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160,888 | 5bfdeee782339be660d05c6029fe10a5a18d5ca8 | Scarred: Helena was shocked after her NHS tummy tuck left her midriff badly deformed and her looking like a man . Helena Grace could barely believe her luck when she was told she could have a tummy tuck on the NHS. After losing nine stone in just a year, thanks to a gastric bypass (also on the NHS), the 36-year-old nanny from Chesham, Bucks, had been left with large amounts of unsightly loose skin around her abdomen. Helena, who was once 21st 8lb, hoped the procedure – called an apronectomy or mini tummy tuck – would restore her self-confidence. Instead, the operation left her deformed, revolted and despairing every time she looked at her body. ‘I was so happy to finally lose weight but I was left with a lot of excess skin and it was making me miserable. So, at my yearly check-up, I asked my surgeon if anything could be done to correct it. He said he would refer me for a tummy tuck, which would get rid of the loose skin. I was really pleased when he said I could get the operation on the NHS. ‘I was referred to the Royal Free Hospital in North London and had an appointment with plastic surgeon Norbert Kang. He spent five minutes talking to me about the operation and left the rest up to his registrar [a junior doctor]. ‘Mr Kang did manage to tell me about possible risks of the surgery. He said that I would lose my belly button but it was only another scar and that I’d already have a huge scar across my stomach anyway,’ says Helena, who lives with fiance Tim, 44, a painter and decorator. ‘I didn’t like the thought of not having a belly button. It’s something that you have from birth and very much a part of you – not just another scar. ‘But when a surgeon tells you that it’s a normal part of the operation, you put your trust in him. I went along with it because I didn’t know any better. ‘He also said that I may have flaps of skin at each hip, which he called “excessive dog ears”. I assumed that this too was normal and so I consented to the surgery. I had no idea it would turn out the way it did.’ Nothing he said prepared Helena for the horrific results of the operation in February 2009. ‘When I came round, Mr Kang told me that he’d removed nearly 7lb of excess skin and was pleased with the result. ‘When I took the bandages off, I didn’t know what to expect. ‘I had never seen the results of a tummy tuck before, so if anything, I was pleased that so much skin had been removed. I had a horizontal scar from hip to hip that measured over 12 inches long and cut straight across the middle of my stomach. ‘I had, as predicted, no belly button and large flaps of skin that hung over my hips. I also had a thick pouch of skin that sagged from the centre of my stomach over my pubic bone so, to put it delicately, I looked like a man. It was very embarrassing.’ Yet Mr Kang assured her that the state her body was left in was perfectly normal. Helena was devastated. ‘People even asked me if I was going through a sex change because you could see a bulge through my clothes. I started to refuse invitations to go out – I hated the thought that people could see what a bad shape I was. My boyfriend at the time never mentioned it. ‘He knew how upset I was and was aware that it was not something he should talk about.’ Her former self: Helena on holiday with a friend before she lost the nine stone thanks to an NHS gastric bypass operation . After two years of suffering in silence, Helena decided to investigate corrective surgery – specifically tackling the pouch of flesh above her groin. ‘Mr Kang told me that he didn’t do that kind of operation. He said it would have to be done privately – and suggested the name of a surgeon, but after everything that had happened I decided I’d find my own doctor.’ She settled on cosmetic surgeon Mario Russo, who admits he was horrified by Helena’s post-operative body. ‘In all the years I’ve been practising I’ve never seen an abdomen like hers,’ he says. ‘The scar that should have been near her bikini line was high up above where her navel should be. The fact she had no belly button at all really shocked me. ‘Of course there is always a risk with this kind of surgery that you can lose a portion of the navel, but it was not acceptable that she’d been left in that state and I was really angry on her behalf.’ The corrective surgery by Mr Russo would normally have cost £15,000 – an amount Helena says she couldn’t afford. Instead, Mr Russo offered her the chance to appear in a television series that he was taking part in, which would mean she could have the surgery for free. ‘I was nervous but I didn’t feel like I had many other options,’ she says. ‘I felt so upset that the NHS surgeon seemed unconcerned by the cosmetic results of the operation. I was shocked by what Mr Russo had said but it was also something of a relief to have him confirm what I knew in my heart – that the way I looked wasn’t normal at all. I was absolutely gutted that I had been led to believe it was all OK.’ Helena underwent the five-hour corrective operation in June this year. Mr Russo says: ‘The previous procedure seemed to be very badly planned. When you perform surgery, you’re always taught that before you cut, you have to consider how you are going to close the wound. In Helena’s case, it seemed that the surgeon had cut without thinking it through.’ National Health Service: The Royal Free Hospital in Hampstead, north London, where Helena's operation was carried out . Mr Kang is a consultant plastic surgeon and honorary senior lecturer at University College, London. His research interests are listed as hand surgery and prosthetic reconstruction. It is NHS policy not to allow individual surgeons to speak to the media about specific cases. However, the Royal Free Hospitals NHS Trust gave a statement saying: ‘We are sorry to learn that Ms Grace was unhappy with the results of her operation although she has not made a formal complaint. ‘She was advised that it might not be possible to preserve her navel and it was also emphasised that following surgery, she might be unhappy with the cosmetic appearance of her abdomen. ‘Ms Grace signed a consent form indicating that she understood this information and wished to proceed. Following substantial weight loss, people may be left with excess folds of skin in the abdominal area, which can cause skin infections. ‘In order to alleviate these problems, NHS patients may be offered an apronectomy. In contrast, an abdominoplasty operation is a cosmetic surgery procedure where the aim of the operation is to improve the aesthetic appearance of the abdomen, and this includes preserving the navel. The NHS does not routinely offer this operation.’ Helena simply says: ‘I didn’t have skin infections. I believed the operation would make me look better. Would he have left his wife or daughter in that state?’ There has been a huge rise in post-obesity surgery in the past decade, linked to the increasing numbers of patients undergoing gastric banding and bypass – about 14,000 of these operations were carried out last year. As the number of operations rises, so does the number of complaints. ‘Complaints are usually due to poor outcomes,’ says Victoria Hydon, an expert in medical negligence at Moore Blatch Resolve solicitors. ‘We have about 50 similar cases a year – split equally between the NHS and private sector – and usually the problem lies with a breakdown in communication with patient and surgeon.’ Meanwhile, Helena simply wants to get on with her life. ‘I wish that I’d never had the tummy tuck in the first place.’ | After losing nine stone, Helena Grace was offered an operation to remove loose skin from her belly. The result was devastating .
My Naked Secret is on the Discovery Real Time channel on Sundays at 10pm and 10.30pm. |
226,071 | b0bf92ddcf09f8dfa23d8778cb7f14d4f39b2470 | A Japanese online retailer is branching out into bras, knickers and even silky nighties that, despite looking exactly like something you'd usually find in a woman's lingerie drawer, are actually intended for men. The brand new line of pretty, floral bras and lacy knickers from fashion label Wish Room Men's, who sell their products on major Japanese web shopping mall Rakuten, are due to arrive in stores mid-February. According to Japanese sites Pouch and RocketNews24, the garments aren't just women's smalls marketed towards men. Scroll down for video . These bras, knickers and silky nighties, from Japanese retailer Wish Room Men's, are actually intended for men . The lingerie is specifically designed with men's larger frames in mind and, although they still feature the lace, florals and underwiring you might expect to find in a woman's underwear collection, the bra cups lack padding, allowing men to slip them on without feeling 'unnatural'. Wish Room's say the line is designed to . allow men the chance to 'enjoy the same kind of soft, luxurious . undergarments that women are used to'. Now one of its most popular items, Wish Room first launched men's underwear in 2008. The shop also stocks lingerie for women. 'I like this tight feeling. It feels good,' Wish Room representative Masayuki Tsuchiya told Reuters. The company spokesman himself wears the bra, which can be worn discreetly under clothing. The underwear features all the lace and underwiring you might expect to find in a woman's collection . In response, thousands debated the merits of men wearing bras on Mixi, Japan's top social network website . Executive Director Akiko Okunomiya said she was surprised at the number of men who were interested in embracing their feminine side in this way. 'I think more and more men are becoming interested in bras. 'Since . we launched the men's bra, we've been getting feedback from customers . saying, "Wow, we'd been waiting for this for such a long time",' she . said. The cup sections lack padding, allowing men to slip them on without feeling 'unnatural' Its festive range was a hit, but now the brand is moving into spring florals . The underwear . stirred a heated debate online with more than 8,000 people debating the . merits of men wearing bras in one night on Mixi, Japan's top social . network website. The bras and knickers come in pink and mint green sets, and retail for the surprisingly low price of £11.50 (1,995 yen). Prices go up to around £18. HommeMystere send orders out in a discreetly packaged plain padded envelope . With the exception of the adventurous . few, indulging in a passion for pink, lacy lingerie has been the . preserve of women. Until now. One fashion firm hopes to change the way we shop for underwear with the launch of a range of racy lingerie exclusively for men. The HommeMystere collection, which includes padded bras, lacy teddies and frilly thongs with names like Jungle Fever, Moulin Rouge and Forget-me-not, is said by the firm to be 'comfortable' and 'great for all day wear'. They specialise in, they say, 'comfortable . men's panties that really do . fit, bra straps that don't fall off the shoulder, teddies that don't . ride up halfway through the night and quality soft fabrics that feel . great for all day wear'. The . Australian label - which has distributors in the UK and U.S. - say . attractive undergarments feel great and make dressing more fun and . enjoyable for men. They say they understand that men want 'quality lingerie style underwear . made with care, attention to detail' that fits your body perfectly'. The Fun Teddy sleepsuit is a 'lovely soft fabric teddy for men' and a 'full cut that stays in place' priced £35.70 . | Japan label Wish Room Men's sell their products on major site Rakuten .
Men's bras and knickers are among the firm's most popular items .
Their new range features various styles and colours for around £11.50 - £18 . |
251,621 | d1b212591aa7f0cb5b35fe81785632accad86275 | Washington (CNN) -- Eight current and former U.S. service members filed a lawsuit Tuesday alleging they were raped, sexually assaulted or harassed while serving in the military and were retaliated against once they reported the abuse. Among the defendants named in the suit are current and former Defense and Navy secretaries and Marine Corps commandants. "Although defendants testified before Congress and elsewhere that they have 'zero tolerance' for rape and sexual assault, their conduct and the facts demonstrate the opposite: They have a high tolerance for sexual predators in their ranks, and 'zero tolerance' for those who report rape, sexual assault and harassment," according to the lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court in Washington. The suit outlines a pattern of abuse and portrays, in grim detail, the alleged experiences of the eight female service members -- two former Marine Corps officers, one active duty enlisted Marine, one former enlisted member of the Marine Corps and four former enlisted members of the Navy. "At first it was easy to laugh it off," plaintiff Elle Helmer, one of the former officers, said about her superiors' advances. "When you finally said, you know, I'm really not interested, I'd rather we be friends -- that's when you became the target. They hated you for standing up for yourself," she told HLN's Jane Velez-Mitchell on Tuesday night. The lawsuit alleges Helmer was raped by her superior at his office in March 2006 after a required pub crawl. She told reporters at the National Press Club in Washington earlier in the day that she hoped by going public other victims would be encouraged to speak out. "It's the first time I've had a voice in six years, so pardon if it's a little wobbly," said Helmer. She was joined by Ariana Klay, another former Marine Corps officer and plaintiff, who served in Iraq in 2008 and 2009. Opinion: Victims of military sex assaults deserve justice . In August 2010, Klay was "gang-raped" by a senior officer and his civilian friend at her Washington home, the suit contends. The officer allegedly threatened to kill Klay. She reported the rapes and the officer was eventually convicted in a military court of adultery and indecent language, and given 45 days in military confinement, Klay said. "Their stance was there were two that said it (sex) was consensual, despite the death threat. That's two against one. So by that logic, the more people you're gang-raped by the less your case is," she told Velez-Mitchell. The Marine Corps responded to Klay and Helmer's allegations in a written statement Tuesday that said their respective cases had been properly investigated and handled. "Federal law and judicial rulings require commanders in all services, including the Marine Corps, to balance needs of alleged victims with the constitutional rights of service members accused of crimes," it read. According to the most recent Defense Department study, more than 19,000 incidents of unwanted sexual contact are estimated to have occurred in 2010, though less than 3,000 of those events were reported. In 2010, less than 21% of reported cases went to trial. Of the 529 alleged perpetrators who were prosecuted, 53% were convicted, according to the 2011 Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office, which is part of the Defense Department. "As leaders of this department we are committed to doing everything we can to ensure the safety, dignity and well being of our people. One sexual assault is one too many," Defense Department spokeswoman Cynthia Smith said in response to the lawsuit. As a result of the pending litigation, she was unable to comment directly on the allegations. "Because sexual assault cases are some of the toughest cases to investigate and prosecute, the department has increased funding for investigators and judge advocates to receive specialized training," said Smith. The lawsuit was filed less than two months after Defense Secretary Leon Panetta outlined new measures targeting sexual assaults against U.S military personnel. In January, he promised increased funding to train military investigators and judge advocates about sexual assault cases, stressing the military has a "zero tolerance policy" for such crimes. "Our men and women in uniform put their lives on the line every day to try to keep America safe," Panetta said then. "We have a moral duty to keep them safe from those who would attack their dignity and their honor." | Among the defendants are current and former Defense and Navy secretaries .
"They hated you for standing up for yourself," says plaintiff Elle Helmer .
Defense Secretary Panetta outlined new measures to combat such assaults in January . |
111,000 | 1b22f387cbca72829de859717dc75b424d194de8 | Everybody loves to write their own bucket list but few rarely get the opportunity to fulfill all of their lifelong dreams before they die. Intrepid duo, Jennifer Adams and Clint Bizzell, are fortunate enough to have travelled all over this Great Brown land for their jobs as television presenters on Channel Ten’s Places We Go and decided to reveal their top 100 best places across Australia. To share their special journey, the couple took along their 18-month daughter, Charlie, and both of their mothers in two cars and a caravan in tow on their Down Under adventure. Bizzell, a former AFL player, talks about seven of his best experiences that stood out for him while on the road trip with his family four years ago: . Favourite natural wonder: Mitchell Falls, Western Australia . 'The first time I saw it was from the air in a helicopter because it was the wet season. 'It's four-tiered - breathtaking and beautiful - a real sight to see.' 'Then we landed and trekked to it - it's such enormous water with so much power.' 'It was Mother Nature at its ultimate just doing it's thing - l felt very fortunate and lucky to have seen it.' Scroll down for video . 'It was Mother Nature at its ultimate just doing it's thing,' BIzzell said of Mitchell Falls in Western Australia . Jennifer Adams (pictured) and Clint Bizzell felt very fortunate to have seen the beautiful and breathtaking sight of Mitchell Falls . 'Breathtaking and beautiful' : Mitchell Falls in Western Australia chosen as favourite natural wonder . Favourite beach: Jervis Bay, New South Wales . 'It's in the Guinness Book of records for the whitest sand in the world. If you take your sunnies off when the sun is bouncing off the sand if you've got to put them back on. The marine park is phenomenal when you're paddle boarding and dolphins are greeting you and whales are constantly there. It's especially good for families because there are no crazy dumping whales.' Bizzell recalls dolphins greeting them while they were paddle boarding at Jervis Bay in southern NSW . Of all beaches in Australia, Bizzell chose Jervis Bay for it's gleamingly white sand - said to be the whitest in the world . Favourite country town: Birdsville, Queensland . 'It has a really great sense of community - it's very tight knit,' he said. 'It's in the middle of nowhere and had that real feel of country with enormous amounts of cattle.' 'Like any great country town it has a great pub with memorabilia. Spending time drinking beers with the locals is something I will always really treasure. 'They envelope you with their warmness - it's really overwhelming.' Bizzell chose Birdsville, Queensland as his favourite country town. Tourists looking out over Simpson Desert from atop a giant sand dune in Birdsville . Spending time drinking beers with the locals at the Birdsville Hotel is an experience that Bizzell will always really treasure . The overwhelming sense of community at Birdsville is something city slickers Adams and Bizzell will never forget . The Big Red : can be found near Birdsville . Favourite adventure: Diving with the Whale Shark, Ningaloo Reef, Western Australia . 'It's the biggest fish of the ocean so your heart is in your mouth because you are not sure where it is or how big it's going to be - then they tell you to look under the water and because it's 15 metres long it looks like an underwater building effortlessly swimming along.' 'You are feeling excitement, exhilaration and fear at the end of the your fingertips. Then you swim alongside and realise it's harmless and you want to keep up with it but you're too tired after a couple of minutes. 'Then you go on and look for another one - it's a real thrill seeking adventure.' The 15 metre long whale shark left Bizzell feeling exhilarated as he swam alongside the amazing giant fish Ningaloo Reef, Western Australia . Whale Shark (pictured) being filmed by divers at Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia . A close up picture of a diver taking a photograph of a whale shark at the Ningaloo Reef, Western Australia . Favourite historical destination: Mount Borradaile, Arnhem Land, Northern Territory . 'You fly in on a Cessna through all of the river systems and the airstrip is cut out of the jungle.' 'It has the greatest rock art in Australia but you would never expect it because it's in the middle of nowhere - surrounded by incredible history.' 'It's like a documentary of the Amurdak people who inhabited the land for over 50,000 years - its rock art depicting their everyday lives - it blew me away.' The rock art is like a documentary depicting the everyday lives of the Amurdak people who inhabited the land for over 50,000 years . Adams (pictured) and Bizzell could not believe the incredible amount of rock art at Mount Borradaile, Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory . Favourite city: Melbourne, Victoria . Despite being a Brisbane boy, Bizzell has lived in Victoria's capital city for 12 years and wouldn't have it any other way. 'It's got everything you could want - culture, art, sport, coffee which I never drank until I moved here and a mate told me I had to start drinking it,' he said. 'There's always something happening every weekend. I even like the weather - Jen doesn't though she likes it warmer.' The Yarra river and downtown Melbourne at dusk, the couple who live here, chose Melbourne for all it had to offer including culture, art, sport and even its great coffee . Bizzell believes Melbourne has everything you could need in an Australian city . Bizzell said there is everything you could need in Melbourne - and he even loves the unpredictable weather . Favourite locals: Bruny Island, Tasmania . Bizzell has very fond memories of many people he met in Tasmania – particularly Bruny Island residents Get Shucked oyster operator Joe Bennett and Nick Haddow from the Bruny Island Cheese Company. He described the Bruny folk - who were given the favourite locals gong - as giving, generous, open and fun. 'When you are walking past you are consumed and in your own head when I'm in Melbourne,' he said. 'But In Bruny everybody says hello and sometimes it frightens you because you are not used to it.' Bizzell had fond memories of people in met in Tasmania : Cloudy Bay, beach and sea with river, Bruny Island around Hobart, Tasmania . Get Shucked oyster operator Joe Bennett at Bruny Island in Tasmania stands out at as one of legendary locals on the trip for Bizzell . The residents at Bruny Island get the favourite locals gong for being giving, generous, open and fun . New South Wales & ACT . Australian War Memorial, Blue Mountains, Bondi Beach, Byron Bay, Coffs Coast, Jervis Bay, Jindabyne, Lord Howe Island, Mungo National Park, Murramarang National Park, Sapphire Coast, Southern Highlands, Sydney Harbour, Tamworth, Tilba . Victoria . Daylesford, Falls Creek, Grampians National Park, Great Alpine Road, Great Ocean Road, Great Otway National Park, Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), Melbourne, Metung, Mornington Peninsula, Mount Feathertop, Murray River, Phillip Island, Walhalla, Wilsons Promontory, Yarra Valley . South Australia . Adelaide, The Barossa, Clare Valley, Coober Pedy, Eyre Peninsula, Fleurieu Peninsula, Flinders Ranges, Kangaroo Island, Lake Eyre, The Nullarbor, Oodnadatta Track, Yorke Peninsula . Western Australia . Albany, Broome, Bungle Bungle Range, Purnululu National Park, Cape Leveque, Eco Beach, Eighty Mile Beach, El Questro Wilderness Park, Gibb River Road, Karijini National Park, Kookynie, Lake Ballard, Margaret River, Mitchell Falls, Mitchell River National Park, Ningaloo Reef, Perth, The Pinnacles, Nambung National Park, Rottnest Island, Shark Bay . Northern Territory . Alice Springs & MacDonnell Ranges, Darwin, The Ghan, Kakadu National Park, Karlu Karlu / Devils Marbles, Kata Tjuta, Katherine Gorge (Nitmiluk) National Park, Kings Canyon, Litchfield National Park, Mary River National Park, Mataranka, Mount Borradaile, Uluru . Queensland . Birdsville, Boodjamulla (Lawn Hill) National Park, Cape York, Carnarvon National Park, Daintree Rainforest & Cape Tribulation, Fraser Island, Great Barrier Reef, Magnetic Island, Mission Beach, Port Douglas, Seventeen Seventy, Sunshine Coast, Thursday & Horn islands, The Whitsundays, Winton . Tasmania . Bay of Fires, Bicheno, Bruny Island, Cradle Mountain–Lake St Clair National Park, Freycinet National Park, Hobart, King Island, MONA, Port Arthur, Stanley, Strahan . Australia’s Top 100 Places to Go – The Ultimate Bucket List by Jennifer Adams & Clint Bizzell from Places We Go, published by Explore Australia Publishing, RRP $34.95, www.exploreaustralia.net.au . | Jennifer Adams and Clint Bizzell travelled around Australia for five months in 2010 .
The couple took their 18 month daughter, Charlie, and both of their mothers in two cars and a caravan .
Intrepid duo are presenters on Channel Ten’s Places We Go television program .
They have written the book - Australia’s Top 100 Places To Go – The Ultimate Bucket List .
Clint Bizzell talks about seven of his best experiences while on the Down Under road trip . |
189,709 | 81a974cf35277c0a3b99c87b9f7f91d9ab09d8a3 | Eddie Hearn will hold a crisis meeting with Team Sauerland just hours before Paul Smith takes on Arthur Abraham after the two teams failed to agree which gloves will be worn for the world title fight. The disagreement occurred during the routine rules meeting which took place after the weigh-in on Friday afternoon in Germany. WBO super-middleweight champion Abraham selected the 10oz Everlast 1910 model for Smith to wear, even though the Liverpudlian prefers to wear Grant gloves since breaking his hand in his fight with George Groves in 2011. Paul Smith's promoter Eddie Hearn has revealed there has been a dispute over which gloves shown be worn for his fighter's world title bought after reigning WBO super-middleweight champion Arthur Abraham . The two fighters face off at the weigh-in in Kiel ahead of Saturday's fight for the WBO super-middleweight title . It is understood that the selected gloves seemed much bigger than the favoured Grants, which would not have helped Smith in this fight because of his punch power. It is common place for a champion to select which gloves will be worn but Smith and his team were not happy with the model and style selected at the meeting. Now promoter Eddie Hearn has arranged for three different models of Everlast gloves to be couriered out from England overnight – and Abraham must choose one of them. The two teams will now be forced to meet once again at midday on Saturday – just 10 hours before the boxers are due in the ring – to resolve the problem and finally select which gloves will be worn. Sportsmail columnist Hearn said: 'Abraham requested that we wear Everlast 1910 gloves. These were not of a style we have seen of that particular model before. 'Paul was not happy with the design or the quality of the glove selection. We are happy for Arthur to select gloves for Paul but had requested that Paul wear Grant gloves, as he has done for the majority of his recent fights. Paul Smith (right) looks determined at the weigh-in in Kiel ahead of his first world title fight on Saturday . Arthur Abraham (left) stands in the way of Smith (right) for the WBO super-middleweight title . 'When you're given an opportunity, like we have been by Abraham and his team as a voluntary defence, you have to accept certain things. One of them was that he selected the gloves and we have no problem with that. 'Abraham insists that Paul wears Everlast so we have couriered out three other models for Abraham to inspect in the morning. Fighters clearly need to protect their hands and also be comfortable, particularly in a fight of this magnitude. 'We'l meet in the morning, not trying to be difficult, we're just protecting our fighter. He needs to be comfortable with the gloves for a fight of this magnitude.' The situation is reminiscent of Floyd Mayweather's first fight with Marcos Maidana back in May, when champion Mayweather took exception to the gloves his opponent was planning to wear. The Argentinean wanted to wear the Everlast MX, known as a glove favoured by big punchers, which had been customised to the blue and colours of his nation's flag. But Mayweather and his CEO Leonard Ellerbe said there was not enough padding on the glove and eventually Maidana was forced to wear the softer Everlast Powerlock glove. | Sportsmail columnist Eddie Hearn has revealed there has been a disagreement over which gloves should be worn for the world title bout .
Arthur Abraham selected the 10oz Everlast 1910 model for Smith to wear, even though the Liverpudlian prefers to wear Grant gloves .
Abraham will be looking to defend his WBO super-middleweight crown against Paul Smith in Germany on Saturday . |
131,191 | 35a5f21a2ff277d2476e56833d88773b5c97ca4b | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 15:36 EST, 1 August 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 15:36 EST, 1 August 2012 . Accused: Drew Peterson, 57, pictured in 2009, has been imprisoned for the past three years awaiting trial for the death of his third wife, Kathleen Savio . The judge in Drew Peterson's murder trial considered today whether to declare a mistrial after blasting prosecutors for a second time in less than two days for bringing up information he said could prejudice the jury. A furious Judge Edward Burmila sent jurors out of the courtroom before grilling prosecutor Kathleen Patton for allowing a witness to mention a bullet and leave the impression that Peterson left it in the witness' driveway. Burmila then took a recess to allow defense attorneys to file a motion for mistrial. 'It can't be reckless, it is intentional,' Peterson attorney Steve Greenberg told the judge when court reconvened, arguing that prosecutors violated court orders. The former cop was charged in the 2004 death of his third wife, Kathleen Savio, after his fourth wife, Stacy Peterson, went missing in 2007. Drew Peterson is suspected in her disappearance but hasn't been charged. Patton said prosecutors didn't deliberately try to get the witness, former Peterson neighbor Thomas Pontarelli, to mention that he found the .38-caliber bullet on his driveway. The judge appeared close to declaring a mistrial yesterday after a prosecutor began to discuss an allegation that Peterson once tried to hire a hit man. Prosecutors contend Peterson killed Savio and tried to make it look like an accident. Defense attorney Joel Brodsky told jurors repeatedly during his opening statement that there was no evidence Savio's death was anything but a tragic accident. It appears the drama surroundnig Peterson's life and his arrest is due to continue in the courtroom. His defense attorney's argued yesterday that Peterson was a victim of a 24-hour news cycle and cable TV's talking heads, which together created a media frenzy that did not subside until prosecutors had charged an innocent man. Sketch: Drew Peterson, left, looks on as defense attorney Joe Lopez cross examines Kathleen Savio's neighbor, Mary Pontarelli, as they view a photo of Savio's lifeless body in the tub of her home . Yesterday: Attorneys for Drew Peterson, from left, Joe Lopez, Steve Greenber, and Joel Brodsky listen as Pam Bosco, a friend and spokesperson for the family of Stacy Peterson address the media during a recess in court . Prosecutors: Will County State's Attorney James Glasgow told the court during opening statements that Peterson killed his wife and made it look like an accident . Will County State's Attorney James Glasgow told jurors that Peterson, 58, killed Savio, 40, and made it look like an accident. 'Just weeks before her death, he told her he was going to kill her and she would not make it to a divorce settlement and would never get his pension,' Glasgow said during opening statements. Peterson's real-life drama inspired a TV movie and a national spotlight was put on the case, as many speculated whether Peterson used his law-enforcement expertise to get away with Savio's murder and make 23-year-old Stacy Peterson vanish. Grave charges: Peterson is accused of murdering Kathleen Savio, left. It was initially thought that she had drowned accidentally in the bathtub, right, but after her body was exhumed her death was ruled as a homicide . In memoriam: Flowers and a small angel statue surround the grave marker of Kathleen Savio, the third wife of Peterson, at the Queen of Heaven Cemetery in Hillside, Illinois . The first witness in the trial - Savio's close friend and next-door neighbor Mary Pontarelli - was called yesterday. She cried as she was shown a picture of Savio lying lifeless in her bathtub before describing the moment she found her body in March 2004. Mrs Pontarelli told the court she and her husband Tom, their son Nick and another neighbor, Steve Carcerano, entered the home late in the evening after Drew told her he could not get in touch with his ex-wife.She recalled: 'I went into the . bathroom, seen Kathleen in the tub and I ran out of the bathroom and . threw myself on the floor and started screaming. ' Peterson checked Savio's pulse and when she asked if she was dead he replied: 'Yes Mary, she is.' She said she noticed dried blood in . Savio's hair and blood coming from her mouth, and she had bruises on her . wrists and buttocks. Mrs Pontarelli said she offered to . cover Savio with a towel 'because I didn't want people to see her like . that. But he (Peterson) said we weren't supposed to touch anything and . we couldn't do that.' The prosecution is expected to try . and use statements that Stacy Peterson made to her minister before she . vanished in which she said that her husband had admitted to killing . Savio. While hearsay is usually barred, if . the judge admits Stacy Peterson’s statements, the testimony could be . damaging to Peterson, according to Kathleen Zellner, a Chicago attorney . who has been following the case. Distress: Marcia and Henry Savio, parents of Drew Peterson's third wife Kathleen, return to court as he stands trial for her murder . ‘What . the judge is going to do is he's going to wait and make individual . rulings each time the prosecution tries to introduce hearsay, not give a . blanket ruling, but listen to see if they open the door in some way . that makes the hearsay admissible. He'll make this a day by day ruling . on these different pieces,’ Zellner told ABC News. ‘Essentially . we've got Peterson confessing the murder of Savio to his fourth wife, . but we still have the question of whether that will come in.’ Prosecutors . will also try to admit Stacy Peterson's statements to her minister that . she saw Drew Peterson arrive home with women's clothing around the time . of Savio's death. Savio's . sister may take the stand to describe Savio's statements that Peterson . threatened her with a knife and said he could make her death look like . an accident. Missing: Peterson, right, is also the chief suspect in the disappearance of his fourth wife, Stacy Peterson, right . Taken in: Police Lt. Carl Anderson, left, and a fellow investigator escort Drew Peterson, centre, into District 5 State Police headquarters in 2009 . ‘That . doesn't concern us,’ Peterson's attorney, Joel Brodsky told ABC News . this week. ‘Anybody that knows anybody that has been through a divorce . knows that people say things and do things that is totally out of . character, and clearly Kathy was trying to build a case to try and get . as much money as she could.’ The . outcome of the trial may also hang on which forensic pathologist the . seven men and five women on the jury will believe: Bryan Mitchell or . Larry Blum. Mitchell, . who investigated Savio’s death in 2004 and ruled that a gash on her head . and bruises on her body were consistent with an accidental fall, died . earlier this year. The defense will likely call expert witnesses to . testify that the woman’s death was accidental. Blum, who investigated Savio's body . after it was exhumed in 2007, will testify for the prosecution at the . trial about what made him switch the cause of death from an accidental . fall to homicidal drowning. ‘First, they are not going to be able . to say that (the death investigation was botched) because it wasn't,’ Peterson's attorney said. ‘By saying that if they had done a better job . in the investigation, then they would have been able to prosecute Drew . Peterson, that lowers the burden of proof. Where you don't have . evidence, you presume innocence.’ | Former cop was charged in 2004 death .
of third wife Kathleen Savio, after his fourth wife, Stacy .
Peterson, went missing in 2007 .
Furious judge sent jurors out of courtroom today .
Recess so that defense attorneys can consider filing for mistrial motion . |
132,761 | 37ab0c905c0f6316856d502360515a02fe3be664 | (CNN) -- Violence rocked two major Iraqi cities Wednesday, including Baghdad, where a car bombing near a wedding party and two other bombings killed at least 20 people, police said. In Mosul, a Sunni activist known to demonstrate against Iraq's Shiite-led government was assassinated, one of 10 people killed or found dead from acts of violence Wednesday in the northern Iraqi city, Mosul police officials said. The slayings come amid an uptick of political and sectarian violence across Iraq, where more than 350 people died in acts of violence in May, according to a CNN tally. And Wednesday's attacks come on what is becoming an especially deadly week in the country -- at least 110 people have been killed since Monday. In Baghdad, two car bombs and a roadside bomb exploded in separate Sunni neighborhoods in Baghdad within 30 minutes of each other Wednesday evening, police in the Iraqi capital said. One of the car bombs detonated near a wedding party in al-Diwan, a neighborhood in southwestern Baghdad, killing at least 16 people and wounding 42 others, according to police. It wasn't clear whether the wedding party involved Sunnis or Shiites. The other car bomb exploded in a market in the al-Gazaliya neighborhood in western Baghdad, killing four people and wounding 17 others, police said. And in the al-Khadraa neighborhood in western Baghdad, a roadside bomb wounded six people, police said. Meanwhile, Wednesday's killings in Mosul -- about 430 kilometers (265 miles) north of Baghdad -- were another sign of a shaky security situation in Nineveh, the province where Mosul is located and one of three Iraqi provinces that postponed April's provincial council elections until July because of violence. Gunmen fatally shot Sunni activist Sheikh Hassan al-Jabouri with pistols equipped with silencers in central Mosul, a predominantly Sunni city, police said. No suspects have been announced. Al-Jabouri was active in demonstrations demanding that the Shiite-led government stop what protesters call second-class treatment of Iraq's Sunni community. Since December, tens of thousands of such demonstrators have taken to the streets across Iraq. Sunni Arabs had more political clout in Iraq during Saddam Hussein's rule, until his government was deposed in 2003 after the U.S.-led invasion. Under the Shiite-led government in the post-Saddam era, Sunnis have felt marginalized. About two-thirds of Iraq's nearly 32 million people are Shiite and roughly a third are Sunni, according to the CIA World Factbook. Also Wednesday, a suicide attacker detonated a car bomb at a police station in southern Mosul, killing two people and wounding seven others, police said. And the bodies of three people who appeared to have been tortured and hanged were recovered from the Tigris River and sent to the Mosul morgue, police said. The hanging victims appeared to have died Wednesday morning, police said. They have not been identified. Also, Iraqi federal police killed four people in clashes with unspecified gunmen in eastern Mosul, police officials in the city said. The clashes happened after people reported suspicious activity in a building. When police arrived, gunmen emerged and attacked them, the Mosul police officials said. In other violence Wednesday, mortar rounds landed on offices of the Nineveh provincial council in central Mosul, wounding six people, according to police. Wednesday's bloodshed comes amid an increase of violence across Iraq, much of it stemming from discord between Sunni and Shiite Muslims. On Tuesday, at least 23 people were killed and more than 80 others were wounded in three explosions and three shooting incidents in Baghdad and Mosul, police officials said. On Monday, at least 57 people were killed and 190 wounded in a wave of attacks in Baghdad and other cities, police said. READ MORE: Iraq at crossroads as bombs explode . READ MORE: April the deadliest month in Iraq in 5 years . | NEW: Four bombings kill at least 20 in Baghdad on Wednesday, 16 of them at wedding party .
10 also killed in Mosul, including activist shot to death, two killed by car bomb .
Three bodies, apparently tortured and hanged, recovered from Tigris River in Mosul .
More than 350 people killed in Iraq in May as Sunni-Shiite discord rises . |
114,450 | 1fb0646e91f6a06eeb499b178d86f3d2df63812a | It is a long time since all brides were expected to wear white. But the government is insisting that they must at least wear something, after ministers ruled out lifting the ban on nude weddings. Justice Secretary Chris Grayling today rejected the idea of allowing naturist weddings, saying he had ‘absolutely no intention’ of allowing naked couples to tie the knot. Among groups that have expressed an interest in changing the wedding laws is British Naturism, the organisation that represent naturists and campaigns to combat prejudice against outdoor nudism . It was suggested last week that couples may be allowed to get married naked in naturist weddings under a rethink of marriage law. Ministers launched a consultation on staging ‘non-relgious’ marriages, which was seen as a move to give humanist ceremonies legal status. But among those expressing a view was British Naturism, which campaigns on behalf of thousands of members ‘against the ever-changing environment that constantly throws up new threats to our freedom’. In response Harry Benson of the Marriage Foundation joked: ‘Some of these ideas are just silly. I hope there will be guidance for the best man at a nude wedding on where to keep the ring.’ The wedding law review is expected to look at sweeping reforms which could allow weddings in the open air, in people’s homes and gardens or with the couple and guests in the nude. But Mr Grayling today insisted that wedding parties had to keep their clothes on. He insisted that he had not ordered a review into naked weddings, despite coming under pressure from British Naturism. Justice Secretary Chris Grayling today insisted that wedding parties had to keep their clothes on. He told BBC One’s Sunday Politics: ‘There’s a difference between somebody expressing an interest and it actually happening. 'At the moment we are looking at the issue of humanist marriage, but it’s something that’s being reviewed by the marriage law commission.’ He added: 'No nude marriage right now as far as I’m concerned.’ Presenter Andrew Neil joked: ‘I’m sure they’ll be appalled. Mind you, the weather’s quite cold out there at the moment.’ The paper last week by the Ministry of Justice confirmed that among groups that have expressed an interest in changing the wedding laws is British Naturism. It said naturists could qualify to conduct weddings if the rules were changed. At the moment wedding law allows couples to have a traditional wedding in church, under rules set by the Church of England and other churches with the right to conduct the ceremonies, or a civil wedding in a register office or ‘approved premises’. Approved premises, which include stately homes, hotels and sports ground entertainment suites, have proved highly popular since they were introduced in the 1990s. Only Jews and Quakers are allowed to marry in their own homes, under laws from 1753 which released them from the requirement to be married by the Church of England. Tony Blair’s government tried to introduce a law to allow people to get married anywhere they liked in 2000, but dropped the idea in the face of the complications involved. The 2013 Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act said ministers would review whether ‘non-religious belief organisations’, like humanists, should also be able to conduct weddings. The consultation response from the Ministry of Justice last week said that humanists were anxious to hold weddings in the open air or at places couples find ‘meaningful’, which could mean a preferred holiday beach, the place where they met, a place where a parent’s ashes were scattered, or even a football pitch. But it said that there was a risk that criminal gangs running sham or forced marriages would move in, and that ‘inappropriate’ organisations could win the right to run marriages. ‘There was a risk that any group, including those with a cult following, could potentially qualify if they could show their purpose as the advancement of beliefs and the ethics associated with those beliefs, or could successfully have it determined that they were being discriminated against if excluded from conducting legal ceremonies,’ the paper said. It added: ‘The groups identified as a risk included political organisations, Jedi Knights, Hell’s Angels, radicalised groups and criminal gangs involved in forced marriage.’ One critic of reform, it said, feared that pressure groups would try to conduct marriages to raise funds for their cause. The Ministry of Justice paper said that the Government law reform advisers, the Law Commission, will be asked to ‘begin as soon as possible a broader review of the law concerning marriage ceremonies. ‘An independent review should be able to examine all the issues arising from the consultation alongside all other relevant matters. The Government will start to work with the Commission in January to consider the scope of such a review.’ | Chris Grayling says he has 'no intention' of backing naked weddings .
Justice Secretary says British Naturism was only responding to law review .
Marriage Foundation questioned where the best man would keep the ring .
Government is examining possible changes to the law on marriage . |
14,928 | 2a61e88d9799acd6476705ae2342b73ddebf9a84 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 10:32 EST, 13 November 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 16:41 EST, 13 November 2013 . A husband is believed to have killed his estranged wife, their teenage daughter and his brother-in-law before killing himself in a horrific murder-suicide which rocked a Phoenix suburb yesterday. Officers found Carol Sanders' burned body in the home's back yard after responding to neighbors reports of gunfire. Inside the home they discovered the couple's 14-year-old daughter Audra who had also been shot dead. Carol's brother Tom Fitzpatrick, 49, was found shot in his vehicle outside while Michael Sanders, 51, killed himself in a nearby alley. Tragedy: Police believe Michael Sanders killed his estranged wife Carol and their 14-year-old daughter Audra, pictured . Murder-suicide: Carol and Audra Sanders were killed at the family home alongside Carol's brother Tom Fitzpatrick . Police said the couple had separated and Carol was collecting her belongings from the family home when her husband attacked. The shooting came just hours after they appeared in a Maricopa County Courtroom over a protective order Carol Sanders, 51, had taken out against Michael. Divorce: Police say Carol Sanders filed for divorce from Michael last month . She reportedly filed for divorce last month and had moved out with her daughter some time before, AZFamily reported. 'I understand he had an order of protection put out against him, and it may very well be related to that,' Sgt. Trent Crump, a spokesman for Phoenix police, told the website. 'It certainly is a chilling case .... We believe it was planned out. He left his identification in his vehicle.' 'We understand, by witness accounts, that he first shot the brother seated in his truck in the front driveway. 'He then went into the home were . additional gunshots were heard. We believe that was the daughter and the . mother. Ultimately, we believe he took his wife out back and set her . body on fire. It certainly is a horrific scene.' Tributes flooded in for Audra, an eighth grade student at Desert Shadows Middle School. She was described as a good student and a popular member of the school choir. 'Everyone is devastated, we just really are,' said Kim Cooper, a parent at the school told AZFamily. 'Audra was just a bright, bright girl...neat personality, interesting, her teachers loved her.' A . statement from Paradise Valley Unified School District read: 'We are . heartbroken over the loss of our student, a 14-year-old child, and her . family. 'The nature of their deaths is . particularly difficult to accept. Audra Sanders was in the 8th grade and . was a member of the school chorus. The . principal of Desert Shadows Middle School visited Audra's classes this . morning to inform her classmates and to share with them that a team of . adults is available to them if they need assistance processing their . thoughts and feelings.' 'We will have counseling and support personnel at the school in the days ahead, as long as it appears they are needed.' Friends said her father was extremely protective of his only child. Shots: Neighbors reported hearing gunshots around 4pm and called 911 to the Phoenix home . Moving out: Police believe Carol's brother Tom Fitzpatrick was waiting in his truck, pictured, outside for his sister and his niece when he was shot dead by his brother-in-law . | Carol Sanders' burned body was found in the back yard of her family home in Phoenix, Arizona .
Police believe her estranged husband shot her dead before setting her body alight .
Their 14-year-old daughter Audra was found dead inside property and her uncle Tom Fitzpatrick was shot dead in his van outside .
Police discovered Sanders in an alleyway after he had 'turned gun on himself'
Couple were due to appear in court today regarding a protective order Carol had taken out against her husband .
Police believe she was visiting the property to collect her belongings before moving out . |
72,704 | ce2b3c2ff6e2ba93ea4d490c0573e8f03012b957 | Washington (CNN) -- The Senate voted Wednesday to approve the new nuclear arms control treaty with Russia -- a major foreign policy victory for the Obama administration near the end of the lame-duck session of Congress. The New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, or New START, was cleared by a 71-26 vote. Several Republicans joined a unified Democratic caucus in support of the accord. Under Senate rules, the treaty required support from a two-thirds majority of voting senators for final approval. "This is the most significant arms control agreement in nearly two decades," President Barack Obama said after the vote. It "will enhance our leadership to stop the spread of nuclear weapons and seek the peace of a world without them." Bipartisan passage of the measure "sends a powerful signal to the world that Republicans and Democrats stand together on behalf of our security." If ratified, the treaty would resume inspections of each country's nuclear arsenal while limiting both the United States and Russia to 1,550 warheads and 700 launchers. It still needs to be approved by the Russian parliament. Obama signed the treaty with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in April. The accord is considered a critical component of nuclear non-proliferation efforts and the administration's attempt to "reset" Washington's relationship with Moscow. Several senators were reassured by the last-minute passage of an amendment stating that the accord should not be interpreted in a way that would hamper U.S. missile defense plans. The amendment was sponsored by Republican senators John McCain of Arizona and Bob Corker of Tennessee, among others. Others said they had been assured of an administration commitment to modernize America's aging nuclear arsenal. "The people of the world are watching us, because they rely on our leadership," said Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry, D-Massachusetts. It is time to "move the world a little more out of the dark shadow of nuclear nightmare." "We are the leading nuclear power on this earth. It is our responsibility to lead," said Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-North Dakota. This treaty is "a step in the right direction." Indiana Sen. Richard Lugar, the top Republican on the Foreign Relations Committee, called it a step forward in terms of constraining "expensive arms competition with Russia" and frustrating "rogue nations who would prefer as much distance as possible between the United States and Russia." Not all Republicans were convinced of the treaty's merits, however. Sen. Jim DeMint, R-South Carolina, argued on the Senate floor that the basic premise of the treaty -- that America's nuclear arsenal should be at parity with Russia's -- is flawed. "Russia is a protector of none and a threat to many. America is a protector of many and a threat to none," DeMint said. DeMint also voiced an ongoing conservative complaint in the lame-duck session -- that Democrats were ramming the treaty through as part of a long list of partisan priorities rejected by the public in the midterm elections. "We should not be passing major legislation at this time of year with this Congress," he said. The arms pact is part of "a continued effort of accommodation and appeasement" that makes a "mockery of the debate and ratification process." Sen. Mark Kirk, R-Illinois, called the treaty "an echo from the 20th century" that fails to account for new and emerging threats. Kirk and several other senators expressed a fear that the treaty would weaken America's ability to prevent potential nuclear attacks from countries such as Iran and North Korea. McCain himself, despite passage of the amendment he sponsored, ultimately voted against the accord, as well. He argued that that it "re-establishes an old and outdated linkage between nuclear arms and missile defense, which is no longer suited to the threats of today's world." Passage of the treaty appeared to be in doubt for weeks. A late burst of support came Tuesday, however, after treaty supporters voted down or tabled several Republican amendments, saying they were unnecessary and would imperil the pact by reopening negotiated language or understandings with Russia. The defeated amendments included adding a reference to tactical nuclear weapons and a bid to remove from the preamble language recognizing a relationship between offensive and defensive weapons. A number of senior military leaders publicly endorsed the treaty, including Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. "This treaty has the full support of your uniformed military, and we all support its ratification," Mullen wrote in a letter read Monday by Kerry. The late endorsement helped undercut a move by some conservatives to delay final consideration of the treaty until January, when Republicans will have a stronger minority in the Senate and, therefore, more leverage. Obama and Democratic leaders, conversely, pushed strongly to get the agreement passed before their majority in the Senate diminishes. In a sign of the high stakes involved, Obama and other top administration officials, including Vice President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, all talked to individual senators in recent days to seek support for the treaty. Biden, acting in his capacity as president of the Senate, personally presided over the final vote. Clinton also went to Capitol Hill to discuss the issue with former Senate colleagues. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, managed to make it to the Senate for the vote despite undergoing prostate cancer surgery Monday. A joyous atmosphere was seen on the floor after the vote -- likely the last Senate action of the lame-duck session. The treaty's supporters and opponents alike congratulated Lugar and Kerry, the key congressional proponents of the accord. An overwhelming majority of Americans support ratification of the treaty, according to a CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll released Tuesday: 73 percent of people questioned in the national poll said the Senate should approve the accord, while 24 percent said senators should reject it. CNN's Alan Silverleib, Tom Cohen, Dana Bash, Ted Barrett and Lesa Jansen contributed to this report. | NEW: Obama praises unity between parties in passing nuclear arms accord .
NEW: McCain decries "outdated linkage between nuclear arms and missile defense"
The New START passes in a 71-26 vote as some Republicans back treaty .
Treaty will resume inspections, limit each nation to 1,550 warheads and 700 launchers . |
13,605 | 269266d8101539e4b75ed417212c18b4032ef622 | By . Michael Zennie . PUBLISHED: . 08:07 EST, 27 August 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 13:56 EST, 27 August 2012 . Experienced: Richard White, a 49-year-old father with a young daughter, had hiked Denali before . The hiker mauled and eaten by a grizzly bear in Alaska's Denali National Park this weekend was an experienced explorer who loved traveling to remote areas alone, his family said. Wildlife officials believe Richard White, a 49-year-old scientist from San Diego, California, simply got too close to the 600-pound predator as he photographed it grazing on Friday. For nearly eight minutes, the bear didn't realize Mr White was there and continued foraging. The pictures on Mr White's camera, which park rangers discovered after his death, reveal the last peaceful moments before the bear noticed him 40 yards away and charged. Mr White was married with a 21-month-old daughter named Mona. However, he liked to escape alone into the wilderness whenever he could find the time to get away, his father told the San Diego Union-Tribune. 'He had a real zest for seeing the phenomena in the world and interacting with people all over the globe,' Byron White told the newspaper. 'He also liked hiking alone in these remote places. He enjoyed being out in the wilderness.' Richard White had been the director of exploratory pharmacology at Ferring Pharmaceuticals in San Diego, though he was in the process of changing jobs. He was an experienced hiker who had been to Denali before and took a bear safety course that is mandatory for all back country hikers in the Park. It includes instructions on how to avoid disturbing bears and what to do if attacked. Mr White's death is the first known fatal bear attack on a human in the 90-year history of national park. Wildlife officials have worked to keep strict rules about human and wildlife interaction. Officials recommend hikers carry bear . spray, powerful chemicals that work like the pepper spray police . officers carry, which can stop a bear charge without permanent harm to . the animal. Grim Discovery: Evidence of the attack was found Friday afternoon by a trio of hikers, who came upon a lone backpack lying near a park river . Other explorers carry powerful rifles, shotguns and pistols to protect themselves. Mr White carried neither. His only defense -- a safety whistle. Park rules say hikers should keep a quarter-mile distance from bears and back away whenever they see one of the dangerous animals. Mr White was just 40 yards away when he was killed -- 10 times closer than he should have been, the Anchorage Daily News reports. 'Certainly too close,' Pete Webster, Denali's chief park ranger, told the newspaper. A state trooper shot and killed the bear, a 5-year-old male grizzly . on Saturday and investigators examined its stomach contents and to confirm it had killed Mr White. Rugged: Denali National Park home to Mt. McKinley. It spans more than 6 million acres and is home to numerous wild animals, including bears, wolves, caribou and moose . Wide berth: Hikers are told to give grizzly bears a quarter-mile distance and slowly back away from any bears they see . The fearsome grizzly bear, and its coastal cousin the brown bear, is the second-largest land predator on the planet -- bested only by the polar bear. Despite their massive size and ferocious speed, fatal bear attacks are extremely rare in North America -- averaging less than two a year. Black bears, which are smaller but live in much closer proximity to urban areas, kill more people than grizzlies. The last fatal grizzly bear mauling in Alaska was more than seven years ago. Rich and Kathy Huffman were attacked in their tent in June 2005 in Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, along the Hulahula River. This following is a list of fatal grizzly bear mauling in North America: . 2012: 1 -- Denali National Park, Alaska . 2011: 2 -- Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming . 2010: 2 -- Gallatin National Forest, Montana, and Shoshone National Forest, Wyoming . 2009: 0 . 2008: 2 -- Alberta, Canada, and Big Bear Lake, California . 2007: 1 -- Alberta, Canada . 2006: 1 -- Yukon Territory, Canada . 2005: 4 -- British Columbia, Canada, Alberta, Canada, and Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska . 2004: 0 . 2003: 2 -- Katmai National Park, Alaska . 2002: 0 . The hiker was backpacking alone along . the Toklat River on Friday afternoon when he came within 40 yards of the . bear and began snapping photographs. He was so close, he used a . wide-angle lens instead his telephoto, the pictures reveal. 'They show the bear grazing in the willows, not acting aggressive in any form or manner during that period of time,' Denali Park Superintendent Paul Anderson said. Officials learned of the attack after . hikers stumbled upon an abandoned backpack along the river about three . miles from a rest area on Friday afternoon. The hikers also spotted torn . clothing and blood. They immediately hiked back and alerted staff park. Rangers in a helicopter spotted a . large male grizzly bear sitting on the hiker's remains, which they . called a 'food cache' in the underbrush about 100 to 150 yards from the . site of the attack on Friday. 'Over the years, and especially since . the 1970s, the park has worked very diligently to minimize the conflict . between humans and wildlife in the park,' Mr Anderson said. 'We have some of the most stringent . human-wildlife conflict regulations in the National Park system, and I . think those are largely responsible for the fact that there hasn't been a . fatal attack.' Park officials said they don't believe . other registered backpackers are in the immediate area. That portion of . the park is closed but other wilderness areas remain open, officials . said. Denali is located 240 miles north of . Anchorage, and is famously home to Mt. McKinley. It spans more than 6 . million acres and is home to numerous wild animals, including bears, . wolves, caribou and moose. The attack was discovered Friday . around 5.30pm, when a trio of other hikers came upon a lone backpack . lying along the Tolkat River about three miles from a rest area. 'Upon further investigation, they saw . evidence of a violent struggle, including torn clothing and blood,' a . Park Service spokesman told the Daily News. | Richard White's death is the first bear mauling fatality at Alaska's Denali National Park .
Mr White's bloody backpack was discovered by a trio of fellow hikers on Friday and his remains were found nearby .
Rangers shot the bear and inspected the contents of its stomach to confirm it had killed Mr White .
Mr White, 49, was married and had a 21-month-old daughter .
Did not carry anti-bear spray, as recommended by park rangers . |
125,739 | 2e89a3f8bb0f3946aac5b9b7139ad829c88a6a4b | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 03:36 EST, 5 July 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 02:49 EST, 6 July 2012 . Apple is preparing to launch a smaller version of the multi-million selling iPad, it was claimed yesterday. The little brother of the tablet device would measure fewer than eight inches across the diagonal – considerably smaller than the current 9.7-inch model – and be cheaper. It was also suggested what has been dubbed the 'iPad Mini' could be available in the autumn – in time for Christmas. The competition: Apple's latest iPad on offers a fantastic experience in the hand - put a painful one in the pocket . 'Mid-sized' tablets such as Samsung's Galaxy Note have been big sellers - and have begun to eat into Apple's dominance of the tablet market . Apple is notoriously secretive about . its technical innovations and rumours of the smaller tablet are said to . have originated from the Far East, where many of the company's devices . are manufactured. They were reported by Bloomberg and . the Wall Street Journal, which quoted several unnamed sources within . Apple's supply chain. A UK spokesman last night said: 'Apple does not . comment on rumour or speculation.' The current iPad costs upwards of . £399 and industry insiders said an 'iPad Mini' would be an obvious . response to competition from rival tablets such as Google's seven-inch . £159 Nexus 7. Far Eastern technology blogs also . hinted that a launch by Apple was imminent. Sterne Agee analyst Shaw Wu . predicts that the move would be a devastating blow for Android . competitors. 'It would be the competitors' worst nightmare,' he said. The late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, . who died last October, was vehemently against a smaller iPad, saying in . 2010: 'The reason we won't make a seven-inch tablet isn't because we . don't want to hit a lower price point, it's because we think the screen . is too small to express the software.' The iPad Mini would show that Apple is prepared to break away from former chief exec . Steve Jobs' deeply-held mantras. Future: Hugo Barra, director of product management of Google, shows off Google's new Nexus 7 tablet . Nexus 7 iPadPrice: $199 (8GB) $399(16GB) $249 (16GB) Size: 7 inches 9.7 inches . Weight: 340g 650gBattery: 9 hours 10 hours . The Nexus packs a high-definition . screen, the latest 'quad-core' processor, runs the latest version of . Android, and has a battery life which can handle nine hours of . continuous video playback. The firm hopes the tablet will take on . Apple’s iPad. It's part of a new generation of iPad rivals, including Microsoft’s Surface tablet which was revealed . last week, and current Android tablets including Amazon’s Fire. Two versions will be available, one with . 8GB of storage for $199 and a second with 16GB for $249. By comparison, . Apple's new iPad, which has a larger 9.7 inch screen, costs $399 for a . 16GB version. The Windows version of a tablet: The new Surface was unveiled by Microsoft last week . Amazon's Kindle Fire is likely to be hit hard by Apple's new launch - the cheap tablet is also seven inches, but built on unglamorous hardware . Earlier this year, a Samsung official appeared to confirm the existence of a smaller 'iPad Mini', due to be released this year. The official said to a Korean newspaper, 'The amount of the current contract [between Apple and Samsung] is around $9.7billion. 'The contract is expected to rise to $11billion by the end of this . year as Apple is planning to release a smaller iPad, probably with a . 7.85-inch screen, and to sell more of its MacBook Air PCs using . Samsung’s faster solid state drive (SSD) storage.' Microsoft also recently unveiled its own 'Surface' tablet, a touchscreen running its new Windows 8 software. Apple's new tablet will also be a concern to Amazon, as their Android-running tablets, such as the Kindle Fire, have . been runaway successes in the U.S. Kindle . Fire is also a seven-inch tablet, built around the old BlackBerry . PlayBook, but running a customised version of Android focused on selling . videos, apps and music via Amazon's Marketplace. Microsoft has previously tried and failed at bringing Windows tablets to the market. Bill Gates spent the tail-end of the . 1990s trying to convince people that tablets were the wave of the future . - but Microsoft never quite got either the hardware or software working . together, and their early efforts - as long ago as 2001 - never . convinced anyone. The runaway success of 'mid-sized' devices such as Samsung's Galaxy Note, which has a five-inch screen, has helped Samsung gain ground in the tablet market . On the other hand, the risk to Apple . is that a different-sized tablet might lead to fragmentation - where . apps and games need re-configuring by their developers to ensure they . are compatible on both versions. This has been Android's biggest issue in the last few years. Different screen sizes, different . manufacturers, different versions of the operating system and different . price-points all lead to choice for the consumer - but at the cost of . development headaches and an inconsistent experience. | Smaller cheaper machine to launch 'soon' claim factory sources .
Screen between 7 and 8 inches .
Built to compete with cheap rivals such as Google's £159 Nexus 7 .
Sources in Apple's supply chain claim tablet is already in production .
Earlier leaks hinted tablet would be on sale later this year .
Launch will go directly against Apple founder Steve Jobs wishes . |
182,663 | 788b8dd1b114b99ef4cb47938f0df2a69d91431c | LA PAZ, Bolivia (CNN) -- A 3-year-old Bolivian girl whose parents thought was dead and were preparing to bury remained in a coma but was improving Friday, while her mother and stepfather were being held on abuse charges, a hospital official said. The girl is suffering from a head injury, contusions throughout her body and burns on her face, said Jose Carlos Camacho, director of Hospital Universitario Japones in Santa Cruz. "She is improving," Camacho told CNN on Friday. "Yesterday she was able to take liquids orally. She is waking up but remains critical." The girl's parents thought she was dead and held a six-hour wake Monday when a neighbor noticed she showed signs of life and took her to a medical center, the Santa Cruz, Bolivia, newspaper El Deber said on its Web site. The girl's stepfather, Gumercindo Ali Mamani, 20, and mother, Lucia Chana, 22, appeared in court Tuesday and were ordered held on abuse charges, the newspaper said. Their 3-month-old son was placed in protective custody. The severity of the girl's coma is rated about 14 or 15 on a 15-point scale, in which 15 is the best, Camacho said. A patient is usually placed on life-support machinery at 8 on the scale, said Camacho, who is also a surgeon. The girl suffered a subdural hematoma, a traumatic injury in which blood pools between two protective layers of the brain, but did not require surgery, Camacho said. A subdural hematoma can result from a blow to the head or from shaking. Doctors expect the girl to remain in intensive care for about another week before she can be moved to intermediate care. According to El Deber, the stepfather asked for forgiveness but the mother only said that the girl was often restless. CNN's Arthur Brice contributed to this report. | Bolivian parents were preparing to bury their 3-year- old girl .
Neighbor noticed signs of life, takes girl to medical center .
Mother and stepfather arrested, are being held on abuse charges .
Girl in coma, with head injury, contusions over her body and facial burns . |
26,447 | 4b1dea80f7e4490be29358ba15fc0cc246d1cdd3 | Childminders and nurseries will be able to double the number of children they look after under radical plans to cut care bills for working families. Ministers are considering a move to copy French childcare rules where each member of staff can look after up to eight children. In England the limit is just four toddlers. It is hoped that reducing the red-tape burden on employers will help to bring down childcare bills which sees British parents spending more than a quarter of their income on looking after their children. Nursery staff would be able to look after more children under plans to cut huge bills for families which see mothers with a full-time job needing to work for up to four months of the year just to break even . Education minister Liz Truss today signalled she wants to tear up ‘onerous requirements on numbers’ to bring reduce nursery bills. Britain has some of the highest childcare costs in the world, meaning the typical mother with one child and a full-time job needs to work for up to four months of the year just to break even. Millions with two or more children conclude it is not worth working at all. But Miss Truss said the problem could be tackled without additional government funding. She pointed to ‘strong examples’ in Europe where rules on staff ratios are less stringent, which would enable nurseries to employ fewer, better-paid staff. The minister warned that in the UK . some poorly-paid childcare workers do not have good qualifications in . English and maths ‘yet we expect them to help our young children learn . to speak and do their first sums’. In France Écoles Maternelles offer . traditional nursery style teaching by teachers in large groups of 3 and 4 . year olds and the government there is about to extend them to . disadvantaged two-year-olds. French crèches for the under-3s are also in . much demand, Miss Truss said. Education minister Liz Truss warned salaries for nursery staff are being capped by 'of onerous requirements on numbers' ‘They operate with fewer staff who are . better qualified and better paid than their English equivalents,’ she . said in an article for the ConservativeHome website. In France, staff are paid over . £16,000 and are responsible for up to eight toddlers. The figure in . Ireland and Holland is up to six children. By comparison, nursery staff in England earn £13,000 and can be responsible for no more than four toddlers. Miss Truss said: ‘In England, we need to move to a simpler, clearer system that prioritises quality and safety over excessive bureaucracy. ‘We also need to think about the balance between the number and quality of staff in our system. ‘It is no coincidence that we have the most restrictive adult-child ratios for young children of comparable European countries as well as the lowest staff salaries. ‘Our ratios put a cap on the salaries staff can be paid because of onerous requirements on numbers. ‘If staff are being paid barely more than minimum wage, nurseries struggle to retain and recruit high quality people.’ However, Labour warned a move towards the French system could harm the quality of care. Shadow education secretary Stephen Twigg said: 'David Cameron is presiding over a childcare crisis – with 381 Sure Start centres shut down, spiralling costs for working parents and less support through tax credits. 'Now his own Children’s minister says they plan to cut the number of nursery staff – which experts say will threaten child safety and the quality of care for toddlers.' Ministers are expected to set out a major overhaul of childcare next week. Staff in French nurseries can care for eight children, compared to just four toddlers in England . In addition to changes to staffing ratios, it is likely to include generous tax breaks being offered to families with children under five who need to pay for nurseries and childminders. Senior coalition figures are to meet later this week to finalise a deal expected to be worth up to £2,000 per year per child for all working parents. The favoured model would more than make up for the loss of child benefit for better-off families that comes into effect today – but only for those where both parents work. | In France staff can look after up to eight children but in England the number is just four .
Education minister Liz Truss says UK nursery workers are badly paid because of 'onerous' rules on numbers .
Coalition to announce overhaul of childcare including tax breaks for working families as early as next week .
Labour warns French system could pose risks to the quality of care . |
47,247 | 85273ff74bbd4b523f999ea82ee1c25a475b2e7c | He's known for his love of skin tight denim. But Russell Brand was spotted hanging loose in a very baggy get-up as he stepped out with a lady friend. In what could only be described as a white pair of harem pants teamed with leg warmers, Russell paraded his eccentric sartorial style while out for a coffee in West Hollywood. Perhaps the comedian and actor was taking preventative action against revelations that skinny jeans could be bad for your health if you're a man. Hanging loose: Russell Brand stepped out for a coffee with a lady friend wearing what looked like harem pants teamed with leg warmers . Baggy trousers: Perhaps the comedian was taking preventative action against revelations that skinny jeans are bad for men's health . Experts revealed today that the number of men suffering painful testicular problems is on the rise because of tight jeans. Doctors, including top TV doctor Hilary Jones, have reported an increase in injuries being caused by the jeans, which are favoured by celebrities like Russell Brand, Jude Law and Joey Essex. The trendy denims are causing twisted testicles, bladder weakness and even urinary tract infections. Trousers too tight to mention: Skinny jeans made fashionable by celebrities like Russell . Brand (left) cause twisted testicles, bladder weakness and urinary . tract infections, TV doctor Hilary Jones (right) says . Low sperm count and fungal infections are also being put down to the tight-fitting jeans. Dr Jones, who is working with TENA on a project to highlight the dangers, said: ‘I have seen several cases of men who have twisted their testicles due to wearing jeans that are far too tight. ‘My advice would be to make sure you leave plenty of room around the groin area and that your pants and trousers feel comfortable so you’re not being restricted in any way. Tricky trends: Jude Law likes to stay trendy with tight jeans but he might also need to run to the toilet more often as tight-fitting jeans can put additional pressure on the bladder . ‘Men who wear tight or ill-fitting . trousers or underwear which is restrictive around the groin area could . be damaging their health. ‘Wearing tight-fitting clothing over a . prolonged period of time can lead to urinary tract infections leading . to over-activity of the bladder - a type of bladder weakness as well as a . low sperm count and fungal infections. ‘Please don’t put style before health.’ Twisted . testicles occur when tight trousers prevent the spermatic cord from . moving freely, meaning it twists and leads to testicular torsion which . cuts off the blood supply requiring immediate surgery to prevent a . gangrenous testicle. Tight-fitting jeans around the groin area can put additional pressure on the bladder but can also lead to bacteria breeding and re-entering the body causing urinary tract infections. This increases the need to urinate more frequently and can cause severe pain. In study of 2,000 British men: . Dr Hilary’s warning comes as a study of . 2,000 British men conducted by TENA Men revealed one in 10 men have . experienced an unpleasant side-effect as a result of wearing skinny . jeans. Of those men . suffering from wearing skinny jeans, half had experienced groin . discomfort, over a quarter had bladder troubles while one in five . suffered a twisted testicle. Worryingly, . one in four regularly squeeze into jeans- with the biggest reasons . given for enduring tightness being ‘to show I can still fit in them’ and . ‘because they look good.’ In . fact, three in 10 has suffered discomfort from tight jeans and forty . per cent of men admit they sometimes sacrifice comfort over style. One . in seven British men regularly wear skinny jeans, but more than a third . confess they don’t actually know their correct jean size. And when it comes to picking jeans, just seven per cent described softness and comfort as an important factor. Zoe Brimfield, TENA Men Brand Manager said: ‘With this survey we were keen to highlight that while men may like the look of tight-fitting jeans, it’s important that they are not compromising their health. ‘Wearing skinny or ill-fitting jeans can lead to bladder weakness as a longer-term consequence. Male bladder weakness is more common than people think, with 1 in 9 men in the UK currently experiencing some form of the condition.’ * For further help and advice on male bladder weakness visit tenamen.co.uk or seek medical advice. Sales executive James Coleman, 27, of Ealing, west London has suffered bladder issues from wearing tight jeans. He said: ‘I bought my pair of skinny jeans because they were fashionable, I’d recently moved to London where every street feels like a catwalk so I wanted to look good. ‘My friends used to joke I looked like something out of the Wanted or One Direction but I didn’t take notice. ‘At first I didn’t really have a problem and felt good wearing them but a couple of colleagues did comment on the fact they were skin tight and made my legs look ridiculously long. Sales executive James Coleman bought . skinny jeans to 'look good' but found not only getting dressed was . uncomfortable but that the jeans put pressure on his bladder, making him . go to the toilet more frequently . ‘I then noticed they felt uncomfortable to wear, especially when sat down and put pressure against my bladder and stomach. ‘I found myself going to the toilet more frequently than normal, which just became annoying. ‘I didn’t bother going to the doctors or anything because it’s not something you want to admit - and it never occurred to me that it may have been caused by my skinny jeans. ‘Since moving to London I cycle more and I decided to finally ditch the jeans after I split a seam on the tube after bending down to pick up my Oyster card. ‘And since reverting back to smarter, looser fitting jeans and trousers I’ve found the problem has gone away.’ | Tight jeans are causing more testicular problems in men, says Dr Hilary Jones .
Russell Brand, Jude Law and Joey Essex wear tight jeans .
Tight jeans cause twisted testicles, bladder weakness and low sperm count .
Men need to leave room in groin area of pants so not restricted . |
186,995 | 7e2cd74abc0935fa291287e8defd06efe2e995f1 | Washington (CNN) -- A hoax mayday call that launched a massive search off the coast of New Jersey last week may be linked to a similar call made last month nearly 1,500 miles away off Texas, authorities said Wednesday. At a news conference in New York, Coast Guard investigators said that in both cases the callers reported their boats were sinking and used similar key words and phrases, leading authorities to believe the calls could have come from the same individual. On May 20, rescuers searched for 36 hours in waters off the coast of Galveston, Texas, and found nothing after a distress call reporting six people stranded in the water, Chief Warrant Officer Lionel Bryant told CNN. Investigators try to track down false yacht mayday . On June 11, a distress call reporting a yacht explosion prompted a massive rescue effort in the water near New Jersey. The call was determined to be fake after no evidence of a boat was found. Officials initially classified the Texas call as unresolved because the Coast Guard could not eliminate the possibility that the distress call came from a vessel in the water. But a Houston television reporter alerted the Coast Guard's New York office to similarities in the two cases, and that led authorities to take a closer look. "By no means is it a guarantee that this was the same individual that made both calls. We're analyzing the voices on both calls," Coast Guard Capt. Gregory Hitchen told reporters. In both instances, the caller described his boat as "taking on water" rather than sinking, described the people on board his boat as "souls," said victims were in orange life rafts and used a similar speaking pattern, Hitchen said. Investigators said the calls in both cases seem to have originated from land, he added. The Coast Guard said the estimated cost of the rescue operation in the New Jersey case was $300,000. The agency is relying on the media and tips from the public to find the callers because current technology isn't capable of allowing investigators to pinpoint exactly where the calls came from. Coast Guard offers reward after apparent hoax . But officials are hoping that the person responsible for the false calls finds it difficult to keep quiet. "They do brag about it in certain cases," Hitchen said. More than 100 calls have come in to a tip line, Coast Guard Investigative Service Special Agent Michael Donnelly told reporters Wednesday. Authorities released audio excerpts from both of the mayday calls. In the New Jersey incident, a male voice is heard saying, "We have 21 souls on board, 20 in the water right now. I have three deceased on board, nine injured because of the explosion we've had. I'm in three feet of water on the bridge. I'm going to stay by the radio as long as I can before I have to go overboard." In the Texas case, the voice says, "We're about probably 2 miles from the channel and we are taking on water." The caller was unable to give an exact location in either call. Anyone convicted of making a false mayday call to the Coast Guard would face six years in prison and a $250,000 fine, but finding such perpetrators has proven difficult for authorities. Investigations rarely have led to an arrest or conviction. There were 60 reported hoax calls in the New York region in 2011, but since 2004 only four people have been convicted for making false distress claims. Authorities don't believe the false calls are terrorism-related. CNN's Mike Ahlers contributed to this report. | The Coast Guard received apparent false mayday calls off New Jersey and Texas .
A Houston reporter alerted the agency to similarities in the calls .
The Coast Guard is relying on the media and tips from the public to find the callers . |
211,580 | 9dfe2cc789f5e2d6b2d0036dedee06d0d818cb27 | When Manchester City host Arsenal at the Etihad on Sunday, not only will two of the best teams in the Premier League be going head to head, but two of the league's brightest stars. Alexis Sanchez and Sergio Aguero have been the focal points for their sides, plundering 26 league goals between them. The two would be almost certain to make up any composite Premier League XI, but if you could only have one, who would you choose? Sportsmail's reporters reveal which of the South American duo they would pick? Sergio Aguero does some fitness work as Manchester City team-mate Martin Demichelis (right) watches on . Alexis Sanchez trains with Mesut Ozil (centre) and Joel Campbell (right) last Saturday . Martin Keown - Aguero . It’s a close call because they are both top-quality players who have the ability to absolutely embarrass defenders with their pace and skill. But I think I’d take Aguero over Sanchez. He is in the top three strikers we have ever seen in the Premier League and has been performing at incredible levels of consistency since he first arrived. It’s still early days for Sanchez, but he has certainly made a stunning start to his career at Arsenal. Neil Ashton - Aguero . His hat-trick against Bayern Munich in the Champions League at the Etihad was something special. He also kept his cool with the last chance of the game against QPR to win the title for Manchester City. Sanchez has been brilliant for Arsenal but Aguero is ruthless in front of goal. Rob Draper - Sanchez . This is almost impossible! In terms of ability, goal-scoring, finishing and technique it’s hard to split them. But if you insist I’ll go for Sanchez because he’s injured less and because of the energy he gives to them team. Like Luis Suarez, he galvanises the entire team with his pressing. It’s not that Aguero doesn’t do his fair share but Sanchez is exceptional. And when you see your star player working that hard, it means every other player has to follow the example. Chris Wheeler - Sanchez . On current form, it would have to be Sanchez – not least because he can stay fit. Aguero is the better finisher but he missed a large portion of last season with muscle injuries and only returned to action for Manchester City last weekend after another seven-game absence. Sanchez has set the Premier League alight for Arsenal and also offers more in terms of where he can play across the front and work-rate. Sanchez has scored 12 Premier League goals for Arsenal this season since signing from Barcelona . Aguero scores against Sunderland, one of 14 Premier League goals for the City star this season . Aguero (centre) warms up with his City team-mates on Wednesday as they gear up to face Arsenal . ALEXIS SANCHEZ . AGE: 26 . HEIGHT: 5ft 7in . WEIGHT: 70kg . CLUBS: Cobreloa, Udinese, Colo-Colo (loan), River Plate (loan), Barcelona, Arsenal . CAREER APPEARANCES: 412 GOALS: 111 . 2014-2015 RECORD: 30 APPS 18 GOALS . INTERNATIONAL CAPS: 77 GOALS: 26 . MAJOR HONOURS: . Barcelona: La Liga (2013), Copa del Rey (2012), UEFA Super Cup (2011), FIFA World Cup (2011), . SERGIO AGUERO . AGE: 26 . HEIGHT: 5ft 8in . WEIGHT: 74kg . CLUBS: Independiente, Atletico Madrid, Manchester City . CAREER APPEARANCES: 427 GOALS: 218 . 2014-2015 RECORD: 22 APPS 19 GOALS . INTERNATIONAL CAPS: 59 GOALS: 22 . MAJOR HONOURS: . A Madrid: Europa League (2010), UEFA Super Cup (2010), . Man City: Premier League (2012, 2014), Capital One Cup (2014), . Argentina: Olympic Gold medal (2008) Laurie Whitwell - Aguero . Very close call but the City striker edges it for me due to his frightening ability to score whatever the circumstances. No matter how tight an angle or implausible a path to goal, he finds a way. Electric speed and mercurial movement over a sustained period. Although a fearsome forward, Sanchez has found himself shut out on a few occasions when Aguero would have netted. Phil Duncan - Sanchez . Aguero’s goal record is unrivalled. If he carries on like this, he’ll be remembered as one of the all-time Premier League greats. But if I had to choose between City’s sharp-shooter and Sanchez, I’d pick the Arsenal man all day and every day. Sanchez scores but he offers so much more than that. He makes goals, too, his workload is astonishing and he isn’t afraid to get hurt. No wonder he’s quickly emerged as a favourite on the terraces and the first name on Arsene Wenger’s teamsheet. Sam Cunningham - Aguero . When Aguero is fit and firing he is virtually unstoppable. At the start of the season before his injury in December, the Manchester City striker was beginning to be talked about in the same breath as Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. Aguero can't quite find the consistency of fitness to propel him into the upper echelons. While Sanchez is a phenomenal player, he is distinctly a level below Aguero at 100 per cent. Sami Mokbel - Sanchez . It's close, because they are two brilliant footballers. But the Arsenal star is more of an all-rounder. Aguero's game is about scoring goals - Sanchez does that and more. So Sanchez - but only just. Matt Lawless - Aguero . I love Sanchez's never-say-die attitude. His work-rate is phenomenal and he has been the glue to hold Arsenal together this season. He is pure class. But I'd still have Aguero over him in my team. His movement is second to none, his feet are lightning fast and his finishing speaks for itself. Quality personified. Can't I just say both though? No, OK... Aguero it is then. Just. Aguero comes on for Stevan Jovetic during City's 1-1 draw with Everton - his comeback game from injury . Sanchez loses his footing but manages to get a shot off against Stoke at the Emirates last week . Mike Keegan - Aguero . City's talisman has the best strike-rate in Premier League history among anyone who has played 100 games. He is not just the best attacker in England, he is one of the best in the world and already has two titles under his belt. Would Barcelona have sold him? I don't think so. Mike Anstead - Aguero . Sanchez has been a revelation since arriving at Arsenal but Aguero edges it for me for his ability to find a goal from nowhere. When he's fit and on it, there's no better striker in the Premier League. Craig Hope - Sanchez . Aguero is the better player, yes, but Sanchez does it every week - he's never injured and has contributed to more than half of Arsenal's goals by scoring or setting them up. With Aguero, you never know when he's next set for a spell on the sidelines. TOTAL: AGUERO 7 SANCHEZ 5 . | Sportsmail's experts reveal which of the South American stars they prefer .
Alexis Sanchez and Sergio Aguero have scored 26 goals between them .
Manchester City take on Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday .
READ: Alexis Sanchez can be as good as me, says Thierry Henry!
Manuel Pellegrini calls Sanchez the best in England... ahead of Aguero! |
111,052 | 1b336315ffb3d61ade3fae790e2c7487467191ea | She said the lady was not for turning on Greece - but German Chancellor Angela Merkel has in fact made a sharp U-turn and now wants to stop Athens from leaving the eurozone at all costs. 'For the German leader, it is essential to avoid the consequences of a Grexit before national elections next year,' said influential national news magazine Der Spiegel today. 'Merkel has already made up her mind. After long hesitation, she has sided with French President Francois Hollande and the European Commission. Scroll down for video . Could it be worse than 2008? Mrs Merkel, pictured at the Bundestag today, is very concerned about the affect a 'Grexit' could have on the German economy . 'The report from the troika - which . consists of the European Commission, the International Monetary Fund and . the European Central Bank and which departed on its fact-finding tour . last week - will undoubtedly conclude that Greece can remain in the . eurozone.' Sources . close to the chancellery say Mrs Merkel fears a worse impact on the . German economy if Greece is forced out than the fallout from the . collapse of the American bank Lehman Brothers in 2008. Crunch talks: Mrs Merkel and Greek prime minister Antonis Samaras in Berlin last month, shortly before the German leader's change of heart . That implosion cost Germany five per cent of its GDP and hundreds of thousands of jobs. Der . Spiegel added: 'Until recently, Merkel was prepared to drop the country . if it failed to meet its commitments. 'She now regards a Greek . departure from the eurozone as entailing too many risks. 'But the political costs are also too high for Merkel. 'If Greece withdrew from the eurozone, her advisers fear that this could mean that it would eventually be necessary to create a common "debt union" to stabilise problem countries like Italy and Spain. 'It would be a paradoxical situation: Germany would take a hard-line approach with Greece, but might subsequently have to accept jointly issued euro bonds, which German voters widely oppose.' The ECB's controversial decision last Thursday to purchase, if necessary, unlimited quantities of sovereign bonds from struggling eurozone member states has chilled the hearts of German voters - some 54 per cent of people oppose the move, according to a poll published today. Mrs Merkel, who has been widely criticised for wanting to lead Europe without a concrete plan to do so, is facing further criticism for her U-turn on Greece. Great risks: If Greece left from the eurozone, it might eventually be necessary to create a common 'debt union' to stabilise problem countries like Italy and Spain . The future's orange: The chancellor looked worried at the first session of the budget 2013 debate in Berlin . Der Spiegel added; 'So the chancellor has made up her mind, and will now continue to muddle along as usual. The problem will be put on ice for now, and re-addressed sometime after the 2013 Bundestag election - when the current rescue program has ended. 'It's clear, though, that it will probably take decades for cash-strapped Greece to modernize itself. The risks and possible side effects of Merkel's approach are obvious. Once Greece receives more money, the danger increases that the government in Athens will postpone its promised reforms. It wouldn't be the first time.' 'Muddling along': Mrs Merkel, pictured shaking hands with her finance minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, has been criticised for wanting to lead Europe without a concrete plan to do so . The magazine went on: 'When Greek Prime Minister Samaras visited Berlin recently, he was left in the dark about the degree to which the Germans' view has changed. Instead, Merkel announced internally that it was necessary to continue to exert maximum pressure on the prime minister so he would implement the required reforms. At the same time, she praised her counterpart from Athens.' Mrs Merkel said that Samaras is playing a 'historic role' for his country, adding that she was very impressed with what he had to say. 'We have to give him a chance,' she said. 'And Merkel intends to see that he soon gets his opportunity. Her plan calls for the troika's report to present the situation in Greece as less disastrous than previously expected, as this is a necessary prerequisite for disbursement of the next tranche of aid.' She told her staff last week: 'We have to find a solution,' Mrs Merkel is said to be optimistic that they will eventually go along with her approach. The IMF statutes may be strict, but the agreements with aid recipients - in this case Greece - nevertheless offer a great deal of leeway. Der Spiegel added: 'Merkel, whose father was a pastor in communist Eastern Germany, has suddenly discovered a deep affection for the downtrodden people of Greece. She compassionately expressed empathy for 'what many in Greece have to suffer', and said 'it does make one's heart bleed.' We can't afford to cast Greece out: Mrs Merkel believes the cautious electorate will soon come around to her way of thinking . This is code for her and her ministers being acutely aware that if Greece falls, Germany will have to pay - and the bill will come to almost exactly €62billion euros: the sum Greece owes the Fatherland. New take: Mrs Merkel has now sided with French President Francois Hollande, pictured and the European Commission . Of course, that would not be the end of the euro tragedy: to protect the remaining financially weak countries like Portugal and Ireland, along with Spain and Italy, hundreds of billions of euros would have to be mobilised. Spiegel went on to say that 'Merkel is keeping her eye on the "big picture".' The chancellor reportedly feels that the EU cannot afford to allow democracy to falter in a member state. She also points out that Greece is a NATO member and an important ally in the eastern Mediterranean - a region that has enough flashpoints as it is. 'Her new, lenient approach has the advantage that it could allow her to reach the election next September without the turbulence of a Greek exit from the monetary union,' said the magazine. 'In return, she is prepared to play for high stakes. 'She is putting off dealing with Greece until sometime in the future.' If she's lucky, the Greeks will have got back on their feet by then, and will need less money because the reforms pursued in their country will have finally proven effective. If she's unlucky, Merkel will be plugging holes by making new ones elsewhere - and it may all come to a head once the election is over. 'Another possibility is that the Greek economy performs so poorly that the money runs out before the rescue package expires. This would be the worst-case scenario for Merkel. Nevertheless, she is consciously taking this risk. She sees it as manageable - unlike a Greek exit from the eurozone.' VIDEO: President of World Bank ready to help Greece . | Mrs Merkel is said to be concerned that the impact on the .
German economy if Greece leaves would be worse than it was after the 2008 crash .
German leader has now sided with French President Francois Hollande .
Elections take place next year and Mrs Merkel is keen to avoid the consequences of a 'Grexit' |
178,993 | 73c5112aa8ec4ad4364fb4f28b350a251bf3c06d | President Obama is going Hollywood. It has just been announced that a new film, Southside With You, will tell the story of the very first date Barack and Michelle Obama took back in 1989. And while the role of Michelle has been cast in the independent feature, it is still not certain who will be playing a young Barack. Scroll down for video . So in love: President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama's first date will be the subject of a new movie . Romance: Southside With You will tell the story of their day-long first date, which ended with ice cream and a kiss at Baskin-Robbins (above) Family: Shortly after getting married, Michelle gave birth to daughter Malia (right) and then Sasha (left) Tika Sumpter, best known for her roles on the television shows Gossip Girl and The Haves and the Have Nots, as well as films such as Get On Up, has landed the role of Michelle. Richard Tanne wrote the script and will direct the picture. Set to shoot next July in Chicago, the film will detail the day-long first date shared by Barack and Michelle, which both have spoken of fondly in past interviews. At the time, Barack, 27, had just finished his first year at Harvard and was a summer associate at the law firm Sidley Austin, where he met Michelle Robinson, the 25-year-old lawyer who was selected as his mentor. Star Turn: Tika Sumpter (above) and will play Michelle . Culture: Their first stop on the date was the Art Institute of Chicago (above) Wedding bells: The two were married three years after that first date in 1992 . After pursuing his future wife for some time, Barack packed in as many activities as he could on the couple's first date, taking Michelle to the Art Institute of Chicago, lunch in the museum's courtyard, a walk around the city, and, finally, to see Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing. The two ended the night with a kiss outside a Baskin-Robbins. Three years later they were married, and now, after 25 years together, they are parents to two teenage daughters, Malia and Sasha. Family: 25 years later they are now the parents to two teenage daughters, Malia and Sasha (above): . According to Deadline, the film will be in the vein of Before Sunrise, Richard Linklater's 1995 minimalist masterpiece that tells the story of a young American abroad in Europe (played by Ethan Hawke), who has a chance encounter with a young French woman (played by Julie Delpy), and then spends the day wandering the streets of Vienna with her as they discuss their thoughts on love, life and loss. And while no release date has been announced as of yet, it seems highly likely that should all go to plan, a Valentine's Day 2016 release is in the works. | President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama are getting the Hollywood treatment as a new film, Southside With You, will tell the story of their first date .
Actress Tika Sumpter, best known for her roles on Gossip Girl and Get On Up, will star as Michelle, while the role of Barrack has yet to be cast .
The President and First Lady have both shared the story of their first date many times before, a day-long affair that happened back in 1989 .
Barrack took Michelle, his law mentor at the time, to a museum, lunch, a movie and for ice cream in Chicago .
The two were married three years later in 1992 and have now been together 25 years . |
236,760 | be7613049e24f0cfa02a4159561513a7a8aa9346 | Three men dressed in Ku Klux Klan garb, a black niqab and a motorbike helmet were refused entry after attempting to walk into Australia's Parliament House on Monday. Identifying themselves as 'Faceless', Sergio Redegalli, Nick Folkes and Victor Waterson told reporters at the scene that they were protesting in favour of a national burqa ban. They clarified that they wanted all facial coverings to be banned in public spaces for cultural and security reasons. Their bizarre demonstration comes one week after the government announced its decision to overturn the ban on niqab's and burqas being worn inside Parliament House. Scroll down for video . Three men from 'Faceless' attempted to enter Parliament House as part of a protest on Monday . They were dressed in Ku Klux Klan garb, a niqab and a motorbike helmet . The men also stated that they 'couldn't care less' how Muslim women would feel about their stunt, according to the Herald Sun. Upon entering Parliament House, the men were asked to remove their garb by security who refused to grant them entrance. 'It's fantastic that we were not allowed in,' Mr Redegalli said, according to the ABC. However he later added: 'It seems that you're allowed to wear a full-faced covering into Parliament if you're a Muslim woman, but no other group is allowed to have that same privilege. 'We, as males, are not allowed to wear any face coverings in Parliament House.' Identified as Sergio Redegalli, Nick Folkes and Victor Waterson, the protesters were refused entry by security . The men said they wanted all facial coverings to be banned in public spaces for cultural and security reasons . Mr Redegalli, who was dressed in the KKK outfit, revealed that he was also wearing a niqab beneath his white hood. It's not the Newtown business-owner's first time protesting against burqas being worn in public spaces. In 2011 Mr Redegalli was criticized for an offensive mural he painted outside his shop that read 'say no to burqas'. The three men have been slammed on social media for their tasteless protest, with one Twitter user writing: 'BREAKING: Absolute dropkicks at Parliament House'. A spokesperson for security at Parliament House told Daily Mail Australia: 'In this instance, the Parliamentary Security Service followed procedures for screening visitors entering Parliament. The visitors were requested to remove the items obscuring their faces as the items were deemed to be protest paraphernalia. ‘Protest paraphernalia’ may be used in the Authorised Assembly Area, but not in other areas of the precinct.' The men have been slammed on social media for their tasteless protest . The protest comes one week after the Department of Parliamentary Services (DPS) announced that the ban on face coverings at Parliament House had been dumped . Tassie Codriver is one of the many Twitter users who have slammed the men for their protest . Their demonstration comes one week after the Department of Parliamentary Services (DPS) announced that the ban on face coverings being worn in public areas of Parliament House had been dumped. Introduced in early October, the ban forced anyone with a face covering to sit behind soundproof glass instead of in the public galleries. Instead, face coverings will now have to be removed temporarily at the front door so that staff can 'identify any person who may have been banned from entering Parliament House or who may be known, or discovered, to be a security risk.' The opposition welcomed the overturning of the ban. 'In 2014 for two weeks, the official policy of the Australian Parliament was to practice segregation and we need to ensure this does not happen again,' senior opposition lawmaker Tony Burke said in a statement. | Calling themselves 'Faceless', Sergio Redegalli, Nick Folkes and Victor Waterson attempted to enter Australia's Parliament House on Monday .
They were wearing Ku Klux Klan garb, a niqab and a motorbike helmet .
The men claimed that they were protesting against the government's decision to lift the ban on facial coverings in Parliament House .
Security forced the men to reveal their faces and refused to grant them entrance to the building . |
53,625 | 9814fc78c934f95f89d28f5f184623b6d87597e1 | By . Chris Greenwood . PUBLISHED: . 07:41 EST, 4 August 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 01:44 EST, 5 August 2013 . When the eyes of the world’s media are on you, sometimes it’s impossible to resist the temptation to play a prank. And that is just what Prince Harry’s Scotland Yard protection officer did as the royal joined his brother William at a polo match. Feigning alarm at something out of sight in the tent where the princes were changing, the plainclothes officer grabbed his ‘gun’ and struck a pose like that of an American secret serviceman. Watch out: A man thought to be a royal protection officer for Princes William and Harry pretends to be a Secret Service-style security man at a charity polo match at Coworth Park in Ascot, Berkshire, yesterday . Having fun: The protection officer enjoyed himself as Prince William took a break from parenting duties to play in the Audi Polo Challenge with brother Prince Harry . The officer then sprinted inside the tent as a bemused colleague looked on. In truth he was holding nothing more dangerous than his other hand, with . two fingers pointing upwards like the barrel of a gun. It’s not the . first time Harry’s bodyguard has been caught on camera. Last August he was seen by Harry’s side, wearing a jaunty hat and . swimming trunks, at a pool party in Las Vegas. Photos of a naked Harry . and an equally nude girl taken during that holiday would later cause . controversy. Hands up: The royal protection officer jokes around outside the royal tent at the Audi Polo Challenge yesterday . Taking part: Prince Harry speaks to Prince William during the charity polo match at Coworth Park in Berkshire . This weekend’s pictures were taken at Coworth Park in Ascot, Berkshire, . and last night a former Yard protection officer justified the . bodyguard’s antics. ‘These guys are working long hours and spending a . lot of time standing around,’ he said. ‘They need to keep on the ball, . and if that means playing a harmless joke to keep your mind active then . no one has a problem with that.’ The polo match was the first time William has been seen in public since the birth of his son Prince George. The Duchess of Cambridge attended last year’s match but yesterday she . remained at her parents’ home in Bucklebury – and William joked about . picking up nappies on his way home. Lined up: Prince William (left) and Prince Harry (right) stand with team-mates Mark Tomlinson (centre left) and Luke Tomlinson (centre right) after competing in the charity polo match at Coworth Park . Brothers: The Duke of Cambridge and Prince Harry arrive to take part in the charity polo match in Berkshire . Two days ago Kensington Palace announced that the birth of the third-in-line to the throne had been formally registered after a registrar from Westminster City Council visited the palace. William signed the birth register entry for his son, listing his and wife Kate's jobs as prince and princess of the United Kingdom. The RAF search and rescue pilot is currently on paternity leave but is expected to return to work at some point next week. His next official public engagement will be to visit the Anglesey Show later this month. Prince Philip, 92, will be in Edinburgh next Monday to carry out his . first official engagement since having abdominal surgery two months ago. Paternity leave: Prince William is currently spending a few precious days with Kate and their baby son, George . | Royal protection officers were seen with brothers at match yesterday .
Prince William was playing polo with Prince Harry in Ascot, Berkshire .
Duke admitted that he would be picking up nappies on his way home . |
238,469 | c0ac54d3399af40aef922534f2c6fc5170b2d9ca | (CNN) -- The last few months have witnessed a dramatic turn in the way democratic politics are conducted in a sovereign country that is also a member state of the European Union. The depth of the economic crisis and the increasing dependency of Greece on external funds to survive have led to an unprecedented degree of national humiliation and destabilization of the political system. Greek parliamentary practices are operating under emergency procedures, a government has been overturned overnight and constitutional practices are being bypassed. The national parliament, the symbol of representative and competitive democracy in Greece, has become purely symbolic and procedural in the way it votes for its austerity laws. External pressures to impose a Special Commissioner to run the country's finances and recommendations regarding the date of national elections -- and the most desirable outcome -- are all attacking the heart of Greece's democracy, its sovereignty. To be sure, Greek democracy was far from perfect before, suffering from clientelism, nepotism and corruption, but it had made significant strides since the country's entry into the European Community in 1981. Similarly, national sovereignty had become vulnerable way before 2009, as a result of increasing debt to unsustainable levels and a state deficit whose extent was not even calculated properly. Yet what we are seeing now is the undermining of Greece's political class, and a fall in levels of trust in the political system. The historical responsibility for this state of affairs lies with domestic mismanagement, political incompetence and the constant missed opportunities for reform. This unprecedented level of economic recession and social alienation means Greek democracy is moving backwards at a rapid pace. In times of crises, history comes back with a vengeance. There are those who revisit the past in order to understand what went wrong and blame the main culprits for the impasse. Others refer to similar historical parallels and focus their attention on comparable historical moments. Indeed during the history of modern Greece, democracy has often suffered from instability, uncertainty, military intervention and authoritarian or exclusionary practices. A frequently mentioned historical reference is the interwar period, when the economic crisis shook the Greek political environment, and led to instability, military coups and eventually the fascist dictatorship under politician Ioannis Metaxas in 1936. Some remember the years of Nazi occupation during Second World War and the humiliating blow to Greece's national dignity, a very popular reference in present-day Greece and an impulsive reaction to the current pressure from Germany. Others refer to the more recent past of the post-war period of the 1950s and 1960s when the country suffered from an exclusionary and defective semi-democratic process led by the triarchy of the monarchy, the military and the right-wing forces. This type of illiberal and exclusive democracy led to the imposition of the military junta in 1967. As with these historical examples, observers of the current political instability are worried about the high levels of disapproval among Greece's political class, the extent of social reaction and mobilization on the street and the degree of political polarization. Greece is gradually losing its middle class, the pillar of the political center, as politics is increasingly dominated by extremists of both sides. As usually happens during political instability, the extremists are the ones that gain in strength while those in the center become most vulnerable. Indeed, recent opinion polls show a remarkable defeat of the two-party system -- the center left (PASOK) and the center right (New Democracy) -- as voters move towards left-wing politics and, occasionally, the extreme fascist right. In the past, Greek democracy often suffered from polarized and extreme politics. But the reasons were endogenous and had to do with the balance of power between the military, the monarchy and party politics, and the reactions of those who were excluded and wanted to participate in the political process. Politics in post-civil war Greece was a clear example of polarization and political exclusion. For the first time since the 1974 transition to democracy, Greek democracy has experienced an unprecedented level of development and consolidation which is inter-connected with the country's membership of the European Community. Ironically, it is the source of Greece's democratic strength that threatens today the achievement of the past four decades. For the first time, the threat to Greece's democracy comes from the club of western democratic states, who treasure liberty, promote and assist democracy and use their normative soft power in international politics. It is a democratic German ruling political class, a democratic government fully accountable to its citizens, which recommends a commissioner, suggests that technocratic governments are maybe more efficient and is afraid of Greek national elections. It is the eurogroup of the democratically elected financial ministers of the rich, prosperous northern European countries that is curtailing the choices of a free government and are demanding the strict supervision of a fellow member state. Greek democracy is threatened by the very entity that contributed to its consolidation. Greek democracy is not in danger of falling into the hands of the military because the Greek military is confined to its barracks, is well under civilian rule and military rulers have no interest in political intervention -- not that there is any political power left to seize anyway. The danger to Greece's democracy comes from abroad, where the urge for the economic competitiveness of the country through internal devaluation is hurting political competitiveness and freedom of choice. Since its inception as an independent state, Greece has looked to the west to improve its democracy, for the emulation of models in the state administration and education and legal systems. The West has been the main orientation of a country on the periphery of Europe's geography, which provided the templates for reform and modernization. More recently, the accession into the European Community unleashed all the benevolent forces of Greek democracy in the company of the most advanced democracies of the world. And countless times, Greece and other southern European countries were presented as excellent examples of democratic consolidation, examples to be followed by the post-communist central and east European states. The European Union has been the beacon of constitutional practices, human rights, party political competition, and the main source of strength of the international standing of its member states. What we are seeing now in Greece is democratic regression to pre-membership levels, polarized politics, the undermining of the ruling classes and the loss of national sovereignty. Soon the country will urgently need a "pre-accession strategy" of political reconstruction, next to a much-required strategy for economic growth. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Othon Anastasakis. | Financial crisis is attacking the heart of Greek democracy and sovereignty .
Greek politics are increasingly dominated by extremists on both sides .
Finance ministers of northern Europe are curtailing the choices of a free government .
Greece is now democratically regressing to pre-European Community membership levels . |
124,857 | 2d61917ee93d354ec02035303b1bf2ce6627d00b | By . Emma Reynolds . PUBLISHED: . 03:41 EST, 12 October 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 16:23 EST, 12 October 2012 . A 19-year-old student tried to kill her mother by shooting at her three times in the hopes of inheriting $500,000. Nicole Boover ambushed Sherri, 51, at the door of her New Orleans apartment after formulating a callous murder plan, police believe. Boover had earlier bought duct tape, gloves and the 'Scream' masks made famous by the popular horror film, it is claimed. 'Calculated': Nicole Boover, 19, bought duct tape and 'Scream' masks before trying to shoot her mother at the 51-year-old's apartment door . She allegedly enlisted the help of a fellow student from Louisiana State University, 18-year-old Nathan Yuhas, by offering him a $50,000 cut of the cash. The teenage girl knocked on her mother's door at 4.30am and smiled through the peephole until Mrs Boover opened it, according to nola.com. Nicole Boover ambushed Sherri, 51, at the door of her New Orleans apartment (pictured) after formulating a callous murder plan, police believe . Picturesque: The complex where Mrs Boover lived before allegedly being killed by her daughter . 'Accomplice': Boover enlisted the help of an 18-year-old fellow student Nathan Yuhas, pictured, offering him a $50,000 cut in return for his help . When she saw her daughter aiming a silver handgun at her, police said, Mrs Boover slammed the door shut and locked it. The student then allegedly fired three shots at the door, ran to her car and went back to her dorm room at LSU, leaving the 51-year-old uninjured. NOPD was alerted and Boover's stepfather then called the LSU Police Department and informed them that his stepdaughter could have returned to her dorm at the university campus in Baton Rouge. LSU police found her car, with Yuhas inside, before discovering the girl in her dorm - finding 'small amounts' of marijuana in the vehicle and the room. Yuhas told officers about the supposed murder plot, allegedly claiming that he and Boover intended to leave the state and not cooperate with police if they were stopped. Yuhas has been charged with serving as a principal to attempted first-degree murder, and Boover with attempted first-degree murder. her bail was set at $500,000. The girl's father, Richard, was divorced from her mother in 2010. Mrs Boover is very religious and runs a Catholic ministry at Mount Carmel Academy, where her daughter attended school. Caught: Boover and Yuhas fled back to the LSU campus, pictured, after the murder attempt failed . Boover used to run track for Mount Carmel, her friend Monica LaForge told WWL-TV, but later transferred to another high school, before completing her prep studies outside regular school. Ms LaForge said on Thursday: 'Nicole Boover is an amazing person with many outstanding qualities. Thinking ahead and considering consequences is not one of them.' A minister visiting the suspect's mother at her apartment on Thursday said Boover 'is a good person'.Reverend Russell added: 'Right now, (the Boover) family is concerned about restoring the family order that has always been there. 'They're good people... We're just trying to get it straightened.' | Nicole Boover, 19, enlisted the help of another student for a $50,000 cut .
They planned to flee the state with the cash afterwards .
Boover had earlier bought duct tape, gloves and a Scream mask . |
37,351 | 69d070aec4d362f0ff30c2dc53ad3745c9383742 | France's entire Socialist government was dissolved yesterday as . President Francois Hollande desperately fought to assert authority in . the face of economic crisis. The upheaval comes as a key minister . launched a rebellion by claiming the president is leading France to . ‘catastrophe’ by seeking to make cuts ‘on German orders’. Left-wing . economy minister Arnaud Montebourg defied Mr Hollande’s authority by . publicly urging him to discard austerity and break with what he . described as deficit-cutting measures imposed on the eurozone by ‘the . most extreme orthodoxy of the German Right’. Scroll down for video . French President Francois Hollande (left) and French Prime Minister Manuel Valls shaking hands at the Elysee presidential palace in Paris after a weekly cabinet meeting. Hollande asked Valls to form a new government, which will be presented on Tuesday . Earlier this month . German president Angela Merkel had rejected calls from Mr Hollande to . soften eurozone deficit targets that France had failed to meet. As . his party was plunged into civil war, Mr Hollande yesterday called on . Manuel Valls, his prime minister, to form a new cabinet ‘consistent with . the direction he has set for the country’. The head of state’s approval . rating has plunged to 17 per cent – by far the lowest in the history of . modern France. It follows a disastrous two years in power, which . has seen the French economy stagnant for the past six months, and . unemployment is running at more than 10 per cent. Mr Valls’s . government has been in power for only five months. The value of the euro against the US dollar slumped yesterday following the upheaval in France. As Francois Hollande dissolved his government, the euro fell to 1.3185 against the dollar, its lowest level since September 2013. In London, the stock exchange was closed for the Bank Holiday. When it closed on Friday the pound was at 1.25 against the euro. France, dubbed the ‘sick man of Europe’, has seen its economy grind to a halt, registering two consecutive quarters of no growth. The value of the single currency has also been eroded by weak confidence that the eurozone economies can eke out growth. Figures last week showed there was zero growth for the 18-country bloc in the three months to the end of June. Senior Bank of England official David Miles said Europe’s economy was ‘dead in the water’. The last one, under . Jean-Marc Ayrault, was dissolved in March after the disastrous . performance of the Socialist Party in local elections. Two ministers, Mr . Montebourg and education secretary Benoit Hamon, have publicly . criticised the direction in which Mr Hollande’s hapless administration . is heading. Mr Montebourg, 51, said forcibly slashing deficits was . ‘economic madness’. He also attacked Germany, saying it should not be . allowed to ‘push around’ his country. He told Le Monde newspaper: . ‘The priority must be the existing crisis and the dogmatic reduction of . deficits should come second.’ Mr Hamon was similarly scathing towards Mr Hollande, effectively saying he supported the rebellion launched by Mr Montebourg. Justice . minister Christiane Taubira meanwhile sent a message to the two rebels . saying ‘bravo’ for speaking out. Culture minister Aurelie Filippetti . also tweeted her greetings to the two ministers in a veiled show of . support – which forced her resignation before tomorrow’s reshuffle. Spanish PM Mariano Rajoy (right) and German chancellor Angela Merkel (left) walk the last part of the Way of Saint James in Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, northwestern Spain on Sunday as they talk about European Affairs. French economic minister Arnaud Montebourg attacked Germany for 'pushing France around' New start: Hollande's office said in a statement a new government would be formed by Valls (right) on Tuesday in line with the 'direction he (the president) has defined for our country' President Hollande has ignored two years of dissent from Mr Montebourg in the interests of holding together his divided party. But . Mr Valls is understood to have threatened to resign if Mr Hollande had . failed to act, accusing Mr Montebourg of crossing ‘a yellow line’ as he . announced the cabinet’s resignation. But the economy minister told a . news conference yesterday that he had to speak out to try to avert the . European Union’s ‘descent into hell’. He said: ‘I informed the prime . minister... that if he deemed my convictions counter to the direction of . the government he leads, then in that case I thought it necessary for . me to be let go.’ Both Mr Hollande and Mr Valls believe the key to . success is their so-called Responsibility Pact, which offers businesses . tax breaks in exchange for creating jobs. But the Left wing of the ruling Socialist Party is furious over this shift to centrist economic policies.The . crisis comes on the day Paris was meant to be focusing on the 70th . anniversary of its liberation from Nazi rule during the Second World . War. As his political fortunes plummeted, Mr Hollande cut a sorry . figure as he made an open air speech in pouring rain on the Ile de Sein, . off the coast of Brittany. Soaked, and with his glasses steamed up, . he read from a prepared script about France’s wartime history, without . once referring to his government’s dissolution . Why has Frances’ Socialist Prime Minister resigned along with his entire government? Senior cabinet members, including Economy Minister Arnaud Montebourg, are in open revolt at the austerity drive imposed on France by Europe, and sanctioned by President Francois Hollande. They say it is has stifled economic growth, and caused unemployment to rocket to above 3.3 million. They also believe that economic woes are leading to the success of extremist parties, such as the National Front, who won 26% of the popular vote in European elections in May. What happens next? A new government will be formally appointed by Mr Valls, in consultation with Mr Hollande, on Tuesday. It is likely to be a ‘compromise’ government, aimed at uniting left-wingers with more centrist cabinet members, while allowing the Prime Minister and President to continue with their economic policies. What is wrong with France's economy? Critics argue that just over two years of Socialist administration has plunged it into chaos. Mr Hollande came to power as a tax-and-spend left winger who admitted to disliking the rich. A top rate of income tax of 75% was among measures which caused wealth creators to flee the country, along with wealthy celebrities. Mr Hollande has adopted a more moderate stance in recent months, but there has been zero economic growth this year, as unemployment rises along with the cost of living. Will a new government fix it? Commentators fear that a new Socialist government – one which will amount to the third this year alone – will simply lead to more failure. Mr Hollande is a notoriously indecisive leader who does everything possible to keep everybody happy, at the expense of getting anything positive done. Mr Montebourg is likely to lead further challenges to the authority of Mr Hollande and Mr Valls, along with numerous allies on the left of the Socialist Party. A party at war is unlikely to sort out France’s chronic economic problems. Does the French crisis affect other countries in Europe? Yes – France’s decline within the EU project is having huge repercussions across the Eurozone, not least of all on near-neighbours such as the UK. Global economies are all interlinked, with economic experts frequently warning that a ‘sick man’ France will pull all others down with it. This could mean disaster for the EU. | PM Manuel Valls offered up his Socialist government's resignation Monday .
He said his economy minister had crossed a line by criticising policies .
Hollande's office said a new government would be formed on Tuesday .
He remains the most unpopular president in more than half a century . |
54,787 | 9b30ac16863a90fc2573479d0b7e8ab29d0a19db | By . Harriet Arkell . PUBLISHED: . 06:50 EST, 9 August 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 09:48 EST, 9 August 2013 . With their florid complexions, thick woollen coats and mutton chop whiskers, there's no doubting the men in these portraits come from the Victorian industrial age. But while these 19th century workers from the Welsh valleys look typical, they were in fact far from it, thanks to their unusually humane boss. Eccentric ironmaster Francis Crawshay rejected the trappings of his wealthy family to live amongst his workers, learning Welsh so he could talk to them and even having their portraits painted for posterity. Rare glimpse into the characters of Britain's industrial age: William James, left, was a roller in the works while John Davies, right, was a manager at the tin mills owned by the wealthy eccentric Francis Crawshay . Foreman carpenter Llewellyn Jenkins wore a wool suit, while cinder filler David Davies is pictured with a shovel . Crawshay's egalitarian relationship . with his staff, astounding in an age when industrialists were known for . their ruthless and often inhumane treatment of staff, is revealed in an . exhibition of the portraits at the National Museum of Wales in Cardiff. It . features the oil portraits of 16 of Crawshay's favourite employees at . his family's ironworks in Hirwaun, in the Cynon Valley, and tinplate . works at Treforest, near Pontypridd. Reluctrant industrialist Francis Crawshay shunned the trappings of his wealthy family and instead cultivated close relationships with his staff in the Welsh valleys . The . museum's Oliver Fairclough said: 'Francis Crawshay maintained unusually . close personal relationships with his employees and was an unusually . humane industrialist. 'He . commissioned 16 small portraits of his employees and no other such . images of industrial workers are known. This seems to be a unique group . of individual workers of the period.' Crawshay . was the third generation of a family who made a fortune from the . booming iron trade in Victorian south Wales, and he grew up in great . style in Cyfarthfa Castle, Merthyr Tydfil - then the iron capital of the . world. Unlike most tycoons of the day, however, the eccentric Crawshay chose to live alongside the staff who manned the family's works. While most local ironmasters exploited their staff, who lived in squalid conditions and worked long hours for little pay, it was different for those who worked for a Crawshay mine. Son of the great ironmaster William . Crawshay, Francis was known as 'Mr Frank' to his workers and even learnt . Welsh so that he could speak to them in their own language. An art lover, he treated them as equals and became so close that he commissioned travelling portrait artist William Jones Chapman to paint them in oils between 1835-1840. While the wealthy of the ear sometimes . commissioned portraits of domestic servants and estate workers, these . are the only known paintings of industrial workers, and unlike the massaged portraits of nobility from the time, the portraits show the men in the raw. Mr Fairclough said: 'Although a number of 18th and 19th . century country servant portraits are known this seems to be a unique . group of individual images of industrial workers of the period.' The men pictured worked at either the Hirwaun ironworks, pictured, or a tinplate works at Treforest, Pontypridd . Carpenter David Williams, left, is pictured with one of his tools while smith John Llewellyn wears an apron . Quarryman Thomas Francis left, while mechanic Rees Davies doesn't look like those who do his job today, right . Family grandeur: Francis Crawshay's father Richard built this to be their home near Merthyr Tydfil in the 1820s . Agent Evan Bryant was painted according to the wishes of his industrialist boss, as was David Davies, right . John Bryant, a mine agent, stares unblinkingly at the artist, while storekeeper David Lewis, right, looks away . Skilled and unskilled workers were painted, young and old, and all are depicted standing in a landscape, in working clothes and . with the tools of their trade. Tin . roller William James is gripping a large clamp used to handle molten . tin, while David Davies holds a long pole used in the iron-making . process. Those pictured include a foreman, a lodge keeper, carpenter and tin roller, among many other characters who kept the Crawshay coffers bursting. Both John Richards, left, and lodge keeper Thomas Euston, who had a glint in his eye, needed a stick to walk . Favoured employees: Thomas Kirkhouse, left, was chosen to be painted as was this unnamed man, right . Now the 170-year-old pictures have been handed over to the museum in Cardiff by Crawshay's ancesters for an exhibition that runs until September 22. Crawshay, who was married with eight children, preferred not to live in the big family house and instead built himself a small cottage to live in. He became interested in druids and built his own druidic circle near the house, while he left following the closure of the Hirwaun and Treforest works in 1859 and 1867, to retire Kent where it was said he enjoyed walking around in nautical dress. Crawshay died in 1878 aged 67. Regarded as one of the cradles of the Industrial Revolution, Merthyr Tydfil was the iron capital of the world for much of the 19th century. As industry boomed in the valleys, what was a village of just 40 homes in 1760s turned into a sprawling town that was home to almost 8,000 people by 1801. But while the metal and coal mines that sparked the boom may have brought joy to the overlords who made their fortunes from them, life for those who worked in them was a very different matter. Lured from farms across Wales by the prospect of steady work, workers lived four or five to a one-room stone house, often built on top of iron slag heaps. Scenic view: Life in Merthyr Tydfil 170 years ago was a struggle - disease was rife, conditions were squalid and many ironmasters exploited their staff . Conditions in what came to be known as Little Hell were just that: with no toilets, the streets were open sewers and diseases such as cholera and typhoid were rife. Lice were common amongst the workers who worked and slept side by side in cramped conditions. Ironmasters provided housing for their employees, but they were squalid slums, and life expectancy was low with a high rate of infant mortality. The factory and mine managers were often cruel towards their staff - rights were unheard of and hours were long. Many paid their staff with company tokens that could only be spent in their own, company-controlled shops called 'truck shops', where prices were inflated by as much as 10 per cent. In the midst of all this, Francis Crawshay and his philanthropy stood out like a beacon, and he refused to exploit his staff as so many of contemporaries were. | Ironworks boss Francis Crawshay learnt Welsh so he could talk to workers .
Grew up in a castle but chose to live in a cottage at Hirwaun, Merthyr Tydfil .
Crawshay commissioned artist to paint 16 workers from iron and tinworks .
Eccentric 's humane attitude to staff was unusual in era of ruthless bosses .
The portraits provide the only glimpse into Victorian industrial workers . |
155,481 | 54f5da25ca78ba056605c383f6872bc834776276 | By . Sam Adams . PUBLISHED: . 03:45 EST, 20 May 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 05:07 EST, 20 May 2013 . Tragic: Elvira Campos, 10, was shot to death on Saturday night after gunmen opened fire on her family's home . A 10-year-old girl was shot dead while watching TV after gunmen opened fire on her family's home. Elvira Campos was killed when at least two suspects sprayed the property with bullets, in North Highlands, near Sacramento, California. Her father and mother were also injured in the attack, on Saturday night. At least two gunmen are believed to have carried out the shooting, which took place at around 10.30pm. About a dozen shots are believed to have been fired at the home from two different weapons. Four holes were clearly visible in . the living room window of the property, where the girl . is believed to have been sitting. Bullet holes could also be seen in the property's front door and in the frame around the front window. Sheriff's spokesman Jason Ramos said the youngster's parents are expected to recover from their wounds, the Sacramento Bee reports. Detective . Scott Swisher said the family were innocent victims and that they were . not involved in any disputes that the police are aware of. He said the suspects came to the house in a vehicle, but that there is no description as yet, according to the Bee. The family is only believed to have lived in the house for about two years before Saturday's shooting. Scene: The youngster had been watching TV in the living room of her North Highlands home in Sacramento when the shots were fired, according to the sheriff's office . Deadly: Four bullets could clearly be seen in the living room window. The girl's mother and father were also injured in the attack . The schoolgirl, who has two older . brothers, died after being taken to hospital. She was described by a . relative as a happy character who 'knew everybody.' The . youngster's 14-year-old brother is reported to have been working on his . computer in another room, when the shooting took place, the Bee . reports, while her oldest brother, 20, was not home at the time. Attack: Bullet holes were also visible in the house's front door. Police said the family were 'innocent victims' and that they were not involved in any disputes that officer's are aware of . Suspects: Damage could also be seen on the frame of the front window. At least two gunmen are believed to have been involved in the attack . | Elvira Campos killed on Saturday night near Sacramento, California .
Died after gunmen walked up to front door and opened fire .
Father and mother were also injured in the attack . |
271 | 00d4b35f860ceb2b8b9af2202841da09e8b8f058 | By . Martin Robinson . PUBLISHED: . 07:41 EST, 12 December 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 12:07 EST, 12 December 2013 . A 'spoilt, jealous mummy's boy' who throttled his model girlfriend before his parents tried to cover it up smashed his victim's head against a table in the 24 hours before he murdered her, it was revealed today. Newly released CCTV shows the moment controlling Elliot Turner, 20, attacked Emily Longley, 17, in a packed Bournemouth bar on the night before he strangled her. In a fit of rage the killer is then seen flinging a glass across the room while Emily's friends console her on the evening before she was choked to death in his bedroom. A new documentary, to be broadcast tonight, also contains the 999 call his mother made 40 minutes after Emily was found dead, which was a devious attempt to conceal her son's crime. Killer: 'Brash, flash, spoilt' ex-public schoolboy Elliot Turner, 20, choked Emily Longley in his room at his parents' home and then used his parents to cover it up . Anita Turner, 51, tried to claim that Miss Longley, may have been choked by a tight necklace, but in fact her child had gone 'absolutely nuts' and killed her in his bedroom. His father Leigh destroyed a letter his son wrote confessing to the crime. Turner's friends have spoken of his paranoia before he killed his girlfriend in May 2011, after a month where he became increasingly paranoid that she was seeing other men. On 'Mummy's Little Murderer' due to be broadcast on Channel Five tonight, Turner is shown as a maniac intent on killing her. Emily's father Mark told The Sun: 'It is horrifying to think someone put their arm around our daughter's neck and literally choked the life out of her. 'To think someone could put their hands on Emily, who would never hurt anyone, and do such a violent act to her, was awful.' Cover up: Leigh and Anita Turner helped to hide evidence that Emily had been murdered and were also jailed last year for protecting their spoilt son . The murderer had enjoyed a privileged life where his parents denied him nothing. Turner had been educated at a £12,000 private school, and as an adult would carry up to £1,000 cash on him to 'show off'. He also spent nights out in Bournemouth bars with his friends, who he called 'The Firm', drinking champagne and trying to seduce women. His parents were so wealthy they even paid £30,000 to send him to the Priory for rehab after he became addicted to cocaine and alcohol. After spending huge sums impressing women he met Emily, and considered her a 'trophy', his murder trial heard. But the model received admiring glances from other men and Turner could not cope, sending him spiralling into fits of rage. During their four-month relationship it later emerged he had bullied and physically abused her, before threatening to kill . her and other men who knew her in a series of texts and emails. In one note written by Emily to him said: 'I love you but don't say you'll kill me. You make me scared'. CCTV also reveals on one occasion he took a hammer into a nightclub to threaten another man he believed was attracted to his girlfriend. Guilty: Elliot Turner (left) strangled Miss Emily (right) in his bedroom during a drunken argument . Love note: A letter from Emily Longley to Turner said: 'I love you' but 'don't say you'll kill me' After he killed her Turner claimed that Emily had died in her sleep and his parents backed him up. A post-mortem was inconclusive and the 20-year-old was not charged. But police were suspicious and bugged his house, and his parents were heard discussing the conspiracy. Elliot said he 'lost it' that night and his mother said: 'We've done the right thing'. His father then said: 'Stop denying it. He f****** strangled her'. He was then arrested and Turner then claimed during the trial he acted . in self-defence when Emily attacked him and he grabbed her by the . throat for five or six seconds and he then woke up to find her dead in . his bed. Pictured together: Elliot Turner and Emily Longley, pictured in the days before her death. Behind the scenes he was controlling and abusing her . Bereft: Emily's parents Caroline and Mark. Caroline said that Turner saw Emily as 'a trophy adorned on his arm' and were distraught that she tried to hide it from them . But the jury did not believe him and he was jailed for 20 years in May 2012. His arrogance was such that even . his own defence lawyer was forced to describe him as ‘brash, flash, . boastful, spoilt, volatile, obsessive, possessive and obsessed’. He will . serve a minimum of 16 years. His parents Leigh, 56, and Anita, 53, were jailed for 27 months, and were both released in September. Mummy's Little Murderer, is on Channel 5 tonight 9pm. | Elliot Turner, 20, strangled Emily Longley in his room at his parents' home .
New CCTV reveals he slammed her head into a bar table 24 hours earlier .
His parents tried to cover up his crimes and were later jailed for conspiracy .
His mother's lying 999 call is revealed where she said she died in her sleep .
Documentary on Turner - 'Mummy's Little Murderer' - on Five tonight . |
70,726 | c87e99f422b46c03ce77e7cd064bff87c076e1ed | By . Stephen Wright . PUBLISHED: . 12:35 EST, 13 March 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 20:52 EST, 13 March 2013 . A number of ‘very high profile’ figures are to be arrested over new child sex abuse allegations, a top prosecutor has revealed. Detectives investigating the Jimmy Savile scandal and other historic sex allegations are preparing a dramatic new wave of celebrity arrests. In an extraordinary public statement, Nazir Afzal of the Crown Prosecution Service said child sex abuse inquiries are a ‘growing industry’ and more arrests are planned for the next few weeks. Paedophile Gary Glitter and PR guru Max Clifford have both been arrested and bailed as part of Operation Yewtree . Mr Afzal, who has specialised in . prosecuting child grooming cases, said those due to be detained were not . directly linked to Savile – regarded as Britain’s most prolific . predatory paedophile. Instead, he said, they were among the ‘others’ identified by detectives as having committed similar alleged offences. ‘This is a growing industry,’ said Mr . Afzal. ‘There are more arrests scheduled over the next few weeks. Some . are very high-profile figures.’ He added: ‘They are people whose names . have come forward because of the high profile of child abuse in recent . months. There are people you will be interested in.’ Mr Afzal’s comments came as he took . part in a London seminar on tackling child abuse, organised by the . Policy Exchange think tank. Historic claims: The Jimmy Savile scandal has prompted a wave of fresh accusations against several celebrities . His comments are likely to prompt a backlash . from showbusiness personalities who claim they are the victim of a . post-Savile ‘celebrity witch-hunt’. As chief crown prosecutor for the . North-West, Mr Afzal is overseeing the prosecution of former It’s A . Knockout presenter Stuart Hall over historic child sex allegations. Mr . Hall, 83, has described the claims as ‘pernicious, callous, cruel and . above all spurious’. Mr Afzal is also overseeing the . prosecution of Coronation Street actor Michael Le Vell, 48, who is . charged with 19 sexual offences against a child including rape, indecent . assault and sexual activity. He denies the charges. Privately, a number . of senior police and legal figures were stunned that Mr Afzal, tipped . by some as a potential future Director of Public Prosecutions, had . chosen to hype up the impending arrests of yet more celebrities for . alleged child sex abuse. New claims: Dave Lee Travis outside his home in Bedfordshire yesterday . Dave Lee Travis yesterday insisted his ‘conscience is clear’ as he faced a fresh wave of sex assault claims. The former Radio 1 DJ, who was first arrested in November, was re-arrested and questioned about new evidence by Operation Yewtree detectives after answering bail on Monday. It is understood officers quizzed him about 11 ‘incidents’ after further women came forward. Travis, 67, who was bailed until April, said his reputation has been ‘tarnished and dragged through the mud’ despite nothing having been proved against him. Outside his £1million Bedfordshire mansion he said: ‘The last four months have been extraordinary. Allegations which I strongly deny have been put to me by the police and to which I have given full and complete answers. 'I have fully co-operated and my conscience is clear. They are carrying out a wide-ranging investigation concerning allegations made against many people over many decades. ‘I’m simply one of those people. I ask you to take into account that I was not and have not been charged with anything by the police.’ The original claims against Travis involved two adult women who claimed he molested them in the 1970s and 80s. One was former Sky presenter Vivien Creegor, 55, who said he groped her while she was reading the news on Radio 4. The Magic AM presenter, who was taken off air after his first arrest, said his wife had been ‘extremely distressed’ at the way he has been treated. He added that he has had ‘amazing support’ from many people. But child protection campaigners . believe his comments reflect mounting concern that police failed to . protect young girls from Savile and other predatory celebrities . suspected of decades of offending. Earlier this week HM Inspectorate of . Constabulary warned in a highly critical report that officers had . repeatedly failed to respond to evidence of Savile’s criminal activities . over nearly 50 years. Detective Chief Superintendent Keith . Niven, the head of Scotland Yard’s child abuse command, told the Policy . Exchange meeting, however, that more offenders would now be brought to . justice and said cases being reported to the Met had ‘rocketed up the . scale’ since the Savile scandal broke. Meanwhile, 11 more alleged offenders . have been arrested or questioned under Operation Yewtree, set up by the . Met to investigate crimes by Savile and his accomplices, plus other . historic sex abuse crimes. Those arrested include PR consultant Max . Clifford, comedian Freddie Starr and DJ Dave Lee Travis, who all deny . any wrongdoing. Last night a Crown Prosecution Service . spokesman, asked about Mr Afzal’s comments, said: ‘This is an . operational matter for the police.’ Scotland Yard indicated its officers . were not intending to make any new celebrity arrests, prompting . speculation that Mr Afzal was referring to planned arrests in the . North-West. Sorry we are unable to accept comments for legal reasons. | CPS chief crown prosecutor says a host of celebrities could be arrested .
Jimmy Savile scandal has prompted wave of fresh accusations . |
116,577 | 22782c333975dc2454bb58d228a3479aa47941de | The Obama administration is thinking about sending additional military advisers to Iraq as it ramps up efforts to consider how to get thousands of Yazidi Iraqis off Sinjar Mountain and how to boost the capabilities of Kurdish Peshmerga fighters in northern Iraq, a U.S. official said Tuesday. The official did not want to be named because no decisions have been made yet. But consideration is being given to sending as many as 75 additional American military personnel to Iraq, a second U.S. military official told CNN. President Barack Obama had previously authorized sending as many as 300 advisers to that country. Currently, 250 U.S. military personnel are in Iraq and are directly involved in the already-approved mission of running two joint operations centers and assessing the capabilities of Iraqi forces. However, the first U.S. official said, their job is expanding to consider evacuation options and the needs of the Peshmerga. With a new mission, it is expected the White House could make a new War Powers notification to Congress to send additional personnel outside the 300-person limit for the new short duration task of assessing the Peshmerga and developing options for evacuations. Obama said the United States is looking for ways the international community can band together to rescue those who have been stranded by the fighting. "The next step, which is going to be complicated logistically, is how do we give safe passage for people down from the mountain, and where can we ultimately relocate them so that they are safe. That's the kind of coordination that we need to do internationally," Obama said on Saturday. Pentagon officials said one of the first steps is getting a clearer picture of how many people are still stranded, so planning for evacuation options can begin. "We're currently assessing what we can and can't do and trying to understand, for example, the numbers that are on the mountain itself. The numbers vary. I've seen reports of numbers in the thousands, and I've seen reports in the numbers of tens of thousands," Lt. Gen. William Mayville, director of operations on the Pentagon Joint Staff, told reporters Monday. One U.S. defense official said that while some people have escaped through humanitarian corridors, the United States believes anywhere from 10,000 to 20,000 people potentially could still be on the mountain, although the actual number is not known. With those numbers, any operation, whether by air or land, could take weeks. All of the officials CNN has spoken to say the administration has ruled out putting U.S. troops on the ground, but some rescue options -- for example, using helicopters -- could involve a brief U.S. ground presence. U.S. officials do believe that any rescue option, such as Peshmerga forces going in, or the establishment of additional safe passage corridors on the ground, still require a heavy U.S. air combat presence to suppress ISIS militants from attacking. On Monday, U.S. fighter jets attacked several ISIS positions near Mount Sinjar, including checkpoints, which is part of the effort to begin to push them back, the U.S. official said. Kurdish Peshmerga fighters have requested additional arms supplies from the United States, the first U.S. official noted. If additional U.S. advisers are sent, part of the their expanded role will be to assess the capabilities of the Peshmerga and see what else is needed beyond the resupply of ammunition. Mayville hinted at this Monday as well, telling reporters that some of the militant forces have longer-range weapons systems "so we need to make sure that the government of Iraq and the Iraqi security forces are providing longer-range weapons themselves to the Kurdish forces." | The United States may send more military advisers to Iraq .
The U.S. advisers already there will consider evacuation options .
The U.S. is helping in the rescue of Yazidi Iraqis on Sinjar Mountain . |
197,070 | 8b125d064de455a4a0f3f05eb9021366c1a83890 | NEW YORK (CNN) -- Chesley B. "Sully" Sullenberger III was "the right guy at the right time at the right moment" to guide a jet safely onto the surface of the Hudson River, a neighbor and friend said. Chesley Sullenberger is an Air Force veteran who has been with US Airways since 1980. Sullenberger has a cool, calm and collected style -- honed by decades of flight experience and research on safety issues, friend and neighbor John Walberg told the Contra Costa Times newspaper. All 155 passengers and crew aboard Flight 1549 survived. The 57-year-old former Air Force fighter pilot has been flying for more than 40 years, and has been with US Airways since 1980. His two-page resume is packed with achievements and highlights his broad aviation experience. The pilot speaks internationally on airline safety, and collaborates with the Center for Catastrophic Risk Management at the University of California-Berkeley, whose researchers look for ways to avoid air disasters. Watch a pilot applaud Sullenberger's skills » . Passenger Joe Hart praised the plane's crew as "phenomenal, in all respects." "Once the pilot said 'brace for impact,' the flight attendants made sure everybody knew they had to be buckled in and bent over," Hart said. "Then they sat in their chairs, strapped themselves in, and in a regular cadence, until we hit the water, they just continued to chant 'brace, brace, brace' so that nobody would sit up. And that, I think, helped prevent a lot of injuries on impact." CNN affiliate WKOW in Madison, Wisconsin, identified the co-pilot as Jeffrey Skiles, 49. Barbara Skiles told WKOW that, in conversations since the incident, her husband has praised the rescue effort. "He was really grateful and really impressed about the response that they got, how quickly boats were at the side of the airplane," she said. Sullenberger was primed to help passengers aboard the Airbus A320 survive the crisis, said Karlene Roberts, a university professor who co-directs the center. "I can imagine him being sufficiently in charge to get those people out," she said. "He's got that kind of personality, which is to his credit." Watch how passengers call pilot a hero » . Sullenberger's resume is packed with achievements. After graduating from the Air Force Academy in 1973, he had a brief but distinguished Air Force career during which he flew the Vietnam-era F-4 Phantom fighter jet. He was a flight leader and training officer with experience in Europe and the Pacific and at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, where he was the mission commander for Red Flag exercises. The exercises are for advanced aerial combat training, a position delegated to top pilots. Among those who congratulated Sullenberger was Lt. Gen. John Regni, the Air Force Academy superintendent, who graduated with Sullenberger. "He not only showcased unbelievable airmanship, but exemplary character as well," Regni said. "In addition to superb judgment under utmost pressure, by checking his aircraft twice to ensure there were no passengers left behind he epitomized the 'service before self' concept we strive to instill in our cadets," Regni said. Sullenberger is president and CEO of Safety Reliability Methods Inc., a company he founded. The firm provides emergency management, safety strategies and performance monitoring to the aviation industry. He was an instructor and Air Line Pilots Association safety chairman, accident investigator and national technical committee member, according to a biography on the Web site of his company. He participated in several U.S. Air Force and National Transportation Safety Board accident investigations, and worked with NASA scientists on a paper on error and aviation, according to his resume. He was widely praised after Thursday's forced water landing, apparently caused by a "double bird strike," which crippled the plane's engines. "It was an amazing piece of airmanship," said Peter Goelz, a former managing director of the National Transportation Safety Board. Even New York's mayor had praise. "It would appear that the pilot did a masterful job of landing the plane in the river and then making sure that everybody got out," Mayor Michael Bloomberg said at a news conference Thursday. "I had a long conversation with the pilot. He walked the plane twice after everybody else was off and tried to verify that there was nobody else on board -- and assures us there was not." Sullenberger's wife, Lorrie, told CNN that his response wasn't surprising. "This is the Sully I know, she said. "I always knew this is how he would react. So, to me, this is not something unusual. It's the man I know to be the consummate professional." She also told the New York Post on Thursday that her husband "is about performing that airplane to the exact precision to which it is made." "I've said for a long time that he's a pilot's pilot. He loves the art of the airplane," she said standing with the couple's two daughters outside their Danville, California, home on Friday. Watch interview with pilot's wife » . She said her husband, who hadn't spoken to the media as of noon Friday, was doing well. "He's feeling better today. He's a pilot. He's very controlled, very professional," she said. She divulged to CNN that she was stunned to hear the news from her husband after it was all over. "I hadn't been watching the news. I've heard Sully say to people, 'It's rare for an airline pilot to have an incident in their career.' " "When he called me he said, 'There's been an accident.' At first I thought it was something minor, but then he told me the circumstances and my body started shaking and I rushed to get our daughters out of school." | Air Force Academy superintendent praises pilot's character .
Chesley B. "Sully" Sullenberger III, 57, is former Air Force fighter pilot .
Sullenberger has 40 years of flight experience .
Sullenberger is frequent speaker on airline safety . |
144,981 | 4787480e4a98419a6fa1a4dfb6c6609b8f7f5dcd | By . Nick Pisa . PUBLISHED: . 13:47 EST, 23 January 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 13:08 EST, 22 March 2013 . An Italian businessman who lost more than £19,000 after playing slot machines for 12 hours had to be sedated by paramedics after worried arcade staff called police. The man, who has not been named by police, turned violent after losing the huge amount of money and accused staff of fixing the machines he was playing. When police arrived at the arcade in Bergamo, northern Italy, they were unable to calm the man and were forced to call an ambulance was called to . sedate him and remove him from the premises. High stakes: The man began threatening and insulting staff at the arcade in Bergamo, Italy, after losing £19,000 on slot machines . The man had arrived at the arcade in with several bags of cash, telling staff he had just secured a . successful deal and wanted to celebrate his luck. Staff said he played casino style machines with a minimum 10 Euro (£8) bet for several hours and had racked up several wins before his luck started to turn and he began to lose. As his money ran out he left the arcade only to return minutes later with more money that he said had been 'loaned' to him by friends but his losing streak continued and at around 3am when he had nothing left to gamble he began threatening and insulting staff. They called police who tried to calm him down but when they failed to make any impact an ambulance was called to sedate him and take the man to a specialist dependency unit at Bergamo's local hospital. A staff member said: ‘It's a very . difficult situation - he has some issues so we would rather not make any . public comment although we have suggested a course of therapy.’ Sore loser: The man became so distressed after losing his money he had to be sedated by medical staff in order to be removed from the premises (file photo) A Bergamo police spokesman said: ‘We were called to intervene at an incident at an arcade in the city where a customer had been playing slot machines for several hours. We understand that he'd lost a considerable amount of money and got quite upset. Officers were unable to calm him down and an ambulance was called to take him away once he had been sedated.’ Slot machine addiction is a growing social phenomenon in Italy with arcades springing up all across the country as hard up Italians try and stretch their wages through gambling and several regional medical authorties have reported a rise in treating those hooked. In Britain earlier this month campaigners called for a £2 limit on slot machines but the government decided against any changes in the law as they was no evidence to suggest the terminals created serious problems. Labour says streets are turning into a mini Las Vegas through the spread of the machines with some punters losing hundeds of pounds an hour and turning on staff as a result. | Italian businessman visited arcade in Bergamo near Milan and lost £19,000 .
After 12 hours of gambling he began threatening staff who called police .
Officers unable to remove him and paramedics were forced to sedate him . |
188,700 | 80656a1ac9b53fcf2ff26838e25578ec9cccdb63 | (CNN) -- Libya went out of the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations despite a 2-1 win over Senegal in their final Group A match at Estadio de Bata Sunday. Ihab El Busaifi scored twice for the surprise qualifiers to give them their first victory in the tournament, but they finished three points behind group winners Zambia and two adrift of runners-up Equatorial Guinea. Senegal, who had gone into the finals as one of the favorites, finished rock bottom of the group with three losses. Zambia defeated co-hosts Equatorial Guinea 1-0 Sunday to win the group on seven points. They will now face the runners-up from Group B in Bata, while Equatorial Guinea will take on the winners of Group B, most likely the Ivory Coast, in Malabo for a place in the last semifinals. Blog: Expect more shocks at the Africa Cup of Nations . Senegal made six changes to the team who lost 2-1 to Equatorial Guinea in their second group match, dropping goalkeeper Khadim Ndiaye and misfiring strikers Souleymane Camara and Demba Ba, who came to the tournament with big reputations. Libya took the lead after just five minutes through Abousaifi after he was set up by Ahmed Osman. Senegal hit back six minutes later when Deme Ndiaye headed home. They had chances to record their first win, but it was Abousaifi who grabbed the winner for Libya six minutes from time with a superb volley. Zambia owed their victory over Equatorial Guinea at the Nuevo Estadio de Malabo to a goal from captain Christopher Katongo after 67 minutes. | Libya beat Senegal 2-1 in final Group A qualifier .
Libya go out of Africa Cup of Nations despite victory .
Zambia beat co-hosts Equatorial Guinea 1-0 .
Zambia top group after second victory in group . |
160,310 | 5b3b771945716e77e326257784997ffe688edd2a | A portable toilet delivery driver who posed as a dashing airline pilot to worm his way into the lives of unsuspecting women he later defrauded has been jailed. Timothy Giles, 46, targeted victims on dating websites, telling them he was either a police officer, firefighter or commercial flyer with Australian airline Qantas. Giles, from Blunsdon, Swindon, Wiltshire, embellished his lies with a photo of a pilot in uniform that looked like him and pictures of exotic holiday locations that he downloaded from the internet. Jailed: Timothy Giles, 46, (right) posed as an airline pilot on dating websites to worm his way into the lives of women, embellishing his lies with a photo of a pilot, unconnected to the case, that looked like him (left) Exeter Magistrates’ Court heard women were taken in by his fake 'grandiose' lifestyle and entered into relationships with him, unaware he was a portable toilet delivery driver who was stealing money from his various dates. One even allowed Giles to move into her home in a Devon village, and become a 'father figure' to her two young children, the court was told. She was persuaded into lending him £320 after Giles claimed he had 'fallen into difficulties' despite working for Qantas - believing his position meant he could pay it back. Police arrested Giles at her home on on December 30 last year after it emerged he had used his delivery firm employer’s fuel fob to fill his Land Rover Discovery with £978.65 of fuel. Unsuspecting: Giles with one of his victims. He managed to persuade one of the three women that he was a pilot for Qantas, convincing her to lend him £320 after he claimed he had 'fallen into difficulties' He also failed to pay Children’s Hospice South West £65 in sponsorship for completing a cycle ride for the charity. District Judge Stephen Nicholls told Giles his actions had devastated his victims and required an immediate prison sentence of 84 days. Giles, who admitted six counts of fraud by false representation, one of theft and one of breaching bail conditions, was ordered to repay his victims £785. 'I accept you were somebody who was facing a difficult set of circumstances, having some time ago found yourself at the end of a long marriage and in a situation where you were out of work,' the judge said. 'You effectively created havoc amongst everybody else that you came into contact with. You purported to be someone that you were not. 'You pretended that you were a police officer. You told one woman that you were an airline pilot. 'You knew in putting forward these false set of circumstances the effect this was having on the people who you were committing the offences against.' Giles first pretended to be a firefighter to attract one woman, who helped him raise money for Children’s Hospice South West through a cycle ride in April 2013. Her friends, family and work colleagues sponsored Giles for the ride, which he completed, but he failed to hand the money to the charity. In July last year, Giles attracted another woman through a dating profile picture of a police officer with an automatic weapon strapped across him. He described himself as an armed response officer for Devon and Cornwall police and, after gaining the woman’s trust, used her bank card details to pay his £225.45 phone bill. Fabrication: Giles, pictured with one of his victims, was arrested on December 30 last year after it emerged he had used his delivery firm employer's fuel fob to fill his Land Rover Discovery with £978.65 of fuel . Giles was arrested in September 2013 and handed a conditional discharge for the offence at Taunton Deane Magistrates’ Court after repaying the money. But in October 2013, he met another woman through the same dating website, this time purporting to be a Qantas pilot. Christopher Bittlestone, prosecuting, said: 'She was in a vulnerable position, she was a lady with two small children. 'He made certain representation to her that he was an airline pilot working for Qantas who had fallen into difficulty, with all sorts of excuses given to her about why he was short of cash.' The woman, who Giles moved in with, agreed to loan him £120 on October 29 and a further £200 on December 23. 'Her world came crashing down on December 30 when the police eventually caught up with Mr Giles,' Mr Bittlestone said. 'She came to realise very shortly that everything she had been told about him was simply a lie.' Between August and September of last year, Giles used his employer’s fuel fob to fill his Land Rover with £978.65 of fuel, the court heard. Giles had been given the fob as part of his job picking up portable toilets from building sites but it was not for personal use. Nicholas Bradley, representing Giles, said his client was in a new relationship and had found employment. Ruling: Giles, who admitted six counts of fraud by false representation, one of theft and one of breaching bail conditions, was ordered to repay his victims £785 by a district judge at Exeter Magistrates' Court . 'He is in a place in terms of his life to go forward to the future back on the same side of the path that he was on previously,' Mr Bradley said. 'He is a man who is capable of working and supporting others, capable of contributing to society rather than damaging it.' He said his client, save for the conditional discharge last year, had only one previous offence from 1990. Giles looked shaken as he was led to the cells. Speaking after Giles’ conviction, his most recent victim said: 'His story was that he was an airline pilot working for Qantas and had been doing so for 10 years. 'He said his parents lived in Australia where he used to work but he had moved to the company’s English base. 'He then moved to Devon and would stay at mine a lot and leave at silly o’clock to say he was driving back to Heathrow. I now know he was going to see another woman. 'He had details about his job, parents, house and past life. He had a complete life mapped out but it was all just a fabricated mess. 'He would send me photos of where he was in the world. He would text me his ‘current view’ of a hotel or beach in the Indian ocean. 'But it was all just downloaded off the internet - just like the photo he initially sent me in a pilot’s uniform. 'I never suspected anything - he seemed so genuine. He had an answer for anything and everything.' | Timothy Giles, 46, from Swindon targeted his victims on dating websites .
He used a photograph of a pilot, and also claimed to be a police officer .
One of his victims even allowed him to move in with her, and lent him £320 .
He admitted six counts of fraud, one of theft and one of breaching bail .
Giles was jailed for 84 days and ordered to repay his victims £785 . |
18,124 | 33533d6cf0bb0210fc35a4e3541f5d8a731f319e | Speculators are offering 'no-win, no-fee' deals as they try to exploit a planning loophole to win permission to build houses on open fields. In a damning indictment of the Government's relaxed planning laws, one successful land agent is now so confident it can bulldoze past local objections that it does not charge farmers an upfront fee for its services. A Daily Mail investigation has revealed that Gladman Developments, a 'strategic land promoter', offers them the chance to increase the value of their land by a multiple of 50 or 60 by transforming agricultural land into development sites. Scroll down for video . Gladman Developments is seeking planning permission for this 15-acre farm near the Peak District . Gladman – one of the most successful of these 'predatory developers' – is pursuing 102 planning applications for huge housing developments all over England, most of them on greenfield land on the edge of rural towns and villages. The revelation comes days after two of the most respected rural institutions – the National Trust and Country Life magazine – issued warnings that some of Britain's most picturesque countryside is being desecrated as a result of the Government's reforms. They said rural communities are alarmed at the ease with which businesses are able to win planning permission for housing in the face of local opposition. Country Life said in an article last week that villages have been 'stripped of their natural defences' by the Government's reforms, which have opened the floodgates to greenfield planning applications. Its editor-at-large, Clive Aslet, wrote that while farmland was once protected, the balance had changed with the introduction of the new guidelines. Councils must now show they have enough land to meet housing targets for the next five years – or lose key powers to ward off planning applications. Sir Simon Jenkins, the outgoing chairman of the National Trust, said rolling farmland is being replaced by warehouses and bleak housing estates . 'Those who can't are naked in the face of predatory developers', Mr Aslet wrote. 'Communities that don't have local plans in place are similarly meat for the wolves.' The Government's policies were also denounced by Sir Simon Jenkins, the outgoing chairman of the National Trust, in an article for the Daily Mail. He wrote: 'Rolling farmland is replaced by warehouses, bleak housing estates, wind turbines and advertising hoardings in fields.' The Government is desperate to build more than 200,000 homes each year to meet booming demand. Under its National Planning Policy Framework, pushed into law two years ago, councils which have not earmarked suitable land to meet housing demand over the next five years must adopt a 'presumption' in favour of planning permission. Gladman Developments, which has a turnover of £200million a year, targets councils that cannot demonstrate a five-year housing supply. It offers to pay all the costs of obtaining planning permission – including the fees for lawyers and experts in the event of any appeal – which can exceed £300,000. If the attempt to win permission is unsuccessful, the farmer does not have to pay anything. The firm recently took out adverts in the farming press calling for sites of up to 50 acres on the edge of a towns or villages. Its adverts boast: 'We aim to never lose and have won 90 per cent of our housing planning applications. 'You pay nothing, win or lose. We only get our percentage after you have sold your land to the highest bidding housebuilder.' The firm has an astonishing success rate, having secured planning permission for rural sites in 41 out of its last 43 cases, despite substantial local opposition. Its latest projects include a site for 112 homes in the idyllic Slad Valley in Gloucestershire, immortalised in Laurie Lee's memoir Cider with Rosie; an estate of 107 homes within view of the summit of the Peak District's Kinder Scout; and a 970-house project in Lincolnshire which would expand the town of Louth by 12 per cent. Among its other projects are plans for 1,500 homes near Stratford-upon-Avon, and 70 homes in Witney, Oxfordshire, in David Cameron's constituency. David Gladman, director of Gladman Developments, insisted his company focused on 'sensible, sustainable locations'. He said: 'We are professional at what we do, and proud to help deliver homes and associated prosperity to these towns and villages. 'Everyone needs reminding that we all live in a home which was built on what was once a green field.' Planning Minister Brandon Lewis said: 'There remains strong protection of the countryside and Green Belt. The best way for councils to send speculative vultures packing is to have an up to date local plan.' Farmer Robert Bennett owns a share of the proposed development at Whaley Bridge which has been targeted by planning firm Gladman . Nestled in a valley on the edge of the Peak District, an easy drive from Manchester and Sheffield, Whaley Bridge is an idyllic but bustling rural town. But its convenient location coupled with glorious views has drawn attention from planning consultants Gladman Developments, which has submitted plans for 107 houses. As agricultural land, the 15-acre plot is worth less than £200,000. But with planning permission, the owners could sell it for about £13million – 65 times as much – with the developer taking a cut. And the developer could expect to sell the homes for about £235,000 each – a total of £25million. Local people are furious about the proposal, which will be visible 11 miles away from the Peaks' highest point, Kinder Scout. Andy Brown, 47, whose home of 23 years overlooks the fields, said: 'It is vandalism. It is completely eradicating the countryside, its history and its wildlife.' Mr Brown is a founder member of Whaley Bridge Matters, a group of more than 400 residents campaigning against the plan. The family of farmers who own the fields were offered a 'no-win, no-fee' deal by Gladman. Farmer Robert Bennett, 61, claims the land was 'no good' for farming. He said: 'Gladman approached us. They are always rooting about trying to find bits of land. We said if you can get the planning permission, then do it. It is a no-win, no-fee deal. They take a big cut if it goes through. They seem confident about getting it. 'People keep saying we need houses, but then they would rather look out on a field.' His cousin James Slack, known as Peter, farms 250 acres in the area, including the land earmarked for development. He said: 'There's been quite a bit of objection. I can see why.' | Speculators are trying to exploit a loophole to build houses on open fields .
Gladman Developments offers farmers chance to increase value of land .
'Predatory' agent is pursuing 102 applications for housing developments .
Government wants to build 200,000 homes each year to meet demand .
Country Life said villages have been 'stripped of their natural defences'
An earlier version of this article carried a headline to the effect that ‘No-win, no-fee lawyers’ are funding farmers. We are happy to clarify that, as the article itself makes clear, it is Gladman Developments which is offering deals to farmers, rather than lawyers acting for them. |
150,007 | 4def6a85c2c814c952dbdbfa37353afba0c29ca1 | (CNN) -- "To report the state of the union." Within the first few seconds of President Barack Obama's address Tuesday night, he quoted the late President John F. Kennedy, who 51 years ago used those words to describe a president's annual duty. As Obama spoke, citizens around the country were tapping away at keyboards, posting and sending messages -- public and private -- characterizing their own view of how the union, and its president, are faring. Obama told the packed House of Representatives chamber: . "We can say with renewed confidence that the state of our union is stronger." Rothkopf: This time, a president in full . And those citizens around the country, typing away, were in essence saying: . We'll be the ones to decide that, thank you very much. It is one of the most profound changes a modern president faces: The fact that the day is long gone when a chief executive can declare what the status of the nation is and have the words be treated as a one-directional proclamation rather than as the first salvo in an instant conversation. Twitter reported that as Obama discussed the middle class and minimum wages, its users were posting messages at the rate of 24,000 per minute. Tweets on State of the Union . The State of the Union address, for more than a century -- from Thomas Jefferson to Woodrow Wilson -- was not even delivered verbally to Congress. It was handed to the House and Senate on paper, and then printed -- usually in full -- in newspapers across the country. Americans studied the words as they would a major company's annual report. The official version -- the hot-off-the-presses results of the nation's yearly physical exam. The dynamic, of necessity, has been forever altered. Welch: Obama's 'do-something' plan for a 'have-nothing' government . "I'm also issuing a new goal for America," Obama said Tuesday night, and before he could even complete the sentence, he had to know that there were plenty of people who would automatically reject whatever words would follow and would not be shy about it. Self-doubt is a characteristic that a modern president of either party must banish as he speaks. If he were to dwell on the fact that every single syllable he utters is being dissected in real time, it would be understandable if he were unable to make it through a paragraph. "We know what needs to be done," Obama said, but that word -- "we" -- is itself open to daily dispute. A president's voice may be, symbolically, the loudest in the republic, but it is one voice among hundreds of millions, most of them with the technological power to talk right back. Democracy, at warp speed. Slaughter: Obama dares Congress to get the job done . That endless and instantaneous conversation -- and it is only going to grow more constant in the decades to come -- is the contemporary reality to which each president must now adjust, the fresh fact of civic life. It is, in a fundamental way, the new state of the union. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Bob Greene. | Presidents are required to report on the state of the union .
For a long time, reports were delivered in writing; today there is a speech .
Bob Greene: New element is that citizens can immediately talk back with their views .
Twitter users were posting tens of thousands of messages a minute . |
57,038 | a18c04485cec7103af05b72ed1131cec77b31b18 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 13:24 EST, 25 February 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 14:40 EST, 25 February 2014 . Vocal apartheid critic: Swedish Prime Minister Olaf Palme, who was gunned down in a central Stockholm street as walked along with his wife . The records of the Swedish author of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo have added a new twist to his country's greatest unsolved murder mystery. It has emerged that Stieg Larsson sent police 15 boxes of papers he believed linked Prime Minister Olaf Palme's murder to his opposition to the racist apartheid regime in South Africa. The novelist believed that the huge tranche of documents linked Palme's death to a Swedish former military officer allegedly connected with South African security services. Books by Larsson, who died of a heart attack in 2004, have sold more than 75million copies in 50 countries. The latest report has made headlines across Sweden, where, just like the Kennedy assassination, Palme's killing has spawned a legion of conspiracy theories. Palme was gunned down as he walked along a street in central Stockholm late on February 28, 1986, after going to the cinema with his wife. A petty criminal was found guilty of the killing in 1989, but was freed on appeal that same year - an outcome that led to widespread criticism of the police for bungling the investigation. The man Larsson suspected of being the assassin, Swedish secret service agent Bertil Wedin, denied the accusation. 'I have nothing to lose from the truth being established since I am luckily not the murderer,' he told Sweden's Svenska Dagbladet newspaper, which broke the story today. Deputy Prosecutor-General Kerstin Skarp, who leads the continuing police inquiry into the killing, told the newspaper that Wedin 'is not someone that we are pursuing with any intensity at the moment'. Hollywood: Rooney Mara as Lisbeth Salander in the American movie version of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo . Wedin's name is not new to the investigation and emerged previously in the Nineties amid intense media speculation that there was a South African connection to the murder. The killing spawned legions of private investigations, including Larsson's. There were so many probes by ordinary Swedes that a name was even coined for them - 'privatspanare', or private scouts. Some claimed to have cracked the case with theories ranging from his death being a carefully enacted suicide to the work of foreign spy agencies. Private investigators have pointed the finger at an array of suspects, from Sweden's own security services to Kurdish separatists and the South African and Yugoslav secret police. Blockbuster: Stieg Larsson's novels, foremost among them The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, have sold 75million copies in more than 50 countries across the world. Larsson, right, died of a heart attack in 2004 . Palme, Social Democrat prime minister between 1969 and 1976 and again between 1982 and 1986, was hated by conservatives at home and abroad for his anti-colonial views and criticism of the U.S. Some even accused him of being a spy for the KGB. 'The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo', the . first in Larsson's 'The Millennium Trilogy', was made into a Hollywood . film with Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara in 2011. Its two sequels 'The Girl Who Played with Fire' and 'The Girl Who Kicked The Hornets' Nest', were also global bestsellers . | Olaf Palme was gunned down in a central Stockholm street in 1986 .
Stieg Larsson believed former military officer was behind the assassination . |
142,927 | 44d832c3c8408f6cd76c8946683e3993e62ef144 | (CNN) -- Republican presidential hopeful Jon Huntsman called it stupid. His rival Ron Paul denounced it. But perhaps most appalled by a "China Jon" ad on YouTube were Hindus in America. An amateurish video posted by self-characterized Paul supporter NHLiberty4Paul questions Huntsman's "American values," shows Huntsman, a former ambassador to China, speaking in Mandarin and calls him the "Manchurian Candidate." So why is that so offensive to Hindus? The ad also shows images of Huntsman with his two adopted daughters -- one from China and the other, India. The Huntsmans adopted Indian daughter Asha Bharati from the western state of Gujarat in 2006. The ad asks: "Share our values? A man of faith?" as a photograph flashes of Huntsman with an infant Asha Bharati. Both are a wearing a red tikka, a mark associated with the sacred and often seen on foreheads at Hindu ceremonies and temples. The Hindu American Foundation objected to the insinuations made in the video. "This deplorable ad is blatantly racist and religiously intolerant, and crosses all lines of acceptable political discourse," said Suhag Shukla, the foundation's managing director and legal counsel. "Instead of vilifying Governor Huntsman, he should be applauded for being open-minded enough to raise his adopted daughter as a Hindu," she said. Huntsman, a Mormon, is raising Asha "to learn about and appreciate her native culture and the faiths associated with it," his spokesman told CNN last summer. The advertisement was posted on YouTube earlier this week. An e-mail attempt to reach NHLiberty4Paul was not immediately successful. A description accompanying the video states that "Ron Paul is the only authentic conservative in this race, and the only one capable of bringing authentic change to Washington. He is the only sole alternative to flip-floppers responsible for the costly mistakes of the past." At a campaign stop Friday in Concord, New Hampshire, Huntsman told reporters that Paul should disavow the ad. "If the group is in any way affiliated with his organization, of course he should," Huntsman said. "It's just political campaign nonsense. It happens from time to time." He described how his Chinese daughter Gracie Mei was found abandoned in a vegetable market and taken to an orphanage as a newborn. Now 12, Gracie Mei is a fixture on the Huntsman campaign. The GOP contender often endearingly refers to her as his top foreign policy adviser. In all, the Huntsmans have seven children. "To attack a candidate's family, particularly his young daughters, is completely unacceptable and should be denounced by all Americans," said Samir Kalra, director of the Hindu Foundation. Paul, meanwhile, told CNN that he disavowed the ad and had no control of his supporters' actions. "Of course I denounce it ... but people do that, and they do it in all campaigns," Paul said. CNN's Jim Acosta contributed to this report. | Posted by a Ron Paul supporter, the ad questions Huntsman's values .
It shows him speaking Mandarin and with his two adoptive daughters .
"A man of faith?" the ad asks before a photo of Huntsman with his Hindu daughter .
A Hindu organization calls the ad racist and intolerant . |
145,776 | 487e43e149e3b3cc0ab326545e5a5d1f5b34671a | A flash of light believed to be a meteor was captured by a stunned motorist on their dash cam. The driver was on a road in San Antonio, Texas, when the sky above her lit up on Saturday night. Another resident managed to get a photo of the fireball as it sped across the horizon with witnesses saying it had a green glow. Scroll down for video . Bright: The flash of light believed to be part of a meteor shower was captured by a stunned motorist on their dash cam in San Antonio, Texas . After just a few seconds however, the tail behind it dissipates as it heads towards the ground. Under the video, which was posted on YouTube, the individual who uploaded it wrote: 'Not sure what this was, but it was very bright and slightly green in color to our eyes.' The American Meteor Society received more than 200 reports about the bright fireball over San Antonio on Saturday night at 20:45 universal time. Witnesses said the brightness rivaled the sun. The Maverick County Sheriff's Department also took calls from residents who said their houses and the ground had shaken at the time of the sighting. According to CNN, the flash occurred during a meteor shower called the Andromedids. The American Meteor Society said Saturday would be the time of its highest activity. The Andromedids are showers that occur, usually around November, as the Earth passes through old streams of the comet 3D/Biela. Flash: The driver was travelling along a quiet road when the fireball came into shot . Shower? The American Meteor Society received more than 200 reports about the bright fireball over San Antonio on Saturday night . Fading away: After a few seconds, the 'meteor' dissipates as it heads towards the ground . | Flash of light was caught by driver in San Antonio on Saturday night .
American Meteor Society said it occurred during the Andromedids shower .
Received more than 200 reports of the bright fireball in the area .
Its highest activity was believed to be taking place over the weekend . |
80,902 | e549ea8ed854e95ddf1d8aafe493babbb2120cfe | (CNN) -- Until recently, fears of peak oil and dependence on Middle Eastern suppliers were the key factors shaping our energy policy, pushing governments to scramble for fossil fuel alternatives. Then came shale gas, tar sands, and other unconventional sources. Industry found ways to affordably extract fuel for decades to come. So many are now imagining an end to the energy crisis. That's a dangerous mistake. First, even the most optimistic predictions leave our grandchildren exposed to an uncertain future. More immediately -- and maybe more importantly -- burning fossil fuels is the number one cause of global warming and its catastrophic consequences. We need to innovate alternative energy sources now more than ever ... and our choices are limited. There are few viable options that will preserve the levels of prosperity that modern industrial economies have come to expect. Solar, advanced nuclear fission, and fusion offer the best hope but, unfortunately, none are ready for large-scale deployment. All need time-consuming innovations so we cannot afford to hesitate; research must be ramped up across the board and government must keep up the pace. Of our three most promising technologies, fusion would be the biggest prize. It is in many respects the perfect energy source. Sea water provides millions of years of fusion fuel. Fusion reactions are safe, they emit neither radioactive waste nor greenhouse gasses and fusion reactors would take up relatively little space. The catch is fusion is very hard to do. Two isotopes of hydrogen (deuterium and tritium) must be held at 200-million degrees until they collide and fuse to make helium. It is not easy to build a device that runs at ten times the temperature of the Sun, but it is possible. In fact, the European experimental facility, JET -- hosted in the UK, has already done it. For a couple of seconds, it generated 16 megawatts of fusion power -- enough to supply around 8,000 homes. This is an astonishing achievement. We must now extend that duration and power and innovate technologies to make fusion electricity at a price that the consumer will pay. We're working flat out on the first of those goals. Seven international partners representing more than half the world's people are constructing the critical experiment right now in Southern France. Called ITER -- it is designed to reach a self-sustaining fusion burn -- the last scientific hurdle to fusion power. Construction will complete in 2020 with a fusion burn expected by 2030. There are other approaches to fusion -- for example the laser experiments at the National Ignition Facility in California -- but for many of us in the scientific trenches, the fusion burn on ITER is expected to be the defining moment. But what about our second objective of economic viability? ITER isn't meant to achieve that goal. In addition to clearing our last remaining scientific hurdle, we need to advance a parallel engineering agenda into key reactor technologies that will enable commercial fusion power plants to reliably deliver electricity in a highly competitive market. This means technological advances in areas such as structural and functional materials, power conversion, and reliability. China and Korea are on the job but the U.S. and Europe are reluctant to face the engineering issues. Certainly, cost increases on ITER haven't helped. If we continue to starve the technological research agenda of funds, however, we risk delaying fusion power and ceding technological leadership to China and Korea. It goes without saying that resources are limited in our recession-ravaged economies ... but disinvesting in seed corn is obviously self-defeating. What can we afford? The world energy market is approximately €5-€10 trillion ($6.5-13 trillion) a year. The total world spend on energy research is about 0.5% of this -- strikingly low. Fusion research including ITER construction is less than €1.5 billion ($2 billion) a year -- not even 0.05% of the market. We are, it seems, not taking the threat of climate change and energy shortages seriously. In this context, the roughly €200-500 million ($260-650 million) per year needed to vigorously pursue the parallel track of technology innovation in fusion seems absurdly small. We often hear that Thomas Malthus' dire predictions about population growth were wrong because humans innovated solutions to food shortages. Will we innovate ourselves out of our long-term energy constraints too? Only if we sufficiently fund alternative energy research now. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Steven Cowley. | Fusion power is, in many ways, the perfect energy source, says Steven Cowley .
Few viable energy options will preserve prosperity in modern industrial countries .
Experiments at ITER in France aim to create fusion power by 2030 .
More alternative energy funding and research required to help solve energy crisis . |
144,941 | 4776b17e36db4f27cd016f1f2f5f8f3edd194345 | The discovery of the dismembered body of a Thai bar dancer has sparked an international manhunt for a British man wanted for questioning in connection with her death. Thai police have named 45-year-old Shane Looker, from Stoke-on-Trent, as the last person known to have been in contact with murder victim Laxami 'Pook' Manochat. The dancer's body was sliced into pieces before it was stuffed inside a suitcase and thrown into the Mae Klong River in Kanchanaburi, 70 miles south of Thai capital Bangkok. Scroll down for video . Wanted for questioning: Shane Looker, left, originally from Stoke-on-Trent, is wanted by police in Thailand in connection with the murder of Laxami 'Pook' Manochat, right, who was found dismembered in a suitcase . National police in Bangkok said Looker and Miss Manochat were captured on CCTV leaving the Nana Plaza in the city, an area that nightly attracts hundreds of foreign men in search of drink and sex. Looker had entered Thailand on October 31 and was last seen with Miss Manochat on November 2, police said. The suitcase - weighed down with rocks - containing her body was found in the Mae Klong River on November 9. Investigators' first task was to identify the victim's remains. Once that was done they were able to identify Miss Manochat leaving Nana Plaza with a well-built white man. CCTV images of the pair were distributed across Thailand in an effort to identify the tourist, but his identity remained a mystery until a tip-off to Thai blog Stickboy. The blog was provided with Looker’s full name, nationality, and an address in Hua Hin, 90 miles south of Bangkok, along with a photo of his passport. The information was passed to police. Officers went to the address with a search warrant and although Looker had already left, they found the shorts and T-shirt he had allegedly been wearing on the night of November 1, when he was captured on CCTV. DNA taken from a number of items, including nail clippers and a toothbrush, matched DNA found under Miss Manochat’s finger nails. Last known picture: Looker pictured leaving Nana Plaza in Bangkok with Miss Manochat last November . Seedy: A sex worker adjusts her outfit while walking past a 'go-go' bar in Bangkok's Nana Plaza . The investigation also led officers to a shop where Looker allegedly bought rocks similar to those found weighing down the suitcase containing Miss Manochat's dismembered body. A new line of inquiry began - searching for the driver who took Looker out of Bangkok with Miss Manochat. It had been thought the pair had travelled straight from Bangkok to Kanchanaburi in the early hours of November 2. But police discovered he had checked out of Gulliver’s Hotel in Bangkok later that morning, taking a minibus bound for Hua Hin at 9.30am on November 2. What police have not disclosed is whether Miss Manochat was with him in the minibus. Further inquiries, said police, have ascertained that Looker fled Thailand into Malaysia, travelling by train over a border crossing, on November 24. The Thai blog said it is understood that from Malaysia Looker headed to Ibiza where he reportedly spends the European summer months and has a share in a hotel in Ibiza town. Thai police said they were seeking the assistance of Interpol to find the suspect. | Shane Looker was the last person seen with dancer Laxami Manochat .
Seven days later her body was found dismembered and dumped in a river .
Thai police have asked Interpol for help with tracking Looker down . |
13,860 | 274d50831c42e91abeaeb5f48e9c1a3854e33438 | (CNN) -- The Islamist terror group Boko Haram kidnapped at least 97 men and boys and killed 28 people this week in a raid on villages in Borno State in northeast Nigeria, a local leader and residents said Friday. Boko Haram gunmen also injured 25 others during the raid in which scores of homes were burned, the sources said. Boko Haram: A bloody insurgency, a growing challenge . The gunmen raided the farming and fishing village of Doron Baga and surrounding villages on the shores of Lake Chad, about 110 miles north of the state capital, Maiduguri. The raid and kidnappings occurred on Monday, but the news did not emerge sooner due to lack of communication and because cell phone towers were destroyed in previous Boko Haram attacks. Boko Haram has been active as a violent group since 2009 and has killed Nigerians, both Christian and Muslim, at rates frequently exceeding 100 people weekly. The terror group abducted an estimated 276 girls in April from a boarding school in Chibok in northeastern Nigeria. Dozens escaped, but more than 200 are still missing. The name "Boko Haram" translates to "Western education is sin" in the local Hausa language. The militant group is trying to impose strict Sharia law across Nigeria, the most populous country in Africa. In late July, suspected Boko Haram gunmen abducted the wife of Cameroon's deputy prime minister in a dawn attack on his home village of Kolofata, north of the area where they also kidnapped a local chief and his family, residents and security sources said. Who is Boko Haram's leader? | NEW: Boko Haram abducted more than 200 girls from a boarding school in April .
The terror group is said to have raided villages in northeast Nirgeria .
Scores of homes were burned in the raid, according to sources . |
3,478 | 0a0f56ebc5a0a67ed18de79d99b40a42d8058d04 | Stoke City midfielder Charlie Adam is open to the possibility of a move abroad in the future amid links to Real Sociedad. The 29-year-old has started just five times for Mark Hughes' men in the Premier League this season and a switch to La Liga with Sociedad - who are coached by David Moyes - has been mooted. Adam insists that he is no hurry to leave the Britannia Stadium, but admits the idea of plying his trade outside of England before the end of his career is something that appeals to him. Charlie Adam is open to the possibility of moving abroad to continue his career . The 29-year-old has started just five Premier League games for Stoke this season . 'There's better weather than here,' he told the Stoke Sentinel. 'I would love the experience of playing abroad because it's certainly something different. Hopefully, more British players will go and do it. On rumours of an exit in January, he added: 'It's going to happen when you have good players not playing and the opportunity for clubs to have a look at things [in the transfer window]. 'But there's nothing happening at the moment and I am happy to be here at Stoke.' Adam has been linked with a potential move to David Moyes' Real Sociedad . | Charlie Adam is open to the possibility of moving abroad .
Scottish midfielder has started just five games this season .
Adam has been linked with a move to David Moyes' Real Sociedad . |
54,375 | 9a08a4e5069ad2b8eadb26bd349110f5feefb16d | Twenty-eight preschoolers and two adults mistakenly drank bleach at snack time at a New Jersey day care center on Thursday and were taken to a hospital after some complained their stomachs were burning. The children, aged 3 and 4, and adult staff members of the Growing Tree Learning Center in downtown Jersey City were transported in five ambulances to the Jersey City Medical Center after a late-morning call to 911, Mark Rabson, a hospital spokesman, told Reuters. He said some complained of light-headedness, others of upset stomachs. By mid afternoon, all 30 were in stable condition and were being discharged, Rabson said. WABC reported a substitute at the facility offered the mixture. Scene: Authorities are seen with children and staff who accidentally drank bleach at the day care center . Danger: Twenty-eight preschoolers and two adults mistakenly drank bleach at snack time . The children and staff were reportedly having a morning snack of water and fruit when an adult noticed a faint bleach smell and reported it immediately . 'There was a poisoning and many children were injured,' he said, adding the children were walking on their own or were being carried out by their parents and 'have smiles on their faces.' Keith Kearney, executive director of United Cerebral Palsy of Hudson County, which runs the day care center that is open to all community members and serves 65 children from infants to age 4, told Reuters he had heard no reports of injuries and that the hospital visits were a precaution. 'We had an incident where one of the staff in the kitchen used the cleaning solution bottle to pour water for some of the children,' Kearney said. 'It was a repurposed plastic milk jug with a bleach water solution we use to wipe down surfaces. The label we had on the bottle wasn’t large enough to guard against it,' he said. The sick children and staff reportedly drank milk and water to recover . Tense: A young child is held as authorities look on . The 911 call kicked off a mass casualty emergency response by the hospital . The children and staff were having a morning snack of water and fruit when an adult noticed a faint bleach smell and reported it immediately, he said. The 911 call kicked off a mass casualty emergency response by the hospital, which called in extra doctors and nurses and worked closely with paramedics, police and fire units. They gave the victims liquids like water and milk to dilute the poison rather than inducing vomiting 'because it would burn on the way back up again,' Rabson said. Jersey City Medical Center's Michael Bessette told CBS New York, 'It was in a low concentration so it didn’t cause any damage to the children.' 'They’re obviously a little excited, they get a big field trip today,' he also said. | Twenty-eight preschoolers and two adults mistakenly drank bleach at snack time at Growing Tree Learning Center in downtown Jersey City .
A substitute at the facility reportedly offered the mixture .
The children, aged 3 and 4, and adult staff members were transported in five ambulances to the Jersey City Medical Center .
They were having a morning snack of water and fruit when an adult noticed a faint bleach smell and reported it immediately .
By mid afternoon, all 30 were in stable condition and were being discharged . |
18,545 | 3474423d50b3e9e99d72d995e0dedb491ff46018 | Bekaa Valley, Lebanon (CNN) -- Syrian refugees in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley thought life couldn't get much harsher. But that was before winter storm "Alexa" moved in. The rain and snow have since made things even more miserable. Scenes of despair are all around: One young girl, sockless and in slippers, trudges through the snow gathering what's left of it for water. Later, she'll need it to cook with. Across the road, huddling close to the makeshift tents that will barely keep out the rain, let alone protect them from the cold, three teenage boys describe the appalling conditions they're living in. "There's nothing for us to get warm with," Ahmed tells me. He's from Homs and is wearing nothing more substantial than a hoodie. His friend Abdullah, also from Homs, adds: "We need heating appliances. We need winter clothes for the kids. The adults can take the cold, but the kids can't," he said. Aid workers have been quick to mobilize, fanning out across the hardest hit areas in Lebanon. According to the UN's Refugee Agency (UNHCR), the Lebanese Armed Forces, the UNHCR and their partner NGOs have been able to speed up the distribution of additional emergency shelter kits - including plastic sheets, timber and tools - to thousands of refugees living in tents in the Bekaa, eastern Lebanon, so far the region most affected by the storm. The U.N. says that they too are being hampered by the poor conditions. Emergency teams are dealing with blocked roads, and they say, alternate shelters are being prepared. CNN iReport: Refugees brace for snow . "For the hundreds of thousands of refugees in Lebanon, as well as those in neighboring countries and the displaced in Syria, a storm like this creates immense additional hardship and suffering," said Amin Awad, UNHCR's Middle East and North Africa bureau director. "With Lebanon's help, we're doing everything we can to get rapid additional help to people who most need it." But the refugees in this particular makeshift camp in the Bekaa tell me help hasn't come fast enough. They say they're still waiting. Close by, adults chop any firewood they can as children, many of them with nothing but slippers on their feet, try to distract themselves from the cold. Some, like sister and brother Khadija and Amjad, from Aleppo, crave the remnants of a childhood long forgotten; they make the most of the frosty conditions by building a snowman. For others though, the needs are more basic: they seek warmth and food. According to the UNHCR, Lebanon is the largest Syrian refugee-hosting country in the region, with 838,189 Syrian refugees either registered as refugees or awaiting registration. So, that means that the country of Lebanon, with a population of just over 4 million, has now grown to over 5 million people due to the growing number of refugees. And, that number is climbing. The UNHCR says that, unlike other countries neighboring Syria, there are no established refugee camps. Instead people are living in the community in nearly 1,600 different areas. Indeed, one of the biggest problems faced by Syrians who've escaped the war at home and come to neighboring Lebanon is that the Lebanese government won't allow for the construction of official refugee camps. Despite continued requests from aid organizations, Lebanese political leaders are too fearful that camps for Syrians will become permanent, just as camps for Palestinian refugees, who began escaping to Lebanon in 1948, did. As the sun begins to set over the ramshackle tents, more fear is setting in. One of the worst winters on record has only just begun. For these desperate souls, the night ahead will be darker and colder than ever. | Winter storm "Alexa" has brought snow and rain to Lebanon's Bekaa Valley .
Region is home to thousands of people who have fled the civil war in Syria .
One out of every four people living in Lebanon is now a Syrian refugee .
Many are living in makeshift camps, with little but flimsy tents to keep out the cold . |
47,503 | 85f1dac13e11cee22cb019ab45dcaf037d469391 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 11:13 EST, 17 May 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 19:01 EST, 17 May 2012 . It certainly makes a change from the usual holiday souvenir. Eight-year-old Mary Henderson from Dalkeith, Midlothian, was shocked to discover a scorpion in her bedroom a month after she and her family returned from a break in the British Virgin Islands. It is believed the stowaway – named Stavros – may have hidden in a shell Mary had picked up from a beach. Mary's mother Alice, 40, said: 'Mary came down in the morning when she was getting ready for school and said she had found a scorpion in her bedroom. Nippy surprise: Eight-year-old Mary Henderson holds the stowaway scorpion that she found in her bedroom in Dalkeith, Midlothian,after a break in the British Virgin Islands . 'We just thought she was a bit over-excited and had found a woodlouse or something like that, but when we went to her bedroom and checked we saw it just lying there on the floor. ' I scooped it up into a container and it was only afterwards we thought, ''that might have been poisonous''. 'If you pick it up in its container it will move its legs, it’s light brown and only about two to three centimetres long – just tiny. Hopefully there aren’t any brothers or sisters hanging around.' Once the scorpion had been safely secured, Alice, Mary, dad Gordon and children James, four, and Ruth, three, were able to relax. 'At first Mary was quite calm because she thought it was dead,' said Alice. Hitching a ride: The exotic scorpion, which has been nicknamed Stavros, is thought to have been hidden in a shell that Mary picked up from a beach . Exotic: A beach in The British Virgin Islands similar to the one where Stavros is likely to have been picked up for the ride to Scotland . 'But then when we moved him in to a warmer part of the house he got a bit more lively and Mary was a bit more wary.' The exact species Stavros belongs to has not yet been identified, but it is thought he could be a heteronebo yntemai or a Puerto Rican Dwarf Scorpion. Scorpions have very low metabolic rates and are known to be able to survive for an entire year having eaten just one insect. Having completed his travels, Stavros is now making himself at home at Edinburgh Butterfly and Insect World. General manager, Andrew McDonald, said: 'He’s a fairly shy fellow and prefers to be left on his own in his own tank, but he’s settling in nicely.' | Family flew 4,100 miles from British Virgin Islands to Midlothian, Scotland .
Stowaway scorpion 'Stavros' hitched a ride in shell girl picked up from beach . |
104,059 | 12427e1f99e529e975d88d57be004cf4f5479091 | By . Hamish Mackay for MailOnline . Follow @@H_Mackay . Juventus are confident reported Manchester United target Arturo Vidal will remain at the club. The Chilean midfielder has been strongly linked with a move to the Premier League this summer. The 27-year-old Vidal only signed a new contract with Juve back in December, which will see him tied to the Turin-based club until June 2017. VIDEO Scroll down to watchMassimiliano Allegri: Vidal and Pogba are happy to stay . Transfer: Juventus are confident they can keep Vidal at the club despite interest from Manchester United . 'All the requirements are there for Vidal not to leave before the end of the transfer market,' Juve general director Giuseppe Marotta told Gazzetta dello Sport. 'The contract extension he signed has made more solid the marriage between Juve and Vidal. 'Vidal has always said he wanted to stay here and we are more than happy to keep him.' Vidal, who has also been linked with Arsenal, moved to Juve from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer of 2011. Contract: The Chilean midfielder only signed a contract extension in December, which runs until 2017 . He made 32 league appearances for the Bianconeri last season, scoring 11 times and setting up five others to greatly contribute to Juve clinching their third successive scudetto. Meanwhile, Italian paper Tuttosport also claimed that Juventus are hopeful that Paul Pogba will sign a new deal with the club. The 21-year-old had been linked with moves to Chelsea and PSG but John Elkann, Juventus's major shareholder, believes the Frenchman will extend his deal in Turin. Tied down: The Italian champions are also keen to tie down French midfielder Paul Pogba to a new contract . VIDEO Allegri was confident of keeping Vidal . It’s not too late to play MailOnline Fantasy Football… There’s £1,000 to be won EVERY WEEK by the highest scoring manager . | Manchester United keen on Arturo Vidal .
Louis van Gaal has been tracking Chilean all summer .
But Juventus confident they can keep the midfielder .
Vidal signed a new contract last December . |
79,084 | e02936267b248e797cc9adf0811d0a03d23c8ca7 | London, England (CNN) -- Unemployment in the 16-member eurozone -- countries that use the euro currency -- is at 10 percent, the European statistics agency said Friday. Unemployment in the 27-member European Union is at 9.6 percent, Eurostat said. Both rates are for May and are unchanged from the previous month, Eurostat said. An estimated 23.127 million people are unemployed in the European Union, Eurostat said. The lowest unemployment rates among European states were in Austria and the Netherlands, where they are 4 and 4.3 percent respectively. The highest rates were in Latvia, with 20 percent; Spain, with 19.9 percent; and Estonia, with 19 percent, Eurostat said. Youth unemployment is at 19.9 percent in the eurozone and 20.5 percent in the wider European Union, it said. The lowest rate is in the Netherlands, with 8.1 percent youth unemployment, and the highest rates were in Spain and Estonia, with 40.5 and 39.8 percent respectively. | 10 percent unemployment for eurozone, 9.7 percent for wider EU .
Both rates unchanged from previous month .
Latvia, Spain, Estonia have highest unemployment .
Austria and Netherlands have the lowest rates . |
135,352 | 3b170788f96f86d6ae47a047780dd5b7ed5d2981 | (CNN) -- Adam Scott has extended his lead to seven shots at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in Florida after posting a second round four-under par 68. The Australian couldn't match his course record-equaling opening round of 62 in Friday's second round, but is firmly in the box seat not only to claim a maiden win at the event but also take over from Tiger Woods as the world No.1. A win for the current world No. 2 on Sunday would still leave him fractionally behind Woods in the rankings but he will assume top spot if the 14-time major champion, who is currently injured, doesn't play before next month's Masters at Augusta National. The two-year rolling points system which looks likely to hand defending Masters champion Scott the top ranking spot may not be immediately easy to understand, but the 33-year-old's dominance at Bay Hill is clear for all to see. Scott's two-round 14-under par total ties the 36-hole record at the course and leaves him seven clear of America's J.B. Holmes and Chesson Hadley and Francesco Molinari from Italy. "I think it was a pretty good way to back up a low round," Scott said. "It's not easy to do that, especially around a tough course. "And I think the first hole was key in keeping some momentum out of yesterday, making kind of a scrappy par and a good putt on the 1st to feel like I'm heading in the right direction to start the day," he added. "I think you have those days like yesterday where it seems every yardage is perfect and you've got the read on every putt and things just happen. "And as soon as you don't have that perfect yardage, maybe on the first few holes, the pin's a little tucked and it's not shaping up for you, it all becomes a lot harder." Elsewhere, Keegan Bradley's five-under 67 was the best of the day and lifted the American to joint fifth on six under with five other players including compatriot Brandt Snedeker and Jamie Donaldson from Wales who both shot second rounds of 71. England's Ian Poulter and Ryo Ishikawa from Japan are two of six players on five-under par. Read more: Woods a doubt for Augusta . Read more: James Bond's favorite bunker . | World No. 2 in command at Arnold Palmer Invitational in Florida .
Scott adds four-under 68 to opening round 62 to reach 14 under after 36 holes .
Australian could topple Tiger Woods as world No. 1 with a win this weekend . |
260,463 | dd4991d596c6c2f77def63ef21b67e59cf20aecd | Bayern Munich's Robert Lewandowski and Arjen Robben struck twice as the champions annihilated promoted Paderborn 6-0 on Saturday to open up an 11-point lead at the top of the Bundesliga. Poland international Lewandowski, who has yet to deliver the goal flush expected from him when he joined from rivals Borussia Dortmund this season, has not been an automatic starter. Coach Pep Guardiola publicly backed the striker on Friday, saying he was not always playing merely because of different systems. Robert Lewandowski celebrates after putting Bayern Munich into the lead away to Paderborn . Arjen Robben makes it 3-0 from the penalty spot as Bayern ran riot for the second week in a row . Robben (right) shares a joke with Thomas Muller and Holger Badstuber after the landslide win . Bastian Schweinsteiger celebrates Bayern Munich's comprehensive win against Paderborn with the squad . Paderborn: Kruse, Hunemeier, Hartherz, Rafa (Vrancic 75 mins), Heinloth, Ziegler, Koc, Bakalorz (Pepic 71), Meha, Rupp, Kachunga (Lakic 59). Sent off: Hartherz . Bayern Munich: Neuer, Rafina (Weiser 76), Alaba, Boateng, Badstuber, Bernat (Dante 78), Ribery, Robben, Alonso (Rode 73), Muller, Lewandowski . Goals: Lewandowski (2), Robben (2), Ribery, Weiser . Lewandowski, who was a late substitute in the goalless draw against Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League this week, paid back the trust when he plucked a superb flick from Robben to fire Bayern ahead in the 24th minute. Then, in true centre forward fashion, he tapped in a Franck Ribery cutback 13 minutes later. Paderborn's fate was sealed when Florian Hartherz was sent off on the hour and Robben converted the penalty. Ribery also got on the scoresheet along with Mitchell Weiser before Robben notched his 16th goal of the campaign to equal his best season tally at Bayern and climb to the top of the scorers list. Bayern, who have scored 14 goals in their last two league games, are top of the Bundesliga on 55 points. Robben flicks home his second goal during a dominant display from the Bundesliga champions . Florian Hartherz is shown a red card as Paderborn capitulated in the second half . | Robert Lewandowski puts Bayern Munich ahead after 24 minutes .
Striker nets a second later, Arjen Robben also scores two .
Franck Ribery and Mitchell Weiser grab other two goals in dominant win . |
13,694 | 26cc05379df083d66e39c334ce227ea66614f3db | Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (CNN) -- The woman in the photograph's face is almost entirely covered by an ornate mask-like piece of traditional Saudi jewelry. Almost like a niqab, it leaves only her eyes showing. Perhaps surprisingly, she is also wearing an industrial hard hat and safety jacket, and the photo is called "I Am A Petroleum Engineer." It is one of a series by the Saudi artist Manal Al-Dowayan commenting on the jobs that Saudi women do. "We have this debate in Saudi about women's employment, and some people say women should only work in jobs that 'suit their nature,'" said Al-Dowayan. "It's a completely irrational discussion because who decides what suits their nature? I started photographing amazing women working in all kinds of jobs to show that the argument is invalid." Other photos in the "I Am" series feature a Saudi woman doctor, computer engineer, TV producer, scuba diver, architect and interior decorator, all in similar poses with their faces partly covered. Al-Dowayan challenges Saudi customs in other works too. For "Esmi (My Name)," she asked hundreds of women to write their names on wooden balls, which she strung from the ceiling. It was her way of breaking taboo that prevents men from saying the names of women in their lives. Despite the controversial nature of her work, Al-Dowayan says she has had very little negative reaction at home. "Whenever I do a work, people around me and my galleries get very worried, but in reality there's incredible room for dialogue in Saudi Arabia. "These are issues that have been discussed many times, and I'm just bringing them into contemporary art," she said. Al-Dowayan is one of 17 Saudi artists featured in the Edge of Arabia exhibition, which this year was shown in Jeddah for the first time after appearing in cities around the world since 2008. It is the first major contemporary art exhibition ever shown in Saudi Arabia. "Saudi art is absolutely booming," she said. Many artists are gently pushing at boundaries and limits of expression in the socially conservative country. At Edge of Arabia, Ahmed Angawi built a giant ball from 3,600 microphones. He wants to place the microphones out on the streets of Jeddah, his home city, for a year to collect people's random thoughts. "In my mind, I was thinking, if I gave a microphone to Jeddah, what would Jeddah say?" he said. "What would it express?" "You need to talk and engage to get people involved to evolve as a society. People are afraid of talk. Much more, we should be afraid of silence." But, he says, freer expression in Saudi will come as part of a gradual change. "I firmly believe in change. But I firmly believe (in) change with an essence. You want it to be very natural. Sometimes fast change will affect people wrongly in the region." The Edge of Arabia show came under the banner We Need to Talk, and was aimed at encouraging dialogue between artists and the community. "Our aim is to deliver a message," said curator Mohammed Hafiz, 36. "We want to let the world know what Saudi Arabia is all about, through the eyes of its artists. We know that we have a voice that we want people to listen to. We have thoughts and experiences to share." Beyond Edge of Arabia, there are signs that the art scene is on the up and not afraid to say what it thinks. More on Inside the Middle East: Gaza music students find smart ways around travel ban . Alaa Balkhy, a 23-year-old designer running a business called Fyunka, selling bags, T-shirts and notebooks, believes that Saudis are finally becoming proud of their own arts and culture. "People are starting to appreciate each other within Saudi society and the art scene," she said. "If you see something made in Saudi people relate to it now. "It's very new. It's growing and it's amazing how fast it's growing. "We are trying to put a positive Saudi on the map. We really want to change the stereotype, and step by step we are doing it." Balkhy's first design was a bag called "Daddy I want a Birkin," an ironic nod to Saudi's love of shopping for luxury goods, such as the expensive Hermes Birkin bag. Her designs are now sold through an online boutique in London, as well as in nine Gulf countries. She said: "People are pushing the limits, but doing it step-by-step so people don't get a big shock at once. "We don't have much freedom of expression or freedom of speech, but it's amazing how people are saying what they want to say through social media and blogs, whether it's a video, a YouTube show, an article, a design piece or an artwork. "People will always find a way to express themselves. It's human nature to want to say what's on your mind. "If people can't express themselves directly, they will do it indirectly." More on Inside the Middle East: My Syria, by 'greatest living' Arab poet . In addition to the limits to expression, Balkhy faces practical restrictions through the ban on women driving and the guardianship laws, which means she must get permission from her father to travel and for many other daily activities. "There are a lot of challenges to running a business when you are a girl in Saudi," she said. "I imagine it would be easier if I could drive, but I'm proud that I've achieved so much without. "My dad gives me all the permission to travel I need, but it saddens me that some girls have so much potential to creating something, but their families and society are so limiting. "I'm 23 and my little brother is 18, but in Saudi he is a grownup and I'm not." | Edge of Arabia show in Saudi Arabia for the first time after three years touring the world .
Art is booming in Saudi and reflects a new national pride, say artists .
Artists gently pushing at social boundaries in conservative country . |
124,527 | 2cf6dbc8dcb9f67b056926410efd5f42821b8912 | By . John Stevens . PUBLISHED: . 11:46 EST, 27 January 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 14:17 EST, 27 January 2014 . Celebrity contestants on Channel 4’s new skiing game show have been criticised for not wearing safety helmets by a brain injury charity. Hairdresser Nicky Clarke and socialite Henry Conway were seen practising on an artificial ski slope during the first episode of The Jump without ski helmets. It comes weeks after Formula 1 legend Michael Schumacher’s life was saved by wearing a helmet when he crashed while skiing in France. Dangerous: Henry Conway (centre) was not wearing a safety helmet while skiing on Channel 4's The Jump . Mr Conway, 31, who is the son of disgraced Tory MP Derek Conway, was seen wearing a black fur hat while on the training slope in the UK, whilst Mr Clarke, 55, let his famous tresses hang out. During the programme aired on Sunday night, Mr Clarke said that he liked to ‘feel the wind in my hair’. Mr Conway said: ‘I’m hoping to bring some style and sophistication to the slopes as everyone needs a bit of winter glamour.’ Luke Griggs, a spokesman for Headway, the brain injury association, said he believed the celebrity contestants should have set a better example. Socialite Henry Conway was filmed wearing a black fur hat while on the training slope . He said: ‘Ski helmets offer vital protection to all skiers - whether novices on dry slopes here in the UK, or vastly experienced skiers going off-piste. ‘We have to make people realise that it is not only high-speed accidents that can lead to skiers suffering fatal or lifelong injury. 'Even a seemingly minor injury, such as that tragically suffered by Natasha Richardson on a nursery slope in 2009, can have a major impact. ‘To those who suggest they prefer to feel the wind in their hair rather than wearing a helmet, we would simply suggest they speak to Headway service users who felt the same way until they sustained a brain injury in a fall. Hairdresser Nicky Clarke was captured on the artificial ski slope with his luscious locks out but no helmet . During the programme aired on Sunday night Mr Clarke said that he liked to feel the wind in his hair . Risk: Nicky Clarke on the slopes but the hairdresser chose not to wear a helmet . 'For these people, and their families, life will never be the same. ‘The thrill of skiing or snowboarding is in no way diminished by the wearing of a helmet and we hope all the participants in The Jump will set a better example throughout the rest of the series by wearing helmets.’ The Jump features 12 celebrities, including Sinitta, Sir Steve Redgrave and Anthea Turner, competing in winter sports such as the skeleton, two-man bob, giant slalom and ski-cross. Mr Clarke became the first contestant to be eliminated on Sunday night. Fashion before safety: Henry Conway wore a black fur hat when he took to the slopes . In 2008, Mr Conway’s father Derek was ordered to repay over £3,000 of public money that he had given to him while he was in his employment. He was also suspended and expelled from the Tory party for paying his other son for work that he did not appear to have done. In the same year, Henry reportedly threw a party called ‘F*** Off I’m Rich’. A spokesperson for Channel 4 said: ‘The health and safety of those taking part in The Jump is the highest priority and all contributors are provided with necessary safety equipment to use during training and events. Safety equipment is mandatory during events.’ Formula 1 driver Michael Schumacher poses with his wife Corinna Schumacher at the winter resort of Madonna di Campiglio, in 2005 . Improvement: Schumacher is in a stable condition after suffering severe head injuries in a skiing accident . | Hairdresser Nicky Clarke and socialite Henry Conway were seen practising on an artificial ski slope .
Mr Conway, 31, was wearing a black fur hat while on the training slope in the UK, while Mr Clarke, 55, let his famous tresses hang out .
During the programme Mr Clarke said he liked to ‘feel the wind in my hair’
It comes weeks after Formula 1 legend Michael Schumacher’s life was saved by wearing a helmet . |
120,453 | 27a9555bdded89b1f0b879ce3fa819cb05ca4eb3 | Boston (CNN) -- Accused Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev should be allowed to view autopsy photos of the attack's victims and meet with his sister without being watched by the FBI, a federal judge said Wednesday. Prosecutors had asked U.S. District Judge George O'Toole to keep Tsarnaev "from personally reviewing autopsy photographs of victims" other than those the government plans to use at his trial, set for November. Letting him see the rest "would violate the victims' rights to dignity and privacy and subject them to needless harm and suffering," they wrote. The photos are already covered by a protective order in the case. Also, the government's request didn't apply to Tsarnaev's lawyers, who have had access to the pictures. But defense attorneys refused to accept any restrictions, calling the request unprecedented and unwarranted, and O'Toole agreed. Tsarnaev, now 20, is accused of planting the bombs at the finish line of the 2013 race along with his brother Tamerlan, who was killed during the manhunt that paralyzed Boston. The city marked the anniversary of the attacks on Tuesday, pausing to remember the three people who died and more than 200 who were wounded, many of whom lost limbs. The trial is set for early November, with the government seeking the death penalty. Defense lawyers are expected to argue Tsarnaev was under the "domination and control" of his brother. Tsarnaev was not in court for Wednesday's proceedings. O'Toole also said meetings between Tsarnaev and his sister shouldn't be subject to monitoring by investigators, though he held off on issuing a final order on the matter. Tsarnaev lawyer David Bruck argued that letting federal agents monitor their conversation would intrude on the defense. "The decision to take the most casual remarks, an ironic comment, and provide it to the prosecution ... becomes ammunition on the death penalty," Bruck said. If the charges against Tsarnaev are true, he said, "This is about a family," and lawyers should be allowed to observe the relationship between the siblings without interference. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nadine Pellegrini argued that defense lawyers were trying to combine a legal visit with a social one. O'Toole said he didn't think there was a security issue involved and he was inclined to grant the defense request, but didn't issue a formal ruling. CNN's Ronni Berke reported from Boston; Matt Smith reported and wrote from Atlanta. | Prosecutors ask to keep Dzhokhar Tsarnaev from viewing autopsy photos .
Letting the bomb suspect see them would cause "needless harm and suffering," they argue .
Defense lawyers call those restrictions unwarranted, and a judge agrees . |
219,240 | a7c5d8682575b877b5ca94aee8ef017579f25704 | Arsenal midfielder Santi Cazorla admits he would like to see Cesc Fabregas to come back to the Gunners as speculation mounts about a Barclays Premier League return for the Barcelona midfielder. Fabregas was a big hit during his eight-year spell at Arsenal and was given the captain’s armband in 2008 before securing a dream move back to Barcelona in 2011. VIDEO Scroll down to watch Cazorla stun De Gea in Spain training with a stunning free-kick . Below par: Fabregas has struggled to win over the Barcelona fans since his move . However, with Barca set for a period of rebuilding under new coach Luis Enrique following a rare barren season, Fabregas has been widely linked with a return to England this summer. Chelsea are said to be frontrunners for the 27-year-old but Cazorla, who is part of Spain’s World Cup squad alongside Fabregas, hopes the midfielder ends up back at the Emirates. He was quoted by the Spanish press: 'I’ve read that he could go to Chelsea but I’d prefer him to come to Arsenal because he’s a great player and they really love him there. Friendly interest: Cazorla (left) is Fabregas' team-mate with the Spanish national side . Spot on: Fabregas was a vital part of the Arsenal team before leaving in 2007 . 'I don’t know what his future is, but I hope that he will be happy and enjoys the team wherever he is.' Cazorla, who joined Arsenal in 2012, also defended Fabregas’ displays in the Primera Division, adding: 'I don’t think there’s a big difference between Cesc’s performances in the Premier League and La Liga. 'His statistics are great at Barcelona but he’s not valued the same as in England. There’s no difference in his numbers, he’s adapted perfectly to both leagues.' Brazil bound: Fabregas (right) is currently with the Spain squad ahead of the World . | Cesc Fabregas has been widely linked with a return to the Premier League this summer .
Chelsea are said to be frontrunners for the Spanish international .
Santi Cazorla has said that he wants Fabregas to return to Arsenal . |
284,259 | fc47ad911fa8fdd709f0105fb260fad8f08b993c | (CNN) -- As power couples go, they have the sparkle to supersede even Posh and Becks. He's a decorated soccer star with a World Cup title to his name; she has sold over 70 million albums worldwide. No wonder then, that Gerard Pique and partner Shakira were included in Forbes' 2013 list of the world's most powerful pairings, with David and Victoria Beckham nowhere to be seen. "Maybe it seems like it's really difficult to manage everything but we are trying to do it as naturally as we can," Pique told CNN's Human to Hero series. Read this story in Spanish . "It's true that maybe sometimes we have to deal with some paparazzi but then I think we are now four years together -- you have to accept it and deal with it and it's no problem." As a stalwart in defense for Spanish giants Barcelona, Pique can count three European Champions League crowns among his total of 19 domestic trophies, as well as the 2010 World Cup and 2012 European Championship with Spain. Shakira had a No. 1 hit single in 55 countries with "Hips Don't Lie," is a judge on U.S. talent show "The Voice" and garnered 595 million YouTube views (and counting) for her 2010 World Cup song "Waka Waka." It was during shooting for the video that the two met; four years later they now have a son, Milan, and count as one of the most internationally recognized couples on the planet. So how do they try to maintain a normal life in the midst of all the attention? "We don't do very different things than the others," Pique explains. "We are like a normal family and we try to spend a lot of time with our son and before that, just to be a good couple -- going to the cinema, going to have dinner. " Pique is no stranger to scrutiny, though. Playing for one of the world's biggest football clubs means every pass, tackle or movement is magnified and examined in minute detail by a menagerie of pundits and supporters. That intensity of spotlight can easily manifest itself into pressure, and also fear of failure -- even though that word is barely part of Barcelona's recent lexicon. But if ever the 26-year-old required a reminder that losing is not the end of the world, he only needs to look into his young son's eyes. "It changed everything," Pique says of Milan's arrival in January last year. "You can see that he is new in this world and he doesn't have negative connections -- he's all about laughing, smiling, being happy. It's so funny; I enjoy a lot playing with him. "We lost 3-0 against Bayern Munich in the semifinals of the Champions League last season and I was really worried and really sad because it was a bad game and then I arrived home, saw Milan and everything changed. "It's great because he's just 12 months now and it's unbelievable, he is starting to walk and we are enjoying this time a lot." Pique insists there will be no obligation for his son to support Barca -- even though he was enrolled as a member upon birth -- but it seems inconceivable the inextricable link between the club and his family will ever be lost. Four generations of the Pique clan have been Barca members and Gerard's grandfather, Amador Bernabeu, served as a club director for 23 years. Pique was infused with a love for the team at an early age, recently telling the club's magazine he sings Barca's anthem every night before he goes to bed, explaining that it is "the only song I know all the way through." So what exactly does Barca represent for him? "It means a lot," he replies. "It feels like I'm at home when I'm here in Camp Nou (Barcelona's stadium). "For me since I was five or six, I came here with my family to watch every game every weekend and it means a lot to me now to be a first-team player because it was my dream since I was a kid. "I'm enjoying every moment, every year I'm here, and it's good because in the last few years we won a lot of titles and I think we are having a really good moment." 'More than a club' Barcelona certainly lives up to its "more than a club" motto which is rooted in its pride of the Catalonia region it inhabits. The club's axiom allies the promotion of the area's language and culture alongside good causes (the players still bear the name of worldwide charity UNICEF on their shirts). Their fans even staged a pro-independence protest in October 2012 during one of the biggest games in world football -- "El Clasico" against Real Madrid -- by singing the Catalan national anthem mid-match. Credited with an estimated 270 million fans worldwide, Barca is a global advert for Catalonia. "I think for Catalonia, FC Barcelona means a lot because it is one of the top clubs in the world and that means that it's a way to show what Catalonia is in the world," Pique says. "Because sometimes, we are really small and Barcelona is an instrument to show to the world that we are good at a lot of things. One thing is to play football really, really well so for the Catalonian people, the team is really important. "Not only the soccer team because we have basketball, handball and a lot of sports. I think the Catalonian people really identify with Barcelona -- the fans are really proud of the team and the club." The magic of Messi . If Barcelona is a symbol of pride for Catalonia, then so is its prized possession -- Lionel Messi. The Argentina striker was crowned FIFA World Player of the Year four times in a row -- that run was ended by Real's Cristiano Ronaldo this week -- and is feted as one of the greatest footballers the game has ever produced. He moved to Spain to join the famed La Masia academy aged 11, alongside Pique, and has spearheaded Barca's assault on all the glittering prizes club football has to offer. The team has claimed 16 trophies since the start of the 2008 season, when Pique returned after a four-year spell at Manchester United in England, and Messi's mountain of goals during that time have played an instrumental part in their success. And Pique says it is a privilege to play with the 26-year-old, who netted an incredible 91 times in 2012. "I was at the Golden Boot (awards) when he won and it was just amazing what he did," he says. "It doesn't matter now if he's injured and there's some people that are saying maybe now he's not the best, but for me he always will be the best. "He made all these fans in Barcelona enjoy a lot, playing such a great football and he made us win a lot -- the Champions League, the league. "We understand each other just with a look one to the other. People like Lionel Messi or Cesc Fabregas, it's been like half of my life playing with them since we were 12 or 13 so we know each other a lot. "When we are on the pitch, we know what he will do, what Leo will do because we've known each other for a long, long time." Move to Manchester . For a spell early in Pique's career though, it looked like his Barcelona dream wouldn't be realized. He moved to join Manchester United in 2004, spending four years under the tutelage of Alex Ferguson, one of the most decorated managers in the history of the game. Pique credits his time in England as a steep learning curve, adapting to new methods on the field, and a new language and culture off it. "I went there as a kid and I think I came back here in Barcelona as a man," he says of the time he spent under Ferguson, whose 26 years at United were littered with trophies. World Cup dream . With Barca top of the Spanish league and having made it to the quarterfinals of the Champions League, another silverware-laden club season awaits. But looming large on the horizon is the World Cup in Brazil, where Spain can become only the third team in history to defend the title. "My goal is to try to win it again," Pique says. "I think our careers are not very long. You can play 12 or 15, maybe 20 years if you are a good professional and you are lucky with the injuries -- you have to try to win anything you can. "There are some really good players that didn't win anything in their careers, and we are really lucky to be part of a team like Barcelona and a team like the national team of Spain." Even if Pique's career was to conclude tomorrow, he could still look back on a litany of fond memories and several years of almost unparalleled success. And it is almost certainly his deep bond with Barcelona will persist long after he hands up his boots. "Now I'm 26 and I hope I can play here for I don't know six, seven, eight years more but you never know what will happen in the future. "Maybe as a coach; I cannot see myself now being a coach but maybe as a president, you never know." | Gerard Pique plays football for Spanish giants FC Barcelona .
Pique's partner is pop star Shakira, and they have a young son, Milan .
The 26-year-old says the couple try to maintain a normal life amid the attention .
Pique has won 19 domestic trophies and lifted the World Cup with Spain in 2010 . |
46,302 | 827419ac6a06f019311005b459c0db140d105d03 | By . Alex Greig . PUBLISHED: . 10:21 EST, 24 October 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 11:05 EST, 24 October 2013 . A grandfather from Louisville, Kentucky is in the best shape he's ever been in his life - but just a few years ago he was overweight and couldn't walk without a cane. Fitness group BarStarzz introduced Robert, 64, to the world on its YouTube channel. The buff senior says he only began exercising when he was 56 years old and was introduced to his latest fitness obsession, calisthenics, less than two years ago. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO . Before and after: At 56, Robert was overweight and had difficulty working, and now he feels like a teenager . Fitness friends: Robert (center) with some of his Barstarzz buddies . Waving the flag: Robert says everyone can get fit if they devote an hour or two to exercise every day . 'I discovered calisthenics watching BarStarzz on YouTube about a year and a half ago and I decided I would give it a whirl and fell in love with it,' he says. In the video, Robert performs exercises a man half his age would have difficulty with, such as the 'flag', where he holds himself horizontally from a pole. 'Stuff people says I can't do, I'm proving them wrong, that I can do this stuff,' he says. Robert explains how in his mid-fifties, he was badly out of shape. Unhappy: Robert was unfit and wanted to change his life when he began going to the gym . Better than ever: Now, the grandfather feels healthier and happier than ever . 'At 56 years old, I was overweight, couldn't really walk, had braces and was walking on canes and walkers. I wasn't really happy with my life and the way things was going,' he says. He couldn't keep up with his children or grandchildren and he wasn't in good health. After watching fitness videos on YouTube, Robert decided to go to the gym. He was undeterred by people who questioned his abilities because of his age and now, he's fitter and stronger than he's ever been before. 'I feel better now than I did when I was 18 years old,' he says. 'My advice to other people is to take an hour or two a day and get started on the calisthenics, cardio, weight-lifting - whatever you can do. It pays off in the long run, you feel a lot better.' | Kentucky grandfather Robert, 64, was overweight and couldn't walk without a cane eight years ago .
He's now extremely fit and strong and says he feels better than he did at 18 . |
137,497 | 3dd15d60d0d7b3ecfe54a6076653847e81a9e075 | (CNN) -- The United Nations' nuclear watchdog agency confirmed Monday that uranium enrichment has begun at a nuclear facility in northern Iran. On Sunday, a fundamentalist Iranian newspaper with ties to the nation's supreme leader said the enrichment had begun at the plant, which is "immune to any military attack." Security Clearance: Iran's underground program . "Based on reports we received yesterday, Iran has begun uranium enrichment at the Fordo facility at the height of the threats by foreign enemies," the semi-official Kayhan newspaper said. "The IAEA can confirm that Iran has started the production of uranium enriched up to 20%" at Fordo, said International Atomic Energy Agency spokeswoman Gill Tudor. "All nuclear material in the facility remains under the agency's containment and surveillance." The Fordo nuclear enrichment plant is in the mountains of Qom province, where Iran says it has 3,000 centrifuges in operation. Another nuclear facility in Natanz is said to have 8,000 of the machines enriching uranium. Iran says there's a medical purpose behind the nuclear program. "In order to provide medical assistance to 800,000 cancer patients, Iran needs to enrich uranium up to 20% to be able to feed Tehran's (research) reactor that produces the needed radioisotopes," the paper reported. In Washington, U.S. State Department spokesman Victoria Nuland said the confirmation that Iran is enriching uranium to "a level that's inappropriate" is "obviously a problem." "We are closely monitoring their nuclear program in general, and this development, given their track record and what the IAEA inspectors have been able to report, it's not a surprise to us, what we're hearing." She said the IAEA has been able to get into the Fordo facility "on and off." "They've been able to get into some facilities at some times, but what they're finding, as they get in there, is that Iran is not complying with its obligations," she said. "Iran plays this game with the inspectors. They let them go some places at some times when it seems to suit their purposes, but that doesn't change the fact that what the inspectors are now reporting is that they are taking the next step and escalating their violations of their own commitments." The Iranian government announced in July that it was installing a new generation of centrifuges in its nuclear facilities. At the time, the French Foreign Ministry called the development "a new wave of provocation" that flouted U.N. resolutions. Enriched uranium at low concentrations can be used to fuel power plants, but in extremely high concentrations it can be used to produce a nuclear bomb. Uranium enriched to between 3% and 5% is necessary to make fuel for reactors. Weapons-grade uranium is enriched to about 90%. If Iran is enriching uranium to 20%, "this is a further escalation of their ongoing violations with regard to their nuclear obligations, including the legally binding U.N. Security Council resolution," Nuland said. "So, obviously, we call on Iran once again to suspend enrichment activities, cooperate fully with the IAEA and immediately comply with all Security Council and IAEA board of governors resolutions." "When you enrich to 20%, there is no possible reason for that, if you're talking about a peaceful program," she said. "So it generally tends to indicate that you are enriching to a level that takes you to a different kind of nuclear program." Iran's development of missile and nuclear fuel technology has led to U.N. sanctions and accusations from Washington that the clerical regime is trying to develop nuclear weapons. Security Clearance: What might prompt the U.S. to attack . Officials in the United States and other Western nations have ratcheted up sanctions against Iran since a November report by the IAEA said the Iranian government was developing the technology needed to build a nuclear weapon. Last month, U.S. President Barack Obama announced sanctions against Iran's central bank. "We are putting a great deal of pressure on Iran broadly because of its rogue behavior, if you will, the fact that it won't live up to its international obligations with regards to its nuclear program," White House spokesman Jay Carney said Monday. "Those actions that we're taking in concert with our international partners have had a significant impact on Iran, on the Iranian economy." He added, "I believe it was just last week where the new sanctions, when they went into effect, had the impact of causing the Iranian currency to drop dramatically. So we work with our partners, as well as unilaterally, to increase that pressure." Iran says it has a right to peaceful nuclear technology. The IAEA has said it cannot verify whether the intent of Tehran's nuclear program remains peaceful. Security Clearance: Iran's influence in South America . In Sunday's report, the fundamentalist paper appeared to thumb its nose at the West. "Fordo is located deep inside mountains and due to its location is immune to any military attack," the article said. "Locating the 20% enrichment facility at Fordo means that the military threat option against Iran's nuclear program will be removed from the table forever and the West will be forced to slowly realize the immunity of this program against any foreign threat." CNN's Shirzad Bozorgmehr and Ivan Watson contributed to this report. | NEW: The U.S. says the enrichment is "further escalation" by Iran .
The IAEA confirms uranium enrichment has begun at the Fordo plant .
Iran says its nuclear program has a medical purpose, a semi-official newspaper reports .
Iran needs to enrich uranium to 20% for radioisotopes to treat cancer, Kayhan reports . |
280,278 | f713dde82fc73b3500f7e6a365488ade54ae9aaa | Police and forensic experts were left baffled after what appeared to be a severed human finger, proved to be nothing more than a piece of convincing coral. A local man had been walking his dog along the shore of Lee Point Beach in Darwin's north on Sunday when he made the initially horrifying discovery. He promptly called triple zero, fearing that the flesh coloured object which even appears to have a fingernail, was evidence of a homicide. Police were left baffled after a local man found a suspected finger (pictured) on Sunday . Officers who arrived at the scene also treated the discovery as suspicious, assuming the suspected finger was likely to be human remains. 'The location was recorded and the finger, complete with fingernail, seized and sent for forensic examination,' watch commander Brendan Lindner said. However, the forensic tests soon came back inconclusive and the finger was sent to pathology for further analysis. Meanwhile officers at the Casuarina Police Station were left debating over whether the finger was real. A local man had been walking his dog along the shore of Lee Point Beach (pictured) in Darwin's north when he made the initially horrifying discovery . Officers at the Casuarina Police Station were left debating over whether the finger was real while it was tested by pathologists . 'The Negative ended up being correct, when the Pathologist determined that the pinky-lookalike was in fact plant material,' Mr Lindner revealed. Despite the type of plant remaining unknown Mr Linder said that officers had concluded it was most likely the coral species Alcyonium digitatum, or Dead Man's Fingers, found in the northern hemisphere around the Atlantic Ocean. 'If this is correct, then it's worth pointing out that it is a finger after all, just not the human kind!' he said. 'The investigation is now finalised and the suspicious pinky will be disposed of.' Despite the type of plant remaining unknown Mr Linder said that officers had concluded it was most likely the coral species Alcyonium digitatum, or Dead Man's Fingers (pictured), found in the northern hemisphere around the Atlantic Ocean . | A Darwin man found the object while walking his dog at a local beach .
He instantly called triple zero, fearing it was evidence of a homicide .
Officers who arrived at the scene also treated the discovery as suspicious .
After forensic tests proved inconclusive, the finger was sent to pathology were it was discovered to be plant material .
Police assume the object is most likely the coral species Alcyonium digitatum, or Dead Man's Fingers, found around the Atlantic Ocean . |
149,061 | 4cbc523f812667932b63cdeadb3ab2a4523ac727 | By . Cindy Tran . The last thing Sydney drivers want is another distraction on the road. New plans to raise revenue by selling ad space on roads will go ahead for six months on Parramatta's busiest street but critics say it will be six months of dangerous distraction. Parramatta Council have approved a six month trial from Road Ads to paint two advertisement signs on Argyle Street near the Westfield shopping centre. Scroll down for video . The idea was previously done in Bombala on the south coast of NSW and Mayor Bob Stewart said it was a great success and helped raised revenue . The plan was not supported by police and Roads and Maritime Services but a Parramatta Council spokesman said the six-month trial will see whether the concept has any merit. 'Safety is our top priority. We want to reduce the financial burden on our ratepayers and it makes sense to at least consider new funding sources,' the spokesman said. Australian company Road Ads have been lobbying local councils to license the idea and companies will bid for the road space at $4000 per ad. Ads will not be painted near traffic lights, black spots or 'decision-making zones' and will only contain brand logo with no contact details or any signalling to traffic. Lord Mayor John Chedid told The Sun that the company was 'certified by the government' and offered Parramatta a 'perfect opportunity.' 'We could get $50,000 within two months if the model works and it's safe. I think we should trial it on every road in our local government area,' Mr Chedid said. Australian company Road Ads have been lobbying local councils to license the idea and companies will bid for the road space at $4000 per ad . Road Ads spokesman Caleb Myers said the plan was to apply 'simple' and 'iconic logos' to road surfaces . The idea was previously done in Bombala of south coast NSW, with a population of just over 1000 people. Bombala Mayor Bob Stewart told the Daily Mail Australia that the ads were a great success and helped raise revenue for the community. 'It's a great economic infrastructure. We managed to raise $10,000 from it and the money was put towards a walking track by the river,' Mr Stewart said. 'There were a lot of safety concerns before it went forward but we have had no issues and I don't think we've had any accidents. 'We don't have the same traffic volume as Parramatta but I think it's great that they've jumped on board with the idea. It would be silly not to take that opportunity.' Road Ads spokesman Caleb Myers said the plan was to apply 'simple' and 'iconic logos' to road surfaces. 'Roads have always been a source of cost, our process will for the first time turn council roads into a source of revenue,' Mr Myers said. Parramatta Council spokesman said the six-month trial will see whether the concept has any merit . Road Ads spokesman Caleb Myers said the plan was to apply 'simple' and 'iconic logos' to road surfaces.The idea was previously done in Bombala on the south coast of NSW, with a population of just over 1000 people.Bombala Mayor Bob Stewart told the Daily Mail Australia that the ads were a great success and helped raise revenue for the community and visitors.'It's a great economic infrastructure. We managed to raise $10,000 from it and the money was put towards a walking track by the river,' Mr Stewart said.'There were a lot of safety concerns before it went forward but we have had no issues and I don't think we've had any accidents.'We don't have the same traffic volumn as Parramatta but I think it's great that they've jumped on board with the idea. It would be silly not to take that opportunity.'Road Ads spokesman Caleb Myers said the plan was to apply 'simple' and 'iconic logos' to road surfaces.'Roads have always been a source of cost, our process will for the first time turn council roads into a source of revenue,' Mr Myers said. | Parramatta Council have approved a six month trial from Road Ads to paint two advertisement signs near the Westfield shopping centre .
Critics say it will be six months of dangerous distraction .
The trial will see whether the concept has any merit . |
78,749 | df23ef27ada7eb4c5dd7506da17ecd98c9963912 | (CNN) -- Colorado Sen. Mark Udall's brother died on a hiking trip in the Rocky Mountains, officials said. Randy Udall, 61, went on a hike in the Wind River Range in Wyoming on June 20 and was expected back six days later. When the experienced hiker did not return, family members reported him missing. Rescue crews and helicopters scoured mountain passes to find him. A helicopter search team discovered his body in a remote area on Wednesday afternoon, the Sublette County Sheriff's Office said. It appeared that he died of natural causes, the senator said in a statement, thanking rescuers for their search efforts. "Randy left this earth doing what he loved most: hiking in his most favorite mountain range in the world. He appeared to be on the obscure, off-trail route that he had proposed to his family," the statement said. "The entire Udall family is touched beyond words by the tremendous outpouring of support from people around the country. Randy's passing is a reminder to all of us to live every day to its fullest, just as he did." CNN's Greg Morrison and Kevin Bohn contributed to this report. | Randy Udall, 61, dies while on a hike in the Rocky Mountains .
Searchers find his body in a remote area in Wyoming .
Sen. Mark Udall says it appears his brother died of natural causes . |
202,722 | 9279db3546c0c9774f8071d4717f59d13eafe885 | Julie Beattie, 24, was on fire when her sister Lucie arrived at the south London home, the Old Bailey heard. Julie's 49-year-old lover Ashley Williams allegedly doused her in petrol and set her alight . A young mother burned to death after telling her older lover she was leaving to be with his 18-year-old son. Julie Beattie, 24, was allegedly doused in petrol, set alight and hit over the head with a hammer by father-of-twelve Ashley Williams, 49, as she tried to run off with Ashley Williams Jnr. Sobbing in the witness box, her sister Lucie Beattie described arriving at their south London home to see groundsman Mr Williams put on his coat and walk out as Miss Beattie burned, screaming, behind him. She told the Old Bailey: ‘I pushed open the kitchen door and a lot of smoke came out. ‘I saw Julie. She was in flames.' At that point she fell to her knees in the witness box, as relatives and court officials sobbed in the gallery. Resuming evidence, Miss Beattie added: ‘I was scared to touch her. ‘I saw Ashley go back inside the house. ‘He put a jacket on and walked off, while Julie was on fire. ‘When . Julie was following me out of the house, the children were there and . they were screaming, so I took the children and I took them to the other . side of the car-park. ‘She kept saying: "Hurry, call the ambulance". ‘She kept saying she is hot and needs a drink and I didn’t know what to do. ‘Everyone was shouting at me not to put water on her and I didn’t know what to do. ‘I was so scared.’ The victim had suffered 90 per cent burns and died in hospital. The court has heard Mr Williams, who denies murder, had fathered four children with the victim, who first became pregnant by him when she was just 16. Her sister said the victim wanted to ‘wear vest tops, have a tattoo and have fun’ but Mr Williams would not let her. Affair: The court heard Miss Beattie had been seeing her partner's son, Ashley Williams Jnr (pictured), 18 . She was packing her bags to run off with Williams Jnr when her partner, a father-of-12, stopped her . She began an affair with his son, Ashley Jnr, who is now 18, and spent time with him in Birmingham. Mr Williams begged her to stay but she refused and said he was ‘fake', the court heard. Lucie, who was staying at their Walworth home, claims she arrived to find smoke billowing out of a window and ran in screaming: 'Where's Julie.' Mr Williams answered the door and told her to ‘come back in a minute,' she said. ‘Then Julie started screaming. ‘She said: “Please help me, call the police, he’s going to kill us. He’s got a hammer."' The Old Bailey paused proceedings when Lucie Beattie fell to her knees in tears in the witness box . ‘Ashley kept saying “Go for a walk, its OK.” ‘Julie was trying to get out the house and he wouldn’t let her out.’ Lucie headed to the police station but turned back when she called the home and nobody picked up. 'Something made me go back,’ she told the court. ‘Julie had been screaming all that time and when I called Ashley it was silent. I turned round and I went back to the house.’ Mr Williams, who was also set on fire in the incident allegedly tried to slit his own wrists after the incident and told police he killed his partner ‘for a dare.’ He denies murder. The trial continues. Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article. | Julie Beattie, 24, 'doused in petrol and set alight' after packing bags .
Told lover Ashley Williams, 49, she was leaving to be with his son, 18 .
Couple have four children, first born when she was 16, Old Bailey heard .
Sister Lucie Beattie wept in court recounting scene at south London home .
Said Mr Williams 'put a jacket on and walked off while Julie was on fire'
Miss Beattie died of 90 per cent burns, Mr Williams denies murder . |
155,742 | 554e445fa643ce939b6db3d7c1df452a85443bcf | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 19:28 EST, 23 November 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 19:29 EST, 23 November 2013 . Stores are giving as little as 6.7 per cent of the price of charity Christmas cards to good causes. A Which? Money survey of 15 chains found Asda was the least generous retailer, while rivals Sainsbury’s and Waitrose both gave ten per cent of the profits made to charity. Their small donation compares meagerly to buying Christmas cards from charities directly, with most ensuring all funds go to the organisation. A market research survey has found supermarkets have been giving as little as six per cent of Christmas charity card profits to good causes . Asda sold packs of charity cards for £3, of which just 20p was donated to charity – working out at only 6.7 per cent of the selling price, the survey found. Marie Curie Cancer Care however sold cards at £3.99 a pack, with only £1 of the retail price going towards the cost of production. Oxfam said that for every Christmas card sold, 44p of every £1 went directly back into the charity. Researchers polled a number of online and in store retailers in the survey. A Which? spokeswoman said: 'Consumers may want to check how much will be donated if they’re buying charity Christmas cards because our research shows this can vary widely.' WH Smith did sell one pack of cards that had 100 per cent of the selling price going to charity and another set that had a 20 per cent donation. Debenhams sold one pack of cards where 100 per cent of the profits from the cards went to charity, but excluded VAT. It also excluded VAT from the 20 per cent of the selling price it donated on its other charity cards. Waitrose sold a set of cards that donated 100 per cent including VAT, while Boots gave 10 per cent on its 'standard' charity cards and 20 per cent on its Children in Need cards, including VAT. The most generous retailer across its full range of Christmas cards, by size of donation, was John Lewis. It gave 25 per cent of the selling price on all its own-brand cards. | Asda revealed as least generous retailer giving just 6.7 per cent to charity .
John Lewis gave most with 25 per cent of profits from own-brand cards donated to good causes . |
85,238 | f1bf3333e6488c3e6e33d35a8898eb57c6e1c4e0 | An independent space launch company aims to put four people on Mars by April 2023 - and the team will not be coming back. Mars One claims that a new crew of four will join every two years as the explorers build their settlement, and that by 2033 there will be 20 people living on Mars. The company has been in talks with independent space suppliers such as Space X, which recently launched the first privately owned rocket to the Space Station. Mars One claims that a new crew of four will join every two years as the explorers build their settlement, and that by 2033 there will be 20 people living on Mars . The Dutch company is backed by a Nobel prize winning physicist, Gerard 't Hooft (pictured) - and also by Paul Romer, co-creator of Big Brother . The Dutch company is backed by a Nobel prize winning physicist, Gerard 't Hooft - and also by Paul Romer, co-creator of Big Brother. The company aims to start training astronauts next year - and will turn the selection and training programme into a 'media event' similar to a reality show. 'We see this as a journey that belongs to us all, and it is for this reason that we will make every step one that we take together,' says the company. 'This will also be our way to finance the mission: the mission to Mars will be the biggest media event ever! 'The entire world will be able to watch and help with decisions as the teams of settlers are selected, follow their extensive training and preparation for the mission and of course observe their settling on Mars once arrived. The emigrated astronauts will share their experiences with us as they build their new home, conduct experiments and explore Mars.' Mars One's plan has been in development since 2011. The journey to Mars will take seven months, says the Dutch company, and the entire process will be televised in a Big Brother-style reality show . Skylights in Mars: These two holes from a 2007 NASA survey that there are caves on the red planet - potentially our new homes? Big Brother creator Römer says, 'When the Mars One founders first approached me, asking whether they could speak to me about a mission to Mars, my first response was 'these people are crazy. What can they do that NASA’s can’t?' 'That conversation made it clear to me, however. They think so creatively, and outside of the box and the concept of a ‘one-way’ mission is both outrageous and exciting. These aspects are what brought me to the idea of making the mission the biggest media event in the world. Reality meets talent show with no ending and the whole world watching. Now there’s a pitch!' | Seven-month mission to be financed by reality show on Earth .
By 2033, there will be 20 people living on Mars .
Mission backed by co-creator of Big Brother and Nobel-winning physicists .
Reality show on Earth will finance mission . |
203,108 | 92f0c0d8b8f5b75338bf279b82802c7b3f6a859e | (CNN) -- Doctors say there may be a glimmer of hope for a 12-year-old girl in Arkansas who is infected with a rare but deadly brain-eating parasite. Not a single person is known to have survived such an infection in the past decade, but Kali Hardig is hanging on in critical condition, according to doctors at Arkansas Children's Hospital. Hardig's mother took her to the hospital nine days ago. Hardig had a fever and a headache, but something else didn't seem right. Doctors checked her spinal fluid, and that's where they found a microscopic amoeba called Naegleria fowleri. The amoeba enters the body through the nose and travels to the brain. It's usually found in people who have been swimming in warm, fresh water. You cannot be infected with the organism by drinking contaminated water, the CDC says. "This infection is one of the most severe infections that we know of," Dr. Dirk Haselow of the Arkansas Department of Health told CNN affiliate WMC. "Ninety-nine percent of people who get it die." Why 'nightmare bacteria' on the rise . Dr. Sanjiv Pasala, one of Hardig's attending physicians, says they immediately started treating Hardig with an anti-fungal medicine, antibiotics and a new experimental anti-amoeba drug doctors got directly from the CDC. They have also reduced the girl's temperature to 93 degrees. Doctors have used that technique in some brain injury cases as a way to preserve undamaged brain tissue. Today, doctors checked the girl's cerebral spinal fluid and could not find any presence of the amoeba. Pasala said that while other cases have not met with such favorable results, what may have made a real difference is that the girl's mother got her to the hospital so quickly. Willow Springs Water Park in Little Rock is the most likely source of Hardig's infection, according to a news release from the Arkansas Department of Health. Another case of the same parasite, also called primary amoebic meningoencephalitis, was reported in 2010 and was possibly linked to Willow Springs. "Based on the occurrence of two cases of this rare infection in association with the same body of water and the unique features of the park, the ADH has asked the owner of Willow Springs to voluntarily close the water park to ensure the health and safety of the public," the news release said. What's in your pool water? The first symptoms of primary amoebic meningoencephalitis appear one to seven days after infection, including headache, fever, nausea, vomiting and a stiff neck, according to the CDC. "Later symptoms include confusion, lack of attention to people and surroundings, loss of balance, seizures and hallucinations," the government agency's website states. "After the start of symptoms, the disease progresses rapidly and usually causes death within one to 12 days." Getting this amoeba is extremely rare. Between 2001 and 2010, there were 32 reported cases in the United States, the CDC says. Most of the cases occurred in the Southeast. Here are some tips from the CDC to help lower your risk of infection: . • Avoid swimming in freshwater when the water temperature is high and the water level is low. • Hold your nose shut or use nose clips. • Avoid stirring up the sediment while wading in shallow, warm freshwater areas. • If you are irrigating, flushing or rinsing your sinuses (for example, by using a neti pot), use water that has been distilled or sterilized. Flesh-eating bacteria survivor goes home . Doctors say it is still too early to know whether Hardig can survive or to know how much of an impact the amoeba has had on the girl's brain. | Kali Hardig, 12, is in critical condition at Arkansas Children's Hospital .
Amoeba causes fatal brain infection, according to the CDC .
Parasite generally found in people who swim in warm, fresh water . |
61,195 | add3a86734ef272062505281dd1962a4e35e94db | Rome, Italy (CNN) -- A jailed Italian mobster claims he can prove American student Amanda Knox, her former boyfriend and a drifter are innocent of murdering Knox's British roommate because he knows who the real killer is -- his brother. Luciano Aviello, 41, made the statement during a videotaped interview with Knox's lawyers. He said he had tried to write the Italian court several times to say that Knox and the others were innocent, but no one ever contacted him, defense and prosecution officials said. A source close to the case tells CNN that Aviello, who has been in and out of prison since age 17, was out of prison, living down the street from Knox and Meredith Kercher and under a "protection program" at the time of the murder. Aviello is serving 17 years in an Italian prison because of his association with the Camorra crime family. According to Italian media reports and Britain's Daily Mail, he has testified against the mob at several trials, always from behind a screen to shield his identity. Kercher, 21, was found semi-naked with her throat slashed in the house she shared with Knox in November 2007. Knox and her former Italian boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, 25, were found guilty in December 2009 of Kercher's murder and are serving sentences of 26 and 25 years, respectively. A third person, Rudy Guede, a drifter originally from the Ivory Coast, plead guilty to the murder and is serving a 16-year prison sentence. In March, Aviello contacted Knox's attorneys, who visited him in prison to learn more about his story. Aviello told Knox's lawyers during the videotaped interviews that his brother, who was staying with him at the time of Kercher's murder, came home one night and said he had killed a girl during a botched robbery. British and Italian media have reported the brother's whereabouts are unknown and neither the lawyers for Knox nor the prosecution would comment further. "When he came to my house he had a bloodstained jacket on and was carrying a flick knife. He said he had broken into a house and killed a girl and then he had run away," Aviello said in his statement. Originally from Naples, Aviello says he was living in Perugia at the time of the attack. "I know [he was involved] because my brother confessed to me that he had killed Meredith and he asked me to hide a blood-stained knife and set of keys," he said, according to an attachment to Knox's appeal documents. Aviello told the lawyers that his brother said he and an Albanian man broke into the house and found "the poor English girl," Kercher and the drifter, Rudy Guede. Aviello said when Kercher saw them she "started screaming like mad" The brother "stabbed her in the throat then he tried to stifle her screams," Aviello said. "Meredith defended herself like mad, scratching and hitting out at him." Aviello said he can prove Knox's innocence and his brother's involvement because of evidence he buried at his home. "I had everything under a little wall behind my house," he said. "I am happy to stand up in court and confirm all this and wrote to the court several times to tell them but was never questioned." Italian prosecutor Giuliano Mignini, who led the case against Knox and Sollecito, told British and Italian media that Aviello's claims were irrelevant since the court already deemed him not credible and didn't interview him. Allevio sent the court three letters during the course of the trial, one of which was obtained by CNN. In the letter, which was sent to the court in 2009, Aviello said he was writing because he wanted to clarify "what the media has distorted" about Knox, Sollecito and Guede's involvement in the crime. Allevio also said that he met Sollecito while he was in prison and even expressed his "bewilderment" at how out of hand the trial had gotten. Allevio said in the letter that he knows "the name of the real assassin" because Kercher's death was committed by "persons that are dear to me." He did not identify his brother or anyone else in the 2009 letter, but he has now told Knox's lawyers his brother was the killer. Mignini told CNN on Thursday he couldn't comment much on Aviello's assertions because "we need to verify his claims, in general, all of what he is saying." Mignini said he has not yet interviewed Aviello, but will begin looking into his background as part of an investigation. That investigation will include checking out the burial of the key. Knox's lawyer, Carlo Dalla Vedova, said he hopes a judge will allow Aviello to testify at Knox's appeal hearing, which is likely to take place in the fall. See the evidence presented in the Knox case . "The court should have vetted the reliability of the person and the worthiness of his claims," Dalla Vedova said. "We have posed again the same request to the appeals court. In filing an appeal, Dalla Vedova pointed to Aviello's letters to the courts, saying they show Knox was not able to present all the witnesses, and that may have influenced the verdict. Mignini disputed the claim. We "can't simply investigate in the course of a trial every claim that comes up," Mignini told CNN. David Marriott, a spokesman for the Knox family, said that while they don't yet know whether Aviello's claim is valid, he feels it is only right that Knox get to air all the evidence in court. Even if the story isn't true, Knox and her lawyers should at least get the chance to investigate it and have his claims heard, Marriott said. "The fact that the court didn't even decide to question him or at least look further into the claims is a part of what Amanda's appeal is all about," he said. "We don't know the truth, but the court has the responsibility to check it out." Marriott also said he thinks it's possible Aviello's statements weren't checked out because Italian police and prosecutors believed they already solved the case. "There's no motivation I would guess for the police to actually pursue it," he said, when asked if the keys, clothing or knife Aviello claims were buried were ever dug up. "In their minds not only is it over, but why would they investigate something that might show their initial investigation was faulty." | Jailed mobster Luciano Aviello claims his brother told him he killed Meredith Kercher in botched robbery .
Aviello says he buried brother's bloody knife, clothes and keys to Kercher's apartment .
Amanda Knox's lawyers want Aviello's story investigated for her appeal .
Knox, her former boyfriend were convicted of murdering Kercher in December 2009 . |
241,045 | c41178cb60accf7eb263270c6ba921145cfd79cc | Questions: Jessica Chambers, 19, was found with burns on 98 per cent of her body on Saturday night . Police have admitted they are no closer to finding a suspect one week after 19-year-old Jessica Chambers was burned alive in a rural road in Mississippi. The devastating news comes as Chambers' family and friends gather for her funeral. Chambers was doused with gasoline and set on fire last Saturday night. She was found barely alive by passers-by and died in hospital later that evening, with burns to 98 per cent of her body. At a press conference on Thursday, District Attorney John Champion said they have spoken to 'many, many' people but still feel like there is still a lot they do not know. In an emotional appeal ahead of her funeral, Jessica's father Ben Chambers said of the killer: 'They just don’t realize how they’ve messed up people’s lives. You know, they took something from me that God give me that can’t nobody replace.' Friends of Jessica's who attended the wake wore t-shirts branded with the phrase 'Justice for Jessica'. 'Anybody with any type of information on Jessica to come forward please,' friend Heather Parker said via WREG. The US Marshals Service has announced $11,000 will be handed to the person that can offer crucial information. 'There's just not a lot of street talk out there about who may or may not have done it,' he said. 'We feel like somebody out there has heard something.' Speaking with Assistant District Attorney Jay Hale, they said there were some rumors circulating that were not true, including that Chambers was still on fire when she was found. But it has emerged that the killer apparently got into the car before setting it alight. The teenager also had a large gash on her head. To piece together the last few hours of her life, investigators continue to pore over surveillance footage from a gas station where she was seen 90 minutes before her death. They are also looking at her cell phone, which was left behind at the scene. 'We're leaving no stone unturned at this point,' Champion added. 'This is an absolute horrendous case... This situation is about as bad as it comes.' Remembering: Mourners wrote personal messages on banners after the service and ahead of a candlelit vigil . Grief: Two people hold each other as they make their way into the chapel for Jessica's service . Tributes: Friends and relatives wrote messages and tributes to Jessica on her casket on Saturday . Mourning: Tearful guests paid their respects to the 19-year-old as police struggle to solve her murder . Memories: Her family compiled a tribute book filled with pictures of Jessica throughout her life . The gas station surveillance footage shows her climbing out of her car, walking across the forecourt and stopping to wave at a friend, before walking off camera. She then returns to the store to pay. Convenience store manager Ali Fadhel, who served the teenager, told the Associated Press that Chambers came in frequently and he would often speak with her. According to Fadhel, Chambers was wearing a dark-colored sweater and pajama pants that looked like sweatpants. Chambers said she was going to make a stop before going home, Fadhel said. 'If she knew she had a problem with somebody, she would have told me,' Fadhel said. Last moments: Jessica Chambers, 19, was caught on surveillance footage just 90 minutes before she was burned alive along the side of a rural road on Saturday. She is seen walking towards the store . Caught on camera: Jessica (seen left) then went into the shop and paid while three men chatted nearby . Scene: The gas station and convenience store Jessica visited before she was found severely burned along the side of a nearby road. The cashier claims Jessica told him she was 'going somewhere' Chambers bought $14 worth of gas, more than the $5 or so she usually purchased, he said. 'I asked her, "Why are you putting so much gas?" She said, "I'm going somewhere",' Fadhel said. Authorities have not commented on the claims. On her way out, Chambers got a call on her cellphone, Fadhel said. When she left, she headed south on Highway 51, he said. About 90 minutes later, a motorist called 911 to report a burning car a mile away and first responders arrived to find the burned young woman. She was not covered in flames, as previously reported, authorities said at the press conference. Questions: While she was inside, a man (seen top right) filled up a gas can close to her car (the dark vehicle in the center) but he has been cleared. After going inside the shop, she drove off . Terrifying: She had told her mother she was going out to get food when she and her car were set alight . Crime scene: Yellow crime scene tape marks the location where the 19-year-old was found severely burned. Authorities are working to piece together the last hours of her life in efforts to catch who set her on fire . Grisly discovery: The teenager was barely conscious when first responders arrived to her car, which was on this bank, and she managed to whisper something - but authorities have not revealed what she said . She whispered something to one of the fire officers. Investigators have not revealed what she said but indicated that the final words may help find her killer, WMC reported. 'She was able to communicate. It was difficult,' said Jay Hale, an assistant district attorney who prosecutes cases in Panola County. Peter Odom, an attorney who has prosecuted some arson cases, told HLN's 'Nancy Grace' that investigators will be assessing the physical appearance of suspects. 'They're looking for someone with singed eyebrows and maybe burned hands. Because the burner often gets burned,' he said. Plea: District Attorney John Champion pleaded for information as he spoke at a press conference on Thursday . Tragic: Two years before Jessica's death, her older brother Ben (right) was killed in a car crash . Authorities said initial autopsy results reveal the girl died from severe burns that covered 98 per cent of her body. 'I mean it's bad,' DA John Champion told Fox. 'I have been doing this for 21 years and as far as the means of death it is certainly the worst I have dealt with.' Authorities are also looking into reports that she went to a party before her death, but they have said her appearance - pajama trousers and her hair in a bun - suggests she did not attend the party. Friends said that the family can't think of anyone that might have wanted to hurt Jessica, who didn't have a boyfriend and was not known to have been seeing anyone. They added that she had just started a new job at Goody's Department Store, which she loved. Lisa Chambers, the girl's mother, begged with anyone to come forward with any information they may have about the heinous crime. Heartbroken: Her mother, Lisa Chambers, sobbed as she pleaded with the public for information . Ripped apart: Her father Ben, pictured right, has also appealed for any information in her death . 'They have ripped everything I have,' she told Fox. 'She left to go clean out her car and was going to get [herself] something to eat.' Amanda Prince, who identified herself as Jessica Chambers' older sister, told CNN Wednesday night that the family is 'shocked, lost ... confused, angry, hurt.' Asked if she knew of anyone who had a grudge against her sister or might want to hurt her, Prince replied, 'No one. She was loved by everybody. I don't know who would want to do this or why.' Mississippi authorities say they have received offers to help from several agencies, including the U.S. attorney's office and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. A candle-lit vigil will be held for Jessica on Saturday. Anyone with information on the murder should contact the Sheriff's Office at 662-563-6230. See below for video . | Jessica Chambers, 19, was burned alive on a rural road in Courtland, Mississippi on Saturday evening after she bought gas .
The gas station cashier claims that Jessica told him she was 'going somewhere' and that she took a phone call as she left the store .
Ninety minutes later, a motorist called 911 to report a burning car .
First responders found Jessica with burns to 98 per cent of her body and she managed to tell them something - but they have not said what .
At a press conference on Thursday, the district attorney said they had spoken to 'many' people but appealed to the public for any information . |
213,723 | a0cb45c7c49f9640ae9fd41911d42d87f8d46f4f | Facebook and Twitter are simply the latest versions of social platforms invented by the Romans, according to a new book. Its author claims that the internet has enabled the way people communicate with groups to return to its natural social state, as used by the Romans some 2,000 years ago. In particular, journalist Tom Standage says that the way ancient graffiti was used to boast or complain about a variety of subjects was a key moment in the birth of social networking. Tom Standage traces the rise of social media throughout history and compares large walls in Rome's Forum where residents wrote messages about their sexual conquests, hotel reviews and political opinions, with a Facebook wall in modern times . Mr Standage said modern users of social networks are the ‘unwitting heirs of a rich tradition with surprisingly deep historical roots,’ in his latest book. In 'Writing on the Wall : Social Media – The First 2,000 Years', the Economist’s digital editor writes that it is as if the Romans and several historical figures including Thomas Paine and Martin Luther were on Facebook as they communicated in a similar style to the statuses users post today. He justifies the idea by defining social media as 'an environment in which information was passed from one person to another along social connections in order to create a distributed discussion among a community'. For centuries, people communicated in a similar, shared way before the arrival of mass media and the printing press began spreading news in a ‘one-way conversation', Mr Standage told Washington Monthly. Author and journalist Tom Standage, said modern bloggers (pictured) and users of social networks are the 'unwitting heirs of a rich tradition with surprisingly deep historical roots', in his latest book . Sir John Harington (pictured) who lived in the 16th Century, composed epigrams which Mr Standage said bear some resemblance to tweets . He believes it was similar to what we experience today when using social media and the internet, . which has enabled anyone to become a publisher. In the book, he traces the rise of social media throughout history and compares Facebook to large walls in the Forum, in Rome, where residents wrote messages about hotel reviews, political opinions and even their sexual conquests. Sir John Harington, the inventor of the first toilet, who lived in the 16th Century, composed epigrams about life at the time which Mr Standage said bear some resemblance to the brief Tweets of today. He cites Martin Luther’s act of pinning his 95 Theses on a church door as an example of a piece of writing going viral. Mr Standage writes: Luther had unwittingly revealed the power of a decentralised, person-to-person media system whose participants took care of distribution, deciding collectively which messages to amplify through sharing, recommendation and copying.’ He also says that modern blogging culture is not dissimilar to the chaotic media environment of the 1640s, while ancient tablets with their flat writing surfaces and frames, look very much like modern tablet computers. Mr Standage is an expert at drawing thought-provoking comparisons between modern technology and in the past has written books about the 'Victorian internet' and an 18th century chess-playing robot that inspired modern artificial intelligence research. | Author Tom Standage says the internet has enabled the way people communicate with groups to return to its natural social state .
In his book 'Writing on the Wall', he claims modern users of social networks are the ‘unwitting heirs of a rich tradition'
He defines social media as an environment .
in which information is passed along social .
connections to create a distributed discussion . |
260,089 | dcc65640bed177c3af9ac4c0d9a557192487e8d5 | By . Leon Watson . PUBLISHED: . 07:37 EST, 28 June 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 09:29 EST, 6 July 2012 . Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic has been acquitted of one of the two genocide charges he faces at the halfway stage of his long-running showpiece trial. Judges say prosecutors did not present enough evidence to support the genocide count covering mass killings, expulsions and persecution by Serb forces of Muslims and Croats from Bosnian towns early in the country's 1992-95 war. However judges refused to dismiss 10 more charges, including a genocide count covering Karadzic's alleged involvement in the 1995 Srebrenica massacre of 8,000 Muslim men. His trial will continue. Bosnian Serb wartime leader Radovan Karadzic (right) has been acquitted of one of the two genocide charges he facess. He is pictured with his general Ratko Mladic (left) in 1995 on Mountain Vlasic . The U.N. court's rules allow suspects . to seek acquittal after prosecutors wrap up their case. Earlier this . month Karadzic asked judges to dismiss all 11 counts against him, saying . prosecutors had failed to prove them. Last month the showpiece trial was . dramatically halted in The Hague after an extraordinary and embarrassing . blunder by prosecutors. Karadzic pictured in the court room of the International Criminal Tribunal in The Hague at the start of his trial in 2008 . Bosnian Serb wartime president Radovan Karadzic (right), posed as a doctor of alternative medicine called Dr Dragan David Dabic while he was in hiding . International War Crimes Tribunal investigators clearing away soil and debris from dozens of Srebrenica victims buried in a mass grave . | Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic still faces 10 more charges .
Cleared of charge relating to Serb atrocities early in the 1992-95 war .
100,000 died, including 8,000 Muslim men and boys in Srebrenica'
Accused of sniping and shelling campaign in 44-month Sarajevo siege . |
200,960 | 902ccfa40061659a04608a559dc29168fa3cd809 | By . Deborah Arthurs . She is the daughter of self-made millionaires, sister to a duchess and related to the Royal family by marriage. So we wouldn't expect dear old Pippa Middleton to walk around with her bits and pieces in a Sainsbury's carrier bag. And on Monday, as befits her status as socialite, celebutante and sister to the future Queen of England (not to mention the likelihood she'll end up married to a blue blood herself), the younger Middleton sister stepped out with a rather luxe bit of arm candy. The stylish specimen was the £795 Marylebone tote by luxury leather goods brand Aspinal. Lady who lunches: Pippa looked chic in navy and white as she spent this afternoon out and about in London . Luxe lover: Pippa's bag is the £795 Marylebone tote by luxury British accessories brand Aspinal . Billed as an 'arm candy favourite' British brand Aspinal calls the bag 'luxuriously chic and sophisticated', adding that it is a 'definitive trans-seasonal wardrobe classic.' Pippa . paired the bag, made of the finest Italian calfskin and lined in . grosgrain silk, with a pair of dark indigo Paige jeans, . a nautical jumper last seen when she went sailing with Ben Ainslie, and . a pair of £150 suede boots by Somerset brand Seven Boot Lane, an . independent company who source their boots from one of Spain's most . traditional footwear factories. Pippa, . who last week confessed to Vanity Fair that she had a crush on rugby . players Will Carling and Jonny Wilkinson when she was a teenager, wore the chic get-up - which she had worn last week albeit with a different jumper - for an afternoon shopping in London . Rugby fan: Pippa last week told Vanity Fair magazine that she used to fancy Will Carling and Jonny Wilkinson when she was a teenager . Sell out! Pippa's bag on the Aspinal website - but bad luck if you want to buy one as the version Pippa has - the Monochrome Saffiano - is out of stock . Versatile: Pippa's boots are the Alice in charcoal suede, £150 from independent shop Seven Boot Lane, which sources its footwear from one of Spain's most traditional factories . | Bag is the £795 Marylebone tote by luxury leather goods brand Aspinal .
Sister of Duchess of Cambridge has been spotted with the bag before .
Tote is handmade in Italian calfskin and lined with grosgrain silk .
Made In Chelsea's Millie Mackintosh has same bag in black .
Boots are £150 Alice by Somerset brand Seven Boot Lane . |
71,266 | ca0e48d3c1353b8cbfcaa30c37a96cc0cbe37d7d | 1. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes) 2. Valtteri Bottas (Williams) 3. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) 4. Sebastien Vettel (Red Bull) 5. Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) Nico Rosberg completed the week of his life with victory in the German Grand Prix on a day when Lewis Hamilton produced a backs-to-the-wall drive to limit the damage to his team-mate and title rival. From 20th on the grid at Hockenheim, following a qualifying crash and five-place grid penalty for a gearbox change due to the damage sustained, 29-year-old Hamilton was third in his Mercedes behind Williams' Valtteri Bottas. Rosberg's triumph was the first for Mercedes on home soil since 1954, with five-times champion Juan Manuel Fangio taking the chequered flag that day. VIDEO Scroll down to watch some great videos of Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton . Celebrate: Nico Rosberg sprays champagne after winning the German Grand Prix on Sunday . Nice to be back: Rosberg (front) Mercedes won the German Grand Prix on home soil . Married nine days ago, Rosberg then watched Germany win the World Cup final before signing a new long-term contract earlier this week, and has now recorded a lights-to-flag success in front of his own fans. All the action unfolded behind him, with the spotlight on Hamilton given his lowly grid position in the wake of a smash in the first part of qualifying following a front-right brake disc failure. Initally 15th for the start, Mercedes announced the gearbox change and subsequent penalty on Sunday morning ahead of the race, leaving him down in 20th and with a mountain to climb to even clamber onto the podium. But Hamilton produced a rousing performance, limiting the damage as best as possible with third, with the gap to Rosberg now 14 points. Over the opening laps it was captivating stuff from Hamilton, the kind of situation on which he loves and thrives. Happy: Rosberg accepts the admiration of the German fans as Lewis Hamilton rubs his eyes (right) In the lead: The Mercedes driver celebrates winning the German Grand Prix . Catch me if you can: Rosberg led the way after starting in pole position in Hockenheim . Well done: Rosberg embraces Dieter Zetsche (right) after winning the German Grand Prix in Hockenheim . 1. Mercedes - 366 pts . 2. Red Bull - 188 pts . 3. Williams- 121 pts . 4. Ferrari - 116 pts . 5. Force India - 98 pts . Just 10 seconds into the race he received one helping hand when, for the second consecutive race, Williams' Felipe Massa was involved in an accident that brought his grand prix to a swift conclusion. Unlike at the British Grand Prix when Massa was taken out following an horrific smash involving Kimi Raikkonen, on this occasion his turn into McLaren's Kevin Magnussen resulted in his own shock moment. The Brazilian was flipped up and over, landing on the roll hoop on top of his car, which then somehow managed to right itself again. It immediately brought the safety car into play for two laps, with Hamilton 17th upon its release, following which he can began the process of picking off those ahead of him. By the end of lap 10 Hamilton was in the points in 10th, albeit with one moment of consternation, while former friend Adrian Sutil in his Sauber ran into the sidepod of the Briton's Mercedes, but without damage. Then on lap 13 came a breathtaking overtake on Raikkonen and the Red Bull of Daniel Ricciardo into the hairpin, with the Finn squeezed as Hamilton legally edged him out of the way. Out: Felipe Massa crashed in the first curve of the German Formula One Grand Prix in Hockenheim . Rolling: The high-speed crash saw Massa's car flipped upside down . With pit stops, by the end of lap 16 Hamilton was up to second and 7.7 seconds adrift of Rosberg, who had already made his first stop. It was another 10 laps before Hamilton finally made his run into the pits, taking on another set of soft Pirelli tyres - he was one of only three drivers to start off on the harder of the two compounds this weekend. That dropped Hamilton back to eighth, but from there he began another charge, although there was again contact at one point, this time with former McLaren team-mate Jenson Button. It proved slightly more costly as Hamilton lost his left front-wing endplate, exposing his left-front tyre to degradation. It forced Mercedes into switching Hamilton from a planned two-stop strategy to a three, at that stage potentially scuppering his hopes of finishing runner-up to Rosberg. Relief: The Brazilian seemed to be OK after the heavy collision with Kevin Magnussen . Heat of the moment: Daniil Kyvat was forced out of the race as his car burst into flames . Trouble behind: Rosberg leads the way as Massa crashes at the first corner . It was not long before Hamilton was back up to second as those ahead pitted prior to the Brit switching to the far quicker supersoft tyres on lap 42, dropping him to fifth. When Adrian Sutil spun his Sauber on lap 50, leaving his car on the start-finish straight, it appeared a safety car would be called. Mercedes, perhaps expecting as such, immediately brought in Hamilton for a longer-than-planned run on a final set of supersofts. Speed: Lewis Hamilton drives during the German Grand Prix at the Hockenheimring . Famous faces: Bernie Ecclestone (left) chats with World Cup winner Lucas Podolski . It was not long before he was on the . tail of Bottas, on fading soft-compound tyres, but as his own rubber in . turn lost its initial pace so it became apparent he would be unable to . pass, settling for third. Behind . the lead trio were two other world champions in Sebastian Vettel in his . Red Bull and Ferrari's Fernando Alonso, who endured a titanic struggle . with the second Red Bull of Ricciardo over the closing stages, just . holding sway. Force India's . Nico Hulkenberg was seventh, followed by McLaren duo Jenson Button and . Magnussen, with Sergio Perez in his Force India completing the top 10. A thrilled Rosberg said: 'It's fantastic. 'It's an amazing feeling to win at home. It's a very special day.' Fan: The Arsenal striker poses for a 'selfie' as the German Grand Prix gets underway . Second: Williams driver Valtteri Bottas (left) celebrates with a swig of champagne on the podium . As for Hamilton, he was obviously delighted after claiming only his second podium finish from outside the top 10 when he was also third in Brazil in 2009 after starting 17th. 'I had great fun,' said Hamilton. 'I did as good as I could. 'It was hard to get through the pack safely and I had a little bit of a collision with Jenson. 'I thought he was going to open the door, which he has done a couple of times lately, but that was my bad judgement. 'It was hard to overtake so I'm glad to get some points today (Sunday).' Fright: Daniil Kvyat of Russia and Scuderia Toro Rosso jumps out of his car after it caught fire . All over? Hamilton did brilliantly to finish third but didn't look too pleased on the podium . | Nico Rosberg wins German Grand Prix to extend World Championships lead .
Felipe Massa collides with Kevin Magnussen on first corner to put an end to Brazilian's race .
Lewis Hamilton battled from 20th on the grid to finish third . |
101,448 | 0ec17c9327d148ef764a88beb94a5667bb79ea2d | The U.S. Justice Department announced Tuesday that it will not pursue federal criminal civil rights charges against Michigan police officers who shot and killed a knife-wielding homeless man in July 2012. Authorities said there was insufficient "evidence of willful misconduct" to warrant a federal criminal prosecution of the Saginaw Police Department officers who fired 46 bullets at Milton Hall, 49, during an argument. Hall was hit 11 times. The incident occurred July 1, 2012, in a parking lot next to a shuttered Chinese restaurant, in full view of passing motorists. A video of the incident was obtained exclusively by CNN weeks later. The Saginaw County prosecutor and the Michigan attorney general had declined to prosecute the officers. "After a careful review of all of the evidence, experienced prosecutors from the Criminal Section of the Civil Rights Division and the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Michigan have determined that the evidence in this case is insufficient to prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the SPD officers willfully shot Hall for an unlawful purpose, rather than for their stated purpose of preventing Hall from harming SPD staff," the Justice Department said in a statement. The statement continued: "Even if the officers were mistaken in their assessment of the threat posed by Hall, this would not establish that the officers acted willfully, or with an unlawful intent, when using deadly force against Hall." Hall's family said he had a history of mental illness. At the time of the shooting, then-Saginaw Police Chief Gerald Cliff said Hall was "known to be an assaultive person" with "a long history" of contacts with law enforcement, "not only with police from our department, but with the county." In the video purchased by CNN, shot by a motorist from across the street, Hall was seen arguing with a half dozen officers. For more than three minutes he walks back and forth, and at one time appears to crouch in a "karate stance," according to the man who captured the scene. Police said Hall had just had a run-in with a convenience store clerk. On the video, he tells police, "My name is Milton Hall, I just called 911. My name is Milton, and I'm p---ed off." When an officer tells him to put the knife down, he responds, "I ain't putting s--t down." He appears unimpressed by a police dog, telling officers, "Let him go. Let the motherf---ing dog go." Finally, Hall turns to the left of the frame, where another officer had moved out of view a short time earlier. That's when the police open fire with a reported 46 shots in a five-second hail of bullets. The on-site police supervisor was demoted to patrolman, police said afterward. Two others were disciplined for violating department policies in connection with the shooting. Three of their five dash-cam video cameras were not working properly. In a statement, Jewel Hall, Milton's mother, said she was not surprised by Tuesday's development. "However, that decision does not negate the civil litigation that we can pursue and the standards in that matter are less stringent and we believe justice will prevail." The family filed a wrongful death lawsuit last year against the police department and the officers involved in the shooting after conducting its own investigation and consulting two nationally known experts in police practices, lawyers for the family said. | Mother of Milton Hall releases statement .
Hall, 49, died in a hail of police bullets on July 1, 2012 .
Michigan police officers shot, killed knife-wielding man .
Officers fired 46 bullets, hitting Hall 11 times . |
178,116 | 729456ee87bbf55adb55d14bb953373c9f99a98d | By . Ashley Collman . A 24-year-old single mother in Mt Clemens, Michigan has become America's newest millionaire after turning in her winning $66million lottery ticket. On Thursday, Kelsey Zachow spoke about her win at a press conference, and later posed with her check and 7-month-old baby boy Benjamin. At the press conference, Zachow talked about how she plans to spend her winnings and how she went more than a week without knowing about the valuable Mega Millions lottery ticket tucked in her purse. Scroll down for video . Winner, winner: 24-year-old Kelsey Zachow has won $66million in the Mega Millions lottery. Pictured above with her 7-month-old son Benjamin . Payday: Zachow bought her winning ticket on the way to work on Friday the 13th, but didn't know she won until 11 days later . Zachow says she has been buying lottery tickets two times a week for the past five years, spending an estimated $10,000 on tickets. So as part of her usual habit, she stopped by the Sonny's Market in Mt Clemens on her way to work on June 13 and picked up four tickets with her regular numbers, and one easy pick. . 'Friday the 13th has always been a really lucky day for me,' she said. 'I went home that night and I’m like nothing really good happened. (I thought) that’s weird.' Happily unemployed: Zachow has since quit her two part-time jobs as a bartender and medical assistant since learning about her winnings . It wasn't until 11 days later, on June 24, that she realized she won. She stopped back at the market and checked her numbers at the stand, but she was prompted to take the tickets to the teller. The cashier then broke the news that Zachow 'won big'. She couldn't believe it, so she ran back to her car, locked the door and checked her numbers on the phone. 'I couldn't breathe,' she said. When she realized that she indeed had the winning ticket, won with the easy pick numbers, she rushed home to tell her boyfriend of the three years, Billy Bartlett. He says she came speeding home at 100mph and kept screaming though he didn't know what the news was about. When he double checked her tickets, Bartlett says his jaw 'dropped to the floor'. Since it was a Sunday, Zachow couldn't turn her ticket in until the next day, so she kept it in a relatives safe for security. Then, after consulting with a lawyer and financial consultant, she went to the Michigan Lottery office to claim her winnings. Zachow has decided to accept her jackpot in a lump sum, which amounts to about $27million after taxes. 'I wanted to be smart with it. I’ve been playing for five years so I kinda had a plan if I ever did win,” she said. “You watch those (TV) shows. People go bankrupt and lose it all. So, financial adviser, lawyer, taxes -- just getting everything straight beforehand. We have our ducks in a row and now we can have fun.' She has since quit her two jobs as a bartender and medical assistant, which she previously worked to support her son and also her boyfriend and his 5-year-old daughter Evelyn. Spender: Zachow plans to spend her money on a new house and college tuition for some of her younger family members, including her 7-month-old son . Sharing: Zachow also wants to pay the college tuition for her boyfriend's daughter. Zachow and her boyfriend of three years Billy Bartlett pictured above . Barlett, has been laid off from his job in construction for about a year. Zachow says she first plans to spend her money buying a new SUV, perhaps a Jeep, and then a electric blue Mustang GTR convertible with dual exhaust and leather seats. She also wants to but the house of her dreams in the St. Clair area. Some place with acreage where she might one day be able to open a no-kill animal shelter. From there, she plans to treat herself to vacations in Europe, the Caribbean and Ireland - where most of her boyfriend's family are from. The money will also go to pay the college tuition for her son, boyfriend's daughter, and her 2-year-old little brother Gus Schmidlin. Zachow's winnings were the largest ever won by a Michigan lottery player on a Friday the 13th. | Kelsey Zachow, 24, bought her winning ticket on Friday the 13th .
She didn't realize she won until 11 days later .
The single mother turned her winning ticket in last week and has decided to take a lump sum payment of $27million .
She plans to spend the money on a new house, vacations and college tuition for her younger relatives . |
77,451 | db9b7fc4501d9973d9a89c40c34d8f3abea008a8 | A man and a woman were killed in a Christmas morning horror crash when their cars collided head-on in Leicestershire. Lynda Anne Wade, 48, and Mark Price, 51, both died after their cars collided on the A606 Oakham Road, south of Melton Mowbray, in the early hours of Christmas Day. Both Mrs Wade, from Melton Mowbray, and Mr Price, from Rothley, near Leicester, were pronounced dead at the scene. A man and a woman were killed in a Christmas morning horror crash when their cars collided head-on on the A606 (pictured) in Leicestershire . The smash happened on the A606 Oakham Road in Cold Overton, Leicestershire. Mr Price's Toyota Auris and Mrs Wade's Ford C-Max were travelling in opposite directions along the road when the tragedy struck at around 8.50am, police said. Two ambulance crews and an air ambulance were called out, arriving on the scene within nine minutes, but the drivers could not be saved. No other people or vehicles are believed to have been involved in the crash. Mrs Wade's husband Trevor paid tribute to her on Facebook. He wrote: 'To my beautiful and wonderful wife, it is so heart breaking that we have lost you in a car crash at Christmas. You were a fantastic wife, sister, daughter and friend to so many. RIP You will never be replaceable love Trev' A spokeswoman for East Midlands Ambulance Service said: 'The emergency call was received at 8:49am on Christmas Day, and reported a road traffic collision between two vehicles on the A606, in Leicestershire. 'We responded immediately by sending skilled crews in two fast response vehicles, a double crewed ambulance and the Air Ambulance. The Police and Fire Services were also informed. 'Tragically two people were pronounced dead at the scene, and our thoughts go to their family and friends at this difficult time. 'Our ambulance crews were stood clear from the scene by 10am that morning.' Leicestershire Police said they were investigating the cause of the crash and urged witnesses to come forward. | Man and woman killed in Christmas morning crash in Leicestershire .
Lynda Anne Wade, 48, and Mark Price, 51, collided head-on on the A606 .
Air ambulance crews were called out but both were declared dead at scene .
Police are still investigating the cause of the Christmas morning crash . |
243,685 | c76c4fb15f56f9ba09ac60ada5dde40928be45bf | Created: . 05:03 EST, 22 October 2014 . A teaching assistant was sent away from her first day of her new job at a Catholic school because her arms and neck are covered in tattoos. Mother-of-two Charlotte Tumilty had been offered the role at St John Vianney's Primary School in Hartlepool as part of her teacher training course. But within an hour of turning up for her first day, she claims she was sent home because of her body art - and she insists she cannot cover up the tattoos in order to return to the school. Charlotte Tumilty, left, who claims she was sent away from her first day working in a Catholic school because of her tattoos. Right is the eye emblem she has inked on her neck . The 26-year-old says that she was told the tattoos on her feet, hands and neck were unacceptable because the school is 'strict Catholic' and that they were 'inappropriate'. However, the school insists that Miss Tumilty, from Hartlepool, was only told to consider 'covering' up her tattoos so she could return to her placement later. But she says she is unable to cover them all up and there are no other placements available at other schools. She said: 'It ticks me off. They said I could maybe start later but I don't think it's going to get anywhere because you can still see bits of my tattoos. 'They prejudiced me because they could see a few tattoos.' The mother of two has a full sleeve of tattoos on both of her arms and claims the school knew about her body art before she began the job . Miss Tumilty is currently on a level two teacher training course at Hartlepool College of Further Education and was due to work at the school twice a week for a year. She has a 'full sleeve' of tattoos on her arms and legs, smaller inkings on her fingers, hands, back and chest and an eye emblem on her neck. She said that when she went for an interview at the school to secure her placement, staff were able to see her tattoos, but she did promise to take out her piercings. Miss Tumilty, who is mother to four-year-old RayGan and Willow, one, said: 'They said that would be perfect.' She claims it then took a while for the school to confirm her placement and other students on her course had already started theirs when she rang to inquire about starting training . She went to the school on Monday, and spent around £25 on a new outfit, ensuring her arms were covered. She explained: 'They showed me to the class I was working in. 'But a woman asked to speak to me in the office and said, "What we need to discuss is you can still see a bit of your neck tattoo peaking out of your top." Miss Tumilty was told by the school to cover up her tattoos if she wanted to return to work there, but she says it would make her look 'ridiculous' The deputy headteacher at St John Vianney's Primary insists Miss Tumilty was just politely asked to cover her tattoos . 'I suggested wearing a higher-necked top. The woman said, "That's not the point, it's a strictly Catholic school and tattoos are forbidden". 'She said they do have teachers with tattoos, but they cover them up. I said "Yes, I have covered mine up", but the woman said, "To be honest, I don't think it's appropriate." 'She then suggested I might be able to uses plasters and bandages to cover them up. I'd look ridiculous.' However, deputy headteacher Martin Boagey insists that Miss Tumilty was just 'politely asked' to cover up her tattoos. He said: 'The school expects all members of staff to project a professional image and we have a code of conduct, part of which requires members of staff with tattoos to cover them up. 'We do have members of staff with tattoos, and they are happy to abide by the code of conduct. Miss Tumilty has tattoos down her arms and legs as well as on her fingers, hands, back, chest and neck. She is pictured, right, in the outfit she wore on her first day at the school . 'On her arrival at school to take up her placement, Charlotte Tumilty was informed of the school's code of conduct. 'She was politely asked to consider how best to cover up her tattoos and it was suggested that she should. 'At no point was she ever told that she could not work In the school. 'The school regularly offers placements to students to help them develop their careers, and to date dozens have been welcomed and supported.' The further education college said it was down to individuals to arrange their placements and that school guidelines should be followed. They added that they give advice to students on what is appropriate dress and appearance but say it is up to the individuals to take the advice on board. The school is under the control of Hartlepool Borough Council but the local authority say that schools in their area are free to decide their own policy on tattoos . Many employers have strict policies on tattoos from complete bans on inkings to having them covered while in the workplace. Under current legislation people with tattoos are not covered by the Equality Act 2010. Earlier this year a business executive was sacked from her job after having an inking of a butterfly design on her foot. Jo Perkins, 38, had the design on the side of her left foot when she started working for multi-million pound firm Salisbury FM. But after she started work, bosses brought in a ‘no tattoos on show’ rule – and terminated Miss Perkins’s contract when she could not cover up her inking. Similarly, Larissa Westcott says she was having a job interview with British Airways when she was told her application wouldn't be taken any further because of a tattoo on her foot. However, earlier this month, the army announced that it was lifting its ban on hand and neck tattoos in a bid to draw in more recruits. Previous strict rules restricting art on visible parts of the body meant a number of potential soldiers had to be turned away. But a change to the regulations means that designs are allowed providing they are not visible in a passport-style photo when the soldier’s top button is undone on an open-necked shirt. Union officials have now called for a 'balance' between the right of the individuals and the needs of organisations when it comes to tattoos. Mike Hill of Unison, which supports teaching assistants, said: 'The unions recognise that most workplaces have dress codes, and that includes such dress codes which would accommodate the covering up of tattoos. 'Unions will stand by anybody who is subject to disciplinary action or discrimination as a consequence of them having tattoos. 'But we will also encourage a strike of balance between the needs of the organisation and the individual's choice." A spokesman for the Tattooing and Piercing Industry Union said: 'Members of the public should think carefully about tattoo placement because it can impact on your employment prospects.' | Charlotte Tumilty turned up for placement at a school in Hartlepool .
Staff sent her home because arms, fingers and neck are covered in tattoos .
She was told school was 'strict Catholic' and the inkings were inappropriate .
But the school insists she could have returned if she'd covered them up .
Miss Tumilty says school is 'prejudiced' and claims she can't cover tattoos . |
254,439 | d558e3c787544fa7e0a7859eff84253097cedf7c | By . Associated Press . PUBLISHED: . 16:25 EST, 7 November 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 17:53 EST, 7 November 2013 . Coachella Valley High School in California is being pressured to abandon their 'offensive and stereotypical' football mascot by an anti-discrimination group. The snarling, black-bearded mascot wearing a headscarf has been urging fans to root for the Southern Californian team, in the desert town just east of Palm Springs since the 1920s . But The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee recently sent a letter to officials at the Coachella Valley Unified School District asking them to get rid of the mascot - arguing that its 'large nose, heavy beard and Arab head covering' is offensive. An anti-discriminating group wants Coachella Valley High School to remove this snarling, black-bearded mascot . 'By allowing continued use of the term and imagery, you are commending and enforcing the negative stereotypes of an entire ethnic group, millions of whom are citizens of this nation,' Abed Ayoub, the group's director of legal and policy affairs, wrote in the letter. The request comes amid mounting pressure for the NFL's Washington Redskins to change its mascot because it's offensive to American Indians. The Arab mascot has been around since the 1920s and was chosen to recognize the area's reliance on date farming, traditionally a Middle Eastern crop. The nearby community of Mecca also pays homage to the Middle East. The mascot has evolved from a turban-wearing horseman carrying a lance to a standing figure with a scowl and a headscarf. The current mascot is based on an 'angry Arab' design from the 1950s, The Desert Sun reported. Coachella Valley High School's mascot, 'Arab', gives the thumbs during a game against Yucca Valley, in Thermal, California . Superintendent Darryl Adams said the topic will be discussed at a Nov. 21 school board meeting. He said he was taken aback by the 'Arab' name when he first was hired two years ago. 'Being an African-American from the Deep South, I'm sensitive to stereotyping,' Adams told the newspaper. 'But in this context, when this was created it was not meant in that way. It was totally an admiration of the connection with the Middle East.' Adams said the letter from the anti-discrimination group was the first time the school had been criticized for stereotyping in the past two years. Some school alumni have defended the mascot, saying it's a matter of pride. 'There was no intention to demean Arabs or be discriminatory in any way,' said David Hinkle, a 1961 graduate. 'I don't think it's right to decide now that you can't do that anymore. It is political correctness run amok, I would say.' Coachella Valley High School isn't the only institution using a controversial mascot - The Palm Springs High School mascot is the 'Indians' and Indio High features 'Rajah' - a turban-wearing Indian prince. | Mascot was chosen to recognize the area's reliance on date farming - traditionally a Middle Eastern crop .
Mascot criticized by the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee .
It has evolved from a turban-wearing horseman to a figure with a scowl and headscarf .
Topic will be discussed at a school board meeting this month . |
54,053 | 9937a7711932928311e921bc5feac7d3feac8ea0 | Film buffs have the chance to own a piece of Hollywood cult history as the luxury home featured in Ferris Bueller's Day Off is up for sale. The 5,300 square foot house in Highland Park, Chicago, Illinois, is on sale priced at $1.5million. It featured in the iconic 1986 film, starring Matthew Broderick as Ferris, as the home of Bueller's neurotic best friend Cameron Frye. Scroll down for video . Classic: In the 1986 movie Ferris and his best friend Cameron watch in horror as Cameron's father's cherished Ferrari crashes to its death through a glass wall and into a ravine . Iconic: Film fans will instantly recognise the glass-fronted garage which was the scene of Bueller's (played by Matthew Broderick, left) neurotic best friend Cameron's (played by Alan Ruck, right) breakdown . That scene: At the end of the film Cameron's father's beloved Ferrari crashes into the ravine below . The home, part-suspended over a wooded ravine, comprises a main four-bedroom house and a separate pavilion with its own kitchen and bathroom. The pavilion also has room for four cars. In a classic scene, Frye has a breakdown in the room after returning his father's beloved Ferrari but discovering that hundreds of miles have been added to its speedometer. He then kicks the car repeatedly before sending it crashing through the glass walls into the ravine below. The home is on the market for the second time in two years after the owners failed to sell at $1.65million in 2011. Cult: The 80s film launched the career of Matthew Broderick (center), Alan Ruck (right) and Sloane Paterson (left) Modern: The glass pavilion was designed to house a collection of four vintage cars . The owners originally put the home on . the market for $2.3million in 2009 but it did not sell and has since . undergone a renovation. It was built in 1953 by architect A. James Speyer, who was mentored by pioneering architect Ludwig Mies Van Der Roche. The glass-enclosed garage, designed by David Haid, was added 20 years later to store a collection of vintage cars. The four-bedroomed home has only had one family of owners, according to the Chicago Tribune. The 1986 coming-of-age comedy film follows teen slacker Bueller as he bunks off high school and has a day of fun around Chicago. For sale: The luxury home in Illinois was built in 1953 and has only had one owner . Custom-built: The unique home boasts four bedrooms and the pavilion was added 20 years after it was built . Pedigree: The home, which sits on stilts over a ravine, was designed by A. James Speyer, who was mentored by pioneering architect Ludwig Mies Van Der Roche . He encourages his girlfriend, Sloane, played by Mia Sara, and best friend, Cameron, played by Alan Ruck, to join him . It . was written and directed by the late John Hughes, who was also the man . behind The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles and Pretty in Pink. A replica of the Ferrari 250 GT Spyder used in the film is being auctioned next week. Because the genuine model was so valuable, studio bosses built three replicas for filming. | Illinois house used as the home of Bueller's neurotic best friend Cameron .
Cameron has a breakdown in garage and sends father's beloved Ferrari careering through glass windows into ravine below . |
187,078 | 7e47dce35c8bf2280715f200de96980b531b27be | By . Meghan Keneally . PUBLISHED: . 08:48 EST, 20 January 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 17:35 EST, 20 January 2013 . President Barack Obama was sworn into his second term on Sunday at noon in front of only his wife and two daughters in a simple service. His younger daughter Sasha said 'Good job, Daddy!' after he correctly recited the oath of office. 'I did it!' he gleefully responded. Sure to keep him on his toes, he followed that up with a quick 'You didn't mess up!' Scroll down to watch . Keeping it brief: Mr Obama had his immediate family beside him at the ceremony, but reports also say that his other relatives were also present but out of the camera's line . Close bond: Mr Obama got a happy hug from older daughter Malia and Sasha (right) told him 'Good job, Daddy!' after he completed the oath. 'You didn't mess up!' The swearing in ceremony took place on Sunday in keeping with the laws states in the Constitution which states that Presidents' terms begin at noon on January 20. Normally the oath of office is given on the steps of the Capitol and is followed by his address to the nation, but because this year it happens to fall on a Sunday- and inaugurations are never held that day of the week- the oath of office was given quickly in the Blue Room of the White House instead. Swearing in: President Obama took his oath of office on Sunday just before noon, officially marking the start of his second term . Big moment: The oath was given quickly and held inside the White House because it is Sunday and the inauguration ceremony will be held tomorrow . Keeping it in the family: Mr Obama opted to be sworn in on a Bible that has been in Mrs Obama's family for some time . When President Obama takes the oath again tomorrow in front of the packed Mall, it will be his fourth time doing so. Michelle Obama showed off her new bangs along with a royal blue dress and cardigan by American designer Reed Krakoff at the swearing-in ceremony. The First Lady and daughter Malia matched the President's blue suit, also complementing the Blue Room of the White House, where the small ceremony took place. Younger daughter Sasha, however, went her own way: She wore a lacy pink dress with a gold, wide-width, high-waisted belt - a style her mother helped popularize - and gold shoes. It's not the first time Mrs Obama chose a design by Krakoff. She previously has worn a gown and jacket by the designer, who also is the president and executive creative director of Coach, Inc. She has carried one of his tote bags, too. Her hairdo, however, is a change - and it has been the subject of online chatter since its debut on Thursday in a photo taken at the White House. Only the President's immediate family and a few relatives were present, along with a crew of journalists to witness and televise the event. Aside from thanking Chief Justice John Roberts after the oath- and joking with his younger daughter that 'I did it!'- Mr Obama did not make any remarks before heading back out of the Blue Room and back to business. Mr Roberts, who famously floundered at Mr Obama's 2008 inauguration, carried a piece of paper and read the quick oath without any stumbles this time. Because he did not recite the oath of office word-for-word in in 2008, Mr Roberts had to perform a second official service inside the White House in the days following. Though they were not seen on cameras, . a number of his relative were apparently in attendance- including his . sister and her family, and First Lady Michelle Obama's brother Craig . Robinson and his family and her mother, Marian, who lives with the . Obamas in the White House. Mr . Obama opted to give a nod to Mrs Obama's relatives by choosing to be . sworn in with his hand resting on the Robinson's family Bible. Reading it carefully: Chief Justice John Roberts famously floundered when he read the oath of office to Mr Obama in 2008, but he was careful to make no mistakes this time around . Signs of approval: Michelle gives Barack a kiss after he read the oath and Malia gives her dad a big hug . All smiles: Though they looked serious during the actual ceremony, everyone appeared happy after it was done . Few fans: Only a handful of relatives were invited to attend the private ceremony . On their merry way: Justice Roberts follows the First Family after the exit . Watching: The cameramen from the White House Press Pool watched and recorded the oath . Mr Obama attended church with his family . before the ceremony, and laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown . Solider alongside Vice President Joe Biden, who was also sworn in for . his second term this morning. Family was a theme of the morning's ceremony as Mr Biden opted to take his oath of office with his hand over a bible that has been owned by the Biden clan since 1893. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor swore 70-year-old Biden into his second term before she rushed off to catch a train to her hometown of New York so that she could attend a book signing. Second term: Vice President Joe Biden was sworn in by Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor Sunday morning . 'An honor': Biden was pleased that Sotomayor pushed back her travel plans in order to perform the oath . Friendly tone: The Vice President took the oath in front of 120 relatives and friends . 'I want to explain to you what a wonderful honor it was, and how much out of her way the Justice had to go. She is due in New York. She has to leave right now. So I apologize: We're gonna walk out,' Mr Biden told the crowd after they applauded his oath. 'Her car's waiting so she can catch a train I hope I haven't caused her to miss.' The Supreme Court Justice smiled before quickly exiting along with the Vice President and his wife Dr Jill Biden. 'And I am leaving - going and gonna meet the President (for) the traditional laying the wreath at 2 over in Arlington. And we're having breakfast. I'll be back, they tell me, in 40 minutes. I hope of some you will still be here,' he said. Happy moment: Mr Biden was surrounded by family members when he was sworn into office . Tradition: Mr Biden used his family's Bible which they have owned since 1893 . The ceremony was held at the U.S. Naval Observatory which doubles as the vice president's residence. It opened with a prayer by Reverend Kevin O'Brien, a practicing Jesuit priest who is the vice president of Georgetown University's Mission of Campus Ministry. The selection of Rev. O'Brien comes as little surprise since the Bidens often attend mas at Holy Trinity Catholic Church just one block from the college campus. After Rev. O'Brien finished his prayer, the attention went to Justice Sotomayor and Mr Biden who repeated the oath after her. Religious touch: Reverend Kevin O'Brien (right), who is a member of the faculty at Georgetown University, gave a blessing before Mr Biden took the oath of office . Pucker up: Mr Biden kissed one of his grandsons as the rest of the family claps on . Dr Biden, who kept the apparent color-coordination going as she and her husband were wearing varying shades of blue, was in charge of holding the family Bible. They were surrounded by Mr Biden's children- including Beau and Ashley- and some of their five grandchildren. Once the oath was said, Mr and Dr. Biden went to meet the President and First Lady at a service at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, though he said that he planned to return to the breakfast with his extended family within the hour. | President Barack Obama sworn in to second term just before noon on Sunday inside the White House .
Full inauguration will be Monday to avoid having the event on a Sunday .
His daughters and the First Lady stood alongside him .
A few relatives witnessed the oath, as did select reporters .
Vice President Joe Biden sworn in at his residence earlier Sunday morning . |
32,631 | 5cc55125072786b7638a24749baa1b88315d5886 | (CNN) -- It's been 145 years since Abraham Lincoln appeared on a ballot, but admiration for the man who saved the union and sparked the end of slavery is as strong as ever, according to a new survey. Abraham Lincoln, seen in an 1861 photo, tops the list of former presidents in a new survey of historians. Lincoln finished first in a ranking by historians of the 42 former White House occupants. The survey was released over Presidents Day weekend. The news wasn't quite as good for the latest addition to the nation's most exclusive fraternity: George W. Bush finished 36th in the survey, narrowly edging out the likes of historical also-rans Millard Fillmore, Warren Harding and Franklin Pierce. James Buchanan -- the man who watched helplessly as the nation lurched toward civil war in the 1850s -- finished last. "As much as is possible, we created a poll that was non-partisan, judicious and fair-minded," said Rice University professor Douglas Brinkley, who helped organize the survey of 65 historians for cable television network C-SPAN. The survey -- which asked participants to rank each president on 10 qualities of leadership ranging from public persuasion and economic management to international relations and moral authority -- was the network's second since 2000. See which presidents ranked highest and lowest » . The hero of Springfield, Illinois, finished first nine years ago as well. "It's fitting that for the 200th birthday of Abraham Lincoln that he remains at the top of these presidential rankings," Brinkley said. "Lincoln continues to rank at the top in all categories because he is perceived to embody the nation's avowed core values: integrity, moderation, persistence in the pursuit of honorable goals, respect for human rights, compassion," Howard University's Edna Medford added. Founding father George Washington finished second in the new survey, followed by Franklin D. Roosevelt, Theodore Roosevelt, and Harry Truman, in that order. Bill Clinton registered the greatest gain among recent presidents, jumping from 21st to 15th in the survey. Ronald Reagan edged forward from 11th to 10th overall, while George H.W. Bush moved up from 20th to 18th. The prize for the greatest jump in approval from historians over the last nine years, however, went to a president who has often sat near the bottom of such rankings: Ulysses S. Grant. The Civil War general jumped 10 notches, from 33rd to 23rd. Grant has traditionally received poor marks for corruption among people in his administration and the failed postwar reconstruction effort he presided over. But the nation's 18th president may be getting a bounce from all of the recent attention focused on Lincoln, Medford said. "Grant won the war for Lincoln," she noted during an appearance on C-SPAN's "Washington Journal." "A new look at the totality of his career may be improving his presidential stature," she said. "Bill Clinton and Ulysses S. Grant aren't often mentioned in the same sentence -- until now," historian Richard Norton Smith said. "Participants in the latest [survey] have boosted each man significantly higher than in the original survey conducted in 2000. All of which goes to show two things: the fluidity with which presidential reputations are judged, and the difficulty of assessing any president who has only just recently left office." In his final news conference before stepping down last month, George W. Bush made it clear he wasn't concerned with poor initial judgments of his presidency. "There is no such thing as short-term history," Bush said. "I don't think you can possibly get the full breadth of an administration until time has passed." The survey's participants ranked Bush 41st on international relations and 40th on economic management -- ahead of only Herbert Hoover. | 65 historians ranked former presidents on various leadership qualities .
Abraham Lincoln ranked highest, as he did in similar survey done in 2000 .
James Buchanan, who watched as nation lurched toward civil war, came in last .
George W. Bush ranks 36th among the 42 former presidents . |
125,896 | 2ebf4a524ab827f158a390377852475d7018416d | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 15:17 EST, 1 April 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 15:22 EST, 1 April 2013 . Taking precautions: Harris County District Attorney Mike Anderson now has a round-the-clock security detail because other lawmakers have been targeted by assassins . The district attorney for Houston is now being trailed by a 24-hour security team after a fellow Texas lawmaker and his wife were assassinated on Saturday. Authorities have said little about the investigation into the deaths of Kaufman County District Attorney Mike McLelland and his wife, whose bodies were found Saturday. The couple's slayings came less than two weeks after Colorado's prison chief was shot to death at his front door, apparently by an ex-convict, and a couple of months after Kaufman County Assistant District Attorney Mark Hasse was killed in a parking lot near his courthouse office. No arrests have been made in Hasse's January 31 killing. The highest-profile official to accept the protection has been Mike Anderson, the district attorney for Harris County, which includes Houston. 'Mike has accepted additional security offered by Sheriff Garcia, just in case there are any immediate threats in Harris County,' his spokesperson Sara Marie Kinney told The Houston Chronicle. 'This danger is present every day. They put bad people behind bars everyday, and prosecutors and investigators carry this with them every day. 'It's sad, it's tragic. It weighs heavy on Mike, but it's not going to let it stop him, or anyone in this office, from doing their job.' Kaufman County district attorney Mike McLelland and his wife, Cynthia. were found murdered in their home Saturday . Authorities have yet to prove a connection the killings but are assuming one exists until evidence shows otherwise . Deputies escorted some Kaufman County employees into the courthouse Monday as other officers were seen patrolling one side of the courthouse, one holding a semi-automatic weapon, while others walked around inside. 'I don't want to walk around in fear every day... but on the other hand, two months ago, we wouldn't be having this conversation,' County Judge Bruce Wood, the county's top administrator, said Monday at a news conference. Assistant DA Mark Hasse was gunned down in January, and had recently pursued cases involving the Aryan brotherhood . Law enforcement agencies throughout Texas were on high alert, and steps were being taken to better protect other DAs and their staffs. In Harris County, which includes Houston, District Attorney Mike Anderson said he accepted the sheriff's offer of 24-hour security for him and his family. Anderson said he also would take precautions at his office, the largest of its kind in Texas, with more than 270 prosecutors. 'I think district attorneys across Texas are still in a state of shock,' Anderson said Sunday. McLelland, 63, was the 13th prosecutor . killed in the U.S. since the National Association of District Attorneys . began keeping count in the 1960s. Kaufman . County Sheriff David Byrnes would not give details Sunday of how the . killings unfolded and said there was nothing to indicate for certain . whether the DA's slaying was connected to Hasse's. El . Paso County, Colorado, sheriff's spokesman Sergeant Joe Roybal said . investigators had so far found no evidence connecting the Texas killings . to the Colorado case, but added: 'We're examining all possibilities.' Colorado's . corrections director, Tom Clements, was killed March 19 when he . answered the doorbell at his home outside Colorado Springs. Evan . Spencer Ebel, a white supremacist and former Colorado inmate suspected . of shooting Clements, died in a shootout with Texas deputies two days . later about 100 miles from Kaufman. Crime scene: Law enforcement officers investigate the scene of Mark Hasse's killing in January . In an Associated Press interview shortly after the Colorado slaying, McLelland himself raised the possibility that Hasse was gunned down by a white supremacist gang. McLelland, elected in 2010, said his office had prosecuted several cases against such gangs, particularly one known as the Aryan Brotherhood. The groups have a strong presence around Kaufman County, a mostly rural area dotted with subdivisions, with a population of about 104,000. After Hasse's slaying, McLelland said, he carried a gun everywhere around town, even when walking his dog. Suspect: Evan Spencer Ebel (left) is the main suspect in the murder of Colorado prison's chief Tom Clements (right) and he was killed in a shootout with police in Texas two days after the murder . He figured assassins were more likely to try to attack him outside. He said he had warned all his employees to be constantly on the alert. 'The people in my line of work are going to have to get better at it,' he said of dealing with the danger, 'because they're going to need it more in the future.' The number of attacks on prosecutors, judges and senior law enforcement officers in the U.S. has spiked in the past three years, according to Glenn McGovern, an investigator with the Santa Clara County, California district attorney's office who tracks such cases. For about a month after Hasse's slaying, sheriff's deputies were parked in the district attorney's driveway, said Sam Rosander, a McLelland neighbor. The FBI and the Texas Rangers joined the investigation into the McLellands' deaths. | Kaufman County, Texas, district attorney Mike McLelland and his wife Cynthia were found murdered in their home Saturday .
Now Harris County district attorney Mike Anderson has round-the-clock security detail due to threats .
Kaufman County assistant district attorney Mark Hasse was ambushed by at least one gunman as he walked from his car to the county courtroom in January .
Hasse was involved in the investigation of members of the Aryan Brotherhood and police think there may be a link between the two murders . |
24,150 | 4484ad51fd78ac182f152b510b05ac86f933ad71 | A stray bison which charmed a village of Poles has been shot dead by local farmers who feared the animal was seducing all of their cows. The animal, nicknamed Bartek the Bison, first appeared in Lakiele in autumn and quickly became a staple of village life. But after spending time grazing with cattle herds, the bison attracted the attention of the village's cows. Bartek the Bison (pictured) was shot dead by farmers who feared the rare animal was seducing all their cows . After growing accustomed to life in the village of Lakiele in northern Poland, the animal became acquainted with the local cattle herds . To the horror of local farmers, the livestock stopped returning to their barns to be milked at night instead staying in the field with Bartek. After calling a village meeting, the farmers agreed the animal should be killed despite protests from other residents. They hired two hunters to shoot Bartek dead before carting him off in a truck. The town's mayor, Jan Zaborowski, said the animal was causing no harm to the majority of the village. 'Despite his great size he was very gentle and was even given the name Bartek. We have no idea where he came from or how he got there, but he didn’t do any harm. 'He interested the locals and so he was fed and nobody bothered him. As a result although he was nervous at the start he began to spend more time in the local pastures than in the forest. The animals stopped returning to their barns at night to be milked, instead staying out to graze with Bartek . Local farmers hired two hunters to kill the animal, to the dismay of some villagers who had grown to love him . Mayor Jan Zaborowski (pictured) said Bartek the Bison was gentle and did not harm anyone in the village . 'At night the cows would stay with him rather than in their barn. I guess he was building himself a family and a herd of his own which is perfectly natural. 'But that didn’t impress the owners of the cows who were used to them coming home in the evening to be milked. All of a sudden they were staying out with the bison instead.' Millions of bison are thought to have roamed north America at one time, with slightly smaller versions of the animal found in Europe. The last wild European bison is thought to have been killed in 1929, with the only remaining members of the species protected in zoos or conservation efforts. A small number were released into the wild in the 1950's, with herds roaming across Eastern European countries today. | Bartek the Bison befriended villagers in Lakiele, northern Poland .
The wild animal soon attracted the attention of local herds of cattle .
Eventually the cows stopped returning to barns to be milked at night .
Farmers hired two hunters to kill animal after calling a village meeting . |
165,039 | 616834ba0f4160823c994c213e250ae4a671828a | (CNN) -- Schalke joined Bayern Munich at the top of the Bundesliga on Saturday after a 3-1 win over Stuttgart at the Veltins Arena. Schalke's 20-year-old Cameroon midfielder Joel Matip opened the scoring in the third minute with further goals coming from Greek defender Kyriakos Papadopoulos in the 57th minute. Eighteen-year-old midfielder Julian Draxler added a third ten minutes from time. Japan striker Shinji Okazaki scored a consolation goal for Stuttgart near the end but it couldn't deny Schalke the win which lifts them level on points with Bayern. Bayern lose at Moenchengladbach as Bundesliga resumes . Goals from Alexander Esswein and Dominic Maroh earned strugglers Nuremberg a valuable 2-0 win against Hertha Berlin. Wolfsburg also claimed three much-needed points with a 1-0 win at home to Cologne courtesy of a goal from striker Sebastian Polter 12 minutes from time. The clash at the bottom saw Freiburg beat Augsburg 1-0, meaning the clubs swap places at the foot of the table. The game between fifth-place Werder Bremen and Kaiserslautern ended goalless as did the mid-table match between Hoffenheim and Hannover. Sunday's fixtures see fourth-place Borussia Dortmund travel to Hamburg while sixth-place Bayer Leverkusen host Mainz. | Schalke draw level on points with league leaders Bayern after beating Stuttgart 3-1 .
Nuremberg defeat Hertha Berlin 2-0; Wolfsburg earn three points with 1-0 win over Cologne . |
24,454 | 455f122e9333788e6db6169c2b54a78f9cefbb89 | (CNN) -- Five Somali men were convicted of plotting a hijack at sea and sentenced to five years in prison in the Netherlands, in the first trial of pirates in Europe, a prosecution spokesman said Thursday. The court rejected their claim that they were innocent fishermen, said Wim de Bruin, a spokesman for Netherlands National Prosecutor's Office, noting that no fishing gear was found in their boat. The five were captured by the Danish navy in January 2009 in the Gulf of Aden, off Somalia, after a cargo ship with Dutch Antilles flag was attacked. "The ship of the pirates was destroyed by the Danish navy, and the pirates were captured and handed to the Dutch authorities," de Bruin said. The men are Ahmed Yusuf Farah, 25, Jama Mohamed Samatar, 45, Abdirisaq Abdulahi Hirsi, 33, Sayid Ali Garaar, 39, and Osman Musse Farah, 32, he said. They have two weeks to file an appeal, he said, adding that he did not know if they planned to fight their conviction. They had faced a maximum sentence of 9 to 12 years, he added. The trial of the five opened in Rotterdam District Court on May 25. Another suspected Somali pirate is awaiting sentencing in the United States, where he pleaded guilty in May to hijacking and kidnapping. Prosecutors say Abduwali Abdukhadir Muse led an attack on a U.S.-flagged vessel, the Maersk Alabama, off the coast of Africa last year. He pleaded guilty May 19 in a New York federal court to felony counts of hijacking maritime vessels, kidnapping and hostage-taking for his role in the hijacking of the Maersk Alabama in the Indian Ocean on April 8, 2009. Muse faces a maximum sentence of almost 34 years behind bars when he is sentenced October 19. The pirates who were tried in the Netherlands spent four weeks aboard the Danish navy ship after their capture before being taken to the Netherlands, spokesman de Bruin said. They were held in pre-trial custody while the court interviewed witnesses from the Danish navy and seamen on the Dutch Antilles cargo ship that was under attack, he said. Five Dutch defense lawyers represented the suspects, he said. The trial is the first of its kind in Europe, he said. Germany will soon try 10 suspected pirates who were captured in the Gulf of Aden earlier this year. They were arrested after their attempt to board a German cargo vessel, but the Danish navy ended the hijacking and handed them over to the Dutch authorities, Bruin said. They have since been held in the Netherlands, and Germany requested their extradition about two months ago. CNN's Eileen Hsieh contributed to this report. | NEW: Pirates have two weeks to appeal .
Trial thought to be the first of its kind in Europe .
Suspects captured after attack on ship in January 2009 .
They could have been sentenced to 9 to 12 years . |
106,392 | 1536925cbc5eae833e47d734ae5742adc44f6721 | Falsely accused: Sunil Tripathi, 22, was wrongly fingered as the Boston marathon bomber on Reddit . A Rhode Island family is anxiously awaiting news from authorities on whether the body they pulled from Providence River on Tuesday evening is their son, missing Brown student Sunil Tripathi. Police found the body around 6 p.m. and said they think it is 'very possible' that it is Tripathi, who was wrongly accused of being one of the . Boston Marathon bombers. Tripathi, 22, has been missing since the middle of March. Authorities are hoping to reveal the identity of the body today, but police lieutenant Joseph . Donnelly told The Boston Globe that 'it's very, very possible' that it . is Tripathi. The body was discovered on Tuesday evening around 6 p.m. in the river near the Wyndham Garden Providence Hotel, but it is not yet known when the person died. The hotel is a little over a mile from . Tripathi's apartment on Angell Street where he was last seen on March . 16. His cell phone and wallet were left in his apartment. The body was discovered by the coach of the Brown University crew team during practice. As news spread that his body had possibly been discovered, tributes to the student poured in through his family's Facebook page, 'Help Us Find Sunil Tripathi.' 'Sending prayers to you and your family!' wrote Michelle Tanenbaum Copelin. 'Praying the report this morning is not true!' Joanne Hubble wrote, 'I know you already are, but hold onto each other and just keep holding onto each other. So many around the world are trying to help hold you all.' Discovery: The body was discovered by the coach of the Brown University crew team during practice . Location: This is where the body was discovered on Tuesday evening around 6 p.m., in the river near the Wyndham Garden Providence Hotel . Tragic: Sunil Tripathi, seen here with his mother and sister, has been missing since last month. He left his cell phone and wallet when he walked out the door . Search: His family and friends frantically searched for him . Added April Jenson: 'My thoughts and prayers are with your family alone today.' The discovery comes just one day after . a Reddit moderator put out an apology to Tripathi's family after . internet commentators falsely accused him of being one of the bombers. 'I'd like to extend the deepest . apologies to the family of Sunil Tripathi for any part we may have had . in relaying what has turned out to be faulty information,' the moderator . of the FindBostonBombers subreddit wrote in a statement. 'We cannot begin to know what you're going through and for that we are truly sorry. 'Several users, twitter users, and . other sources had heard him identified as the suspect and believed it to . be confirmed. We were mistaken.' The apologies didn't stop there, as . Erik Martin, the general manager of Reddit, also sent out an email 'to . apologize personally and on behalf of all our employees for...some of . the people on our site's role in the spreading of this false idea about . Sunny.' It is not clear exactly how Tripathi went from being a missing person to wrongly becoming the prime suspect in the manhunt for the Tsarnaev brothers. But it appears speculation started on social news site Reddit, with several users claiming on the forum last Thursday evening that he was being sought by thousands of police and SWAT team officers over the attack. Remembrance: As news spread that his body had possibly been discovered, tributes to the student poured in through his family's Facebook page, 'Help Us Find Sunil Tripathi' Some claimed his name had been mentioned between officers on the police scanner and one woman who said she went to school with Tripathi alleged CCTV images of one of the real suspects 'looked like him.' Then, after the suspects engaged in a raging gun battle with police, some Twitter users began circulating the police scanner claims, setting off a storm of further storm of speculation. A cameraman with a Hartford affiliate of the CBS television network also tweeted: 'BPD scanner has identified the names' before naming 'Suspect 2' as Sunil Tripathi. A review of recordings from police radio traffic, though, shows Tripathi was never mentioned by police, according to the Atlantic. Real suspects: 19-year-old Dzhokhar Tsarnaev (left, in the white cape) and his 26-year-old brother Tamerlan (right in a black hat and glasses) were identified hours after police released their photos on Thursday evening . Wrong guy: Dzhokhar Tsarnaev (left) has reportedly admitted to being the Boston Marathon bomber, and said that he and his brother acted alone, meaning Sunil (right) had nothing to do with it . But with the story gathering pace on . social media, many users began to celebrate how they had found the . suspect in the 'white hat' - a reference to the fact one of the images . showed alleged bomber Dzhokar in a baseball cap of that colour. Yet all chose to ignore the fact Tripathi had not been named by police as a suspect. Within hours, vile messages began . cropping up on Sunil's Facebook page and about a dozen news vans camped . outside the family's home in Radnor, Pennsylvania. By dawn on Friday, the suspects had . been formally named - brothers Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev, whose . family is from the breakaway Russian region of Chechnya. The only consolation that his family . took from the incident was that perhaps the internet sleuths may use the . energy that they applied to sending vicious emails and threats after . the false accusation to help find the missing student. The Reddit contributor who started the forum dedicated to identifying the Boston Marathon bombers announced that he is quitting the community site. The user, identified only by his screen name of 'Oops777' said that it was a mistake to do so, and is now facing a massive backlash following their incorrect accusations. He said that the goal of the forum was 'to consolidate the already existing posts floating around /r/news and /r/boston.' He announced his departure from the site as part of a Reddit 'AMA', which stands for Ask Me Anything. 'We find it incredibly unfortunate that . media outlets were so quick to jump without checking with authorities, . but we hope they use the same energy and intensity they showed in the . past 24 hours to really help us find Sunil,' Sangeeta Tripathi, Sunil's sister told Mother Jones earlier this week. As the erroneous reports about . Tripathi continued to spread online, his family, huddled around their . computers in Providence, Rhode Island, felt helpless as Internet users . leveled accusation after accusation against their missing relative. ‘Someone will tweet, then retweet, and . completely unsubstantiated things can proliferate so rapidly and . destructively,’ Sunil's sister Sangeeta Tripathi said in an interview on . Friday. ‘Those night hours were horrible.’ 'It seems this is just the ugly underbelly of viral social media,' she later told NBC News. 'But a lot of stir can be created through just a complete accusatory and unsubstantiated effort.' The true suspects, 19-year-old . Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and his 26-year-old brother Tamerlan, were identified . hours after police released their photos on Thursday evening. Tamerlan was shot in an altercation . with police early Friday morning but actually only died when his brother . ran over him in the getaway car. Dzhokhar was captured by police Friday evening and remains in FBI custody. Searching: His family started a Facebook group soon after his March 16 disappearance . At a crossroads: Sunil Tripathi had taken a . leave of absence from Brown recently and was volunteering at a library . while deciding what to do next . Grainy images from a surveillance . camera have come to light showing a figure believed to be Tripathi . moments after leaving his home at 1.33am, just 20 minutes after he last . used his computer, according to ABC News. Police checked Tripathi's online . activity and bank accounts, but reportedly found no leads. They did come . across what they have characterized as a vague note in the student's . apartment, but will not go into details. The missing man’s bicycle, which he . used frequently to get around, was at the unit he shared with several . other university students. Tripathi's siblings, Ravi and . Sangeeta, have been canvassing Providence and its suburbs in hopes of . uncovering new clues leading to their missing baby brother. Their desperate search took them to coffee shops, stores, homeless shelters, soup kitchens hospital and morgues. Sensitive soul: The philosophy major, right, was described by his older brother, left, as a man who found pleasure in simple things like classical music . 'Everyone's racking their brains to . see if they can come up with places that he might be or where he might . have gone,' Ravi Tripathi, 26, said. The student's brother described him . as a quiet man who found pleasure in simple things like listening to . classical music. He also revealed that his sibling suffers from . depression. The close-knit family last heard from Sunil, known to his loved ones as Sunny, the night before he vanished. ‘Between family and friends, we are in constant contact with him,’ Sangeeta, 30, told ABC News on Sunday. ‘We became worried when he didn't respond to many missed calls,’ she said. Items left behind: Sangeeta Tripathi, the missing student's sister, says his wallet, ID cards, credit cards and cell phone were found in his room . Tripathi, 22, is a philosophy major at Brown and grew up in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. He has been living in Providence, Rhode Island, since 2008 and was on approved leave from the Ivy League school he is enrolled at. According to his brother, Sunil had taken a leave from Brown recently and was spending his time volunteering at a local library. He was last seen in the campus area wearing a pair of blue jeans, a black Eastern Mountain Sports ski jacket, glasses and a Philadelphia Eagles wool hat, according to witness reports. It is unclear what if any identifying features the body found in the Providence River had on him to make police blieve that it is Sunil. | 'Body of Sunil Tripathi' discovered in the Providence River in Boston .
Brown University student, 22, has been missing since middle of March .
Was wrongly identified on social media as a suspect in terror killings . |
95,724 | 070b6e8a06c38c1c7115d630290752d8946582db | By . Gemma Mullin for MailOnline . The music has started and the party’s begun as thousands of young revellers get into the festival spirit at Reading and Leeds Festival. Fans dressed in bright wellies and spectacular headdresses have been parading the campsites in Berkshire and Yorkshire at the simultaneous rock event, which happens every August bank holiday weekend. And Reading is preparing for Friday night’s headline act Queens of the Stone Age while Blink-182 will be at Leeds – kicking off the first full night of live music. Scroll down for video . Getting into the festival spirit: The music started at Reading and Leeds Festival today and Cassie Jury, 26, from Scunthorpe is among those soaking up the rays at Leeds . Tom Redwood, Thomas Percy, Alex Edmeades, Joe Lowndes - all in their twenties and from Staffordshire - dressed for a day at the races at Bramham Park, Leeds . Barry Atkinson (left), 26, from York with Jackie Brennan, 24 who travelled all the way from Australia for this year's Leeds Festival wear fancy native-Indian headdresses . Festival-goers arrived in droves to Little John's Farm in Reading for the start of this year's Reading Festival . So far, it has remained dry and bright and revellers have swapped rain macs and parkas for shorts and dresses to make the most of the British sunshine . These girls got into the party spirit early on at the Reading Festival. Although last year's festival was a washout, Saturday is expected to be bathed in glorious sunshine . Pupils from Babington House School, Kent, have come along to Reading Festival to celebrate the end of their exams, as most of those at the festival have done . These two women were seen carrying inflatable mattresses through the site, as they prepared for three days of camping at Reading Festival . Other headliners include American rock band Paramore and indie group Arctic Monkeys. Acts alternate between both campsites, set 200 miles apart, giving the 90,000 music fans the opportunity to see their favourite bands. Despite downpours this week it has remained dry and bright and revellers have swapped rain macs and parkas for shorts and dresses to make the most of the British sunshine. A group of men from Staffordshire - Tom Redwood, Thomas Percy, Alex Edmeades, Joe Lowndes – even donned fancy dress and were more prepared for a day at the races at Leeds Festival today. Music fans are gearing up for the first night of headline acts with Blink 182 opening the Leeds Festival and Queens of the Stone Age warming up revellers at Reading . Embracing the festival spirit, most of the revellers are youngsters ready to celebrate exam results after the GCSEs were revealed yesterday and A-Levels last week . Music fans sit on other people's shoulders as they enjoy Deaf Havana's performance at Reading earlier today after the music kicked off for the first day of the weekend . Fans at Japanese metalcore band, Crossfaith, who were on stage at 1pm at Reading today. The band released their first demo 'Blueprint of Reconstruction' in 2008 . Lead singer Kenta Koie throws himself into the rowdy audience as fans reach out and grab him. Other music fans look on filming the events on their phones . The Crossfaith singer disappears deep into the audience as he attempts to crowd-surf the audience at Reading earlier today - and fans were more than happy to help . While a pair of friends dressed in a clashing-patterned shirt and as a bird whilst carrying a crate of cider at Richfield Avenue, Reading. Saturday is expected to see the best of the sunshine – especially in Leeds - with temperatures reaching 18C at both sites. The 2013 festival was a washout with the Bramham Park site in Leeds turned into a mudbath. Most of the festival-goers, who arrived at the event yesterday to set up camp, are in their late teens and celebrating exam results after GCSEs were revealed yesterday and A-Levels last week. Reading is one of Britain's oldest and best-known music festivals - aside from Glastonbury - and launched on its current site near the town centre in 1971. It emerged from the National Jazz Festival, and focuses on alternative and rock music as opposed to the folk roots of its Somerset rival . These young men entered the festival at Little John's Farm carrying a supply of beer to last them through the weekend . A pair of friends carry a crate of cider and a box of wine whilst dressed as a bird and in a pattern-clashing shirt and glitzy hat at Richfield Avenue in Reading . Gerard Way takes to the stage at Reading Festival today as a solo artist. He headlined with My Chemical Romance in 2011 - the first year tickets failed to sell out . A rainbow of Hunter wellies at Leeds Festival, which remained largely dry and bright today despite downpours earlier in the week - letting revellers swap macs for shorts . Several visitors to Reading Festival took the opportunity to don fancy dress . Most festival-goers arrived at the campsites yesterday to pitch a good spot for their tents ahead of three days of live music at the annual August bank holiday event . The rock event cost £205 for a weekend camping ticket and it sold out two months ago. For those that missed out this year tickets are already on sale for the 2015 event . These girls got into the party spirit by drinking alcohol through a funnel at Reading Festival. Most of the guests are those in their late teens who have recently finished exams . A man and a 14-year-old boy have been arrested on suspicion of raping a teenager at the Reading Festival. Police were called after a 19-year-old woman was allegedly attacked in a caravan in the traders' area at the festival last night. It is thought she met a man and a boy near an ice cream van in one of the campsites. The 19-year-old woman told police she was attacked in a caravan in the traders’ area last night, after meeting a man and a boy near an ice cream van in one of the campsites. Police reassured festival-goers over the incident, which happened as 90,000 fans poured into the Berkshire site for three days of music headlined by Arctic Monkeys, Blink-182 and Paramore. A 14-year-old boy, from Surrey, was held by Thames Valley Police today on suspicion of rape alongside a 31-year-old man from London. The alleged victim was being cared for by specially-trained officers, and the caravan in question was sealed off for forensic tests after the alleged attack at 11.30pm yesterday. Police are patrolling the site and said there have been 21 crime reports since the gates opened on Wednesday, including five alleged drugs offences and 13 suspected thefts. | Fans dressed in bright wellies and headdresses for the first day of live music at the twinned rock music festival .
Reading has already seen performances from Gerard Way and Crossfaith today while Leeds enjoyed Young Guns .
Both festivals have remained dry and bright so far despite downpours earlier this week - and it looks to stay sunny .
Festival-goers are ready for tonight's headliners Queens of the Stone Age at Reading and Blink-182 at Leeds . |
62,832 | b27c6bccb305b4f410f1531bc9f5cd174651c7ba | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 05:17 EST, 22 March 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 08:11 EST, 22 March 2013 . With approximately 45 million visitors since it first opened in 2000, it's no wonder the London Eye needs a bit of a spring-clean. Brave cleaners have scaled the 440ft-high attraction to begin the mammoth task of removing traffic film and grime that’s built up over the last 13 years of use. Kärcher - a company specialising in large-scale cleaning projects - says the huge task will take three weeks as only two or three of its 32 pods can be cleaned per night. Similar to a car wash, the specialist rope technicians are using hot water pressure washers to deep clean the structure. Time for a spring clean: Cleaners have began the epic task of removing 13 years worth of traffic film and grime that's built up on the London Eye since it first opened in 2000 . Working through the night: Specialist rope technicians are using professional hot water pressure washers to deep clean the structure during the night . Landmark: Approximately 3.5 million visit the London attraction every year - meaning around 45 million people have taken a ride on the wheel since it first opened . The London Eye has become the capital's most popular tourist attraction in the UK since it first opened on the banks of the River Thames in March 2000. It is 443 ft tall and the wheel has a diameter of 394 ft - making it the tallest Ferris wheel in Europe. Around 3.5 million people pay to ride the Eye annually - meaning approximately 45.5 million have taken a trip on the iconic wheel. The London Eye will be open to the public throughout the clean, as the teams will work through the night to ensure there is no disruption for Londoners. The clean is environmentally friendly and won’t cause any risk to the Thames as Kärcher will use PVC 'pools' to collect all water and residue from the clean and will drain this locally. Kevin Dyer, Head of Technical Operation at the London Eye said: 'This is very exciting for us as it’s the most extensive clean the structure has seen since its opening in 2000, which is a huge project. Making a cleaner view: The cleaners are using high pressure washers similar to those used in a car wash to clean the outside of the pods . Cleaning every nook and cranny: A cleaning technician wipes down the bolts on a pod on the London Eye . 'We are delighted to be working with Kärcher as we’ve seen some of the amazing work they have performed on other world- famous monuments. The London Eye will be ready for summer after its big clean.' Simon Keeping, Managing Director of Kärcher UK said: 'Kärcher is proud to be working with the London Eye and cleaning such an important part of the London skyline. 'This is one of the largest projects we have worked on in Europe and we are ensuring that the clean is as environmentally friendly as possible. 'As the world’s leading cleaning specialists, our products demonstrate power through their ability to tackle the toughest jobs – including one of the tallest monuments in London!' Kärcher has previously cleaned monuments across the world - including Mount Rushmore and Christ the Redeemer - and the London Eye is the latest in their worldwide project. Time consuming: The cleaning project will take around three weeks to complete as only two or three pods can be cleaned a night . Large scale clean-up: Kärcher co-operated with the National Park Service to clean the presidents¿ heads on Mount Rushmore in South Dakota in 2005 . Powerful: A team of approximately fifteen workers blasted near-boiling water onto the surface of the stone from five gas-powered pressure washers at the rate of 3000 gallons per day . Cleaning around the world: The company also cleaned Christ the Redeemer in in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in the 1980s . | Cleaners will remove traffic film and grime .
that’s built up over 13 years of use over the next three weeks .
Only two or three of the wheel's 32 pods can be cleaned with hot water pressure washers per night .
Approximately 45 million visitors have taken a ride on the London Eye since it first opened in 2000 . |
117,712 | 23fc6eff1bbf238513e2f9c76e40762f01b1737d | LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- Janelle Monae is a girl from another planet, and she's invading your world. Janelle Monae creates "cool, futuristic soul with a real '80s quality," says a DJ. Sightings of the singer-songwriter will include this week's "American Idol" finale, the Hollywood Bowl and concert stages across America this summer and TV's Sci Fi Channel this fall. Monae insists that her real identity is Cindi Mayweather, an android traveling through space and time to escape destruction ordered because she fell in love with a human, a fatal infraction of robots' rules. Along the way, she's making music that moves into the future while drawing from decades past. "It is cool, futuristic soul with a real '80s quality," said Garth Trinidad, a disc jockey at Los Angeles, California, radio station KCRW. Trinidad spotted Monae three years ago, and he's been watching her like an astronomer tracking the approach of a distant comet destined to light Earth's sky. "I believe she's going to be a household name in the next year or two," said Trinidad, a self-described "champion of the underdog" who is credited with giving Jill Scott and Gnarls Barkley early radio airplay. Monae -- the human -- is a striking combination of voice, style, imagination and fearlessness that defies conventional description, making it easier to buy into the fantasy of Mayweather the android. When her song "Many Moons" was nominated for a Grammy in December, it was in the urban/alternative category. If Monae is an android from the future, her musical programming included the past. Trinidad compared her "very fluid, very pleasing" voice to Donna Summer, circa 1976. At a Los Angeles show this month, she mixed 20th-century classics with her own futuristic songs. Monae delivered a sweet version of Nat King Cole's "Smile" while standing atop a barstool. Senior citizens danced the "Twist" when her band broke out into the Beatles' 1964 hit "I Saw Her Standing There." She loves timeless music, Monae said after her show. "We look to a lot of people whose bodies are dead and gone, but their spirit is still with us," Monae said. Her choreography borrows from James Brown, Michael Jackson and Devo, with dance moves from the future. Monae -- or Mayweather -- thinks she can fly. She jumped head-first into the audience, "crowd surfing" the unlikely mosh pit in UCLA's Royce Hall. Search Monae's name on YouTube and you'll see her jumping into swimming pools to end her shows. She climbed a tree in New York -- after her swim. Unlike some performers, her talent matches Monae's onstage antics, Trinidad said. "It's one thing for her to perform a certain way, but she backs with it up with talent," he said. Monae's android-on-the-run theme, reminiscent of the 1982 movie "Blade Runner," reminds Trinidad "of all the great albums from the past that had a story and concept attached." "She was just kind of like bored with everything else going on, and she wanted to transcend it and tell a story," he said. Monae said she is not following a formula, that she is "being led by my maker." "I'm very similar to a terminal," she said. Monae will inevitably capture the world's attention because she is "outshining a lot of what's happening in the mainstream," Trinidad said. That time may be near. Sean "Diddy" Combs signed her to his Bad Boy Records, giving her music distribution. Coca-Cola hired Monae to sing on its "Open Happiness" ad campaign. It airs on this week's "American Idol" finale. Her tour stops next month include at least six shows in the northeastern United States, opening for Gwen Stefani's reunited rock group No Doubt. Monae then plays the Hollywood Bowl with the legendary jazz singer Etta James. She plays herself in two episodes of the Sci Fi Channel's "Stargate Universe" this fall. | Janelle Monae popping up on commercial, on tour, on TV .
Singer has alter ego: Cindi Mayweather, futuristic android on the run .
Observers praise talent: "I believe she's going to be a household name," says DJ . |
189,165 | 80fa67312d01ea925f201a2bda79f9d71db50d10 | Michael Shrimpton, 57, (pictured) sparked a security scare when he claimed spies were plotting to bomb the Queen during the 2012 London Olympics . A barrister who sparked a security scare when he claimed German spies were plotting to assassinate the Queen with a nuclear weapon during the 2012 London Olympics has denied he is a ‘fantasist, nutter or liar’. Michael Shrimpton, 57, allegedly called the House of Commons and the Aylesbury Conservative Association to warn them that a bomb stolen from a sunken Russian submarine had been smuggled into the country and was stashed in an east London hospital. The lawyer, who had a ‘fascination’ for political and military intelligence, told a close colleague of former Defence Secretary Philip Hammond that the deadly weapon would be detonated during the 2012 Olympics, Southwark Crown Court heard. He also bombarded the offices of MP David Lidington with voicemails to repeat his bomb hoax, the jury heard. Appearing at court today, Shrimpton, of Wendover, Buckinghamshire, insisted he was not a compulsive liar and said he was giving a ‘reasoned intelligence briefing from an intelligence specialist’. ‘The idea I was acting in bad faith didn’t occur to me... I thought I was doing something sensible,’ he said. Shrimpton said he was ‘genuinely concerned’ for the safety of the Games and the Queen ‘for whom I hold deep affection’. The lawyer denies communicating false information and is representing himself at his trial. Today, prosecutor Alan Blake asked him: ‘Do you accept lots of people claim to be involved in intelligence but aren’t and lots of them can be fantasists, nutters or liars?’ To which Shrimpton replied: 'Yes'. Mr Blake continued: ‘Because mostly when lawyers are dealing with people who claim to have an intelligence connection, normally it is people making things up? To which Shrimpton replied 'yes' again before adding: ‘I can’t recall when I said them but they are my words.' The practicing barrister, who has also sat as an immigration judge, later insisted: ‘I tell the truth’. And he insisted he was not a ‘nutter’, telling jurors he had never suffered from mental health problems and had never been referred to a psychiatrist. When Mr Blake asked Shrimpton if he was solely responsible for his actions, he replied: ‘Yes. I am the maker of my fate and the captain of my soul.’ Shrimpton, who describes himself as a 'major player', claims to be well connected in international intelligence and defence organisations. He denied he was a compulsive liar and stressed there was ‘absolutely no point trying to pass duff intelligence’ as it would damage his reputation in the ‘glamourous, exciting area’. Shrimpton also told the court that he formerly worked on the investigation into Madeleine McCann’s disappearance and the case of former Chilean president Augusto Pinochet. The barrister told a close colleague of former Defence Secretary Philip Hammond that the deadly weapon, taken from a Russian submarine, would be detonated during the 2012 Games, Southwark Crown Court heard . He read extracts from his address book with a number of ‘contacts’ in the CIA, FBI, MI6, the Pentagon, Chinese intelligence and Parliament. Shrimpton said: ‘I admit that the stuff I deal with is bound to sound strange, highfalutin, incredible and fantastic. ‘It’s my world, welcome to my world.’ Shrimpton also claims he has previously rubbed shoulders with royalty, former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and he listed a number of famous names including Richard Branson and Steven Forbes. He boasted about possessing the name and number of the private secretary of His Royal Highness Prince Phillip who he said he has met twice in a social context. Shrimpton also claims he has travelled the world on intelligence assignments and carried a gun into America with permission from the CIA. He also claims to have the authority to issue a Defence Advisory Notice on behalf of the Government to stop British media from publishing stories that could compromise national security. He said he wanted to prevent the News of the World from blowing his intelligence, and added they were ‘very cooperative’. Shrimpton also told the jury that there was an assassination attempt against him by the Chinese authorities who wanted to ‘whack’ him. Jurors heard how Shrimpton reported that the deadly weapon was going to be used against the Queen, the main stadium or the opening ceremony during the 2012 Olympics. He denied he was a compulsive liar today . He claimed the Los Angeles Sheriff Department also consulted him on possible terror attacks over a cup of coffee. Jurors heard he passed information about an imminent attack in London to people in high authority when the preparation for the 2012 games was at an ‘advanced stage’. Shrimpton announced that a nuclear weapon stolen from the sunken Russian submarine, the Kursk, had been smuggled into the UK and was being stored in an east London hospital, it was said. He first dialled the House of Commons on April 19 and received a call back from Barry Burton who was the principal private secretary to Philip Hammond. Shrimpton boasted of ‘credible European sources’, name-dropped MPs and said intelligence had been blocked through official channels. During the 20-minute call with Mr Burton, Shrimpton said he was a lawyer with information about four nuclear warheads that had been removed from a submarine. One warhead was being held in a hospital to mask its radioactive signals and was going to be used to attack the Olympic Games. The weapon was going to be used against the Queen, the main stadium or the opening ceremony, jurors heard. Shrimpton denies communicating false information and is representing himself at Southwark Crown Court . Mr Burton was forced to pass the information to the Olympic security team and the police, despite his suspicions that it was a hoax, it was said. The next day, Shrimpton rang the Aylesbury Conservative Association and spoke to Sarah Sproat. He told her he needed to get a message to the MP David Lidington about a nuclear warhead which she then reported to a colleague at parliament, the court heard. Shrimpton was arrested on suspicion of communicating false information the same day. He previously admitted leaving the voicemail at the House of Commons but denied making positive statements about a nuclear threat, jurors heard. Shrimpton claimed the Deutsches Verteidigungs Dienst (DVD) - a reference to ‘a covert and rather sinister’ German agency -had penetrated MI5, MI6 and GHQ. He allegedly claimed the DVD was responsible for sabotaging the Kursk in 2000 and stealing the nuclear weapons. The information had initially come from the Russian intelligence agency the GRU, jurors heard. Shrimpton has been a member of the Aylesbury Conservative Association since he defected from the Labour party in 1997. He denies two counts of communicating false information with intent. The trial continues. Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article. | Michael Shrimpton claimed bomb had been smuggled into London hospital .
He allegedly said it would be detonated during the London Olympics 2012 .
Lawyer denies two counts of communicating false information with intent .
Insisted at Southwark Crown Court he was not a 'fantasist, nutter or a liar' |
71,435 | ca76de11406dd9c7ef431100796484f81de378d3 | (CNN) -- A NASA satellite crashed back to Earth about three minutes after launch early Tuesday, officials said. NASA launches a rocket from California's Vandenberg Air Force Base on Tuesday. "We could not make orbit," NASA program manager John Brunschwyler said. "Initial indications are the vehicle did not have enough [force] to reach orbit and landed just short of Antarctica in the ocean." "Certainly for the science community, it's a huge disappointment." The satellite, which would have monitored greenhouse gases to study how they affect the Earth's climate, was launched on a Taurus XL rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California at 1:55 a.m. PT (4:55 a.m. ET). But the payload fairing -- a clamshell-shaped structure that allows the satellite to travel through space -- failed to separate from the rocket, NASA officials said. See video of launch » . The weight of the fairing caused the rocket and the satellite to come crashing down to Earth about three minutes later. A team of investigators will look into what caused the payload fairing to fail to separate. "We'll get back to flying at a pace that allows us to do so successfully," said Chuck Dovale, NASA Launch Director, at a press briefing after the failed launch. The $273 million satellite, called the Orbiting Carbon Observatory, would have collected global measurements of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the Earth's atmosphere to help better forecast changes in carbon-dioxide levels and their effect on the Earth's climate. Carbon dioxide is considered a greenhouse gas because it traps heat, which scientists believe contributes to the warming of the planet. Carbon dioxide also absorbs wavelengths of light, and the NASA observatory would have measured levels of the gas partly by using instruments to analyze light reflected off the Earth. The OCO also would have provided information about CO2 "sinks" -- areas, like oceans or landfills, that absorb and store carbon dioxide. NASA officials said all measurements would be combined with the findings of ground observation stations, providing a more complete account of the human and natural sources of CO2. The OCO project took eight years to develop, said Michael Frelich, director of the NASA Earth Science Division. Its failure is a great loss for the science community, he said. | NEW: Satellite crashed into ocean near Antarctica minutes after launch, NASA says .
$273 million project was intended to study effect of greenhouse gases .
NASA: Investigators will probe why fairing failed to separate from rocket . |
52,170 | 93bfbd3f635971882c6479693f53c1a40afefb81 | MI5 were tracking Jihadi John before he left for the Middle East while he worked as a collector for Arab charities, it has today been reported. Counter-terror officers had the masked executioner under surveillance while he worked as a low-level collector for the genuine charities based in London. It comes as security sources say they are just 'days away' from revealing the identity of the British killer shown in gruesome videos beheading two U.S. hostages, released by terrorist cell ISIS. Scroll down for video . MI5 were tracking Jihadi John before he left for the Middle East while he worked as a collector for Arab charities, it has today been reported . The Mirror reports that the executioner - one of four British jihadis known as the Beatles who are holding hostages in Syria - gathered funds for the Islamic state after he finished his work with the genuine charities. A . source told the paper: 'MI5 has identified this man and they have known exactly . who he is for some time. He was even being looked at before he travelled . abroad. 'Like . so many jihadists before him, he then seems to have become radicalised . almost overnight and disappeared to travel to the Middle East.' The executioner is said to have arrived in Syria more than a year ago. American journalist James Foley was the first to be beheaded by the masked executioner. He is one of four British jihadis holding hostages in Syria known as the 'Beatles' Gruesome footage of the execution of fellow American hostage Steven Sotloff was released last week . Gruesome footage showing the beheading of American journalist James Foley was released last month by the Islamic State, followed by a video of the execution of fellow American hostage Steven Sotloff last week. Authorities are now in a race against time to save the life of British hostage, aid worker David Haines, who the masked jihadi has revealed is next for execution. It comes after it was reported that father-of-two Mr Haines has been struggling to hold down food and suffering from acute gastric and other health problems in his cramped captivity. Meanwhile, David Cameron has revealed that Britain has begun arming the Kurds to fight back against ISIS. The Prime Minister told MPs, in a statement following last week’s Nato summit in Newport, that Britain ‘will continue to support the Kurds, including by providing them with arms and training their troops’. Until now the Government has limited itself to transporting weapons from former Soviet countries to the Kurds, for example from Albania. But Mr Cameron was asked if Britain will now be providing the Kurdish peshmerga militia directly with arms. The Prime Minister responded: ‘The short answer to that is yes.’ Britain has also offered to train the Kurdish fighters. | Masked executioner worked as low-level collector for genuine charities .
He is then believed to have moved on to gather funds for the Islamic state .
Security sources say they are just 'days away' from revealing his identity . |
39,112 | 6e851b0f3f9f123f75233a69eacefbc53047e874 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . These Koi carp are happier with a baby's bottle than a sprinkling of fish food. At a market in Ayutthaya, Thailand, tourists flock to the water's edge to feed the fish in the bizarre fashion. A baby's milk bottle is filled with fish food and put on the end of a stick. Video below... Lunch time: These hungry fish certainly aren't shy in coming forward as they flurry to the surface to be fed by tourists clutching baby bottles . Attraction: The bizarre attraction pictured here at a floating market in Ayutthaya, Thailand, has become hugely popular with tourists to the area . As soon as the fish see the rubber teat entering the water, they flock around the bottle in a battle to be the first for lunch. Stephanie Amaudruz captured the fascinating event while she was on holiday in Thailand earlier this year. Koi carp come in a variety of vibrant colours, patterns and prices and collecting these beautiful creatures is a serious business. Draw: Both adults and children alike rush to the water's edge to take part . Trip: Stephanie Amaudruz captured the fascinating event while she was on holiday in Thailand earlier this year . Roots: Koi is an abbreviation of Nishikigoi, the Japanese term for 'brocaded carp' Koi is an abbreviation of Nishikigoi, the Japanese term for 'brocaded carp'. The record price paid by a UK collector is £100,000 for 'Jessica Rose', which won the All-Japan Koi Show in 2006. More realistically, beginners can pay £5 for a tiddler, £20 for a 6in example and £2,000 for a three-footer that may be decades old. When looking after a Koi Carp, costs can mount rapidly: a clay conditioner for the koi's scales works out at £80 for two weeks' supply and 10 days' food for 20 carp is about £100. Healthy fish can grow up to 4ft over decades and investors tend to go for examples with a broad, blunt-nosed head and a thick well-muscled tail. The skin should be even-textured. There are 13 basic varieties with the Kohaku the most popular. These are white with red 'beni' (spotted) patterns. The most collectible have deep, uniform shading. However, find one with a Japanese 'sun' on its forehead and you might have a fish worth tens of thousands of pounds. | Tourists at a market in Ayutthaya flock to the water's edge to feed the fish .
A baby's bottle is filled with fish food and given to the Koi Carp . |
281,073 | f81d22e5759e1b668d7151611db6ad6cd31e85e4 | Around one pedestrian in seven injured on the roads is drunk at the time, according to research. It also reveals the run-up to Christmas is a peak period for accidents involving ‘drunk walkers’. Some 14 per cent of those involved in a road accident while on foot over the past three years were ‘walking under the influence’ of alcohol after a night on the tiles, it says. New research suggests around one pedestrian in seven injured during accidents on the roads is drunk . Figures from the Department of Transport reveal more than 6,000 intoxicated pedestrians have been injured since 2011. They are also posing a problem for thousands of innocent motorists as their unpredictable and often dangerous behaviour – from drunkenly crossing roads without looking or simply staggering onto a road and into the path of an oncoming car - increases the risk of a crash. Nearly a third of drivers say they have had to swerve or brake in order to avoid hitting a drunk pedestrian, with one in eight admitting to hitting one. The AA said some drunk pedestrians have been killed lying unseen in the gutter when street lights have been switched off to cut osts. The report based on Freedom of Information data from 21 police forces and statistics from the Transport Department reveals that men account for more than three quarters, or 79 per cent, of all drunk pedestrian road incidents, with those under the age of 25 involved in more incidents than any other age group. Figures from the Department of Transport reveal more than 6,000 intoxicated pedestrians have been injured since 2011 . Drunk pedestrians are more at risk of injury on UK roads at night between the times of 10pm and midnight - close to pub and bar closing times and ‘perhaps as a result of a long night of drinking,’ says the dossier. A report by insurers Confused.com says: ‘Over 6,000 ‘drunk’ pedestrians have been injured on UK roads since 2011 - and many of these ‘drunk walking’ accidents are happening over the Christmas period.’ It says nearly a third of all drunken pedestrian incidents involved people between the ages of 18 to 24 and says this suggests ‘that the young are not taking enough care on the roads after consuming alcohol’. Separate research found that 83 per cent of people admit having walked home while under the influence of alcohol, with just over one in five, or 21 per cent, admitting they consumed eight drinks or more on a night out. A third of drunk pedestrians admitted to having walked down roads which were unlit; with nearly two thirds, 62 per cent, confessing that they have walked home alone when under the influence of alcohol, according to findings from 2,000 people questioned by One Poll Research. One in seven admitted to crossing roads without looking properly while drunk and a similar proportion said they have sat down on the side of the road when intoxicated. A worrying one in 10 confessed to having fallen into a road when drunk. Drunken walkers are also putting motorists at risk, with nearly a third of drivers saying they had to swerve or brake in order to avoid hitting a pedestrian they suspected of being intoxicated. About one in eight admitted to having actually knocked into a pedestrian that they believed to be drunk. Figures show the run-up to Christmas is a peak period for accidents involving ‘drunk walkers’ However more than a fifth of motorists say they would either stop their car or call the police if they saw a drunken person staggering in the road. Across the country last year the Metropolitan Police recorded 158 ‘drunk walk’ injuries, Kent police recorded 123 injuries, Glasgow City Council: 126 injuries, and Northern Ireland 64. Scotland has this month lowered the legal drink-drive limit from 80mgs – where it remains in the rest of the UK - to 50mgs per 100ml of blood. AA spokesman Paul Watters said: ’Sadly these statistics do not surprise us. We have had reports of pedestrians lying in the gutter and being killed because coroners said drivers did not see them. Cut backs on street lights play a part. ‘Sometimes drunks use main roads and even motorways to walk home because it’s the way they now from driving. Then they tumble into the road and there’s a tragedy.’ Gemma Stanbury, head of motor Insurance at Confused.com, said: ’There is already much being done to raise awareness around the dangers of drink driving, but it is the responsibility of all road users – both motorists and pedestrians - to act responsibly when near or on the roads. 'Nobody wants to see anyone involved in a road accident, especially over the Christmas period. 'However the reality is that more people are out consuming alcohol over the festive season, leading to an unfortunate increase in the number of pedestrian casualties.' Breath test data shows that in 2013, 3 per cent of drivers and riders failed a breath test following a reported personal injury accident. Drink drive casualty estimates for 2012 show that there were 230 drink drive deaths in 2012. There were 1,430 drink drive killed or seriously injured casualties (KSIs) in 2012. In that same year about 6 per cent of killed motorcyclists and around a quarter of vehicle drivers were found to be over the legal alcohol limit when they died. | New research shows one pedestrian in seven injured on roads is drunk .
Run-up to Christmas is a peak time for accidents involving 'drunk walkers'
14 per cent of people in road accidents while on foot were under influence .
More than 6,000 intoxicated pedestrians have been injured since 2011 . |
180,624 | 75d11ea6c9417ed936865ba2782fe0135beba135 | Constitucion, Chile (CNN) -- The only thing that seemed to frighten Pedro Munoz that dark morning was that a guilty conscience would haunt him if he did nothing. He'd been a fisherman all his life and was familiar with the fury of the sea. Still, he chose to sail into the oncoming tsunami, sacrificing his own life so others could live. Tabita Bravo sits on a riverbank, perching on the side of a 15-foot wooden boat like her husband's. It's a struggle to hear her small voice above the sound of waves rolling over the pebbles. "My husband always said to me that if God took him before his time, that he hoped it would be doing something for his town and his people," Bravo said. Bravo had been camping with her 54-year-old husband, her 20-year-old son, Luis Anabalon, and family friend Juan Padilla on an island in the River Maule. The island is a few hundred yards from the ocean and closer still to the town of Constitucion. It was a tradition here to camp out on the island in the closing days of the Southern Hemisphere's summer. The family was asleep, and scores more were camping nearby when they were awakened by the massive quake about 3.30 a.m. local time February 27. Munoz took one look as the river began to rapidly ebb and knew that a tsunami was on its way. "Pedro and my son dragged the boat down to the water line and shouted 'Women and children first!' I ran to get everybody together. But the boat was too small, and there was not enough space for everybody," Bravo explained. Bravo refused a spot on the first boat. She, her son and Padilla helped load four women and their six young children aboard. A first wave came rolling in, and Munoz ferried the first group out of harm's way. He shouted that he would be back. Just before the second wave hit, Munoz sailed the 400-yard round trip and departed the island a second time, taking his wife and nine others. His stepson and friend stayed behind to organize the others still stranded. Time was running out as the tsunami waters rose. "As I looked back, I heard screams and laments," Bravo said. "I shouted to my son Luis to run to the trees and climb up. He shouted back, 'I'm OK, Mum. Never forget I love you. I love you.' " Witnesses say Munoz saved at least 20 people in two trips. His wife begged him not to go back and instead head for higher ground. But a neighbor appeared and begged Munoz to make a third and final trip. "He said, don't worry, he'd be back. But he said, if he didn't make it, then that's God's will," Bravo said. "He said if he didn't try to rescue more people, then he'd always have it on his conscience." Those were Munoz's last words to his wife. She waited for him by a bridge until the water levels forced her to flee to high ground. "I heard the third wave coming and destroying everything in its path. I heard ships' moorings snap. I ran up the hill, and when I looked back, I realized Pedro, Luis and Juan were gone. I knew I'd never see them again." Bravo said. Inhabitants of Constitucion found Munoz's body six days later. He had been dragged 5 kilometers (about 3 miles) into the thick forests that line the banks of the River Maule. Debris and bits of houses litter the forests. Three fishing boats, each about 70 tons, lie battered and beached there, too. A short bit away, the digging arm of a bright yellow backhoe can be seen jutting out of the water. On the opposite side of the river, the back of a cement truck rises just above the water level. If the tsunami has destroyed those objects, each weighing many tons, one can't even begin to imagine how Pedro Munoz must have battled to keep his 15-foot skiff on course. There's no record of the names of the 20 women and children whom witnesses say Munoz saved that morning. Events unfolded too fast, and the situation was too desperate to make a note. The tsunami has wiped out most of Tabita Bravo's physical reminders of her marriage to Munoz, too. She clutches just three damp photos she rescued from the sludge. But she will never forget. "I always knew Pedro was a hero. Now, the memories are in my heart," she said. | Pedro Munoz was camping on island in river when earthquake struck .
He made two trips in his boat to save at least 20 people .
"He said, if he didn't make it, then that's God's will," widow says . |
69,935 | c6468e0ba42ba6e1e3be06ffc87464d711c09815 | Piermont, New York (CNN) -- Autopsy results were released on Monday for a bride-to-be and best man who were killed in a boating accident last weekend on the Hudson River. Lindsey Stewart died "as a result of drowning and severe head injuries" and Mark Lennon died "as a result of drowning" and "suffered only minor bodily injuries," according to a press release from the Rockland County Medical Examiner's office. Lennon and Stewart disappeared late Friday when a 21-foot Stingray power boat they were passengers on slammed into one of three construction barges strapped together near the Tappan Zee Bridge, 25 miles north of Manhattan. Lennon was to be the best man in Stewart's wedding to Brian Bond on August 10. Both deaths are being certified as "vehicular homicide," according to the release. Post mortem toxicology tests for drugs and alcohol are pending and expected to take several weeks for completion, the release says. Stewart and Lennon were thrown from the boat. Stewart's body was recovered Saturday. But the search for Lennon continued until Sunday morning, when a Jet Skier called police to report a body in the river. "We're looking into every single thing," Rockland County, New York, Sheriff Louis Falco said. "What we're going to do is bring in an accident reconstruction team." It was supposed to be a short boat ride up the Hudson River from the village of Piermont in Rockland County to Tarrytown . The couple had just dined at a restaurant with friends when Stewart and Bond boarded the power boat, along with three friends. Potential alcohol use and poor lighting are key points of interest as authorities look into the deadly crash. The barge the power boat crashed into had been anchored in the river since April, according to Robert Van Cura, undersheriff of the Rockland County Sheriff's Office. "The barge had some lights on it; whether or not it was properly lighted is part of the investigation," Van Cura said. "On a clear, moonlit night, with the bridge lights on, you can see pretty well," said Tom Sobolik in a telephone interview from aboard his sailboat near the accident site. The moon was last full on Monday. But Craig and Celeste Kmiecik said they were boating in the area Friday night, and it was dark. "There was a moon last night, but you really can't see anything," said Craig Kmiecik. "The barge was not lit up," said Celeste Kmiecik. "We saw that last night coming back to the marina." Another area resident, Anthony Fowler, said having barges on the waterway is dangerous. "If you put an immovable object that's dark in the path of recreational boaters, you have a recipe for disaster." Meanwhile, boat operator Jojo K. John, 35, has been arrested. "We have probable cause to believe that he operated the boat while intoxicated," Van Cura said. John was arraigned at an area hospital on one count of first-degree vehicular manslaughter and three counts of second-degree vehicular assault. More charges are possible, Van Cura said. John, along with the others who were not thrown from the boat, suffered head injuries. Bond, the groom, was hospitalized at Westchester Medical Center, said Stewart's stepfather Walter Kosik, who visited him Saturday. "He was in no condition to talk." A spokesman for the medical center said Bond was in fair condition, with serious head injuries. He was the one who called 911 from the boat, reporting the accident. For the families, the tragedy was magnified by the pending nuptials. "She's supposed to be married two weeks from today," said Carol Stewart about her daughter. "It just can't end like this." CNN's Chris Welch, Alan Duke, Rande Iaboni, and Tom Watkins contributed to this report. | Autopsy say bride-to-be drowned, had severe head injuries; best man drowned .
A Jet Skier found the body believed to be best man Mark Lennon .
The body of bride Lindsey Stewart was recovered Saturday .
The wedding party's boat crashed into a parked barge on the Hudson on Friday night . |
92,299 | 02b8accb9ba03cbc80f65cc3292cfd5e25e7a1fd | Atlanta (CNN) -- Natina Reed, one-third of the early 2000s R&B trio Blaque, was struck by a vehicle and killed Friday night in Georgia, Gwinnett County police said Saturday. Reed, 32, was walking in traffic on a major roadway just north of the metro Atlanta city of Lilburn "for some unknown reason" when she was struck around 10:30 p.m., according to Gwinnett police spokesman Sgt. Rich Long. The driver of the vehicle, who was not charged in the incident, called 911 while the passenger administered CPR. Reed was pronounced dead at Gwinnett Medical Center. Blaque, best known for the 2000 hit "Bring it All to Me," was discovered by TLC's Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes. The group's self-titled album debuted in 1999. Lopes herself died in a 2002 car accident in Honduras. Fellow Blaque members Shamari Devoe and Brandi Williams took to Twitter on Saturday to remember Reed. "My world as I know it has forever changed. Until we meet again, may you find comfort in the arms of an angel. I love you Natina," Devoe tweeted. Reed also appeared in the 2000 movie "Bring it On" as Jenelope, a feisty cheerleader from East Compton. Her co-star, Gabrielle Union, also tweeted about her death Saturday, posting "#RIP #Sad #BringItOn." Reed is survived by her 10-year-old son, Tren. People we've lost in 2012: The lives they lived . | Natina Reed was walking "for some unknown reason" on a highway in metro Atlanta .
She was struck by a vehicle and pronounced dead at a local hospital .
Reed also appeared in the 2000 movie "Bring It On" |
86,814 | f661f9e6bd8125c5037b2df02b059b16119e91b3 | (CNN) -- Her Colorado home destroyed by a natural disaster, Trudy Dawson stops to think about fire and water. She is thinking about the wildfire that reduced her house near Colorado Springs to ashes this week and about the water that Hurricane Katrina pushed into her childhood home eight years ago. "I sit back and reflect on the difference between flood and fire," Dawson said. The 16,000-acre Black Forest Fire in Colorado claimed two lives and 500 structures. Comparing what she witnessed at her parents' home in New Orleans when it was flooded by Katrina and the fire that engulfed her own home, Dawson knows which is worse. The fire. With the flood, her family was able to salvage many items, even if they were waterlogged. The structure still stood. "It was total destruction this time," she said of her Colorado home. "Everything was ashes. We were told by the fire chief that the intensity of the heat made my three-story house collapse." Dawson, a psychotherapist, was at work on Monday when her daughter, who happened to be in town, alerted her to the fire. Dawson got to her house in time to see the plumes of smoke and to receive the reverse-911 call to evacuate. She gave herself 30 minutes to get out. She and her daughter started with the electronics -- the computers and tablets that hold important records. Then the physical documents in her possession. Time was ticking. They started grabbing clothes from the closets, not really paying attention to whether the items would actually be helpful. "Emotions override any logic at that point," she said. Dawson has two cats but could find only one. She had no way to transport the two horses she owns. She had to leave. The horses survived, but every day Dawson remembers another special item that disappeared in the fire. She thinks: If she had just spent a few more minutes at her home, she could have saved some more treasured possessions. But, she has heard, the two victims who perished had waited too long to evacuate, possibly trying to save those memorable items. Thinking back to Katrina, Dawson recalls the look in her parents' eyes when they returned to their flooded home to see their losses. There were six inches of sludge on the floor, and the family entered with boots and gloves, looking at what survived. They found her father's World War II medals. And a china doll that had fallen from its case to the ground but had not broken. The story of the doll, which they named Katrina, was even featured in the Wall Street Journal. The doll still holds water that seeped in during the time it was submerged. After this week's fire, though, there was nothing left of her house. Just a foundation and ashes. "We walked around the house in amazement and horrified at what we saw," she said. Beyond reflecting on the destructive powers of water and fire, however, Dawson is unwavering on her next step. She will rebuild. | Trudy Dawson lost her family home in Katrina, and her own home in a wildfire this week .
Fire is the worse of the two, Colorado woman says: "It was total destruction this time."
She lost her possessions but has no regrets about evacuating when she did . |
235,812 | bd41dea8619524bb9cffa2e12d3258b41edc3bc9 | James Rodriguez ran the show with a sensational two-goal display to fire Colombia into the last eight. Check out his heat map. It should have been an impossible act to follow but one very special young man came out to claim the grandest of all Brazil’s World Cup stages as his own. James Rodriguez, 22, Colombia’s £37.5million man, elevated himself above Messi, Muller et al as the leading scorer at Brazil 2014. He did so with two goals at the Maracana, this vaulting cathedral to a game which is a religion here. The first was one of the most wondrously explosive to be seen at this or any major tournament ever contested. The second finished a dazzling movement to take his tally here to five and lead his country into a quarter-final on Friday against their Brazilian hosts in Fortaleza. VIDEO Scroll down to watch Hilarious Colombian commentator's reaction to Rodriguez goal . The main man: James Rodriguez enhanced his burgeoning reputation with a match-winning performance . Seansational strike: Rodriguez broke the deadlock with a quite magnificent effort from outside the box . The perfect 10: Rodriguez fired Colombia to the quarter-finals, their best ever-performance in a World Cup . Double trouble: Ramirez fired Colombia into a two-goal lead just after the break with a tap-in . Lord of the dance: Rodriguez and Los Cafeteros celebrate the second in familiar fashion . On the run: Aged just 22, Rodriguez heads the race to the Golden Boot with five goals . Unbridled glee: Colombia are ecstatic after Rodriguez fired them into the last eight . Colombia: Ospina 8, Zuniga 7.5, Zapata 6.5, Yepes . 6, Armero 7, Cuadrado 7.5 (Guarin 81), Aguilar 7, Sanchez 6, Rodriguez . 8.5 (Ramos 85), Gutierrez 7 (Meija 68), Mainez 6.5. Subs not used: Vargas, Arias, Carbonero, Ibarbo, Balanta, Bacca, Quintero, Valdes, Mondragon. Coach: Jose Pekerman 7.5. Booked: Armero. Goals: Rodriguez 28, 50. Uruguay: Muslera 7, Caceres 6, Gimenez 6.5, Godin 6.5, A Pereira 6.5, M Pereira 7, Gonzalez 5.5 (Hernandez 67), Arevalo 5.5, Rodriguez 6, Cavani 7.5, Forlan 6 (Stuani 53). Subs not used: Munoz, Fucile, Gargano, Lodeiro, Perez, Ramirez, Coates, Silva. Coach: Oscar Tabarez 5.5. Booked: Jimenez. Referee: Bjorn Kuipers (Holland) 6.5. Attendance: 73,804. Ratings by JEFF POWELL at the Maracana . To . come upon such a talent is as thrilling in its way as the saving of . this World Cup by the inside of a post from the last kick of the penalty . shoot-out. This . should have been an anti-climax after Brazil’s escape from purgatory an . hour earlier. But at least the next Latin American double act to come . before the global audience did so in an atmosphere of enormous relief . and ecstatic celebration which makes carnival in Rio seem like a . vicarage tea party. Had . Brazil gone out, the neutral ramparts of the Maracana would have been a . morgue. The protesters would have been returning to the streets in . their tens of thousands to remind this government that billions had been . squandered on the football instead of the education, health and . transportation of the socially deprived majority. Victory . for Chile would have signalled the most catastrophic turn-off in . sporting history. Instead, mercifully, attention turned to who would be . next up for the hosts of the beautiful game. How delightful that it is . to be the boys from Bogota. Crowded out: The Uruguay wall does its job against a Rodriguez free-kick . Flying in: Abel Aguilar (left) fights for the ball with Uruguay's Maximiliano Pereira . Fearsome: 38-year-old Mario Yepes won his 101st cap in the win over Uruguay . Edged out: Edinson Cavani and his team-mates endured a frustrating evening . Outclassed: Oscar Tabarez saw his side convincingly beaten in Rio . James Rodriguez was a 100-1 outsider to win the Golden Boot behind more well-known players such as Lionel Messi and Neymar.But the Colombian midfielder struck twice in the last 16 clash with Uruguay and now has five goals in the tournament and leads the race to be the top goal scorer.Rodriguez is now as short as 2-1 to end the World Cup with the Golden Boot. Rodriguez, . who plays for Monaco, and his pals are adding a smiling freshness of . their own to the spectacle. They were the beauty, though we did not . have the beast. The new firm of Rodriguez, Martinez and Gutierrez were . prosecuting the case for Colombia but there was no Suarez to protest his . innocence. In . one way he was a loss. How can you have heroes without a villain? But . if it was inevitable that Suarez would succumb to his blood-lust under . pressure here, better sooner than later. The longer this tournament . goes on delivering great football, the quicker he’ll be forgotten. Erasure . was always going to be hastened by the departure of his colleagues. Colombia’s youngsters had been warned to expect a rough ride from men . seething with a misplaced sense of injustice. They braced themselves, . strengthened by the knowledge that the majority of neutrals were rooting . for them. Party time: Colombians celebrate wildly in the Maracana... and the night will be a long one in Bogota . Down and out: Diego Forlan and Cavani look miserable after conceding the second of the game . Soaking it up: Colombia players revel in victory after reaching the last eight . Mr Reliable: David Ospina made some solid saves whenever he was called on . Gutted: Cristian Rodriguez of Uruguay looks dejected after being defeated by Colombia . Suarez has darkened not only his own reputation but that . of his team and his country. There was precious little sympathy for . Uruguay as they came out of their bunker of loathing, still accusing . everyone they could think of from FIFA to the English-speaking media of . persecuting their nice Senor Suarez. The question was whether they would . translate all that self-delusion into a singular act of vengeance. Yet, . Uruguay were pretty much on their best behaviour. Even as the boos and . jeers rained down on them from on high they concentrated on trying to . play their football. By and large they weren’t very good at it, but . players who had felt obliged to join their nation’s rallying behind the . Liverpool Lip seemed to understand the need for some kind of redemption. Thus it was uneventful until Rodriguez struck in the 28th minute, from . almost as many yards. He chested the ball down with back to goal, then . swivelled to complete one devastatingly elegant movement with a volley . which thundered down and in off the bar. Hard fought: Rodriguez and Pablo Armero battle for a loose ball . We've done it: Cristian Zapata shares a moment with keeper Ospina after another late save . High ball: Rodriguez of Uruguay goes up for a header against Juan Camilo Zuniga and Zapata . 10 reasons why Sportsmail are backing Colombia's World Cup bid . Belief surged through his . team and five minutes into the second half they compiled a different . kind of beauty. A cleverly constructed move set up Pablo Armero for a . cross which Juan Guillermo Cuadrado headed back for Rodriguez to turn . home with conviction. Uruguay are following their flawed genius home . but not in quite the purdah we imagined. Colombia glide on to the next, . and so far greatest, challenge of their young lives. | James Rodriguez scores twice - the first a wonderful volley - to see off a Luis Suarez-less Uruguay .
Colombia reach the World Cup quarter-finals for the first time in their history thanks to Rodriguez's brace .
Rodriguez has scored in every round and heads the race to the Golden Boot with five goals . |
187,566 | 7ee57097d57dca4ba94994cb930ae34b9ae03ba8 | Dozens of asylum seekers have been put up in a hotel at a cost to the taxpayer of almost £2,500 a night after facing delays over their right to stay in the UK. The group has been given accommodation at a three-star hotel near Bolton while waiting for the Home Office to decide on whether they can remain in the country. Around 30 people were given taxpayer-funded beds at the Premier Inn in Horwich, which sits opposite the Macron Stadium, home of Bolton Wanderers. Scroll down for video . Around 30 asylum seekers have been given taxpayer-funded accommodation at the Premier Inn in Horwich, near Bolton after encountering delays at the Home Office . The hotel in Greater Manchester is more commonly used by football fans and business people. It comes after it emerged last week that around 150 asylum seekers are being put up at seaside hotels in Bournemouth. Some 130 asylum seekers were also revealed to be staying at the Grand Burstin Hotel in Folkestone, Kent, close to the Port of Dover. Serco, the company which has a £120m five-year contract to find housing for asylum seeks in the North West, confirmed it had made the booking at the 126-room hotel, where rooms costs up to £79 a night. It is understood the asylum seekers were transferred from their overcrowded accommodation in London at the weekend. The company said the problem arose due to the number of people in the UK looking for asylum, having fled from conflicts and problems around the world. But the move has been criticised, with one Labour MP saying the Border Agency 'really needed to pull its finger out'. Meanwhile, the Taxpayers' Alliance said the use of hotel rooms should be 'a last resort'. Last week, it emerged more than 88 asylum seekers were staying at the three-star Roundhouse Hotel, 10 minutes walk from Bournemouth beach . At least 67 were being accommodated at the three-star Heathlands Hotel in Bournemouth . The bill for the hotels will be picked up by Serco, which is paid a lump-sum to run the service on behalf of the Home Office. Dia Chakravarty's Political Director of the Taxpayers' Alliance said: 'The Government must keep asylum seekers safe and housed, but they can't allow the costs to taxpayers to spiral. 'Hotels are more expensive than almost any other method of housing, so it must only be a last resort.' Julie Hilling, Labour MP for Bolton West, said: 'The Border Agency really needs to pull its finger out and as soon as possible and process these people's applications for asylum. 'They should either agree they are refugees and help them start a new life, or if decided that they are not legitimate, send them back to their country of origin. Serco was awarded its five-year contract after Home Secretary Theresa May outsourced the asylum rehousing service to three separate companies . 'These are people who have had to flee the most incredible situations and all they want is a place of security and to lead a more normal life - you can't do that in a hotel. 'To live your life in a hotel is absolutely appalling. Housing asylum seekers in hotels isn't costing the borough anything. We all pay through our taxes, but we are not paying through our council tax to re-house these people.' Ron Clarke of charity Refugee Action said: 'The reason people are being moved into hotels is not due to an increase in numbers of asylum seekers. It is down to a backlog in Home Office decision making. 'The reality is that private providers have not found enough properties for people to be moved into. This is yet another example of the government's failure to support vulnerable people.' The Home Office provides accommodation and support for asylum seekers in the UK who are assessed as being 'destitute'. Serco - which has been warned against the use of hotels - was awarded the contract for the private housing of asylum seekers in 2012. A spokesman for the Home Office said it could not divulge the cost of the contract because of 'commercial sensitivity'. But, according to a response to a Freedom of Information request on the Government website, Serco has a total value contract of £121.2m, which runs from June 2012 to May 2017. At the end of 2012, the UK Border Agency (UKBA) replaced 22 separate contracts provided by 13 different suppliers with six contracts to cover the £620m system. These were divided between G4S, Serco and Clearel. The move, spearheaded by Home Secretary Theresa May, was known as the Commercial and Operational Managers Procuring Asylum Support Services (COMPASS) project and was supposed to save public money. But a National Audit Office report in January found that Serco was failing to meet targets on the standard of accommodation and waiting times. It said the company could be asked to pay back up to £4 million to the government for poor performance. Chris Flood, Serco's Contract Director for Compass, said: 'Serco operates the contract to house asylum seekers requiring accommodation in the North West of England. 'Given international events, there are currently more people looking to the UK for asylum, having fled from the many conflicts and problems around the world. 'We are now consulting urgently with Local Authorities and the Home Office to see how people can best be looked after in line with our contract and the Government's statutory duties. 'We fully understand both the challenges that local communities face and how vulnerable these people can be. Our priority is at all times to make sure that they are safe and secure and are treated with dignity and respect.' The Home Office said: 'The UK has a proud history of offering sanctuary to those who need it. 'We have made clear to our providers that the use of hotels is only ever acceptable as a short-term measure.' A spokesman for Premier Inn said: 'We do have a number of people staying with us on a very short-term basis through bookings made on behalf of the government. 'However we do not comment on the specific details regarding individual guests.' | Some 30 people given accommodation at three-star Premier Inn near Bolton .
Thought to have been transferred from overfilled accommodation in London .
Serco has £120m contract to find shelter for asylum seekers in North West .
Company has been warned by Home Office about paying for hotel rooms .
Comes after 300 asylum seekers were put up in hotels in Kent and Dorset . |
45,392 | 7fefd72241bbcf4743b1aebdfb71be0674105a18 | Gareth Bale admits he is still struggling to grasp Spanish, despite enjoying a stellar debut season at Real Madrid. The Wales forward moved to Spain in September but says boss Carlo Ancelotti's team-talks are translated to him by Luka Modric and coach Paul Clement. In an . interview with BT Sport's Clare Balding, the 24-year-old said: 'Yes, . everything is in Spanish. At the start I used to obviously speak to Paul . [Clement] after, he knew what the team talk was about before Carlo made . it so obviously I used to speak with him.' VIDEO Scroll down to see how Gareth Bale's face has changed over the years . Language barrier: Real Madrid star Gareth Bale admits he is finding it difficult to grasp Spanish since his move . Bale, . who moved to the Bernabeu for a world record fee of £86million from Spurs, . added: 'Now I’ve been here for eight or so months I’ve started to pick . up on what’s being said and if I don’t understand something I’ll go and . speak to Paul or maybe speak to Luka or one of the boys who speaks both . languages to as what they said. 'I . suppose in a period of time I’m going to get used to listening to and . hearing the language and hopefully not in the too far distant future . I’ll be able to understand it fully.' Helping hand: Real team-mate Luka Modric (left) and coach Paul Clement (right) translate Bale's team talks . The . midfielder has featured 42 times for Real this season, scoring 20 goals . and assisting 14 as they look to add a tenth European crown to . the Copa del Rey they won against eternal rivals Barcelona in . April. After hammering defending champions Bayern Munich 5-1 on aggregate in their semi-final, Real . will face city foes Atletico in the Champions League final on May . 24 in Lisbon. The opportunity to be part of the club's history to win their . much-fabled 'La Decima' is one that Bale relishes in the first . all-Madrid final. Winning mentality: Bale (left) and Modric (right) celebrate winning the Copa del Rey vs Barcelona in April . Running riot: Bale (left) starred in Real's 5-1 aggregate Champions League thrashing vs Bayern Munich . 'Yes, . it’s going to be very interesting. I think it’s the first time it’s . ever happened with one major city having two teams in the final but it’s . going to be a difficult game,' he added. 'We . know how well they’ve played this season and we know what we’re capable . of so I think as long as we execute our game plan on the day then . hopefully we do win and yes, I think we have a lot of confidence going . into the game and something we’re looking forward to. 'Obviously it would be a dream if we lift the trophy.' Gareth Bale was speaking on The Clare Balding Show, to see the full interview tune in to BT Sport 1 at 8pm on Thursday 15th May. | Bale says he is still struggling to learn Spanish .
Real team-mate Luka Modric and coach Paul Clement translate team talks .
Bale joined Real from Tottenham for world record £86million in September .
Real face city rivals Atletico in Champions League final on May 24 . |
240,279 | c30c2cb52d82c3309194e9aacd972b1961ce5194 | The family of a seven-month-old baby, who was tortured and killed by his mother's de facto husband, has called on Immigration Minister Scott Morrison to ensure the killer is deported when he is released next week. Ex-boxer Christopher Hoerler, 37, was sentenced to 14 years and four months - after prosecutors appealed the initial term of 11 years - for the manslaughter of Jordan Anderson-Smith in Wagga Wagga in 2000. At the time of Jordan's murder, Hoerler was living de facto with Jordan's mother, Louise Anderson and Jordan's two half-brothers, who were aged 2 and 4. Hoerler has been granted parole and is expected to be released next Thursday. Jordan would have turned 15 on July 24. A photo of baby Jordan Anderson, taken shortly before his death. Christopher Hoerler tortured the seven-month-old to death in Wagga Wagga on February 25, 2000. The Crown prosecutor found that Jordan died from multiple injuries, including bruises and abrasions to his face, a torn lip, liver and bowel damage and crushed toes - which were inflicted when Hoerler put his then-girlfriend's son's toes in a clamp. Christopher Hoerler will be released from prison on August 14 for the brutal murder of baby Jordan. Jordan's family are petitioning, to ensure Hoerler will be deported upon his release. Baby Jordan died following a party at which his mother and her live-in boyfriend were drinking and smoking cannabis at their home in Wagga Wagga, NSW on February 25, 2000. Hoerler was tried for murder but pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter 20 months after Jordan was killed. Jordan choked on his own vomit after being beaten and tortured by Hoerler, with injuries including a lacerated liver, a torn lip, facial abrasions and broken ribs. His toes had also been crushed by a clamp. The forensic pathologist who conducted the post mortem found that the baby's 'palate injury was caused by a blow to the jaw, and the abdominal injury by a non-penetrating blow or blows of considerable force'. Jordan's injuries were so extensive that they took four days to document. Jordan's father, Cecil Smith, had contacted the Department of Community Services when he believed Hoerler was showering with Jordan. While Hoerler had his visa cancelled after he was convicted, and the parole board says he will be released into the custody of Immigration officials to be deported to Papua New Guinea, the family is not convinced and want assurances from the immigration minister. Louise Anderson (right) pictured leaving court in 2003 after giving evidence at her ex-boyfriend, Christopher Hoerler's trial. Hoerler was found guilty of torturing and Murdering Ms Anderson's seven-month-old son, Jordan. He will be released on August 14. The family has launched an online petition, calling on Mr Morrison to ensure Hoerler is deported when he is released on August 14. His sentence was due to expire in February 2016. 'The Smith family are extremely disappointed in the decision the parole board has made to release this convicted child killer back into the community' a statement on the petition website said. In a statement, the State Parole Authority says in granting parole, it considered Hoerler's good prison performance and completion of programs addressing his offending behaviour. Cecil Smith (left), the father of the late baby Jordan, pictured leaving court in 2003 with his brother, Darcy Smith (right), who is acting as the family's spokesman. Darcy Smith is appealing to the Minister for Immigration, Scott Morrison to ensure Jordan's murderer, Christopher Hoerler, is deported when he is released from prison next week on August 14, 2014. Jordan's mother, Louise Anderson, is pictured leaving her baby's murder trial in 2003. Christopher Hoerler was found guilty of brutally murdering seven-month-old, Jordan Anderson-Smith. Hoerler was Mrs Anderson's live-in boyfriend at the time of the murder. Jordan's uncle, Darcy Smith has become the family's spokesman and is appealing to the public to support the petition and for the minister to 'step up to the plate' and ensure Hoerler is ousted. Mr Smith believes Hoerler may appeal the deportation condition of his release because he had children in Australia and wanted to be a father to them, Fairfax newspapers say. 'He is trying to pull a rabbit out of the hat to stay in the country,' Mr Smith said. 'I hope the minister is smart enough to see through that.' Previously, Mr Smith has spoken of the family's intense and unrelenting grief. 'We are the ones living with the life sentence. We have to live without Jordan every day.' They explained that their mother, Jordan's paternal grandmother, visits Jordan's grave every Sunday. The Smith family have previously explained that Hoerler had moved into the home only three weeks before he murdered Jordan. Hoerler met Ms Anderson on New Year's Eve in 1999, but by less than two months later, on February 25, 2000, he killed her son. The baby's father had attended school with Hoeler and once considered him a friend. Two parole applications have been rejected since July 2012, when his 10 year 9 month non-parole period expired. | Christopher Hoerler was sentenced to 14 years & 4 months in jail in 2000 .
Guilty of killing seven-month-old Jordan, son of his live-in girlfriend .
Hoerler has been granted parole and will be released on August 14 .
Family launch petition to ensure killer is deported to Papua New Guinea .
Hoerler's visa was cancelled after he was convicted for the brutal murder .
Fears Hoerler will appeal to stay in Australia with his children . |
267,518 | e674ab924f83a945b4ff9877aefe59f3b82d1409 | (CNN)After the Paris attacks by al Qaeda-aligned Islamic terrorists, much of the world -- even some Muslim world leaders -- seems united in the defense of free speech and freedom of religion. And at the Golden Globes recently, Hollywood declared its aversion to attacks on liberty, mocking North Korea's Kim Jong Un for trying to shut down the movie "The Interview" and announcing its united front with France against terrorism. "Je suis Charlie," said Jared Leto. "Together we will stand united against anyone who would oppress free speech," said Hollywood Foreign Press Association president Theo Kingma. George Clooney talked about the millions who marched for unity in Paris: "They marched in support of the idea that we will not walk in fear. We won't do it." The tech world, too, has pledged its support of life and liberty in the wake of the Sony hack and Paris attacks. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg called for a rejection of "extremists trying to silence the voices and opinions of everyone else around the world." Google featured a black ribbon on its homepage and Apple put a banner with the words "Je Suis Charlie" on its French website. This is all very fine and good, of course. The horrific slayings of French police officers, French cartoonists and four Jews at a grocery store should be the kind of shock to the system that brings even the most disparate of groups together, and maybe even jolts them out of the false sense of security that al Qaeda's "leadership ranks have been decimated" or that Islamic extremism can be thwarted by efforts at multiculturalism. Many are united in horror, but one only needs to look back at some recent examples of other horrifying atrocities to know that mere symbolism and solidarity -- what I call the weapons of "soft outrage" -- will not be enough to stamp out terrorism in Europe or anywhere else. It's been eight months since Boko Haram militants kidnapped more than 200 teenage girls in Chibok, Nigeria, and they are still missing, despite U.S. first lady Michelle Obama's best efforts at soft outrage, joining a Twitter campaign to #BringBackOurGirls. Even though it went viral, and everyone from Hillary Clinton to British Prime Minister David Cameron chimed in, hashtag activism hasn't proven very effective in the face of violent Islamic extremism. Last week reports that a shudder-inducing 2,000 people were killed in Nigeria once again shocked Western audiences, who then learned that most of the victims were reportedly children, women and the elderly. The BBC estimates that Boko Haram now controls 70% of Nigeria's Borno state. In another corner of Africa, Darfur remains a ghastly site of untold violence and genocide that has spanned 10 years, wiped out hundreds of thousands and displaced millions. Last October there was reportedly a mass rape in the village of Tabit, Sudan, as tribal fighting rages on. But this weekend the Golden Globes honored Clooney with a lifetime achievement award, for his work in film but also for raising awareness of Darfur's plight. What has all that awareness accomplished? Not much, as the Guardian recently learned. It asked people who have lived and worked in the region "What happened to Darfur after George Clooney came to town?" As one resident put it: . "Clooney might be doing something fantastic -- tracking the movements of Sudanese troops and militias -- but for me as a person living in Darfur, in touch with what is happening on daily basis, I don't see that it has halted, or even reduced, the genocide. The killing, displacement, sexual assaults and rape never stopped." While awareness and solidarity aren't unimportant, "soft outrage" is useless in stopping terrorism and genocide. These things often require force, the kind of intervention that tends to make soft outragers uncomfortable. If Clooney, for example, truly cares about the people of Darfur (and I'm certain that he does), I would hope he accepts that "awareness" alone will not end the genocide there -- only force will. Hashtag diplomacy isn't an actual solution to a terrifying, real problem. But military intervention to "bring back our girls" or stop the horrific atrocities in Nigeria could well be. Europe must accept that unity marches and inclusion rhetoric won't protect freedom of speech or religion against extremists determined to attack them. France has recommitted to attacking ISIS in Iraq along with the U.S., but will it join in strikes against ISIS in Syria, or al Qaeda terrorists in the Arabian Peninsula and elsewhere? Silicon Valley must accept that Facebook posts and website banners won't prevent terrorists -- whether ISIS or actors like Kim Jong Un -- from attacking Western values and Western infrastructure. Will Facebook, Google and Apple support the necessary investments in our national defense that will help better protect our values and our companies? Maybe you don't believe that the United States should involve itself politically or militarily in these conflicts around the world. That's a reasonable position, even if I disagree with it. But let's not kid ourselves into thinking our soft outrage is either effective or noble. It's lovely to see all these folks "stand with France." But standing isn't doing, and the hard truth is that symbolism is no match for the fanatics who want us exterminated. Are they ready to back up their rhetoric with action? | S.E. Cupp: At Golden Globes and beyond, Hollywood denounces terrorism, genocide .
She says Michelle Obama, Hillary Clinton think hashtag activism helps, but it does nothing .
Cupp: Left-leaners should skip "soft outrage" -- force is more likely to work . |
6,780 | 1339980b7ab3bf19aa7da0be38940e9d368a2acd | (CNN) -- Tania Julin remembers the deep gut pain she felt when she found out nearly three years ago that Chiquita Brands International had paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to a Marxist rebel group in Colombia that had abducted and killed her missionary husband. The pain remains, but Julin felt some relief last week when a federal judge rejected Chiquita's motion to dismiss a damage suit she and four other widows brought against the Ohio-based company. "My stomach still turns today at the thought of fellow Americans paying terrorists," Julin said. "It just makes my stomach sick." Chiquita, which has admitted making payments to the rebels and was fined $25 million by the U.S. Justice Department, says it was victimized. "Chiquita acquiesced to extortion payments to protect the lives of its employees," company spokesman Ed Loyd said. To some analysts, the issue highlights the difficulties of conducting business in war-torn areas. Marxist guerrillas who call themselves the Armed Revolutionary Forces of Colombia, commonly known as FARC, declared war on the government in 1964. Chiquita had more than 200 banana farms in Colombia before selling them in 2004. "It's really tough doing business in an environment that is lawless and the state is largely absent," said Bruce Bagley, professor of international studies at the University of Miami. For Julin, though, the issue is deeply personal. She had been married to Mark Rich for 3½ years when FARC rebels burst into their home in Pucuro, Panama, across the border from Colombia, on January 31, 1993. The rebels abducted Rich while his wife and two daughters -- ages 11 months and 2½ years -- watched in horror. The FARC abducted two other members of the New Tribes Mission around the same time and demanded a $5 million ransom for the three men about a week later. One year later, the rebels abducted two other missionaries belonging to the same Christian group. A $3 million ransom was demanded for their release. No ransom was paid for any of them. The families did not know anything about their loved ones for years. It was a tough time for Julin's daughters. "They went through all of their growing-up years that they can remember asking where their daddy was and if he could come home for their birthdays," Julin said. She and the wives of the other men abducted in 1993 found out the truth in December 2000, when New Tribes Mission officials told them the FARC had killed the three captives in 1996. The Colombian government confirmed the deaths in February 2007. The two men who were abducted in 1994 were killed during a firefight between the FARC and the Colombian military in June 1995. Evidence and eyewitness reports obtained by the Colombian National Prosecutor's Office and the U.S. Justice Department confirmed that the FARC executed the missionaries. The U.S. State Department designated the FARC a foreign terrorist organization on October 8, 1997. The five widows found out another hurtful truth in March 2007, when Chiquita pleaded guilty to violating U.S. antiterrorism laws by providing payments to another Colombian terrorist organization, the paramilitary right-wing United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia, known as the AUC. Chiquita made more than 100 payments to the AUC totaling at least $1.7 million, the Justice Department said. As part of those proceedings, Chiquita acknowledged that it had also made payments to the FARC from 1989 to at least 1997. That period included the span during which the five missionaries were abducted and killed. That knowledge still pains Julin. "I just can hardly stand to think about it too much," she said. "They're like a household name. You feel like you can trust them. "It's just horrible to think about." Chiquita's Loyd said the company's sole motivation was to protect the lives of its employees. He cited a 1995 incident in which a bus transporting Chiquita employees was attacked and 25 people aboard it died. In total, he said, more than 50 Chiquita employees were killed in Colombia in the 1990s. "We're sympathetic to the families," he said, "but Chiquita was being extorted by right-wing groups and left-wing groups. There was a very real fear, a very real threat to U.S. citizens." That argument does not wash with Gary M. Osen, an attorney for the families. "There's no law that says you have to operate in areas where you have to pay terrorists," Osen said. "That's something they chose to do." Julin, a 40-year-old kindergarten teacher at a church school near Orlando, Florida, filed suit in March 2008. Civil provisions of the U.S. Anti-Terrorism Act of 1991 allow American citizens, their heirs and their estates to be paid compensation for injuries suffered as a result of international terrorism. The families "allege that Chiquita, knowing that FARC was a terrorist organization, intentionally agreed to provide money, weapons and services to it as part of a common scheme to subvert local trade unions, protect Chiquita's farms and shipments, harm Chiquita's competitors, [and] strengthen FARC's military capabilities, and that [the families] were injured by overt acts done in furtherance of the common scheme," U.S. District Judge Kenneth A. Marra wrote in his 34-page ruling allowing the suit to go forward. Court records show that Chiquita initially made monthly cash payments to the FARC ranging from $20,000 to $100,000. Eventually, Chiquita's payments were fixed to a percentage of the company's gross revenues from its Colombia banana business. Ultimately, up to 10 percent of those revenues were diverted to the FARC. The company also supplied weapons, ammunition and other supplies to the rebels, the victims' families allege. The families also said "Chiquita went to great lengths to hide its relationship with FARC," Marra noted in the February 4 ruling. "The payments were often delivered by a former American military pilot known as 'Kaiser,' who held a management position with Chiquita in Colombia," the judge said the families allege. According to the families, Marra said, Chiquita placed false names and nonexistent employees on its payroll, providing the money on local paydays to regional FARC commanders. The company also helped the FARC create front organizations to which Chiquita could channel money, the victims' families said. In addition, the judge said, the families accuse Chiquita of working with FARC-controlled labor unions as another way to channel payments to the guerrillas. Chiquita spokesman Loyd and one of the company's attorneys, Jonathan M. Sperling, declined to discuss Friday whether the families' allegations noted by Marra are factual. The judge's ruling means the case can go to the discovery phase, in which each party can obtain documents and evidence from the other side. "We needed to pass this hurdle in order to go forward," said Steven M. Steingard, another attorney for the families. Loyd expressed confidence that the company will be exonerated. "It makes no sense to make Chiquita or Chiquita employees liable for the horrible crimes that those groups committed," Loyd said. Said Osen, the attorney for the other side, "Chiquita is intent on defending what we consider the indefensible." No amount for monetary damages has been asked, Osen and Steingard said. Julin, who has remarried, says she has a reason beyond dollars and cents. "All those years of not knowing if he was alive or dead," she said. "There never has been any closure." | Judge dismisses company's attempt to dismiss widows' damage suit .
Chiquita admitted making payments to Colombian rebels .
"They're like a household name. ... It's just horrible to think about," widow says . |
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