designed curler are slightly out and the ball drifts wide with Ospina scrambling. 77min – Neymar kills dead a ball dropping from the sky just inside the area but within a split-second Mario Yepes is on him and snuffs out the danger. 78min – Rodriguez is the architect as his slick through-ball frees Bacca and the substitute is upended by the on-rushing Julio Cesar, who escapes a red card but concedes a penalty. 79min – GOAL: Brazil 2 Colombia 1 – And it is Rodriguez who takes responsibility and nonchalantly rolls the ball into the bottom corner for his sixth of the tournament. Spot on: Rodriguez rolls home his sixth of the tournament . 84min – Brazil are clinging on and, with Neymar missing, it’s Rodriguez taking centre stage as his side chase what had seemed an unlikely equaliser. 86min – Neymar is left in a heap after Zuniga’s knee thunders into his back and that’s enough to end his evening, the forward leaving the action in tears and on a stretcher. Crying shame: Neymar is in tears as he is stretchered from the action . 90min – Rodriguez has to be careful otherwise he could be following Neymar down the tunnel, the Colombia man barging Marcelo off the ball at the expense of a free-kick and then arguing his cause a little too forcefully with the referee. 93min – Rodriguez serves up another whipped corner but Zuniga’s header skips wide and Brazil survive. FULL-TIME: Brazil 2 Colombia 1 . | Rodriguez scores sixth goal of tournament from penalty spot but Colombia go down to 2-1 defeat .
Thiago Silva and David Luiz had put Brazil 2-0 in front .
Neymar ruled out of rest of tournament with broken vertebrae . |
202,159 | 91b5d84cf97b976dcef1e30dfbde6ee93a59592d | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 08:17 EST, 21 November 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 11:09 EST, 21 November 2012 . A female wrestler has been arrested at a WWE event over a speeding ticket. WWE diva Kaitlyn was working at Van Andel Arena in Michigan when she was approached by police. The 26-year-old - real name Celeste Bonin was then handcuffed and taken into custody by the Kent County Sheriff. Public arrest: Kaitlyn was attending the event in Van Andel Arena in Michigan when she was approached by authorities. Seen left in her police mugshot and right before a wrestling bout . Sources say there was a warrant out for Kaitlyn's arrest for the old offence and the wrestler and model was released on a $315 bond. In a statement released to TMZ she said: 'During a previous visit . to Michigan, I was cited for a traffic . violation. 'I am fully cooperating with authorities to resolve the . matter.' In the ring: Kaitlyn Divas at a NXT event in April 2012 . Handcuffed: It was believed Kaitlyn was at the arena to film a WWE Smackdown taping . It was believed Kaitlyn was at the arena to film a WWE Smackdown taping. She did not make any mention of the arrest today on her Twitter account. In her most recent WWE storyline, Kaitlyn challenged Eve for her championship title, but was unsuccessful. But an attack by fellow wrestler Aksana before the match may have been a contributing factor. Before joining . WWE, she spent years in competitive fitness and bodybuilding. Search: Sources say there was a warrant out for Kaitlyn's arrest for the old offence and the wrestler and model was released on a $315 bond . | Kaitlyn was attending the event in Van Andel Arena in Michigan when she was taken into custody by the Kent County Sheriff .
The 26-year-old - real name Celeste Bonin - was released on a $315 bond . |
200,470 | 8f8075b6d7d60d0477958bf5ee4fb1f779a9b093 | By . Lee Moran . Last updated at 11:15 AM on 22nd November 2011 . The manager of the Samoan rugby team is having to raid his piggy bank - after he was fined 100 sows by his home village for misbehaving at the recent World Cup. Mathew Vaea was ordered to give leaders in Leauva'a the animals for tarnishing his chiefly title of 'tuala' by drinking regularly and treating the campaign in New Zealand like a holiday. Leauva'a chief Vaifale Iose said Vaea's actions, which he claimed led to the team failing to reach the quarter finals, had brought his position into disrepute. Getting the pork chop: Mathew Vaea (left) has been fined 100 pigs for his conduct at the Rugby World Cup . He told the Samoa Observer newspaper: 'The title of tuala received bad publicity in the media because tuala Mathew failed to perform some of his duties as the manager for the Manu Samoa.' Rather than hand the animals over to the village, Vaea has paid a fine of 2,000 Samoan tala (£535) and made a formal apology to village elders. The revelations of Vaea's conduct came from Samoan captain Mahonri Schwalger. Last month he provided a damning assessment of team officials' behaviour during the tournament, in a report to Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sa'ilele Malielegaoi. He said Vaea 'did not want to be there' and would disappear for days at a time, accusing him of drinking regularly when he was present and treating the campaign like a holiday. Tarnished: Leaders in the Pacific Islands village of Leauva'a had fined the country's rugby coach 100 pigs for his misbehaviour at the World Cup . The monetary value of the fine may be considered staggering in Samoa. But it is dwarfed in comparison to the £25,000 penalty handed to England's Mike Tindall who also behaved inappropriately during the competition. The husband of the Queen's grand-daughter was also dropped from the national team for his role in the England team’s infamous night out in New Zealand on September 11. Smarting over their poor performance in the opening match, the players downed cut-price shots at a ‘dwarf-tossing’ competition while the newly married Tindall drunkenly cavorted with a glamorous former girlfriend. Fined: England player Mike Tindall (left) was fined the sum of £25,000 for his misbehaviour at the Rugby World Cup . That raucous night and the recriminations that followed overshadowed the competition and set the tone for England’s appallingly poor show. Vaea, meanwhile, still does not know whether he will continue as manager of the Samoan team. The country's Rugby Union has advertised for a new team manager, head coach and two assistants since the doomed tournament. But he has not been formally fired. Tuilaepa, who is also chairman of the Samoa Rugby Union (SRU), has also ordered a full audit of World Cup funds, the release of which is scheduled for next month. | Mathew Vaea 'did not want to be there'
Reports he disappeared for days at a time . |
133,037 | 380648f42652fdf2b574f5c0ba3bc170c5b976cf | The main character in Nick Harkaway's new novel, "Tigerman," is a British solider who becomes a self-made superhero. But all Sgt. Lester Ferris really wants to be is "Dad." "Tigerman" is about geopolitics, environmental disaster and the 24-hour news culture. But, at its core, Harkaways says "Tigerman" is a story about fatherhood and the "power of paternal and filial love." It's not your typical father-son story, says Harkaway, a married father of two and the son of legendary spy novelist John le Carré. But, "something about the nature of guns and the similarities between being an NCO (noncommissioned officer) and a parent," combined with revelations in the British press in 2010 about rendition, led Harkaway to start writing. The book deals with darker themes of justice and vengeance, similar to another hero with father issues, "Batman." Despite the comic book overtones and its location on a fictional island scheduled by NATO for demolition, Harkaway says he tried to keep the story grounded in reality. In other words, no laws of physics are broken, he says. "It's the most real, in a way, of the books I've written." After years of dodging enemy fire in Afghanistan and Iraq, the main character Ferris is sent to the fictional island of Mancreu, a "spit of land" in the Arabian Sea, to serve as the last representative of Her Majesty's government. On Mancreu, Ferris meets a nameless, streetwise boy raised on comic books, action movies and video games. His self-taught English is a mish-mash of "leetspeak" -- the language of the elite -- riddled with pop-culture references and Internet slang. Most importantly, the boy may be an orphan. Ferris is also a man without a family. When he and the boy bond over their mutual love of comic books and afternoon tea, Ferris starts to imagine life as a father. Ferris' hopes bloom into a plan to adopt the boy (if he's willing) and forge a future together. But the sergeant and the boy face a deadline for their would-be family. After years of ecological abuse, Mancreu has become an environmental disaster. NATO has earmarked the island for destruction. Residents who can afford it are "Leaving" with a capital "L." Others are hanging on and facing eventual evacuation. With an end date looming, anarchy and lawlessness spread across the island, think Casablanca, only with "discharge clouds" of toxic pollution. When a group of gun-toting thugs kills a mutual friend, the boy inspires Ferris to become "Tigerman," part vigilante, part myth and "full of win," as the boy says. The sergeant dons a homemade mask, body armor and utility belt to battle bad guys and hopefully convince the boy to become his son when the dust settles. Comic book fans will recognize elements of the Caped Crusader, with Ferris playfully referring to the boy as "Robin" in the book. Harkaway names "Dark Knight" and "Sandman" among his childhood favorites. But "Tigerman" isn't so much his version of "Batman" as it is his take "on me, or any of us, shoved into being a costumed hero," he says. "Batman is one of a small number of characters who get the title 'superhero' despite having no actual superpowers. Although I've heard it said that he has the best superpower of all, that of being ridiculously rich in a world where technology can make you a god." Harkaway is the author of two previous genre-bending and critically-acclaimed novels, "The Gone-Away World" and "Angelmaker." Despite his famous lineage, he says he doesn't pattern his work after his famous father. "We haven't spent a lot of time consciously talking about writing in a master-student kind of way, but we have similar concerns, ethical worries, (and) geopolitical perceptions in some areas. I like to think that my thought influences his in some areas, too." For now, Harkaway is already at work on his next novel about "semiotics, murder, alchemy, sharks, banking, game design and the surveillance state," he said. He's also making time for fatherhood, something he describes as "the best, and the most extreme" adventure. | In Nick Harkaway's "Tigerman," a soldier becomes a self-made superhero to impress a kid .
Harkaway says the novel is about "the power of paternal and filial love"
Justice and vengeance figure heavily in "Tigerman" similar to another hero with dad issues .
Harkaway's father is the famous spy novelist John le Carré. |
151,893 | 504c3998d2d591b74b0ab24723001f15629d0bb2 | Controversial data collected from NSA eavesdropping on U.S. citizens may have been used by intelligence officials in order to make a deadly drone strike on Somali militant leader. That’s what the defense is arguing in a California terrorism funding case that’s focused on al Shabaab, the same group that recently carried out a deadly attack on the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi. Four San Diego men of Somali extraction were convicted of conspiracy to finance and support the Somali militant group in February. Now they argue that data illegally collected on one of them was used to justify the lethal strike and want a new trial. Illegal? Somalians walk through what remained after a U.S. strike that killed militant leader Aden Hashi Ayrow in 2008. Four men accused of helping fund his group now say intel obtained illegally by the NSA led directly to the strike . The revelation came Thursday from a court filing in which lawyers allege said an FBI email they obtained under disclosure rules constitutes evidence which, though cryptic, suggests that data collected by NSA eavesdropping on U.S. citizen Basaaly Moalin was used for the missile targeting in 2008. Questions about whether the data may have been collected illegally will likely fuel fresh controversy over NSA spying on U.S. citizens and residents and the way data it collects is used. Defense lawyers assert there may be legal grounds for a new trial for four men convicted in the case. The email, from an unnamed FBI official to an unnamed recipient at another agency, talks about how Aden Hashi Ayrow, the senior al Shabaab leader based in Somalia killed in the May 2008 missile strike, tried to call Moalin in January 2008 but failed to reach him. ‘We just heard from another agency that Ayrow tried to make a call to Basaaly today, but the call didn't go through. If you see anything today, can you give us a shout ? We're extremely interested in getting real time info (location/new #s) on Ayrow,’ the email says. Target: Senior al Shabaab leader Aden Hashi Ayrow was killed in the strike. U.S. citizen Basaaly Moalin's lawyers now say he was illegally wiretapped for info that led to the strike . Retrial? The militant leader was one of around 30 killed in the strike (aftermath pictured), which lawyers for Moalin say was justified with illegally obtained intel. They now want a retrial . One of the defense lawyers, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said it was unclear if the information was legally obtained with a warrant. The new court filing calls for a new trial and for the U.S. government to turn over other evidence which may have been withheld at the original trial. Historically, it has been rare for the U.S. government to release, either through evidence-sharing rules or under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act, internal government documents relating to counterterrorism armed drone operations. The email in question was uncovered during the lengthy government investigation and court proceedings about the four defendants and turned over to defense lawyers. Revelations this year by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden have provoked a major political debate in the United States on the extent of snooping on U.S. citizens and residents and its legality. In their court filing, the defense lawyers argued that the use of NSA eavesdropping authority employed in their case ‘would be beyond the scope of anything authorized by Congress or approved by the (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court) - unless of course that is the subject of another set of secret procedures and protocols yet to be exposed and subsequently acknowledged.’ ‘Given that the U.S. government had previously attempted to target Mr Ayrow via missile attack (unsuccessfully), and ultimately did so successfully May 1, 2008... the implications of 'real time' information on Mr. Ayrow's whereabouts are obvious, if not altogether ominous,’ it said. In congressional hearings following the Snowden revelations, law enforcement and intelligence officials publicly cited the San Diego prosecution as one of a handful of unclassified examples of how NSA surveillance had been a key tool in U.S. counterterrorism efforts, but gave only limited details. The NSA had no immediate comment and the CIA, which has conducted lethal drone operations against militants in Somalia and other countries, declined to comment. Renewed criticism? Revelations about Moalin et al could renew controversy over NSA spying on U.S. citizens and residents and the way data it collects is used . | Lawyers for San Diego resident Basaaly Moalin and three other men want a retrial for their clients who were convicted of conspiracy to aid the militant group in February .
Data collected on Moalin may have led directly to the deadly 2008 drone strike that killed militant leader Aden Hashi Ayrow .
The revelation may reignite questions about the legality of the NSA's use of data collected from American citizens . |
230,505 | b67eb3ff1be7f4075adeaa897cd2511573b1d0aa | It has been claimed that Sheridan Smith is dating Greg Wood – months after the married father of three separated from his wife. And the 36-year-old Hollyoaks star appeared to confirm the rumours, when he called Sheridan, 33, 'babe' as he openly congratulated her on Twitter for her National Television Awards win on Wednesday. But it looks like he also helped her celebrate in person as the pair were spotted together outside the bash, held at London's The O2, as Sheridan enjoyed a cigarette before they reportedly left for her North London home and weren't seen again until 6am the next morning. Scroll down for video . New couple? Sheridan Smith was spotted smoking outside the National Television Awards on Wednesday with rumoured new boyfriend Greg Wood by her side . Homeward bound: The duo were spotted leaving together and reportedly made their way to Sheridan's North London home . Well done: Hollyoaks star Greg congratulated the actress on Twitter the following day . Greg was by Sheridan's side as she took a cigarette break outside the venue and they looked quite cosy while chatting with some friends. At one stage he leaned in and put his arm around her as they shared an embrace, unconcerned that they were not alone. It was the first high profile outing for the pair since they allegedly started dating and a successful one for Sheridan, who claimed the Best Drama Performance accolade for her starring role in TV biopic Cilla. Affectionate: At one stage Greg leaned in to give Sheridan a hug as they loitered outside . Not hiding it: The duo appeared affectionate and at ease as they caught up with pals at the ceremony . The next day Greg - best known for his role as Trevor Royle in the popular teen soap – took to Twitter to congratulate Sheridan, writing: '@Sheridansmith1 well deserved babe, proud of you X.' Meanwhile, Sheridan's alleged romance with 36-year-old Greg is believed to have 'stunned' the actor's wife of ten-years, Catherine. A source told The Sun on Sunday: 'Her split from Greg was far from amicable, but they were together for a long time. The two of them aren't even divorced yet, though they are going through the process.' Alleged romance: Actress Sheridan Smith is believed to be dating Hollyoaks star Greg Wood – months after the married father of three separated from his wife . It's understood that Sheridan and Greg forged a close friendship after exchanging a series of messages on micro-blogging site Twitter shortly after he moved out of the Stockport home he shared with his wife and three children last summer. The source added: 'Catherine saw that he and Sheridan had been in touch on Twitter, but at that stage it seemed just a few casual flirty messages.' However, the insider alleged that the two later met up and things progressed from there. Award winner: Sheridan, 33, claimed the Best Drama Performance accolade for her starring role in TV biopic Cilla at the National Television Awards on Wednesday evening . Night out: Sheridan and Greg were in high spirits as they left the Smuggler's Cove restaurant in Liverpool . Prior to the NTAs they enjoyed a cosy night at Smuggler's Cove restaurant in Liverpool. Taking to Twitter in the early hours of Sunday morning, Greg responded to news of his alleged relationship with Sheridan with the post: 'I am single, my ex and I separated last summer and are currently going through a divorce.' MailOnline have contacted Sheridan's representatives for further comment. Response: Greg was back on Twitter to conform his single status in the early hours of Sunday morning . | Father of three separated from his wife some months ago .
Took to Twitter to congratulate Sheridan on her NTAs win and called her 'babe' |
198,072 | 8c6420b7fa192ef94f7466a63a996c3e004b85f7 | By . John Mcgarry . Kris Commons isn’t the first so-called luxury player to find himself edged towards the periphery of a new manager’s plans. Yet the attacking midfielder’s current plight at Celtic is unique in two senses. Firstly, Commons is the reigning PFA Scotland and SFWA player of the year. Lifting those two individual prizes in May hardly taxed him to the point of exhaustion. Secondly, it almost always follows that a manager believes he can make do without the talent of such a player because he has others in the team who will compensate. VIDEO Scroll down for Ronny Deila: Celtic didn't deserve to be in the Champions League . Poor-fit: Kris Commons does not appear to fit in to new Celtic manager Ronny Delia's plans . Looking at the Celtic side which started against Maribor – without Commons – supporters were entitled to ask who exactly was going to provide the goals and flashes of game-changing brilliance on which such nights hinge. Jo Inge Berget? Unlikely. Stefan Johansen? Ditto. Anthony Stokes? No track record whatsoever at that level. Had Ronny Deila been able to call upon a seasoned No 9 capable of playing the lone striker role at that level to good effect, Commons’ omission would have been less glaring. Similarly, had his fellow Norwegians seemed capable of providing the offensive spark Commons showed in the corresponding fixture against Shakhtar Karagandy a year ago, there would not have been such a kerfuffle. But of the four forward thinking players Deila started with, only the ever-improving Callum McGregor looked a decent bet to hit the Slovenians where it hurt. With such a powderpuff look to the attack, little wonder Virgil Van Dijk was Deila’s most potent threat in the final third, with that only materialising in the dying embers of the match. Nightmare: Last year's PFA and SFWA player of the year did not even start against Maribor last week . It begs the question – what exactly has Commons done wrong? The answer though is very little – aside from having a face that seemingly doesn’t fit into the manager’s preferred 4-2-3-1 model. The tacit message Deila’s team selection spelled out against Maribor was that if you aren’t prepared to run, press and scrap to retrieve the ball in the final third like your life depends on it, then it’s going to be a struggle to accommodate you. Deila will argue that he hasn’t yet cast the 30-year-old on the scrapheap. Given he has featured to some degree in all bar one of Celtic’s nine competitive games this season, his argument holds some water. But it’s the game-time afforded to the former Scotland international in the past three matches – or rather the lack of it - that has given rise to the notion that he’s increasingly surplus to requirements. An unused sub in Maribor last week, Commons had the dubious privilege of playing the entire 90 minutes at Inverness last Saturday – a day for the jersey-fillers, if ever there was one. His worst fears were confirmed an hour and a half before kick-off on Tuesday – another place on the bench - and eventually a replacement it would transpire for Beram Kayal at the half-way point. Exit: Commons could be heading for the exit with West Brom, Leicester and Norwich all interested . Sportsmail yesterday revealed that that player is considering his future as a result of the latest demotion – and it’s believed he sought an explanation from Deila on the night. He is unlikely to have been comforted by what he heard. Now in the last year of his contract, the 30-year-old’s thoughts are no longer about securing the long-term extension – with one foot in the coaching camp - that was muted last season. Unless matters change radically, the temptation to explore options back in England even before Monday’s transfer deadline may prove tempting. If he does go either now or in January (Norwich, Leicester and West Brom are all watching the situation) there will be much angst among the fans. And understandably so. Upon signing for Celtic from Derby for £300,000 in January 2011, Commons scored 15 goals in half a season. Form: Despite some poor sspells, Commons has matured with age, and managed 30 goals last season . The following term – his very own annus horribilis – saw him hit the net just once and face-off with humour rumours of a bust-up with Neil Lennon by training in bandages and a neck brace. It proved to be no more than a blip: In 2012-13 he hit 19 goals then smashed 31 last term to sweep up the individual awards. Statistics that suggest he’s a ‘luxury player’ well worth making allowances for. Commons may be a yard shy in pace of ever being classed as absolutely top drawer but, despite his retirement from Scotland duty last year, he remains an international class footballer. Together with Van Dijk and Mikael Lustig, he is the closest thing Celtic have to a star man these days. Deila’s devotion to his system and insistence upon boundless energy is admirable to a degree but when it’s so slavish that a player of Commons’ ilk cannot be accommodated within it questions are naturally asked. If the player is handed another watching brief at Dens Park on Sunday, he will at least feel he has the answer to the most pressing query in his mind. With the transfer window closing the following evening, he may be of a view to seek a swift resolution to a growing problem. | Kris Commons could be on his way out of Celtic .
Ronny Delia doesn't seem too keen on the PFA and SFWA player of the year .
West Brom, Norwich and Leicester all keeping tabs on the 30-year-old . |
135,489 | 3b4751ec79ab5a757b93a93799bb011d11739d4a | New York (CNN) -- Security in Times Square will be the priority for New York Police Department this weekend as crowds pack the streets to herald the New Year. NYPD Police Commissioner Ray Kelly told CNN Thursday that he plans to strategically deploy thousands of resources, including 35 mounted horses, explosives-sniffing dogs, and uniformed as well as plainclothes officers on Saturday. Kelly said the precautions are essential to combating the serious terror threat the city continues face in a post-9/11 world. COBRA teams to handle chemical, biological and radiological threats will be pre-deployed to key locations, according to the commissioner. "We operate under the assumption that we're at the top of the terrorist target list, and we've had 14 attempts at terrorist-type attacks." Kelly said. To that end, before event-goers enter Times Square they must pass through a comprehensive security checkpoint. These checkpoints will be erected at each of the 16 entrances to Times Square and will include metal and radiation detectors as well as bag searches. Backpacks and alcohol will not be permitted. Past the checkpoints, at least 500 cameras and numerous helicopters with infrared capacity will survey the 65 pens, constantly scanning for security threats and breaches, according Commissioner Kelly. For Kelly, coordination will be crucial, so the Joint Operations Center "will be activated, where we have representatives from units throughout the department and federal, state and local agencies. So you can get face-to-face coordination, which is very important aspect of what we do." Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to watch the ball drop, according to Times Square's official website. Kelly said that the department will seek to ensure the security and safety of the public so they can enjoy the festivities. "I think it's something you have to do at least once," he said. "It's sort of a once-in-a-lifetime experience. It's a happy event. It's an exciting event." | NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly plans to deploy thousands of resources .
Horses, plainclothes officers, bomb-sniffing dogs will be out in force .
Checkpoints will be erected at each of the 16 entrances to Times Square .
City has been target of "14 attempts at terrorist-type attacks," Kelly notes . |
208,540 | 9a0381b6580e6409007cf23307e039dae80f472d | By . Anna Edwards . PUBLISHED: . 15:42 EST, 4 June 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 17:09 EST, 4 June 2013 . A 'greedy and dishonest' stadium manager at Birmingham City FC who invented imaginary stewards to cover Premier League matches has been jailed for conning the club out of £45,000. Scheming Peter Smith, 63, fleeced thousands while working for the Blues by putting his family on the payroll and inventing 'ghost' stewards over a three year period. A court heard the fraudster added his wife, sons and daughter-in-in law to the payroll at St Andrews between December 2009 and April 2012. Former Birmingham City FC employee Peter Smith was jailed for conning the club out of £45,000 . He also made up another imaginary steward - by the name of Paul Knowles - and paid those wages into his account to help clear debts and his mortgage. Birmingham Crown Court heard the club were alerted to the suspicious transactions during an internal audit in April 2012, the year after they were relegated to the Championship. They contacted West Midlands Police who launched an investigation and found payments had been made to staff who had never carried out their stadium duties. Specialist fraud investigators probed the club's payroll and uncovered a number of false employment documents. They also found Smith's wife had never even set foot inside the football stadium, while his two sons and daughter-in-law were on the payroll despite not having any steward training and qualifications. Smith, from Perton near Wolverhampton, West Midlands, admitted fraud by abuse of position and was yesterday jailed for 18 months. A court heard the fraudster added his wife, sons and daughter-in-in law to the payroll at St Andrews between December 2009 and April 2012 . Detective Constable Catherine Dell, from West Midlands Police, said after the case: 'This was a fraud driven by greed and Smith's frustration that, at the age of 63, he still had a sizeable mortgage. 'Smith began by putting his wife, using her maiden name, on the books and paying wages into his bank account. 'He clearly thought it was easy money and became more audacious by inventing an employee called Paul Knowles and charging the club for steward services. 'This was a blatant abuse of position: he put family members down on attendance lists and signed off their time sheets, including overtime, even though there's no evidence they did any work at the club. 'We scrutinised the payroll for up to 70 matches and corporate club events and when we put the evidence to Smith he was left with no option but to admit the fraud.' Smith's assets have since been frozen by police who will look to recover the stolen cash through the Proceeds of Crime Act. Angela Millington, senior prosecutor for West Midlands Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), added: 'Peter Smith was employed by Birmingham City Football Club as their Safety Officer, a job which involved the club putting a lot of trust in him as he had the responsibility of ensuring the safety and welfare of fans and club officials. 'However, Smith grossly exploited his position of trust and abused his senior position in order to dishonestly receive over £45,000 which was used to enrich himself and his family. 'He exploited the club's employment practices for greed and self-importance, but he has paid the penalty for his abuse of the club's trust. A Birmingham City FC spokesman, said: 'We are pleased with the outcome. 'The club would like to thank West Midlands Police and the CPS for their thorough investigation. 'This case was prompted by an internal investigation by management staff at the club and no stone was left unturned. 'It is particularly pleasing all of the hard work, dedication and professionalism carried out behind the scenes have resulted in today's judgement.' | Peter Smith, 63, fleeced thousands by putting his family on the payroll .
Admitted fraud by abuse of position and was jailed for 18 months . |
102,441 | 0fffb9417c857a7bc298201aedefcab9d68d36c2 | A Federal Aviation Administration advisory panel is expected this week to recommend a significant rollback of restrictions on the use of electronic devices by airplane passengers during takeoff and landings. 'As the consumer electronics industry has exploded,' the current rules have 'become untenable,' according to a draft version of the new proposals. Under the new recommendations passengers can expect to be allowed to use their devices in 'Airplane Mode' to read e-books, listen to music and watch videos. A relaxing of F.A.A. rules means passengers could soon be allowed to read e-books during takeoffs and landings but the ban on making phone calls will remain . But the current ban will remain in place for things that require a data connection, such as making phone calls, sending and receiving e-mails and texts or using Wi-Fi, reports the New York Times. The panel will recommend its new policy to the F.A.A. by the end of the month and it is expected to come into effect next year. Existing regulations that require a blanket ban on the use of all electronics during takeoff and landings have become increasingly unworkable due to the large numbers of people now carrying such devices. Many passengers either forget to turn off their devices or ignore calls from flight attendants to power down. The current rules regarding the use of electronic devices during takeoffs and landings have 'become untenable' due to the dramatic increase in the number of people using them . Regulators have never been able to establish conclusively that electronic devices can cause the malfunction of cockpit instruments and any evidence of a link is largely anecdotal. Many airlines have already expanded their own use of wireless systems on board, offering live television and Wi-Fi once the plane is above 10,000 feet. Some are understood to be considering proposals to stream content – such as movies - directly to passengers’ own devices. The F.A.A. advisory panel was supposed to report back in July, but requested an extension until the end of September due to the complexities involved. They want to present a single policy from ‘gate to gate’ that would apply to all airlines, and all types of airplanes. ‘We have to make sure the planes can handle this,’ Douglas Kidd, the head of the National Association of Airline Passengers and a member of the advisory committee told the New York Times. A change in F.A.A. regulations means passengers can expect to be allowed to read e-books, listen to podcasts and watch videos during takeoffs and landings from next year . ‘There’s a lot of pressure on the F.A.A. because passengers are very attached to their devices.’ The review does not included mobile voice communications, which are prohibited by the telecommunications regulators at the Federal Communications Commission because they interfere with transmissions between cell towers on the ground. More than two billion portable electronic devices will be sold this year, according to the research firm Gartner. Air travelers own a disproportionately large share of these devices, particularly smartphones and tablets, whose use is growing at the fastest rate. Shipments are expected to more than double by next year compared with 2012, to 276 million units. | Advisory panel meets this week to determine what changes to make to existing regulations regarding the use of electronic devices on planes .
Expected to recommend that passengers be allowed to use devices in 'Airplane Mode' to read e-books, listen to music and watch videos .
Ban expected to remain on tasks requiring a data connection such as making phone calls and sending emails or texts .
Changes expected to come into effect next year . |
223,729 | adaf43c4e321989fd2f861bc9ade45ba38a1f76b | A New Zealand man has claimed he was sacked from his job at a poultry factory after he filmed his colleague riding along a chicken abattoir conveyor belt as Superman. In the video a man with yellow boots and a blue cape over his high-vis jacket, lays down on the thin white, slow moving conveyor belt and rides along until he disappears out of shot. Tegel Foods, New Zealand's largest poultry producer, reportedly failed to see the funny side of the prank which was published on Facebook. Superman! A worked at a poultry factory rides along a conveyor built usually reserved for chickens . New Plymouth man Kaleb Parkinson, 21, recorded the video of his co-worker on September 26 and posted it online. But unfortunately someone spotted the stunt and reported him and his friend to their bosses. Tegel, who employs around 1,700 people in New Zealand, reportedly sacked the pair for failing to comply with health and safety, acting dishonestly and misconduct . Mr Parkinson posted the clip on Facebook again and said: 'This is wat i got fired 4 videoing this [sic]' Slow ride: The conveyor built wasn't exactly a high-adrenaline ride . Well-equipped: In the video a man with yellow boots and a blue cape over his high-vis jacket is seen . Sacked: After the 'fun' ride the man and Kaleb Parkinson who filmed the stunt were reportedly sacked . 'On the positive dnt hav 2 work 2nite an dnt wrk at tegel ne more.oh an ne 1 no wer i kan gta new job [sic],' he joked. In an interview with the Taranaki Daily News he revealed his friend rode the conveyor belt twice but they only filmed it once. He claimed the plant was shutdown for five minutes and they 'decided to let off some stem'. 'I got my cellphone out of my locker and recorded my workmate riding a conveyor belt,' Mr Parkinson said. 'In the end it was just for fun, but I don't think my fall should be this hard,' he told the paper. A spokesperson for Tegel Foods told Daily Mail Australia: 'We can't and won't comment on individual personal employment matters, those things are confidential. 'What I can say is we take employee safety extremely seriously as we do food safety, being in the food business.' | Two men from New Zealand were reportedly sacked from Tegel Foods .
Kaleb Parkinson, 21, filmed his mate riding along the conveyor belt .
'In the end it was just for fun,' he says .
He explained the New Zealand plant was shut when they did the prank . |
252,728 | d3101a40a9a4278981fe45ed2e29b67527d6c084 | The key role Pope Francis played encouraging talks between Presidents Barack Obama and Raul Castro left fractures among his flock in South Florida, where many older Roman Catholics equate the Castro brothers with the devil. Many Catholics worldwide have expressed pride in seeing Francis stirring hopes of progress in communist Cuba, but some Cuban-Americans say their spiritual leader betrayed them. 'I'm still Catholic till the day I die,' said Efrain Rivas, a 53-year-old maintenance man in Miami who was a political prisoner in Cuba for 16 years. 'But I am a Catholic without a pope.' Many Catholics have expressed pride in seeing Francis stirring hopes of progress in communist Cuba, but some Cuban-Americans say their spiritual leader betrayed them . Rivas said he cried when Obama surprisingly announced a reversal of a half-century's efforts to isolate Cuba. Then, when he learned of Francis' role, he got angry. Miami Archbishop Thomas Wenski acknowledged that some Catholics are "concerned or suspicious," but said many more exiles welcome the breakthrough, despite their suffering. 'The pain is real, but you can't build a future on top of resentments,' Wenski told The Associated Press in an interview. The Vatican has been reaching out to Cuba at least since Pope John Paul II, who declared during his historic 1998 visit to the island, 'May Cuba, with all its magnificent potential, open itself up to the world, and may the world open itself up to Cuba." Discussions continued under Pope Benedict XVI, who visited Cuba in 2012. And Francis, the first Latin American pope, has advocated for an end to the U.S. embargo since participating in John Paul's visit to Cuba as the soon-to-be-named Cardinal of Buenos Aires. Larisa Alonso talks to a reporter at Our Lady of Charity Catholic church in Miami about how many Catholics have expressed pride in seeing Francis stirring hopes of progress in communist Cuba, but some Cuban-Americans say their spiritual leader betrayed them . Cuban Cardinal Jaime Ortega, who is close to Francis, set up the papal visits and has been decisive in improving ties between the church and the officially atheist state since becoming Havana archbishop in 1981. This frustrates some older Catholics who wanted the church to use its unique position inside Cuba to take a harder line. 'The church is contaminated,' said Miguel Saavedra, a 57-year-old Miami mechanic who leads an anti-Castro group and wears a gold cross as a sign of his Catholic faith. Exiles incensed by the diplomacy openly wonder: Was Francis strong-armed by President Barack Obama? Does he understand how terrible the Castro brothers are? Was he perhaps making a foolhardy bid to cement his change-making image? 'I don't know what the pope was thinking,' said Jose Sanchez-Gronlier, a 53-year-old lawyer who said he was persecuted for his faith until leaving Cuba as a teenager, and will never forget watching the government seize a convent near his childhood home. 'I see a certain naivete in the pope,' he said. Anti-Castro protester Jay Fernandez holds a a sign in the Little Havana area of Miami . Sen. Marco Rubio, a Cuban-American from Florida who has led the Republicans' criticism of Obama's executive actions on Cuba, also took a swipe at the pope, telling reporters in Washington that he would 'ask His Holiness to take up the cause of freedom and democracy.' All this is familiar territory for Francis, who has spent a lifetime navigating the after-effects of the Cold War in Latin America. In his writings before becoming pope, the Argentine church leader criticized Cuban state authoritarianism as well as the U.S. embargo, and called on both sides to talk out their differences. As pope, he wrote to both Obama and Castro suggesting that a thaw could begin by releasing prisoners. But Arturo Suarez-Ramos, a 50-year-old Miami waiter who was a political prisoner in Cuba for 27 years, said Francis is reaching for more headlines after insisting that homosexuals and divorced people are welcome in church. 'He's trying to get a legacy at any price,' Suarez-Ramos said. The Catholic Church remains the dominant religious force in Cuba, though attendance at Mass is low after decades of official atheism. It has long provided an alternative power center where at least some criticism of the government was possible. Its mediation role could be seen as a reason to trust the promises of change that both Obama and Castro made this week, but many remain wary. Jay Fernandez, a retiree who left Cuba in 1961, said Francis acted like a beggar, taking whatever scraps of concessions the Cuban government offered. Anti-Castro protesters and former Cuban political prisoners Efrain Rivas, left, and Arturo Suarez, right, expressed their disagreement on Wednesday's announcement that the U.S. and Cuba will begin taking steps to restore full diplomatic relations . 'He wants to be everywhere, he wants to be liked by everyone,' Fernandez said. 'That's his job to be a peace guy, but it doesn't accomplish a damn thing, especially in Cuba.' U.S. bishops also have long called for an end to the embargo and for improved relations with Cuba. Engagement can do more than isolation to open up Cuban society and improve human rights and religious liberty, they said. That message seemed to connect with some attending midday Mass at Ermita de la Caridad, a church dedicated to Cuba's patron saint. 'This is the best thing that could have happened,' said Lucresia Leon, 70, who left Cuba during the 1980 Mariel boatlift, when 125,000 fled the island. She smiled widely, saying 'Everything will be fixed.' Draped in the bright purple vestments of Advent, the Rev. Juan Rumin Dominguez, who arrived from Cuba nine years ago, said accepting change is not a simple thing. 'It's not easy, but the faithful people in these kinds of situations know to trust in God' the priest said. 'We are a faithful people. We have confidence because God has his plan.' Historian Jesus Mendez, a Cuban exile who teaches at Barry University and has written about the Latin American church, said most Catholics will welcome the pope's intervention as an effort to increase religious freedom on the island. 'He's very concerned over the decline of Catholic fervor, primarily in Europe but also even in the United States and Canada, so of course he sees it important to have a high profile for the Catholic Church in Cuba,' Mendez said. | Many older Roman Catholics equate the Castro brothers with the devil .
Miami Archbishop Thomas Wenski acknowledged that some Catholics are 'concerned or suspicious'
Francis, the first Latin American pope, has advocated for an end to the U.S. embargo since participating in John Paul's visit to Cuba as the soon-to-be-named Cardinal of Buenos Aires . |
264,702 | e2db2e24ed42092763d5361c9e5d34602c1c4ef6 | (CNN) -- Former basketball star Dennis Rodman arrived in Pyongyang Tuesday on a five-day visit amid speculation he may try to negotiate the release of jailed U.S. citizen Kenneth Bae, China's Xinhua news agency reported. In Beijing, the gateway for flights to Pyongyang, Rodman told Reuters he was on another "basketball diplomacy tour" and would not be discussing the release of Bae. "I'm not going to North Korea to discuss freeing Kenneth Bae," Rodman told Reuters in a telephone interview before he left Beijing for Pyongyang. "I've come out here to see my friend (Kim) -- and I want to talk about basketball," he added. Later pushing through a throng of journalists at Beijing airport, the 6 foot 7 inch (2.01 meter) former basketballer said: "I'm just trying to go over there to meet my friend Kim, the Marshal. Try to start a basketball league over there, something like that." In May: Rodman asks Kim Jong Un to let U.S. citizen go . However, he told the Huffington Post last week that he would likely broach the issue with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. "I gave (Kim Jong-un) a great indication of when I'm going to Beijing soon -- that's just a hop, skip and a jump from North Korea. So basically, you know, I'm pretty sure I'll be talking to him soon," Rodman told the Huffington Post. Rodman is North Korean leader's 'friend for life' "I will definitely ask for Kenneth Bae's release," he said. "I will say, 'Marshal, why is this guy held hostage?' I could try and soften it up in that way." "If the Marshal says, 'Dennis, you know, do you want me to let him loose?' and then if I actually got him loose -- and I'm just saying this out the blue -- I'd be the most powerful guy in the world." Rodman's trip -- which is being sponsored by Irish bookmaker Paddy Power -- is the second to the hardline Communist state this year. In March, Rodman was pictured with Kim, an ardent basketball fan, laughing and eating while watching an all-star basketball match. He was criticized over the trip which came at a time of escalating tension, with North Korea threatening missile strikes on the U.S., South Korea and Japan. Rodman has previously made no secret about his desire to help Bae. He once tweeted that he wanted the 30-year-old unchallenged leader of North Korea to "do him a solid" by freeing him. Bae was sentenced to 15 years hard labor in February after he was convicted of unspecified "hostile acts" against North Korea. The country's state-run Korean Central News Agency said the Korean-American was arrested late last year after arriving as a tourist in Rason City, a northeastern port near the Chinese border. North Korea last week canceled a "humanitarian mission" by Robert King, U.S. special envoy on North Korean human rights issues to Pyongyang, aimed at negotiating the release of Bae, citing annual military drills last week by the U.S. and South Korea. In North Korea, Rodman fouls out . | NEW: Former basketball star Dennis Rodman arrives Pyongyang, capital of North Korea .
The trip is the second by the celebrity-turned-envoy this year to visit Kim Jong Un .
He denies he will seek the release of U.S. captive Bae, but has previously said he will broach the issue .
Bae was sentenced to 15 years hard labor in February over unspecified "hostile acts" against North Korea . |
254,527 | d57903243d440fb0f82a52d3a529c83fb9d22641 | By . Cindy Tran for Daily Mail Australia . A woman has had to be treated in hospital after she was attacked by a bat in Northern Territory. Debbie 'Hammie' Riley, 55, was walking near Roper River when a bat flew straight at her and believed to have latched on to her leg. 'I heard something drop on the roof and the next thing I know there was a bat just aiming for me through the sky and he just bit on to me,” Ms Riley told NT News. A woman was hospitalised with painful injections after she was attacked by a bat in Northern Territory . 'It’s wings were flapping and he peed all over me and when I looked down all I could see were its eyes. I grabbed its wing and yanked it off.' Ms Riley was treated for tetanus, rabies and lyssavirus, which included painful injections directly into the wounds on her leg and fingers when the incident occured on August 19. 'I just want people to be aware of what to do. Wash the wound for five minutes and then apply antiseptic and get medical treatment as soon as possible,' she said. 'Even if it’s the tiniest bite, if it draws blood it needs attention. These disgusting things carry lyssavirus and rabies it also affects you mentally.' | Debbie 'Hammie' Riley, 55, was walking near Roper River when a bat flew straight at her .
Ms Riley was treated for tetanus, rabies and lyssavirus, which included painful injections directly into the wounds on her leg and fingers .
She wants people to be aware of what to do: 'Wash the wound for five minutes and then apply antiseptic and get medical treatment as soon as possible' |
130,785 | 3523312a26010f8ae601ca6f614641b04fb9c9d5 | Richmond, California (CNN) -- Investigators say as many as 20 people were involved in or stood and watched the gang rape of a 15-year-old girl outside a California high school homecoming dance Saturday night. Police posted a $20,000 reward Tuesday for anyone who comes to them with information that helps arrest and convict those involved in what authorities describe as a 2½-hour assault on the Richmond High School campus in suburban San Francisco. Two teenage suspects have been jailed, but more arrests, as many as 20 total, are expected, according to a police detective. "We will be making arrests continually as we develop probable cause," said Richmond Police Lt. Mark Gagan. "With this number of people implicated in the incident we're going to be making arrests on an ongoing basis." As many as 10 people were involved in the assault in a dimly lighted back alley at the school, while another 10 people watched without calling 911 to report it, police said. A 1999 California law makes it illegal not to report a witnessed crime against a child, but the law applies only to children 14 and under. "We do not have the ability to arrest people who witnessed the crime and did nothing," Gagan said. "The law can be very rigid. We don't have the authority to make an arrest." Charles Ramsey, a member of the Richmond school board, said the school district bears some responsibility for the attack. School administrators and police apparently weren't watching the area as they should have, Ramsey said. The school said it would hold a safety meeting for parents and students Wednesday evening to address the assault. The victim was found unconscious under a bench shortly before midnight Saturday, after police received a call from someone in the area who had overheard people at the assault scene "reminiscing about the incident," Richmond Police Lt. Mark Gagan said. The girl was flown by helicopter to a hospital where she was admitted in critical condition. She was in stable condition Tuesday, police said. Investigators canvassed the community with fliers, which included the reward offer, hoping to identify more suspects Tuesday. "There is one individual in custody who has made some spontaneous statements that have led me to believe that he is culpable for what happened," Richmond police Lt. Johan Simon said. Nineteen-year-old Manuel Ortega, described as a former student at the school, was arrested soon after he fled the scene and will face charges of rape, robbery and kidnapping, police said. A 15-year-old was later arrested and charged with one count of felony sexual assault. A third teenager was being interviewed, Gagan said. "Based on witness statements and suspect statements, and also physical evidence, we know that she was raped by at least four suspects committing multiple sex acts," Gagan said. "As people announced over time that this was going on, more people came to see, and some actually participated," Gagan said. The attack occurred on school grounds as the annual homecoming dance was under way inside the school Saturday night, authorities said. | 10 people involved in assault, 10 others watched and offered no help, police say .
Richmond, California, police say student was gang raped for over two hours .
Former student, 19, and 15-year-old arrested .
Victim, 15, remains in the hospital in stable condition . |
198,374 | 8cc94dfc18b6a93e1861ed2f12d8f1185f9b0008 | (CNN) -- The death last month of a 53-year-old former investment banker who collapsed in an Arizona courtroom, minutes after a jury found him guilty of torching his palatial Phoenix estate, appears to have been a suicide, police said Tuesday. Michael Marin was facing a sentence of seven to 21 years in prison on June 28 when courtroom video shows that he appeared to put something into his mouth and swallowed. Minutes later, he appeared to put something else into his mouth, and again swallowed. Shortly afterward, he went into convulsions and was taken to Maricopa County Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. Late Monday or early Tuesday, Marin's adult son received a delayed e-mail from his father "telling him that if things don't go good in court, Marin's wills are in place and his car can be found at a Mesa location," Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio told reporters. The family relayed that information to police, who searched the car's cargo area and found a canister labeled sodium cyanide, he said. Investigators determined that Marin had ordered the quick-acting poison -- typically used in agriculture and gold mining -- from a California-based company and that it was delivered by FedEx to his home in 2011. "All indications point to suicide but, until the final report, this case still remains open," he said. Statutory rape case dismissed after alleged victim commits suicide . The coroner will determine the cause of death. "We assume that Marin made capsules out of this toxic substance before coming to court on June 28," he said. The product, which typically sells for $68 for 200 grams, was on sale this week for half off, Arpaio said. He described the family as "very distraught," but cooperating with investigators. During his career working for Wall Street investment banks, the Yale University Law School graduate had collected Picasso artwork, driven a Rolls Royce and flew his own plane. "He was en engaging character," said Paul Rubin, who profiled Marin in 2008 for the Phoenix New Times newspaper. "He's the smartest guy in the room, the smoothest talker in the room," Rubin told CNN. "He gets all the girls, he's that guy. And he hit a brick wall." Marin's brick wall proved to be his 10,000 square-foot home in the Biltmore Estates, an exclusive enclave in Phoenix. Marin bought the house in 2008, as the real estate market was collapsing, with an interest-only mortgage payment of $17,250 per month. But Marin had long before been fired from Wall Street and had not worked in years. Prosecutors say he concocted a scheme to raffle off the house and, in the process, make himself $1 million. Raffle tickets would sell for $25 apiece, with the proceeds going to the Child Crisis Center. Investigators say Marin climbed Mount Everest to generate publicity for the raffle, doing interviews with local television stations from the mountain. But Joe Epps, the forensic accountant who unraveled Marin's personal finances for investigators, told CNN it was all a ploy. Doctors feared mass suicide after deadly 'sweat lodge,' survivor says . "What happened was he paid $2,550,000 for the house and set up with a couple of friends of his a bogus second mortgage designed to increase the value of the house for $950,000, a second mortgage that didn't really exist," he said. Epps said the ploy was intended to make $1 million for Marin while also making him look as though he was helping charity. But in April 2009, the Arizona attorney general ruled the raffle was illegal. By then, Marin was six months from having to make a balloon payment of roughly $2 million to lenders or risk a major jump in his monthly payments. His financial world was collapsing. "I don't think he really thought this through, and it ended up where he had to do something that was pretty wacky, which was burn down his house," said Rubin. Early July 5, 2009, fire engulfed Marin's Biltmore home. He called 911 from his upstairs bedroom, then emerged from the burning home wearing SCUBA gear that happened to have been in his bedroom. "Every fireman on the scene was, 'You're not going to believe this guy -- he came out of a ladder out of his master bedroom wearing a SCUBA tank, a SCUBA mask and a snorkel,'" said Phoenix Fire Captain Jeff Peabody. "Yeah, you're right, I find that odd." Speaking after the fire from his hospital bed, Marin recounted his improbable escape. "I realized that I actually had some air left in that tank, and that's what enabled me to get back to the window and deploy that ladder," he told a reporter. "If I hadn't had those two things, we wouldn't be talking." Peabody says he found four locations in the house where fires had been intentionally set and a line of phone books that helped the fire spread. Marin's attorney said last week that his client had shown no signs of being suicidal. "It was a gigantic shock," he said. "I think it's fair to say that we certainly had no inkling that this was going to happen. I'm not aware that anybody did." UK couple defend son's assisted suicide . | Police find sodium cyanide container in Marin's car .
He died shortly after being found guilty of arson .
His monthly payment on his home was $17,250 . |
149,043 | 4cb4cb858383e15381eb05c9c169d9b2699b217a | A catholic school in Edmonton, Canada is investigating the 'unprovoked' beating of a six-year-old boy by a fellow classmate that left him bloodied and bandaged. Joshua Goulet, 6, is afraid to go to school or go to sleep by himself after one of his classmates attacked him on the bus home from St. Maria Goretti School on Friday even while an adult was present. 'He was repeatedly punched. He was kicked. And his head was banged against the bus window until finally it was banged hard enough that it caused a cut in the back of his head, and he bled quite badly,' said the horrified boy's mother Sheila Goulet to Global News. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO . Victim: Joshua Goulet, 6, was attacked by a fellow classmate while he was on the bus home from school . Badly beaten: Joshua Goulet was bandaged by the school bus driver who had to pull over and administer first aid after Joshua was beaten up by a fellow classmate . The bus was delayed for 35 minutes and neither Sheila Goulet nor her husband knew what was taking so long for their boy to come home from school. The bus was later than usual because the bus driver had to pull over to administer first aid. 'He punched me in the face, punched me on the mouth, he kicked me in the face, then he whacked my head,' Joshua told Global News. A manager from the bus company, First Student, met the parents at the bus stop to explain what had happened to their child. Goulet didn't hear from the school until 5 p.m. The boy who attacked Joshua has been suspended for a week and is not allowed back on the school bus. Both of the boys are in the first grade but they are not in the same class. The attack is thought to have been completely unprovoked and the bus company is trying to decide how to provide better safety on the bus. 'I’m not sure how they’re going to do that,' Sheila Goulet admitted. 'Do we need to put supervisors on the buses? The bus drivers have to be able to drive.' The Bus Company has said they will review their policy to make sure students re safe on the bus. 'The safety and security of the students we transport is our top priority at First Student. We were able to determine that this is a matter of student conduct. Our driver responded in accordance with the policies set forth by First Student and the school district,' said the company. The boy's mother has said she doesn't blame the bus company and that they did everything right but that perhaps there also need to be supervisors on the bus to ensure the safety of children. Young students: Joshua Goulet was attacked after being beaten on his way home on the school bus from St. Maria Goretti school on Friday afternoon in a random attack . | Joshua Goulet, 6, is afraid to go to school or go to sleep by himself after on of his classmates attacked him on the bus home .
Both boys are students at St.Maria Goretti School in Edmonton .
The attacker was suspended from school and will not be allowed to ride the bus again . |
105,575 | 1429b86d97502d57a214b902c7d01b937c50a1bd | ISIS is urging supporters in the West to kill civilians by any means possible - including using Ebola as a chemical weapon and stabbing people with poisoned needles, a senior Spanish politician claims. Francisco Martinez, Spain's state secretary for security, said he is taking the threats seriously after uncovering conversations in which jihadis discuss carrying out so-called 'lone wolf' attacks. Speaking before lawmakers in parliament yesterday, Mr Martinez said would-be militants are using chat rooms to explore the best ways to carry out terror attacks, adding that the conversations prove ISIS considers the internet to be 'an extension of the battlefield'. Terrorists: Spanish investigators have identified 'many examples' of Islamic State sympathisers discussing the use of the deadly Ebola virus as a chemical weapon . Mr Martinez, the second in command in Spain's interior ministry, said investigators had identified 'many examples' of threats to use Ebola as a chemical weapon. He pointed out three specific cases in which aspiring jihadis 'linked to ISIS' had used internet chat rooms to seriously discuss the viability of harnessing the deadly virus and other toxins as part of a new terrorism offensive, according to Spain's RTVE media company. One conversation, identified as having taken place between ISIS sympathisers in mid-September, referred to 'the use of Ebola as a poisonous weapon against the United States,' he claimed. Another conversation reportedly saw militants working out how best to employ 'deadly chemical products' they had stolen from laboratories. Investigation: Francisco Martinez (centre) - Spain's secretary of state for security - said ISIS is urging its supporters in the West to kill civilians by any means possible - including using Ebola as a chemical weapon . Threat: Members of a medical team carry the body of an Ebola victim in Sierra Leone. Would-be terrorists are now using the internet to discuss how to harness the virus for use in terrorist attacks, it has been claimed . Mr Martinez went on to say that a spokesman for the terror group had also taken to the internet to urge supporters to kill Westerners by any means possible - adding that he had suggested 'poisonous injections' as a possible method. Islamic State militants view the internet as 'an extension of the battlefield', according to Mr Martinez. He said the terror group has identified six benefits to having a strong online presence: 'Threatening enemies through propaganda, preparing operations, exchanging information, ideological training, recruiting new members and acquiring finance'. Earlier this month, Jeh Johnson - US Homeland Security Secretary- dismissed suggestions ISIS could be planning to use the Ebola virus to attack the United States. 'We've seen no specific credible intelligence that [Isis] is attempting to use any sort of disease or virus to attack our homeland,' he said in a speech to the Association of the United States Army. A harrowing video has emerged showing the charred and dismembered bodies of up to 75 people killed when a Syrian regime helicopter dropped two barrel bombs on a refugee camp yesterday. The graphic footage - filmed at a displaced persons camp in the northern province of Idlib - shows the bloodied corpses of women and children, while passers-by scramble to save the wounded. 'It's a massacre of refugees,' a voice off camera can be heard saying, while tents that act as makeshift homes burn all around him and dazed children wander the camp looking for relatives. Barrel bombs, which are banned by international law, are crudely made containers filled with nails, metal shrapnel and explosive material that are dropped from low altitude. Horror: The graphic footage - filmed at a displaced persons camp in the northern province of Idlib - shows the bloodied corpses of women and children, while passers-by scramble to save the wounded . The video begins with the cameraman racing up to the bombed camp on a motorcycle and finding a scene of total devastation. 'Let the whole world see this, they are displaced people. Look at them, they are civilians, displaced civilians. They fled the bombardment,' he said. The man runs into the camp and screams at others to pick up the bodies, trying to convince them that the people on the ground with limbs missing might still survive if taken to hospital. 'This one's good! This one's good!' he shouts, telling two men to carry a limp body with one leg hanging from strips of flesh to a nearby pickup truck. 'Pick him up from the stomach not the leg,' he screams. Victims: Witnesses and paramedics scramble to save the lives of those injured in the twin blasts . Harrowing: 'It's a massacre of refugees,' a voice off camera can be heard saying, while tents that act as makeshift homes burn all around him and dazed children wander the camp looking for relatives . A man in another video of the Abedin camp, which houses people who had escaped fighting in neighbouring Hama province, said as many as 75 people had died. Syrian state media did not mention the bombing. The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which tracks violence in the civil war, said it heard reports that 10 civilians had been killed. Details of the attack could not be independently confirmed. Human rights groups say the Assad regime has previously dropped barrel bombs on densely populated neighbourhoods. These acts are in defiance of a U.N. Security Council resolution banning their use. | Francisco Martinez said Spain is taking threats made online seriously .
Claimed ISIS supporters have been discussing using Ebola in attacks .
Militants also said to be plotting to use other deadly toxins and viruses .
ISIS spokesman has also used the internet to encourage would-be jihadis .
Suggested supporters carry out lone wolf attacks using poisoned needles . |
243,067 | c6970273a5d7397dcf3eda0295621162c728fef2 | It is not always easy to be the odd one out, but this young elephant does not seem to mind. The calf joined its herd of white elephants for a bath in their enclosure near the Uppatasanti Pagoda in Naypyitaw, the capital of Burma. The baby is kept with five white elephants, who have all been captured in the wild for their unusual colouring and are seen as sacred signs of good fortune, peace and wealth in predominantly Buddhist Burma. Scroll down for video . Odd one out: A baby elephant plays with its family of white elephants in Burma's capital Naypyitaw . Five of the rare white elephants have been found and captured in Burma between 2001 and 2010, and now live in the capital. White elephants have been revered for centuries in South-East Asian countries such as Burma, Thailand and Laos. Historically, white elephants were kept by monarchs and considered a symbol of royal power and prosperity. Many in Burma still believes white elephants only emerge in places where the practice of Buddhism flourishes and rulers govern justly. Unusual family: Five of the rare white elephants have been found and captured in Burma between 2001 and 2010, and now live in the capital . Showertime: The calf joined the others for a bath in their enclosure near the Uppatasanti Pagoda in Naypyitaw . | Baby elephant stands out among family of rare white elephants .
The elephant herd lives in a special park in Burma's capital, Naypyitaw .
The white elephants are captured and kept as a sign of good fortune . |
206,386 | 973044f765eeaf3892dd2e9e1a4bb96a4fa81bf5 | By . Emily Allen . and Eddie Wrenn . Tourism leaders in Lebanon want to sue the producers of US drama 'Homeland' claiming the latest episode was full of 'lies' and wrongly depicts Beirut as harbouring terrorists. Lebanese Tourism Minister Fadi Abboud is so upset about the show's 'damaging' portrayal of the city that he is consulting lawyers. Abboud said the episode wrongly depicted the . city as a strong-hold for terrorists and a place where foreigners can . easily fall victim to random attacks. However his comments have now been overshadowed by a car bomb which rocked the city this afternoon. At least eight people have been killed and an estimated 80 people wounded in the worst blast seen in the city for years. Scroll down to see video of the aftermath . Syria links: The foiled terrorist plot is thought to have originated from Syria - in chilling echoes of the devastating explosion in Ashrafieh, east Beirut, pictured, . Carnage: Mikati worked with Hezbollah and regularly came under fire to resign from the Sunni-led opposition since October of last year, when a car bomb exploded in Beirut . Lebanese Red Cross personnel are seen at the site: Cars and buildings were wrecked in the attack which left ten dead . A Lebanese men evacuates a wounded woman from the scene: This is the first such attack in the Lebanese capital since 2008 . The attack reportedly occurred as parents picked their children up from school. Reporters at the scene described seeing bloodied victims being . loaded in ambulances and heavy damage to residential buildings. The motive for the car-bomb is not immediately clear. However it comes at a . time when Lebanon has seen a rise in tension and eruptions of clashes stemming from the civil war in neighboring Syria. In . scenes reminiscent of the dark days of Lebanon's civil war, ambulances . ferried the wounded to several hospitals, where doctors, nurses and . students waited for casualties at the doors - meanwhile the hospitals . put out an appeal for blood donations. An employee of a bank on the street pointed to the blown-out windows of his building. 'Some people were wounded from my bank. I think it was a car bomb. The whole car jumped five floors into the air,' he said. A firefighter extinguishes flames at the scene of devastation, which has left at least eight people dead . A man runs past a burning car at the scene, as fire crews try to secure buildings damaged in the blast . Scene of the explosion: The fronts of buildings have been torn off as people gather in the aftermath of the attack . Injuries: Wounded Lebanese civilians are rushed from the scene following the explosion . Michael Fish, 25, a British musician visiting Beirut, said he was in his hotel a street away when the explosion happened. 'At first I thought it was an earthquake. It shook the whole hotel for a second. I ran down and started filming on my iPhone.' The bomb exploded in the street where the office of the anti-Assad Christian Phalange Party is located. It was not immediately clear if the . explosion targeted any political figure in Lebanon's divided community . but it occurred at a time of heightened tension between Lebanese . factions on opposite sides of the Syria conflict. Ambulances . rushed to the scene of the blast near Sassine Square in Ashafriyeh, a . mostly Christian area, as smoke rose from the area. It occurred during rush hour, when many parents were picking up children from school. Several . cars were destroyed by the explosion and the front of a multi-storey . building was badly damaged, with tangled wires and metal railings . crashing to the ground. Residents . ran about in panic looking for relatives while others helped carry the . wounded to ambulances, and security forces blanketed the area. Horrific: A Lebanese rescue man carries an injured boy at the scene of a suspected car bomb in the mostly Christian neighborhood of Achrafiyeh, Beirut . A Lebanese policeman uses his mobile phone to film damage at the scene . A Lebanese forensic inspector investigates: The motive behind the attack is not yet known . Lebanese Tourism Minister Fadi Abboud complained about Homeland's 'damaging' portrayal of Beirut - just before a car bomb rocked the city . The war in neighbouring Syria, which has killed 30,000 people so far, has pitted mostly Sunni insurgents against President Bashar al-Assad, who is from the Alawite sect linked to Shi'ite Islam. Tension between Sunnis and Shi'ites has been rumbling in Lebanon ever since the end of the 1975-1990 civil war but reignited after the Syria conflict erupted. In Damascus, Syrian Information Minister Omran al-Zoabie told reporters: 'We condemn this terrorist explosion and all these explosions wherever they happen. Nothing justifies them.' Phalange leader Sami al-Gemayel, a staunch opponent of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and a member of parliament, condemned the attack. 'Let the state protect the citizens. We will not accept any procrastination in this matter, we cannot continue like that. We have been warning for a year. Enough,' said Gemayel, whose brother was assassinated in November 2006. The attack came just as the Tourism Minister Mr Abboud went on the offensive to try to revive . the city's reputation as the 'Paris of the Middle East' He insisted the city . was more secure than London or New York and feared foreigners would be put off. Controversial: Claire Danes as Carrie Mathison, right, and Mandy Patinkin as Saul Berenson in a scene from the second season of 'Homeland,' which has come under fire by tourism leaders in Beirut for being 'damaging' Filming: The scene features Danes (pictured) aiming to take out a senior figure affiliated with Hezbollah, which is portrayed as a movement allied with Al Qaeda in the series, in Hamra Street, Beirut . Mr Abboud is particularly upset about the second episode of the Homeland, which he says shows the city to be a 'non secure zone'. He said: 'This kind of film damages the image of Lebanon – it is not fair to us . and it’s not true, it is not portraying reality.' 'We want to take action, we want to write to the filmmakers and . producers and demand an apology. 'And we are planning to raise a lawsuit . against the director and the producer', he told Executive magazine. The award-winning show, based on the Israeli series 'Prisoners of War,' is about a . U.S Marine named Nick Brody who was a POW for years in the Middle East. The federal government and the public . see Brody as a war hero, but a CIA operative played by Claire Danes . believes he was turned by the enemy and is now a threat to the U.S. In the episode 'Beirut is Back', which aired on Channel 4 last Sunday, Danes is aiming to take out a . senior figure affiliated with Lebanon’s Shiite Hezbollah organisation. The organisation is portrayed as a movement allied with Al-Qaeda in the series. The scene is supposed to be set in Hamra Street, West Beirut but Mr Abboud said the street is not violent and dirty but a lively, safe, . neighbourhood packed with cafes, book shops and pubs. Hamra Street in Beirut where the controversial scene was supposed to be set - but it was portrayed as violent when Mr Abboud said it was actually lively and safe and packed with shops, bars and cafes . During the 1960s Beirut attracted international superstars who would party in the city's seafront hotels. However this era was short-lived and ended when the civil war began in 1975. The city was ruled by militias and the city became divided between Christian and Muslims. It soon became known for its hostage-takings, suicide bombings and massacres. The Lebanon hostage crisis saw the kidnapping in Lebanon of 96 foreign hostages – mostly American and western European – between 1982 and 1992. Among the Britons taken was John McCarthy, who was set free in 1991 after more than five years in captivity, and Terry Waite, who spent four years in solitary confinement. Fighting continued to ravage the city, as did shelling from Israeli fighter plans, and there were many thousands of deaths, but from 1991 the city began to rebuild itself. It's now well on the road to being regarded as the most liberal and fun-loving major Arab cities. However, portrayal of Lebanon as swarming with guns is not unreasonable either. The country still has dozens of armed . militias that still flourish, and an alarming number of private . individuals have weapons in their homes. The biggest militia of all, . Iranian-backed Hezbollah, has gained so much power and influence over . the years that it's now part of the government, wielding virtual veto . power. Twentieth Century Fox Television, which produces the Showtime drama, has refused to comment. Mr Abboud is also concerned about the fact the Beirut scenes were actually shot in Tel Aviv, the Israeli metropolis . about 150 miles south of Beirut. The two nations are technically at war. Jaffa, a popular mixed Jewish and Arab . neighbourhood of Tel Aviv, allowed the creators of . 'Homeland' to present a plausible version of Beirut. Ghada Jaber, a 60-year-old housewife, said Israel should never stand in for Lebanon. 'It is very insulting. Israel destroyed our country. Israel invaded and occupied our country.' However, Hamed Moussa, an engineering student at . the American University of Beirut, said it was not a problem that Israelis . are portraying Lebanese. He said Lebanese often play Israeli . characters in Lebanese soap operas. Ariel Kolitz, a childhood friend of . Gideon Raff, the Israeli co-creator of 'Homeland,' said the producers . didn't have the option of shooting in Beirut, where Raff and other . Israelis are not allowed to visit. Many Lebanese cannot forget the massive . destruction Israel inflicted on Beirut during the 1982 invasion when it . succeeded in routing the Palestine Liberation Organization from the . country. They resent the 18-year occupation of south Lebanon that . followed, and their leaders reject the existence of the . Jewish state. But to Israel, Lebanon has been a staging ground for missile strikes and other attacks on Israel, more than justifying the massive Israeli operations there that have occurred in every decade since the 1970s. Eytan Schwartz, a spokesman for Tel Aviv's mayor, said the Lebanese should be pleased at the TV show's choice for a stand-in. 'If I were Lebanese, with all due respect, I'd be very flattered that a city, and a world heritage site, thanks to its incredible architecture, and residents who were named among the top 10 most beautiful people in the world (ranked by Traveler's Digest magazine in 2012) could pass as Lebanese,' he said. | Lebanese Tourism Minister Fadi Abboud is consulting lawyers about legal action and is demanding an .
apology from producers .
He said the latest episode wrongly depicted the .
city as strong-hold for terrorists and a place where foreigners are attacked .
Complaint arrives just as car bomb rocks city, leaving at least eight dead . |
35,675 | 655eb5700cb058ddd6ca135fcba92ddaebcc0be1 | By . Nick Enoch . For most people, a trip to the zoo is an occasional treat. But when little Muriel Thatcher first paid a visit, back in 1937, the thrill was such that she's been going back to the same one every two weeks ever since... clocking up more than 2,000 trips. Now, after seven decades of visiting Dudley Zoo, in the West Midlands, 87-year-old Muriel has been given a life membership to what she calls her 'second home'. Scroll down for video . Muriel Thatcher, 87, from Wolverhampton, has visited her favourite zoo more than 2,000 times over the past seven decades . Muriel (pictured left in the 1930s) has been given a life membership to Dudley Zoo, in the West Midlands after going there every two weeks over 77 years . After her first visit aged 10, on the day it opened, Muriel fell in love with the zoo and went as often as she could as a teenager, scraping together any cash she could get hands on to pay for her admission . No doubt Muriel will be glad about that as the daily admission price for her would have been £11.50. During a recent ceremony, staff at the zoo also presented her with her own bench (engraved in her honour) next to the monkey enclosure, along with a knapsack containing a thermos and packet of biscuits. The animal-loving pensioner, from Wolverhampton, said: 'When I heard that a zoo was opening, I begged my mum that she would take me and my younger sister. My first ever visit was just magical. I had never seen exotic animals. 'On the opening day, we waited for hours upon end as queues to get in snaked around the block and my mum wanted to give up and go home, but I begged her to stay. 'When we got in, it was worth every minute that we waited and I felt like I was taken to another world.' After her first visit aged 10, on the day it opened, Muriel fell in love with the zoo and went as often as she could as a teenager, scraping together any cash she could get hands on to pay for her admission. The pensioner has become somewhat of a VIP at the zoo and is invited to any special events . The animal-loving pensioner said: 'When I heard that a zoo was opening, I begged my mum that she would take me and my younger sister. My first ever visit was just magical. I had never seen exotic animals' Muriel, who catches two buses and makes a three-hour round trip to the zoo, has even adopted 23 of the animals . Muriel said: 'Visiting the zoo during the war was a bit of a challenge, as everyone had to concentrate on the war effort. 'Adding to that, the zoo had irregular opening hours because of air raid scares and the blackouts. 'Nevertheless, I still tried to go as much as possible and I used to take any food scraps for the animals, as food was scarce for humans let alone animals - and so I felt sorry for them.' The pensioner - who has never married nor has any children - catches two buses and makes a three-hour . round trip to the zoo, and has even adopted 23 of the animals. The former auxiliary nurse said her favourite animal are the tigers. She said: 'I was lucky enough to even be invited to a special audience to watch one of the tigers, Sarah, give birth to her cubs. 'The whole thing lasted about 20 minutes and it was such an amazing spectacle.' The pensioner has become somewhat of a VIP at the zoo and is invited to any special events. Muriel . knows all of the staff well, saying: 'They do treat me very well and . they let me hold some of the smaller animals whenever I go. 'They . will send a car for me if there is a function but I don't like all the . fuss and would even go if I had to walk all the way there.' Muriel, with staff from the zoo, as she sits on a bench engraved with her name for being one of their favourite supporters . The former auxiliary nurse said her favourite animal are the tigers. She said: 'I was lucky enough to even be invited to a special audience to watch one of the tigers, Sarah, give birth to her cubs' As one of the zoo's very first customers and certainly being its most loyal, Muriel said she has seen a lot of changes and has some great memories. She said: 'I particularly hold fond in my heart memories from the great summer of 1969. The atmosphere at the zoo was so electric and everyone had a blast. 'Everyone was happy because of the glorious weather and people were eating ice cream after ice cream to keep cool. 'Even the elephants who are used to high heats were having to be constantly cooled down with big buckets of water. 'Now that I'm saving on an annual pass, I'll be able to spend more money on treats for my favourite animals,' said the pensioner . Muriel said: 'I just love Dudley Zoo, it's a very special place for me and I never tire of it' Peter Suddock, CEO of Dudley Zoo, said: 'Muriel has been a season ticket holder for more years than she cares to remember and paid her first visit to the zoo as a ten-year-old schoolgirl, with her father and sister in 1937. 'She visits at least twice a month, regardless of the weather, and has been with us constantly throughout the good and bad times. 'Over the years, she has adopted many animals within the collection and knows all the members of staff on the keeping sections and offers encouragement and support in their projects. 'We often joke that Muriel knows more about the zoo than we do.' Muriel said: 'I just love Dudley Zoo, it's a very special place for me and I never tire of it. 'I cannot imagine life without the zoo - the staff are like family and it's the most magical place.' Muriel said: 'Now that I'm saving on an annual pass, I'll be able to spend more money on treats for my favourite animals.' | Muriel Thatcher first went to Dudley Zoo, West Midlands, aged 10, in 1937 .
Former auxiliary nurse has never married nor had any children .
She's now been given life membership, saving her £11.50 on daily ticket .
87-year-old has also adopted 23 of the animals . |
197,979 | 8c45f0aeefa62b8c46daccc732fdca7bd5550360 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 03:31 EST, 25 April 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 03:31 EST, 25 April 2012 . Diabetes . Diabetes will cost the NHS more than a sixth of its entire budget by 2035, a report has warned. The disease accounts for 10 per cent (£9.8 billion) of NHS spending, but this is projected to rise to £16.9 billion over the next 25 years, or 17 per cent of the health service's funds. Yet researchers also found that up to four-fifths of the money goes on treating complications such as kidney failure, nerve damage and amputation, which are often preventable. Their Impact Diabetes report, published in the journal Diabetic Medicine, also considered the indirect costs to individuals living with the condition, including those related to increased death and illness, the loss of income from stopping work, and the need for informal care. It found the total associated with these extra burdens in addition to direct patient care in the UK stands at £23.7 billion and is predicted to rise to £39.8 billion by 2035. There are around 3.8 million people living with diabetes in the UK and this is expected to increase to 6.25 million in just over two decades. Barbara Young, chief executive of Diabetes UK, said: 'This report shows that without urgent action, the already huge sums of money being spent on treating diabetes will rise to unsustainable levels that threaten to bankrupt the NHS. 'But the most shocking part of this report is the finding that almost four-fifths of NHS diabetes spending goes on treating complications that in many cases could have been prevented. 'The failure to do more to prevent these complications is both a tragedy for the people involved and a damning indictment of the failure to implement the clear and recommended solutions. Unless the Government and the NHS start to show real leadership on this issue, this unfolding public health disaster will only get worse.' A Department of Health spokeswoman said: 'We agree that diabetes is a very serious illness and one that has a big impact on the NHS. 'That's why we are tackling the disease on three fronts. First, through prevention of Type 2 diabetes - encouraging people to eat well and be more active. Second, by helping people to manage their diabetes through the nine annual health care checks performed in primary care. And by better management of the condition in hospital.' The report was put together by researchers at the York Health Economic . Consortium, in partnership with charities Diabetes UK, the Juvenile . Diabetes Research Foundation and Sanofi Diabetes. | Four-fifths of NHS diabetes spending goes on treating complications .
Number of people with diabetes expected to rise from 3.8m to 6.25m by 2035 . |
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