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232,922 | b991641625d3332562dc4acf87246a6453c5e14e | The 49-year-old man who was shot dead by police after firing about 200 rounds in downtown Austin and attempted to burn the Mexican Consulate was a 'homegrown, American extremist'. Larry McQuilliams was a 'terrorist' who harbored extremist right-wing views, and appeared to be planning a broader attack against churches and government facilities, Austin police have said. Convicted bank robber McQuilliams went on a rampage in Austin in the early hours of Friday, carrying multiple weapons and hundreds of rounds of ammunition. Scroll down for video . 'Terrorist': Larry McQuilliams, 49, was shot dead by police after firing about 200 rounds and attempting arson on the Mexican Consulate in downtown Austin around 2.30am Friday . McQuilliams, started his attack on the Mexican Consulate building and a federal courthouse shortly after 2.20am. After firing about 200 rounds, he was killed by a single shot to the chest from a police officer as he shot at police headquarters. Written in marker on his chest were the words, 'Let me die,' Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo said. When police searched his rented van they found books associated with a right-wing Christian sect known as the Phineas Priesthood, which holds extremist, anti-Semitic and racist views. Police found a copy of 'Vigilantes of Christendom,' a book describes the Phineas Priesthood as Christian guerrillas who avenge Judeo-Christian traitors. When police searched McQuilliams van they found evidence that he was associated with the Phineas Priesthood, a right-wing Christian sect which holds extremist, anti-Semitic and racist views . Inside the book was a handwritten note that referred to McQuilliams as a 'priest in the fight against anti-God people,' Acevedo said. Officers who searched his home found a map of 34 downtown buildings that likely were potential targets of further attacks, including two churches. Investigators said McQuilliams left no note describing a specific motive or why he picked his targets. Christopher Combs, FBI special agent in charge of the San Antonio division, which includes Austin, also noted that some people who knew McQuilliams told investigators he'd been upset that he couldn't find a job and believed immigrants were given more services than he was. City and federal investigators say they are confident McQuilliams acted alone. Further attacks: When Austin police searched his home, they found a map of 34 buildings in downtown Austin that likely were potential targets of further attacks, including two churches . 'No one helped him. There's not a larger conspiracy at all,' said Combs. 'The one mistake he made was he came to the Austin police station and we were able to take him out pretty quickly,' Acevedo said, describing McQuilliams as a 'homegrown, American extremist' and 'terrorist.' McQuilliams had rented a van that was parked outside the police station and was loaded with ammunition and propone fuel canisters typically used for camping. McQuilliams tried to use fireworks with the canisters to make crude but ineffective bombs and used some at the Mexican Consulate, causing a fire that was quickly extinguished. McQuilliams had served about seven years in federal prison for bank robbery and was released in 2000. As a convicted felon, he could not legally possess the firearms he used in his attack. Acevedo said investigators are still trying to determine how he got them. | Larry McQuilliams tried to burn down Mexican Consulate in Austin, Texas .
He also fired about 200 rounds at downtown buildings Friday morning .
McQuilliams, 49, had a map of 34 'potential targets' in his home .
He was a 'homegrown American extremist' and 'terrorist,' police say .
He was associated with racist and anti-Semitic right wing Christians . |
6,080 | 113bc1c570498f5723bf595f8980c30e95711c47 | Beach bums beware: 10% of water samples collected from U.S. beaches failed to meet the government benchmark for swimmer safety, according to a new report. It's an icky thought, especially considering the popularity of several of the failing beaches included in the Natural Resources Defense Council's 24th annual "Testing the Waters" report. Beach choices matter: the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates up to 3.5 million people become ill from poor water treatment each year, largely because of contact with "raw sewage from sanitary overflows." "Sewage and contaminated runoff in the water should never ruin a family beach trip," said NRDC senior attorney Jon Devine in a statement. "But no matter where you live, urban slobber and other pollution can seriously compromise the water quality at your favorite beach and make your family sick." So which beaches are "superstars" and which are "repeat offenders"? Here's the good, the bad and the ugly. The good . At 4%, the eastern coastline comprised of beaches in Delaware, Maryland and Virginia boasts the lowest failure rate of beach water samples in the country. All samples were tested against the new EPA water quality standard, called the "Beach Action Value." For individual states, Delaware, New Jersey and New Hampshire tied for the top marks, each with a 3% failure rate. Additionally, the NRDC selected 35 beaches as "superstars" -- meaning popular spots that consistently meet water quality safety thresholds. These locations spanned 14 states and showed at least a 98% water safety record over five years: . -- Alabama: Gulf Shores Public Beach in Baldwin County, Gulf State Park Pavilion in Baldwin County, Dauphin Island Public Beach. -- California: Newport Beach in Orange County (one of three monitored sections). -- Delaware: Dewey Beach-Swedes in Sussex County. -- Florida: Bowman's Beach in Lee County, Coquina Beach South in Manatee County, Fort De Soto North Beach in Pinellas County. -- Georgia: Tybee Island North in Chatham County. -- Hawaii: Hapuna Beach State Recreation Area on the Big Island, Po'ipu Beach Park on Kauai, Wailea Beach Park on Maui. -- Massachusetts: Singing Beach in Essex County. -- Maryland: Point Lookout State Park in St Mary's County, Assateague State Park in Worcester County. -- North Carolina: Ocean Pier at Main Street and Sunset Boulevard in Brunswick County, Beach at Cape Hatteras Lighthouse in Dare County, Ocean Pier at Salisbury Street at Wrightsville Beach in New Hanover County, Ocean Pier at Ocean Boulevard and Crews Avenue in Topsail Beach in Pender County. -- New Hampshire: Hampton Beach State Park in Rockingham County, Wallis Sands Beach at Wallis Road in Rockingham County, Wallis Sands State Park in Rockingham County. -- New Jersey: Washington (Margate) in Atlantic County, 40th Street (Avalon) in Cape May County, 40th Street (Sea Isle City) in Cape May County, Stone Harbor at 96th Street in Cape May County, Upper Township at Webster Road in Cape May County, Wildwood Crest at Orchid in Cape May County, Broadway (Point Pleasant Beach) in Ocean County . -- New York: Long Beach City in Nassau County. -- Virginia: Virginia Beach at 28th Street in Virginia Beach County, Virginia Beach at 45th Street in Virginia Beach County, Back Bay Beach in Virginia Beach County, Virginia Beach -- Little Island Beach North in Virginia Beach County. -- Washington: Westhaven State Park, South Jetty in Grays Harbor. The bad . The new "Beach Action Value" resulted in a significant increase in failure rates in 2013, especially in certain states. The Great Lakes region had the highest rate of beach water impurities, with 13% of all samples failing to pass safety standards. The region was also home to the worst individual state offender, Ohio, which posted a 35% failure rate. Next closest states were Alaska and Mississippi, with 24% and 21% failure, respectively. Under the old, less-stringent standard, 7% to 8% of beaches failed to meet water quality standards. This year, the number jumped to 10%. The report detailed the disastrous effects swimming in infected waters could have. "Beach water pollution nationwide causes a range of waterborne illnesses in swimmers including stomach flu, skin rashes, pinkeye, ear, nose and throat problems, dysentery, hepatitis ... and other serious health problems," it said. "For senior citizens, small children and people with weak immune systems, the results can even be fatal." The ugly . Some beaches just don't get the hint. Over the past five years of analyzing over 3,500 beach water samples, the NRDC has identified 17 U.S. beaches that have "consistent contamination problems." To qualify for this "repeat offender" list, a beach has failed to meet public standards for water quality more than 25% of the time since 2009 -- a dubious distinction. Here they are: . -- California: Malibu Pier, 50 yards east of the pier, in Los Angeles County . -- Indiana: Jeorse Park Beach in Lake County (both monitored sections): Lake Jeorse Park Beach I, Lake Jeorse Park Beach II. -- Massachusetts: Cockle Cove Creek in Barnstable County. -- Maine: Goodies Beach in Knox County. -- New Jersey: Beachwood Beach in Ocean County. -- New York: Main Street Beach in Chautauqua County, Wright Park -- East in Chautauqua County, Ontario Beach in Monroe County. -- Ohio: Lakeshore Park in Ashtabula County, Arcadia Beach in Cuyahoga County, Euclid State Park in Cuyahoga County, Noble Beach in Cuyahoga County, Sims Beach in Cuyahoga County, Villa Angela State Park in Cuyahoga County, Edson Creek in Erie County. -- Wisconsin: South Shore Beach in Milwaukee County. What you can do . Strictly swimming in "superstar" beaches would be a plus, but the NRDC has other recommendations on how to remain safe in troubled waters. Here are two suggestions: . -- "Stay away from beaches with visible discharge pipes and avoid swimming at urban beaches after a heavy rainfall." -- "A good rule of thumb is to avoid swimming at the beach for at least 24 hours after it rains and 72 hours after heavy rains." For the full list of tested waters, policy recommendations to improve quality and a ZIP code searchable map, go to http://www.nrdc.org/beaches. | Report: 10% of water samples from U.S. beaches fail standards for swimmer safety .
Thirty-five beaches rated as "superstars" for water quality .
Seventeen beaches labeled as "repeat offenders" for continuous violations . |
4,801 | 0dc446eaf95acf48dd635ee1a64114931a1c2c64 | The historic six-month agreement over Tehran's nuclear program may begin a new era of relations with Iran, but it will be a long road back for the country's most vital sector, oil. Iran produces about two and half million barrels a day -- far off its 4-million-barrel-per-day peak a decade ago. Output is hovering at a level last seen at the end of Iran's war with Iraq. With North Sea Brent crude averaging over $100 a barrel for a record three years running, the sanctions on energy alone are costing Tehran about $50 billion in lost annual revenue. Despite the deal breakthrough, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said most of the sanctions will stick as the world gauges the intentions of this relatively new administration in Tehran. "During the six month phase, the oil sanctions that will remain in place will continue to cause over $25 billion in lost revenues to Iran or over $4 billion a month," he said. The message is clear: the pressure remains, but if all goes well, in a half year's time Iran can expect more in return for transparency. The last few years have been filled with uncertainty. Tensions around the Strait of Hormuz with the on-and-off threats by the previous government of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to block oil shipments in the Gulf have kept what strategists call a 10-15% risk premium on global energy prices. Iran sits on about 9% of the world's proven oil reserves, claiming a few years back that it has nearly 150 billion barrels and the world's largest gas field. But its top four customers --China, India, Japan and South Korea -- have all had to cut back their energy imports by a third or more in the past few years due to U.S. and European pressure. With every year that has passed, the screws have been tightened by Washington and the countries of the European Union. It was not only sanctions against oil, but also blocking Iran's ability to secure shipping insurance and to trade in U.S. dollars and euros. That economic isolation, many Middle East strategists I have spoken with suggest, is what brought Iran's new government to the negotiating table. In 2012, the Iranian rial plunged by up to 80%. Basic staples of life, poultry and bread skyrocketed in price and the economy went through a period of hyper-inflation. With rising import prices due to a plummeting currency, industrial Iran is no longer able to compete. There are reports that the state manufacturing sector had laid off up to 800,000 workers in 2012 and those who have kept their jobs saw their wages eroded by skyrocketing prices. Oil executives with experience in the country say this initial agreement would help lift a cloud of uncertainty over the oil market, but that President Hassan Rouhani and his cabinet have to establish much better contract terms if this honeymoon period lifts sanctions. The blunt-speaking Chief Executive of French energy group Total, Christophe de Margerie, told me at an energy conference in Abu Dhabi this month that Iran needs to try and create a better climate for investment if this weekend's breakthrough is sustained. "I can tell you with the experience we have from Iran it doesn't always bring as we say in French partie de plaisir ... a win-win." Oil giant Saudi Arabia has expressed doubts about signing a deal with Tehran, which will introduce more challenges within OPEC. Iraq plans to double production by 2020 to six million barrels a day and with Iran wanting to rebuild exports, the Kingdom may have trim its own production to defend prices. It is still early days, but this country of nearly 80 million people has been described as potentially being the Germany of the Middle East with plenty of natural resources -- that is, if it can emerge from years of economic isolation. | Oil sanctions on Iran remain in place for the next six months despite historic deal .
Iran produces about two and half million barrels a day - far lower than a decade ago .
Sanctions on energy alone are costing Tehran about $50 billion in lost annual revenue .
Iran sits on about 9% of the world's proven oil reserves and claims the largest gas field . |
75,657 | d6902cb5ed931ad546ac028ce7c8fa73383d41ee | Former Australian politician Pauline Hanson . Another Australian public figure has come forward to say that she is 'offended' by Muslim headscarves, just days after Prime Minister Tony Abbott publicly branded the burqa as 'confronting'. Pauline Hanson - who once made headlines when she warned that Australia was in danger of becoming 'swamped by Asians' - has spoken out in support of the burqa ban, saying that 'people wearing full face coverings, including women, are known to have hidden bombs underneath'. 'I'm offended by the burqa, and opposed to even the niqab,' she declared in an opinion piece published by The Courier Mail on Saturday. This follows Prime Minister Tony Abbott's announcement that he found the burqa 'confronting' on Wednesday while Palmer United Party Senator Jacqui Lambie continues to call for burqas to be banned. Ms Hanson showed her support for Ms Lambie, saying that she speaks for many Australians. The former leader of the One Nation Party agrees that no one should wear headscarves in parliament, banks or public place for security reasons and says she feels bad for the women who she believes are obligated to wear such garments. Ms Hanson says it is her understanding that every terrorist attack has been by Muslims and states wearing the headscarves create fear and is 'not the Australian way of life'. The former politician says Muslim women should abide by the Australian law and further urged the government to take a stance. Scroll down for video . Pauline Hanson says she is offended and opposed to Muslim headscarves such as the the niqab (pictured) Ms Hanson supports the calls to ban the burqa (pictured), saying that 'people wearing full face coverings, including women, are known to have hidden bombs underneath' Her controversial views are well in line with Ms Lambie's, after the outspoken senator clashed on live TV with a Muslim woman as she continued to call for burqas to be banned. In a spirited debate on the Seven's Sunrise program, Palmer United Party Senator Ms Lambie said the debate was a 'national security issue' because people needed to be identifiable. But Muslim Women's Association executive officer Maha Abdo, who wears a hijab, laughed off her comments, insisting someone wearing a burqa is not a threat. Ms Abdo insisted Muslim women were allowed to lift their veil to show their faces to authorities. Palmer United Party Senator Jacqui Lambie (left) in a heated debate about the burqa ban with Muslim Women's Association executive officer Maha Abdo (right) on Seven's Sunrise program . Prime Minister Tony Abbott says he finds the burqa 'confronting' and wishes 'it was not worn' The senator also praised Prime Minister Tony Abbott for his 'courage' and 'strength' in publicly branding the burqa 'confronting' on Wednesday. 'I've said before that I find it a fairly confronting form of attire, and frankly I wish it was not worn,' Mr Abbott told reporters. 'But we are a free country and a free society and it's not the business of government to tell people what they should and should not wear.' For a brief moment on Thursday, there was even a plan to keep Muslim visitors who wanted to watch proceedings at Parliament House in a glass enclosure. The plan was quashed late last night by Prime Minister Tony Abbott, following community uproar and backlash from members of his own party. Last month, Ms Lambie re-posted a meme of a woman wearing a burqa holding a gun which was captioned: 'For security reasons it is time to ban the burqa'. Ms Hanson became the centre of a racist storm following a maiden speech to the House of Representatives in 1996 where she voiced her opposition to immigration and multiculturalism, while also claiming that Australia was 'in danger of becoming swamped by Asians'. | The former leader of the One Nation Party says Muslim headscarves create fear .
Pauline Hanson shows her support for Palmer United Party Senator Jacqui Lambie who continues to call for burqas to be banned .
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Tony Abbott announced that he found the burqa 'confronting'
On Thursday, a plan was put forward to keep Muslim visitors who wanted to watch proceedings at Parliament House in a glass enclosure .
It was later quashed by Mr Abbott following community uproar and backlash from members of his own party .
Ms Hanson is known for her opposition to multiculturalism and immigration, once warning Australia was becoming 'swamped with Asians' |
17,088 | 306525220ca98a0164c44bc63965be38ecfafb86 | By . Ap Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 14:57 EST, 16 September 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 07:52 EST, 17 September 2013 . In a blistering warning to congressional Republicans, President Obama said Monday it would be the 'height of irresponsibility' for lawmakers to cause a new economic crisis just five years after the near-collapse of the nation's financial system. 'I cannot remember a time when one faction of one party promises economic chaos if it can't get 100 percent of what it wants,' Obama said. Some of those Republicans say they will vote to extend current spending levels or to increase the nation's debt ceiling only if Obama delays putting in place his health care law, a condition Obama has rejected. Others say scheduled spending cuts should stay in place to reduce the deficit, while Obama wants the 'sequestration' cuts reworked. Anniversary: Barack Obama spoke Monday at an event pegged to the fifth anniversary of the collapse of Lehmann Bros. investment bank, which marked the start of a worldwide economic downturn . The president spoke at a White House event pegged to the fifth anniversary of the bankruptcy of the Lehman Brothers investment bank, which marked the beginning of a global financial crisis. The White House used the anniversary to lay out the president's markers for upcoming fiscal fights with Congress over funding the government and raising the nation's debt limit. Obama's remarks came as local and federal authorities dealt with the deadly shootings at the Washington Navy Yard, just a few miles from the White House. At least 12 people were killed, authorities said. No drama: Obama asked congress to 'pass a budget without drama' after warning Republicans not to interfere with his continued economic recovery efforts . Obama delayed his remarks to allow Washington's mayor and police chief to update the public on the situation. He pledged to make sure 'whoever carried out this cowardly act is held responsible.' In the remarks, the president reiterated his refusal to negotiate with Republicans over the debt ceiling. And he called on Congress to 'pass a budget without drama.' The president was flanked by Americans the White House says have benefited from his administration's economic and banking policies. Those policies, he said, have laid a 'new foundation' for economic growth, though he acknowledged that the recovery is not being felt by many middle class people. The White House's National Economic Council on Sunday issued a report detailing policies that it says have helped put the economy on a path toward growth. Those steps range from the unpopular Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP, that shored up the financial industry and bailed out auto giants General Motors and Chrysler, to an $800 billion stimulus bill to sweeping new bank regulations. Gene Sperling, a top Obama adviser and director of the National Economic Council, said Obama's policies 'have performed better than virtually anyone at the time predicted.' But the public is not convinced that the economy is on the mend. Only one-third say the economic system is more secure now than in 2008, and 52 percent say they disapprove of Obama's handling of the economy, according to a Pew Research Center poll. There is still plenty of pain to justify their pessimism. 'Height of irresponsibility': Obama blasted Republicans like Minority Leader Mitch McConnel and House Speaker John Boehner for their stances he said amount to threatening economic chaos . Despite job growth, the unemployment rate remains high at 7.3 percent. Though the rate has fallen, one of the reasons is because some people have dropped out of the labor force and no longer are counted as job seekers. The share of unemployed workers who have been unemployed for more than six months is more than double what it was in 2007 before the recession began. And the income gap between the very rich and the rest of the population is the biggest since 1928. What's more, some banks that received government aid because they were deemed 'too big to fail' are now bigger than they were in 2008, although they are smaller as a share of the economy than the largest banks in other big economies. Three years after Obama signed a sweeping overhaul of lending and high-finance rules, execution of that law is behind schedule. Anxious to make his case with the public, Obama intends to draw attention to signs of progress with daily events this week, including a speech Wednesday to the Business Roundtable, an association of CEOs from the top U.S. companies, and a trip Friday to Kansas City to visit a Ford plant, where he will promote the strength of the auto industry. Obama wants to reverse automatic spending cuts that kicked in in March, but at the same time he has said he will not negotiate with Republicans over the nation's debt ceiling. His remarks have hinted at a potential constitutional confrontation with Republicans. Section 4 of the 14th Amendment says that 'the validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned.' In addition to seeking a delay in Obama's health care law, some Republicans say the scheduled spending cuts should stay in place to reduce the deficit. 'We need to start by keeping the cuts we've already agreed to,' Sen. Mitch McConnell said Sunday. 'It's time to get serious about the challenges we face and reposition America for growth and prosperity in the 21st century.' | The president spoke at an event pegged to the five-year anniversary of the fall of Lehman Brothers .
Obama called on congress to 'pass a budget without drama' |
213,228 | a02411d6c1f0ef8d0ec4af907ad68c79cf2a521e | (CNN) -- Flames danced hundreds of feet in the east Texas sky hours after a fire broke out at a natural gas and chemical facility. There were no injuries reported at the fire in Mont Belvieu, about 35 miles east of Houston, said Rick Rainey, a spokesman for Enterprise Products. A worker who was unaccounted for was believed to be away from the site, but the company was conducting a search, Rainey said. The fire broke out shortly after noon at a facility used to store natural gas liquids. The cause was not known. A two-mile perimeter was cleared around the plant. A nearby school restricted outdoor activities. "The plant is within five miles of the school and according to the emergency command center, there is no indication that the fire is of a toxic nature, since they believe the fuel driving the flame is natural gas," said Barbers Hill Superintendent Greg Poole. "Additionally, the wind is blowing away from us." "We don't believe this is a safety issue," Poole said. "However, we do have a lot of parents here at the school who are employees over at Enterprise, so that's caused a lot of concern for us here." According to its website, Enterprise Products owns or has interest in approximately 19,200 miles of onshore natural gas pipelines that provide for the gathering and transmission of natural gas in Alabama, Colorado, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Texas and Wyoming. CNN's Vivian Kuo contributed to this report. | Fire breaks out at a portion of a Texas natural gas facility .
No injuries or deaths are reported, but officials are looking for one worker .
School stops outdoor activities . |
165,817 | 62704fef9ff3fd0fde24143962e9664023843a27 | By . Simon Cable Showbusiness Correspondent . PUBLISHED: . 18:40 EST, 12 June 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 19:24 EST, 12 June 2013 . Compilations now account for 21 per cent of all albums sold . With millions of tracks available to download in seconds, many feared digital music would kill the compilation album. But after a decade of decline, it is making a comeback. Compilations, typically a mix of chart hits covering all genres of music, now account for 21 per cent of all albums sold. Figures from the Official Charts Company show sales of compilation albums jumped 7.2 per cent in 2012 to 20.6million, compared to 19.2million in 2011. It reverses a trend which saw compilation sales decline after 2004, when iTunes was launched in the UK. The . albums are becoming increasingly popular in the digital downloads . market. The most popular include the Now That’s What I Call Music . series. Last week, the . second most popular compilation album was Eddie Stobart – Trucking . Songs, which includes hits from Queen, Meatloaf and ZZ Top. It is expected to reach the number one spot this week. Last year, 26 titles sold more than 100,000 copies, up from 18 the year before. Other popular releases include dance compilations – which made up 25 percent of all those sold – as well as more eclectic one-off compilations such as the Olympics opening ceremony album, Isles Of Wonder. Paul Williams, Head of Business Analysis . at Music Week, said: ‘Some predicted digital music stores like iTunes, . where millions of individual tracks are available, would kill the . compilation because fans could now create their own collections of hits. 'A revival in compilation sales shows the exact opposite has occurred. ‘However, . in the download market’s early years, demand did fall dramatically and . this could be because compilations are often bought by more casual music . fans who are also slower to adopt new formats and technologies. Sales have jumped after casual music buyers who are faithful to compilation albums switched from shops to digital . These same fans are finally going digital, but still need a ‘trusted guide’ of a compilation album to know what to buy rather than getting lost among the millions of track choices. Geoff Taylor of the British Phonographic Industry added: ‘Despite the availability of tracks as individual downloads, compilations – led by the Now series – are confounding expectations and performing better than ever. ‘Not only are music fans getting superb value from double and triple album titles brimming with hits, but a string of newly-themed albums have established themselves over the last year.’ | Official Charts Company figures show compilation sales jumped 7.2% in 2012 .
Reverses trend when saw sales decline when iTunes was launched in UK . |
12,482 | 235b0a57926502608ba371d8ee95b3df673d3781 | Arsene Wenger could reignite interest in Real Madrid keeper Iker Casillas in January, according to reports on the continent. Current Gunners No 1 Wojciech Szczesny looked unimpressive as he shipped two goals in the 2-0 Champions League defeat at Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday night and is not currently being pushed for his place in the starting line-up. Arsenal explored a move for Casillas in the summer but decided against bringing the veteran to north London. Iker Casillas is attracting renewed interest from Arsenal ahead of the January window, according to reports . Casillas makes a sharp save in Real Madrid's 5-1 Champions League win over Basle on Tuesday night . Casillas has won his place back in the Real Madrid line-up but is the subject of derision from some fans . However, French paper Le10sport claim Wenger could be tempted to go back in for the Spain legend in the January transfer window to provide Szczesny with competition. Monaco are also keeping tabs on the situation and have the capacity to make a big money offer for Casillas, who has recently won his place back in Carlo Ancelotti's side. The Bernabeu icon was subjected to derisory whistles and boos from fans in Real's last home league match, a 2-1 defeat against city rivals Atletico Madrid. But Real supporters didn't hesitate in commending his work on Tuesday night when he was called into action against Basle and made an excellent reflex save. With rumours of Casillas's desired departure gathering speed, Real Madrid president Florentino Perez curiously chose this week to present the keeper with a memento for his 15 years service with the club. Perez presented Casillas with a replica model of famous Madrid landmark La Cibeles, a statue featuring Phrygian goddess Cybele on a chariot pulled by two lions that has stood since the 1700s. For his 15 years service at the club, Real Madrid president Florentino Perez gave Casillas a replica statue . Casillas made his first appearance for Real Madrid in 1999 . Arsenal's Wojciech Szczesny picks the ball out of the net after Ciro Immobile scored for Borussia Dortmund . Dortmund's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang keeps his feet to score after rounding Szczesny . Casillas was second-string to Diego Lopez under Ancelotti and used mostly in European matches but since Lopez's move to AC Milan in the summer, he's been in competition for the No 1 shirt with Costa Rica's Keylor Navas. Ancelotti has put his faith in Casillas for the time being. 'He (Casillas) has never lost our confidence,' Ancelotti said. 'We congratulated him ... for his anniversary with Real Madrid and we wish him the best for the future. We have the same confidence in him as always.' Wenger signed Colombian David Ospina from Nice for £3.2million in the summer, but that move is considered more as back-up for Szczesny than any sort of challenge. Although yet to appear for the Gunners, Ospina's arrival fills a void left by Lukasz Fabianski, who moved to Swansea having become fed up with being the understudy to Poland's Szczesny. VIDEO Disappointed Wenger bemoans counter-attacks . | Arsene Wenger was interested in signing Iker Casillas in the summer .
Club legend Casillas has been subject of criticism at Real Madrid .
Le10sport in France claims Wenger could make another move for keeper .
Wojciech Szczesny was unimpressive against Borussia Dortmund .
The Arsenal No 1 shipped two goals in their Champions League loss . |
169,186 | 66e5fe7802466bbe0d6576069b4c4a57e81c45ce | Murdered: Juliana Redding, 21, had just posed for Maxim magazine and was preparing for her acting career to skyrocket in 2008 . Jurors in Los Angeles heard this week how a beautiful 21-year-old model and actress discovered strangled in her Santa Monica apartment battled for her life. Juliana Redding was found dead in March 2008 and prosecutors believe she was killed by Kelly Soo Park, described as the 'James Bond' style enforcer of a shady doctor who has since fled the United States. Redding's mother broke down in tears as Los Angeles County Deputy Dist. Atty. Stacy Okun-Wiese showed jurors photographs of Redding's body taken after her death. 'Juliana Redding spent the last moments of her life literally fighting to save herself,' Okun-Wiese told the jury. 'Juliana Redding tried to fight off a woman. A woman she did not know.... A woman who needs to be held accountable for her actions.' The first officer on the scene also described the gruesome scene inside the apartment where prosecutors believe Park stangled Redding with her bare hands - then turned on the gas stove and lit candles, hoping to cause an explosion. Park, 47, is alleged to have worked as an enforcer for a Dr. Munir Uwaydah and the physician dated Redding, a cover girl for Maxim magazine, for a time. During that time, Uwaydah attempted to go into business with her father, Greg, an Arizona pharmacist. Scroll Down for Video . Kelly Soo Park looks back at the audience as opening motions are made in her murder trial Wednesday, May 15, 2013. Park is charged with the 2008 killing of aspiring model and actress Juliana Redding . Female James Bond: Kelly Soo Park listens to opening statements in her murder trial on Wednesday, May 15, 2013 . Kelly Soo Park is accused on killing model Juliana Redding with her bare hands in March of 2008 . However, Greg Redding began his own background check into the doctor and discovered that Uwaydah was lying about his age, was married and had a family. On learning this, Juliana ended their affair her father also stopped the business venture he planned with Uwaydah. Greg Redding sent Uwaydah a letter on March 10th ending their business relationship - five days before his daughter was killed. Prosecutors said that Uwaydah made six-figure payments to Park and her family before the killing and before Park's arrest. They said he had also bragged that he had a 'female James Bond' ready to act. It took two years to discover a suspect in the murder and investigators linked Park through DNA evidence found on Redding's neck. However, Park's attorney has questioned the evidence. 'Forensic evidence, the DNA evidence, the fingerprint, are not conclusive. DNA evidence doesn't tell you when it got there or how it got there,' said George Buehler. The doctor was never charged in the case. He has since moved to Lebanon. Initial reports at the time described a desperate struggle during which Redding had managed to dial 911 for help when her killer apparently grabbed the phone and hung up. Prosecutors allege that Uwaydah dispatched Park to Juliana and in turn her father into changing his mind about their planned venture. While Uwaydah has since left the United States following Redding's death, he has not been charged in the murder. Prosecutors allege though, that Park had worked as a 'debt collector' for the spinal surgeon and California businessman on at least two occasions. 'Hired muscle': Prosecutors say Dr Munir Uwaydah (left) had hired Kelly Soo Park (pictured right) to intimidate and harass his enemies -- and also sent her after Juliana . Kelly Soo Park, 47, is accused of killing an aspiring actress and model in 2008 on orders of a wealthy California doctor and businessman . Park currently remains free on $3.5 million bail . According to documents seen by the Los Angeles Times, Park was officially employed as Uwaydah's real estate broker, but was paid hundreds of thousands of extra dollars to collect debts for him. The records show that Park received a $250,000 payment from Uwaydah just weeks before Redding was killed . For years, authorities have alleged that Julaiana, who was dated Dr Uwaydah, was murdered after Park was hired by the doctor to intimidate her . Uwaydah now lives in Lebanon and is not sought in connection with the murder of Redding. A court motion filed last year says that prosecutors are 'not seeking to prove that [Park] murdered Ms. Redding at the direction of Dr. Uwaydah,' only that he told Park to intimidate and threaten the young actress. Investigators in the case have said . that Park has been linked to the crime by DNA evidence found on . Redding's neck, however, defense attorney's argue that the real killer . is Redding's boyfriend at the time of her death, John Gilmore. Gilmore . was cleared as a suspect in the immediate aftermath of the murder, . insisting that he had several people who could offer him an alibi according to CBS News. 'They're . trying to point the finger at Gilmore, saying he had, at one time, . allegedly assaulted his ex-girlfriend,' ABC News legal analyst Dana Cole . said. The defense alleges that Gimore's assault of his fianceé Melissa Ayala casts doubt on the guilt of Park. They . allege that Ayala told a defense attorney that Gilmore choked her . saying, 'that he was going to make her feel what Juliana felt.' Investigators in the case have said that Park has been linked to the crime by DNA evidence found on Redding's neck . However, . in a hearing last week Ayala refused to answer any questions, claiming . her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination as she is facing . an assault with a deadly weapon charge against Gilmore. Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy . | Juliana Redding was found dead in her Santa Monica apartment in March 2008 .
Prosecutors in Southern California believe that 47-year-old Kelly Soo Park strangled the aspiring model .
Park was allegedly employed as 'muscle' by a Dr. Munir Uwaydah to enforce his business deals . |
280,859 | f7d83f1741090e9843b7ea1b63759c42b680313e | By . Emma Innes . PUBLISHED: . 13:02 EST, 9 December 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 13:56 EST, 9 December 2013 . A mother has told how her three-year-old son has been given only a 50 per cent chance of survival just weeks after doctors first diagnosed him with constipation. Ashton Hutcheson was in tears with constant stomach pains and sickness, but despite several visits to the doctors, his mother was told there was nothing seriously wrong with him. But after a week of sleepless nights, his mother Shanna Hutcheson, 21, begged a paediatrician to check her son again. Ashton Hutcheson, three, was taken to the doctor by his mother, Shanna, 21, when he developed stomach pains and sickness. Ms Hutcheson was told he was constipated and was sent away with medication . He found Ashton had an enlarged liver and a rapid heartbeat and advised him to be rushed to hospital. After a series of scans and checks, it was discovered Ashton had a rare condition called dilated cardiomyopathy and his heart was operating at just five per cent capacity - barely keeping him alive. As a result, he will now need a risky heart transplant. Ms Hutcheson said: ‘He’s the only kid in Scotland to have the condition, as it normally only affects adults, but I will be complaining about the doctors. ‘They basically left me at home for a week with him fighting for his life and it’s just not good enough. ‘We’re now waiting for a heart donor to be found, but they’re saying it is 50/50 whether he’ll survive the operation or not - it’s horrible. When Ashton's condition did not improve, Ms Hutcheson (pictured) begged a paediatrician to check him over again and he was found to have an enlarged liver and an excessively fast heart beat . ‘Ashton’s condition means only five per cent of his heart is actually working - it is basically just keeping him alive and no more.’ Dilated cardiomyopathy is a condition which causes the heart muscle to become stretched and thin meaning it cannot cannot pump blood around the body effectively. Ms Hutcheson, from Aberdeen, says the news knocked her for six and admitted she couldn’t have kept herself together if it wasn’t for the support of her mother, Deborah Hutcheson, 42. She said: ‘My mum has been such a great help to me. She was just as worried about Ashton when he had a sore tummy and was being sick. ‘We were both convinced there was something wrong with him, so I took him to a doctor, but he said “no that’s just constipation” and we were told to go home. Ashton (pictured in hospital) was diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy, a condition which means the heart muscle becomes stretched and thin preventing it from beating effectively . ‘Ashton got worse and I tried to get a doctor to see him a number of times for a whole week, but they said just to keep on giving him the medication they had given me. ‘Eventually I said “I’ve had enough of this” and demanded to see a doctor again. ‘A paediatrician came around and found that Ashton’s heart was beating a too fast and his liver was enlarged, so he got us into hospital straight away.’ After being admitted to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary (ARI), Ashton was given echocardiography and an ultrasound. He was then diagnosed with stage two dilated cardiomyopathy and flown by air ambulance to the intensive care unit at Glasgow’s Yorkhill Hospital. Ashton is now waiting for a heart transplant but his mother has been told there is only a 50 per cent chance of him surviving the operation . Ashton spent eight days in the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Glasgow in the intensive care unit and high dependency unit before being driven back to ARI in an ambulance for another three nights. Ms Hutcheson said: ‘The doctor at ARI explained Ashton’s condition had deteriorated to stage three by then. ‘He then told me that he would need a heart transplant, which will be carried out at a hospital in Newcastle. ‘When I found out that he needed a heart transplant I just kept thinking he was going to die. ‘The doctor sat me down to tell me and I just started screaming and crying.’ Ms Hutcheson now faces an agonising wait . as a heart donor for Ashton is tracked down, but she is worried the . operation won’t come quick enough as her son battles for survival. Ms Hutcheson said: 'When I found out that he needed a heart transplant I just kept thinking he was going to die. The doctor sat me down to tell me and I just started screaming and crying' She said: ‘The operation could be any time from now until the New Year. ‘He’ll be going down to Newcastle soon for a couple of days to have tests done, but we have no word on the op yet. ‘I’ve been told there’s a chance his body could reject the heart, but the main concern at the moment is getting him fit enough for the operation as the medication he’s been taking is making him sick and they couldn’t operate on him at the moment anyway because he’s too thin. ‘I just want to appeal to people and highlight how important organ donation is. ‘I want everyone to go and sign up because it could save a life.’ A spokesman for NHS Grampian said a complaint about Aston's treatment had not been received and that he would encourage his mother to register her concerns through the complaint system. To find out more about organ donation visit www.organdonation.nhs.uk . Dilated cardiomyopathy is a disease of the heart muscle which causes it to become stretched and thin. This means it is unable to pump blood around the body effectively. The condition can be inherited but it can also be caused by viral infections, uncontrolled high blood pressure, problems with the heart valves, excessive alcohol consumption and pregnancy. The disease can cause fluid to build up in the lungs, ankles, abdomen and other organs - this collection of symptoms is known as heart failure. The most common symptoms of dilated cardiomyopathy are shortness of breath, swelling of the ankle and abdomen, excessive tiredness and palpitations. There is no cure for the condition but treatment can be used to control the symptoms and to prevent complications. Treatment options include medicine to control the heart rhythm, a pacemaker and an ICD - an implant which gives the heart an electric shock if it slips out of a normal rhythm. Source: British Heart Foundation . | Ashton Hutcheson was taken to the doctor by his mother, Shanna, 21, when he developed stomach pains and sickness .
Ms Hutcheson was told he was constipated and was given medication .
When he didn't improve, she begged a paediatrician to check him again .
Ashton was found to have an enlarged liver and a rapid heartbeat .
He was diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy which causes the heart muscle to become stretched and weak meaning it can't pump effectively .
He now needs a heart transplant but there is only a 50% chance of him surviving the operation . |
35,201 | 640c4219078b0336c280709c46fb18cac25d00f9 | Two more HIV patients have no signs of the virus in their blood following bone marrow transplants, according to the Boston researchers who treated them. However, experts stopped short of calling the two cured and said the treatment is not a viable option for the majority of HIV patients. The findings were presented Wednesday at the International AIDS Society Conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The two men, whose identities are being withheld, had been on antiretroviral (ARV) drug therapy for years before being diagnosed with lymphoma, a cancer of the lymph nodes. Both underwent intensive chemotherapy followed by bone marrow transplants to treat the cancer. They remained on antiretroviral therapy. Approximately four months after the transplant doctors were still able to detect HIV in their blood, but six to nine months later, all traces of the virus were gone. "Because of those findings, we thought it was justified to take the patients off of their therapy to see what happens," said Dr. Timothy Henrich, who conducted the clinical trial. "Now, in a normal person who has HIV, who has been on long-term antiretroviral therapy for years, usually the virus comes back within two to four weeks after stopping therapy, it comes right back. " Some patients make it up to eight weeks before the virus returns, said Henrich, a researcher at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, but the virus returns eight to 10 weeks after therapy is stopped in the vast majority of patients. HIV discovery 'will change your life forever' Not so for these two, however. "We are now recording 15 weeks after therapy and eight weeks after therapy for our two patients, and to date we are unable to detect HIV rebounding in the bloodstream after we stopped the therapy," Henrich said. "We do weekly monitoring, as well. We've been looking at the virus in the blood and the cells in the blood essentially every week since we've taken them off therapy, and we have not been able to detect virus at this time." The two men are being compared to Timothy Ray Brown, also known as the "Berlin Patient." Brown is thought to be the first person ever "cured" of HIV/AIDS. In 2007, Brown had a stem cell transplant to treat his leukemia. His doctor searched for a donor with a rare genetic mutation called CCR5 delta32 that makes stem cells naturally resistant to HIV infection. Today, the virus is still undetectable in Brown's blood, and he is still considered to be "functionally cured." A functional cure means the virus is controlled and will not be transmitted to others. The stem cell transplant procedure, however, is very dangerous because a patient's immune system has to be wiped out in order to accept the transplant. Using a bone marrow transplant to treat HIV is not a feasible treatment for most patients, and only 1% of Caucasians -- mostly Northern Europeans -- and no African-Americans or Asians have the CCR5 delta32 mutation, researchers say. The transplant is still not a practical strategy for the majority of HIV patients, and the risk of mortality is up to 20%, Henrich says. Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health, agreed. "This is not a practical approach for someone who does not need a stem cell transplant since the transplant and its preparation and its subsequent need for chronic immunosuppression is a risky procedure," Fauci said. "If you have an underlying neoplasm (tumor) like these patients had, then the risk outweighs the benefit," he said. "However, if you are doing well on ARVs and you merely want to get off antiretroviral therapy, then the risk seems greater than the benefit." HIV 'cure' in toddler offers 'global hope' Even though the two patients showed a reduction of the virus in the blood, it could still be in some tissue -- the brain or gastrointestinal tract, for instance, Henrich said. The virus "could certainly return," he said. "It's possible, again, that the virus could return in a week, it could return in a month -- in fact, some mathematical modeling predicts that virus could even return one to two years after we stop antiretroviral therapy, so we really don't know what the long-term or full effects of stem cell transplantation and viral persistence is." Still, he feels the information will help move the curative field of HIV research forward. "We're going to learn different strategies about how we can attack the viral reservoir, how we can harness the immune system better and what exactly caused the lack of virus in the two patients at least in the short term." Earlier this year, researchers said an HIV-positive baby in Mississippi was given high doses of three antiretroviral drugs within 30 hours of her birth, with doctors hoping that would control the virus. Two years later, there is no sign of HIV in the child's blood, making her the first child to be "functionally cured" of HIV. The Foundation for AIDS Research, or amfAR, helped fund the study. "These findings clearly provide important new information that might well alter the current thinking about HIV and gene therapy," said amfAR CEO Kevin Robert Frost. "While stem cell transplantation is not a viable option for people with HIV on a broad scale because of its costs and complexity, these new cases could lead us to new approaches to treating, and ultimately even eradicating, HIV." "Dr. Henrich is charting new territory in HIV eradication research," said Dr. Rowena Johnston, amfAR vice president and director of research. "Whatever the outcome, we will have learned more about what it will take to cure HIV. We believe amfAR's continued investments in HIV cure-based research are beginning to show real results and will ultimately lead us to a cure in our lifetime." In the meantime, Henrich says he and other groups are actively enrolling patients for these types of studies. Opinion: An AIDS-free generation is within sight . | Two men show no sign of HIV after bone marrow transplants .
But experts say it's too early to know if the two are cured .
The transplant isn't a viable option for the vast majority of patients . |
178,774 | 7372c17c8613b56e4a27dce67ecc5880b254cddd | England risks being held to ransom by Scottish Nationalists unless Labour agrees to implement a system of ‘English votes for English laws’ at Westminster, William Hague said yesterday. The Leader of the Commons said Ed Miliband was refusing to back a veto for English MPs over legislation that applies only to their constituents, to keep open the possibility of a Labour-SNP coalition. The Conservatives said they planned to strip Scottish MPs of the power to impose tax changes, education and health reforms on England, given the Scottish Parliament will soon have control of all these issues. Leader of the House of Commons William Hague speaking at The Policy Exchange yesterday, where he proposed that English MPs would have a veto on English only issues . The reform would make it impossible for an incoming Labour government to press ahead with its plan to raise the top rate of tax to 50p in England, for example, without winning the support of a majority of English MPs. Mr Hague said it was a ‘simple matter of fairness’. But his blueprint prompted a furious response from Labour and the SNP – as well as some Right-wing Tories who want to go further and create an effective English Parliament. Former prime minister Gordon Brown claimed the proposals ‘put party before country’ and ‘risk the very survival of the UK’. He said governments had failed for 150 years to resolve the issue of ‘English votes’ while maintaining the ‘unity of the UK’. Mr Brown said the Tory plan ‘means only one thing: restricting the rights of Scottish MPs to vote in the House of Commons, even to the extent of excluding them under legislative consent motions from Budget votes on key tax issues. ‘And the Conservatives have acted with huge cynicism: it was the Conservatives who proposed devolving all Scottish income tax to the Scottish Parliament, and they have now made this the pretext for giving English MPs the power of veto on the annual Budget vote on income tax rates.’ Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown claimed Mr Hague's proposals ‘put party before country’ and ‘risk the very survival of the UK’ Stewart Hosie, SNP deputy leader and Treasury spokesman, condemned what he called a ‘shambolic and confused plan to stop Scottish MPs voting on parts of the entire UK budget’. Labour would also be reluctant to embrace a full-blown system of ‘English votes’ because it has traditionally relied on the votes of its Scottish MPs – currently 40 – to get legislation through when in government. Tuition fees and foundation hospitals were passed into law thanks to votes of Labour’s ‘tartan army’, though neither applies in Scotland. Polls suggest that since last year’s independence referendum, however, Labour support has collapsed in Scotland as voters switch to the SNP, which is hoping to win 20 or 30 MPs in May. Former Tory donor turned pollster Lord Ashcroft is today due to release the most detailed analysis to date of the SNP surge. Despite the anger of Labour and the SNP, some Conservative MPs insisted Mr Hague had not gone far enough. Mr Hague added Ed Miliband, pictured, was refusing to back a veto for English MPs over legislation that applies only to their constituents, to keep open the possibility of a Labour-SNP coalition . While he proposes a veto for MPs in England on issues that are decided north of the border by the Scottish Parliament, legislation would still require the ultimate approval of all UK MPs to pass. Former frontbencher David Davis said: ‘It has built into it a formula for another constitutional crisis.’ John Redwood, a former Cabinet minister, welcomed the proposed power for English MPs to block legislation only applying in their constituencies and not Scotland. But he said Scottish Nationalists or Scottish Labour MPs could still ‘all gang up and try to block an English proposal until we cave in on what they wanted’. Mr Hague said: ‘The Prime Minister and I have decided that the option we will put forward to Parliament and the country will be one that gives an effective veto to English MPs over matters only affecting England, or England and Wales, while maintaining the integrity of the United Kingdom Parliament. ‘We Conservatives believe that this principle of English consent, the English veto should be extended to taxation when the equivalent decisions have been devolved to Scotland – and under a Conservative Government it will be. ‘This is a fundamental matter of fairness. How could it possibly be right for the Scottish Parliament for example, to vote for a reduction in Air Passenger Duty in Scotland and then for Scottish MPs to come to Westminster and be able to impose an increase in Air Passenger Duty in England?’ He rejected the argument that reform will weaken the UK, insisting: ‘I say that failure to act would be the true weakening of the United Kingdom.’ | William Hague wants to stop Scottish MPs from voting on English issues .
Says Ed Miliband is refusing to back the veto in case he needs SNP help .
Former PM Gordon Brown claimed proposals ‘put party before country’
Polls suggest Labour support is collapsing in Scotland in favour of SNP . |
272,281 | ecadc2e0fe4f6d446b895f1f5d1f7862334121b0 | By . Tara Brady . The wife of Cameroon's vice prime minister has been kidnapped and at least three people were killed in an attack by the Islamic militant group Boko Haram. The kidnapping took place early yesterday morning in the town of Kolofata, in the far north region of Cameroon, according to the communications minister Issa Tchiroma Bakary. He said heavily armed fighters targeted the home of vice prime minister Amadou Ali as well as a local spiritual leader called Seini Boukar Lamine, who is also the town's mayor. Scroll down for video . Armed fighters targeted the home of vice prime minister Amadou Ali (pictured) kidnapping his wife . Boko Haram, the Nigerian Islamist . militant group, has stepped up cross-border attacks into Cameroon in . recent weeks because the country has deployed troops to the region, . joining international efforts to combat the militants. Some people were killed during the attack but it is not yet known exactly how many. However, the minister confirmed Mr Ali's wife was among those kidnapped. Cameroon's . government has become increasingly involved in regional efforts to . combat Boko Haram, despite warnings from the armed group to stay out of . its fight with the Nigerian military or risk further attacks. Yesterday's assault is the third Boko Haram attack into Cameroon since Friday. Members of Boko Haram, the Nigerian Islamist militant group, which has kidnapped the wife of Cameroon's vice prime minister . Meanwhile, some 22 suspected Boko . Haram militants, who have been held in Maroua since March, were on . Friday sentenced to prison sentences ranging from 10 to 20 years. Boko Haram have killed hundreds of people this year, mostly in northeastern Nigeria. The Nigerian Association of Witches and Wizards have now also declared war against the terror group. Cameroon has become involved in regional efforts to combat Boko Haram led by Abubakar Shekau (pictured) Spokesman for the group said it has held an emergency meeting to discuss a way forward. 'Witches and Wizards in Nigeria are deeply worried by what is going on in the country especially Boko Haram insurgency. 'As stakeholders in the Nigerian project, we can no longer afford to fold our hands while the nation burns. Enough is enough.' Dr Okhue Iboi said at the meeting. He made is clear that the days of the terrorist group were numbered and told parents of the missing school girls will be rescued. Earlier this month kidnapped Nigerian schoolgirls who managed to escape from their Islamic extremist captors were reunited with the country's president. Still missing: About 250 schoolgirls were kidnapped in April by members of the militant group Boko Haram . President Goodluck Jonathan heard tales from some of the 57 who escaped after their abduction on April 15 before assuring them of his determination that those still in captivity ‘are brought out alive’. Around 57 students managed to flee shortly after they were captured, but a committee investigating their disappearance said 219 of the girls are still missing. According to a mediator working with Boko Haram two of the girls have died of snake bites while around 20 have fallen ill. The kidnapping took place early yesterday morning in the town of Kolofata, north Cameroon . Boko Haram is demanding a swap for detained fighters in exchange for the girls. Most of the schoolgirls are still believed to be held in the Sambisa Forest — a wildlife reserve that includes a mixture of thick jungle and open savannah. The forest borders on sand dunes marking the edge of the Sahara Desert. Sightings of the girls and their captors have been reported in neighboring Cameroon and Chad. Chibok and nearby villages are targets because they are enclaves of staunch Christians in predominantly Muslim north Nigeria. | The kidnapping took place early yesterday morning in the town of Kolofata .
Heavily armed fighters targeted home of vice prime minister Amadou Ali .
Kidnapped his wife as well as a spiritual leader who is also the town's mayor .
Boko Haram has stepped up cross-border attacks into Cameroon .
Yesterday's attack is the third by Boko Haram in Cameroon since Friday . |
258,942 | db23cf1be0f99b86eb1e05905a1b91b1981af28d | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 11:25 EST, 3 January 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 15:48 EST, 3 January 2014 . Police are investigating how a two-year-old Colorado girl who spent New Years Eve in hospital came to test positive for THC, the primary psychoactive ingredient in marijuana. The incident started on Tuesday when Aida Hernandez stumbled upon her daughter eating a cookie left sitting in the front yard of an apartment complex in Longmont. Hernandez told police she instructed the toddler to stop and throw the random sweet back in the garden. Scroll down for video . This two-year-old girl (right, pictured with her sister) spent New Years Eve in hospital after eating a cookie that was placed with marijuana, police believe . Aida Hernandez noticed her daughter was acting strangely 'about half an hour' after finding her eating a random cookie out the front of their apartment block . Scene: Police are investigating the incident, but say they not found any reason to discredit the story provided to them by the family . Police say the two-year-old girl (right) has now fully recovered . The pair then went on a trip to the grocery store, when the mom realized something was wrong with her little girl. 'She was sleepy, she was opening and closing her eyes, and she couldn’t walk very well,' Hernandez told FOX31 Denver. A toxicology test was performed and her urine tested positive for THC, the active ingredient in marijuana. The incident occurred the day before Colorado ended prohibition laws on Marijuana. As of January 1, adults 21 and over are able to buy the drug at dispensaries across the state, allowing people to smoke and eat weed in the privacy of their homes. The toddler spent the night in hospital recovering and returned home on Wednesday. Marijuana is now legally sold in a variety of forms - from free-packaged to joints and edibles - as part of a new government experiment in regulating the drug like alcohol . Edible marijuana products, such as suckers (pictured), are regulated under new Colorado drug the same way as free-standing marijuana is, in terms of how much each adult is allowed in weight . Since marijuana sales started in Colorado, the most typical way to buy the drug is on its own, however joints and edibles are also available . Cmdr. Jeff Satur said a search of the family's home failed to turn up anything. Hernandez is also being tested for THC. 'At this point we are believing the family,' Satur said. Police are working with social service workers on the case. There is another child in the home who was unharmed. | Mother Aida Hernandez told police she found her two-year-old daughter eating a cookie out front of their apartment building in Longmont, Colorado .
When the girl started acting strangely she was taken to hospital and tested positive for THC .
Police say they are investigating but believe the family's story .
Incident comes the day before Colorado decriminalized marijuana, with adults 21 and over allowed to be in possession of one ounce of the drug .
Edible marijuana products, such as cookies, brownies, and suckers, are regulated in the same way as free-standing marijuana, in that they are subject to weight restrictions and are not to be consumed in public . |
243,700 | c770316e9de7526477fb9a867746da70273fedb5 | By . Beth Stebner . If a picture is worth a thousand words, than a picture taken with a gigapixel camera must be worth millions. Scientists at Duke University have built an astonishing prototype camera that, not unlike many smartphones, allows the viewer to zoom in and focus on certain aspects of the photograph – all while maintaining incredible clarity. The experimental camera takes shots containing up to 50 gigapixels of data – or 50,000 megapixels. While most point-and-shoot cameras come equipped with around 10-16 megapixels, the scope is truly dizzying. Scroll down for more high-resolution images . Duke scientists combined 98 . individual cameras to create the Aware-2, which allow the camera to have . a resolution five times better than the so-called perfect 20/20 vision . in humans. The result is a . picture that is comprised of billions of pixels, which are single points . in an image that together converge into recognisable images. Even the . best professional cameras on the market only top 20-30 megapixels. Described in an article appearing in Nature, the . pictures show wide-angle shots of various locations, and how the . gigapixel camera allows for tight and precise views of objects . relatively far away. The camera uses a spherical lens to . capture every iota of detail in its range, mounted with nearly 100 14-megapixel . microcameras. Because of the nature of the lens, it has a view of 120 . degrees by 50 degrees. The lens actually takes 100 individual pictures, which are then pieced together by a computer. Electrical engineer David Brady told . Nature, which published his team’s findings: ‘Scanning a scene with . these cameras, you can see a lot more than if you were actually there.’ In . one wide-angle shot of the Seattle skyline, various buildings can be . seen, with the traffic moving at a decent pace. But with the gigapixel . camera, suddenly a truck can be seen driving down one of the streets . blocks away, and the ‘in’ and ‘out’ signs on a parking garage a . half-mile away can clearly be read. Dr . Brady added that taking a picture with a traditional camera, such as a . point-and-shoot, is like ‘looking through a soda straw since you can . only see a narrow part of the scene.’ But he compares the prototype camera to a fire house, saying: ‘The world comes at you full (blast.)’ The . camera uses a spherical lens to capture every iota of detail in its . range, mounted with 96 14-megapixel microcameras. Because of the nature . of the lens, it has a view of 120 degrees by 50 degrees. The . lens actually takes 100 individual pictures, which are then pieced . together by a computer, Nature said. But, the scientists note that the . Aware-2 is far from the commercial market, as it is still too cumbersome . and requires space for its various electronic boards. Not . to mention its sizable weight – around 100 pounds – and its bulk. It . takes about 18 seconds to shoot a photograph (not unlike the old . daguerreotype) as the camera takes in all the data. The . result is stunning; the slightest details –like licence plates and . street signs – can be perfectly read from a picture taken a half-mile . away. The Aware-2 can only . currently produce pictures in black and white, though researchers at the . North Carolina school are looking to build a colour gigapixel camera . soon. Their research was . supported by DARPA, the Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency. Michael J. Fitzpatrick, who is a professor at Duke’s Pratt School of . Engineering, as well as other scientists from the University of Arizona . and the University of California – San Diego participated in the . ground-breaking research. Dr . Brady hopes that once the technology catches up to the concept, . gigapixel cameras could replace their megapixel cousins.‘As more . efficient and compact electronics are developed,’ he said. 'The age of . hand-held gigapixel photography should follow.’ Shutter to think: Scientists at Duke University created the massive lens, which uses nearly 100 microcameras to capture individual images which are then reassembled . | Prototype camera developed by Duke University scientists captures images up to 50,000 megapixels .
Pictures of street signs a half mile away can clearly be read with new technology .
While camera is cumbersome, scientists say gigapixels are the future of digital photography . |
62,420 | b15196a8555f6603bdbb6322fa0b00e59b0ae34c | By . Neil Ashton . Follow @@neilashton_ . Luke Shaw has put his move to Manchester United on hold until after the World Cup to concentrate on playing for England. The Southampton left-back wants to move to Old Trafford, but it will have to wait until after the tournament. Shaw, who is training with the England squad in Portugal this week, said: 'It is something that is not even on my mind. VIDEO Scroll down to watch Luke Shaw talk about his pride at being in the England squad . All smiles: Luke Shaw is excited ahead of England's World Cup campaign . Job to do: Shaw says he was surprised to get the call up to the squad . 'Transfer talk is completely gone – I am here to focus on England and England only.’ Shaw, 18, admits he was surprised to get into Roy Hodgson’s squad ahead of Ashley Cole after an outstanding season on the south coast. He added: 'I was very surprised. With Ashley Cole not playing that many games, I thought I might have a chance. 'But obviously he played in the last three games of the season and he played incredibly well so that made me think that maybe it might not be my turn. 'Obviously, I saw that I was announced in the squad and it was the best feeling in the world. I remember when I was sitting there with my family and friends and we were just all so proud that I am still only 18 and going to a World Cup. 'There’s no pressure – I don’t really feel pressure. I just focus on my own game. I have come here to help the England team and I will do everything I can. Part of the team: Shaw trains next to captain Steven Gerrard . Talking tactics: Shaw has a conversation with manager Roy Hodgson . 'I feel ready if Leighton does pick up an injury then I will be 100 per cent ready and I don’t think Roy would have picked me if he didn’t think that.' | Saints defender fully focused on England's World Cup challenge .
Manchester United made bid for Southampton left back .
Shaw admits surprise and delight at World Cup call-up . |
143,806 | 45f8293afc4da118cdf0279c185d0c9baf4c4650 | By . Beth Stebner . A leukemia-stricken 6-year-old boy whose family was displaced after Superstorm Sandy struck was back in his Long Island home Saturday after it was rebuilt by hundreds of volunteers. The house in Amityville has a new, extra bedroom so Steven Heckman doesn't have to share space with two sisters while he undergoes chemotherapy for leukemia. The walls are painted a bright, cheery yellow and there is a mural of Indiana Jones - Steven's all-time favorite character - painted on one wall. His tearful mother, Danielle Heckman, said she was so excited she was hyperventilating as the family moved in on Saturday morning. Scroll down for video . Hope: Steven Heckman, 6, who was battling leukemia, now has a new room in the home rebuilt by volunteers after Sandy destroyed his family's first house . Before: The Heckman family's modest Amityville home was unlivable after it was flooded by the waters from Superstorm Sandy . After: The house has been completely remolded, and an extra bedroom added . 'It was just really an incredible feeling — to walk in the door this morning and see that not only has the house been rebuilt, but it's also been furnished, literally from rugs to dressers, TVs and curtains,' Danielle Heckman told the Associated Press. The October 29 superstorm flooded the family's home and destroyed almost all they owned. To make matters worse, they did not have the money to purchase flood insurance because of Steven’s escalating medical costs. For months, they were forced to couch-surf, including a stint with the parents and three children sleeping on a queen-sized air mattress. 'The kids were very stressed out; they lost everything they had,' their mother said. The bigger worry was to keep her son away from people with colds or other ailments. An infection could have landed him in the hospital. In addition, mold from the sodden home could also be risky for Steven. A family's joy: The Heckman family had been at Disney World as part of Steven's wish from the Make A Wish Foundation; they first saw the new house upon their return on Saturday . Home sweet home: The Heckman's were thrilled to see a brand new kitchen installed, with all-new appliances . The family’s finances also played a factor. Mrs Heckman had to quit her job to look after Steven after he was diagnosed with leukemia over the summer; Mr Heckman is unemployed, according to the New York Post. The National Association of the Remodeling Industry, a not-for-profit trade group, heard about the family's plight and offered to rebuild the house with a team of volunteers. Retailers donated new interior furnishings, appliances, and dishware. The family now has a beautiful new kitchen, dining area, and more importantly, a roof over their heads. Wall of fame: The volunteers painted an image of Indiana Jones on Steven's new bedroom wall . Make a wish: Steven, right, pictured in a family photo with an actor playing his hero, Indiana Jones . In addition, a new bedroom was built for the two Heckman girls, Alexa, aged nine, and three-year-old Juliana, leaving Steven his own room. 'It was just really an incredible feeling to walk in the door this morning and see that not only has the house . been rebuilt, but it's also been furnished. -Danielle Heckman . In total, the association paid for $150,000 worth of damage. ‘I thought it was going to take us six months, maybe even a year, and to have this and to have all these people here just helping is incredible,’ she told CBS New York. The family had been in Disney World, courtesy of the Make a Wish Foundation, and returned to the fully-furnished new home, according to the Post. The foundation had agreed to fly them ahead of Sandy. However, little Steven isn’t in the clear yet – the boy has two more years of chemotherapy to go. New York News | NYC Breaking News . | Steven Heckman, 6, diagnosed with leukemia last summer .
His family's Amityville, New York home all but destroyed during October 29 storm, and family couldn't afford insurance because of son's treatments .
Volunteers and charity organizations donated total of $150,000 of goods and services . |
48,596 | 8923f471b0352553f60a4164a126b674d1c5d686 | By . Roger Dobson . PUBLISHED: . 16:00 EST, 1 June 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 16:00 EST, 1 June 2013 . The key to beating one of the most common causes of stroke could be an umbrella-like heart implant, according to new research. About a quarter of the population are born with a minor cardiac defect – a hole in one of the heart chambers known as a patent formal ovale (PFO) – that usually causes no symptoms but increases stroke risk. The new procedure involves placing a tiny implant that looks like a two-sided umbrella, known as an occluder, to plug the hole. About 150,000 Britons suffer a first stroke every year, and in eight in ten cases it is due to the blood supply to the brain being blocked by a blood clot – an ischaemic stroke. In 60 per cent of these patients, the reason for the stroke can usually be linked to coronary heart disease, and the build-up of fatty deposits on the arterial walls. This furring – known as plaque – hinders blood flow and means clots are more likely to form, then break off and travel to the brain. Yet in half the remaining patients – for whom their stroke has no obvious cause – a PFO may be the trigger. Many stroke patients are young and seemingly fit, such as broadcaster Andrew Marr, who suffered a stroke aged 53 in January, though a PFO has not been suggested as the cause. In cases where a hole in the heart is suspected, the closure operation has now been found to reduce the risk of another stroke by up to 70 per cent. No rain on this parade: The 'umbrella implant surgery' only takes 45 minutes and could prevent thousands of strokes each year . David Hargreaves, a history teacher and housemaster at Westminster School in London, was one of the first people in the UK to have the device implanted to prevent a second stroke. He suffered his first one three weeks after his 50th birthday. At the time, he was fit – running 30 to 40 miles a week – but he was taken ill on the last day of the school term. After four days of investigation in hospital, David was found to have a PFO. ‘I was told that closing the PFO would significantly reduce the chances of a further stroke, so I decided to go ahead,’ he says. ‘The procedure took about 45 minutes and I was awake throughout.’ During the operation, an incision is made in a vein in the groin under local anaesthetic. The occluder device, which is made of two wire mesh discs encasing a polyester fabric, is folded and put into a tube (catheter). It is then inserted into the vein and manoeuvred into the heart via the circulatory system, and into the open hole. Broken heart: The surgery closes a hole in the heart which is a known cause of blood clots . Once in place, the device is released and unfolds so that there is a disc either side of the PFO. A small piece of linking material that connects the two discs is tightened so that the hole is sandwiched between them. The procedure can be carried out as a day case, but most patients are kept in for observation. Dr Iqbal Malik, consultant cardiologist and director of cardiac catheter labs at Hammersmith Hospital, who fits the devices, says the implant offers a ‘belt and braces’ approach, and is given alongside blood-thinning medication. ‘Statistics show that the operation will lower the risk of a second stroke from two to three per cent a year to about one per cent. But none of my patients has had a recurrence,’ says Dr Malik. ‘The procedure is safe and seems a good option for those who have recovered well from a stroke and have a large PFO.’ The new research shows that plugging the PFO is more effective than blood-thinning medication, such as warfarin or aspirin, in reducing risk of recurrent stroke. Patients in the multi-centre study, whose average age was 46, had a 51 to 73 per cent drop in risk. David recalls: ‘I was able to watch the operation as it happened on a TV screen in the theatre. It is quite interesting to see inside your own heart. ‘I had no side effects from the procedure, and nearly four years on I have had no further strokes or mobility problems, and I feel fine. ‘For me, the sealing of the PFO has been a success and I believe it is something anyone in the same boat should seriously think about doing. I went back to work full-time about five months after the stroke. ‘One odd effect of the stroke is that I have poorer visual recognition for faces and paintings. On the plus side, my brush with mortality has made me less prone to anxiety because it puts things into perspective. ‘I still have double vision, but that is corrected with special spectacles. It means I cannot get the skis out any more, but that is no great loss to me, nor to skiing.’ | New research show 'umbrella' implant could save thousands .
Near 25 per cent of all stroke patients suffer from 'hole in the heart'-defect .
About 150,000 Britons suffer their first strike every year . |
249,138 | ce6183c865d6fae87769407d4e823ca436f78eb5 | Vow: Prince William is on a mission to clamp down on the brutal murder of elephants, rhinos and tigers for ivory . Prince William has vowed to destroy all 1,200 ivory artefacts in Buckingham Palace to 'send a message' to illegal elephant poachers. The priceless collection includes a throne from India that belonged to Queen Victoria, as well as fans, tankards, statuettes, and furniture. But sources close to the prince say he feels strongly about putting 'his money where his mouth is'. If successful, he will go on to urge other heads of state to follow suit. A long-term supporter of animal rights charities, the Duke of Cambridge makes regular speeches imploring world leaders to adopt a 'zero tolerance' policy towards illegal poaching in the lucrative trade. On Thursday, he joined his father Prince Charles to a summit in London urging industry members to 'follow the money' to chase the brutal gangs, just days after the pair released a multi-lingual appeal for people to condemn illegal poaching across the world. At home in Clarence House, William is said to have ordered for all ivory items to be hidden from sight for years. Speaking at a conference last year, the . second in line to the throne said: 'The forces that are currently . destroying some of the world's most endangered species are sophisticated . and powerful, but this week we are seeing the creation of an equally . powerful alliance, coming together to help fight them.' The royal collection now under threat mainly consists of gifts handed to the Queen by leaders across the world. Palace sources insist they were all acquired 'in full knowledge of relevant legislation'. Scroll down for video . Family affair: He has been working for years with his brother Prince Harry and father Prince Charles to fight the trade . Princes William and Harry have been over to Africa to survey the stockpiles of elephant tusks (pictured) and have been campaigning against poaching . The three appeared at the Illegal Wildlife Trade Conference in London on Thursday to address the matter . However, experts have hailed the suggestion as a powerful move that will have significant impact. 'It's difficult to imagine a stronger . symbol of the horrors of ivory than Buckingham Palace publicly . destroying its own,' Conservative MP Zac Goldsmith told the Independent . on Sunday. 'Good for Prince William for pushing this.' However, the move, the latest in a . number of bids by the prince to protect elephants, has sparked outrage . in the art world as experts claim destroying works 'of the highest . order' is 'menacing'. Royal collection: There are over 1,200 items in the Royal Collection which are listed as containing ivory, including this throne and footstool which comes from India and dates to 1850 . Destroyed: This ornately carved cup and lid, and this sword hilt, which both feature in the Royal Collection, would both be ground to dust under plans from Prince William . This ivory cockade fan was made in 1790 for the then-Prince of Wales, and later King George IV . The royal collection mainly consists of gifts handed to the Queen by leaders across the world. Brian Sewell, art critic and elephant-protection supporter, told the Independent on Sunday: 'We have to recognise that [these items] exist. 'Ivory was a treasured material that was worked on by craftsmen of the highest order during the Renaissance... It's pointless. 'I can't see the connection between saving elephants and destroying works of art made centuries ago.' | Duke of Cambridge hailed by animal rights activists and urges world leaders to follow suit in bid to adopt 'zero tolerance' policy of illegal poaching .
Royal collection of 1,200 items mainly gifts from international monarchs .
Includes Indian throne given to Queen Victoria in 1851 plus fans and vases .
Art critics condemn 'menacing, pointless' destruction of 'world class' work . |
162,474 | 5e0fcdbd1ece7937b57dec3522c3efbcbd945432 | (CNN) -- Last year's inaugural live stream of the Super Bowl got its fair share of criticism, but it did set a precedent for how technology can affect our enjoyment of the year's most-hyped sporting event. This year, Sunday's big game is once again being streamed live online for those who can't camp out in front of their big-screen TVs. Between streaming options, mobile apps and social media chatter, there are plenty of options to take part in what's become a national pastime: eating unhealthy food, joking about the commercials and tuning in to what everyone hopes will be a great game. Whether you'll be watching the San Francisco 49ers take on the Baltimore Ravens at the Superdome in New Orleans, hosting a viewing party or watching solo, here are five ways tech can help you kick off a better Super Bowl. 1. If you're watching online . Super Bowl XLVII itself begins at 6:30 p.m. ET and will be streamed on CBSSports.com and NFL.com to laptops, tablets and smartphones. On CBS's stream, fans can choose from four camera angles to get a better perspective on the action, follow along with a curated Twitter feed, and check out the commercials as they air on TV via an interactive gallery. Real-time statistics and game highlights will also be available. Beyonce's lip-syncing at President Obama's inauguration last week has raised the stakes on her Super Bowl halftime performance. But so has the fact that it'll be the first one to be live-streamed online. (No pressure, Bey.) For the record, she says she'll be singing live this time. 2. If you need to make a beer/soda/chicken wing run . The best-case scenario is that you're well-stocked with snackage and drinks well before the pre-show starts at 6 p.m. and don't have to move an inch until the final whistle. But in case you must tear yourself away from your TV or laptop, there are some mobile apps that'll suffice in a pinch. ESPN ScoreCenter will keep you up-to-date on each play and is available for Apple, Android and Windows devices. If you want to keep it team-specific, both teams in Sunday's game have free mobile apps equipped for the iPhone, Android and BlackBerry. The 49ers Gameday Live app offers team news, real-time statistics and an integrated Twitter feed, while the Ravens roll out stats and news via their official app and mobile site, which hosts live scores. If you're a Verizon Wireless subscriber with an iPhone, there's also NFL Mobile, which offers live video of the Super Bowl. 3. If you're on Twitter . As anyone knows if they've watched a live national TV event with their phone or tablet recently, the best commentary can happen on Twitter and Facebook. The official hashtag to follow is #CBSSuperBowl, although others are sure to pop up during the game. Social-media monitoring company Sysomos has put together this handy infographic of game-related handles to start following. The list includes some obvious choices, like the Twitter feeds for both teams (that would be @Ravens and @49ers), but also those who follow football closely, like Sports Illustrated's Richard Deitsch, Bleacher Report's Ty Schalter and Matt Loede of NFL Gridiron Gab. For the official word on the game, the New Orleans Super Bowl Committee has its own Twitter account. HLN's website recommends 49ers tight end Vernon Davis and quarterback Colin Kaepernick, along with Ravens wide receiver Torrey Smith and kicker Justin Tucker, as top picks for Super Bowl players who are active on Twitter and photo-sharing app Instagram. Considering her upcoming Super Bowl commercial is already one of the game's most buzzed-about ad spots, we're going to throw in model Kate Upton as well. 4. If you're in New Orleans . If you're attending the game, you've clearly got your viewing problems solved. But there are still a few apps that can make your New Orleans stay more enjoyable. HLNtv.com: Entrepreneur helps you experience N'awlins the right way . Thanks to the results of the Codemkrs Super Challenge, which pulled together developers and programmers for a weekend of Web app creation, there are four apps in particular that you might find useful. The first-place winner was Eat Now! New Orleans, which helps steer you toward restaurants that aren't completely booked. NolaParks helps you locate outdoor activities, parks and playgrounds, while GigsGuru zeroes in on places to find live music. And if you have a great experience with a server, you can share it on HeartBucket, which not only highlights the act of kindness for all to see but also alerts that person's superior. Verizon subscribers can check out the Super Bowl XLVII Guide app for the iPhone, which includes a breakdown of Big Easy restaurants and music venues in addition to official game events. 5. If you're watching alone . Watching the game by your lonesome doesn't have to be lonely. The TOK Football app for the iPad allows you to chat with up to four of your friends while watching the game. And the "social sports book" OnSports app for the iPhone help you connect with other fans. | From livestreams to apps, tech tools can help you enjoy Sunday's Super Bowl .
Super Bowl XLVII will be streamed on CBSSports.com and NFL.com to mobile devices .
Mobile apps can keep you up on the play-by-play when you're away from the TV .
The game begins at 6:30 p.m. ET Sunday in New Orleans . |
231,096 | b737c3171e41efd832d41f4a2ac93f7821bf684f | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 11:21 EST, 21 August 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 12:12 EST, 21 August 2013 . Deep within the woods of New Jersey, a secret homeless community has left the city and taken to the trees to set up home. But rather than simply eschewing the rat race, the group - many of whom are mentally ill, jobless and battling addiction - claim they have been left with no other choice. The community in Browns Mills, New Jersey, has been given the eerie title locally as the 'People of the Woods' after being forced to set up camp there - some for as long as 20 years - because Burlington County does not offer homeless shelters. Browns Mills, New Jersey, where the homeless and down on their luck have become known as the 'People of the Woods' after taking to the trees . The community in Browns Mills, New Jersey, has been given the eerie title locally as the 'People of the Woods' after being forced to set up camp there . A reporter for My9nj had to first gain the people's trust before they would take her on a tour of their community among the trees . Reporter Meg Baker, from My9NJ, was told about the so called tent city by volunteers at the Christian Caring Centre, which provides food and services for the homeless in the woods. It has been reported that it costs taxpayers around $14,480 per year to care for a single homeless person. Many of those living in the woods are alcoholics who said they could not afford to pay rent and live on their own and so were 'forced to be there'. But Christian Caring Centre volunteer Tracy Janusz said it far from a countryside idyll, adding: 'No young person should have to see what is going on there.' Many of them told her that while they were still able to claim state benefits, they were not enough to afford low income housing, and so they had no other choice but to sleep rough . Some of the rough sleepers have been in the woods for as long as 20 years - because Burlington County does not offer homeless shelters . The centre helps the group with food and occasional day landscaping jobs, but as yet there has been no permanent solution. The township has taken down most of the tents, although there is no other shelter provided for them. Another of the caring centre workers said that one of the homeless wood dwellers had become seriously ill after suffering a tick bite. But the cost of his treatment has fallen on the taxpayer to bear. She added: 'The cost of getting them into a shelter and giving them services would have been so much cheaper and cost effective, and then he could have got c ajo and started paying taxes back into the system.' | Community in Browns Mills, New Jersey, has been given the eerie title locally .
Many have been there for years and are mentally ill, jobless and addicts .
They say they're there because Burlington County doesn't offer shelters .
While they're still on state benefits it is not enough to afford housing . |
13,154 | 2561c5837634c25dc49c0ba28fc4c02dd1621d4d | By . Emma Reynolds . Last updated at 9:21 PM on 1st March 2012 . A Scotland Yard chief bought champagne for a News of the World journalist and lunch for colleagues during a £600 one-day spree on his force credit card. Andy Hayman, a former assistant commissioner in charge of counter-terror duties, said he took his 'top team' for a £566 meal at London restaurant Shepherd’s in February 2007. The alcohol bill for the meal alone came to £188.50. Champagne socialite: Ex-assistant commissioner Andy Hayman wined and dined journalists on regular occasions, the inquiry heard . Later that same day he spent £47 on champagne during a drink with a female journalist at the Oriel wine bar, in Chelsea. Both bills were paid for on his American Express company card, the Leveson Inquiry into press standards heard. Mr Hayman said the restaurant payment was paid for on his expenses as a colleague was joining another force. He said he could not remember which NotW journalist he was drinking with at Oriel. The police officer also had dinner at Soho House a year earlier with editor NotW editor Andy Coulson and deputy editor Neil Wallis. Giving evidence, Mr Hayman said he would rather be facing questions over phone-hacking than terror atrocities. He said: 'I feel terrible for the victims of phone-hacking and I would not minimise that. Close relationships: Mr Hayman said he could not recall the purpose of a lunch with NoW journalists, but that it would have been related to the 'ongoing support that paper was giving to anti-terror' 'But at the same time, I’d rather be . facing questions around that than I would be about more loss of life . which, 7/7, was awful.' The Met chief quit his job a month after an investigation into his expenses was launched. But he became a columnist for News International paper The Times after retiring from Scotland Yard, for which he was paid a £10,000 per year retainer. Robert Jay, QC, said: 'When asked about it, you stated that you recall that this was a Crime Reporters' Association representative, possibly from the News of the World. It could have been a female whose name you did not know.' He was asked whether this might have been Lucy Panton or Rebekah, who took over from Panton, but said he could not recall. Mr Jay suggested the champagne incident was evidence that the police had gone 'too far' with socialising. He was criticised by MPs last July for . having dinners with News International journalists while inquiries were . ongoing - with one Tory MP on the Commons Home Affairs Select Committee . suggesting he would have appeared a 'dodgy geezer'. Mr Hayman then dismissed as rubbish the suggestion they were 'cosy candlelit dinners'. The police watchdog cleared him and fellow police chiefs of misconduct over his roles in the original phone hacking investigation. | Andy Hayman quit job when bosses launched expenses probe .
...And was given £10,000-a-year retainer by News International paper The Times to write a column . |
5,044 | 0e5706764afefc3e2729669aa990a27c00a57e2e | Malaysian officials have confirmed they received 'some radar data' from other countries about the missing Flight MH370 today - but claimed they were 'not at liberty' to release the information. Speaking at a press conference this afternoon, acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said Malaysia was continuing to co-ordinate the search for the missing Boeing 777-200ER. He added: 'I can . confirm that we have received some radar data, but we are not at liberty . to release information from other countries. 'I . appeal to all our partners to continue volunteering any and all . information that could help with the investigation and the search for . MH370.' Scroll down for videos . Hishammuddin Hussein (centre) told a news conference Malaysia had received 'some radar data' but were 'not at liberty' to release information from other countries . The acting transport minister said: 'I appeal to all our partners to continue volunteering any and all information' The official also confirmed Malaysia continued to lead the investigation to find the missing plane - but added other countries were leading different searches in other areas . Distraught family members of the missing passengers were removed from the press conference earlier today. Moments before officials spoke to the media, half a dozen furious relatives stormed the conference - blaming the Malaysian . government of failing to work hard enough to find the plane. The group had banners - most which which blamed the government of inaction - . as airline officials desperately tried to resume order. In dramatic scenes, one woman shouted: 'You are traitors to us... you have let us down. Tell us the truth! We want the truth!' Hishammuddin Hussein said he 'fully understands' the frustration of the . relatives of the missing passengers and said a high-level delegation was . being sent to Beijing to speak to the families. He later ordered an inquiry into the incident where security guards carried out the distraught mother of one of the passengers. It comes as reports suggest the families of the two pilots are struggling to cope. The Washington Post reported: 'It is very agonizing for the family, and the media is not helping at all,' said Mohammed Ghouse, a longtime friend of [pilot] Zaharie [Ahmad Shah]’s brother-in-law. 'The daughter especially is very upset. She was very close to her father.' Thai military yesterday said they picked up an unidentified aircraft on radar bearing off the flight path, heading left over Malaysia and towards the Strait of Malacca . A family member of a passenger aboard missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 breaks down as she is removed from a press conference today . The Chinese relative of a passenger is carried away by security after storming the conference this afternoon . A woman is carried out by security officials after she tried to protest before a press conference at a hotel in Sepang, Malaysia. Some of the group held banners blaming the government of letting them down . Sky News presenter Kay Burley was caught on camera tripping up an escalator during a media scrum to speak to the women. It was reported today pilot . Capt. Zaharie Ahmad Shah had programmed a remote island in the middle of the . Indian Ocean with a runway long enough to land a Boeing 777 into his home flight simulator. A . U.S. official said the Malaysian government is seeking the FBI's . help in analyzing any electronic files deleted last month from the pilot's simulator. The official, speaking anonymously, said the FBI has been provided electronic data to analyze. CNN also reported investigators at Quantico, a Marine Corps base and home to FBI labs, were examining 'hard drives belonging to two pilots': . Malaysia's . defense minister said iinvestigators were trying to restore . files deleted from the simulator last month to see if they shed any light on the . disappearance. Files containing records of simulations carried out on the program were deleted February 3. A U.S. official said the Malaysian government is seeking the FBI's help in analyzing any electronic files deleted last month from the home flight simulator of the pilot of the missing Malaysian plane. Malaysia's defense minister said earlier Wednesday that investigators were trying to restore files deleted last month from the home simulator used by the pilot, Capt. Zaharie Ahmad Shah, to see if they shed any light on the disappearance. Files containing records of simulations carried out on the program were deleted Feb. 3. At the news conference today, Attorney General Eric Holder told reporters that 'I don't think we have any theories" about what happened to the plane but said the FBI has been in touch with Malaysian investigators about providing any help that it can. 'We are in ongoing conversations about how we can help and we will make available whatever resources that we have, whatever expertise we have, that might be able to be used,' Holder said. Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 with 239 people aboard disappeared March 8 on a night flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. At . a news conference Wednesday, US Attorney General Eric Holder told . reporters: 'I don't think we have any theories' about what happened to . the plane' However, he said the FBI has been in touch with Malaysian investigators about providing any help that it can. 'We are in ongoing conversations about how we can help and we will make available whatever resources that we have, whatever expertise we have, that might be able to be used,' Holder said. Suggestions the flight may have deliberately been changed were challenged by the acting transport minister today. In words that appeared to rubbish a Reuters report suggesting MH370 used waypoints, or navigational points, after losing contact with ground control, he said: 'I am aware of speculation that additional waypoints were added to the aircraft’s flight routing. I can confirm that the aircraft flew on normal routing up until the waypoint IGARI. There is no additional waypoint on MH370’s documented flight plan, which depicts normal routing all the way to Beijing.' Investigators at the conference also rubbished reports the . plane may have been sighted over the Maldives. Some residents of Kudahuvadhoo, one . of the most remote parts of the area, said they saw a low-flying aircraft on the morning the flight's disappearance. Hishammuddin Hussein said these were false. Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 with 239 people aboard disappeared March 8 on a night flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. It is now 12 days after it vanished from air traffic control screens off . Malaysia's east coast at 1:21am local time. No wreckage has been found. Thousands of well-wishers have written on a prayer wall at Kuala Lumpur Airport, begging MH370 and its . passengers to come home. An unprecedented search for the plane is under way involving 26 nations in two vast search 'corridors'. One . of the corridors arches north overland from Laos towards the Caspian . Sea, while the other curves south across the Indian Ocean from west of . Indonesia's Sumatra island to west of Australia. Reports today suggest investigators believe the plane . most likely flew into the southern Indian Ocean. Another theory, predicted by a veteran pilot, suggests the flight . was in trouble and simply heading for the nearest safe airport when it . turned off-course. Sky News' Kay Burley was one of many journalists at the conference today . In an attempt to speak with one of the women who stormed the conference, Burley appeared to fall up and escalator, pictured . Also reported today was the fact the U-turn made by the missing . jet is believed to have been programmed into the on board computer . before the last radio contact was made with the co-pilot. A leading aviation expert yesterday suggested Asian military officials may be staging a mass cover-up because they do not want to expose gaping holes within their countries' air defences. The jet went missing shortly after 1am - but it wasn't until the following Tuesday that the Malaysian Air Force reported they had spotted the aircraft on radar over the Strait of Malacca at 2.15am. A woman look at the thousands of messages left for those missing aboard the flight at Kuala Lumpur Airport . The 'prayer wall' was started soon after the craft disappeared on March 8. No sign of the plane has been found . Thailand's military yesterday said they detected a plane at 1.28am, eight minutes after MH370's communications went down, heading towards the Strait but did not share the information because they were not asked for it. Writing on his blog, aviation expert David Learmount said: 'Maybe these states’ air defences, like Malaysia’s, are not what they are cracked up to be. 'And maybe they wouldn’t want the rest of the world to know that.' Mr Learmount, a former pilot and now operations and safety editor at the respected Flight Global publication, points out that MH370 might have flown over several Asian countries including Thailand, Burma, China, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan. Holding back: Aviation expert David Learmount suggested some countries may be withholding radar information . If it emerges that an unidentified aircraft had been able to fly over a territory undetected and unchallenged it would amount to an embarrassing security failure. Regarding the Malaysian sighting Mr Learmount wrote: 'Clearly they had let an unidentified aircraft pass through Malaysian sovereign territory without bothering to identify it; not something they were happy to admit. 'The Malaysian government has called upon all the countries to the north-west as far as Turkmenistan and the Caspian Sea to check their primary radar records for unidentified contacts in their airspace in the seven hours after the 777 went missing. 'Depending on the actual track the aircraft followed, if it had headed approximately north-west this could include some–if not all–of the following countries: Thailand, Myanmar/Burma, China, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Turkmenistan. 'If the aircraft had gone that way, surely military primary radar in one of those countries–or several–would have picked up the signal from this unidentified aircraft, and the vigilant radar operator would have scrambled a fighter to intercept the intruder? 'Wouldn’t s/he? Or maybe not. Maybe these states’ air defences, like Malaysia’s, are not what they are cracked up to be. And maybe they wouldn’t want the rest of the world to know that.' | Malaysia says it has 'some radar data' on missing flight MH370 .
Officials say they are 'not at liberty' to release data from other countries .
Relatives of missing stormed press conference where news was revealed .
Distressed family held up banners saying officials were 'traitors'
Pilot had programmed a remote island into his home flight simulator .
FBI will help analyse any electronic files deleted from the simulator .
Search deemed an 'international effort' as 26 countries look for plane .
Officials are focusing search on area in southern Indian Ocean .
They dismissed previous claims plane was spotted over the Maldives .
Rubbished claims flight was using waypoints when last seen on radar . |
177,626 | 71f5d1de525c19c905a05ec9a6007b67fc770608 | By . Richard Shears . PUBLISHED: . 19:18 EST, 31 July 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 01:45 EST, 1 August 2013 . Dannii Minogue’s hair became the top talent on Australia’s X Factor on Tuesday night after the star judge appeared on the show apparently wearing a wig. The 41-year-old singer’s signature short hair style had been ‘replaced’ by flowing dark locks. The new look sent social media buzzing, with many of her fans speculating she was wearing a hair piece and ruling out hair extentions, with one writer commenting: ‘You have such beautiful hair. Why go the wig?’ Spot the difference: Dannii Minogue was spotted with short hair when arriving at Melbourne Airport, but when she appeared on the X-Factor she appeared to be sporting a wig . Sydney style commentator Melissa Hoyer said Dannii - the sister of pop diva Kylie Mingoue - was ‘on trend’, with wigs becoming a staple for many celebrities. Joan Collins and Tina Turner perfected the art of wearing wigs, while more recently by Sharon Osbourne, Beyonce, Adele, Lady Gaga and J-Lo have donned a fashionable hair piece. ‘I think it is fantastic that a style-oriented and savvy woman like Dannii can wear a wig and make it look cool,' wrote Hoyer. ‘It’s usually got nothing to do with a personal hair issue or bad hair situation It’s more like a great way of giving a celeb a new look with the help of a great hair stylist in the space of a few minutes.' She added: ‘If it is a good quality wig - some even feature “roots” so they look even more authentic - and it suits your face shape, then why not take the easier option? Stylish: Fashionista Lady GaGa has helped make wigs popular with her outrageous sense of style. Joan Collins (left) is also said to be a fan of the hairpiece . It’s not the first time Dannii has been seen with long hair. She appeared in promotional shots for the show in April with a similar full length style - just over a week after she had been seen on a Barbados beach with much shorter hair. That short style was still in evidence when she arrived in Australia later that month with her cropped hair peeking out from underneath a bowler hat at Melbourne airport. Then fans, who had seen those arrival pictures followed by the promotional shots showing Dannii’s long locks, were left in no doubt she had taken to a wearing a toupee - no-one could have grown hair that quickly. The wig and the gown mum-of-one Dannii wore for the promotional shots left fans in no doubt that the X Factor - as seen on TV on Tuesday evening - was not live, but had been recorded three months earlier. | Dannii Minogue's X Factor appearance with long hair sends fans into a spin .
Hair extensions ruled out as the star is accused of wearing a wig .
Identical hairpiece in promotional shots suggest the show was filmed in April . |
121,773 | 29662711764bd9abebb123048fc656ddeaaa97b3 | By . Sophie Jane Evans . PUBLISHED: . 05:29 EST, 23 November 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 10:43 EST, 23 November 2013 . A surfer has been killed by a shark off a notorious stretch of Australia's west coast today. The 35-year-old man was surfing off a beach near Gracetown, about 167 miles south of Perth, when he was attacked. Eyewitnesses have told how his arm was missing and there were no signs of life as he was dragged to the shore. Scroll down for video . Scene: The 35-year-old man was surfing off Lefthanders Beach, pictured, near Gracetown, when he was attacked by a shark . The shark is believed to have 'bounced' off the board of another surfer, before launching the fatal strike at 9am. The victim, from Margaret River, was dragged onto Lefthanders Beach after being pulled onto another surfer's board. One of his arms was missing and he was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Sky News. His body was later taken away by helicopter, while his green and yellow surf board was also recovered. Deadly: Gracetown, situated about 167 miles south of Perth, has seen three fatal attacks in the past decade . Speaking today, Sergeant Craig Anderson said: ‘His injuries appear to be consistent with those that would be received in a shark attack.' Stuart Smith, the Fisheries Department's director general, immediately closed beaches in the area. He has issued an 'imminent threat' order for the shark to be captured - but insists he will not be putting out a ‘shoot to kill’ command. A . fisheries vessel with a hook and lines is currently scouring the water, while . urgent warnings have been issued to locals to stay . out of the water. ‘The area is considered a high risk and hazard region because of the high number of swimmers and surfers there,’ said Mr Smith. He added that he was particularly concerned about the large number of school leavers who are currently on holiday in the area. Killer: No details of the type of shark responsible for the latest attack have been released. However, great whites, pictured, are often to blame for fatalities off Australia's west coast . As news of the attack spread, crowds began to gather at the beach. They were later joined by the surfer's devastated relatives. Australia has become the world's deadliest country for shark attacks. Experts say the creatures often attack surfboards and their riders because they believed the shape resembles seals, one of their prey. Gracetown - the state's top surfing and wine-making region - alone has seen three fatal shark attacks in the past decade. Yesterday, the girlfriend of 24-year-old Ben Lendin, who was killed by a shark in West Australia . last year, posted a message on Facebook paying tribute to the latest victim. Injured: Last month, Greg Pickering, 55, suffered severe wounds to his chest and face yesterday after being mauled by a shark off Poison Creek beach, 99 miles east of Esperance . Second time: The Australian spear fisherman, pictured being carried from the scene, had previously survived a shark attack off Cervantes, north of Perth, in 2004 . ‘Another man lost,’ wrote Alana Noakes. ‘Thinking about his family and . friends, remembering what we all went through. All I want to do is hug . them. ‘Life can be over so quickly, so make the most of your weekend with each other.’ Mr Linden’s body was never found, despite an intense air and sea . search, but an inquest last month was told there was no doubt he had . been killed in a ‘catastrophic shark attack'. Last month, an Australian spear fisherman and . diver suffered severe wounds to his chest and face yesterday after being mauled . by a shark off Poison Creek beach, 99 miles east of Esperance. Greg Pickering, 55, . was dragged onto a boat near Esperance after being savaged by the animal while he was fishing. He had previously survived a shark attack off Cervantes, north of Perth, in 2004. No details of the type of shark responsible for the latest attack have been released. However, great . whites are often to blame for fatalities off Australia's west coast. | Victim, 35, had been surfing off beach near Gracetown, West Australia .
Witness say his arm was missing following the shark attack at 9am today .
Fisheries Department has closed beaches and ordered shark's capture .
Australia has become the world's deadliest country for shark attacks . |
115,339 | 20d80392980b13b9f4e5f2859b029958e4c90431 | By . Sarah Griffiths . A first impression about can be formed in as little as a tenth of a second, but it is possible to influence what judgement is made. Scientists have discovered that people with faces that others don’t trust can pull an expression to make them appear more honest. Faces deemed untrustworthy, dominant or unattractive because of their shape can be made to appear the opposite by making specific facial expressions. Fake it to make it: Faces deemed untrustworthy, dominant or unattractive because of their shape can be made to appear the opposite by making specific facial expressions, scientists have said. An untrustworthy face (pictured left) can be transformed into a trustworthy one (right) by raising the eyebrows and smiling slightly . Researchers used software to generate 3D animated images of faces that can be programmed to move one or more of 42 individual groups of facial muscles. Twelve volunteers judged randomly generated facial expressions on trustworthiness, dominance and attractiveness. From this, the experts pinpointed which aspects of an expression conveyed these particular characteristics. They asked different volunteers to rate faces with neutral expressions for the same traits based solely on facial structure. To test whether the neutral faces deemed untrustworthy, dominant or unattractive could be made to appear trustworthy, submissive and attractive, they animated the second set of faces with the expressions identified with these characteristics from the first experiment. Faces thought to look untrustworthy could be made more honest-looking by activating a few muscle groups to form a more virtuous expression and dominant faces could appear meeker. This ‘social camouflage’ can be used by people with untrustworthy faces to override the default impression others form by looking at their face. For example, raising the eyebrows and smiling slightly can make someone appear more honest, while wrinkling the nose slightly can affect a look of dominance. ‘Humans communicate a lot through their facial expressions when negotiating various social situations,’ said Dr Daniel Gill, a psychologist of Glasgow University. ‘But whether we like it or not, previous well-documented research has shown people tend to perceive certain personality characteristics or traits in individuals based on the structure of their face. ‘This means some people can be judged to be untrustworthy or domineering simply by how they look - a square jaw and large brow conveying dominance for example. 'Social camouflage' can be used by people with untrustworthy faces to override the default impression others form by looking at their face. Here, the facial movements required to look more or less dominant are shown . ‘It can have implications for things like mate selection and job opportunities. ‘However there are also basic facial movements people identify with specific social traits and these movements can override the default impression people have of another person's face.’ To appear more trustworthy, people should raise their inner and outer brow and smile slightly with their mouth closed to show dimples, according to the study. Dr Gill said: ‘If you're going for a job interview it's best to feign happiness and surprise because this looks more honest to an observer. ‘But an army commander would put on a sterner, more dominant look than someone who is going out for a romantic encounter.’ A more dominant look can be achieved by wrinkling the nose and raising the upper lip so the mouth is open slightly. Dr Gill explained that people often adopt these faces without realising it and that animals do the same thing. Dr Gill said that there are also basic facial movements people identify with specific social traits - such as trustworthiness (pictured - and these movements can override the default impression people have of another person's face. Lots of people adopt suitable expressions without realising it . ‘Rhesus monkeys for instance have different faces according to their hierarchical rank - the highest ranking have dominant faces while the lesser mortals' are more submissive,’ he said. The study, published in the journal Psychological Science, said that attractiveness is harder to feign. This is because the perception of attractiveness is based on many more factors than just facial expressions, as any casting director will know, Mr Gill explained. ‘An actor can certainly look more dominant or trustworthy according to their role - but would probably struggle to look more attractive. For that you'd really need an attractive actor.’ In the experiment, researchers used software to generate 3D animated images of faces that can be programmed to move one or more of 42 individual facial groups of muscles to pull a certain face. They then asked a group of 12 volunteers to judge a set of randomly generated facial expressions on trustworthiness, dominance and attractiveness. This allowed the researchers to ascertain which aspects of an expression conveyed these particular characteristics. Attractiveness is harder to feign, according to the study. This is because the perception of attractiveness is based on many more factors than just facial expressions, Dr Gill explained . They repeated this procedure again with a different set of volunteers asking them to rate static faces with neutral expressions for the same traits but based solely on facial structure. To test whether the neutral faces deemed untrustworthy, dominant or unattractive could be made to appear trustworthy, submissive and attractive, they animated the second set of faces with the expressions identified with these characteristics from the first experiment. Faces thought to look untrustworthy could be made more honest-looking simply by activating a few muscle groups to form a more virtuous expression. Similarly dominant faces could appear meeker through a different expression. Study co-author Professor Philippe Schyns said: ‘This is the first study to examine how dynamic facial expressions affect the perception of social traits or characteristics.’ | Faces deemed untrustworthy, dominant or unattractive because of their shape can be made to appear the opposite by moving certain muscles .
‘Social camouflage’ can be used by people .
with untrustworthy faces to override the default impression others form .
by looking at their face .
To appear more trustworthy, people should raise their inner and outer brow and smile slightly with their mouth closed .
Dominance can be faked by wrinkling the nose and raising the upper lip . |
113,343 | 1e4b84a7912ea71692128d937df2e0ddd1c83eac | (CNN) -- Surveillance footage shows other minors inside a Georgia high school gym at about the same time authorities say Kendrick Johnson suffocated in a rolled-up mat while reaching for a sneaker, an attorney for the school told CNN on Friday. The attorney's acknowledgement came in a response to a CNN open records request asking whether other minors were recorded in the footage inside the Lowndes County High School gym on January 10 between 1:09 p.m. and 1:20 p.m., a span of about 10 minutes after Johnson entered the gym. "I answer your pointed question with 'yes,'" L. Warren Turner Jr.. the attorney, wrote in the letter. CNN made the request after the school declined to release certain surveillance photos or video, citing state law that exempts the release of "education records of a minor child." It's the latest revelation in a case that has seen Kendrick's parents challenge the account of authorities and demanded an inquest into the teen's death. Attorneys for Kendrick's family have called for the release of the surveillance video. Kendrick Johnson's parents want answers . Johnson, 17, was found dead at the gym in Valdosta on January 11, his body resting headfirst in the rolled wrestling mat, according to authorities. A few still pictures, taken from surveillance cameras at the gym, are perhaps the last known images of Kendrick alive. They show him walking across the bare floor. Those images were released by the Lowndes County Sheriff's Office. The next pictures of the teenager are far more horrifying: His body, clad in jeans and layered orange and white T-shirts, is wedged in the wrestling mat. His face is bloated with pooled blood, some of which poured out of his body and soaked his dreadlocks and spilled onto the floor. A pair of orange-and-black gym shoes were found a few yards from the teen's body. A Georgia Bureau of Investigation autopsy found that he died from positional asphyxia, and the sheriff's office determined the death was accidental. Second autopsy: Kendrick Johnson's body stuffed with newspaper . The sheriff has declared the case closed, and the U.S. Justice Department said in September that it wouldn't open a civil rights investigation. But Michael Moore, the U.S. attorney for the district that includes Valdosta, is reviewing the case and weighing whether to open his own investigation. Dr. Bill Anderson, the private pathologist hired by Johnson's family to conduct a second autopsy, found that Johnson had a blow to right side of his neck "consistent with inflicted injury." A January 25 report by the Valdosta-Lowndes County Regional Crime Laboratory cited "no signs of blunt force trauma on Johnson's face or body." And the original autopsy results released by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation May 2 identified "no significant injuries." Johnson's death no accidental, family's autopsy finds . CNN's Greg Botelho and Devon Sayers contributed to this report. | Kendrick Johnson, 17, suffocated in gym mat, officials say .
Surveillance footage captured Kendrick in the gym .
A CNN open records request asked if others were present in surveillance footage .
School attorney acknowledges footage shows others in the gym . |
122,323 | 2a1d38d187f825cf813e760b74087045ada72924 | By . Victoria Woollaston . Apple hasn’t even confirmed that it’s working on a smartwatch yet, but that hasn’t stopped a wave of designers creating concepts of what the so-called iWatch could look like. Previous concepts resembled the square and clunky design of Samsung’s Galaxy Gear, yet the latest images from Californian designer Todd Hamilton imagine a much more sleek and elegant curved device. Hamilton took inspiration from fitness bands, as well as the look and functionality of Apple’s iOS7, to create a watch that is ‘like something Apple would actually produce.' Scroll down for video . Previous iWatch concepts have resembled the . square and clunky design of Samsung’s Galaxy Gear, yet the latest . designs from Californian designer Todd Hamilton imagine a much more sleek and elegant curved device, pictured . Speculation around Apple's iWatch began at the end of 2012 and a rumoured release date was initially set for the fourth quarter of 2013. Chinese websites reported in December 2012 that the computer giant was working with chip-maker Intel on a wrist-worn gadget. It was said to have a 1.5inch screen and use Bluetooth to communicate with other devices, including an iPhone. Other . rumours suggest the iWatch will feature Siri voice controls that let . users dictate messages, rather than use the tiny screen. The watch could also be used as a remote control to change music tracks or pause video, on the phone or tablet. In July last year, reports in the Financial Times said Apple was hiring outside help to tackle design problems with its iWatch. Further . reports in September claimed Apple was struggling to make a number of . iWatch components, meaning the release date would be pushed back. The concept watch is shown as a simple band, fitted round the wrist like the Nike Fuelband, with a curved touchscreen. The lockscreen is shown as having a basic black and white interface, and according to Hamilton, it would show the time and date, as well as a button to activate Apple’s voice assistant Siri. Hamilton explained that he wanted the concept lock screen to mimic those on the iPhone and iPad. This means users would swipe up to unlock, swipe down to see notifications and double-tap to open Siri. Once unlocked, the watch's homescreen would have four app icons stacked on top of each other, with a page controller on the right-hand side. Users would then swipe up or down to move between pages of apps, in a similar way iPhone users swipe left and right. The watch would additionally come with a physical home button, as well as volume controls, and pressing the home button would return users to the lockscreen. The new claims about a rounded design contradict previous reports the iWatch would have a curved screen, as seen in this concept by Todd Hamilton . Hamilton’s watch doesn’t just look the part, either. He also explained how menus would work: ‘One of the challenges I ran into was what to do about tabs.’ The iPhone and iPad has tabs across the bottom of the screen. ‘A normal tab view across the bottom wasn’t going to work so I came up with a simple drop down control in the title bar,’ continued Hamilton. ‘Tapping this would display a popover menu showing the other available pages. I also purposely left out several of the controls like Edit and Add Contact. ‘On a device this small I think it makes more sense to manage apps, contacts, and media from a synced iPhone or Mac.’ The lockscreen, pictured left, is shown with a basic black and white interface that would show the time and date, as well as feature a button to activate Apple’s voice assistant Siri. Once unlocked, the phone’s homescreen, pictured right, would have four app icons stacked with a page controller on the right-hand side . Hamilton said he 'wanted to retain a slim form factor like the Fuelband and incorporate familiar UI components from iOS 7. [The concept], pictured, needed to feel natural on the wrist and look like something Apple would actually produce' Similar to other smartwatches on the market, including the Pebble, Hamilton’s concept would connect to an iPhone via Bluetooth. Describing the design process on his blog, Hamilton said: ‘A few months ago Thomas Bogner posted an iWatch mockup that looked like a marriage between a Nike Fuelband and an iPhone. ‘It was an impressive concept that got a lot of people excited including myself. However, it had a major flaw: the orientation of the interface made it impossible to use. ‘I had some free time over the holidays so I decided to take a stab at the problem and create a more user friendly concept. ‘I wanted to retain a slim form factor like the Fuelband and incorporate familiar UI components from iOS 7. It needed to feel natural on the wrist and look like something Apple would actually produce.’ Previous iWatch concept images, including this one from MacUser magazine, featured a square screen, and a clunky design, that more closely resembled Samsung's Galaxy Gear smartwatch . Samsung beat Apple to the smartwatch market when it released its Android-powered Galaxy Gear, pictured, in September. However, its design, functionality and battery life has been heavily criticised and experts believe Apple may have delayed its iWatch release to learn more about what customers like, and don't like . | This latest concept was created by Californian designer Todd Hamilton .
Hamilton took inspiration from fitness bands, as well as the iOS 7 design .
His concept has a curved touchscreen with a physical home button .
Swiping actions would mimic those used on the iPhone and iPad . |
132,234 | 3704376a837cc5419a5e15afa3b9c5d5308313ef | JOHANNESBURG, South Africa (CNN) -- Fifteen girls at Oprah Winfrey's South African leadership academy blew open the abuse scandal that the talk show host says shook her to her very core. Oprah Winfrey tells a Monday news conference how she found out about abuse charges and what she did. Winfrey, on Monday, praised the teens who chose to approach the school's CEO in an environment that the millionaire described as fearful and encouraging silence. "They represent, those 15 girls, the new generation of youth in South Africa who fearlessly take back their voices to speak up about their concern for their fellow classmates," she said, speaking to a news conference in Johannesburg by satellite hookup from Chicago. The woman arrested in the case, Tiny Virginia Makopo, 27, was formally charged Monday with 13 counts of abusing and assaulting students at the school. She pleaded not guilty and was released on bail. Winfrey said police in South Africa had asked her not to speak about the case publicly until an arrest was made, and she was now free to discuss the details. Winfrey -- who has spoken publicly about the abuse she suffered as a child -- said she first heard that there was a problem from the school's CEO, John Samuel, on October 6. Watch how Winfrey heard about the abuse and what she did » . "Mr. Samuel informed me that 15 girls had come to his office to see him with a list of grievances, including suspected sexual abuse of one of their classmates by a dorm matron," she said. School authorities removed Makopo from the campus and notified police, Winfrey said, and set up an independent team of investigators "because my experience with child predators is that no one ever, ever abuses just one child." The remaining dorm matrons were removed because students were afraid of "repercussions," Winfrey said, and teachers were assigned to oversee the dorms. She said students cheered and cried for joy when they heard about the change. "I told them that although they had apparently been living in an atmosphere that repressed their voices, that this was a chance for them to break the silence and to take their voices back," she said. As the investigation developed, five other girls stepped forward to say they had been victims, and new facts emerged about the student whose case had inspired the complaints by the group of 15. The girl had left the school earlier in the year, Winfrey said. The explanation she had been given was that the student's mother wanted to spend more time with her; but other students later said it was because of problems with a dorm matron. "I am prepared to do whatever is necessary to make sure that the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls becomes the safe and nurturing and enriched setting that I had envisioned," Winfrey said. Watch Oprah talk about being a "momma bear" to the children » . "Knowing what I know now, the screening process was inadequate" for Makopo's position, Winfrey said. "We are going to redefine what that position should mean and what the qualifications for that position should be." She said the contract of the school's headmistress will not be renewed when it expires at the end of the year. Winfrey said the school was in the process of getting cell phones for the girls so they could call her directly and that some of the students were getting counseling. Makopo faces charges of assault, indecent assault, and crimen injuria. Indecent assault is defined in South Africa as touching the private parts of another person without consent; crimen injuria involves verbal abuse which violates the victim's dignity. The state alleges there were seven victims. Six are between the ages of 13 and 14 and one was 23. It is not clear when the abuse happened, and only some of the allegations are known. Police have confirmed that one instance involves Makopo allegedly grabbing a girl by the throat and throwing her against a wall, but Winfrey also mentioned sexual abuse of the girls. The prosecutor said that "as a dormitory parent, she [Makopo] was in a trusted position," and that Makopo abused that trust. Makopo was released on bail of 3,000 rand [U.S.$460]. Her next court appearance is December 13. Winfrey said when she first heard about the abuse charges, she cried for half an hour. "I was so stunned I couldn't even wrap my brain around it," she said. "Within the hour I pulled myself together and started making calls and preparing for what to do next and how to best look after the girls." "What I know is, is that no one -- not the accused nor any persons -- can destroy the dream that I have held and the dream that each girl continues to hold for herself at this school," she said. "We will show that the resilience of the human spirit is actually stronger than poverty, it's stronger than hatred, it's stronger than violence, it's stronger than trauma and loss, and it's also stronger than any abuse." E-mail to a friend . CNN Correspondent Robyn Curnow contributed to this report. | NEW: Oprah Winfrey praises teens who took complaint to school's CEO .
Winfrey says "horrible situation" has been rooted out at school .
Matron allegedly abused seven school students, the youngest age 13 .
Tiny Virginia Makopo, 27, has pleaded not guilty to the charges . |
209,894 | 9bd28f17225bc9f5c02107d3f241f5778b83032e | By . Harriet Hernando for MailOnline . A six-year-old girl was rescued from a well in China after taking a tumble down the 66ft-deep hole in a field of crops. She was rescued by fire-fighters who pulled together in an amazing rescue effort caught on camera in China's Hebei province. The video shows a woman lighting the narrow well with a mobile phone before a fireman is winched down the hole. He finds the girl cowering in the darkness in a pool of water and secures her to the safety harness before the rest of the team winch him above ground. The youngster, who is conscious, is laid on the ground as concerned onlookers cover her in a jacket to keep warm until paramedics arrive. A fire-fighter lowers himself down a narrow well to rescue a six-year-old girl who took a tumble in China . | The youngster fell down the 20-metre deep hole in China's Hebei province .
Locals saw her moving around in the well after lighting it up with mobile .
Fire-fighters bravery and team work caught on camera . |
79,847 | e25f339815efd78d0991e01499ad6124423dad9b | Washington (CNN) -- Most Americans think Supreme Court justices base their rulings on personal political views rather than legal interpretation, polls show, and Thursday's ruling on the politically charged health care reform law will probably reinforce that. By the narrowest of margins, the high court upheld almost all of President Barack Obama's signature legislative achievement: the 2010 Affordable Care Act despised by conservatives as an expansion of government. The 5-4 decision prompted immediate criticism from the political right and the dissenting justices that it was an improper judicial overreach. Meanwhile, the reaction on the left was jubilant, with the Democratic National Committee executive director tweeting in exuberance: "it's constitutional. Bitches." Republicans have new rallying point . With justices clearly identified as conservative or liberal, based on their rulings and the party affiliation of the presidents who nominated them, any decision on a high-profile, emotional issue such as health care reform seemed certain to exacerbate the perception of politics motivating the ruling. A recent CBS News/New York Times poll found that 55% of respondents believed Supreme Court justices would decide the health care cases based on personal or political views, compared with 32% who said the rulings would be based on legal analysis. The same poll found only 13% of respondents believed that justices generally base their decisions on legal analysis, while 76% believed they were sometimes influenced by personal views. At the same time, polls show public approval of the nation's highest court dipping near or below 50%, which is on the low side of a rating that has exceeded 70% in the past but is historically volatile. For example, a CNN/ORC International poll in April showed that 50% of respondents approved of how the Supreme Court handled its job, with 41% disapproving and 9% offering no opinion. Ruling cements Obama's political legacy . To Nan Aron, president of the left-leaning Alliance for Justice, the Supreme Court's role in the 2000 presidential election through the Bush v. Gore case cemented the perception that the justices were guided by political ideology. "Clearly the public sees the courts as similar to Congress -- the branch where politics trumps everything else," Aron told CNN before the health care ruling was handed down. Now-retired Justice John Paul Stevens warned of that very eventuality in his dissent in the Bush v. Gore ruling, writing that although the nation may never be completely certain of who won the 2000 election, the identity of the loser was "perfectly clear." "It is the nation's confidence in the judges as an impartial guardian of the rule of law," Stevens wrote. Such a dynamic may seem inevitable in an era of stark partisan divide in the country, but court watchers said it shouldn't be that way. "Precisely because everything is so polarized, there should be one branch of government that people on both sides of the aisle can view as deciding on the basis of law rather than politics, because these issues are so contested," said Jeffrey Rosen, the legal affairs editor for The New Republic, in a recent interview on NPR. Opinion: Ruling a Frankenstein's Monster . Connie Severino, chief counsel and policy director for the right-leaning Judicial Crisis Network, said on the same NPR program that the Supreme Court "has always maintained a position of being the most revered branch of government." "What you've seen is a general decrease of public perception of government, and the court has kind of been dragged down along with it," Severino added. In one way, Thursday's ruling altered a perception in recent years that a conservative majority on the court led by Chief Justice John Roberts held sway. This time, Roberts joined the court's liberal wing in the health care ruling and wrote the majority opinion, which Scotusblog.com founder Tom Goldstein predicted would change the public view of the court. Roberts' role in the decision "insulates the court and by extension him from criticism for the next 10 years that it's just a partisan place that's looking for political outcomes," Goldstein told Bloomberg Law. Had Roberts sided Thursday with the other four conservatives -- Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, Antonin Scalia and Anthony Kennedy -- the liberal reaction would surely have been as heated as the anger on the political right. "This is truly a turning point in American history. We'll never be the same way again," complained Republican Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota, a leading tea party voice against the health care law. She called the ruling "a more far-reaching decision than anyone had expected or imagined." Gergen: Are voters ready to move on? Scalia added to the perception of politicized justices this week in his dissent of a Monday case on Arizona's immigration law in which he, Alito and Thomas opposed the majority, which included Roberts and Kennedy. In the dissent, Scalia criticized the Obama administration's recent policy shift to halt deportations of some young illegal immigrants and complained that the government failed to enforce immigration laws, leaving border states unprotected. A Washington Post editorial Thursday said Scalia's "lapses of judicial temperament" hurt the dignity of his office and endangered "not only his jurisprudential legacy but the legitimacy of the high court." In recent years, 5-4 decisions reflected the conservative majority in some high-profile cases such as Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission of 2010, which opened the electoral process to unlimited private funding without full disclosure. Roberts sided with his fellow conservatives in those cases, while four justices considered to the left -- Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor and the now-retired Stevens -- supported the politically liberal stance. Since then, Elena Kagan, another perceived liberal, succeeded Stevens on the high court. The party affiliation of the president who nominated the justices matches the political affiliation now associated with each. Roberts, Alito, Thomas, Scalia and Kennedy all were put forward by Republicans, while Breyer, Ginsburg, Sotomayor and Kagan were nominated by Democrats. "The court is agreeing to hear many more controversial cases and rendering 5-4 rulings in these cases, which have the effect of politicizing its decision-making," Aron said, adding that "with Citizens United, the inside game has become much more apparent now to many more Americans." What the ruling means to you . Asked if Bush v. Gore had instigated the shift in public perception that the high court was politically motivated, Aron responded: "I think that's right." Severino, however, rejected the argument that a single ruling or set of rulings showed any particular political leaning by justices. Harsh reactions follow rulings in any high-profile case, she said, noting the continued public division over the Roe v. Wade decision in 1973 that legalized abortion. "The fact that a decision like Roe v. Wade was 7-2, something none of us would consider a close case ... and yet has continued to be possibly the most divisive case certainly in this last century by the court, I think that shows that it's not all about just the vote count," she said on the NPR program. "It's about the public perception of whether the court is really being political or is actually deciding based on the law." An even more one-sided ruling, the 9-0 decision on Brown v. Board of Education that ended school segregation in 1954, also prompted a public outcry, including calls to impeach then-Chief Justice Earl Warren, Aron noted. The desegregation ruling "galvanized a base of people particularly in the South who were very opposed to that," she said. She added that Roe v. Wade led to further right-wing dissatisfaction with the high court that manifested itself in the nominations of conservative justices by Republican Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush in the 1980s. Opinion: The Supreme Court punts . More recently, major rulings have followed the 5-4 breakdown, including the Parents v. Seattle School District and Meredith v. Jefferson Co. Board of Education affirmative action cases in 2007, the District of Columbia v. Heller gun control case in 2008 and the Citizens United case. Shortly after the Citizens United ruling, Obama added to the politicizing of Supreme Court issues by challenging the decision in his State of the Union address as six of the nine justices sat nearby in the packed Congress chamber. "With all due deference to separation of powers, last week the Supreme Court reversed a century of law that I believe will open the floodgates for special interests --- including foreign corporations --- to spend without limit in our elections," he said to applause. "I don't think American elections should be bankrolled by America's most powerful interests, or worse, by foreign entities." As Obama spoke, Alito appeared to mouth the words "not true." Severino, speaking to CNN before the health care rulings, questioned Obama's public criticism of the justices back then, saying the court's role is to decide if "a law is within the constitutional authority of the Congress" and nothing more. "We don't have a Supreme Court to gauge which way the country's going," Severino said. "We have an elected legislature for that." Rosen, however, said in the NPR interview that "if it's really a novel argument, and reasonable people can disagree, courts are supposed to defer to the political process and not second-guess it." CNN's Keating Holland and Bill Mears contributed to this report. | Thursday's health care ruling angers the political right .
Recent poll says public thinks justices base rulings on personal views, rather than the law .
Analyst: The Supreme Court gets dragged down by party politics in Washington .
Bush v. Gore case increased the perception of a politicized high court, analyst says . |
284,770 | fcfaef65deca3a42d902f97b55b59e8b4e857fff | Stone Roses frontman Ian Brown has claimed that TV weatherman and former biology teacher Fred Talbot played his class gay porn when he was 11. The 51-year-old singer was taught by Talbot at Altrincham Grammar School in Manchester in the late 1970s and also told a court that he gave masturbation practice as homework. Talbot, 65, denies 10 offences of indecent assault on five boys while working as a teacher between the late 1960s and the early 1980s and is on trial at Minshull Street Crown Court in Manchester. Ian Brown, pictured as he is driven from court today after giving evidence in the trial of Fred Talbot, his former teacher. He claims the TV weatherman showed his class gay porn when they were 11-years-old . Wearing trainers, jeans and an open-necked shirt, Mr Brown said the all-boys grammar school was a violent place - but Talbot was one of the few teachers who did not physically hurt pupils. He told the court he remembered 'in particular' two or three biology lessons given by Talbot when he was an 11-year-old boy. 'Very early at school, I would not have been there a long time, Mr Talbot asked all the class if any of us had ever masturbated,' he said. 'We were 11 years old at the time.' Mr Brown continued: 'He went on to explain how to masturbate, how you should masturbate and the following lesson he asked who had masturbated.' TV weatherman Fred Talbot, 65, denies indecent assault at the trial being held at Minshull Crown Court (pictured arriving at court today) Neil Usher, prosecuting, asked if there was any response from the boys. 'Nervous giggles,' Mr Brown said. 'He wanted to know who was successful in the masturbation. He asked boys to raise the hand.' Mr Brown said in further biology lessons, Talbot would approach the boys who had raised their hands - the ones with 'bum fluff on their lips' - and have 'private words' and 'murmuring' in their ears. The witness continued: 'I can remember sitting there wondering, "What is he saying to them?"' 'They were all the same age but they were a foot bigger than us.' Mr Brown, who attended the school between 1974 and 1979, then told the jury of a second memorable biology lesson with Talbot. He said the class went to the science block, but instead of the usual classroom went into another with a projector set up to show the class of 11-year-olds a film. Mr Brown said: 'A three minute film on a Super 8 projector, of a guy walking into a room dressed in denims, sits on bed, takes trousers down and masturbates. 'The film was about three minutes long. It was only a few years later I realised it was probably a gay porn film. It wasn't a sex education film. 'It was years later I realised it was wrong to show us that film.' Mr Usher asked how old the witness was at the time and the lead singer of the Manchester band, the Stone Roses, replied: 'Around 11. About the time you would have had sex education in school.' Mr Brown gave further evidence, much of which cannot be reported for legal reasons. Talbot became a TV regular on the floating weather map in Liverpool's Albert Dock for ITV's This Morning show after his teaching career had come to an 'abrupt end' in 1984. The jury heard he resigned his school job after allegedly propositioning a pupil at his home and the headmaster was informed. The 51-year-old singer was taught by Talbot at Altrincham Grammar School in Manchester in the late 1970s . Talbot became a TV regular on the floating weather map in Liverpool's Albert Dock for ITV's This Morning show after his teaching career had come to an 'abrupt end' in 1984 . But the court was told Talbot was a 'chancer' who used his 'boundless energy' and 'extrovert personality' to abuse some of the boys he taught, four of them teenage pupils. Talbot, of Bowdon, Cheshire, denies ten indecent assaults on boys as young as 14, dating back to 1969. The trial continues. Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article. | Ian Brown, 51, was taught by Fred Talbot at Altrincham Grammar School .
He told court he remembers a few lessons with his former teacher in 1970s .
In one he claims Talbot asked if they had masturbated and explained how .
Brown also claims he showed a three-minute gay porn movie in class .
Talbot, 65, denies 10 historic offences of indecent assault on five boys . |
257,458 | d9332386a561cae55e3a669b40b6e031845d5b8c | By . Sally Lee . It's been trying times for Australian Olympic swimming champion Ian Thorpe. The 31-year-old has been in deep waters since he was admitted to rehabilitation in January and has been undergoing treatment for his longtime battle with depression. But Thorpie is out from rehab and he's wasting no time getting back into the game. Scroll down for video . Australian Olympic swimming champion Ian Thorpe is out of rehab and is expected to head over to the Commonwealth Games in Scotland in July. He is pictured in May after being released from hospital and being treated for a superbug infection following shoulder surgery . The Olympian is expected to attend the Commonwealth Games in Scotland next month after signing a deal with Channel Ten, reported The Sunday Telegraph. Thorpe's manager is in negotiations with Channel Ten and European networks as he's taken up commentating roles at the swimming. Ten will be announcing the news within the next fortnight and it is believed that Thorpe will work alongside fellow swim star Nicole Livingstone on the network's coverage of the games. 'That's great news that Ian is better,' Livingstone said. 'That's what we've all been hoping for.' The five-time gold medalist spent three weeks in an intensive care ward in May after being treated for an infection he caught while undergoing shoulder surgery. Will Erskine, from his management company, said Thorpe is 'in a great head space and doing really well again'. The 31-year-old has reportedly taken up commentating roles for at the swimming at the Commonwealth Games . 'He's getting back into work and getting out and about and in the next couple of months he'll be travelling overseas. It's business as usual. There are a number of opportunities we are looking at case by case,' he said. The swimming great recently attended his grandfather's funeral in Padstow where he had his arm in a sling from his shoulder operation. Erskine said Thorpe will require further surgery on his shoulder. 'They had to take the pins and plates out from the original operation to get rid of an infection,' he said. 'At some stage there will be another operation to put them back in.' Thorpe has been regaining his fitness with the help of his friend and trainer Christian Miranda, who did not want to comment about the swimmer's progress. The former athlete will ease his way back into the social scene but will be avoiding parties and alcohol. 'Ian's in a great head space and doing really well again,' Will Erskine, from Thorpe's management company, said . | Ian Thorpe is out of rehabilitation after he was admitted in January for suffering a breakdown .
The 31-year-old has fought a well-documented battle with depression .
The Australian Olympic swimmer spent three weeks in an intensive care ward in May after being treated for an infection he caught from shoulder surgery .
He has reportedly signed a deal with Channel Ten and European networks to commentate on the swimming at the Commonwealth Games in Scotland in July .
It is believed that Thorpe will work alongside fellow swim star Nicole Livingstone . |
41,020 | 73ae5fe255b5f4dddf8cbad1e8f89ebbe2296efe | Human remains found on a remote Alaska island have been identified as those of a missing French adventurer, Alaska State Troopers said. Francois Guenot, 32, dubbed 'the crazy Frenchman', vanished in May after embarking on a kayaking trip, Alaska Dispatch News reported. His destination was Perryville, a small community hundreds of miles away from Kokhanok on the Alaska Peninsula. The remains of the 32-year-old man were found in September on Shuyak Island north of Kodiak. The state medical examiner's office identified the remains using dental records, troopers said Wednesday. Mystery: Francois Guenot was last seen in Kohanok on the Alaska Peninsula and planned to kayak hundreds of miles to Perryville. Remains found on Shuhak Island in September have been identified as his body . Guenot, from Maiche, France, began appearing last year in southwest Alaska villages. He told people he had walked, canoed and bicycled across Canada and through Alaska, and planned to reach Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula. He was last seen in early May near Kokhanok and friends last heard from him late that month, when he was near Kamishak Bay, on the coast of Katmai National Park and Preserve. A kayak believed to be Guenot's was found by Katmai park rangers in June, and a waterproof bag was found 3 miles away. The kayak contained identification, food and maps, as well as an array of personal journals, according to rangers at the park, which is home to Alaskan brown bears. His last journal entry was dated June 15. The Coast Guard launched a brief search of the area but found no sign of the missing man. Guenot's father and brother arrived in Alaska in August to press authorities to continue searching. They reasoned that survival items such as a compass, tarp and knife were not among the items found. A volunteer cleaning up marine debris on the beach at Shuyak Island found the remains, which were wearing a rain jacket, chest waders and gloves. Wilderness: The 32-year-old's red-and-white kayak, containing his possessions, was discovered on a beach along Shelikof Strait off Cape Douglas (pictured), around 200 miles south-west of Anchorage, in June . Mr Guenot, who worked as a ski instructor in Maiche, had spent more than two years trekking across Canada before venturing to Alaska. He arrived in Canada in the summer of 2011 to begin his trek across North America, which included several misadventures, including falling into a river in the winter. He eventually made his way to Fairbanks, where he found a bike at the dump and rode it to Homer, before venturing to Seldovia, where he found two kayaks and made them into one seaworthy vessel. In . January . 2012, he told Yukon News that he dreamed of adventure in the wilds of Canada and Alaska, . saying: 'I don't want to stay like a dog on a leash in France.' Treacherous: The adventurer is believed to have been making his way from Kokhanok to Perryville. Katmai National Park ranger Wendy Artz said the land between the two villages in home to more bears than people . After showing up in south-west Alaska, Mr Guenot befriended Kokhanok resident Gary Nielsen and lived on his property in a tent. When it was too cold to sleep outside, Mr Nielsen said the explorer - who earned his nickname based on his ultimate goal to reach the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia - would sleep in a steam bath. He added that Mr Guenot had set off in May, telling him that he was going to Perryville, but had seemed to have trouble comprehending the great distances involved in travelling Alaska. Earlier this year, the adventurer had spent three weeks walking around Lake Iliamna during spring break up, but somehow came back in one piece, he said. Meanwhile, another of Mr Guenot's friends, Jim Tilley of Intricate Bay, said many locals were concerned about him, telling the Daily News: 'He was just aloof to the dangers of Alaska.' Mr Neilsen said Mr Guenot had been planning to meet up with friends on July 19 when he vanished. 'If we hear nothing by the end of July, he's probably dead,' he added. | Francois Guenot, 32, vanished as he explored Alaskan wilderness in May .
His red and white kayak was discovered on beach off Cape Douglas in June .
It contained his identification, food and maps, as well as personal journals .
Remains were found on Shuyak Island, north of Kodiak, in September .
They have now been identified using dental records .
Explorer arrived in south Alaska last year after spending two years trekking across Canada . |
200,822 | 8ff96f1b3b18a804a460871afaa4497b0ccf9199 | By . Brendan Carlin, Mail on Sunday Political Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 16:14 EST, 26 October 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 16:15 EST, 26 October 2013 . Criticised: John Bercow came under fire last night over the £7million plan for classrooms in Parliament . Speaker John Bercow came under fire last night over a £7million plan for classrooms in Parliament. He is backing plans for a new education centre dubbed ‘Bercow’s Folly’ to encourage thousands more schoolchildren to visit the Commons. But the centre, earmarked for land next to the Palace of Westminster overlooking the Thames, will cost £1 million a year to run on top of the £7million building costs. And some MPs say the scheme cannot be justified while taxpayers are still tightening their belts. Tory MP Jake Berry, parliamentary aide to Conservative Party Chairman Grant Shapps, said: ‘Squandering this amount of taxpayers’ money on classrooms is outrageous. 'At a time when Parliament itself is reducing its running costs, it is beyond belief.’ The Speaker last night hit back, with officials saying the education centre idea has already been ‘unanimously’ backed by key MPs. The row erupted after the Commons finance committee – meeting behind closed doors – was shown detailed plans for the education centre. MPs heard it involved building a classroom complex next to the House of Lords, complete with a new security entrance. It would be a temporary structure because the entire Palace could be refurbished in 10 years’ time and the centre might need to be relocated. The aim is to more than double the current 45,000-a-year visits to Parliament by schoolchildren and students. But three Tory MPs present at the finance meeting asked to be recorded as opposing the plan. Concern: MPs Jake Berry, left, and Barry Sheerman, right, have questioned whether the project is justified . The Mail on Sunday understands that . they thought it was a ‘nice idea’ – but also argued it was inappropriate . when Parliament itself was cutting its budget. The . MPs have declined to comment but Mr Berry, who is not a member of the . finance committee, openly said the project should be ditched. Labour MP Barry Sheerman, former chairman of the Commons education committee, also questioned whether it was justified. He said: ‘I support improving facilities for schoolchildren. But when services to MPs themselves are being cut back, we have to review going ahead with this scheme.’ Last night, a spokesman for Mr Bercow said the principle of creating a dedicated education centre had already been ‘unanimously approved’ by the ruling House of Commons Commission. He said the plan would allow an extra 55,000 young people a year to visit Parliament. The spokesman said: ‘Involving and enthusing young people in this way is key to addressing currently low levels of democratic engagement.’ The row comes after Mr Bercow enraged Tory MPs last week by rebuking David Cameron after he called Ed Miliband ‘a conman’ at Prime Minister’s Questions. However, other MPs insist Mr Bercow was right to rule that Mr Cameron’s ‘conman’ jibe was unparliamentary. | John Bercow is backing plans for the new £7million education centre .
It is earmarked for land next to the Palace of Westminster, near the Thames .
MPs say the scheme cannot be justified in the current economic climate . |
197,907 | 8c28df026931c8de0496e25e728f390077fcc555 | By . Ray Massey . PUBLISHED: . 19:09 EST, 6 January 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 03:34 EST, 7 January 2014 . A driver has clocked up a record 45 penalty points on his licence in a nine-month offending spree yet is still on the road, damning new figures reveal today. The motorist, from Liverpool, got the points for eight offences of either failing to disclose the identity of the driver or for speeding between October 1 2012 and June 20 2013. His total exceeded the previous record of 42 points according to the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) which obtained figures from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) following a Freedom of Information Act request. A driver has clocked up a record 45 penalty points on his licence in a nine-month offending spree yet is still on the road (stock picture) Drivers who get 12 points within three years can be disqualified. But the new figures show that nine drivers have clocked up 30 points or more. And more than 7,000 have 12 points or more. The new official Government figures have outraged motoring groups and road safety campaigners who say it makes a mockery of penalty points system, bringing it ‘into disrepute’. They say the ministers at the Department for Transport and Ministry of Justice must act to clamp down on the scandal which is leaving potentially dangerous drivers unpunished on the nation’s roads. The IAM said poor communication between the Government’s DVLA and the courts - particularly when drivers clocked up repeat points over a short time - and a tendency for courts to take ‘hardship’ stories into account means thousands of drivers are still on the road despite exceeding the 12-point limit. The figures obtained by the IAM showed: . The figures have outraged motoring groups and road safety campaigners who say it makes a mockery of penalty points system . Failing to give the identity of the owner, speeding, and driving uninsured were the most common reasons for points, said the IAM. Normally a driver facing 12 points will be subject to an automatic six-month ban - unless they can prove it would cause exceptional hardship. A court decides if a driver is banned or has special reasons to be allowed to stay behind the wheel. The DVLA said courts can exercise discretion and not disqualify in a small percentage of cases where a driver has accumulated 12 or more points. Some drivers given points for failing to disclose the driver had argued that a series of different people had test-driven their the car ahead of a sale and they didn’t know who was at the wheel at the time of the offence, said the IAM. The figures show nine drivers have clocked up 30-plus points. And more than 7,000 have 12 points or more . The issue of who was driving when an offence is committed is controversial and can escalate. HM Courts & Tribunals Service say the ‘vast majority’ of drivers who get 12 or more penalty points are fined and disqualified from driving but notes: ‘Magistrates can use their discretion to not enforce a driving ban if doing so would cause exceptional hardship, such as losing a job or the ability to care for a dependant. A fine will still be enforced. Only a very small number of cases are affected by the data-sharing issue and we are working closely with DVLA to improve this.’ A DVLA spokesman said: ‘The DVLA’s role is to record the information provided by the courts. The courts are able to use their discretion to decide whether or not to disqualify a driver.’ | Motorist, from Liverpool, got the points for eight offences of either failing to disclose the identity of the driver or for speeding .
Institute of Advanced Motorists: Total exceeded previous record, 42 points .
Drivers who get 12 points within three years can be disqualified .
The second-highest points total, 36, went to a man from Warrington, Cheshire, who was caught driving without insurance six times in less than two weeks between February and March 2012 .
A woman from Lincoln with 34 points, who was caught speeding three times and failed to give information to identify the driver four times between January 2012 and September 2012 .
A woman from Hull with 31 points, who was caught speeding eight times in two months between September and November 2011 .
A man from Westcliff-on-Sea in Essex , with 30 points, who was caught speeding six times in just two weeks, between September 30 and October 13 2012. |
204,069 | 942cbb169d928249d1f6254237ccf001cd383348 | Queen Victoria once wrote that it was 'impossible to imagine a prettier spot' than her beloved Osborne House. And now two luxury cottages are opening in the grounds of the long-reigning monarch's favourite holiday spot in the Isle of Wight. The two cottages are located at Sovereign Gate, the ceremonial entrance to the royal house once used exclusively by Queen Victoria and her family as well as visiting lords, ladies and heads of state. Now: English Heritage are opening up two luxury cottages within Sovereign Gate at Osborne . Then: Queen Victoria's staff in front of Sovereign's Gate at Osborne on the Isle of Wight . The two self-catering cottages sleep up to four people each and retain original features such as high ceilings, fireplaces and sash windows. Decorated in a muted manner they are comfortable with sparkling kitchens and bathrooms and surrounded by history. From this month guests can book a three, four or seven night stay at Sovereign Gate, with rates starting from £402 for a three-night weekend stay. Wander around Osborne's grounds, Queen Victoria's private beach and gardens, or enjoy free entry to other English Heritage sites on the Isle of Wight. The two self-catering cottages sleep up to four people each and retain many original features and fireplaces . A copy of design drawings of Sovereign's Gate (left) from the 1800s and a bathroom today (right) Downstairs sitting room at gatehouse. Decorated in muted manner they're comfortable and steeped in history . Queen Victoria and family at Osborne. Osborne House was commissioned in the 1840s by Prince Albert . Wander around the grounds, Queen Victoria's private beach and gardens during your stay at the cottages . Osborne House was commissioned in the 1840s by Prince Albert as a seaside retreat for Queen Victoria and their children. Sovereign's Gate was the proud entrance designed to impress visiting dignitaries including Emperor Napoleon III, Tsar Nicholas and the Royal family itself. The gate was also the site of departures, and none more dramatic than Queen Victoria's final journey from Osborne, after her death in 1901. It was through Sovereign's Gate that the Queen left her seaside home for the last time, and where the crowds outside had their first glimpse of her funeral cortege. Queen Victoria with her family in the grounds at Osborne. Rates now start at £402 for a three night stay . Sovereign's Gate was designed to impress visiting dignitaries such as Napoleon III and Tsar Nicholas . Tim Rogers, English Heritage Holiday Cottages Manager said: 'We are delighted to launch two luxury English Heritage holiday cottages in the stunning, historic location of Osborne. 'From this week visitors will have the chance to retrace Queen Victoria's footsteps staying within the exclusive Sovereign's Gate and enjoying exclusive access to her private estate. A sparkling kitchen on the downstairs floor in one of the two cottages which is now available to rent . It was through Sovereign's Gate that the Queen left her seaside home for the last time . 'Osborne House was one of Queen Victoria's favourite family homes and she once exclaimed that 'it was impossible to imagine a prettier spot.' We hope visitors will also enjoy the peaceful setting and take their place in the island's royal history.' English Heritage offers a collection of 18 historic holiday cottages across the country ranging from a 13th century tower at Dover Castle to lodges overlooking the iconic settings of Rievaulx Abbey and Pendennis Castle. | English Heritage opens up cottages in Sovereign Gate at Osborne House .
Two cottages can sleep up to four people each and were built in 1840s .
A ceremonial entrance for Queen Victoria's royal house on Isle of Wight .
Rates start at £402 for a three night weekend stay . |
148,846 | 4c7ad4856ee3d98ff359bd33e741905e94ff9105 | An animal sanctuary in Australia has a found novel way of utilising cleaning cloths – using them as blankets for injured bats. The Australian Bat Clinic and Wildlife Trauma Center near the Gold Coast uses the yellow dusters to comfort orphaned pups. A video has been released showing worker Trish Wimberley binding up the bats at the facility in Queensland. According to a spokesperson for the facility, the blankets are used to pacify the bats, which have been separated from their mother at a young age. An animal sanctuary in Australia has a found novel way of utilising cleaning cloths – using them as blankets for injured bats . The Australian Bat Clinic and Wildlife Trauma Centre near the Gold Coast uses the yellow dusters to comfort orphaned pups . The seven bats in this video were separated from their mothers during a recent extreme heat wave that killed thousands of bats in eastern Australia. The clinic looks after hundreds of orphaned baby bats and rears them until they can be released into the wild. The seven bats in this video were separated from their mothers during a recent extreme heat wave that killed thousands of bats in eastern Australia. The caregivers refer to the animals as ‘little flying foxes’ and work to ensure that the orphans are well fed and nurtured, with her typical day consisting of feeding the bats and carrying out health checks. | Australian Bat Clinic and Wildlife Trauma Centre cares for orphaned bats .
The yellow cleaning cloths are used to comfort the animals .
The animals are eventually released back into the wild when they are well .
Were orphaned during a recent heat wave that killed thousands of bats . |
66,190 | bbd0244e9c479049bcf9cc3a7c86f55f9bde4e35 | Danger zone: Chiwetel Ejiofor came close to whipping a fellow actor for real during the filming of 12 Years A Slave . Chiwetel Ejiofor remembered that for such a dark moment it was a very hot, beautiful day ‘and blue sky as far as the eye could see’. The award-winning actor was in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, where he had to act in a scene for Steve McQueen’s masterpiece, 12 Years A Slave. Chiwetel portrays the real-life Solomon Northup, a freeman who was abducted and sold into slavery. All of a sudden, every-thing he’d held dear — his wife, his children, his name and his freedom — were stripped from him. He was someone else’s property. The scene I’m referring to involves Michael Fassbender as Edwin Epps — a cruel, Bible-quoting plantation owner — Chiwetel’s Solomon and Patsey (played by Lupita Nyong’o), known as the Cotton Queen for her high cotton-picking yields, who is forced to satisfy ‘the predilections and peculiarities’ of Epps at any time of the day and night. In this particular scene, Epps wants Patsey flayed alive — and demands Solomon does it. ‘When Solomon describes the beating of Patsey in his book, he feels that nowhere else in the world was there a darker moment happening,’ Chiwetel told me. We were talking in London on Monday about the making of the film, which has received seven Golden Globe nominations and is expected to haul in many more when Bafta and Oscar categories are revealed next month. ‘I remember I rode in with Lupito that day. It was early and we had a conversation about it,’ he said. During shooting, a stunt man monitored the whipping and marked an area that Chiwetel and Fassbender could not cross. ‘It was very technical. If you stepped across the mark, you would be in the danger zone and Lupita would have been lashed for real. Dark: In one scene Chiwetel's character is made by Edwin Epps, played by Michael Fassbender, to beat one of his fellow slaves . ‘Of course, we never got that close. We just did the best we could to recreate the dark moment.’ When Solomon is abducted, Chiwetel, too, was beaten — whacked with a wooden paddle until it splintered for real. ‘There was no way of avoiding that. You couldn’t tell the story without showing what the psychological humiliation was,’ he said. Yet, strangely, in a way the film is a love story. The yearning and longing Solomon has for his family is raw. ‘It’s about how powerful the connection we have to our family and the ones we love, and how when that’s disrupted it creates a whole other kind of fire,’ Chiwetel told me. Drama: Chiwetel's character Solomon with his fellow slave Patsey, played by Lupita Nyong'o . ‘Solomon doesn’t want to survive — he wants to live. ‘It’s that belief that he will see his loved ones again that helps him. It’s also part of what puts him in danger of losing his mind.’ That the actor can convey such a complex set of emotions without going over the top marks his performance as the best of his career so far in the hottest picture of this year — and probably the next one, too. It opens here on January 10. Don’t miss it. Rising star: Alicia Vikander, the fast-rising Swedish-born actress, will portray World War I writer and pacifist Vera Brittain in a film based on her seminal memoir A Testament Of Youth . Alicia Vikander, the fast-rising Swedish-born actress, will portray World War I writer and pacifist Vera Brittain in a film based on her seminal memoir A Testament Of Youth. It is about the generation — including Brittain’s brother, fiancé and other close friends — who lost their lives during the Great War. The movie — which is being produced by David Heyman and BBC Films — will go before cameras in the spring to be ready for a Remembrance Sunday release next year, which also marks the 100th anniversary of the start of the war. Brittain’s book also chronicles her own battles with her father over her determination to go to university, as her brother had. By 1915, she felt compelled to do what she could to help the war effort, so Brittain (the mother of Liberal Democrat politician Shirley Williams), joined the Voluntary Aid Detachment to tend those who had been wounded at the front. But more than anything, it’s a heart-breaking story of the once-gilded youth hurled into what war poet Wilfred Owen called the ‘scorching cautery’ of war. By the time of the Armistice in 1918, Brittain had lost her brother, Edward, her fiancé, Roland Leighton, and close family friends Geoffrey Thurlow and Victor Richards. Brittain’s memoir, published in 1933, became an instant classic, but during World War II its pacifist sensibility was frowned upon. However, the BBC produced an acclaimed five-part drama which pushed the book onto the bestseller list. Reading it again now, it makes you demand to know why our fighting men were sent to Iraq and Afghanistan. Ms Vikander has just finished work on Guy Ritchie’s The Man From U.N.C.L.E. and Alex Garland’s mad scientist drama Ex Machina. Winner: Alicia Vikander receives the Best Performance by an Actress award for 'Hotell' from Marion Cotillard and Golshifteh Farahani at the Marrakech International Film Festival . After she completes Testament Of Youth for director James Kent (his TV drama The Thirteenth Tale with Vanessa Redgrave and Olivia Colman is being shown on BBC2 on New Year’s Eve), she will move onto the long-awaited movie Tulip Fever, with Justin Chadwick (who made the Mandela movie) as director. Dane DeHaan will be her leading man in Tulip Fever, while Christoph Waltz and Bill Nighy are being discussed for the other main male role, though it depends on dates as to which one will do it. Talking of dates, it had been hoped that Saoirse Ronan, star of Hanna, would portray Vera Brittain. But she is due to start another movie, Brooklyn, at the same time Testament Of Youth will be shooting. Refreshing: Oscar Isaac plays a musician who is an anti-star in the new Coen Brothers movie Inside Llewyn Davis . Oscar Isaac (right) plays a musician who’s an anti-star in the new Coen Brothers movie. ‘He’s very working-class, he’s happy doing his own thing, he doesn’t want fame and he’s not manicured or manufactured,’ Oscar said of the title role he plays in Inside Llewyn Davis, the luminous new movie by Joel and Ethan Coen, which opens here on January 24. That’s probably one of the reasons I love the movie so much, because Llewyn Davis disdains the very idea of marketing himself. He just wants to play his guitar, sing and get into trouble. ‘It’s so refreshing, about someone who refuses to be socially and commercially manufactured,’ Oscar told me. The film is set in the Sixties when there was a converging of traditional American music with the sounds coming out of the beat generation. Anyone for Dylan? Well, Llewyn Davis, who has nowhere to live and is a shambles, is the anti-Dylan. ‘He’s a rebellious artist. He’s a miserable f***,’ Oscar said.Yet he’s fascinating. I’ve seen the film three times in six months and never tire of it. Carey Mulligan is Jean, a singer married to a fellow performer played by Justin Timberlake — but Llewyn Davis has cuckolded Timberlake’s character. At one point, Jean snarls at Llewyn: ‘Everything you touch turns to s***. You’re like King Midas’s idiot brother’. It’s a put-down that sticks. During the first week of filming, all the cast waited for the Coen brothers’ approval after each take. ‘We’re used to having our egos stroked,’ Oscar said. When it wasn’t forthcoming, some thought they were going to be fired, but later realised the Coens don’t waste precious time massaging egos. So, in case no one told him: Oscar, your performance is sensational. | Actor Chiwetel Ejiofor stars in new Steve McQueen 'masterpiece'
In one scene Ejiofor's character Solomon is made to beat fellow slave Patsey .
Ejiofor and co-star Michael Fassbender were monitored by stunt man .
Actor was also hit with a wooden panel until it splintered for real . |
132,484 | 375257f7bf16fe65a104cc709d58ee2cf2fe79ac | It has long been seen as a relaxed holiday destination where the sun shines on Krabi and 'Full Moon' parties fill the popular beaches of Phuket with happy revellers. But the image of Thailand as an easy-going travel hotspot is under threat amid a growing number of cases of tourists being stopped and questioned by officials in Bangkok. Overseas visitors exploring the country's exotic capital city have been increasingly complaining of harassment from police officers on the main avenue Sukhumvit Road. Visible presence: Thailand has been under martial law since a military coup d'etat at the end of May . The Sydney Morning Herald has reported incidents of Australian tourists being pulled over at this busy heart of the city, and asked to show their passports. Others have been subjected to random searches, being told to open their bags and take out their belongings – or even asked to submit a urine sample for drugs tests. Disturbingly, there are reported cases of travellers being given on-the-spot fines that have to be paid immediately, and in cash. The Bangkok Post also reported the concerns of one unnamed tourist who witnessed the random search policy at first hand. At the heart of the matter: Sukhumvit Road is the key artery in the middle of the Thai capital Bangkok . 'They were thoroughly searching tourists and their belongings, asking them to produce passports,' the unidentified traveller said. 'Many of these unfortunate souls were then detained, and I saw them paying money to officials. One girl was reduced to tears and was very obviously upset.' The reports add to fears that Thailand is becoming a less hospitable country for tourists. The country is currently under martial law in the wake of a coup d'etat which saw the military take control of the government last May. Immensely popular: The Sukhumvit district of Bangkok is home to numerous bars which cater to tourists . The takeover was preceded by a wave of protests and demonstrations, particularly in Bangkok, which has been a regular scene of upheaval in the last five years. In November, Paiboon Koomchaya, the current Thai Justice Minister, announced that martial law could stay in place indefinitely. Martial law gives the Thai officials wide-scale powers, including the right to stop and search. Flashpoint: Bangkok has been the scene of sometimes violent political demonstrations in recent years . 'We are not saying that martial law will stay in place for 50 years,' said General Paiboon. 'No, this is not it. We just ask that it remain in place for now, indefinitely.' 'Am I happy? No, I'm not,' he continued. The longer [martial law] is in place, the more unhappy I become. Yet, it's necessary. 'Today, priority must be given to the future of the country. Conflict and social disparity must be stopped.' Conflagration: An anti-government protester pictured in front of soldiers in February - before the coup d'etat . The issue of travellers being targetted by police has not escaped the attention of British officials. Mark Kent, the British ambassador in Thailand, tweeted last week that he has raised the issue with the tourism authorities in Bangkok. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) advises British tourists to take care in Thailand. 'Martial law is in place and provides an enabling framework for the Royal Thai Army to take action it deems necessary to enforce law and order,' it explains. 'Before the military coup, there were large-scale demonstrations and protests in Bangkok and other cities. You should avoid any political gatherings, demonstrations or marches.' Clampdown: Former army officer Prayuth Chan-ocha has been the Thai prime minister since May's coup . Potential visitors are also warned that freedom of speech is very much constrained in Thailand under the current regime. 'A number of media outlets have been taken off air and some internet sites remain blocked,' the advice continues. 'It is illegal to criticise the coup, and you should be wary of making political statements in public. You should monitor local news and social media for developments. 'Before travelling to Thailand, check with your insurance provider that they will continue to cover for claims arising from the current political situation. 'Some travel insurance policies exclude cover following a military coup or the imposition of martial law, and your insurance may be invalid.' | Rising number of reports of Thai police being heavy-handed with tourists .
Travellers in Bangkok have been stopped by officials and issued with fines .
Thailand has been under strict military rule since a coup d'etat last May .
Martial law is in place in the capital city, and is set to continue 'indefinitely' |
87,559 | f8710799b9c6e8ebf186459d008dcf4a1887312b | Dallas (CNN)Kisha Bell walks into the Neighborhood Medical Center in Dallas complaining of abdominal pain. But she has a much more pressing concern weighing on her mind. "Ebola -- can you tell me, I guess, as far as like the symptoms?" she asks the doctor. Ebola isn't spreading across the United States, but anxiety about the virus certainly is. The epicenter is Dallas, where the country's first diagnosis and the first transmissions of Ebola were made. Before this month, Dr. Martin McElya said he's never been asked about Ebola. Now he's fielding a wave of questions. "I say, 'You're not going to get it from someone who sneezes across the room, or because you're sharing an airspace," McElya said. "It's going to require more of an intimate contact, and people seem relieved by that fact." 2nd health care worker tests positive for Ebola at Dallas hospital . False alarms galore . But in the sky and on the ground, the fear persists. And with the news Wednesday that a second health care worker tested positive for the virus at the Dallas hospital while tending to the now-deceased Ebola patient Thomas Eric Duncan, those fears are magnifying. Five people with flu-like symptoms on a flight from Dubai to Boston were examined by workers in hazmat gear upon landing. It turns out none had the criteria for Ebola or had visited West Africa. At Los Angeles International Airport, 40 firefighters responded to a plane from New York when a passenger had flu-like symptoms. "It has turned out that there was some miscommunication," Los Angeles Fire Department Capt. Jaime Moore said. "This patient had been to the continent of Africa, but not near West Africa. As a matter of fact, it was South Africa." And a hoaxter wearing a mask in Los Angeles exited a city bus saying, "Don't mess with me, I have Ebola." The bus driver was rushed to a hospital. And police begin a manhunt. Spreading misinformation . On top of the false alarms, high-profile voices have spread misinformation about the disease. Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal told the Marietta Daily Journal that the state's public health commission told him that "water kills the Ebola virus" and that her advice was to "wash your hands." In fact, water alone does not kill Ebola. Chlorine and bleach do. And singer Chris Brown suggested to his 13.7 million Twitter followers that the Ebola outbreak is intentional. "I don't know ... But I think this Ebola epidemic is a form of population control," he tweeted. "(Expletive) is getting crazy bruh." According to a Washington Post/ABC News poll, 65% of Americans are somewhat or very concerned about the possibility of a widespread Ebola epidemic in the United States. Perry heads to Europe despite Ebola situation . Eleven beds for the entire country . But some worry is understandable. Of the thousands of hospitals in the United States, only four have biocontainment units and years of preparation in handling highly infectious disease like Ebola. But between those four hospitals, there are only about 19 beds in the specialized areas: 10 at Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha; three at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta; three at Rocky Mountain Laboratories in Montana; and an estimated three at National Institutes of Health in Maryland. Even the count of 19 beds may be deceiving, CNN's Drew Griffin said. "The center director in Omaha says his staff could only realistically handle no more than two Ebola patients at a time," Griffin said. "That's because of the danger, the staffing and the waste removal necessary when you're treating any Ebola patient." So that essentially means 11 beds for the entire country. That, coupled with a slew of complaints from a nursing union, may seem troubling. After nurse Nina Pham contracted Ebola while treating an Ebola patient, National Nurses United said there was no protocol in place on how to take care of such patients at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas. On Wednesday, Texas state health officials said a second health care worker at the same hospital has tested positive for Ebola. Reasons to calm down . But in the end, it's extremely difficult to get Ebola in the United States. Unlike a cold or the flu, Ebola can't be spread until an infected person shows symptoms. And transmission requires direct contact with that person's bodily fluids. Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell sought a temporary restraining order to block the disposal of incinerated waste from an Ebola patient's personal items at a Louisiana landfill. But it's impossible to spread Ebola through anything that has been burned, infectious waste expert Dr. Gavin Macgregor-Skinner said. "Incineration is going to kill the virus," he said. "That virus is dead. Now it is not infectious, it has no risk -- zero risk -- to the environment, to people, to anyone." The United States is far better off than the three countries grappling the most with Ebola -- Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea -- where thousands of people have died from the virus this year. Despite fledgling protocols on Ebola at American hospitals, medical facilities are better in the U.S. Remember the anthrax scare? Yet this kind of anxiety isn't new to the United States. Just take the anthrax scare from a decade ago. "For a little while, people were freaking out about white powder, and that was costly," risk communications expert Peter Sandman said. "People don't freak out about white powder anymore. They're used to that risk, and they take it in stride. People will take this one in stride, too but it takes a while." Opinion: Ebola highlights public health crisis . A run on supplies . Back in Dallas, some medical supply stores have seen a spike in sales. Jennifer Wilson of One Source Medical Solutions say the big sellers are the three Gs: goggles, gloves and isolation gown. "Typically, we only have purchases from clinicians," she said. "We have everyday people coming in, saying, 'I just want to have them just in case.'" At the Neighborhood Medical Center, McElya examines Bell. "So, tell me. What makes the pain worse?" "I think when I have something spicy," she replies. It turns out Bell doesn't have Ebola. She'll be getting tested for a possible gallbladder condition. CNN's Gary Tuchman reported from Dallas; Kyung Lah from Los Angeles; and Holly Yan reported and wrote from Atlanta. CNN's Jake Tapper, Drew Griffin and Catherine E. Shoichet contributed to this report. | A Dallas doctor says he has many patients asking him about Ebola symptoms .
A slew of false alarms in the past week have raised concerns .
There are less than 19 beds ready for Ebola patients in specially-trained hospitals . |
203,123 | 92f95351ccaa8e1b487e54b11e67ada4108e618e | The former German chancellor Helmut Kohl branded the marriage of Prince Charles and Princess Diana 'idiotic', an explosive new book has claimed. The 84-year-old, who led Germany from 1982 to 1998, also added that had Diana become queen immediately, she 'would have done her bit in bed'. It has also emerged he described Prince Philip as a 'blockhead' and accused former prime minister Margaret Thatcher of falling asleep at meetings. Scroll down for video . Former German chancellor Helmut Kohl pictured at a book signing event in 2005. An explosive new book about him has been published by journalist Heribert Schwan . In the book, Mr Kohl says the marriage of Prince Charles and Princess Diana was an 'absolutely idiotic' affair . The claims come in a controversial book by by journalist Heribert Schwan and is based on extensive interviews with the former chancellor. According to the book, Mr Kohl told Mr Schwan that while Prince Charles was 'entirely friendly', he was unimpressed with his marriage to Diana Spencer in 1981. He said: 'Her marriage was an absolutely idiotic affair. 'Had she become queen immediately she would have done her bit in bed, created three princes and her duty to the nation would have been fulfilled. But like this she had to travel around, talk to mayors and so on and then she withered away.' The royal family also comes in for more criticism with Prince Philip described as a 'blockhead'. The former chancellor also criticises the behaviour of Prince Philip, pictured with the Queen, describing him as a 'blockhead' The book also accuses Margaret Thatcher of falling asleep during meetings saying she would 'doze off during summits' Mr Kohl, who has retreated from public life in recent years, had instructed lawyers to halt the publication, of 'Legacy: the Kohl transcripts'. Mr Schwan had been asked to write the former chancellor's memoirs and had already conducted more than 600 hours of taped interviews between 2001 and 2002 when the pair fell out. Earlier this year, a court told the journalist he must return the tapes, but he was able to delay handing them over until he was able to make full transcripts of the conversations, and published the book without Mr Kohl's permission. Meanwhile the book also features Mr Kohl's views on other former world leaders, including Margaret Thatcher. In one interview he recalled how the former prime minister would 'doze off during summits and nearly fall of her chair, clutching her handbag.' He claimed that former US president Bill Clinton, pictured, could not focus his mind because he was too busy dealing with the Monica Lewinsky affair . He also spoke about former US president Bill Clinton, saying he could not focus his mind, because he was too busy dealing with the Monica Lewinsky scandal. Meanwhile he has also claimed that current German chancellor Angela Merkel could 'barely hold a knife and fork properly' while saying that at state dinners, 'she loitered around so much I had to repeatedly tell her to pull herself together.' But the co-author of the book has defended its publication saying it shows Mr Kohl is a man with a sense of humour. In recent years, Mr Kohl, who has retreated from public life since suffering a bad fall and lives with his 50-year-old wife. | Claims come in an explosive new book based on interviews with Mr Kohl .
Says that Charles and Diana's marriage was an 'absolutely idiotic affair'
Also criticises Prince Philip's behaviour and describes him as a 'blockhead'
Accuses Margaret Thatcher of falling asleep at summits holding her handbag .
Says Bill Clinton found it hard to focus his mind due to Lewinsky affair .
Book was released despite attempts by Mr Kohl to halt its publication . |
7,614 | 1592ce31f17ca9b89837381f9053f7e411a35204 | By . Jill Reilly . PUBLISHED: . 03:23 EST, 23 May 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 06:09 EST, 23 May 2013 . A video has emerged of terrifying moment a tornado hit an elementary school in Oklahoma. As they huddle in a bathroom, teachers can be heard trying to reassure their terrified students as the twister tears up Briarwood Elementary, one of schools hit by Monday's twister. The clip starts with teacher Robin Dziedzic filming in a pitch black bathroom with her students as they try to seek shelter. Horrifying: As they huddle in a bathroom, teachers can be heard trying to reassure their terrified students as they twister tears up Briarwood Elementary, one of two Oklahoma City-area schools hit by Monday's twister . Mayhem: The school corridor after being ripped apart by the twister - no-one at the school was killed . Dawning: A classroom which less than an hour before was in pristine condition is now wrecked . The only source of light is from a bulb in the corner of the room. Mrs Dziedzic, a fifth grade teacher, can be heard trying to reassure the terrified students telling them: 'It's almost over, it's almost over.' A student cries out 'I hate this' as the 200pmh winds swirl outside the tiny room. 'Keep your heads down,' instructs one of the teachers as the air pushes down on the students. Carnage: The first site Robin Dziedzic sees after emerging from the pitch black bathroom . Transformation: Dazed students wander the corridor, shocked at the change in the school . Obliterated: As the teachers and students emerge from the school, the full scale of the devastation can be seen . Dazed: Shocked and teary students stand outside the school as the carnage in revealed . Reunited: Mrs Dziedzic finds her son Sam, a first grader, who also attended the school . As the full force of the tornado rips through the school, cries of terror and screams can be heard from the students. The video, filmed on a cellphone, . then shows the students emerging from the darkness and seeing for the . first time the full scale of devastation. The school corridor is strewn with . debris, mud and insulator foam and the dazed students can be seen walking around . the building in horror. Mrs Dziedzic, evidently in shock, can just be heard repeating 'Oh my god, oh my god.' Devastated: Robin Dziedzic surveys the scene in shock as she revisits the school . Destruction: Robin Dziedzic walks down the tornado-damaged corridor- the bathroom she sheltered in is behind the wall . Poignant: Robin Dziedzic opens the door to her bathroom which saved the life of her and her students . The footage then cuts to outside the school where the land is completely obliterated. Terrified students gather in the land outside as Mrs Dziedzic searches for her two children who are also at the school- her son Sam, a first grader and daughter Mairi, a fourth grader. Sam finds her in the crowd and her husband, who arrives at the scene tracks down Mairi - the pair hug in a sobbing embrace. ABC News took Mrs Dziedzic back to revisit the ravaged school for the first time. She was emotional pointed out the . first grade classroom where her son's teacher lay on top of him to keep . him and other students safe. She walked down the corridor- one of . the only walls still standing in the school - to revisit the bathroom . which provided shelter for her and the students. No-one at the school was hurt, although Mrs Dziedzic is now dealing the agony of losing colleagues and young children at the other elementary school hit by the EF-5 tornado. | Students and teachers huddle in a bathroom in pitch black .
Teachers .
can be heard trying to reassure their terrified students .
Children scream out in fear as the twister tears up Briarwood Elementary . |
43,496 | 7aa7f874e8107b0795ab09cef5f047435ea43419 | Prime Minister Tony Abbott has confirmed that Australian Special Forces have begun providing training and assistance for an Iraqi security force which a former intelligence officer claims has committed war crimes. The Australian Special Operations Task Group has partnered with the Counter-Terrorism Service of Iraq in order to aid the fight against Islamic State (IS), a cohort which has openly posted photos of executed militants on social media. The group has been labelled as 'responsible for major war crimes and unnecessary civilian casualties' by a former Australia intelligence officer, reported The Sun Herald. Scroll down for video . Wearing a leather jacket, Prime Minister Tony Abbott greeted diggers serving at the Baghdad Diplomatic Support Compound . Mr Abbott made a rare criticism of US foreign policy in Iraq, saying the aftermath of the invasion had left the country in 'chaos and confusion' The service operates independently from the Iraqi state defense force, working directly under Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and created by the United States military to track al-Qaeda in Iraq within the country. However, US General David Patraeus told former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki in 2009 that the forces were 'the most important forces in the counter-terrorism fight'. A senior general in Baghdad also justified execution of prisoners on the spot as 'a field reaction' to the crimes committed by IS, reported The Sun Herald. The 12,000 strong force has been vetted by the Australian Defense Department, which maintains that the ADF are contractually obligated to report human rights violations. 'No istances of alleged human rights violations have been reported since the Special Operations Task Group started co-operating with the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service in late 2014,' said a spokesperson for the Department. The revelation follows Prime Minister Tony Abbott's remarks that the American-led invasion of Iraq left the country in chaos. Mr Abbott made the rare criticism of Australia's strongest ally during a surprise visit to Baghdad, and has not ruled out sending more troops to the war-torn nation. 'Iraq is a country which has suffered a very great deal. First, decades of tyranny under Saddam Hussein. Then, the chaos and confusion that followed the American-led invasion. 'Most recently, the tumult, the dark age, which has descended upon Northern Iraq as a result of the Daesh death cult, but Australia will do what we can to help.' On the third leg of an unannounced visit to the troubled region, Mr Abbott held talks with the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi in Dubai and visited an airbase. 'I certainly don't rule out doing what we reasonably can to make the world a safer place,' he said after the meeting. Australia is part of the US-led coalition carrying out air strikes against ISIL in Iraq and has deployed special forces troops to assist in training the local army. 'Because the ISIL or Daesh death cult has declared war on the world, including here and Australia.' Mr Abbott said he looked forward to further talks with Baghdad and coalition partners about what Australia 'can usefully do'. First visit to Iraq: Mr Abbott is pictured here with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi . The prime minister's latest comments and those he made after a meeting with Iraqi leader Haider Al-Abadi on Sunday have led to speculation Australia might be prepared to go beyond its limited commitment to the conflict. Back home, the Labor opposition is holding back bipartisan support for any expanded role. Instead it will wait for a detailed briefing from the government before revealing its position. Mr Abbott also rejected criticism of the secrecy surrounding his visit to Iraq and the United Arab Emirates. In a departure from previous practice, Australian media were excluded from covering the visit first-hand and were forced to rely on footage provided by the prime minister's office in Canberra. The opposition accused the government of pursuing a culture of secrecy, saying it was not in the national interest. But Mr Abbott said the media was excluded for 'understandable security reasons'. | Tony Abbott has confirmed the ADF are training elite Iraqi security forces .
The Counter-Terrorism Service of Iraq has been accused of war crimes .
The service has posted pictures of executed militants to social media .
They have admitted to executing prisoners on the spot .
US General said the group was 'the most important in the anti-terror fight'
ADF said there has been no reported instances of human rights violations .
Prime Minister Abbott said the US invasion of Iraq left country in chaos .
He won't rule out sending more Australian troops to Iraq . |
96,678 | 086a64583a8602ebcb2c7566ffd775fb13d34379 | A rehoming centre is looking for new owners for the 12 dogs of Christmas - a dozen puppies from the same litter who are just six weeks old. Their owner could not cope with the American bulldog-cross puppies and decided the best thing to do was to give them to a rehoming centre in Southampton. Six girls and six boys make up the litter of a dozen puppies and the playful pets have all been given festive names. Festive: The American bulldog-cross puppies, which are six weeks old, have all been given festive names . Needing a new home: Ivy is one of the puppies that needs to be adopted after she was given to a rehoming centre in Southampton . Mary, Holly, Ivy, Robin, Elf and Tinsel are the females - while the males have been named Joseph, Noel, Rudolph, Frosty, Snowy and Gabriel. Laura Boyle, 26, rehoming supervisor, said: 'The cute puppies were brought into the centre by the owner as she couldn't cope with the numbers. 'She had kids of her own and had just had a baby, I think it became a bit too much for her.' The 12 puppies are being cared for at the Blue Cross centre in Southampton, Hampshire. Santa's little helpers: The cute six-week-old pups were given to the Blue Cross after their owner said she couldn't cope with them . Looking for a new family: Noel is one of the festively-named puppies that need to be adopted . Playful: Rehoming supervisor Laura Boyle said the dogs are 'a playful bunch and very happy' Joseph: The Six girls and six boys make up the litter of a dozen puppies and the playful pets have all been given festive names . Ms Boyle added: 'They are such lovely . puppies, they are very playful and the decision to call them festive . names could help with the rehoming. 'There is a very big mixture in the litter - some of the pups are brindle and white, tan and white and just brindle. 'But . I want to stress that a dog is never just for Christmas and we would . urge the whole family to be on board when adopting a pet. 'This could be a 15-year commitment so families should really make sure they are making the correct decision. 'But I'm sure it will be worth it. They are a playful bunch and are very happy.' Ms Boyle added: 'They have just started to go outside and I'm sure they will make amazing pets. 'At the moment, everyone is talking about Christmas and most people are beginning to get excited. 'Hopefully the festive names will encourage people to give a cute puppy the home it deserves this year.' Bark! The Herald Angels Sing: A rehoming centre is looking for new owners for the 12 dogs of Christmas - . a dozen puppies from the same litter who are just six weeks' old . | Six girls and six boys make up the litter that are looking for new homes .
Owner could not cope with the American bulldog-cross puppies .
All have been given festive names by rehoming centre in Southampton . |
230,018 | b5ddcafc018c1630d6f69f737fe4f6ce06cbed12 | By . Emily Crane . A man has been filmed stomping on a police car's sirens as he thrashed about on the roof of the vehicle right outside a western Sydney police station. The unidentified man has been charged over the incident after he damaged the police vehicle parked outside the entrance of Penrith Police Station on Tuesday. Footage of the incident shows the man standing on the roof of the vehicle in a red shirt and dark pants as he used a long object to smash the top of the car. Scroll down for video . The unidentified man was filmed stomping on the roof of a police car right outside Penrith Police station on Tuesday . He then proceedes to stomp on the emergency vehicle's lights, and can be clearly seen by police and people passing by. Police can be seen coming out of the station on High Street and yelling at the man to 'get off the car now'. In the video, filmed by a witness and then uploaded to Facebook, a woman can be heard gasping as the offender hits the police vehicle for the first time, before a male voice yells out for him to 'run'. Footage of the incident shows the man standing on the roof of the vehicle in a red shirt and dark pants as he used a long object to smash the top of the car . He then proceeded to stomp on the emergency vehicle's sirens as police and people passing by watched on in horror . NSW Police confirmed Tuesday's incident and told Daily Mail Australia the man had 'jumped on a Parramatta Police vehicle'. 'He has been charged with damage or destroy property, armed with intent to commit an indictable offence and custody of a knife in a public place,' a spokesperson said. The extent of the damage is not known. The man is due to face Penrith Local Court on July 30. The unidentified man has been charged over Tuesday's incident and he is due to face Penrith Local Court on July 30 . Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article. | Man arrested after damaging police car outside Penrith station on Tuesday .
Footage shows him jumping on the roof as police and witnesses look on .
He was charged with damaging property and having a knife in public .
The offender is due to face Penrith Local Court on July 30 . |
6,936 | 13a4e386d7eda620560adde9d766f5d033da25c5 | If you have always fancied getting away from it all, this secluded island deep in the Canadian wilderness could be just the excuse. Mowgli Island in the remote Southern Gulf Islands, British Columbia, is the perfect getaway for any budding Bear Grylls or Castaway fans. However, buyers interested in the nine-acre islet - which comes complete with a 22-year-old four-bedroom waterfront property - will need to have deep pockets, as its priced at a staggering £2million. Into the wild: Mowgli Island in the remote Southern Gulf Islands, British Columbia, comes complete with a four-bedroom cabin . Island life: The secluded islet deep in the Canadian wilderness boasts seals and killer whales as its nearest neighbours . The award-winning designed home features approximately 3,400 feet of low bank waterfront with sandy beaches as well as a 50-foot L-shaped dock for year-round moorage. More than 1,000 square foot of expansive decks surround the home which provides endless exposure to the wild. The property is an hour from the nearest major town Victoria by boat and a 20-minute flight from Vancouver by helicopter. The award-winning designed cabin on the remote island is an hour from the nearest major town Victoria by boat . Ultimate getaway: The island property boasts an award-winning design as well as four bedrooms and a 350sqft studio house . Cabin retreat: Inside the four-bedroom wooden Mowgli Island home, which boasts a traditional fireplace and wilderness views . Remote: The island is located in the Southern Gulf Islands, British Columbia, Canada, and is priced at £2m . And potential buyers will need to like their own company - the nearest neighbours in the area include seals and killer whales. The island is listed on Sothebys Realty, Canada, for around 3.8million Canadian dollars. On its website, the seller writes: 'Mowgli Island is an exceptional opportunity to own an exclusive private island. Rare buy: The property based on Mowgli Island is an hour from the nearest major town Victoria by boat . The property boasts sandy beaches as well as a 50-foot L-shaped dock for year-round moorage . Mowgli Island is based in the remote Canadian wilderness . 'Properties such as this rarely become available within the Southern Gulf Islands. 'The home is an award-winning Osburn/Clarke designed island retreat featuring 4 bedrooms and a separate 350sqft studio/bunk house. 'The home provides endless exposure to the Gulf Island lifestyle! This Island is truly the ultimate recreational getaway.' | Mowgli Island is in remote Southern Gulf Islands, British Columbia - and is an hour boat ride from next main town .
Boasts 22-year-old, four-bedroom waterfront home - with an award-winning design .
Island and property on the market with Sothebys Realty, Canada, for £2million . |
233,785 | baac6cfab6dc8a4a35d3b4d620ebec737bd66af6 | By . Pedro Oliveira Jr. A drunk man in New Mexico stabbed his girlfriend's 9-month-old puppy with a screwdriver, skinned the pooch and planned to serve it for dinner, police says. Prosecutors in Torrance County have charged Salvador Martinez, 46,with felony extreme cruelty to animals on accusations that he killed his girlfriend's black-and-white chiweenie Onyx, a mix of dachshund and Chihuahua. He's also charged with child abuse. “The [grandchildren] were present inside the residence and had full knowledge of what was taking place with their family pet,” Sheriff Heath White told KRQE. Scroll down for video . Salvador Martinez, 46, is behind bars after being charged in the killing of his girlfriend's 9-month-old puppy Onyx. Martinez, of Edgewood, told authorities that he took little Onyx into the backyard and pierced her heart with a screwdriver on July 18. He then skinned the pooch and stored the dog's carcass in the fridge while he looked up dog meat recipes — and whether eating it was illegal. 'He had her marinating in Italian dressing in the fridge,' said the man's girlfriend, Mandy Malone, to KOAT. Malone — who lives with another eight dogs, five cats and a few chickens — said Martinez had been drunk the night before and became angry when the dogs started barking, according to KRQE. 'He said he was going to kill one and barbecue it,' she told the station. 'I didn’t believe him because he’d been saying it for a while and I knew he loved animals.' Lonely: Mandy Malone holds the twin of her murdered puppy, Onyx, who she says was killed by her boyfriend and almost served for dinner . When she confronted him about the meat in the fridge, Martinez told Malone that, if she didn't like it, he'd just take the pooch to barbecue at his mother's house. 'Nobody knows what to think, nobody's ever heard of this before,' Mandy Malone told KOAT. 'He'd said it before, but jokingly,' she added. 'Just out of the blue: I'm going to barbecue one of your dogs.' New Mexico is one of a handful of states where the law doesn't say much about the eating of dogs and cats. But prosecutors say no matter what the law says, it is certainly illegal to kill them in such a cruel manner. Disgusted: Mandy Malone had heard her boyfriend say he would one day barbecue her dogs before, but she never thought he'd follow through with the threats . “It is extremely disturbing to know that someone would be that brutal with a family animal,” White said. Martinez claimed to investigators that he killed Onyx to feed the family. Malone says there was plenty of food in the house. “It makes me sick to think about it – I haven’t been able to eat or sleep,” she told the Albuquerque Journal. Martinez is in federal custody for violating his probation on a 2003 conviction for trying to smuggle 13 kilos of cocaine through the US-Mexico border. He pleaded guilty to that crime and was sentenced to 10 years in prison. | Salvador Martinez, 46, is charged with felony extreme cruelty to animals and child abuse .
His grandchildren were inside the house while he killed and skinned the family dog, cops say .
Martinez is in federal custody for violating probation on a 2003 drug conviction, when he tried to smuggle 13 kilos of cocaine into the US . |
29,142 | 52c53fe3da3a657c403fc7f6e9f12211bebc0e26 | Arsenal were left feeling red-faced on Wednesday night after not only falling to a humiliating defeat at the hands of Monaco, but also hyping themselves up in pre-game banter between them and their French opponents on social media. The Gunners face an uphill battle to qualify for the last eight of the Champions League after a heavy 3-1 defeat at the Emirates Stadium, but prior to the game they were certainly confident - with the club's social media team expressing that in abundance on their official Twitter account. They began the exchange simply with: 'And how about you @AS_Monaco? Feeling confident? Nervous? Worried?' Arsenal and Monaco engaged in Twitter banter on their respective accounts prior to Wednesday night's game . Alexis Sanchez had scored in his last four Champions League games at the Emirates prior to facing Monaco . The Ligue 1 side responded candidly by merely stating they were 'just feeling excited to play in such a big match', before the Gunners upped the ante by asking which player they should look out for - with star name Falcao now on Manchester United's books. The French team then asked if Dimitar Berbatov would fit the bill, adding that the Gunners fans were very complementary of him during his time at north London rivals Tottenham. While admitting they knew all too well of the veteran striker's talents, the north Londoners quashed his impact by stating former striker Nicklas Bendtner made the difference that day when Berbatov hit the net for Spurs in a derby meeting in December 2007. Former Tottenham man Dimitar Berbatov enjoyed his second-half strike which put the game beyond Arsenal . Oliver Giroud and Mesur Ozil cannot fail to hide their gloom after Berbatov's crucial goal . Arsene Wenger endured a night to forget against his former side Monaco at the Emirates . The next reply from Arsenal would come back to haunt them as they sent the French side a graphic of star striker Alexis Sanchez, with the stat that he had scored in his last four Champions League games at the Emirates prior to Wednesday night's clash. The French side had the last word though, and in superb fashion, thanking Arsenal for their warning but reminding Arsene Wenger's men that they had - and still do have - the best defensive record in the Champions League - conceding just once in the group stages. A number of Arsenal fans asked for the club to stop engaging in the Twitter banter throughout the exchanges, believing it could jinx their chances before the game even started. Unfortunately for them they were proved right, as the Gunners suffered a heavy defeat with Berbatov and Co having the last laugh. | Arsenal lost 3-1 to Monaco on Wednesday night in their last-16 Champions League clash at the Emirates .
The club engaged in pre-match banter with Monaco prior to the game .
However it came back to haunt them as they lost to the French side . |
215,224 | a29f7e7b9166d60742174af7cc4738610f4e6900 | Grand Rapids, Michigan (CNN) -- Almost as soon as it was announced that Barack Obama had defeated John McCain in the 2008 general election, most pundits -- and voters, for that matter -- assumed Sarah Palin would be the president's opponent in 2012. And why not? She didn't just breathe life into McCain's campaign but into the entire Republican Party. Up until then, the GOP was about as hip as a dot matrix printer. Palin represented a brand of conservative politics that was Twitterable and has since been instrumental in the rise of the tea party. She is charismatic. She is beautiful. She is a leader. And in the view of many people, particularly liberals, she's also a bit of an idiot. A botched Katie Couric interview here, a "Saturday Night Live" skit there, and since breaking into the national scene, countless gaffes and misstatements. And yet despite it all, her popularity remains relatively high, particularly among conservatives. Recent polls all show the majority in her party do not want her to run, but those surveys do not mean people, her people, do not love her. So when she announced Wednesday she was not running for the 2012 presidency, I'm sure quite a few of her supporters were extremely disappointed. That wasn't my reaction. I smiled, thinking Palin isn't dumb at all. In fact, she's pretty smart. "My decision is based upon a review of what common-sense conservatives and independents have accomplished, especially over the last year," her official statement read. "I believe that at this time I can be more effective in a decisive role to help elect other true public servants to office -- from the nation's governors to congressional seats and the presidency." In other words, she can continue to influence national politics without having to be responsible for actually making a decision. She can criticize with a broad brush without the burden of contextualizing her statements with detailed, alternate solutions. She's like a performance artist whose opinions are rarely second-guessed, whose tongue is rarely censored. She's rich and famous and essentially has no one to answer to. Her persona is so mesmerizing that her daughter Bristol, a mother at 18, gets paid to talk about abstinence. We should all be as dumb as Sarah Palin. Seriously, why would she stop doing what she is doing to seek a thankless job, that pays poorly for the work that it requires? Why turn her back on a public life with little accountability to campaign for a public life in which every decision will be scrutinized. Politicized. Criticized. Obama swatted a fly on television one day back in 2009. The next day, PETA issued a statement asking him to be more humane to animals. Why would anyone leave a world of hunting moose to enter a world in which killing a fly is worthy of a press release? It just doesn't make sense. Palin's critics will say she didn't run because she knew she would lose. I say she didn't run because of the chance she would win. Palin has been around the political scene enough to know it's a whole lot easier flirting with running for president of the United States than it is being president of the United States. That's especially true today, thanks in part to her. You have a better chance of seeing a herd of unicorns grazing in front of the Washington Monument than drama-free bipartisanship in the halls of Congress. Obama's under fire for a slumping U.S. economy as if he pointed it south or as if the rest of the planet is on solid financial footing. But Palin, who prides herself on being in touch with the heartland, knows Americans are typically not interested in those kind of sausage-making details. They just want to eat. So despite the fact it took decades for the country to create the environment that allowed millions of jobs to be ushered out the door, the honeymoon for a new face to turn everything around will be extremely short. In fact, whoever is elected president in the fall of 2012 will probably be raked across the coals for the high unemployment rate by spring of 2013. This is why Palin probably decided not to run for president months ago -- she was smart enough to know that while she can move the needle and copies of her book, the economy is a whole other beast. And dumping Alaska under the guise of "not putting Alaskans through that" -- as she said in her resignation speech as governor -- worked on the state level, Palin would certainly lose every supporter she has if she tried to walk away from the White House in similar fashion. When you're loved by so many unconditionally, why risk being hated by everyone for no reason at all? It just doesn't make sense. Bashing Palin's intellect may be a hobby for some people, but in saying no to the White House, she showed once and for all, she's no fool. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of LZ Granderson. | LZ Granderson: After John McCain's loss, many assumed Sarah Palin would run in 2012 .
He says Palin's decision not to run for president is a smart move .
Whoever wins in 2012 will likely face a weak economy, and will take the blame, he says .
Granderson: Palin will still have a platform for her views and can live the life she wants . |
33,722 | 5feb6b853d420e8523a4045bdca4094f20a4f833 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . Two Marine jets dropped four 500lb bombs on the Great Barrier Reef this week after a fuel emergency meant they could not land while carrying the weapons. The AV-8B Harriers, part of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, had been taking part in a training exercise when the pilots realized they were running low on fuel. Each Harrier was forced to drop two bombs on the UNESCO world heritage site, although there was no risk of them exploding, according to defense officials. Emergency: Two Harrier jets, like the one pictured, were forced to drop 500lb bombs in the Great Barrier Reef after running low on fuel . Protected: The bombs were dropped near the Great Barrier Reef, a UNESCO World Heritage Site . The bombs were dropped about 16 nautical miles south of Bell Cay in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, according to NBC News. Defense officials said they tried to pick a location that would reduce the risk of damage to the reef, and said the bomb site was in a 'deep channel' about 60 metres deep. The pilots were supposed to drop the bombs on Townshend Island as part of a training exercise, but at the last moment they were told the range was not clear. At that point, they realized they did not have enough fuel to return to the aircraft carrier USS Bonhomme Richard. 'Due to low fuel and inability to land . with the amount of ordnance they were carrying, the on scene commander . determined it was necessary to designate an emergency jettison area for . the ordnance,' U.S. Navy Commander William Marks told News AU. 'They chose to save the aircraft,' a U.S. official said. Harriers are said to be worth about $35 million. A spokesman for the Australian . Defence Force said the bombs were a 'minimal risk or threat to the . public, the marine environment or civilian shipping transiting the reef . area', and added that Australia was investigating the incident with the . U.S. The U.S. Navy has already started a salvage operation and the Marines are investigating the incident, but added that it was unlikely that the BDU 45s and GBU 12s would explode. Fragile: The 1,200 mile reef off the coast of Queensland is home to endangered species . Refuge: The protected reef is a haven for marine life, such as turtles and sea cows . BDU 45s are training bombs that mimic several types of bombs used by the armed forces, and the GBU 12 is a laser-guided weapon. It is not yet clear what the impact will be on the Great Barrier Reef. Its world heritage status means it is strictly governed by a series of rules that limit development and activities in and around it. The world's largest coral reef, covering more than 1,200 miles along the coast of Queensland, is a fragile eco system filled with marine life, from endangered green sea turtles to dugongs, or sea cows. | Marines 'chose to save aircraft' after running low on fuel .
Explosives dropped 16 miles off UNESCO World Heritage Site .
Bombs will not detonate, defense officials say as salvage operation begins . |
244,163 | c7ff94ccda639583f8f5ace529725a16830ceefa | Jennifer Nettles, half of the country music duo Sugarland, said she was never asked to delay the band's show at the Indiana State Fair because of an approaching storm. She would have complied if asked, Nettles said, according to testimony given during a taped deposition. Seven people died and more than 40 were injured last year when a storm caused a stage at the state fair to collapse, shortly before Sugarland was to perform. Several families of victims from the August incident have filed a lawsuit against the country band, contending it was negligent. Don Asher, general manager for a law firm that represents some of those victims, released clips of Nettles' deposition to the media Monday. It was taped Thursday in Charleston, West Virginia. "We're invited to come into a place and play. It's not our place," Nettles said. "I don't feel it's my responsibility, or my management's responsibility, to evacuate the fans in the case of danger. Do I care about their safety? Absolutely." She said she was not asked to postpone show and would have complied if she had been approached. Furthermore, Nettles said she did not know whether Sugarland tour manager Helen Rollins prevented a delay or not, and was unaware of conversations that allegedly occurred about a possible postponement. In an affidavit from a lawsuit against one company, the fair's executive director says she twice sent the show's promoter to talk to Sugarland in an effort to delay the show. Twice the answer came back -- we want to go on, according to the deposition by Cynthia Hoye, the executive director of the state fair, according to the court filing. But in a separate document contained in a state report on the incident, Sugarland's Rollins said no one asked the band to delay its set. When asked why his firm chose to release the clips, Asher said: "In our opinion the deposition tells a different story than the one being portrayed by Nettles' attorneys. They (Sugarland) could have delayed the start of the concert or sought to cancel it. They had access to Doppler radar and were aware of the storm approaching. In our opinion they (Sugarland) bear ultimate responsibility." The firm is also considering releasing video of the deposition of Kristian Bush, the other half of the country music duo. Sugarland spokesman Allan Mayer responded: "We're not sure what these lawyers think they're accomplishing by leaking selectively edited portions of the transcripts, but we don't think it's fooling anyone -- and it sure isn't bringing any truth or clarity to last summer's tragedy. "Their self-serving assertions about what Sugarland knew or could have done are contradicted not only by Kristian and Jennifer's complete testimony but also by the independent reports of the Indiana Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the investigators hired by the state," he said in a statement. In February, the Indiana Department of Labor announced penalties totaling $80,800 following a worker safety investigation into the collapse. The largest fines -- totaling $63,000 for what the agency said were three violations -- were levied on Mid-America Sound Corp., which built the stage structure and leased it to the fair. Metal scaffolding supporting the stage lights fell onto a crowd of fans and workers as a storm swept through the Indianapolis fairgrounds on August 13, 2011, right before Sugarland was to perform. | Lead singer says she was never asked to delay the show .
Jennifer Nettles says she would have complied if asked .
Seven people were killed when a stage collapsed at the Indiana State Fair last year .
More than 40 others were injured . |
128,665 | 3241273bb8f9a18263f20965a911250317cd5dbe | HARARE, Zimbabwe (CNN) -- Zimbabwe's health system, once the envy of many African nations, is "in a state of collapse" -- with many hospitals either completely shut down or unable to admit new patients, a leading doctors' group said Thursday. Doctors and nurses in Harare protest at the state of Zimbabwe's collapsing health system. The failure of medical services has forced doctors to turn away pregnant women and the sick. And with a cholera epidemic sweeping through the capital city of Harare and surrounding areas, medical officials say they fear they will be faced with hundreds of normally preventable deaths in the coming days. The four main hospitals in Harare have stopped admitting patients because of a medicine shortage, said the Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights. Another hospital in the second largest city of Bulawayo -- 439 km (272 miles) from Harare -- is facing a similar shortage. "Sick people in need of attention are being turned away," the group said. In many hospitals, maternity services have been scaled back -- meaning women who need to deliver babies by Caesarian section "will needlessly die during childbirth," it said. The hospitals, like everything else in the country, are a victim of the country's collapsing economy under President Robert Mugabe, the group said. Meanwhile, the Zimbabwean government has asked a group headed by former U.N. chief Kofi Annan to postpone a visit meant to highlight the country's humanitarian crisis, calling it a "partisan" attempt to boost the opposition. Annan was set to arrive in Zimbabwe this weekend with former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and rights activist Graca Machel, wife of former South African president Nelson Mandela. The trio wanted to find ways to ease the plight of Zimbabweans, nearly half of whom are in need of emergency food aid. But the state-owned daily newspaper, The Herald, says the three -- who belong to a group of senior statesmen known as the Elders -- were trying to boost the opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), in power-sharing talks with Mugabe. With the political crisis showing no signs of abating, Zimbabwe's inflation rate has skyrocketed to the world's highest: 230 million percent. Independent analysts put the figure in billions. Doctors and nurses are reluctant to come to work because of the poor pay and poor equipment. Those who can are leaving Zimbabwe for neighboring countries or to Europe and Australia, the group said. The group held Mugabe's government responsible for the cholera epidemic that broke out early last month in the capital city and has since spread to other parts of the country. The government has not been able to dispose of sewage properly, nor has it been able to provide chemicals to treat water to make it potable, the group said. Residents are "surrounded by flowing raw sewage," and many have been forced to resort to drink contaminated water from rivers, the group said. The pandemic, it said, "has caused hundreds of preventable deaths." The government has not released official figures of cholera-related death. But some private doctors say that in Harare, the number is at least 200. Earlier this week, a state-owned newspaper said 44 people had died since Friday in the southern border town of Beitbridge, about 600 km (372 miles) from Harare. The country's health ministry insists the disease has been contained. It said the lack of proper infrastructure in the impoverished nation is behind the outbreak, and that it has dispatched teams of health workers to educate the masses and provide them with water tanks. But medical activists disagree. Non-governmental aid groups are providing water and water purification tablets to the most affected communities. But they cannot reach everyone. The government should declare the cholera outbreak a national disaster and solicit international assistance, the group said. "Definitely the government is not capable," said Dr. Douglas Gwatidzo, who is part of the doctors' group. " It does not have the capacity to control the spread of cholera or to put a stop to it at the moment." On Tuesday, doctors and nurses demonstrated against the government's failure to prevent the collapse of the health system. Baton-wielding police officers broke up the rally. Meanwhile, a unity government in Zimbabwe has yet to materialize. The main political opposition party refuses to join one unless Mugabe meets several conditions. The party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), and Mugabe's party, ZANU-PF, signed a power-sharing resolution in September, but the agreement has failed to ease political tensions. The MDC accuses Mugabe of grabbing all key ministries such as home affairs, information, local government, foreign affairs and defense. It said it wants an "equitable" distribution. The stalemate continues. -- CNN's Nkepile Mabuse contributed to this report. | Main hospitals in Harare stops taking patients due to medicine shortage .
Doctors Group: Mugabe's govt. responsible for recent cholera epidemic .
Zimbabwe ask group headed by ex-U.N. chief Kofi Annan to postpone visit .
State-owned newspaper calls visit a "partisan" attempt to boost the opposition . |
67,625 | bfd5477145f4e073d1d960506206514d54f5be94 | (CNN) -- When Billy Beane, the subject of the 2004 book 'Moneyball', took over as the general manager of the Oakland Athletics in the late 1990s, he revolutionized the way baseball teams were run. At a time when other managers and scouts relied on their experience to identify promising new players, Beane successfully used 'sabermetrics' -- the statistical analysis of baseball -- to see value in players other teams had passed over, turning the Athletics into a team capable of competing with the biggest names in the sport. Now industry watchers say a similar statistics revolution is going on in the business world. Technological advances are giving rise to huge amounts of data -- about consumers, supply chains and world events -- that businesses can use to make better decisions and gain a competitive edge. It's called 'big data analytics', and those who ignore it are being warned they risk being left behind. Watch: Funding 80 start-ups at once . The rise of big data . "Big data is the new oil," says Andy Cutler, director of strategy at SAS, a consulting firm specializing in big data analytics. "The folks who are going to get good value are those who are going to be able to refine it and turn it into useful products." Firms like Amazon and Netflix are at the forefront of this revolution, gathering the huge amounts of data generated by their customers and analyzing it to predict what customers will want to buy or watch in the future. This goes beyond personalized purchase suggestions; Amazon is currently working on technology that will deliver products to you before you've even ordered them, or at least keep them in warehouses nearby in anticipation, says Phil Simon, author of "Too Big to Ignore: The Business Case for Big Data." Netflix has effectively built its entire business model on analyzing customer data, he says. "Netflix track every view, every click, all in an attempt to understand what their customers want." The development of smartphone technologies and near-field communication means analyzing customer data is no longer limited to the online world. Tailored buying experience . Arne Strauss, analytics professor at the Warwick Business School, says retailers are developing ways of monitoring customers as they enter physical stores, allowing them to optimize store layout and even change on-shelf promotions depending on which customer is walking by. But predicting customer behavior is just one application. Major banks including HSBC use big data to monitor and predict fraud -- both by cardholders and staff -- by setting up data-mining systems that collect patterns and look for anomalies. The investment bank Morgan Stanley uses statistical models to measure the impact market events have on the bank in real time. Improving the efficiency of large logistical operations is another use. Delivery firm UPS spends more than $1bn a year gathering data from its fleet of trucks to ensure the most efficient delivery routes. Meanwhile major supermarkets in the UK are turning to big data analytics to help them provide same-day grocery delivery services -- a huge logistical challenge involving predicting what customers are likely to want before they order it, and ensuring coordinated delivery times that protect supermarkets' already-thin profit margins. Consultants and academics say businesses who don't jump on the big data bandwagon are at risk of falling behind. But there are challenges. Too much information? Some in the industry fear a backlash from consumers uncomfortable with the amount of individual data being gathered about them, stifling development in some areas. The speed of the technological development has also created a skills gap. Professor Thierry Chaussalet, who runs a business intelligence and analytics masters course at the University of Westminster in London, says many businesses simply don't understand the big data technology now available and what it has to offer. Stephen Mills, an associate partner in big data analytics at IBM, agrees there needs to be a culture change. "The technology is the easy bit," he says. "The hard part is how to change the culture and the business processes to make use of that new source of data." The books that changed the world's best business brains . Technology gets a makeover as fashion goes futuristic . How to master Mobile advertising . | Big data deemed as the 'new oil' according to experts .
Businesses who ignore the power of big data may fall behind .
Amazon and Netflix are leading the big data revolution, analyzing customer data to predict what they'll want to buy in the future . |
126,559 | 2f916a55ad8955e34d0c11e3fa59eabd9939d73e | (CNN) -- African-American poet Maya Angelou once wrote: "Africa is a historical truth ... no man can know where he's going unless he knows exactly where he's been and exactly how he arrived at his present place." This search for" historical truth" has led thousands of visitors to Cape Coast, in Ghana, a picturesque seaside town with stunning blue sea, serene beaches and pastel-colored fishing boats. Instead of idyllic days under the sun, they are looking for a glimpse into their dark ancestral past -- the harrowing experience of their African forebears who were sold as slaves. Roots tourism has brought more and more people of African descent, like Monique Ross and Jacques Wallace, to the sleepy fishing port. Ross, Wallace and their tour group from New York walk the grounds of Cape Coast Castle, a seaside fortress that served as slave dungeons, to see what their ancestors went through before they were shipped across the Atlantic. "I'm slightly numb actually," said Wallace. "I wasn't actually ready for the stories about this place as far as the way people were treated, and the thing about the tunnel and everyone bound and being led down the tunnel is a little bit tragic, a little bit too much to take in all at once." His fellow traveler agreed. "It is a little devastating at first," said Ross. "It's good to know the history of what has happened and how to connect your historical past with things that have happened." Read more: Ghana finds its voice through independence . U.S. President Barack Obama his family made a stop at Cape Coast Castle when he visited Ghana in July 2009. It was an emotional pilgrimage for them, especially because First Lady Michelle Obama and her mother are descendants of slaves from South Carolina. Crumbling colonial buildings are a reminder that Cape Coast was once European colonial capital that changed hands between the Portuguese, the Dutch, the Swedish, the Danish and the British through centuries. The largest slave trade outpost . It flourished as the largest slave-trading outpost in West Africa when the opening of European plantations in the Americas in the 1500s drove the demand for slaves, eclipsing the gold trade. For more than three centuries, millions of captured Africans -- men, women and children -- arrived from different parts of the continent and were herded like cattle onto ships destined to the United States, South America and the Caribbean. Kwesi Essel Blankson, a senior educator at Cape Coast Castle who gave Obama and his family a guided tour, describes the inhumane conditions the slaves had to endure in the fortress. They were crammed into a small space, living on little food, water and air, even defecating side by side, often for months. Female captives were subjected to rape and sexual abuse by guards and officials. Those who survived the harrowing conditions had to go through the so-called "Door of No Return" -- an arched gateway with a pair of thick doors that would shut behind the captured men, women and children before they were forced onto the slave ships. "For many, this door represents... a journey from the known to the unknown," says Blankson. "And therefore right from here, their resistance was much anticipated." While many travelers use Cape Coast as a base to explore Ghana's other tourist spots, like Kakum National Park, the city hopes roots tourism, with the castle as a focus, could bring in more visitors to spend longer time there. And perhaps the dark chapter of history tells not only a story of misery but also that of survival. Asked how Obama reacted during the visit, Blankson says the president was "surprised, shocked and sad -- and also motivated ... because if blacks survived through this, then it is a survival of human beings. It shows that we have a high survival instinct." See also: Ghana: Keeping one of Africa's stars of democracy shining . See also: Bamboo bikes turn around fortunes for working women in Ghana . Yenni Kwok contributed to this report. CNN's On the Road series often carries sponsorship originating from the countries we profile. However CNN retains full editorial control over all of its reports. Read the policy . | Roots tourism has brought African-Americans and others of African descent to Cape Coast, in Ghana .
They visit Cape Coast Castle, which served as slave dungeons, to see what their ancestors went through .
U.S. President Barack Obama and his family made a stop at Cape Coast Castle in July 2009 . |
162,864 | 5e9910598bdbc9a94ae09962fecd362b32bff492 | YANGON, Myanmar (CNN) -- Courts in Myanmar have sentenced a blogger, a poet and several dissidents to several years in jail for anti-regime activities, a court official told CNN Tuesday. Young people at an Internet cafe in Myanmar. The verdicts were announced Monday and Tuesday, the court official said. Blogger Nay Phone Latt was sentenced to more than 20 years in jail for his illegal Internet activities, the court official said. The blogger was a "major source of information for the outside world" when the military junta used force last year to suppress anti-government demonstrations, said The Irrawaddy, an online newspaper published by exiles from Myanmar, which is also known as Burma. The government exercises strict controls over media outlets in the southeast Asian country. Dissidents often turn to the Internet to disseminate information. In the second case, poet Saw Wai received a two-year jail sentence for a poem he wrote for Valentine's Day that contained a veiled jab at the junta's leading figure, Senior Gen. Than Shwe. The first words of each line in the eight-line poem, "February the Fourteenth" spelled out the message: "Senior General Than Shwe is crazy with power." On Tuesday, the government handed down prison sentences to about a dozen members of a pro-democracy group known as the '88 Generation Students. Irrawaddy said the members were each sentenced to 65 years in jail, but CNN could not independently confirm the figure. Members of the group took part in the anti-government demonstrations that ended with the death of as many as 100 people last year after security forces clashed with thousands of protesters. The dead included 40 Buddhist monks. Witnesses said the violent crackdown in September 2007 came as hundreds of monks defied a military ban on public assembly. Until then, demonstrations led by the monks -- who are highly respected in the predominantly Buddhist country -- had gone largely unchallenged by the military, which has ruled the country since the 1960s. The protests were sparked by a huge fuel price increase imposed by the military government, and quickly escalated. The action was informally dubbed the "Saffron Revolution" because of the maroon robes with saffron sashes that the monks wore. | Myanmar court jails blogger, poet and dissidents for anti-regime activities . |
61,708 | af4699e71413f1506cf79eeccee53f352a0e6a29 | Stepping out in the Waldorf-Astoria's grand ballroom with the grace and poise expected of a debutante, British beauties Katie Dolan and Joanne McGuire take their place among the well-heeled daughters of America's elite families. Adorned in billowing white gowns and elbow-length satin gloves, the girls joined others from across the United States and the world to be presented to 'polite society' at the New York City's 60th Annual Debutante Ball. The participating young women are the crème de la crème of high society, come to debut themselves to the sons and families of ambassadors, world leaders, and giants of business and industry. Scroll down for video . Debutante Katie Dolan (left) representing England and debutante Joanne McGuire of Scotland (right) at the 60th International Debutante Ball . Dressed in a strapless Oleg Cassini gown, Katie from Nottingham, England, danced and dined in the grand ballroom before being presented by an escort in white tie and tails. She was joined by Joanne, 23, from Edinburgh, Scotland, and other young women from the new generation of the international elite, representing 12 American states and countries from across Europe and the globe. A graduate from the University of Hull and daughter of an ex-NHS worker, Katie now lives in New York where she works as an events marketing specialist for Thomson Reuters. Joanne, who studied maths and psychology at Newcastle, is also currently in New York completing a finance internship. While forty-six of the young women hail from the United States, by far the most represented country every year, about a fourth of the debutantes come from across the globe. Most commonly the international debutantes come from France, the United Kingdom, Italy and Germany. This year, China, Hong Kong, Spain and Austria were also represented, among other nations. They are college-aged young women putting their faces forward in the Waldorf-Astoria's grand ballroom as they meet and greet with future husbands, friends, colleagues and business and charity contacts. English debutante Katie Dolan meets guests at the receiving line in the Astor Salon, before the dancing commences in the Astoria's ballroom . Katie speaks to the press before dancing and dining in the grand ballroom followed by the presentation - the highlight of the evening . Meet and greet: Guests of the 60th Annual International Debutante Ball greet the stars of the show--the lovely ladies debuting themselves to a rarefied world of global leaders in politics, diplomacy and commerce . A day to remember: The 60-year-old tradition isn't the world's only debutante ball, but it is arguably one of the most celebrated . Globally known: The tradition sees mostly debutantes from the United States, but young women debut themselves from countries all over the world . Best faces forward: The college aged women attend in order to make what will likely become future husbands, friends, employers and business contacts . They young women are from some of America's and the world's most prestigious universities . The men present at the ball are described as coming from as equally noble background as the young women . These daughters of nobility have for six decades used their beauty, glamor and magnetism to help benefit a range of charities . The tradition of debuting young and privileged women decked out in billowing white gowns and elbow-length satin gloves stretches back far beyond the first New York City ball in 1954, but the Big Apple's ball is the quintessential state-side cotillion. Per the International Debutante Ball website: . The evening begins with the receiving line in the Astor Salon, where guests meet the debutantes and press and candid photos are taken. Cocktails are then served in the Jade Room and Basildon Room. After dinner and dancing in the Ballroom, each debutante is presented, one at a time, accompanied by a young man in white tie and tails. As the debutante walks down the center of the Ballroom to make her bow, the orchestra plays a song appropriate to the country or state represented. These daughters of nobility have for six decades used their beauty, glamor and magnetism to help benefit a range of charities that most notably include, according to the official site, ,the Soldiers’, Sailors’, Marines’, Coast Guard and Airmen’s Club of New York City, which for over ninety-five years has provided a home away from home for young men and women of our Armed Forces and those of our Allies.' Each debutante is formally introduced to the room after being led to the stage by an impeccably groomed young man of an equally noble background . Debutante Bianca Campamor of Spain is pictured left. At right is Isabella Von Habsburg of Austria . A contingent of proud Texan debutantes, and others from the U.S., pose at the International Debutante Ball in the Waldorf-Astoria grand ballroom . Debutante Fanny Tang of China attends the 60th International Debutante Ball at The Waldorf-Astoria . In the Waldorf-Astoria's grand ballroom the young women meet and greet future husbands, friends, colleagues and charity contacts . Grand affair: A general view of the atmosphere at the 60th annual event reveals the grand nature of the noble and glamorous event . The ball is an opportunity for the college-age women to meet new friends, colleagues and business contacts . According to the official website, the ball benefits 'a range of charities that most notably include, according to the official site, the Soldiers’, Sailors’, Marines’, Coast Guard and Airmen’s Club of New York City, which for over ninety-five years has provided a home away from home for young men and women of our Armed Forces and those of our Allies.' Beaming: Debutante Catherine Mahoney of Virginia and Kathleen Degnan of Rhode Island . Debutantes Alexandra Bratton (left) and Sofia Dieck (right), both of Texas, were presented to 'polite society' at the ball . Posed with poise: Debutantes have for six decades used their beauty, glamor and magnetism to help benefit a range of charities . Young women from across the United States and the world attend the 60th annual debutante ball . The tradition of debuting young and privileged women decked out in billowing white gowns and elbow-length satin gloves stretches back far beyond the first New York City ball in 1954 . The ball allows the international elite to debut themselves to sons of ambassadors, world leaders and industry giants . | Ball allows the international elite to debut themselves to sons of ambassadors, world leaders and industry giants .
Katie Dolan, from Nottingham, England, wore an Oleg Cassini gown to be presented to 'polite society' at the ball .
Joanne McGuire, from Edinburgh, Scotland, also joined the well-heeled daughters of America's 'aristocratic' families .
In Waldorf-Astoria's grand ballroom the girls meet future husbands, friends, colleagues and charity contacts . |
129,880 | 33e3a4493a0dcb4c9f3378f144eedebfd2bf37b6 | By . Mail On Sunday Reporter . Racing at speeds of up to 35mph with a skateboard in tow, Candy is a star in the world of extreme horse sports. But just five years ago this daredevil pony was found abandoned in a muddy field in East Sussex. Luckily, Candy - one of thousands of horses abandoned in the UK each year - was found a new home in Norfolk by charity World Horse Welfare. Rachel rides Candy, as the inventor of horse boarding, Daniel Fowler-Prime rides on the board behind . Barely able to canter, she could not do showjumping or dressage, but after learning horse boarding, in which a rider tows a skater on a board around a complex course of obstacles and turns, she no longer struggles. New owner Rachel Simington, 25, said: 'The horse boarding has helped her become a confident young mare. We compete in horse boarding at shows all over the country and nothing worries her now.' The Mail on Sunday has worked to highlight the nation's 'horse crisis' and it is hoped Candy's story will inspire more people to consider rehoming these abandoned animals. Miss Simington added: 'It has given me a bond with my pony that I could only ever have dreamt of.' Candy upon arrival to rescue centre, barely able to canter . | Daredevil pony was found abandoned in a muddy field in East Sussex .
Candy has found a new home in Norfolk by charity World Horse Welfare .
Owner Rachel Simington, 25, says boarding has helped mare's confidence . |
36,361 | 6719c2cf466dd4c3e787e09fad60fbf1cfc84868 | By . Hayley Peterson . PUBLISHED: . 00:51 EST, 22 May 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 08:58 EST, 24 May 2013 . Not impressed: New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said it would be a 'shame' for voters to elect Anthony Weiner mayor . New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has delivered a powerful blow to Anthony Weiner's political ambitions, saying it would be a 'shame' for voters to elect him mayor. Cuomo made the cutting remark in an interview with the Syracuse Post-Standard's editorial board, where he was asked what he thought of Weiner's campaign. 'He runs? He runs,' Cuomo said. 'And if we elect him?' the governor was asked. 'Shame on us,' Cuomo bluntly replied. Cuomo's unflattering opinion of Weiner was . revealed on the eve of the former congressman's first official day of . campaigning. 'There’s no doubt about it: I made . very big mistakes,' Weiner, 48, told WNYC Thursday, referring to the tawdry tweets . that led to his resignation from Congress in 2011. 'I compounded it immeasurably by being dishonest about . it. 'I have apologized . many, many times to my wife, and frankly I know that part of this . process is going to be doing a lot of apologizing.' Weiner . resigned from Congress after it was revealed that he had sent several . women inappropriate photos of himself, including one of a bulge in his . pants and another of him shirtless. Comeback kid: Former U.S. Congressman and New York City mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner greets commuters during a campaign event in New York . More reporters than voters? Weiner stands surrounded by reporters and a few commuters on a 2 train headed to Times Square . Bad day: Weiner's credentials as a native New Yorker took a bashing after his website was revealed to be using an image of Pittsburgh as its backdrop . He called . the behavior a 'blind spot' and said 'it was a thoughtlessness that I . had about my private behavior.' Weiner's wife, longtime Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin, has forgiven him - but she hasn't forgotten, he revealed. 'I . put her through some difficult things,' Weiner admitted. 'She says it’s . in the rear view mirror — but it’s not far in the rear view mirror.' But that might change if more details of the scandal come forward in the course of his campaign - something Weiner has repeatedly warned could happen. 'It is what it is,' Weiner said. 'People may decide they want to come forward and say, here’s another email that I got or another photo. I’m certainly not going to do that. So people may hear things that are true, they may hear things that are not true, but I’m going to try to keep being focused on issues that are important to New York City.' Weiner made the remarks as he set out . Thursday to reintroduce himself to voters, following the release of his . first official campaign video that featured his toddler son and . targeted middle class voters. He . started off his day of rebranding at a subway stop in Harlem, where he . shook hands with voters and answered their questions about teacher . contracts and manufacturing jobs - the kind issues that wants to be . central to his campaign. Anthony Weiner and his wife Huma Abedin appeared in a New York Times magazine article last month in which he revealed that he was considering running for mayor . Visit to Harlem: Weiner (left) resigned from Congress two years ago in disgrace over his racy Twitter messages . Going in for the hug: Weiner hugs a woman while greeting commuters . Voter Linda Smalls, who encountered Weiner during his swing through Harlem, said the former congressman has her support. 'Even though he made a mistake, you . know, we're human. He's human. He apologized for it, and it's time to . move on,' she told the Associated Press. Addressing a throng reporters was . following him, Weiner said that he would be happy to talk about his . 'personal failings' if that is what citizens on the campaign trail want . to discuss. '[But] frankly, I think most New . Yorkers, particularly those in the middle class in communities like . this, they want to talk about the solutions to the challenges that New . York City faces,' he said. 'That's what they care about and I want to . try to provide some answers.' A . recent Quinnipiac University poll has Weiner coming in second place . among Democratic primary contenders with 15 percent of the vote. Ahead . of him is City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, with 25 percent of the . vote. In his 'comeback' video released late Tuesday, Weiner says he's learned 'tough lessons.' 'I’ve . been fighting for the middle class and those struggling to make it my . entire life,' he says. 'And I hope I get a second chance to work for . you.' Ecstatic: Weiner's happy to be back in the public eye after a month of maybes over whether he would run for mayor . Back in the game: Weiner's campaign video features him and wife Huma Abedin sitting on the stoop of the Brooklyn apartment block where he grew up . Family man: Weiner's campaign video starts with footage of him at home with his wife and their young son . The video opens with a scene inside the family home of Weiner, his wife and their son. In an interview last month with New York Times Magazine, Abedin explained her decision to stick by her husband's side. 'Here . was a man I respected, I loved, was the father of this child inside of . me, and he was asking me for a second chance,' said Abedin, who was . pregnant with their first child at the time of the scandal. 'It was the . right choice for me. I didn’t make it lightly.' See the video below... | Cuomo made the remarks during a meeting with the Syracuse Post-Standard's editorial board .
Meanwhile Weiner began his first day of campaigning Thursday with a meet-and-greet at a Harlem subway stop .
Weiner said his wife has forgiven him after lots of apologizing for the tawdry tweets that led to his resignation from Congress .
His new 'wholesome' campaign video features his wife and their son . |
251,605 | d1adda80f4f777734d7b901c621b841aada04899 | By . Claire Bates . UPDATED: . 07:56 EST, 2 December 2011 . The North East has seen a 400 per cent increase in the number of hospital admissions for people in their early 30s with alcoholic liver disease (model) Consultants have called on the Government to introduce new curbs on alcohol advertising to protect young people. In an open letter they warned Britain is facing an epidemic of liver disease caused by a binge drinking culture and cheap booze. The North East has been hit particularly hard with figures showing a 400 per cent increase in the number of hospital admissions for people in their early 30s with alcoholic liver disease. The consultants are supporting a campaign by Balance, the north east of England's alcohol office, demanding a stop to the alcohol industry recruiting young people as the next generation of problem drinkers. Balance said children were 'swimming through 40% proof advertising' and were being encouraged to start drinking younger, and to drink more. In the open letter published in The Guardian the consultants, mostly liver specialists and gastroenterologists, blamed the problem on our having created 'an excessively pro-alcohol culture by selling alcohol for pocket money prices'. They said a decade ago it was unusual for a liver specialist to treat anyone for alcoholic cirrhosis who had not reached their 50s. 'Alarmingly, this is no longer the case. In the North East we are in the middle of an epidemic,' they add. 'It is clear we need to halt this epidemic in its tracks, otherwise we will soon be treating young men and young men and women in their 20s on a regular basis for a disease that is 100% preventable.' A spokesman for Balance said: 'It's time we said enough is enough. 'Our children are being bombarded by alcohol advertising which is encouraging them to drink alcohol at an early age - and in greater quantities. 'Early consumption is linked with a host of problems including brain damage, truancy, experimenting with drugs and unsafe sex. 'We don't think that it's normal for children to be bombarded by alcohol adverts while going about the business of being children.' Balance's petition demands a ban on alcohol advertising on television and non-18 certificate films in the cinema, as well as a halt to the sponsoring of sports and cultural events. The North East has the highest rate of 11 to 15 year olds drinking. This means they are more likely to be victims of crime, have unprotected sex, and under perform at school. Research by Balance showed North-East hospitals recorded 189 admissions for 30 to 34-year-olds with the disease last year, compared with 37 in 2002. In total, there were 778 admissions for 30 to 34-year olds with alcohol liver disease between 2002 and last year, costing the NHS about £1.8m. There were a further 482 admissions for under-30s, with some people admitted under the age of 20. In all, in the past eight years there have been 21,798 alcoholic liver disease admissions across the region, costing the NHS £51.7m. Dear editor . When it comes to alcohol and the liver, the general rule is that the volume and duration of consumption determines whether someone will have a problem. As recently as a decade ago, it was unusual for a liver specialist to treat anyone for alcoholic cirrhosis who had not reached their fifties.Alarmingly, this is no longer the case. In the North East we are in the middle of an epidemic. We have witnessed a 400% increase in the number of 30-34 year olds being admitted into our hospitals with alcoholic liver disease since 2002. This early onset is due to the fact that people are drinking at much earlier ages and in much greater quantities than ever before. The average adult now consumes just under 11 litres of pure alcohol each year, more than double the levels recorded in the 1950s. People are consuming in this way because we've created an excessively pro-alcohol culture by selling alcohol for pocket money prices, promoting it heavily and widely and making it available 24 hours a day. It's clear we need to halt this epidemic in its tracks, otherwise we'll soon be treating young men and women in their twenties on a regular basis for a disease that is 100% preventable. That's why we're supporting en masse a campaign which has been launched in our region by Balance, the North East alcohol office. It calls for Government to stop the alcohol industry recruiting our children and young people as the next generation of problem drinkers. By preventing the alcohol industry from reaching children and young people through TV, social networking sites, under-18 films in the cinema and sponsorship of sporting and youth events, we begin to make drinking early and in large quantities less normal and less acceptable. We begin to change the excessively pro-alcohol culture, which the alcohol industry spends an estimated £800m a year on marketing to sustain. We need everyone who is concerned about the lives and futures of our children and young people to back this campaign and sign the petition at www.balancenortheast.co.uk . Yours sincerely, . :: Chris Record, consultant physician and liver specialist at Newcastle University and Newcastle Hospitals:: James Crosby, consultant gastroenterologist, City Hospitals Sunderland:: Andrew Douglass, consultant gastroenterologist, South Tees NHS Trust:: Jane Metcalf, honorary senior lecturer and consultant physician, North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust:: Simon Cowlam, consultant gastroenterologist, City Hospitals Sunderland:: Stuart McPherson, consultant hepatologist Freeman Hospital, Newcastle upon Tyne:: Emma Johns, consultant gastroenterologist, Gateshead:: Elizabeth Phillips, consultant gastroenterologist and Honorary Senior Lecturer, Northumbria Healthcare NHS:: Colin Rees, consultant gastroenterologist, South Tyneside NHS Foundation Trust:: Christopher Wells, consultant gastroenterologist, University Hospital of North Tees:: Anthoor Jayaprakash, consultant physician and gastroenterologist, Wansbeck Hospital:: Deepak Dwarakanath, consultant physician, University Hospital of North Durham:: Zahid Mahmood, physician and lead gastrologist, North Cumbria University Hospitals:: S. Zafar Abbas, consultant gastroenterologist, Hexham General Hospital:: Dr Anthony Macklon, consultant physician and gastroenterologist, University Hospital of North Durham:: Jitendra Singh, consultant gastroenterologist and general physician, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Gateshead:: Peter Trewby, consultant physician, County Durham and Darlington Foundation Trust:: Phil Matthews, consultant gastroenterologist, Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust:: Diamond Joy, consultant gastroenterologist, The James Cook University Hospital:: Harriet Mitchison, consultant endoscopy, City Hospitals Sunderland:: Paul Cann, consultant gastroenterologist, The James Cook University Hospital, Middlesbrough:: David Hobday, consultant gastroenterologist, City Hospitals Sunderland:: Anjan Dhar, consultant gastroenterologist, University Hospital of North Durham:: Christopher Haigh, consultant gastroenterologist, Wansbeck Hospital:: Richard Thomas, consultant physician, North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust:: Matt Rutter consultant gastroenterologist University Hospital of North Tees:: Mumtaz Hayat, consultant gastroenterologist and physician, Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust:: Margaret Bassendine, professor of hepatology at Newcastle University and hon consultant hepatologist Freeman Hospital, Newcastle upon Tyne:: David Oliver, consultant gastroenterologist, The James Cook University Hospital, Middlesbrough:: Arvind Ramadas, consultant gastroenterologist, The James Cook University Hospital, Middlesbrough:: Jo Topping, consultant gastroenterologist, South Tyneside District Hospital:: Anand Reddy, consultant physician and gastroenterologist, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Gateshead:: Babur Javaid, consultant gastroenterologist, North Cumbria University Hospitals:: Anil Bhagwat, consultant, Hexham General Hospital:: Saksena Sushma, consultant physician and hepatologist, University Hospital North Durham . | The North East has seen a 400 per cent increase in the number of hospital admissions for people in their early 30s with alcoholic liver disease . |
141,264 | 42abc44dc7b15d7ba9af1c84b063d356b5699cd1 | Arusha, Tanzania (CNN) -- In most doctors' waiting rooms, it's the nurse who calls the mother and child for their vaccination. In Tanzania's Arusha National Park, nurse Neema Baynet has to go out and find her patients. With the Maasai tribes constantly on the move searching for water and fresh pasture for their cattle, Baynet can spend up to five days traveling 100 km searching the savannah for remote communities for whom her mobile immunization clinics are the only protection against deadly disease. "A week before we set off, we send out a message to the communities and ask them to spread the word that we are coming so we can vaccinate as many children as possible," says Baynet. "Tell them the chanjos [vaccines] are coming. Bring your children!" Despite the beauty of the backdrop of mountains, lakes and stunning savannah, Arusha's geography poses severe logistical challenges that leave Maasai mothers waiting days rather than hours for the nurse -- not because of a backlog of patients but because the nurse struggles to reach them. There are rivers to cross, rough tracks that turn into mud beds in the rainy season, impassable even for 4x4 vehicles, and sometimes no real track to follow. The terrain means health workers often sleep in their vehicle and are forced to complete their journey by foot -- in a region renowned for its dangerous wildlife. "We do not often see lions," says Baynet, "but we can hear them at night and see their tracks by day." See also: Wildlife puts Tanzania on the tourist map . In the soaring temperatures of Arusha's equatorial climate, Baynet's quest to find her patients is also a race against time: modern vaccines must be kept cool to preserve their powers of prevention, and a cold box packed with ice is Baynet's very temporary defense. Yet the children of the Maasai cannot afford to miss out on the protective powers of vaccines. "When a child falls sick in such areas, the greatest problem is getting them medical help," says Osmand Swai, clinical officer at a health center in the Maasai village of Gelai Lumbwa. "They have to be carried over vast distances to reach the nearest doctor. When they arrive, they are usually in a very bad condition." Nasieku Engishon lives in the Maasai settlement of Engirirat, near Gelai Lumbwa. She almost lost her 10-month-old daughter to pneumonia and diarrhea. "When a child becomes sick, we carry them to the health center," she says. "Carrying a sick child, it can take four to six hours to get there." As a tribe that was decimated by disease and famine in the 19th century, the Maasai themselves are keenly aware of the importance of vaccinating their children. "There was an outbreak of measles here last August and a lot of children became very sick," says Narangrang Laiseri, from Gelai Lumbwa. "They took them to hospital, but five from this area died. I was lucky -- my son had been vaccinated against measles and he was one of the ones who got better quickly." See also: Fighting cancer with cell phones: Innovation to save lives in Africa . The need to get to hard-to-reach people like the Maasai and the rest of the estimated 8% of Tanzania's population that do not receive basic life-saving vaccines has taken on a new urgency with the country's recent launch of a five-year development plan. The government wants to shift the national economy up a gear in its drive to transform Tanzania into a middle-income country by 2025, and it is now widely acknowledged that investing in children's health through vaccination is critical to building solid economic foundations. Healthy children do better in school and have a better chance to reach their full economic potential. Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikweke is hosting this week's high-level gathering of over 650 immunization experts in the capital, Dar-es-Salaam. The GAVI Alliance Partners' Forum (5-7 December) will focus on how to achieve equity in children's access to life-saving vaccines. To mark the event, the health ministry will launch two new vaccines into the national immunization program -- pneumococcal and rotavirus -- tackling the primary causes of pneumonia and diarrhea -- two of the leading killers of under-fives in Tanzania. Tanzania's One Plan aims to ensure that these new vaccines reach all children, from the Maasai in the north to the islands of Zanzibar, where boats are used to deliver medicine to the more remote of the archipelago's many islands. "We have a strategy to reach every child with vaccination and we engage communities in planning and implementing it," says Yussuf Makame, manager of Zanzibar's Expanded Programme on Immunisation. However, Maasai mothers remain fearful that the sheer geographical scale of Arusha means that for them the waiting game is destined to go on. "Of course we know how important it is to vaccinate our children," says Laiseri. "Whenever we hear the vaccinators are coming, people bring their children. But sometimes they are so far away, they do not hear about the vaccination in time." | Getting vaccines to wandering Maasai tribes in Tanzania can take days .
About 8% of Tanzanians do not receive basic life-saving vaccines .
GAVI Alliance Partners' Forum to focus on children's access to life-saving vaccines.
Tanzania to launch new vaccines to prevent pneumonia and diarrhea . |
268,575 | e7e1bc1bb02116384c70e5634e3ac3deb5429dfc | London (CNN) -- The euro club has suffered major shockwaves but its newest member has emerged as a shining economic light. Estonia, which joined the euro in January 2011, has shaken off its painful Soviet Union history and a credit-fed boom and bust to rebuild itself as an economy with shrinking unemployment numbers and growth far exceeding its peers. The fortunes of the small Baltic country, perched on the edge of northern Europe, run in stark contrast to the eurozone's troubled south, where unemployment has soared to record levels and recessions are becoming entrenched. But Estonia's finance minister, Jurgen Ligi, told CNN Greece -- the eurozone's most troubled nation -- was "paradise" compared to what his country had suffered after the USSR fell. Estonia, vice-chair of last week's Organisation for Economic Development and Cooperation Ministerial Council Meeting in Paris, joined the euro seven months after Greece had taken its first bailout and as the common currency slid into crisis. Ligi told CNN joining the euro was a "natural choice" for a "small open economy." The country, which has just 1.3 million people, had always been "very much dependent on the eurozone, and now we are participating and influencing the decisions," he said. WATCH MORE: Post-Soviet winners and losers . Accession to the eurozone, despite its problems, ensured the country offered a more stable currency, which gave confidence to investors, Ligi said, as well as showing "solidarity and political cooperation. "Sometimes you have obligations that you don't like but [do them] for general stability." Ligi said the austerity drive being pushed through Europe barely justified the label. "I would not use the word austerity in Europe, where the size of the social system is half of that of the world and consumption level among the highest." Estonia went through its own harsh program of cuts in 2009, slicing back state salaries and freezing pensions, after its real estate bubble went bust. The program helped ensure Estonia stayed inside the rules of entry to the eurozone. The country's growth rate averaged 8% between 2003 and 2007, before crashing into recession in 2008: its GDP shrank 14.3% in 2009 but has since rebounded. According to Ligi, real GDP will recover to pre-crisis levels next year. Ligi said the contraction was based on a "credit, real estate and consumption bubble" while today's economy "is on a much stronger basis." Estonia's debt to GDP ratio remains markedly lower than that of its European peers, sitting at 10.1% compared to Greece at a heady 156.9% and Italy at a painful 127%. WATCH MORE: Doing business in Estonia . Estonia's export economy is also supported by its strong links with Scandinavian countries, including Finland and Sweden. Its unemployment, at 10%, remains high but lower than the eurozone as whole, which now sits at 12.2%. The OECD has predicted this will rise to 12.3% in 2014. Estonia's youth unemployment sits at 23%, again lower than the eurozone's 24.4%. The former Soviet nation has built itself into a free market, highly educated country with a strong telecommunications industry. The birthplace of Skype become known as E-Stonia following the USSR's collapse in 1991. It drove through an ambitious program of connectivity credited to Toomas Hendrik Ilves, the bow-tie wearing former ambassador to the United States who is now the country's president. Ligi said the country did not forget the crisis which followed its independence, when inflation reached 1000% and it underwent rapid monetary reform. "We have been making right and sustainable decisions," Ligi said. "There are lots of countries with similar history and situation than Estonia are not taking advantage. He added: "This is no miracle that Estonia is developing quicker than the others." Estonians bore with structural changes with the culture of practicality, Ligi said. "[Estonians] are very rational ...we have a lot of common sense," he said. "We appreciate solidarity but we do not forget personal responsibility." The country's leaders -- including Ilves -- have also proved feisty defenders of their economic reforms. In an infamous Twitter battle with Nobel economics prize winner and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman, who questioned whether Estonia's GDP recovery could be classed as an "economic triumph," Ilves slapped down the "smug, overbearing & patronizing" report. | The euro club has suffered major shockwaves but its newest member has emerged as a shining economic light.
Estonia, which joined the euro in January 2011, has rising employment and growth exceeding its peers .
Its economy has been through financial restructuring and a credit-fed boom and bust .
Joining the bloc has helped buoy its economy due to increased confidence from investors . |
82,916 | eb218f7f80e60cf7077d545c1d988d6a77e81870 | By . Paul Bentley . PUBLISHED: . 05:11 EST, 13 March 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 04:40 EST, 14 March 2013 . Drama: Mick Philpott (sketched left) in the witness box at Nottingham Crown Court, where he collapsed during a day of evidence about the events leading to the fire at his home . The father accused of killing six of his 17 children in a house fire admitted yesterday that he and his wife had a sordid sex session with another man on the night their children died. Mick Philpott, 56, sobbed in court as he spoke of his ‘total shame’ that he, wife Mairead, 31, and their best friend Paul Mosley, 46, took part in the ‘degrading’ threesome hours before the fire, which they are alleged to have planned. After the children died, they had three or four further sexual encounters together and smoked cannabis frequently. Philpott said he was ‘finding it very difficult to cope with what was going on’ and added: ‘Having sex and smoking cannabis was one way of blocking it out.’ He and his wife, who wept throughout the hearing, and Mosley are charged with killing the children at their home in Derby in the early hours of May 11 last year. It is alleged that Philpott masterminded the fire in a plot to frame former live-in lover Lisa Willis, 29, after she walked out on him, taking her five children. Prosecutors say the plan, allegedly an attempt to ruin her reputation ahead of a child custody hearing, went ‘horribly wrong’ and the fire swept out of control. In a dramatic day at Nottingham Crown Court yesterday, Philpott, dressed in a grey suit, white shirt and purple tie and clutching a St Christopher necklace, sobbed throughout and at one point collapsed, disappearing in the dock. He admitted that hours before the blaze he and his two co-defendants had a sex session in the house after he drove to a nearby dealer to buy cannabis. ‘I was kissing and cuddling my wife and she was holding Paul. It was just Mairead playing with Paul,’ he told jurors, adding that it only lasted a ‘couple of minutes’. Emotional: As a 999 call from his house was played to the court, Philpott put his head in his hands and sobbed uncontrollably . Drama: The 56-year-old then collapsed, sobbing loudly, as people in the public gallery also cried during evidence played to the jury . Regrets: Mick Philpott on the Jeremy Kyle Show in 2009, where he admitted his wife and girlfriend were pregnant so he needed a new larger council house . He did not initially tell the police . what had happened because they were ‘totally, totally ashamed of what . we’ve done. It’s totally irrelevant to what happened to the children, . it’s degrading’. He added that the sex sessions following the fire were his idea, not his . wife’s. He said he was ‘numb’ at the time. ‘I wanted to die to be with . my kids,’ he added. Philpott also described the couple’s regular dogging sessions, which . involved having sex with strangers in public. One session resulted in . Mairead becoming pregnant by an unknown man. She later had an abortion. In the dock: Mick Philpott, shown crying at a press conference with wife Mairead, started giving evidence today . Trial: Mick Philpott stands in the dock today as defence barrister Anthony Orchard QC asks questions while his wife Mairead wipes her eyes alongside the other defendant Paul Mosley . On the night of the fire, Mosley left their house before Philpott and . Mairead had sex and watched a film. Philpott said he and his wife were . sleeping naked in the conservatory when they were woken by the fire . alarm in the house. They went into the kitchen and saw an ‘orange light’ that seemed to be . coming out of the living room, he said. Anthony Orchard QC, defending . Philpott, asked him: ‘What was your first thought when you realised . there was a fire?’ He replied: ‘My kids.’ Regret: Philpott cried as he described his wife Mairead as a great mother . Philpott went on: ‘I didn’t do it, on my life. They’re my life, my . heart, they’re everything to me. I wanted to hear them but I couldn’t. I . was hysterical. How do you explain trying to get to your babies? I . wanted to get to them. I shouted at my wife to get out. [She] tried to . get past and I stopped her.’ He went outside and climbed a ladder in an attempt to break the children’s bedroom window. ‘I was screaming for my daughter. The window was shut. I punched it . twice but it wouldn’t break,’ he said. ‘I just wanted to get my babies.’ Philpott managed to break the window with a metal socket set but could . not get in because of the thick black smoke coming from the room. The jury was then played a dramatic 999 call from that night, which led . to Philpott disappearing while sobbing hysterically in the dock. He also admitted hitting both his wife and his lover when they disciplined his children. The court had previously heard how Mosley had sex with Mairead on the . night of the fire. ‘The only thing I did wrong that night was b*** . Mairead over the snooker table,’ he told police. Jade Philpott, ten, and brothers John, nine, Jack, eight, Jesse, six, . and Jayden, five, all died from smoke inhalation after being trapped . inside the burning house. Their brother Duwayne, 13, died of smoke . inhalation three days later. The three defendants deny the charges. The trial continues. Accused: Mick Philpott, pictured with Mairead Philpott and another woman, spoke about his relationship with girlfriend Lisa Willis in court today . Tragic: Six children, aged between five and 13, died in the blaze at the house in Allenton, Derby, last May . Deadly blaze: Philpott surrounded by the six children whose lives were claimed by the fatal house fire . Sorry we are unable to accept comments for legal reasons. | Mick Philpott alleged to have started the blaze with two others .
Appeared on Jeremy Kyle in 2006, which led to death threats and 'bullying'
Told court he regretted going on show, saying it was 'bad' for his family .
'They (people) called them (his children) brats, scum of the earth,' he said .
Philpott admits he 'hit' his wife and then lover because they struck his child .
He also told the court today that he did not do it, but may know who did .
Court heard his wife had an abortion after falling pregnant while dogging .
He is accused of manslaughter with wife Mairead and friend Paul Mosley . |
210,927 | 9d2e88fdd38d878309140e5c52f185a4a8e1d87a | By . Bianca London and Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 03:56 EST, 30 September 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 03:56 EST, 30 September 2013 . We may view Spam as a cut-price, unsavoury product. To the South Koreans, however, it’s a luxury consumed at festive events and even presented as a gift. During the Korean War in the Fifties, food was so scarce rations (including Spam) smuggled out of U. S. army bases were highly prized. Spam, for South Koreans, is a luxury product consumed at festive events and even presented as a gift . Spam spokesman Shin Hyo Eun says: ‘Anyone who gets a Spam gift-set gets a warm feeling in their heart.’ South Korea is now the biggest consumer country of Spam outside the US and since the product was launched in America before WWII, over seven billion cans have been produced. Shops in Korea stock all types of Spam, from classic to bacon and even garlic flavoured Spam and their signature dish - budae jigae or army stew - is packed with it. South Korea is now the biggest consumer country of Spam outside the US and since the product was launched in America before WWII, over seven billion cans have been produced . You can even snap up luxurious gift sets and hampers in time for Christmas, but despite Spam's lowly price tag, a Black Label hamper will set you back around $75 (£50). Whether putting Spam in your children’s stocking this Christmas will have the same effect is another matter. | South Korea is now the biggest consumer country of Spam outside the US . |
174,754 | 6e2cfe268e4858f5f9674331a250ec9f42f3eb7b | By . Anthony Bond . PUBLISHED: . 13:16 EST, 6 June 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 01:31 EST, 7 June 2012 . A female driver who rammed into a pedestrian and drove with him through crowded streets as he clung desperately onto her bonnet has blamed her hormones for the bizarre incident. Suzanne Gilchrist, 37, carried 22-year-old Stuart Morris along on her Ford Focus for around 300 metres after driving into him as she tried to escape from a store detective. CCTV footage shows 'vividly' how she had put Mr Morris’s life in danger, a court heard. Scroll down for the video . Clinging on for dear life: Stuart Morris grabs hold of the bonnet after being struck by Suzanne Gilchrist and driven for more than 300 metres in a bizarre incident she blamed on her hormones . Emma White, prosecuting, said the incident began with the mother-of-one trying to get away from the security officer at the Howgate Shopping Centre in Falkirk at around 4pm. She drove away as the guard, Lorne Stevenson, tried to open her driver’s door and snatch her keys from the ignition. Mr Stevenson was trying to speak to her about an alleged theft from Boots. Stirling Sheriff Court heard that as Gilchrist sped off, Mr Morris, an 'unconnected' passer-by, happened to be crossing the road and was in her way. No stopping her: CCTV footage shows Gilchrist driving her Vauxhall Corsa towards Mr Morris as she flees a store detective after an alleged theft from Boots . Evasive action: Gilchrist drove towards Mr Morris, described as an 'unconnected passerby' and struck him, causing him jump onto the bonnet to avoid being hurt . Serving time: Gilchrist hides her face outside court, where she admitted assaulting Mr Morris (right) Miss White said Gilchrist drove towards him and struck him, causing him jump onto the bonnet to avoid being hurt. She then drove off 'at speed' down Manor Street in the town and through a series of other short streets, weaving from side to side. Miss White said: 'She was driving really fast, swerving over the road, and trying to force him off the bonnet. 'Her wheels were spinning as she turned from Manor Street into Princes Street in the town centre and she never even tried to stop at the junction. 'He said she was "screeching over the road trying to get him to fall off". 'The roads were being used by other members of the public and vehicles during the course of the incident.' Gone in 60 seconds: Gilchrist was jailed for four years after pleading guilty to assaulting Mr Morris and trying to throw him from her car to the danger of his life . Imminent danger: Mr Morris was taken to hospital on a spinal board after the incident and found to have spinal bruising and bruising to his legs and fingers . Miss White said the whole incident was captured on town centre CCTV, which she played to the court. The footage featured close-ups of Mr Morris holding on to try to stay on. The depute fiscal said the incident came to an end when Gilchrist was held up by other traffic at lights and 'had no option other than to come to a halt'. Mr Morris is then seen to stand up on the bonnet of the car and kick the windscreen to try to smash it so Gilchrist could not continue. Miss White said he later told police he had done so 'because he was scared, and his adrenaline was going'. Mr Stevenson, who had been following on foot, ran up and tried to open the car door, but Gilchrist slammed it closed. Miss White said: 'The lights then turned green and she again tried to drive off with Mr Morris still on the bonnet. Mr Stevenson then managed to force open the door and after a struggle with Mr Stevenson managed to switch off the ignition.' Police arrived and Gilchrist was arrested. Manic manoeuvres: Gilchrist drove off 'at speed' down in the town of Falkirk and through a series of other short streets, weaving from side to side, a court heard . Mr Morris, 'plainly overcome', told officers he 'thought he was a goner'. He was taken to hospital on a spinal board, and found to have spinal bruising, and bruising to his legs and fingers. He was given painkillers and discharged. Miss White said: 'The total distance driven by the accused while he was on the bonnet was 285 metres.' Gilchrist, from Edinburgh, pleaded guilty to assaulting Mr Morris, failing to give way at junctions, and trying to throw him from her car to the danger of his life on June 12 last year. Her plea of not guilty to stealing a bottle of aftershave was accepted. Rhona McLeod, mitigating, said Gilchrist had 'believed herself to be in danger'. She said: 'She had thought that she was pregnant and was obviously suffering from some sort of hormonal imbalance, and was on such a knife-edge that she panicked. 'She was hysterical. She thought Mr Morris had walked out in front of her trying to make her stop. She extends to him her unreserved apology.' 'Thought he was a goner': At one point, Mr Morris stood up on the bonnet and tried to smash the windscreen. The terrifying journey finally came to and end when Gilchrist was held up at traffic lights . She added that Gilchrist was in employment, and had a 16-year-old daughter, currently in the middle of exams. Sheriff Wyllie Robertson jailed Gilchrist for four years and three months. He said: 'You deliberately drove at the victim, who was innocently crossing the road, and he was forced to jump on the bonnet for fear of being run over. 'Your car was screeching around corners, while this man feared for his life. The danger to his life was real and obvious, and there is no alternative to a custodial sentence.' Stuart Morris . Mr Morris, a builder’s labourer, said Gilchrist deserved a jail term. He said: 'I had just come out of McDonalds after getting a burger. I saw her arguing with the security guard, and the next thing as I crossed the road - bang she hit me. 'I had to cling onto the top edge of the bonnet for dear life. She was zig-zagging trying to throw me off. 'If it’d been a child she hit, the child would have been killed, as they wouldn’t have been able to hang on. 'She was crazy. When my girlfriend gets hormonal, she just shouts a bit, she doesn’t try to kill anyone. 'It was quite scary. Gilchrist only stopped in the end because I smashed her windscreen. 'She deserves the jail - no-one like that should be free.' Les Brown, Procurator Fiscal for Stirling, said Gilchrist could have killed Mr Morris. He said: 'As she drove through Falkirk city centre, with her victim clinging for his life to the bonnet of her car, Suzanne Gilchrist chose to drive at speed and from side to side in an attempt to throw him from the vehicle. She used her car as a weapon, and her driving could have led to his death. 'Such needless endangerment of life is taken extremely seriously by the prosecution service, and today she has rightly been brought to face the full force of the law.' | Suzanne Gilchrist hit Stuart Morris while trying to escape a store detective .
Forced him to jump onto bonnet and then drove on 'at speed' through town .
Swerved across the road in an attempt to force him off her Ford Focus .
In desperate bid, he climbs onto bonnet and tries to smash the windscreen .
CCTV footage shows 'vividly' how she had put his life in danger, court heard .
Mr Morris taken suffered spinal bruising and injuries to his legs and fingers .
'She's crazy. When my girlfriend gets hormonal, she just shouts a bit. She doesn’t try to kill anyone.'
Gilchrist jailed for four years after admitting assault and endangering his life . |
233,333 | ba15b8a1b33663a124b0bf41b07a4b95b68b520c | NEW YORK (CNN) -- A Syrian arms dealer was sentenced to 30 years in a U.S. federal prison for conspiring to sell weapons as part of a plot to kill Americans in Colombia, according to prosecutors. Syrian-born arms dealer Monzer al-Kassar, seen in a file photo, tried to sell weapons to undercover U.S. agents. Monzer al-Kassar was also ordered Tuesday to forfeit all of his assets, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York. Al-Kassar's co-defendant Luis Felipe Moreno Godoy received a 25-year prison sentence for his role in the conspiracy. Both men were convicted in November of five charges, including conspiracy to murder U.S. nationals, conspiracy to acquire and export anti-aircraft missiles, conspiracy to provide support for FARC guerrillas in Colombia, and money laundering. The federal indictment paints al-Kassar as an international arms dealer with a hand in conflicts in nearly every part of the world, with a web of bank accounts and front companies across Europe and the Middle East. Al-Kassar was arrested in Spain in 2007 on a U.S. warrant and his associate Moreno Godoy was arrested in Romania. Both were extradited to the United States. The arrests stemmed from an undercover sting operation involving U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agents posing as members of FARC. During the 16-month operation, the agents arranged to buy more than 12,000 weapons from the two men, according to the indictment. Al-Kassar agreed to provide surface-to-air missiles for the FARC to shoot down American helicopters, and also offered to send 1,000 men to fight with the FARC, plus explosives and men who could train the FARC in how to use them, the indictment charged. Al-Kassar demanded 3,500,000 euros ($4.4 million) as "partial payment" for the weapons, it said. Justice Department officials say al-Kassar has been a source of weapons and military equipment for armed combatants since the 1970s. Kassar had told journalists before he was arrested that he had retired from arms dealing, but the United States says he had been involved since the 1970s, providing weapons and military equipment to armed factions in Nicaragua, Cyprus, Bosnia, Croatia, Iran, Iraq, Somalia, and elsewhere. CNN Justice Producer Terry Frieden contributed to this report. | Syrian sentenced in conspiracy to sell weapons in a plot to kill Americans .
Co-defendant gets 25 years; plan was to kill Americans in Colombia .
U.S. calls Monzer al-Kassar an international dealer arming many wars .
U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency arrested arms dealers in sting operation . |
190,236 | 824f8367a46110df83a06c0d9a0a22ed73c40973 | By . Sam Webb . PUBLISHED: . 07:43 EST, 5 March 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 08:37 EST, 5 March 2013 . Kevin Signo, who died in a freak accident as he attempted a back-flip while rehearsing a dance with friends . A teenager died after a back-flip went horribly wrong during a break in rehearsals of a traditional dance routine. Kevin Signo, an 18-year-old Baylor University freshman, died Sunday after a bizarre accident as he attempted the acrobatic move when he and his friends took a break from rehearsing traditional dances with the Filipino Students' Association. The pre-biology student from Frisco, Texas, hit his forehead and suffered a fatal spinal injury, according to a justice of the peace who spoke to the Waco Tribune-Herald. His parents, Henry and Jackie Signo, told NBC their son was shy in high school but had thrived socially since arriving at Baylor, in Waco, Texas. The Signos said Kevin dreamed of being a doctor and had signed legal documents to say he was an organ donor because he liked the idea that he could help others in the event of a tragedy. He was an organ donor who had a legal document drawn up, donating his eyes, skin, bones and organs. 'He knew exactly what could be used for and what was important,' Mrs Signo said. Mr Signo added: 'We're very happy to have had him for a short time.' At least two busloads of students from Baylor are expected to make the trip to the funeral, which will take place on Saturday. 'Kevin was a very bright, well-liked . and involved student on our campus,' said Baylor spokeswoman Lori . Fogleman. 'He had so many friends here who will miss him terribly'. His Facebook page said Kevin went to Frisco High School and was originally from Carol Stream in Illinois. His parents announced plans to provide a scholarship in his name at Baylor. Kevin with his parents and an unknown young lady at his graduation. He was due to turn 19 next month . Kevin's parents Henry and Jackie Signo, who said their organ donor son was keen to help others . Kevin Signo's parents said he had been shy at high school but once he arrived at college had made many friends . | Kevin Signo suffered fatal spinal injury after he attempted a back-flip .
Aspiring doctor was on a break from rehearsing a dance performance .
His father said: 'We're happy to have had him for a short time' |
171,804 | 6a5a4b179e798a9535e0c5dcf540987f210c4792 | By . Becky Evans . PUBLISHED: . 08:04 EST, 15 July 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 11:31 EST, 15 July 2013 . He proudly claims he will go to the 'center of the earth to get the best shot' and for this image he nearly did. Kawika Singson withstood the intense heat of a lava flow and allowed himself to be set alight in order to get this photograph on top of a Hawaii volcano. The photographer stood on a thin layer of rock just centimeters above magma and it was so hot his tripod and shoes set on fire. On fire: Kawika Singson was shooting in the volcanoes of Hawaii, which was so hot his tripod and shoes caught alight . Mr Singson has refused to divulge the exact location of the shoot but insists it is genuine and has not been tampered with. He told Petapixel: 'I don't like giving out my locations. It's a secret. Plus, I don't want people to go there and get hurt.' The extreme hiker and photographer said he takes 'many risks' to get the image he wants and this was taken on July 4, this year. 'I thought it would be pretty cool to take a lava pic with my shoes and tripod on fire,” he was quoted by Petapixel as saying. Despite some skeptics claiming the photograph must have been doctored, Mr Singson said the flames and lava were real and it was so hot he could only stand there for a few seconds. He positioned himself on a thin layer of rock directly above the magma. Scorching: The extreme photographer admits he takes risks as he plies his trade around the volcanoes of Hawaii, such as this one at Kilauea . Dedication: Photographer Miles Morgan's shoes and tripod melted as he shot lava on the scorching surface of the Kilaeua volcano, Hawaii . Previously, his shoes have started to smoke as he takes shots around the volcanoes of Hawaii, where he lives, but he said this was the first time they had actually caught fire. On Hawaii, the temperature of lava hovers around 1,100 degrees. Mr Singson is not the first photographer to risk life and limb to guarantee a great shot. In May, Miles Morgan took the concept of extreme living to another level after his shoes and tripod melted as he did a shoot among the same active volcanoes. His work his taken him just inches away from bubbling, fiery . lava spewing from the many craters that dot the islands. | Kawika Singson withstood the intense heat above a lava flow at a Hawaii volcano .
Admits he takes risks and will go to the 'center of the earth' to get best picture . |
139,562 | 4078751406b6b47ead339dc8cc0d585080f2c859 | (CNN) -- President Obama said Wednesday the United States must take the lead on energy, citing the "enormous job creation potential that exists." President Obama holds talks with members of the Economic Recovery Advisory Board on Wednesday. Obama's remarks came at the end of his first quarterly meeting with the Economic Recovery Advisory Board, which was created in February to provide the administration with independent, nonpartisan advice on how to promote economic growth and stability. The focus of Wednesday's meeting, which was streamed live on the White House Web site, was job creation and green energy. Obama told the board members he's seen "some return to normalcy" in parts of the financial markets. Watch Obama describe the 'progress' he sees » . "But obviously, one of the things I've been concerned about since I took office is looking beyond the immediate crisis in front of us to find out what is a sustainable economic model, post bubble and bust," he said. "How do we create sound fundamentals on issues like education, on health care and ... energy, as well as all the innovation that's required around these various areas, so that moving forward, we don't find ourselves in an unsustainable economic model?" he asked. Paul Volcker, who chairs the board, said as the panel discusses investments, they can't forget the risks of inaction. "There isn't enough emphasis, it seems to me, on the cost of what happens if we don't do anything," said Volcker, who served as the chairman of the Federal Reserve during the Carter and Reagan administrations. Obama said the steps taken around energy this week have been "promising." The president on Tuesday announced new fuel economy rules, including a requirement for passenger cars and light trucks to get an overall average of 35.5 miles per gallon by 2016. Obama and the board spent about an hour discussing the immediate opportunities and challenges for green energy. Panel members expressed concerned that the United States is behind other countries in controlling carbon emissions. "We think it's very important to act now," said John Doerr, a partner with Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers. "If we act now, and send very clear signals to our business community and the nation." Doerr said he thinks "putting a price on carbon" is the most important thing they can do, but he said it's not the only policy that can be adopted. He also stressed the importance of research and development funding. Obama has been pushing Congress to move ahead with legislation that places a market-based cap on carbon pollution. Board member Jeffrey R. Immelt, the chairman and CEO of GE, called clean energy "the most exciting, fastest growth industry of the 21st century." He said his company's 70 energy-efficiency products are generating $18 billion in revenue and accounting for 50,000 jobs between GE and its suppliers. "Technology is out there to be had. I think we have to have a broad aspiration to lead in technology," Immelt said. Richard Trumka, the secretary-treasurer of the AFL-CIO, said he sees clean energy as a "tremendous potential for us to lead" and an opportunity for solid, middle-class jobs. Trumka expressed concern, however, that the tax code and various trade agreements the administration was looking at could put them at a disadvantage in the global market. But overall, he said, he sees green energy as a "win, win, win" for the country. The advisory board has been established for a two-year term, after which Obama will determine whether it is still needed. It is modeled on the Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board, created during the Eisenhower administration to provide the president independent advice on global affairs. Austan Goolsbee, a University of Chicago economist, serves as the board's staff director and chief economist. He also served as an economic adviser for Obama's presidential campaign. The other board members are: . • William H. Donaldson, chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission . • Roger W. Ferguson Jr., president & CEO of TIAA-CREF . • Robert Wolf, chairman and CEO of UBS Group Americas . • David F. Swensen, CIO of Yale University . • Mark T. Gallogly, founder and managing partner of Centerbridge Partners L.P. • Penny Pritzker, chairman and founder of Pritzker Realty Group . • Jim Owens, chairman and CEO of Caterpillar Inc. • Monica C. Lozano, publisher and CEO of La Opinion . • Charles E. Phillips Jr., president of Oracle Corporation . • Anna Burger, secretary-treasurer of the Service Employees International Union . • Laura D'Andrea Tyson, dean of the Haas School of Business at the University of California at Berkeley . • Martin Feldstein, George F. Baker professor of economics at Harvard University . CNN's Kristi Keck contributed to this report. | Obama meets with economic board to discuss green energy, job creation .
Board chairman Paul Volcker says one cannot forget the risk of inaction .
Obama says he sees "some return to normalcy" in parts of financial markets .
Board members discuss challenges, opportunities for a green energy economy . |
269,386 | e8efbab18948f9d2d47e55243f38cc2ab7096d0e | As all motorists will know, it is sometimes necessary to nudge out into queuing traffic or to merge into other lanes in order to reach your destination that little bit quicker. Now Google has realised that if it wants its driverless cars to be able to compete with pushy human drivers on the open road, they too need to be more assertive. After testing its autonomous vehicles over 700,000 miles of public road, Google's engineers have tweaked the software that controls the cars to give them a slightly more aggressive edge. Scroll down for video . Software engineers working on Google's driverless cars have to teach the vehicles to drive more like human motorists to help them compete on busy roads where aggressive drivers tend to get ahead . This means that Google's cars will inch forward at junctions, particularly those with four-way intersections, to get through ahead of other drivers. The car will also drive closer to the vehicle in front than is recommended in the Highway Code, in an attempt to avoid other motorists from cutting dangerously in front of them. While this distance is recommended to give humans time to react to hazards and time to stop, experts say autonomous vehicles can react immediately and so drive closer together. 'We found that we actually need to be - not aggressive - but assertive,' Nathaniel Fairfield, technical leader of a team that writes software fixes for the vehicles, told the San Jose Mercury. 'If you're always yielding and conservative, basically everybody will just stomp on you all day.' Google has been testing a fleet of retrofitted driverless vehicles on roads around the US with a team of safety drivers who sit behind the wheel ready to take over should anything go wrong. Earlier this year the company also unveiled a new compact version of its car without a steering wheel. Google tested converted hybrid cars (pictured) over 700,000 miles on public roads in California and has tweaked its software to reduce gaps between vehicles to avoid other drivers from cutting in front of the car . It is planning to build around 100 of these prototype vehicles, and will begin testing them on the roads in the US, but they are not expected to be commercially available until at least 2017. The first driverless vehicles are due to begin appearing on British roads in January next year in three trials to be held in busy city centre environments. However, some experts have raised concerns about the safety implications of putting autonomous vehicles on the road with human drivers. A recent report by the Institution of Engineering and Technology highlighted research that showed human drivers change their behaviour when using the same roads as autonomous cars. Motorists were found to copy the driving style of the computer controlled cars by leaving less space between them and the vehicle in front, but were less able to react quickly. Google's prototype two-seater 'bubble' cars have buttons to begin and end the drive, but no other controls. An on-board computer uses data from sensors, including radar, a laser and cameras, to make turns and negotiate its way around pedestrians and other vehicles. Under the vision unveiled by Google, passengers might set their destination by typing it into a map or using commands. The cars are also expected to be electric, capable of going 100 miles (160 km) before needing to be recharging. The front of the vehicle has a soft foam-like material where a traditional bumper would be and a more flexible windscreen, in an attempt to be safer for pedestrians. The prototypes are restricted to speeds of 25mph (40 km/h) and the ability to self-drive will depend on specifically designed Google road maps tested on the company’s current fleet of vehicles. But ultimately the vehicles will be faster and will be able to use Google's extended maps service, using GPS technology to locate the vehicle’s exact position on an electronic map. A combination of radar, lasers and cameras sitting on top of the roof give the car a 360-degree ‘view’, with sensors linked to computer software able to ‘see’ and identify people, cars, road signs and markings and traffic lights. The findings will raise fears that drivers may adopt other aggressive driving styles if they see Google's driverless vehicles behaving more assertively. However, Google has also been teaching its vehicles how to drive more safely by giving them instructions on 'defensive driving' styles. Brian Torcellini, driving program manager who has been overseeing testing on the Google self-driving car project, said: 'When our car drives more naturally it makes people in the car and those driving around us feel more comfortable and safe. 'One of the things you will notice a good defensive driver does is avoid other people's blind spots, knowing that it is unsafe to be somewhere where another driver cannot see you. 'Our car didn't always used to do this we thought that it would be a good feature to implement into the software to make our car a good defensive driver.' He added that they have also been experimenting with teaching the vehicles 'body language' to communicate with other drivers what its intentions are. 'We're now trying to teach the car different ways to sort of fit in with society and the way that other people drive,' he said. Most of the tests on Google's cars have been conducted around its headquarters in Mountain View in California in converted Lexus hybrid cars equipped with radar, video cameras and rooftop laser to sense the world around them. Google claims that none of its vehicles have yet to get a traffic ticket or to be involved in an accident, although there was one accident when a human driver took over control. | Engineers have programmed Google's cars to inch forward at junctions .
The autonomous vehicles also drive closer to the car in front on busy motorways to prevent other motorists cutting in front of them .
Google said it wants the cars to drive 'the way other people drive'
It added the cars can drive more assertively because they have faster reaction times than humans . |
222,478 | abfb587209f73b87a3c5d85c21902cd5017534d9 | Attacker: Usman Yasin, 30, attacked Patricia Pearson in a vicious road rage attack but has now had his jail term quashed in favour of community service . An aggressive male motorist who hit an 81-year-old woman in a road rage attack because she was driving at five mph has had his jail sentence quashed. Pensioner Patricia Pearson was left with deep cuts on her head and face after Usman Yasin overtook and blocked the road before smacking her in the face. She had been driving to visit her husband in his care home. Magistrates at Burton upon Trent jailed him for 16 weeks last month, but an appeal judge at Stafford Crown Court has now changed his sentence. Instead, the father of two was ordered to do 150 hours unpaid community work, banned from driving for two weeks and ordered to pay Mrs Pearson £100 compensation. Yasin, 30, of Burton, was convicted of common assault. The court heard how Yasin became increasingly frustrated as he travelled behind Mrs Pearson, maintaining that she had been driving at no more than five mph. Solicitor Nick Burn told his appeal hearing: 'The defendant came up behind Mrs Pearson, there was a combination of loud revving and sounding of the horn, clearly impatience on behalf of the defendant.' Yasin eventually overtook and stopped in front of Mrs Pearson’s car, causing her to brake. She got out, went up to Yasin’s Peugeot and 'exchanged words'. She put her hand up to his face in a gentle push, but Yasin reacted by lashing out with his hand. Passer-by Mr David Smith intervened and Yasin said to him: “The b**** hit me.' Painful: Patricia had a swollen lip, lumps on her forehead and cuts on her cheek from the incident . Victim: Patricia Pearson, 81, suffered horrific injuries after being slapped by Yasin - who was angry at her for driving too slowly . Mrs Pearson said: 'This incident has left me feeling scared and vulnerable. I have always been a strong person, but I was terrified. There was no need for him to do this to me or use the language that he did. I know he may say I shouldn’t have put my hand up to his face, but that was only to stop him using the language he did.” Mr Burn added 'Overall, this was an ugly and unpleasant incident to which the appellant reacted with unnecessary force towards an elderly lady.' Mrs Pearson was on her way to visit her husband in a care home when the incident happened. Scene: Yasin raced past the pensioner in All Saints Road in Burton (pictured), blocked the road and attacked . Attack: Pensioner Patricia Pearson was left with cuts to her head and lip when Usman Yasin thrashed her in the face in a road rage attack, Stafford Crown Court heard (pictured) But Miss Rebecca Wade, for Yasin, said he had just been to visit his mother who was in hospital with breast cancer. 'He was clearly irritated at the slow driving and stopping and starting of the complainant. It was she who got out of her car [but] his reaction was completely unjustified and caused her injury which he deeply regrets.' She said Yasin had never been in trouble before and this was wholly out of character. 'He has been vilified within the community and while you would expect a significant level of outrage, this has gone beyond, the case has been all over the national press.' She said if he went to jail, Yasin would lose his job in a fast food restaurant. In quashing the prison sentence, Recorder Mr Kevin Hegarty QC said: 'We have looked at the circumstances operating on your mind at the time and the references from your friends. We have regard to your hard-working nature, holding down two jobs, and we have come to the conclusion that the appropriate penalty is a community order.' Yasin had earlier told the magistrates: 'I am very remorseful. She’s the same age as my grandma. If I had taken a second to think and had just driven on I wouldn’t be here today.' | Patricia Pearson was punched in the head and mouth by Usman Yasin .
Yasin claimed she was driving at 5ph and became infuriated at her speed .
She was off to visit her husband in his care home .
The father of two overtook her, blocked the road with his car and attacked .
Sentence of 16 weeks in prison dropped to 150 hours community service . |
70,032 | c6918d8f0574617e214777b2ff50d2f0a3ae8155 | Beijing, China (CNN) -- The death toll from the mudslides in a northwestern Chinese province now stands at 1,407, state-run Xinhua news agency said Friday, citing the government. At least 358 people are still missing. The mudslides occurred in Zhouqu County in Gansu province. More than 1,700 mudslide evacuees have been living at schools, but will be relocated as students begin their school year. Households will be moved to Shachuan Village, in the western part of the mudslides-leveled county, said Yang Jianguo, a government official in Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture which administers Zhouqu. More than 1,000 tents will be erected at a new settlement zone with three tents for each family, said Yang, quoted by Xinhua. "They probably will have to spend the winter there so winter tents will be used," he said. China has been drenched by heavy rains and floods since the end of May and the devastating Gansu mudslides occurred in early August. In southwestern China's Sichuan province, 16 people have been killed and 66 others remained missing in rain-triggered floods and landslides over the past week. Authorities said about 3,600 homes have collapsed, 25,000 others have been damaged, and 55,000 hectares of crops have been flooded. "Direct economic loss" was estimated at 6.89 billion yuan ($1.02 billion), the news agency said. | China has been drenched by rains and floods this summer .
Gansu evacuees may live in tents over the winter .
Deaths also reported in Sichuan province . |
21,717 | 3dbb04e3e99511ddced42861bc038c12fb4e5a7e | A maths student who started university just three months ago has died of a suspected allergic reaction after a meal in a burger bar. Shahida Shahid, 18, was taken to intensive care after she collapsed in Manchester city centre on Friday night. She died three days later. Police have launched a joint investigation with the Food Standards Agency as friends of the teenager said she was 'beautiful, brilliant and kind'. Meal: Miss Shahid, who started university just three months ago, ate at this branch of trendy burger restaurant Almost Famous in Manchester's Great Northern Warehouse. She then collapsed half a mile away . Miss Shahid, a first-year student at the University of Manchester, collapsed at 8.30pm on Friday after eating in the trendy burger restaurant Almost Famous. Unlike many allergic reactions, however, Miss Shahid did not suffer from symptoms immediately. She and friends ate in the city's Great Northern Warehouse shopping centre and paramedics were only called when they reached The Printworks, another shopping centre half a mile away. A Greater Manchester Police spokesman said: 'At about 8.30pm on Friday, January 9, police were called to Withy Grove in Manchester city centre following reports an 18-year-old woman had collapsed. 'The woman was rushed to hospital but she sadly died on Monday, January 12. 'Initial inquiries have established the woman had been out for a meal in the Northern Quarter prior to her collapse and may have suffered an allergic reaction to her food. 'A joint investigation is currently underway involving Greater Manchester Police and the Food Standards Agency to establish the exact circumstances.' The 18-year-old grew up in Worsley, Greater Manchester, and attended the local Walkden High School and Winstanley College. Her devastated cousin, Farjana Alam, wrote on Facebook the day before Shahida died that she was in intensive care with brain damage. 'Everyone please keep my cousin in your prayers,' she wrote. 'She is in the ICU, has gotten brain damage, and she isn't being responsive - every prayer counts xx.' Following the death, Farjana posted: 'To God we belong and to God we return. My beautiful, brilliant, kind, loving cousin has passed away. 'Please everyone keep her in your prayers - I still cannot believe she's gone and my heart aches with pain that she has left the world. 'May Allah grant her mercy and take her to the highest of Jannah - everyone please pray for her and her family's strength.' Others paid tribute to the teenager on social media. Sophie Ball wrote on Twitter: 'Rip Shahida, you were such a lovely woman and a great best friend to my cousin - you will be deeply missed. Keep shining.' Gemma Woodward posted: 'So much to live for. Rip Shahida xxxxx So, so amazing.' Investigation: The restaurant's management passed on its condolences but said it could not comment further . Another friend, Sophie, wrote: 'So last night I found out that one of my friends was taken off life support few hours ago and sadly passed away. RIP SHAHIDA sadly missed.' Just a month ago the FSA launched new EU rules on how customers should be told about allergens in outlets which don't usually label food, such as restaurants and sandwich bars. Restaurants must now label 14 main substances which can cause an allergic reaction on their menus. They are gluten, fish, shellfish, egg, peanuts, other nuts, soy beans, milk, celery, mustard, sesame seed, sulphur dioxide, lupin and molluscs. Marie Carter, company director of Almost Famous, said: 'We're absolutely devastated to hear the tragic news that this young lady has passed away. Our thoughts are with her family and friends. 'As the authorities are conducting investigations it would be inappropriate to comment further at this stage.' | Teenager Shahida Shahid collapsed in Manchester city centre on Friday .
Undergraduate was taken to intensive care but died three days later .
Police say she 'may have suffered allergic reaction' and launched probe .
Cousin: 'My heart aches with pain that she has left the world' |
265,680 | e418373dce4473b9ede592347753a9c808e49ebe | By . Pa Reporter . Chris Froome was hit by a stick during stage 20 of the Tour of Spain. The Team Sky rider - beaten in the last 500m by Spaniard Alberto Condator - was trying to catch his rival on the final climb when a stick – believed to have been thrown by a fan - hit his helmet. Froome, however, took the incident in good humour, later taking to Twitter to post a picture of the incident with the message: ‘And people ask me why I ride with my head down?!’ Chris Froome was hit by a stick whilst riding during stage 20 of the Tour of Spain . Contador’s victory extends his lead to 1min and 37 seconds over the Brit, who is 58 seconds ahead of third-placed Alejandro Valverde. Contador is now all but assured victory in Sunday's final stage. Froome tweeted after the stage: 'Emptied the tank out there today, what a battle! Thank you for all the support.' Froome of Team Sky racing leader Alberto Contador (left) And the Spaniard Contador proved the eventual winner as he extended his lead over Froome . | Froome hit by a stick during stage 20 of the Tour of Spain .
A fan is believed to have thrown the object that hit his helmet .
The Brit was beaten in the last 500m by race leader Alberto Contador . |
22,341 | 3f7010d365fcb9d2afb15457a0edc219e8a9f541 | Football Association chairman Greg Dyke says there is 'no basis' for the governing body to intervene in the case of convicted rapist Ched Evans. Evans blamed 'mob rule' for his move to Oldham collapsing on Thursday and for the first time apologised to the woman he was found guilty of raping. However the former Sheffield United striker still maintained his innocence. Shadow sports minister Clive Efford has urged the FA to cancel Evans' playing registration. Dyke, speaking for the first time about the Evans situation, said: 'Rape and sexual violence are abhorrent and unacceptable. This cannot be overstated. Greg Dyke says the FA have no basis to intervene in the Ched Evans case . 'We have reviewed the Ched Evans case in some detail at the FA and we have examined both the legal requirements and our rules and regulations and there is no basis for us to intervene directly in this particular case. 'That said it is important that we continue to look at the issue of behaviour and attitudes within football, and recognise the unique privileges and responsibilities that come with being a participating member of the national game. 'I would encourage the game to consider and discuss this matter and the prospect for future guidelines or codes of conduct. The FA will certainly be considering it in line with our own ongoing review of what constitutes public or private communications and behaviour.' Efford, referring to the Evans case, said: 'He's fresh out of a conviction for rape and there are plenty of professions to which you would not be able to return, in spite of the fact you'd served your sentence, and I think football is one of them. Convicted rapist footballer Ched Evans and girlfriend Natasha Massey leave her parents home on Thursday . 'We cannot send the sort of message that it would to young people, that this man's a rapist and it's okay to hold that position - an exalted position in the minds of many young people in the local community. 'The Football Association have the power to revoke his affiliation to the FA, his registration to be able to play football, and I think they have to look at this.' Evans, 26, said in a statement on Thursday: 'Sadly the 'mob rule' tactics employed by the more radical elements of our society and the constant media reporting has had the desired influence on some sponsors and the club would face significant financial pressure if I joined them. Evans drives away with his girlfriend Natasha before his move to Oldham collapsed . 'The most significant issue for me was that owing to the threat of funding opportunities being withdrawn which may jeopardise the building of Oldham's new stand, it would mean that workers would lose their jobs and others would be put at risk - that would simply not be fair.' Evans was released from prison last October, halfway through a five-year sentence for raping a 19-year-old woman in 2011. He condemned social media attacks on the woman and for the first time issued an apology while still maintaining his innocence. Oldham Athletic Chief Executive Neil Joy reads out a statement in relation to Ched Evans . His statement added: 'I do remain limited at present by what I can say due to the ongoing referral to the Criminal Cases Review Commission and whilst I continue to maintain my innocence, I wish to make it clear that I wholeheartedly apologise for the effects that night in Rhyl has had on many people, not least the woman concerned. 'Finally, it has been claimed that those using social media in an abusive and vindictive way towards this woman are supporters of mine. I wish to make it clear that these people are not my supporters and I condemn their actions entirely and will continue to do so.' Oldham's chief executive Neil Joy insisted they pulled the plug on a deal following 'vile and abusive threats, including death threats' to fans, sponsors and staff. Greater Manchester Police said, however, that no reports about death threats or other serious threats had been received. It is the second time Oldham have pulled out of a deal to sign the striker, whose chances of finding a team willing to take him on now appear limited. | Greg Dyke says there is no basis for The FA to intervene in the Ched Evans case .
Dyke says FA will review their code of conduct .
Shadow sports minister Clive Efford has urged the FA to cancel Evans' playing registration . |
172,405 | 6b1ecd54077aa1455b7a28a77568b6ef57715238 | By . Sportsmail Reporter . Lewis Hamilton has vowed not to change his style as he seeks to avoid that 'if only' feeling come the end of the season. Following the team orders furore during the Hungarian Grand Prix on Sunday, Hamilton remained defiant he had done nothing wrong. In ignoring instructions to let by Mercedes team-mate and title rival Nico Rosberg on lap 51 - given the two drivers were running different strategies - Hamilton put his own interests first ahead of the team. Third: Remarkably, Hamilton finished on the podium despite starting from the pit lane in Hungary . VIDEO Hamilton should have obeyed team orders - Rosberg . On the other hand, Hamilton is not there to hand Rosberg a free pass to this year's championship as he has no doubt he would have finished behind the German in Hungary if he had let him through. Instead, Hamilton grabbed a stunning third having started in the pit lane after a fire during qualifying wrecked his car, with Rosberg a place further back in fourth, to cut the gap between the two to 11 points. It was the second astonishing drive from Hamilton in a week, bearing in mind he started 20th in the German Grand Prix and again went on to finish third after a brake-disc failure in qualifying. Reflecting on his decision in Hungary once the adrenaline had abated, the 29-year-old said: 'It was not about questioning authority, and I don't think I was being ruthless. Problems: In both the Hungarian and German Grand Prix Hamilton had mechanical problems in qualifying . Strained: The relationship between Rosberg and Hamilton has become strained in recent months . 'I was not even being bloody minded. I was doing my job and got to the top. 'I am hired to race and bring in points for the team. I am also hired to be me and race my heart out. 'I did not start at the front of the pack. I started from the pit lane, so in my mind I could not afford to lose anything else. I have already given away too much. 'At the end of the year I could be looking back saying 'if only the car did not catch on fire', or 'if only the brakes didn't fail', 'if only I hadn't made a mistake in qualifying', 'if only the engine had not stopped in the race'...all these things. 'So it was just a case of not giving a single point away. I tried my hardest to be ahead and I don't feel as though I was being obligated to help.' | Lewis Hamilton finished third in Hungary after starting in pit lane .
Nico Rosberg finished behind his Mercedes team-mate .
German driver still leads the drivers' standings . |
107,490 | 16a031e7e37e7c753c7c8f47b84efe740098356a | Former Australian rugby league star Jason Smith has been charged alongside a prominent Toowoomba restaurateur for allegedly trafficking 280g of cocaine into the town. 42-year-old Queensland rugby ace Jason Smith and 34-year-old Olive Branch restaurant owner Jason Matthew Wood were arrested on Monday following a joint investigation by the Crime and Corruption Commission and Queensland police. During his lengthy rugby league career Smith represented Australia in 15 tests with the Bulldogs and also played at State of Origin level. Former Australian rugby league star Jason Smith has been charged alongside a prominent Toowoomba restaurateur for allegedly trafficking 280g of cocaine into the town . Smith moved to Toowoomba in 2007 after finishing up his NRL career. He now owns a pub called the Mill Street Tavern in the Queensland town. Smith's impressive rugby career started with clubs in North Queensland, Canterbury and Parramatta. He also played in the Toowoomba Rugby League cup in 2011 and 2012. According to The Chronicle, police will allege that the pair managed to smuggle 280g of cocaine into Toowoomba last year. 42-year-old Queensland rugby ace Jason Smith and 34-year-old Olive Branch restaurant owner Jason Matthew Wood were arrested on Monday following a joint investigation by the Crime and Corruption Commission and Queensland police . Det. Supt. Schmidt told the paper that no drugs were found when officers searched the residence Smith's pub on Monday. Wood will also face a cocaine possession charge after he was caught in possession of an 'eight ball' or 3.5g of cocaine on the Gold Coast. Both Smith and Wood will appear before Toowoomba Magistrates Court on February 11. During his lengthy rugby league career Smith represented Australia in 15 tests with the Bulldogs and also played at State of Origin level . Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article. | Former NRL star Jason Smith has been charged for drug trafficking .
The 42-year-old was arrested on Monday .
He was allegedly working in conjunction with a prominent restaurant .
Police will allege the pair trafficked 280g of cocaine into Toowoomba . |
224,663 | aedf04937cbaddb2fdb318d46699d7fea4b9c38b | Number crunching slave master? 53-year-old Florida accountant Timothy Deegan was arrested Friday on charges he enslaved three women in his Gainesville home for months . A Florida accountant was arrested last week after police say they discovered he'd spent months living with three women he kept trapped as his personal sex slaves. Officials also claim that 53-year-old Gainesville CPA Timothy Deegan was prostituing the women while keeping them on a tight leash with promises of cocaine and threats of violence. For months, police allege Deegan monitored the three women with hidden cameras, raped them, pimped them out and put footage of their sex acts on the internet. All the while, average families were living their comfortable cul-de-sac lives all around him. Deegan was booked on three counts of human trafficking by Alachua County officials on Friday, reports the Gainesville Sun. It was the end to months of hell for the women, who were sex workers who'd had the misfortune of meeting Deegan in 2013. At first, authorities say Deegan would record the women having sex with each other and put the footage online. But . slowly, the Gainesville Sun notes, the women became increasingly . fearful of the accountant as he took more and more control of their . lives. He . fed them drugs, threatened them with guns and homemade weapons and even . set up booby traps throughout his home and took the knobs off doors. Police . records show that Deegan monitored their movements using the GPS . function on their phones and would call them with threats if they . ventured too far. 'He . was basically prostituting them out, in exchange for the money and the . sex and the drugs,' said Alachua County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson . Sergeant Becky Butscher told MyFoxOrlando. Beyond the circular driveway: Neighbors called Deegan's home one of the neighborhoods most striking. Little did they know it was allegedly a house of horrors where the sick CPA forced women to have sex on camera and monitored their every move . Their . relationship with Deegan had begun with the promise of drugs and had . devolved into a life of sexual servitude, claim police. 'They . stayed, because they were afraid. He made traps, he watched their every . move. He kept them addicted to drugs,' Sergeant Butcher said. The . women even stayed after one of them managed to get Deegan arrested . after she allegedly found a video he'd taken of himself raping her as . she lay unconscious from sleep medication. Now that sexual assault charge from December 2013 has been rolled in to the human trafficking charges Deegan has against him. He remained jailed Wednesday in lieu of $300,000 bond. Now, . people like George Shorter of the area homeowner's association have . been forced to think in wonder at how ignorant they were of the horrors . behind Deegan's well-kept home's facade. Fear and cocaine: Deegan reportedly monitored the women, who he met on a website for sex workers, using tiny video cameras and GPS on their phones. The women say he forced them to have sex with him and other men against their will as he plied them with fear and cocaine. In the Facebook photo at t left, Deegan is pictured with an unknown woman in 2012 . 'I hate to say it but the shocking thing is we really knew so little about what went on in his house. It's maintained from the outside. It's one of the distinct properties in the neighborhood,' Shorter told the Gainesville Sun. Shorter wondered why, after the December sex assault charge, the neighbors didn't know more. 'The first incident...happened months and months ago,' he said. 'And he kept returning, and more things would happen. 'A lot of us are questioning, why was this guy allowed to come back and live in our community?' | Timothy Deegan has one of the nicest homes in his posh Gainesville, Florida neighborhood that police say he made into a depraved prison .
He rigged the home with booby traps, hidden cameras and even removed doorknobs to keep three sex slaves in the four bedroom home, police say .
The 53-year-old accounting firm owner also allegedly used drugs to enslave and prostitute the women and frequently used cocaine himself . |
262,503 | e00736c65399278696a9831ff96b7f2e5eece8f8 | Washington (CNN) -- As the United States completes its withdrawal of all military forces from Iraq by the end of the month, Iraq's prime minister made a pitch to leaders of American commerce and industry Tuesday: Iraq is open for business. In an address to American executives at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Washington, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said his country offers "limitless" opportunities for American companies. Al-Maliki said his country is trying to diversify from an energy-dominated economy, to one that focuses on financial, medical, agricultural, educational and infrastructure services as well. The end of U.S. military operations in Iraq heralds the beginning of a "wider relationship" between the two countries where "not generals but businessmen" will focus on economic and political engagement between the two countries, al-Maliki told the audience. He spoke to more than 400 executives representing a wide range of industries including petroleum, engineering and construction, commercial aviation, architecture, maritime cargo and financial services. As U.S. investment in Iraq has increased since 2008, al-Maliki said Iraq wants to see a much greater presence of U.S. companies in his country to help spur greater spending and investment on the country's infrastructure as a way to better the lives of Iraqis and create more U.S. jobs in the process. Total foreign direct investment in Iraq hit $70 billion for the first months of 2011, according to the chamber. The United States has increased its investment from nearly nearly $2 billion in 2010 to more than $8 billion this year, the organization said. That figure represents 11.6% of all investment entering Iraq, the chamber said. The International Monetary Fund has projected the Iraqi economy to grow at a faster pace than China or India over the next two to three years. Despite growing U.S. investment in Iraq, the chamber continued its own pitch to U.S. businesses of the potential Iraq represents for them, and American workers, before al-Maliki spoke. "We continue to trail our trading partners with respect to investment and economic engagement in Iraq," said Lionel Johnson, vice president for Middle East and North African Affairs at the chamber. The private sector stands to play a crucial role in filling the capacity void left in many sectors of the Iraqi economy following the U.S. military departure, Johnson said. Winning business for American firms in Iraq has not been an easy prospect in the past. Not a single U.S. energy firm secured a deal for oil production at an auction of contracts by the Iraqi government two years ago. Many members of Congress were outraged, and questioned the U.S. investment in Iraq to that point after lucrative multi-billion-dollar contracts went to Russian and Chinese firms instead. In the past year, the United States Business Council in Iraq was established to advance commercial interests for American firms operating in Iraq. Opportunity aside, al-Maliki acknowledged the difficulty of moving his country from the planned economy of the Saddam Hussein era to a market-based system governed by transparency laws and international regulations, not to mention convincing American businesses to invest in a country that still experiences a high volume of violence. He assured his audience that his government was doing all it could to root out corruption and make the country safe for businesses to operate. "Make no mistake, this is a country that's developing, its commerce is developing, it's going to take time, it's going to take energy," Deputy Secretary of State Thomas Nides told CNN after al-Maliki spoke. "U.S. companies are going there because they believe they can make money and at the end of the day that's what it is about, and most of these companies have dealt with complicated environments. Iraq is no different, but we have seen huge progress." Nides said the "robust diplomatic staff" still based in Iraq after the military withdrawal will include large economic and legal teams to work with U.S. companies operating in Iraq. Nearly 40 leaders from the Iraqi private sector made the trip to Washington with al-Maliki to meet with their American counterparts. | Al-Maliki talks business with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce .
"Not generals but businessmen" will build the U.S.-Iraq relationship now, he says .
Al-Maliki says Iraq wants to see more U.S. companies in his country .
No U.S. energy firm secured a deal at an auction of Iraqi contracts two years ago . |
146,427 | 4958f36645e7706984e581ea819c7f5acfa6dc56 | A giant prehistoric ‘terror bird’ - once thought to have been a ruthless predator which snapped the necks of mammals with its enormous beak - was actually a vegetarian, according to a new study. The two-metre gastornis was a flightless creature which lived in Europe between 40 and 55 million years ago. Because of its size and ominous appearance, it was thought to be a top carnivore, the Goldschmidt conference in Florence was told. Dr Thomas Tütken (right), from the University of Bonn, said: 'The 'terror bird' was thought to have used its huge beak to grab and break the neck of its prey.' The fossilised remains of the Gastornis (mock-up pictured left) that were studied were found in a former open cast coal mine . But now a team of German researchers, who studied fossilised remains of the beasts found in a former open cast coal mine, say they believe it was actually not a meat eater. Dr Thomas Tütken, of the University of Bonn, said: 'The terror bird was thought to have used its huge beak to grab and break the neck of its prey, which is supported by biomechanical modelling of its bite force. 'It lived after the dinosaurs became extinct and at a time when mammals were at an early stage of evolution and relatively small; thus, the terror bird was though to have been a top predator at that time on land.' But recent research cast doubt on its fearsome reputation. Palaeontologists in the U.S. found footprints believed to belong to the American cousin of gastornis, and these do not show the imprints of sharp claws, used to grapple prey, that might be expected of a raptor. Palaeontologists in the U.S. found footprints believed to belong to the American cousin of gastornis (gastornis pictured), and these do not show the imprints of sharp claws used to grapple prey, that might be expected of a raptor . Some paleontologists even suggested the gastornis hunted small horses (mock-up pictured). The reality is that it was probably far too heavy to chase such mammals and instead lived off a diet of plants and maybe nuts and seeds . Also, the bird’s sheer size and inability to move fast made some believe it couldn’t have preyed on early mammals - though others claim it might have ambushed them. The gastornis was around two metres tall and weight several hundred pounds. It was named after Gaston Planté who found the first remains. The bird was one of the largest animals alive during the late Paleocene-Middle Eocene period. Until now many experts believed that the creature was a silent ambush hunter in the thick forests that ate prey such as small horses. gastornis fossils are common at the Geiseltal site in Germany, and in the USA. Dr Tütken and his colleagues took a new approach to determine the diet of gastornis, and by analysing the calcium isotope composition in fossilised bones, they were able to identify what proportion of the creature’s diet was plant or animal, and its position in the food chain. This relies on the calcium isotope becoming lighter as it passes through the food chain. Scientists analysed the isotopes of known predators, including T-Rex, herbivores, and mammals living today. They then compared these to those of the terror bird. Their results showed that the calcium isotope compositions of terror bird bones are similar to those of herbivorous mammals and dinosaurs and not carnivorous ones. But researchers want to cross check their data using other fossil assemblages before confirming their findings. The creature was thought to a feasome animal than used its beak to maul prey and fight off competition (mock-up pictured). The gastornis lived after the dinosaurs became extinct and at a time when mammals were at an early stage of evolution . Dr Tütken and his colleagues took a new approach to determine the diet of gastornis (pictured), and by analysing the calcium isotope composition in fossilised bones, they were able to identify what proportion of the creature¿s diet was plant or animal, and its position in the food chain. Dr Tütken said: “Tooth enamel preserves original geochemical signatures much better than bone, but since gastornis didn’t have any teeth, we’ve had to work with their bones to do our calcium isotope assay. 'Because calcium is a major proportion of bone - around 40% by weight - its composition is unlikely to have been affected much by fossilisation. However, we want to be absolutely confident in our findings by analysing known herbivores and carnivores using fossilised bone from the same site and the same time period. This will give us an appropriate reference frame for the terror bird values.' | The two-metre gastornis was a flightless creature that lived in Europe between 40 and 55 million years ago .
Because of its size and fearsome appearance, paleontologists believed the creature was a top carnivore that used it beak to break its prey's neck .
But analysis of its bones has revealed that its diet was probably plant-rich . |
8,946 | 193cd2027d2efb9b0ac38bd2c0b3a52328df9d6a | He said it was his job to 'seduce, amuse and entertain'. And a now a new exhibit shows how the legendary fashion photographer Helmut Newton succeeded on all three fronts. From this Saturday dozens of his glamorous color and monochrome images, taken between the mid-Sixties and late Seventies, will go on display at the Annenberg Space for Photography in Los Angeles. The selection features several of his greatest hits, including a provocative image of a woman on a bed wearing a riding saddle. Tongue-in-cheek: The late fashion photographer Helmut Newton said it was his job to 'seduce, amuse and entertain' and a new exhibit shows how he succeeded on all three fronts . Another shows a model wearing stockings and suspenders reclining on a sofa with her back to the camera to reveal the full length of her thighs. Newton's iconic 1981 self-portrait is also set to tantalize gallery-goers. It shows the reflection of him in a mirror as he photographs a nude model. His wife June watches on as she sits to one side. The photographs were made specifically made for the exhibition and produced in large-scale format - some reaching nearly six-feet-high. Art of seduction: A scantily-clad model poses at the luxury hotel, Villa d' Este, in Lake Como, Italy in April 1975 . Iconic: Newton's 1981 self-portrait is also set to tantalize gallery-goers - his wife, June is seen seated . All were selected from three of Newton's popular coffee table books - White Women (1976), Sleepless Nights (1978), and Big Nudes (1981). David Fahey, a gallery owner and a longtime friend of Newton's, described his images as 'sexually charged' and 'edgy'. 'I like to call them . mini-narratives,' he explained. 'They’re stories within a story. And they’re stories that . say: "Women can be as powerful and as dominating as men. And sexual . curiosity is normal."' Several black-and-white images Mr Fahey took of Newton are included in the display, which will run until September 8. Striking: Newton preferred to shoot his photographs in streets or interiors rather than studios - this image was taken in 1975 in Rue Aubriot, Paris . Girls out in force: This shot, titled Here They Come II, is from Newton's 1981 photo series Big Nudes . They show the photographer posing at . the upscale Hollywood hotel Chateau Marmont, where he and his wife used . to winter every year. In addition to the more than 100 prints displayed, the exhibit will feature two films about Newton. Helmut by June, a documentary film . shot and directed by June Newton, Newton's wife of 56 years, shows him behind-the-scenes on shoots with models Cindy Crawford and Helena Christensen. It also provides an intimate glimpse . into his private life and the couple's remarkable relationship. Best of friends: Jane and Helmut Newton by the pool at Chateau Marmont, Los Angeles, in March 1985 . Living the dream: Newton, pictured here in March 1985, died as a result of a car accident aged 84 . Additionally, the Annenberg Space . for Photography has commissioned an original documentary film titled Provocateur, which examine the cameraman's impact on fashion, women and photography. Wallis Annenberg, CEO of the Annenberg Foundation, said of Newton: 'If Newton's work was controversial, I believe it's because he expressed the contradictions within all of us, and particularly within the women he photographed so beautifully: empowerment mixed with vulnerability, sensuality tempered by depravity. 'Newton deepened our understanding of changing gender roles, of the ways in which beauty creates its own kind of power and corruption. 'On top of that, his compositions were brilliantly precise, cinematic in their scope and in their storytelling.' Signature style: The photographer became known for his use of bold lighting, controversial scenarios and striking compositions - he is pictured here in 1981 . Newton, neé Neustädter, was born in Berlin and was of Jewish heritage. In 1938 he was forced to flee the Nazis before the First World War. Finding his way to Australia some years later, he changed his name to Newton and embarked upon the photography career. At the age of 36, he landed his first commission with Vogue, and went on to work with dozens of publications including Playboy. He became known for his use of bold lighting, . controversial scenarios and striking compositions. In his later life, he lived in both Monte Carlo and Los Angeles. He died as a result of a car accident on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood in 2004, aged 84. | More than 100 of Newton's 'sexy and edgy' prints will be displayed at the Annenberg Space for Photography in Los Angeles from June 29 . |
239,786 | c26d50dc5f968d5575420c0006be7c897829b7d9 | West Bromich Albion are interested in West Ham winger Matt Jarvis. The Baggies have been told to increase their £4million bid for Parma winger Jonathan Biabiany to £8m but are looking for alternatives more suited to their price range. Jarvis has struggled to recapture the form he showed at Wolves and West Ham will listen to offers. Hammer time? West Brom have turned their attentions to West Ham winger Matt Jarvis . CLICK HERE to start picking your Fantasy Football team NOW! There’s £60,000 in prizes including £1,000 up for grabs EVERY WEEK… . Priced out? The Baggies have been told to double their £4m bid for Parma wideman Jonathan Biabiany . Meanwhile, the Hammers have agreed a fee with Marseille for midfielder Morgan Amalfitano. The France midfielder, on loan at West Brom last season, is available for £2million. The 29-year-old has attracted interest from Hull, Crystal Palace and QPR. West Ham are prioritising their search for a striker and are speaking to Stoke about Peter Crouch while Connor Wickham of Sunderland, free agent Hugo Almeida, Metz striker Diafra Sakho and Joel Campbell of Arsenal remain on their list. CLICK HERE to start picking your Fantasy Football team NOW! There’s £60,000 in prizes including £1,000 up for grabs EVERY WEEK… . | West Bromich Albion are lining up a move for West Ham winger Matt Jarvis .
Baggies were told to double their £4m bid for Parma's Jonathan Biabiany .
Hammers have agreed a fee for Morgan Amalfitano who spent last season on loan at the Hawthorns . |
215,482 | a2edb2a81053ea73fac81bf4ffd470a154eb11b9 | (CNN) -- French President Francois Hollande has paid his first visit to partner Valerie Trierweiler since she was admitted to a hospital amid reports that he is having an affair, his office said Friday. New claims emerged Friday about the reported liaison between the President and French actress Julie Gayet, including allegations that it has been going on for two years. In its online edition, the French magazine Closer, which first published reports of an affair a week ago, says the "couple" also made use of a second apartment near the Elysee Palace for romantic trysts and went on weekend breaks in the south of France. The tabloid's latest allegations come a day after it said that Gayet is suing the magazine over its earlier report. Her lawyers want 50,000 euros for invasion of privacy plus 4,000 euros in legal fees, according to the magazine. In a news conference Tuesday at the Elysee Palace, Hollande did not confirm or deny the reports of an affair. The claims have sparked a media firestorm unusual for France, where privacy is closely guarded. Hollande paid his first visit to Trierweiler's bedside Thursday evening, CNN affiliate BFM-TV said. Trierweiler, a journalist and Hollande's partner of several years, was hospitalized after the report emerged a week ago. She told French radio station RTL in a story published Thursday that the President had not visited her in the hospital, because her doctors barred him from doing so, but that he had sent flowers and chocolate. The first lady is being kept distant from her entourage while she clears her head and recovers, the radio station said. 'Painful moments' Hollande delivered New Year's wishes to the French diplomatic corps Friday and was expected to talk about France's foreign policy priorities. France is involved in international discussions aimed at resolving the crisis in Syria and limiting Iran's nuclear ambitions. It has also recently sent peacekeeping forces to the strife-torn Central African Republic and has about 2,500 troops engaged in security operations in Mali. The international media has been gripped by the growing furor over his personal life, but Hollande tried to keep the focus on his economic plans at his annual news conference Tuesday. Asked then whether Trierweiler was still the first lady of France, Hollande said personal affairs should be dealt with in private. "Everybody in their personal lives can go through hardships. This is the case for us," he said. "These are painful moments, but I have one principle: Private affairs are dealt with in private. This is not the place nor the time to do this." In his remarks, Hollande indicated that he would not sue Closer for breach of privacy. He has immunity as President, so it would not be fair for him to pursue legal action when others cannot take action against him, he suggested. But his indignation over the invasion of privacy is "total," he said, adding, "It's a violation that affects a fundamental freedom." Asked about Trierweiler's health, Hollande said that she was "resting" and that he had nothing more to add. Hollande and Trierweiler are expected to visit the United States at the invitation of President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle. Their itinerary next month includes a February 11 state dinner at the White House. Hollande said he would clarify the situation before the February trip. Public opinion . The media uproar comes as Hollande is battling to turn around a struggling economy and low personal approval ratings. However, it's not clear how much impact the claims will have on his political fortunes. A survey by French pollster Ifop with French newspaper Le Journal du Dimanche found that more than three-quarters of respondents saw the alleged affair as "a private matter that only concerns Francois Hollande." Only 23% of those questioned for the survey, conducted January 10 and 11, considered it a public matter, Ifop said. More than eight in 10 of those surveyed said the revelations had not changed their opinion of the French President. Only 13% said they thought worse of Hollande in light of the claims. French President ducks questions over affair allegations . Opinion: Personal or political, it's time Hollande got his affairs in order . Report: French President mulls legal action over claim of affair with actress . CNN's Sandrine Amiel and Jim Bittermann contributed to this report. | NEW: Francois Hollande has visited Valerie Trierweiler at a hospital, his office says .
Closer magazine publishes new claims about an affair involving the president .
It says Hollande and actress Julie Gayet have been involved for two years .
Gayet is suing Closer for invasion of privacy over its report last week . |
274,387 | ef632e8e258cf4c814e21ffa3c66b548473b85ec | By . Associated Press . PUBLISHED: . 21:04 EST, 22 June 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 06:51 EST, 23 June 2012 . Although a man who was 32 wasn't breaking the law by having sex with a 17-year-old girl in 2008, he was by photographing the act, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled Thursday. Marshall Hollins was convicted in Stephenson County of making child pornography and sentenced to 8 years in prison. He admitted he had sex with the girl when she was 17, which is the age of sexual consent in Illinois. Guilty: Marshall Hollins, 35, is serving an 8-year prison sentence for child pornography, for photographing himself having sex with his 17-year-old girlfriend in 2009 . In a 5-2 ruling, the high court said that although the law allows 17-year-olds to consent to sex, they are still minors, making photos or video of such sex child porn. The consequences of sexual activity are apparent to teens, but the consequences of being in pornography aren't, the court found. 'These concerns are exacerbated in the modern digital age, where once a picture or video is uploaded to the Internet, it can never be completely erased or eradicated,' Justice Rita Garman wrote for the majority. 'It will always be out there, hanging over the head of the person depicted performing the sexual act.' The majority also noted that Congress in 1984 changed the definition of a minor in child pornography to anyone under 18 because it found 'the previous ceiling of 16 had hampered enforcement of child pornography laws since, with the 16-year-old ceiling, there was sometimes confusion about whether a subject was a minor since children enter puberty at different ages.' Ruling: The jury ruled that since the 17-year-old was still a minor at the time, the photos were pornographic (stock photo) The two dissenting justices said that because the photos don't show an illegal act, they shouldn't be illegal. 'There was nothing unlawful about the production of the photographs taken by defendant in this case because the sexual conduct between defendant and (the girl) was entirely legal,' wrote Justice Anne Burke, who was joined by Justice Charles Freeman. 'The photographs are therefore not child pornography as defined by the U.S. Supreme Court for purposes of the First Amendment.' Attorney Kathleen Hamill of the Office of the State Appellate Defender represented Hollins. She said the office hasn't decided whether to challenge the ruling. The Illinois Legislature changed the age of consent for pornography from 16 to 18 in 1985, she said. 'This apparently is the first case that has arisen challenging that,' Hamill said. | Age of sexual consent in Illinois is 17 .
But Marshall Hollins convicted of making child porn for photographing sexual encounters . |
112,592 | 1d435cfe1bb3eb5ac20895326aef0189ce86b31a | By . Simon Boyle and Chris Hastings . PUBLISHED: . 19:30 EST, 9 November 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 19:31 EST, 9 November 2013 . Over the past three years, viewers of Downton Abbey have become familiar with the lavish entertainment and formal etiquette of glamorous high society functions. But this year’s Christmas special will venture into even more rarefied circles, The Mail on Sunday can reveal, with a storyline that features royalty for the first time. The plot, which producers had hoped to keep a closely guarded secret, will revolve around Lady Rose’s debutante ball, when she will be presented to King George V and his wife Queen Mary at Buckingham Palace. Write caption here . But despite being unveiled as one of society’s most eligible young ladies before a host of wealthy bachelors, the moment is likely to prove bittersweet for Rose, who is already in love with jazz singer Jack Ross, the show’s first black character. Millions are expected to tune in to ITV’s Christmas Day episode, which show insiders claim is the ‘most spectacular, ambitious and glamorous’ yet, due to the elaborate sets which needed to look ‘fit for royalty’. The scenes were masterminded by show creator Lord Fellowes alongside historical adviser Alastair Bruce - who also makes a cameo appearance as the Lord Chamberlain. Lord Fellowes said the storyline was inspired by his own memories of the balls. ‘We thought it would be a fun story to tell,’ he said. Royal Performance: Lady Rose, played by Lily James (pictured), will attend a debutante ball and be presented to King George . ‘We all know that Mary, Edith and Sybil have been through this process, but we felt that many of the audience won’t know what the process is, and why should they? 'Girls were presented twice - first as a debutante, then as a bride. In the evening you got dressed up in specific costumes. ‘Tiaras would not be worn by unmarried girls, but they would wear three ostrich feathers and a veil which descended on to a train. ‘The girls would sit in The Mall in a line of cars and people would gather and practically give them marks out of ten. 'I can remember friends of my mother’s would use our house to get changed, and the girls would come down the stairs in their floating, bouncy skirts, and ravishing picture hats. I was only about six but I still remember how lovely they looked.’ Last year’s Christmas special caused a sensation with the death of Matthew Crawley, with some fans even complaining that the shock plot twist ‘ruined’ their Christmas Day. But some may be disappointed that this year’s festive special will again not be set at Christmas, instead taking place in spring. Lady Rose, played by Lily James, will be escorted to the ball by her aunt, Lady Grantham. A Downton source said: ‘This is the most spectacular episode we have ever produced.’ | Christmas special will feature George V, The Mail on Sunday can reveal .
The episode will show a debutante ball, where Lady Rose will be presented .
Downton creator Lord Fellowes masterminded the storyline, inspired by his own childhood memories of the elaborate society events . |
237,276 | bf199079f6942bf2293e9133187885bf887a7a5f | San Diego (CNN) -- Who's afraid of a harmless course in Mexican-American studies? Arizonans. That's who. It figures. In the immigration debate, the state that has demonstrated that it is terrified of changing demographics and determined to run off Latinos seems afraid of its own cultural footprint. We're talking about courses in Mexican-American history being taught to high school students of all colors and backgrounds in the Tucson Unified School District. Concerned that teachers are presenting material in a biased and inflammatory manner, a posse of elected officials, education bureaucrats and school board trustees -- made up of Democrats and Republicans -- are trying to shut down the district's Mexican-American studies program. Those wrongheaded efforts got a boost last week when, at an administrative hearing, state Administrative Law Judge Lewis Kowal -- relying on auditors that had surveyed only a few classes -- found that the program was being taught in an inappropriate manner. It's rare that you find ethnic studies at the K-12 level. Maybe that's because parents and communities are sometimes uncomfortable with the subject matter. I bet you could go into most high schools in the United States, and you'd find U.S. history textbooks that make no mention of the Chicano Movement, the birth of the United Farm Workers union, the Zoot Suit Riots and a long list of other seminal events experienced by Mexican-Americans in this country. And given that Latinos account for 16% of the U.S. population and are projected to make up twice that percentage in a few decades -- and that Mexican and Mexican-Americans account for about two-thirds of the Latino population -- that sort of blind spot doesn't serve anyone's interests. Latinos have to learn about the culture and institutions of the mainstream. Why shouldn't those in the mainstream have to reciprocate and learn a little something about Latinos? That's not only fair, but also wise. These days, it's hard to be wise in Arizona. An ominous state law passed by the legislature in 2010 bans courses that teach "racial resentment" or are "designed for a specific ethnic group" or advocate "ethnic solidarity instead of the treatment of pupils as individuals." Under the law, the state can withhold 10% of the funding for a school district -- in the case of Tucson, about $15 million a year -- until the district changes the courses or eliminates them. In writing his opinion, Kowal charged right into the debate with the grace of, well, a right-wing radio talk show host. "Teaching oppression objectively is quite different than actively presenting material in a biased, political, and emotionally charged manner," Kowal wrote. "Teaching in such a manner promotes social or political activism against the white people, promotes racial resentment, and advocates ethnic solidarity, instead of treating pupils as individuals." As an example of the harm supposedly done by such courses, he brought up one lesson that taught students that the historic treatment of Mexican-Americans was "marked by the use of force, fraud and exploitation." And so? Isn't that true? And isn't the same thing true of Asian-Americans, Native Americans and African-Americans? Are these the next groups to be bullied? So we won't teach the ugly chapters of American history. Why not just have the textbooks written by Hallmark? Here's what this is really about. A group of people is afraid that the tables are being turned, and that they will eventually lose power and suffer retaliation. So they're portraying themselves as victims of a new oppression. This view is shared by Republicans and Democrats alike. It makes no difference. This isn't about partisanship. It's about pettiness. And losing your place in line. Arizona, the problem child of the Southwest, has it backward again. In recent years, state officials have made it awfully clear where they believe Latinos belong in the social pecking order. The bottom. That was the message when artists hired to paint a mural at a school in Prescott were told to "lighten" the face of the child at the center of the drawing because people objected that the figure was obviously Latino -- before the school came to its senses and retracted the order. That was the message when state lawmakers passed a tough immigration bill that encouraged ethnic profiling by deputizing local and state police to enforce federal immigration law based on who they suspect is in the country illegally. And that was the message when state education officials went so far as to bar instructors who are determined to have heavy accents from teaching English language classes. Opponents of ethnic studies think knowledge is dangerous. But what's the alternative? Take a good look at what's become of Arizona and consider the perils of ignorance. The opinions in this commentary are solely those of Rube Navarrette Jr. | Arizona judge rules for group trying to stop school district's Mexican-American studies .
Ruben Navarrette: Latino-American population is growing; it's fair to teach its history .
Arizona has approved a series of oppressive measures, he says, including immigration law .
These measures are championed by people afraid of changing demographics, he writes . |
109,173 | 18b7d222c5d5d3094ff08d6ce270eca292126ba6 | (CNN) -- Digital gifts may be tough to wrap. But they can be more convenient for both givers and recipients. An album from iTunes or a Kindle e-book from Amazon have become viable gift options for shoppers, especially on the eve of a holiday or for people living far away. Digital items can be purchased with a few clicks and delivered instantly. And because they don't need to be shipped, they're environmentally friendly. Revenue from some virtual goods, including games and applications, will reach $2.9 billion next year, according to research firm Inside Network. Once you add digital music downloads, which research firm Gartner says will rake in $6.3 billion this year, and online video streaming through services such as Netflix and Hulu, the market becomes quite large. Gift cards are always a popular alternative, but for people who would rather give a specific present, many of the big digital retailers are providing ways to send downloads via e-mail. About a quarter of holiday shoppers plan to buy virtual gifts this year, according to a research report from e-commerce provider Elastic Path. Children may find themselves running to check their e-mail on Christmas morning or each night of Hanukkah. Apple: Through its iTunes program on a computer, Apple lets you give apps, music, movies and TV shows to be sent to someone's e-mail address or to be printed as a certificate at home. Click the down arrow beside the "buy" button on an item in the iTunes store and then click on "Gift This." The iTunes or App Store buttons on Apple's mobile devices also have this feature tucked at the bottom of each listing. Apple does not let shoppers send e-books as gifts via iBooks, however. Amazon: The online retailer has "Give as a Gift" buttons located under the "buy" buttons all over Kindle books and MP3 music in its store. Amazon launched the feature last holiday season. The songs are in a standard format that can be played on many music players, and the books can be viewed using the apps Amazon offers for phones, tablets and computers, as well as in a computer's Web browser. Amazon does not seem to let shoppers gift apps, like those for the new Kindle Fire tablet. But children using their parents Kindle tablets won't have a tough time racking up the charges thanks to the devices' deep integration with the Amazon store. Barnes & Noble: The bookseller's Instant Gifting covers both apps and e-books for the Nook tablets and e-readers. The retailer lets recipients exchange unwanted gifts -- say, the full "Twilight" series -- for store credit. Google: The computing giant sells apps, e-books, movie rentals and music downloads in the Android Market. But it does not allow customers to purchase them and have them delivered as gifts, a Google spokesman said. Others: Popular web media services, including Netflix and Pandora, sell subscriptions that can be given as gifts. Hot music streaming service Spotify offers this in parts of Europe but not yet in the United States, a spokeswoman said. So in short, stockings may be lighter this year. But inboxes may be fuller. | Amazon, Apple and Barnes & Noble let customers give e-goods as gifts .
Google and Spotify do not offer gifting features in the U.S.
About a quarter of holiday shoppers plan to buy virtual gifts this year, a report says . |
141,441 | 42e3d22bed1365331fbc540a42fc1a330c48e8a0 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 12:04 EST, 25 December 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 17:12 EST, 25 December 2013 . For Christine Caron there was no greater present this Christmas than being back home with her family after spending more than six months hovering between life and death. The 50-year-old single mother of four from Ottawa, Canada, made headlines in May when she had three of her limbs amputated after experiencing an extreme allergic reaction to a dog bite. The woman went into septic shock and spent six weeks in a coma. When she finally woke up in July, Miss Caron was told by doctors that she would lose an arm and both legs. Scroll down for video . Survivor: Christine Caron, who lost both legs and one of her arms when a rare infection set in after a dog bite, talks about her ordeal at her home . Christmas blessing: Christine Caron (far right) was discharged from the hospital after a triple amputation just in time to celebrate the holidays with her four kids . Puppy love: Caron, 50, is seen surrounded by her Shih Tzu dogs, one of whom nipped her in May, sending her to the hospital with an extreme allergic reaction that nearly cost the woman her life . Caron had spent the past five months in recovery. A few weeks ago, she finally returned home to her family - just in time for her son's birthday and for Christmas. ‘Just to be home and healthy and have my whole family together and that everybody stays that way. I'm so happy I made my 50th year. I mean I just made it clawing,’ Caron told CBC.ca. Christine Caron has been fitted with prosthetic legs and will soon get an artificial arm, which she hopes to put to good use by re-learning to drive a car and jog. Since being discharged from the hospital, the 50-year-old moved her family from their old two-story home to a more easily accessible bungalow in Ottawa’s Beacon Hill North. Caron said that after coming so close to dying, she takes nothing for granted and recognizes beauty in the most mundane things - like snow falling outside her window. The resilient, irrepressible woman also has not lost her sense of humor. Rare infection: Christine Caron, 50, had her legs and arm amputated after she was bitten by her pet dog in Mayin May . Injury: Shih Tzu Buster bit his owner in May which is believed to have caused her terrible illness . ‘Everyone was complaining about having to shovel. Now, granted I didn't have to go out there,’ she quipped. ‘I had an excuse this year.’ For Caron, the nightmare started May 22 when one of her four dogs, a small Shih Tzu named Buster, nipped her hand during a playful tug of war. The woman thought nothing of the tiny nick and let one of her other dogs lick her injured hand - a fateful decision that nearly cost Caron her life. Three days later, Ms Caron felt dizzy. She went to bed that night and woke up only six weeks later at The Ottawa Hospital. As it turned out, the comatose patient went into septic shock after her wound became infected with Capnocytophaga canimorsus - a bacterium common in dogs' saliva. Heavy toll: After going into septic shock and spending six weeks in a medically induced coma, doctors were forced to amputate both of Caron's legs and her left arm . Dark moments: Caron has revealed that she was initially depressed and suicidal, but thinking of her children saved her life . Ms Caron's extreme reaction to the . bacteria left doctors fighting to save her life. The medical team at . Ottawa Hospital were forced to put her into an induced coma for six . weeks. The septic shock . caused blood flow to be restricted to her limbs, turning them black, and . left doctors with no choice but to amputate them. Capnocytophaga canimorsus is common . in the saliva of both dogs and cats. It is normally not seriously . harmful to healthy adults. It . has been estimated that 1million Americans are bitten by dogs every . year with chance of infection from canines varying between 3 and 20 per . cent. Health Canada said in the last 40 years, only 200 people in the world have gone into septic shock for the bacterium. Caron's . reaction could be attributed to that fact she had been unknowingly . battling pneumonia at the time of the incident, which suppressed her . immune system, Ottawa Sun reported. Things could have turned out even worse for the woman: the infection nearly claimed her lips, nose and right hand. Repair: The 50-year-old is due to have skin grafts on her badly injured hand . Fighter: Caron spent months in rehab to learn how to walk - and even dance - on her prosthetic legs . Caron has revealed that after the . amputations, she was depressed and even contemplated suicide, but . focusing on her four children gave her a will to live. What . followed next were months of gruelling physical and occupational therapy . at the Ottawa Hospital Rehabilitation Centre, where Caron worked . tirelessly to regain her strength and learn how to walk on her . prosthetic legs. The 50-year-old has more trials ahead of her: she is awaiting a surgery on her damaged right hand and skin grafting. Since . Caron did not have health insurance to cover her mounting medical . bills, her family have been collecting donations on the site FundRazr to pay for her costly treatment. Since July, the Carons have raised nearly $96,000, and counting. | Christine Caron, 50, from Ottawa, had both her legs and an arm amputated after her pet gave her a small bite in May .
The mother-of-four went into septic shock after becoming infected by a bacteria in her dog's saliva .
Miss Caron revealed she was suicidal and depressed after losing her limbs .
Went through months of physical therapy to learn how to lose her prosthetic legs .
She is one of only 200 people who have had such extreme reaction in the last 40 years . |
106,020 | 14bba1e7da31c45ed4f5ee5fcdaa0ac0dfb89280 | Red, auburn, carrot, strawberry blonde and (at least one) scarlet – all shades of ginger hair were present at this weekend’s Redhed Days Festival. More than 5,000 redheads from 80 countries attended the global event in Breda, The Netherlands, breaking its own world record. The festival, which has been held since 2005, also saw the world’s first attempt to a ‘ginger’s only’ flight when a plane-load of redheads were flown in from Scotland. Ginger gathering: Two young women attend 'Red Hair Day' in Breda, The Netherlands on Sunday . Red sea: The festival broke their own record in 'Most Redheads Gathered In One Place' during the weekend . Fair skin and red hair first appeared around the time people settled in Europe 50,000 years ago and still remains a dominant gene in southern Europeans today, according to a new study . As well as attracting thousands of . gingers from all over the globe, Redhead Days Festival beat its own . Guinness World Record for the largest gathering of redheads. With . one of the world’s most famous red heads at the centre of the crowd, . McDonald’s mascot Ronald, 1,672 redheads got together in one spot. But it was not the only attempt to break a record. Airline . Flybe's scheduled flight from Inverness to Amsterdam was entirely . operated by auburn-haired pilots and cabin crew while alcoholic ginger . beer was among the refreshments on offer for passengers. Overall, including passengers, it is thought that around a third of those travelling on the flight were natural redheads. Red-y to go: The first 'Redheadday' - Roodharigendag - was held in the Netherlands in 2005 . Bold: Each year, attendants are asked to wear a certain colour of clothing to accentuate their hair - this year was blue . A . Prince Harry look-alike was among those on board while a 95-year-old . redheaded Inverness resident, Margaret Swan, was on hand to wave the . flight off, the airline said. Speaking . ahead of the flight, captain Gaeron Kayley said: 'I've always been . proud of my natural red hair, so it's a real honour for me to pilot this . special flight from Inverness to Amsterdam.' The . festival has been held annually since 2005, increasing in size each . year from the 150 first attendants to this year’s 5,000 plus. To . attend you are required to have natural ginger hair and sees redheads . get together for a weekend of events, picnics, motivational classes and . community building. Each year goes by a different colour to make a standout group photography, this year, the colour was blue. Record breaking: A full 1,672 redheads, accompanied by famous redhead Ronald McDonald, set the Guinness World Record for the largest gathering of redheads at the festival . Ginger friend! More than 5,000 redheads from 80 countries attended the global event (including the fast food chain's mascot) | Annual Redhead Day festival saw thousand of ginger visitors .
Held in The Netherlands for the eighth year in a row .
Over 5,000 people with red hair from 80 countries attended . |
201,118 | 905e8b524efbec838b925cd4fa83125507707540 | By . Oona Mashta . Miriam Heyburn used to despair over her excruciating migraines, which struck every other day. 'I suffered from headaches since I was eight years old,' says Miriam, a retired court reporter from Croydon, Surrey, now in her 60s. 'They were so overwhelmingly painful that I never fully engaged with people at work. I had a reputation for being quiet and moody, but, in fact, I was trying to cope with the pain in my head.' Miriam Heyburn uses a Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) portable device to relieve her migraines . For years, Miriam relied on strong painkillers to cope, but worried about the long-term effects. However, more recently she's been offered a new drug-free treatment which has reduced the severity of her migraines, and allowed her to cut back on her medication. Miriam has been treated with trans-cranial magnetic stimulation, where magnetic pulses are directed into the head. Doctors are unsure exactly how TMS works in treating migraine, but one theory is that it stops abnormal electrical activity in the brain. Earlier this year, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) said there is enough scientific evidence to support the use of the treatment for the prevention and treatment of migraine. Migraines affect one in four women and one in 12 men in the UK. Although the cause is not known, they involve sudden contraction and then dilation of blood vessels in the brain. Unlike a normal headache, they are often accompanied by additional symptoms such as nausea, sensitivity to light, noise, touch and smell. They can also be preceded by aura, which can include flashing lights, zigzag lines in front of the eyes, and numbness or tingling in the limbs. Pressing a button on the handle emits a single painless magnetic pulse . For Miriam, who sometimes felt nauseous when she had a migraine, standard painkillers had no effect. So she took the strongest medication, known as triptans, which work by causing the blood vessels around the brain to contract. But as she reached her mid-50s, her headaches worsened, becoming more frequent and more severe, lasting two or three days at a time and often confining her to bed. If she was at work when a migraine hit, she would often have to rest in the sick room. And she was struggling with the side-effects of triptans, which can include nausea, a tight feeling in the chest and a 'spaced-out' feeling. 'It was like having a permanent headache - it was unbearable,' she says. 'I always carried my tablets with me. If I didn't take one I couldn't function. I couldn't take a day off work every time I had a headache or I'd never have been there. 'But the tablets made me feel as though I was walking in lead or wading through treacle. I had to take them so often that I was concerned what the long-term side-effects could be. 'I tried acupuncture and head massage to try to cut down on the medication, but they didn't help.' In 2011, Miriam's GP referred her to a specialist headache clinic at London's Charing Cross Hospital, where she was seen by consultant neurologist Dr Mark Weatherall. She was prescribed various strong medications, including some usually used for treating epilepsy - thought to dampen down over-activity in the cells involved in generating migraine - but to no avail. Then last June Dr Weatherall suggested she tried TMS. There are no known serious side-effects and the device is easy and safe to use, according to doctors. Patients hold the portable device - which is about the weight of a brick and has a handle at each end - against their head at the base of the skull. Pressing a button on the handle emits a single painless magnetic pulse. This passes through the skull at the back of the head and into the brain. The number, strength, frequency and duration of pulses can also be adjusted for each individual user. In a U.S. clinical trial with 164 patients treated with TMS for at least one attack of migraine, 40 per cent were pain-free after two hours. After 24 hours, 29 per cent were still pain free, and after 48 hours 27 per cent were still pain free. The results were presented to a meeting of the American Headache Society in 2008. In a separate study in Canada, three-quarters of patients with migraine who were treated repeatedly with TMS suffered fewer headaches. Some patients reported tingling in the head and light-headedness, but these typically lasted no longer than 30 minutes; there were no serious side-effects. 'About two-thirds of patients find the device helpful in reducing the intensity and/or the duration of their migraines,' says Dr Weatherall. This is a 'breakthrough' treatment for those who cannot tolerate or do not respond to current treatment, says consultant neurologist Dr Fayyaz Ahmed, a trustee of The Migraine Trust. 'It opens the door for a new era in treating migraine headaches. We welcome NICE guidance and very much hope this treatment will be made available to those in need.' For Miriam, there was one overwhelmingly good reason to give it a go. 'I was keen to try it because it was drug free,' she says. Three-quarters of patients with migraine who were treated repeatedly with TMS suffered fewer headaches . After attending the headache clinic to learn how to operate it, she was allowed to take the device home to use whenever she felt a headache coming on, and is thrilled with the results. 'The device is marvellous. As soon as I started using it, my headaches became less frequent and less severe. I now often go ten days without suffering from a headache, which is such a relief. It has transformed my life. 'I still sometimes have to take a tablet for my headache, but not as often as before.' The treatment's effectiveness depends on how soon it is given, the number of pulses and the patient's individual pattern of migraine symptoms. For most patients, it can take a few weeks to work out the optimal treatment pattern. One possible downside is to do with practicality. 'It is a bit bulky, and its batteries have to be kept charged,' Dr Weatherall says. 'It does make a loud bang when you trigger it, but it's easy to use,' adds Miriam. 'You don't have to hold it for very long and it's done its job. I just wish it wasn't so heavy because I can't carry it when I go out. 'However, I still take my tablets everywhere with me, so I can take one if I get a headache when I'm out.' Under NICE guidelines issued in January this year, TMS is approved for the treatment or prevention of migraine episodes in patients with acute or chronic migraine, with or without aura. However, it is available only through specialist headache centres and is mostly restricted to patients who cannot use other forms of acute migraine treatment - for instance, who find drug treatment intolerable or for those who want to take fewer drugs for their migraine - during pregnancy, for example. However, patients who have either a pacemaker or epilepsy should not use the device. For Dr Weatherall, the gadget gives 'a glimpse of the future of migraine treatment'. 'It has an excellent safety record, and is a great option for patients who can't take standard painkillers or migraine treatments because of other medical issues. 'Understanding exactly how the TMS device works is opening up new avenues of research into migraine, which may in turn lead to new treatments for this common and disabling disorder.' www.migrainetrust.org . | Miriam Heyburn uses Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation portable device .
Retired court reporter in her 60s, from Surrey, uses it to relieve migraines .
Pressing a button on handle emits an adjustable painless magnetic pulse . |
7,923 | 16691885be6374bb93ad9d68d88d40660a72b2c4 | By . Simon Boyle . PUBLISHED: . 18:16 EST, 10 August 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 18:30 EST, 10 August 2013 . Naomi Campbell has been allowed back on British Airways flights after the airline lifted a five-year ban . Naomi Campbell is back on board . British Airways – five years after she was arrested for being abusive . on a flight and barred from the airline. The . decision to allow the supermodel to return comes despite her accusing . BA staff of racism, and assaulting police officers as they hauled her . from the aircraft. The Mail . on Sunday understands that some BA workers are upset by the decision to . allow her on flights – including a First Class flight to Milan on May 3 . this year. Staff are said to feel the ban should . have been maintained, and accused bosses of giving the model ‘special . treatment’ because of her wealth and fame. Ms . Campbell, 43, boarded the Milan flight at Heathrow Airport in London accompanied by the . airline’s special services staff who give VIP treatment to First Class . fliers. An insider said: ‘Naomi upset a lot . of staff, so to have her back on BA flights feels like a bit of a kick . in the teeth. 'The company should be taking a hard line against people . who are abusive or aggressive – whether they are rich and famous or . not.’ Ms Campbell was . banned after a row over her luggage at Heathrow Airport in 2008. A court . hearing was told she ranted at the aircraft’s crew before she was . ordered off. She was fined £2,300 and sentenced to 200 hours of community service for the incident. A British Airways spokesman said this week: ‘Due to data protection, we are unable to disclose passenger details.’ Controversial: Ms Campbell pictured outside a police station in 2008 following an altercation on a BA flight . | Supermodel was allowed to board a First Class BA flight to Milan in May .
Airline lifts five-year ban imposed after she ranted at cabin crew .
Some staff said to feel model was given 'special treatment' |
8,574 | 18311974fee676162ce4dbb77ed5c1d92912c767 | Mike Phillips has promised not to give up his Wales jersey without a fight after the selection panel sent a warning to their under-performing Lions stars ahead of the second Test against South Africa. The coaching staff are ready to wield the axe and Phillips, the 31-year-old scrum-half, is among a group of senior players who could pay the price for Saturday’s humiliating 38-16 defeat in Durban. Wales have some exciting prospects – including No 9s Gareth Davies, 23, Rhodri Williams, 21 and the injured Rhys Webb, 25 – waiting in the wings but Phillips is ready to turn up the heat to keep his place in the starting XV. Defiant: Mike Phillips won't give up his jersey without a fight . ‘It is always tough and we have good competition throughout the squad, and particularly at nine,’ said Phillips. ‘Gareth Davies did really well we he came on last week, which is great for him. I am being pushed all the way but it is great to have competition; you have to relish it. ‘No-one takes the jersey for granted and everyone knows Gatland will have no hesitation putting big names on the bench. The performance last week was not good enough for the jersey and what we represent. We are feeling under pressure for our places, when you lose you are there to be shot at.’ Phillips will discover his fate at Thursday’s team announcement in Nelspruit, where the tourists will arrive after a short stopover in Cape Town. Wales had just one training session to prepare for the opening Test, but preparations are well underway for the series-decider at the Mbombela Stadium. Below par: Phillips admits the performance against South Africa was not up to scratch . There can be no repeat of the display on the Eastern Cape and defence coach Shaun Edwards admitted Wales were ill-prepared for the tour opener. ‘It is an excuse but we only trained together once last week,’ said Edwards. ‘We were intent on preparing the Tuesday team and getting them up to speed after what had happened in the Probables vs Possibles game, so we had only one training session with the first team and the captain’s run on Friday. Ill-prepared: Shaun Edwards admits Wales were not ready for the first Test . ‘I hadn’t seen Jonathan Davies for three months, except for the Probables vs Possibles game. Jamie Roberts and Jonathan Davies had only played together for 20 minutes. 'We’ve been able to get some drilling in this week and hopefully we can get back to speed.’ Asked how Wales will deal with the threat of South Africa full-back Willie Le Roux, who was the standout performer in the opening Test, Edwards added: ‘I was thinking of locking him in the toilet before the game and getting a padlock for it.’ | Under-performing Lions stars face battle for their places after poor showing .
Phillips and other senior players under pressure to keep spots .
Wales were thrashed 38-16 in Saturday's first Test in Durban . |
45,491 | 8030a3625768542ab4d326a031347933e062a431 | Followers of fashion may be eagerly waiting for the Apple Watch, but an affordable alternative has just become available in the UK, having proved popular in the US. The Pebble smartwatch is now available for £99 at Firebox.com. The watch allows wearers to read texts and tweets on their wrist, as well as see incoming calls, check the weather, access fitness apps and tell the time. Britons can now buy the popular Pebble smartwatch (pictured) for £99 via Firebox.com. The watch has proved popular in the US where it was he second most funded product in Kickstarter history . It is compatible with Apple and Android devices and connects to a smartphone via Bluetooth so users don’t have to rummage in their handbag or pockets for their phone to see app notifications and messages, because they appear on the watch’s screen. The watch has an e-paper display – like a miniature Kindle – so it can be easily read in bright sunlight, while a flick of the wrist illuminates the screen so it can be used in a the dark too. The watch allows wearers to read texts (pictured left) and tweets on their wrist, as well as access fitness apps and tell the time (pictured right) The £99 Pebble Smartwatch comes in five colours (pictured) and boasts customisable screens and features. Users can even create their own apps to run on the opensource software . Compatibility: The smartwatch is compatible with Android 2.3+ and iOS 5+ . Connectivity: The Pebble connects to a smartphone via Bluetooth . Messaging: Wearers can see texts, tweets, calls and app notifications – but they can’t use the watch to type messages or make calls, like with the Apple Watch, for example. Battery: The battery lasts for between five and seven days on a single charge and can be recharged using a USB cable with a magnetic connector. Tough: The watch is water resistant with a scratch and shatter-proof e-paper screen. Screen: 144 x 168 pixels, measuring 3.2cm . Apps: The watch has a ‘thriving’ app store with staples like Twitter as well as fitness apps. Users can also create their own. The Pebble can store eight apps and watch faces at a time. Extras: A vibrating silent alarm and hundreds of watch faces. Colours: White, black, red, grey and orange. Size: The watch is designed to fit most 2.2cm watch straps. It measures 5.2cm x 3.6cm x 1.15cm deep. Weight: 38g . Price: £99 ($99 in the US) and £180 ($199) for the Steel model. Pebble’s device is the second most funded product in Kickstarter history and the new Pebble Steel model is also now available in the UK for £180. They are water resistant and have a battery that lasts for between five and seven days. In contrast, it’s predicted that the Apple Watch, which is due to be released early next year, will need to be recharged daily. Firebox predicts that the already popular devices will be in demand from UK customers for Christmas, partly because they are more affordable than some rival offerings. Since its US release last year, Pebble has developed its open-source platform so that anyone can create an app for the device and companies are offering fitness tracker apps like Jawbone and Misfit, so people can check their running pace without carrying another gadget, for example. Staples such as Twitter, Yelp and Foursquare are available too. There are also 'extras' like a vibrating alarm and a choice of hundreds of watch face designs. Ben Redhead, Head of Buying at Firebox.com, said: ‘The Pebble Smartwatch is the definition of what wearable tech should be – fully-featured, uncomplicated and totally your own. ‘Wearable tech is becoming increasingly popular each year as the sophistication of wearable devices improves and, following the announcement of the Apple Smartwatch, consumers are now looking for versatile devices with a more affordable price tag, especially in time for the Christmas gifting season.’ The watch has an e-paper display – like a miniature Kindle – so it can be easily read in bright sunlight, while a flick of the wrist illuminates the screen so it can be used in a the dark. The £180 Pebble Steel Smartwatch is pictured. It has a choice of more luxurious straps, compared with the original watch . | Watch allows wearers to read texts and tweets on their wrist, see calls, access fitness apps and tell the time - but can't make calls or send texts .
Model has been a big hit in the US where it costs $99 .
It's compatible with Apple and Android devices and connects via Bluetooth .
Pebble has an e-paper display so it can be easily read in bright sunlight .
It has a battery life of between 5 and 7 days on a single charge .
More luxurious Pebble Steel model is also now available in the UK for £180 . |
209,196 | 9ae6645c6ec15c903ab15130094359273adb213d | By . Sam Creighton . The case of Muhammed Ejaz, the Pakistani paramedic who murdered three gay men he met online - has sent shockwaves through the country's already persecuted gay community. Ejaz, a 28-year-old father-of-two, was arrested last week and confessed to three brutal murders, saying he wanted to send a message about the 'evils' of homosexuality, though police insist he had sex with his victims first. The killings have sent shockwaves through the underground gay community in the eastern city of Lahore, which fears Ejaz could be lionised as a hero in a conservative Islamic society where homosexuality is stigmatised and sodomy is punishable by up to 10 years in jail. Some members of the gay community are worried he could be held up as a hero in a society where homosexuals are persecuted and sodomy carries a 10-year prison sentence . The 28-year-old paramedic admitted to the brutal murders after being arrested by police last week . In an interview with AFP from his prison cell Sunday night, Ejaz expressed remorse over the killings but said he was acting to stop wrongdoing. 'My way was wrong. It is tragic that the families have lost their relatives but they were spreading evil in society and I had to stop it,' said Ejaz, who is due to appear in court on Monday. 'I wanted to warn them to stay away from this evil.' It is claimed that Ejaz was an sexually active gay man even though he said he killed his victims to stop them 'spreading the evils of homosexuality' Ejaz broke the necks of his victims. He expresses regret but continues to claim he did it to prevent wrongdoing . The killings happened in March and April, according to police officer Asad Sarfraz, who headed the investigation. The victims were a middle-aged retired army Major and two other men, both in their twenties. All three were found with their necks broken and had been sedated. After examining their mobile phone call logs, police were able to identify Ejaz's number and found another former lover whom they used to lure him to a meeting a week ago, where they arrested him. Ejaz, who married in 2011 and has two infant children, said his family knew nothing of what he had done and insisted that he was not gay himself. 'I started going on Manjam two months ago using my mobile phone, and found that the gays are everywhere in Lahore,' he said, referring to a popular social networking website. 'They are spreading evil and transmitting diseases. They cannot control themselves,' he added. Ejaz said he was the victim of sexual abuse by an older boy when he was around 10 and had led a deeply unhappy childhood. 'I have hated them ever since for what happened to me,' he said. A court in Lahore remanded Ejaz in custody at a hearing last Monday. Ejaz has been remanded into custody and is expected to appear in court on Monday . Ejaz claims he was sexually abused when he was a child and that this fuels his homophobia . The case has shone an unwelcome spotlight on Pakistan's closeted gay community, who are often afraid to come out to their families. In the absence of gay venues they rely on the Internet and mobile apps to arrange clandestine dates. Manjam, the gay social networking and dating site which Ejaz is said to have used to meet his victims, has closed to new members in Pakistan. 'To increase your privacy and security, we have decided to close Manjam to non-members in Pakistan until further notice,' it said in a statement. One member of Pakistan's gay community said he was worried Ejaz could be hailed as a hero by some conservative Muslims. 'The problem is that paedophilia and homosexuality are often conflated, so people think eradicating homosexuality means eradicating child abuse,' he said. Ejaz had been a sexually active member of the gay community for several months, the man claimed. 'It seems he was motivated by self-hatred and internalised homophobia,' he said. 'The worry is - will it inspire others to do the same?' | Muhammed Ejaz, 28, confessed to killing the three men he met online .
Members of the gay community are worried he will be seen as a hero in Pakistan's conservative Islamic society .
Ejaz has expressed regret for the murders but claims he was doing it to prevent wrongdoing . |
172,294 | 6afa02437796224da36830515d51b5bd256e810f | Indian opposition leader Narendra Modi appeared on course for a landslide win today in the country's weeks-long general election, with his party easily driving out the long-dominant Congress party in the world's biggest democracy. The party now has a commanding lead in 272 seats, the majority needed to move forward without forming a coalition in the lower house of Parliament. Although the results were yet to be finalised, Modi tweeted: 'India has won. Good days are coming.' Scroll down for video . Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi (left) takes blessings from his mother Heeraben (right). The Bharatiya Janata Party, led by Modi, has won an absolute majority in the parliamentary polls . The party now has a commanding lead in 272 seats, the majority needed to move forward without forming a coalition in the lower house of Parliament . The Congress party, which has been at the center of Indian politics for most of the country's history since independence from Britain, conceded defeat several hours into the vote counting. 'We are accepting the people's verdict in all humility,' said party spokesman Shakil Ahmed. 'Trends of the counting are certainly not in our favor. The trends point out that the country has decided to vote against us.' If the results are finalised, as expected . it would be the first time a single party has won an outright majority . since the 1984 national election. Election officials count votes at a polling station in Gauhati as opposition leader Narendra Modi swept to power in a landslide victory, according to preliminary results . An election official counts votes in Hyderabad. If the results are finalised as expected, it would be the first time a single party has won an outright majority since 1984 . New leader: Narendra Modi giving a speech in 2007 (left) and taking a selfie (right) after casting his vote in national elections at a polling station in Ahmedabad last month that have now swept him to power . The Election Commission was expected to announce full results later Friday. But early trends suggested that Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party would earn enough parliamentary seats to create a government without forming a coalition with regional leaders. At BJP headquarters in New Delhi, workers were handing out sweets, setting off firecrackers and dancing outside in the streets. BJP spokeswoman Nirmala Seetharaman said the results were even better than expected. 'That . certainly is good news, which we will savor with great delight,' she . said. 'It means that people of India found the (connection) with . Narendra Modi.' Keeping track of world's biggest-ever election: Workers hold an electronic voting machine in Gauhati. The Congress party conceded defeat several hours into the vote counting . Taking control: Early trends suggested that Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party would earn enough parliamentary seats to create a government without forming a coalition with regional leaders . There was a . record turnout in the election, with 66.38 per cent of India's 814 . million eligible voters casting ballots during the six-week contest, . which began April 7 and was held in stages across the country. Turnout . in the 2009 general election was 58.13 per cent. Campaigning . on promises of a revival in economic growth, Modi and the BJP were . looking to take advantage of widespread dissatisfaction with the . Congress party. The BJP's slick and well-financed campaign also promised better governance. Counting the cost: The Nehru-Gandhi family, which has ruled India for all but 10 years since the country won independence from British rule in 1947, suffered its biggest political drubbing in 10 years . All hands on deck: Officials carry Electronic Voting Machines towards a counting centre in Agartala . The Congress-led ruling alliance has been plagued by repeated corruption scandals, and the Congress party's 43-year-old leader, Rahul Gandhi, failed to inspire public confidence. A party or coalition needs at least 272 seats to form a government in India. If the BJP crosses the 272-mark, it would be the first time a single party has won a majority since the 1984 national election. Exit polls by at least six major Indian TV stations predicted a BJP-led coalition would win between 249 and 289 seats in the 543-seat Lok Sabha, or lower house of Parliament. By Friday afternoon, an exact picture was expected to emerge on what India's next Parliament will look like. If the results are in line with the exit polls and the early trends and the BJP and its allies win a clear majority, India's stock markets are likely to see a major upswing. Mammoth task: Election officials open an Electronic Voting Machine at a counting centre in New Delhi . Already on Friday, the Sensex stock index rose as much as 4.7 per cent on news of the BJP's strong showing. The Nehru-Gandhi family, which has ruled India for all but 10 years since the country won independence from British rule in 1947, was facing its biggest political drubbing in 10 years. The Congress party attempted to position Rahul Gandhi as a young leader capable of boosting the country's struggling economy, but most Indians see him as being out of touch with reality. His privileged background has made him appear aloof and removed from the concerns of most Indians. In comparison, Modi's campaign was seen by many as a media and marketing coup for a man whose background ties him to bloodshed in his home state of Gujarat, where communal rioting in 2002 left more than 1,000 people dead, most of them Muslims. Modi, the son of a tea seller who helped man his father's stall, is accused of doing little to stop the rampage, though he denies any wrongdoing and has never been charged with a crime. He managed to hammer away at Gandhi - specifically the perception that he is nothing more than a feudal prince from a family that views ruling the country as its birthright. The Nehru-Gandhi dynasty that has defined Indian politics for nearly a century faces more than a humiliating election defeat. The landslide victory for opposition leader Narendra Modi could condemn the family to political oblivion. Often . described as a mixture of a royal family with the tragic glamour of the . Kennedys, the dynasty gave India its first prime minister, the . empire-beating barrister Jawaharlal Nehru. His daughter, Indira Gandhi, and grandson, Rajiv, both held the post subsequently, and both were assassinated. By some measures, the family was in decline long before the parliamentary election; it has not won a majority in decades. India's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru (left) jokes with Mahatma Gandhi, who led India to independence in 1947 after nearly 200 years of British rule . Shy . scion Rahul Gandhi's bid to keep the Congress party in power for a . third consecutive term was called lacklustre even by allies, and his . speeches at rallies up and down the country in recent months were a far . cry from Nehru's legendary rhetoric. Compare . that with Modi's electrifying campaign, during which he repeatedly . derided Rahul, 43, and his mother Sonia for keeping India poor, and the . house of Gandhi looks vulnerable. Few would write off the clan completely. Sonia, . the power behind the prime ministerial throne occupied by Manmohan . Singh, delivered Congress its worst result to date in 1999. She then led . the party to victory in the next two elections, and a year ago Forbes . ranked her as the world's ninth-most-powerful woman. Nonetheless, . leaders of both Gandhi's Congress and Modi's Hindu nationalist . Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) said they believed Modi would seek to . loosen the dynasty's grip on India. They . pointed to his home state of Gujarat, where he has systematically . purged rivals from institutions and won three consecutive terms, . capitalising on his pro-business policies. 'He . will defang them politically. Look at what he did in Gujarat: he has . just reduced the Congress to a non-player,' said Kanchan Gupta, member . of the BJP's national executive committee. | Narendra Modi ousts Congress party in first outright majority since 1984 .
Nehru-Gandhi family has dominated politics since independence in 1947 .
Congress-led ruling alliance plagued by repeated corruption scandals .
Modi portrayed ruler Rahul Ghandi as nothing more than a feudal prince .
New leader accused of doing little to stop riot that killed 2,000 in 2002 . |
177,331 | 718ee15fe2987334f107980aeab20805e00c797e | Los Angeles (CNN) -- Authorities announced charges Wednesday against 99 members of a transnational organized crime group in southern California called the Armenian Power, whose enterprise allegedly collected $20 million through kidnapping, extortion, bank fraud and narcotics trafficking. About 800 law enforcement officers on Wednesday arrested 74 of the 99 members and associates of the Armenian Power, which allegedly has ties to high-level crime figures in Armenia, Russia and Georgia, authorities said. The remainder are being sought, authorities said. In all, the crime group is believed to have more than 200 members, authorities said. "This is a significant step in disrupting this organization," U.S. Attorney Andre Birotte Jr. in Los Angeles said during a press conference. The charges came after a two-year investigation into the organization, according to local and federal authorities in the joint Eurasian Organized Crime Task Force. Two federal indictments unsealed Wednesday named 88 defendants linked to Armenian Power, and the Los Angeles County District Attorney has charged 11 more gang members in seven cases, authorities said. The Armenian Power also allegedly engaged in more than 400 acts of identity theft, credit card skimming, manufacturing counterfeit checks, bank fraud, health care fraud, marijuana distribution and illegal gambling, authorities said. Birotte said the group's crime schemes caused losses of $10 million in Orange County, California, and another $10 million in Los Angeles. Among the alleged conspiracies, Armenian Power members allegedly defrauded hundreds of customers of 99 Cents Only Stores when they secretly installed "skimming" devices to steal customer account information at cash registers and then used the information to make counterfeit debit and credit cards, authorities said. Managers at the 99 Cents Only Stores contacted authorities when they learned of the scheme, Birotte said. The fraud netted $2 million for the gang, authorities said. In the Orange County case, which names 20 defendants, Armenian Power members allegedly targeted elderly people in a bank fraud scheme, and members also worked with African-American street gangs and allegedly bribed bank insiders to gather information that allowed them to take over bank accounts, authorities said. Members of Armenian Power have a heritage going back to Armenia and other Eastern Bloc countries, and the crime group started as a street gang in East Hollywood, California, in the 1980s, authorities said. Members identify themselves with tattoos, graffiti and gang clothing, but the organization is more concerned with racketeering than controlling "turf," authorities said. Armenian Power, also known as AP-13, has close ties with the prison gang Mexican Mafia, which controls much of the narcotics distribution in California's prisons, and maintains connections with Russian and Armenian crime figures known as "Thieves-in-Law," authorities said. "The indictments that target the Armenian Power organized crime enterprise provide a window into a group that appears willing to do anything and everything illegal to make a profit," Birotte said. "These types of criminal organizations -- through the use of extortions, kidnappings and other violent acts -- have demonstrated a willingness to prey upon members of their own community." In separate actions brought by federal authorities in Miami and Denver, and announced along with the Los Angeles indictments by the Department of Justice, 14 additional defendants, some of whom are linked to Armenian Power, were charged Wednesday with extortion, money laundering and fraud offenses, among other crimes, authorities said. "The common denominator among these defendants and their criminal enterprises is their willingness to commit any crime for profit, and to use any means of violence and intimidation to further their goals," Assistant Attorney General Lanny Breuer of the Justice Department's Criminal Division said at a press conference held in the police department of Glendale, California, home to a large Armenian community. "In less than one month, however, the department has undertaken the largest one-day takedown of La Cosa Nostra; a coordinated national effort against street gangs; and today, taken action against Armenian Power and others with ties to international organized crime," Breuer said, reading from a prepared statement. In one alleged kidnapping, several Armenian Power members forced a man to pay ransom by taking him to an auto body shop belonging to a group member and then threatening him with violence, authorities said. In an alleged extortion scheme lasting months, the victim and his family were forced to make repeated payments under threats, authorities said. | The Armenian Power has ties to Armenia, Russia and Georgia crime figures .
Its membership is believed to be more than 200 .
Authorities have charged 99 of the members . |
277,048 | f2f11a8ec764eb3e6654504accb9c0b96bddccd6 | By . Mark Prigg . It is said you should never ask a woman her age - but researcher say that by simply knowing her name, it may actually be possible to work out how old people are. Researchers plotted hundreds of names and their popularity. They then created a series of graphs that reveal when each name hit its peak - showing when the person was most likely to have been born. The red dots indicate the age someone with each name is likely to be, based on data from the Social Security Administration, which records birth names dating back to 1880. Researchers at website fivethirtyeight.com analysed data from the Social Security Administration. They record birth names dating back to 1880. They then used the SSA’s baby name database and combined it with the agency's actuarial tables. These which estimate how many people born in a given year are still alive. The researchers were then able to create the graphs showing when names were most popular. Researchers at website fivethirtyeight.com analysed data from the Social Security Administration, which records birth names dating back to 1880. They found, for example, that certain names meant a person was likely to be in their 70s. The median living Mildred in the United States is now 78 years old, they discovered, while Gladys, Betty, Ethel and Opal were all of a similar age. On the younger names, they found Madison, Sydney, Alexa and Haileywere most likely to be between 9 and 12 years old. Young names include Liam, most likely to be under 5, Jayden and Aiden for boys, while for females Ava, Isabella and Lily were likely to be toddlers. The team also plotted the popularity of some names over time, and found names like Joseph have always been popular. The peak year for boys named Joseph was 1914 when about 39,000 of them were born, the researchers found. Those 1914 Josephs would be due to celebrate their 100th birthdays at some point this year - although only about 130 of them were still alive as of Jan. 1, according to the most recent records. Joseph has been one of the most enduring American names; it¿s never gone out of fashion. The team also found certain names allowed a very specific age to be guessed at. 'By contrast, you can make much stronger inferences about a woman named Brittany. 'That name was very popular from the mid-1980s through the mid-1990s, but it wasn’t all that common before and hasn’t been since.' Half of living American Brittanys are between the ages of 19 and 25, the team found. Half of living American Brittanys' are between the ages of 19 and 25 . The hardest ages to predict came from ages with a wide spread . The team also identified which names had fallen out of popularity . | Peak year for boys named Joseph was 1914 when 39,000 of were born .
Half of living American Brittanys are between the ages of 19 and 25 . |
111,538 | 1bd536b090d1bd229dea6c0b847458e26e4fe4e0 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 22:58 EST, 1 September 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 00:59 EST, 3 September 2012 . Casualty: Glenn A. Smith was the CEO of the Warbird Educational Foundation, which owned the Soviet-era jet he was flying . A pilot died yesterday after his vintage plane crashed at an air show in Iowa. The Soviet jet plummeted to the ground in front of thousands of horrified spectators on Saturday in a massive explosion. The accident at the annual Quad-City Air Show occurred near a busy interstate highway in Davenport, Iowa. The pilot of the doomed flight was identified on Sunday as Glenn A. Smith, of Frisco, Texas. Smith was CEO of the Warbird Educational Foundation that owned the Soviet-era jet he was flying. The L-39 jet, developed in the former . Czechoslovakia in the late 1960s, crashed around 1.30pm on Saturday, . according to Jacob Pries of the Davenport Police Department. The jet was flying in formation shortly before it crashed alongside the I-80 highway. It plowed into a field near the Eastern Iowa Industrial Center in northern Davenport. There were no injuries or reports of any damage on the ground, Mr Fries added. Smith, 58, was the newest member of The Hoppers Jet Team, a squad of pilots who fly the L-39 jets at air shows. Scroll down for video . Crash: A pilot has died after his plane went down during the Quad-City Air Show in Iowa . Horrifying: The accident took place near a busy freeway on Saturday afternoon . Plane: The L-39 jet, like the ones pictured above, were developed in the former Czechoslovakia in the late 1960s . According to the Hoppers website, Smith has been flying for about 24 years and held a commercial pilot's license. A squadron of planes flew over the crash site on Sunday in the 'missing man' formation before the air show continued. Police spokesman Don Schaeffer said . at a news conference that the plane flew directly into the ground, and . the pilot did not have enough time to eject from the plane. 'He never had an opportunity to come out of it,' he said. Gassing up: Glenn Smith is seen here in this photo from earlier this year fueling up his L-39 fighter . Tragedy: The pilot of the Soviet-era military training jet has not yet been identified . Emergency: Workers have been combing the fields around the crash site for clues to its causes . Davenport police and federal investigators planned to comb the field for widely scattered wreckage from the plane. Mr Schaeffer estimated parts of the plane were strewn over an area up to 220 yards, or a tenth of a mile. Schaeffer said he had no information about what may have caused the crash. Officials from the Federal Aviation Administration were at the scene, but they did not take part in the news conference. The crash investigation was expected to resume Sunday morning, Schaeffer said. Distraught: One of the plane's owners comforts the family of the victim following the disaster . Watch video here . | Pilot identified as Glenn A. Smith, of Frisco, Texas .
Soviet-era plane was flying in formation with two other jets when it suddenly plummeted to the ground, killing pilot .
Crash happened in front of thousands of horrified spectators at the Quad-City Air Show in Davenport, Iowa . |
64,578 | b766b918dbee791605655d21d6354f04e8b24cda | Lukas Podolski has bemoaned his lack of opportunities at Arsenal as a transfer in the winter looks increasingly likely. Speaking after Germany's 4-0 win over Gibraltar on Friday night, the striker criticised Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger for not giving him that chance at the Barclays Premier League club. 'I've spent the last four months making brief appearances,' he told reporters. 'I've had to wrap myself up warm in my winter coat with my hat and scarf on to watch the others playing. VIDEO Scroll down to watch Wenger: Podolski is frustrated but we rely on him to score . Lukas Podolski has only had 50 minutes worth of Premier League action for Arsenal so far this season . The Germany international has spent a large proportion of this season on the bench for the Gunners . 'I would rather show Arsenal what I am capable if, but this chance to show what I can do is not being given to me. 'I want to play football for many years to come so am I meant just to say everything's fine and sit my contract out?' The 29-year-old is not going to do that, vowing to seek talks with Arsenal management this winter and saying even a return to the Bundesliga is possible. The 29-year-old played the full 90 minutes for his country Germany against Gibraltar . Podolski, pictured scoring against West Ham in April, is frustrated with his current situation at Arsenal . He added: 'Anything is possible nowadays. You can't rule anything out.' Several clubs in Italy have already shown an interest in the forward, who picked up his 121st cap for Germany on Friday night and remains a firm part of Germany coach Joachim Low's plans. Low has also advised Podolski to move in the winter to a club where he can play regularly again. Like our Arsenal Facebook page. | Lukas Podolski has played for just 50 minutes in the Premier League for Arsenal so far this season .
The Germany striker has become increasingly frustrated with the situation at the Emirates, stating he has not been given a proper chance .
His international boss Joachim Low says he should move away from the club in the Winter in order to get first-team football again .
Podolski refused to rule out a move away from the club in January . |
237,382 | bf3d53f66fb554f5a58b29fa69e98236b4ab386c | Seventy one years ago -- December 22, 1942 -- Congress got the United States out of what had turned into an unexpectedly embarrassing situation. It concerned the Pledge of Allegiance -- specifically, something called the Bellamy Salute. Most people today have likely never heard of it, but the Bellamy Salute was once a constant part of the country's life. Until 1892, there was no such thing as a Pledge of Allegiance. Daniel Sharp Ford, the owner of a magazine called Youth's Companion, was on a crusade to put American flags in every school in the country. He sensed that the U.S. needed a boost of patriotism. Keep in mind: Not even 30 years before, the Civil War had still been raging. National unity was a fragile concept. As part of the campaign, Sharp gave an assignment to a member of his staff: Francis J. Bellamy, who was an author, a minister and an advocate of the tenets of Christian socialism. Sharp asked Bellamy to compose a Pledge of Allegiance to the flag. Bellamy wrote it, and it was published in the magazine. It didn't take long for the Pledge to become wildly popular, even omnipresent. At schools, at campgrounds, at public gatherings, in Congress, people routinely faced the flag and pledged their allegiance to it. Because, inherently, there is something physically awkward about people simply standing in place, their arms hanging limply by their sides, staring at a flag and reciting a pledge, it was decided that devising a salute would be appropriate. Instructions for carrying out the salute were printed in the pages of Youth's Companion. The gesture came to be called the Bellamy Salute, in honor of the Pledge's author. The Bellamy Salute consisted of each person -- man, woman or child -- extending his or her right arm straight forward, angling slightly upward, fingers pointing directly ahead. With their right arms aiming stiffly toward the flag, they recited: "I pledge allegiance..." For a while, the salute wasn't especially controversial. But, as World War II was forming in Europe, and Italians and Germans began saluting Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler with extended-armed "Heil Hitler!"-style gestures... Well, perhaps you can see the problem. In the United States there was a growing feeling of discomfort that, when people within the nation's own borders pledged their right-arms-extended allegiance to the flag, they might be construed as inadvertently showing solidarity with the fascist regimes across the ocean. Richard J. Ellis, in his book "To the Flag: The Unlikely History of the Pledge of Allegiance," wrote that "the similarities in the salute had begun to attract comment as early as the mid-1930s." Newsreels and still photos were regularly depicting rallies in Europe's dictatorships, with thousands of people showing their fealty by extending straight-armed salutes. In the United States, the general unease about it -- "the embarrassing resemblance between the 'Heil Hitler' salute and the salute that accompanied the Pledge of Allegiance," in Richard Ellis's words -- was combined with the fear that scenes of Americans offering the Bellamy Salute could be used for propaganda purposes. It wouldn't be terribly difficult to crop the American flag out of photos of U.S. citizens reciting the Pledge of Allegiance; without the flag in the shots, the photos could be mischaracterized as proof that Americans were expressing support for the ideologies of Hitler and Mussolini. Thus, on December 22, 1942, Congress, just before its Christmas break, took care of it. On that day, the amended Flag Code was passed, Section 7 of which decreed that the Pledge of Allegiance should "be rendered by standing with the right hand over the heart." And with that, it became official: Those millions of extended right arms were brought down. The stiff-armed salute was for other people, in countries far away. It was purely symbolic, of course, but symbols are powerful. Over the years, there have been various disputes about the Pledge of Allegiance, the most basic of which is the question of whether citizens should even be expected to publicly pledge their allegiance to their country. The United States was founded on ideals of freedom, and freedom includes not being forced, or cajoled by peer pressure, into publicly declaring any belief. The exact wording of the Pledge has changed several times since Francis Bellamy wrote it; each change was reflective of contemporaneous concerns about the meaning. For example: "I pledge allegiance to the flag" was originally "I pledge allegiance to my flag." The "my" was dropped out of worries that recent arrivals from other nations might be seen as pledging their loyalty to the flag of the country of their birth. The most significant change in the wording came in 1954, when -- with the enthusiastic support of President Dwight D. Eisenhower -- the phrase "under God" was added just after "one nation." Eisenhower declared: "In this way we are reaffirming the transcendence of religious faith in America's heritage and future; in this way we shall constantly strengthen those spiritual weapons which forever will be our country's most powerful resource in peace and war." The wording of the Pledge of Allegiance may or may not be changed again in centuries to come, but it's a pretty safe bet that the Bellamy Salute is never coming back. Once ubiquitous and unquestioned, it has become a faded and mostly forgotten bit of U.S. history. All because, 71 Decembers ago, a solution to a quandary -- a quandary no one could have anticipated when the Pledge was written -- was formalized: . Lower those stiff arms. Bend those elbows. Direct those palms inward. And take them to heart. | After the Pledge of Allegiance was written, a stiff-armed salute was developed to accompany it .
Bob Greene writes that its meaning got clouded when Fascist movements used similar salute .
After outbreak of World War II, Congress passed legislation to replace the salute .
Greene: 71 years ago, the practice of placing your hand over the heart was adopted . |
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