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79,540 | e184c9f6358a4d398166eccf6a34d308fa4955e4 | By . Associated Press . and Daily Mail Reporter . A 12-year-old boy at a Boy Scout camp in San Diego has died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head Monday morning, and police were investigating whether the shooting was intentional. Police received a call Monday morning that a boy had shot himself at the camp on Fiesta Island, Officer Matt Tortorella told The Associated Press. Officers found a gun in the boy's tent. It's not clear yet where the gun came from or how it got into the camp. Crime scene: Police say the 12-year-old shot himself in the head in a tent at Fiesta Island Youth Camp and Youth Aquatic Center . Shut down: Police have closed the camp to visitors while they investigate the tragedy . The tragedy unfolded after police were called to a suicide attempt at Fiesta Island Youth Camp and Youth Aquatic Center in Mission Bay at about 7:36 Monday morning, reports NBC San Diego. Police said that when they arrived, they found a 12-year-old boy in a tent with at least one gunshot wound. They tried to revive the child, but he died on the scene. The boy was part of a Boy Scout troop from Las Vegas that arrived at the camp on Sunday intending to stay until July 5. There were no firearm programs or activities available, and Boy Scouts of America policy does not allow personal firearms at its events, organization spokesman Deron Smith said. Distressed: Other campers have been provided with grief counselors following the death of one of their Scout group . Summer holiday: The boys were to spend the week sailing, kayaking and swimming but a shooting in a 12-year-old's tent has cut the camp short . 'This is an extremely sad day for our entire scouting family,' Boy Scouts of America said in a statement. 'Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and all those who experienced this tragedy. Our top priority is providing support to our community and for those in the grieving process.' The organization said grief counselors were sent to the camp. The boy's father was a chaperone for the troop, and about 20 Scouts were at the camp, Lieutenant Mike Hastings said. The weeklong summertime program allows Scouts to camp among sandy dunes on Mission Bay in San Diego. They can sail, kayak, and do other activities while earning merit badges. | A 12-year-old boy died Monday morning of a gunshot wound to the head .
Police were called to a suicide attempt as a San Diego Scout camp at 7:36am .
When they arrived they found the boy dead of a gunshot wound inside a tent .
Police are investigating whether the wound was self-inflicted and intentional .
It is unclear how the boy came to be in possession of the gun .
The camp does not have a shooting range or firearm activities .
The boy's Scout group came from Las Vegas intending to stay until July 5# .
The boy's father was a chaperone at the camp . |
281,350 | f870dab274736c5d021339643164d326831fadc0 | By . Sanchez Manning for The Mail on Sunday . The Mail on Sunday is today offering a £5,000 reward to help catch a man suspected of savagely attacking a father of four in his own home. Oskar Pawlowichz, 29, is wanted in connection with an attempted burglary in which four masked men forced their way into Paul Kohler’s £2 million home in Wimbledon, South-West London. Three other men have already been arrested over the incident which left the Cambridge–educated law lecturer fearing he would lose his sight. Victim Paul Kohler in hospital with daughter Eloise on his left and Bethany on his right . Recovering at home as he awaits reconstructive eye surgery, Mr Kohler, 55, said: ‘I want this man to be caught for what he did to my family – not just the physical blows but also the psychological trauma. ‘I hope, through this reward, someone who has remained quiet will think it’s worth the risk of coming forward.’ Detectives believe that Pawlowichz, who is 6ft tall, stocky, bow-legged and walks with a limp, is being harboured by someone in the Polish community in Britain. The £5,000 reward will be paid for information leading to his arrest. Police are hunting for Oskar Pawlowichz,29, in connection with the attempted burglary . Police said last night one line of investigation related to CellarDoor, the bar Mr Kohler co-owns near Covent Garden. It is possible the men who broke into the house were looking for takings. Detective Inspector Dan O’Sullivan, who is leading the Scotland Yard investigation, said: ‘By putting out a reward I think someone could give him up.’ Anyone with information should call the police incident room on 020 8649 3019 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. | Police are hunting for Oskar Pawlowichz, 29, in connection to the crime .
The MoS reward will be paid for information leading to his arrest .
Police believe someone within the Polish community is hiding Pawlowichz . |
162,584 | 5e34370e93bd5d966c238eeb9549d05cc0809a51 | Zombies, "World of Warcraft" characters and showgirls in skimpy outfits flooded Shanghai's New International Expo Centre from July 31-August 3 for the 12th annual ChinaJoy event. One of the highlights of the meet -- its annual cosplay competition. Participants, either solo or in teams, dressed up to emulate characters from comic books, movies and video games to be judged based on their costumes, routine and the response they received from the audience. With some preparing months in advance, the show was spectacular. Click through the gallery above for some of the results. Digital expo . The China Digital Entertainment Expo and Conference, or ChinaJoy, is China's largest gaming and digital entertainment exhibition. From July 31 to August 3, the expo drew in 250,224 attendees, a record high for ChinaJoy. Similar to the Los Angeles-based E3 and the Tokyo Game Show, the event has grown from a domestic function that concentrated on online games to becoming China's gaming industry's flagship event, covering online, mobile and console games as well as other digital products. Cosplay at Comic-Con: Who wore it best? | China Digital Entertainment Expo and Conference, or ChinaJoy, celebrated its 12th outing last week .
The expo drew more than 250,000 people over three days, a record number of attendees .
The annual cosplay competition is a highlight of ChinaJoy . |
52,410 | 947b8397c8ed123cd986415a2ace49f2d7e2c86f | Picture of innocence: Victorian and Edwardian children were supposed to be seen and not heard but records how the reality was quite different . The Victorian era was a golden age . for the middle classes. Industrialists, bankers and clerks were all able . to send their children to school to the age of 12 or 14. In . this age of prosperity and enlightenment they were expected to be . well-dressed, good-mannered and most importantly - seen and not heard. But new research carried out at the University of Manchester suggests children were every bit as unruly as they are today. PhD student Ruth Colton . examined the history of some of the country's most-used parks in London, . Yorkshire, Manchester and Newcastle, which were designed to promote . social harmony but became a magnet for anti-social behaviour. After . sifting through postcards, public records, archaeology and children’s . literature from the period, the Ms Colton found the children weren’t . always the little angels we might think they were. She said: 'I don't agree that Victorian and Edwardian children were to be seen and not heard. 'It was supposed to be the golden age . for middle class children, who . were depicted as angels or fairies in advertisements and literature. 'But children and children’s play was a prominent feature of parks and . one which was framed by class. 'Working class children, depicted as street urchins, were given a less . positive spin, but parks were thought to be a good way to purify and . improve them.' Disorder: Whitworth Park in Manchester was one of many opened with the intention of promoting social harmony . She added: 'And like today, there was a rowdy and unpredictable side . too: while parks were supposed to promote social harmony, this was often . resisted and parks could be sites of conflict and contrast. 'Newspapers reported that children and youths were sitting on park benches shouting abuse at passers-by. 'Children would also illegally fish in park lakes for ornamental fish or steal fruit of the trees.' The . parks Ms Colton studied include Whitworth Park in Manchester, Roundwood Park . and Vauxhall Park in London, Greenhead Park in Huddersfield and Saltwell . Park in Gateshead. Objects . excavated in Whitworth Park by The University of Manchester led . Community Archaeology Project, of which Ms Colton is part, showed that . eating food and drinking alcohol, forbidden in the park bye-laws, took . place in the park. The team . have unearthed marbles from the tops of Codd bottles alongside the more . expensive coloured glass marbles, showing how children from different . social classes played and competed together. Five . stones – a game similar to jacks - was also found at the Manchester . Park. Made of ceramic, they are among the earliest examples of toy . manufacture. She said: . 'Excavated material showed how parks were one of the few places where . social classes could mix and compete against each other, particularly . children. 'I hope that my work will inform our understanding of the parks’ heritage and in doing so will help to inform a vision for their future. 'Children have always had a wild side to their nature; kids will be kids and this is as true today as it was in the Victorian and Edwardian eras.' | New research casts doubt on myth that children were 'seen and not heard'
Ruth Colton from Manchester University examined history of Britain's parks .
Built to promote social harmony - became magnet for anti-social behaviour . |
101,232 | 0e76ef3a22ab952e9753b8f7508f33e9eef402da | By . Emma Innes . PUBLISHED: . 12:10 EST, 20 December 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 17:48 EST, 20 December 2013 . Some 87 per cent of gum-chewing teenagers who suffer regular headaches can cure themselves by giving up chewing gum, new research suggests. Scientists at the Tel Aviv University-affiliated Meir Medical Centre, in Israel, found that most adolescents who give up the habit experience significant relief. The scientists, led by Dr Nathan Watemberg, believe the finding could allow doctors to cure thousands of patients of migraines and tension headaches without the need for additional tests or medication. Up to 87 per cent of teenagers who chew gum and suffer regular headaches could cure themselves by giving up chewing gum, new research suggests . ‘Out of our 30 patients, 26 reported significant improvement and 19 had complete headache resolution,’ said Dr Watemberg. ‘20 of the improved patients later agreed to go back to chewing gum, and all of them reported an immediate relapse of symptoms.’ Headaches are common in childhood and become more common and frequent during adolescence, particularly among girls. Typical triggers are stress, tiredness, lack of sleep, heat, video games, noise, sunlight, smoking, missed meals, and menstruation. But until now there has been little medical research on the relationship between gum chewing and headaches. At Meir Medical Centre's Child Neurology Unit and Child Development Centre, Dr Watemberg noticed that many patients who reported headaches were daily gum chewers. The finding could offer relief to thousands without the need for further tests or medication . Dr Watemberg found that in many cases, when patients stopped chewing gum at his suggestion, they got substantially better. Taking a more statistical approach, he asked 30 patients between six and 19 years old, who had chronic migraine or tension headaches and chewed gum daily, to quit chewing gum for one month. They had chewed gum for at least an hour a day and some had chewed for more than six hours a day. After a month without gum, 19 of the 30 patients reported that their headaches went away entirely and seven reported a decrease in the frequency and intensity of headaches. To test the results, 20 of them agreed to resume gum chewing for two weeks. All of them reported a return of their symptoms within days. Two previous studies linked gum chewing to headaches, but offered different explanations. One study suggested that gum chewing causes stress to the temporomandibular joint, or TMJ - the place where the jaw meets the skull. The other study blamed aspartame, the artificial sweetener used in most popular chewing gums. TMJ dysfunction has been shown to cause headaches, while the evidence is mixed on aspartame. Dr Watemberg favours the TMJ explanation. Gum only has a flavour for a short period of time, suggesting it does not contain much aspartame, he says. If aspartame caused headaches, he reasons, there would be a lot more headaches from diet drinks and artificially sweetened products which also contain it. On the other hand, people chew gum well after the taste is gone, putting a significant burden on the TMJ, which is already the most used joint in the body, he says. ‘Every doctor knows that overuse of the TMJ will cause headaches,’ said Dr Watemberg. ‘I believe this is what's happening when children and teenagers chew gum excessively.’ | 87% of gum-chewing teenagers who suffer regular headaches could cure themselves by giving up chewing gum, researchers have discovered .
The finding could allow thousands to find relief without tests or medication .
One study suggested gum chewing .
causes stress to the temporomandibular joint, or TMJ - the place where .
the jaw meets the skull - causing headaches .
Another study blamed aspartame, the artificial sweetener used in most chewing gums . |
89,183 | fd1c30bb0e4d43afc5e831eb9d60d738e9e63616 | By . Hugo Gye . PUBLISHED: . 08:18 EST, 9 April 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 18:32 EST, 9 April 2013 . A senior midwife in an Irish hospital told an Indian woman her dying baby could not be terminated because 'it's a Catholic thing', an inquest heard today. Mrudula Vasealli described the agony of her friend Savita Halappanavar's drawn-out miscarriage after doctors at Galway University Hospital said the foetus could not be saved. She was at the hospital a week later when Mrs Halappanavar died of septicaemia, and told the hearing that the woman's husband Praveen collapsed and vomited in the lobby after he heard the news. Agony: Savita Halappanavar, left, was denied a termination while having a miscarriage because 'it's a Christian thing', according to her friend Mrudula Vasealli, right . Ms Vasealli told Galway Coroner's Court that her friend pleaded for the baby's heartbeat to be stopped when it became clear the child could not survive. 'She said, the midwife, "We do not do that here dear. It's a Catholic thing,"' she said. 'The nurses were lovely, they took good care of her. It's the system that was wrong.' Mrs Halappanavar died on October 28 last year at the age of 31, sparking international outcry against Ireland's strict abortion laws which some say contributed to her death. 'Somebody said Praveen collapsed,' Ms Vasealli said. 'He was brought to the lobby. He was vomiting there. He couldn't walk.' Devastated: Mrs Halappanavar's husband Praveen, pictured, collapsed and vomited after her death . Mr Halappanavar previously told an inquest that his Hindu wife asked for a termination three times before she finally delivered her dead baby daughter. Consultant obstetrician Katherine Astbury has denied his claims that she refused a termination on the grounds that Ireland is 'a Catholic country'. Ms Vasealli spent the day with Mrs Halappanavar five days before her death as Praveen drove his parents-in-law to Dublin Airport. She said in her statement: 'Savita was very upset again because the foetal heartbeat was still there. 'She cried, saying: "What kind of mother am I waiting for my own baby to stop its heartbeat? I'm losing it, I'm losing it terribly."' Couple: Mr and Mrs Halappanavar at an event for the Indian community in the Irish town of Galway . She told coroner Ciaran MacLoughlin that her friend wept continuously as a midwife checked again for a heartbeat. 'We both, Savita and I, asked if there was a possibility of saving the baby because there was still a heartbeat after three days,' she said. 'Savita said, "Can you please save it. If you can't do something to stop the foetal heartbeat, I can't take this waiting for the baby to die."' It is unclear who the midwife on duty at the time was, but hospital officials said their 'best guess' was that it was clinical midwife manager Ann Maria Burke, who will now be called to testify at the inquest. Hospital: Doctors at Galway University Hospital are accused of negligence after the patient's death . Mrs Halappanavar carried the baby until October 24, but by that night she was in critical condition in intensive care, where she died four days later from septicaemia. Earlier family friend Dr Rupanjali Kundu, a senior house officer in obstetrics at the hospital, said she visited Mrs Halappanavar on the Monday and Wednesday when she noticed a significant change in her health. 'She was lying on the bed and she was unable to speak that much,' she said. 'She looked really ill. It was a significant change.' The inquest continues. | Savita Halappanavar, 31, 'denied abortion on religious grounds' in Galway .
Friend Mrudula Vasealli describes her agony as she waited for baby to die .
Husband Praveen 'collapsed and started vomiting after wife's death' |
106,764 | 15b919a0f04c51d32622913f898ba83c699b2e17 | Derby County sent out a message to the rest of the Championship when they demolished Wolves 5-0 with a superb exhibition of attacking football at the iPro Stadium. Wolves had no answer to the movement and invention of Derby as Jeff Hendrick and Johnny Russell both scored twice after Ryan Shotton headed the opener to give Steve McClaren's team their biggest win since March. It had been raining steadily throughout the morning and the conditions played a part in Derby's opening goal in the 16th minute when a slip by Ethan Ebanks-Landell forced Matt Doherty to trip Simon Dawkins. VIDEO Scroll down for Wolves and Derby players come together for Remembrance tribute . Derby's double scorers Johnny Russell (left) and Jeff Hendrick (right) celebrate during their win over Wolves . Derby County: Butland, Christie, Keogh, Shotton, Forsyth, Hendrick, Mascarell (Coutts 91'), Hughes, Russell (Calero 84'), Martin, Dawkins (Ibe 75') Substitutes: Buxton, Eustace, Roos, Best, Ibe . Goals: Shotton, Hendrick (2), Russell (2) Booked: Christie . Wolves: Ikeme, Batth, Ebanks-Landell (Stearman 45'), Ricketts, Saville, McDonald, Henry, Evans (Rowe 75'), Sako Clarke (McAlinden 67') Substitutes: Van La Parra, Jacobs, Kuszczak, Dicko . Booked: Doherty, Ricketts, Saville, Henry . Omar Mascarell whipped in the free kick and although Carl Ikeme did well to get his left hand to Shotton's header, the ball went in off the inside of the post. Wolves caught Derby out with a corner played to the edge of the box for Bakary Sako who fired just over and the visitors wasted an even better chance in the 24th minute. Sako was again involved, drifting past two white shirts before playing in Sam Ricketts who pulled the ball back for George Saville but he shot high and wide from 10 yards. That miss looked even more costly four minutes later when Dawkins chested the ball into the path of Hendrick who made himself enough space to send a low shot fizzing into the bottom right corner from 20 yards. Sako looked the most likely player to get Wolves back in the game but some of his team mates were wasteful in their passing and Derby all but sealed victory with a third goal in the 42nd minute. Derby celebrates their second goal in a demolition of Wolverhampton at The iPro Stadium on Saturday . Russell watches his shot for Derby's third goal fly into the back of the net . A corner was headed back at the far post and although it was half cleared, Russell was allowed to run unchallenged into the area and fire low past Ikeme from 12 yards. It was shocking defending from Wolves who were now looking at damage limitation in the second half although even that was beyond them against a Derby team intent on driving home their superiority. An exchange of passes across the edge of the Wolves box ended with Dawkins seeing a shot deflected over but the visitors were opened up again in the 54th minute when Will Hughes's clever ball inside allowed Hendrick to score with a measured finish from just inside the area. A pumped up Russell shows how fired up the Rams were as they set about dismantling Wolves . Leon Clarke struck the foot of a post a minute later but Derby were now utterly rampant and they made it five on the hour when Craig Forsyth crossed from the left and Russell arrived at the back post to fire into the roof of the net. Wolves kept going but inevitably it was Derby who nearly scored again in stoppage time when Cyrus Christie shot over after Ikeme could only parry a shot from substitute Paul Coutts. Wolves and Derby launch the #BidToRemember auction in a video ahead of Sky Sports coverage of their match on Saturday . Derby and Wolves combined to launch the Sky Bet Championships's #BidToRemember auction of signed match-worn shirts. Players from both sides reflected on those who've served in conflict and made the ultimate sacrifice for Britain in a video promoting the initiative. Club bosses Steve McClaren, of Derby, and Kenny Jackett, of Wolves, read Anne Starr’s poem Why Do I Wear A Poppy? in the video aired at the start of Sky Sports' coverage of the early kick-off on Saturday. Signed Poppy Shirts from each of the 24 Sky Bet Championship clubs are available to bid on in the #BidToRemember auction with all proceeds going to the Royal British Legion’s Poppy Appeal, which supports the whole Armed Forces community, through welfare, comradeship and representation. | Ryan Shotton, Jeff Hendrick and Johnny Russell scored in the first half .
Hendrick and Russell each netted their Derby doubles in the second stanza .
Players and managers combined to launch #BidToRemember campaign . |
214,526 | a1c7783f30123793bf7c3d10f4945f2e68bcfddc | By . Ted Thornhill . A fairytale wedding is a popular dream – but one US couple is making it a reality, by restoring a castle to use as a venue. Daniel Edwards and Ebony Burnside, from Kansas City, want to transform the city’s dilapidated 1897 former jail - the Workhouse Castle - into a stunning environment to hold their June 8 ceremony. The total cost will be somewhere in the region of three to four million dollars, so to help raise funds for the project, the pair are turning to crowd-sourcing and asking for donations through the non-profit 2orMore organization that Mr Edwards runs. Fairytale wedding: Ebony Burnside and Daniel Edwards plan to tie the knot at the historic Workhouse Castle in Kansas City . Clean-up: Volunteers from Mr Edwards' community youth organization have begun to rid the castle of graffiti and trash . Its aim is to encourage 20 to 30 year-olds to tackle community projects. At the moment the castle is in the clean-up stage, with Mr Edwards’ using his 2orMore volunteers to rid the structure of graffiti and trash. So far they’ve raised $12,000. Once they’ve garnered enough money they hope to build a community garden and an internet café at the castle. Run down: The castle has fallen into disrepair and doesn't even have a roof . Expensive undertaking: The total cost of the restoration will be somewhere in the region of three to four million dollars . Mr Edwards, an architectural engineer, explained that he was keen to use the wedding as an opportunity to give something back to the community. He told The Kansas City Star: ‘I’m not really big on weddings. I asked her [Ms Burnside] “Can we reinvest into the community instead of giving our money to some established venue?”’ The idea to use the castle came to them as they drove around the city looking for venues, after Mr Edwards had proposed. Ms Burnside said she had no idea that the castle even existed. ‘This castle here made sense, given that our wedding theme is legendary,’ Ms Burnside said. For more information visit to 2orMore.org. Bright future: It's hoped that a community garden and an internet café will be built at the castle . Heave-ho: The volunteers tidy up the grounds . | Daniel Edwards and Ebony Burnside want to restore Kansas City's castle .
The pair are hoping to use it as a venue for their wedding on June 8 .
They plan to transform the former jail using crowd-sourced funding . |
209,408 | 9b290cb9a5f79450cea7ca4ce70da8943cb86b1f | By . Jennifer Smith . PUBLISHED: . 08:32 EST, 25 November 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 07:29 EST, 3 January 2014 . A grandmother who lives in a make-shift caravan has asked her local council to move her to a permanent address so she can claim benefits in her old age. Hannah Rose, 71, has demanded Ashford Borough Council in Kent find her disheveled trailer a place in a local campsite where she will be able to claim housing benefit. The former French teacher would also like to see her pension raised by almost £100-a-week, despite having paid hardly any tax her entire life. Hannah Rose, 71, has asked the council to recognise her make-shift caravan as a mobile home and provide it with a permanent address so she can claim benefits . The mother-of-three travelled for 17 years before returning to the UK in 1996 when she took up work as a foreign language teacher with her second husband. Following the breakdown of their marriage, Ms Rose lived on a travellers' site in Surrey before moving into the trailer that she shares with her two cats. Now she wants council officials to find her a permanent spot on a campsite where she would be entitled to benefits that help cover the cost of site fees, but would not have to pay any council tax. The 71-year-old is being put up by the council in a £200-a-week B&B while they decide how to treat her case. Despite only paying National Insurance for five years, the grandmother sees no reason why she shouldn't receive benefits from the Government. 'I may not have contributed much financially but the French club I ran made a big difference,' she said. The grandmother put the trailer together using donated wood and furnishings. She lives there with her two cats . 'I think it's appalling the council doesn't have a list of static caravan sites to give someone who is trying to help themselves. 'The council cannot deal with people who are different. 'I would love to live in an eco community. I would like my freedom' 'I will be able to claim housing benefit from a static caravan, I desperately need an address.' Ms Rose added she was 'grateful' to have been put up in the hotel while she 'sorts herself out'. Supermarket bosses demanded she be moved after settling in a Sainsbury's car park in Ashford, Kent. Council spokesman Mark James said the authority is deciding what 'level of duty' it has to the grandmother who is a member of political campaign group, Avaaz. The mother-of-two, who is also a member of political campaign group Avaaz, feels she is entitled to receiving benefits as her own mother never received any and didn't even claim her pension . He said: 'We placed Hannah Rose in temporary accommodation on November 15 pending further investigations. 'She had an appointment booked in with our housing options team this week. 'We need to assess what level of duty we have to her and until we have had the opportunity to investigate her circumstances further we will not be able to comment.' | Hannah Rose is urging the council to give her trailer a permanent address .
The grandmother wants to claim housing benefit from an eco community .
The 71-year-old also want a £100-a-week raise in her pension .
Ms Rose lived abroad for 17 years and only paid National Insurance for five years while in the UK .
The pensioner believes she is entitled to benefits as her mother never claimed any . |
244,962 | c90b777e12c121715637299550d1259dd7929194 | By . Michael Wade . Follow @@MichaelWade_ . Adnan Januzaj has welcomed Louis van Gaal's appointment as Manchester United manager and claimed the club have a great future ahead of them under the Dutch manager. Van Gaal has described United as the "biggest club in the world", but after leading Ajax, Barcelona and Bayern Munich to silverware over the past 20 years he has experience of delivering results on the big stage. Januzaj, 19, broke into the United side under former manager David Moyes and was a rare highlight of the Scot's otherwise troubled reign at Old Trafford. Excited: Adnan Januzaj is looking forward to working with Louis van Gaal at Manchester United . And he will hope to do enough to continue his exciting development when Van Gaal arrives at the club this summer. 'I feel very happy because he is a great manager, he won a lot and I am looking forward to working with him,' he said in an interview with Sky Sports. 'I think we're going to have a great future ahead so I am looking forward to it.' High hopes: New Man United manager Louis van Gaal has set his sights on winning the title in his first season . Januzaj also expressed his delight at the decision to keep Ryan Giggs at the club after he was named as Van Gaal's assistant. United legend Giggs managed the club on a caretaker basis for the final four Premier League games of the season following the departure of Moyes. There was speculation that Van Gaal could opt to dispense with the services of Giggs from the United coaching staff, but it was announced that he would work alongside the new manager. Januzaj is happy with the appointment, saying: 'Everytime I was playing on the pitch I was asking Giggsy how to play and for some advice about what to do on the pitch. He helped me a lot. 'He was a great player and he has got a lot of respect from me and from other players and from other people. 'I think it is very important to have someone like him at the club.' Inside man: Ryan Giggs has been named as Van Gaal's assistant after retiring from playing . | Young winger looking forward to life under new manager .
Happy that Ryan Giggs is staying on the club's coaching staff .
Claims United legend has respect of players and is an important figure . |
2,847 | 08565c9317364f4a33e89995056f84515bf48a6b | (CNN) -- Hugo Chavez was always a leader with one eye fixed on his own place in history. In his frequent bombastic moments, the late Venezuelan president liked to imagine himself still in power in 2021, the bicentenary of his nation's independence, and as a latter-day Simon Bolivar, the Caracas-born soldier-statesman who liberated much of South America from Spanish rule and remains one of the continent's most revered sons. Some saw in Chavez's overseeing of the reinterment of Bolivar's remains in a grandiose new mausoleum -- perhaps with his own fading health in mind -- an attempt to forge that connection in monumental form. Hugo Chavez, influential leader with mixed record, dies at 58 . Yet, it's only now, with Chavez's premature death Tuesday at age 58, that we can begin to assess the legacy of one of the early 21st century's most politically gifted but divisive figures and his self-styled "Bolivarian Revolution." Having once served time in jail for leading a failed coup, Chavez perhaps made an unlikely convert to democracy. Yet, through a blaze of landslide elections and referenda, he placed his fortunes in the hands of the poor and the marginalized, demanding their votes as a first step towards building a new political order that would work in their interests. Chavez's initial 1998 election victory was hailed by the vote observers of the U.S.-based Carter Center as "a true demonstration of democracy at work" and "a peaceful revolution through the ballot box." In that year, Chavez won 56% of the vote on a 65% turnout. When he earned re-election in 2006, his support had swelled to almost 63% on a near-75% turnout -- the high watermark of his electoral fortunes. Between the two, Chavez defied an attempted coup in 2002 when hundreds of thousands of his supporters poured down from the hillside barrios of Caracas in protest, and a 2004 opposition-orchestrated referendum on his leadership made possible by the constitution introduced by Chavez himself in 1999. Chavez leaves a revolutionary legacy . "A strange dictator, this Hugo Chavez," wrote Uruguayan author Eduardo Galeano at the time of that referendum. Galeano is the author of a leading dependency theory interpretation of Latin American history, "The Open Veins of Latin America," that Chavez gave to U.S. President Barack Obama as a present after he won election. "This tyrant invented by the mass media, this fearsome demon, has just given a tremendous vitamin-injection to democracy, which, both in Latin America and elsewhere, has become rickety and enfeebled," Galeano wrote of Chavez. Once in power, Chavez diverted revenues from Venezuela's oil industry into a series of healthcare, education and anti-poverty initiatives known as misiones, opening subsidized supermarkets and clinics -- many staffed by Cuban medics -- in the country's poorest communities. Between 1998 and 2006 the percentage of Venezuelans living below the poverty line fell from 50.4% to 36.3%, according to statistics from the World Bank's Databank. Infant mortality fell from 20.3 per thousand births when Chavez came to power to 12.9 by 2011, according to the same source. Education also became more accessible, with the number of children enrolled in secondary education rising from 48% in 1999 to 72% in 2010, according to UNESCO figures. Visiting Caracas ahead of the 2006 election, I met a friend who had recently graduated from a newly established public university which charged its students just 300 bolivars a term, at the time the equivalent of about 15 cents. Previously, he explained, students in higher education had to pay about 1 million bolivars a month to go to a private university. As we walked, he pointed out a stall selling orange juice for 500 bolivars a glass. "Look at that," said my friend, "education under Chavez is cheaper than orange juice." iReport: Share your thoughts on the death of the Venezuelan president . Yet it will be for his interventions on the world stage that Chavez will be remembered beyond his homeland. Outspoken and often wildly undiplomatic, Chavez thrived on the intransigence and widespread international unpopularity of the George W. Bush-era White House, never more so than when he referred to his then-US counterpart as "the devil" in addressing the U.N. General Assembly in 2006. In Latin America, he provided inspiration for the rise of a generation of leftist leaders, notably Evo Morales in Bolivia and Rafael Correa in Ecuador, and breathed fresh life -- and oil supplies -- into Cuba's anemic revolution. Others in Brazil and Argentina benefited from the renewed sense of regional confidence and solidarity that Chavez brought to the table. He also had a deft appreciation of the mischievous power of gesture politics, sending "humanitarian aid" in the form of discounted fuel to one of the most deprived areas of New York's Bronx in 2005, and signing a gas deal with London in 2007 that funded cut-price bus fares for a quarter of a million of the British capital's poorest residents. In the more nuanced Obama era, Chavez cut a less assured and less influential figure, particularly as his health problems forced him to step back from the limelight. His longstanding willingness to seek common cause with any regime also at odds with the West -- Iran, Syria and Belarus among them -- also came with considerable cost for his credibility, most notably in his enduring loyalty to late Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. The world reacts . At home, too, Chavez's scorecard remained blotted by the chronic failure to tackle the violent crime that make Caracas one of the world's most dangerous cities, by complaints about press freedom and economic mismanagement, and by the gradual blurring of elements of grassroots participatory democracy with a less savory streak of populist authoritarianism. Ultimately though, any judgment of Chavez's merits and failings will largely come down to political taste, with enough evidence to make for compelling argument on both sides. What is not in question is the formidable force of personality and political skill that enabled him to unite and hold together a broad leftist alliance always bubbling below the surface with ideological idiosyncrasies and internal divisions, and of the deeply personal bond of loyalty that Chavez commanded among the millions who made up his red T-shirted chavista power base. Whether that coalition holds together in the absence of the charismatic individual that forged it, and what replaces it if it fractures, may be the fundamental question that shapes Venezuela's post-Chavez future. Join us on Facebook/CNNOpinion. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Simon Hooper. | Hugo Chavez seemed an unlikely convert to democracy .
He will be remembered for presence on world stage .
Chavez inspired leftist leaders in Latin America . |
246,804 | cb693176557313d7257912b011ec0cfd0ee05cb8 | Graeme Souness has torn into the Manchester City squad in the wake of their Champions League loss to CSKA Moscow, claiming the players 'are not world class'. City went a goal down early on, and despite a fantastic free-kick from Yaya Toure, suffered a disappointing 2-1 loss to put their chances of qualifying for the knock-out stages in serious jeopardy. Speaking after the match on Sky Sports, Souness said: 'A short few months ago we were talking about these players being world class but we can tell now that they're not world class because world class players respond and these players have been found wanting.' The Manchester City players complain to the referee at the final whistle at the Etihad Stadium . Yaya Toure looks outraged after the referee brandishes him a red card during the second half . 'You get the early warning and after that you get yourself back into it, you think it's going to be one way. 'But they were second to everything. There's no argument - the best team won tonight regardless of the sendings off.' Manchester City now have to host Bayern Munich in their next European fixture, before travelling to Rome in their final game, where it is certain they will have to produce a result to qualify. Graeme Souness claimed that the City players are 'not world class' after their 2-1 loss on Wednesday night . Seydou Doumbia scored an early goal for CSKA Moscow, and they went on to win 2-1 against Man City . | Manchester City lost 1-2 to CSKA Moscow and are bottom of their group .
They face Bayern Munich and Roma in their final two matches .
Graeme Souness slammed the squad, claiming they are 'not world class'
Jamie Redknapp also called the team 'diabolical' on Wednesday night . |
198,622 | 8d1af414f8047aef523664e00880e4c3d2d1c40e | By . Jill Reilly . PUBLISHED: . 04:13 EST, 4 June 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 05:24 EST, 4 June 2012 . A father has spoken of the terrifying moment his six-year-old daughter was savagely attacked by a pack of six dogs. Maya Wicksteed was visiting a neighbour with her father, Bruce, at Baldivis, south of Perth, when she was set upon by three Arab Bullmastiffs and three other dogs. She suffered horrific . facial injuries in the relentless attack, but is now in a stable condition after undergoing cosmetic surgery on her face. Recovering: Maya Wicksteed was visiting a neighbour with her father, Bruce, at Baldivis, south of Perth, when she was set upon by three Arab Bullmastiffs and three other dogs . Recalling the ordeal on Friday afternoon, Mr Wicksteed said his daughter was 'a screaming ball of sand and blood.' He had been fixing a vehicle near the property when he heard his daughter's screams. Savage attack: Maya was set upon by three Arab Bullmastiffs and three dogs (file picture) Mr Wicksteed described 'a horrible feeling in my gut' when he realised what had happened. He told how he ran over and saw the neighbour had come to Maya's aid by laying over her to shield her from the four-foot-tall, 130-pound dogs. 'I realized Maya was lying underneath him and his wife was lying down in the path of the dogs to try to shield my daughter,' Wicksteed said reported Perth Now. 'I feared for my life. I picked up a length of hose and just started whipping them.' Mr Wicksteed said he then grabbed his daughter and ran towards the house as the vicious dogs chased after them. 'As we got closer to the door, I was just praying that it was unlocked,' he said. 'I slammed the door on them as they were jumping up.' 'Police later told me she had been dragged over a 130-foot area,' he said to Perth Now. 'I'm so grateful, they quite selflessly . laid themselves down literally in the line of fire and formed a human . shield to protect her,' he said to ABC.net.au. A hospital spokeswoman at Princess Margaret Hospital said today Maya was in a stable condition and was 'doing quite well.' Stable: Maya suffered horrific facial injuries in the relentless attack, and has undergone cosmetic surgery on her face at Princess Margaret Hospital . Decision: The Rockingham Mayor, Barry Sammels, said a decision on the impounded dogs' future will be made once investigations are complete . The three Arab Bullmastiffs, belonging to the neighbour's son, have been voluntarily surrendered. The owner is reported to have been visiting his father at the address where the attack occurred, which was posted with 'Beware of the dog' signs. They are thought to have been used to control pigs on the land. Mr Wicksteed said, 'They are a killing machine -- if a dog can't differentiate between a pig and a little girl, there's an issue.' The City of Rockingham stated it is still trying to locate the other three dogs that were part of a pack responsible for the attack. The Rockingham Mayor, Barry Sammels, said a decision on the impounded dogs' future will be made once investigations into the incident are complete. 'It may be that we fine the owner of the dog, it may be that we euthanase the dogs ourselves, or it could be, and I'm not suggesting this will be the case, that the dogs may be released back to the owner,' ' he said to ABC.net.au. | Maya Wicksteed was attacked at a property at Baldivis, south of Perth, on Friday - she is in a stable condition after hundreds of stitches to her head .
Neighbours formed a 'human shield' to protect her .
Three dogs have been impounded so far and authorities are still searching for the other three . |
91,821 | 021dec2cf410b141c39ee62c5dabf0c8379639d1 | Click here for your ultimate stats guide to the game, including Gabby Agbonlahor's winner after just nine minutes! Aston Villa dished out the rough stuff to Mario Balotelli and Liverpool, but can claim the tactic was justified as Paul Lambert’s men climbed to second in the Premier League following captain Gabby Agbonlahor’s shock winner. Balotelli, making his Anfield debut after a £16million move from AC Milan, appeared to be targeted by Villa to try and make him lose his temper, particularly when Philippe Senderos kicked him off the ball. Substitute Raheem Sterling was also the victim of a bad, late tackle from Alan Hutton. But any collateral damage in public relations terms will hardly dampen Villa’s spirits after Agbonlahor celebrated his new four-year contract with a goal poacher’s effort after nine minutes. VIDEO Scroll down to watch Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers and Paul Lambert's views on Aston Villa's 1-0 victory at Anfield . Gabby Agbonlahor scores a surprise opener after just nine minutes as Aston Villa take the lead against Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday evening . Gabby Agbonlahor looks on as his scuffed shot sails past Steven Gerrard and Co to allow Aston Villa to take the lead against Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday evening . The ball goes in via the right post from Gabby Agbonlahor's shot nine minutes in against Liverpool on Saturday evening at Anfield in the Premier League . Gabby Agbonlahor swipes the ball into the net beyond Steven Gerrard and Simon Mingolet to gift Aston Villa an early 1-0 advantage over Liverpool . Gabby Agbonlahor runs away in celebration while Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard looks on as Anfield is silenced by Aston Villa's shock opener nine minutes in . Gabby Agbonlahor celebrates his opener at Anfield against Liverpool as Aston Villa emerged shock 1-0 winners in the Premier League clash . Gabby Agbonlahor is apporoached by his Aston Villa team-mates after the striker gave them the lead nine minutes in at Anfield against Liverpool . Gabby Agbonlahor can scarcely believe Aston Villa took the lead nine minutes in at Anfield against last season's Premier League runners up Liverpool . Mario Balotelli walks back to the centre after Aston Villa took a surprising early lead against Liverpool at Anfield in the Saturday evening Premier League match . Liverpool (4-2-3-1): Mignolet 6, Manquillo 6, Lovren 5.5, Sakho 6, Moreno 5.5, Gerrard 6, Henderson 6, Markovic 7 (Borini 71, 5), Coutinho 6, Lallana 5.5 (Sterling 61, 6), Balotelli 5.5 (Lambert 71, 5.5) Subs (not used): Jones, Enrique, Toure, Lucas . Booked: Lallana, Moreno . Goals: NONE . Aston Villa (4-5-1): Guzan 7, Hutton 6, Senderos 7.5, Baker 8, Cissokho 7, Cleverley 7 (Sanchez 86), Westwood 7, Delph 7.5, Agbonlahor 7 (Bent 90), Weimann 7 (N'Zogbia 72, 6), Richardson 6.5 . Subs (not used): Okore, Bacuna, Given, Grealish . Booked: Hutton . Goals: Agbonlahor (9) Man of the match: Nathan Baker . Referee: Lee Mason . Attendance: 44, 689 . Player ratings by Dominic King . Manager Lambert will point out that only one Villa player, Hutton, was booked and on Saturday only Chelsea sit above them in the Premier League table. Even though £25m England midfielder Adam Lallana and Manchester United reject Tom Cleverley were making club debuts, one-man publicity machine Balotelli was predictably the centre of attention. Super Mario’s name was cheered louder than anyone else’s and a Liverpool lap-dancing club hired a plane to fly overhead and advertise their wares. Being photographed outside such an establishment was one of Balotelli’s many misdemeanours during his eventful spell at Manchester City. Even with golden boy Sterling left on the bench following his England exertions and Daniel Sturridge out with a thigh injury picked up on international duty, Liverpool made a bright start with Lazar Markovic attempting an ambitious volley from Alberto Moreno’s cross that flew just too high. But Villa were surprisingly adventurous to and there had already been a couple of panicky moments in the home defence when they struck. Ashley Westwood’s corner was met by the head of Senderos. Javier Manquillo blocked unconvincingly and before he could have a second go at clearing, Agbonlahor nipped in to scoop the ball in from a prostrate position. It was the striker’s second goal in consecutive games. Lallana, who had signed from Southampton early in the summer but sidelined by a knee injury until now, showed his frustration by going in late on Cleverley and collecting a booking. The Kop then vented their displeasure when lax Liverpool marking allowed Senderos a free header from Westwood’s free-kick which he missed. As for Balotelli, he was quiet but certainly not anonymous, certainly not to the Villa antagonists. Andy Weimann claimed, unconvincingly, that Balotelli had dived after the Villa man had clipped him from behind. More seriously, the Italian hit the turf again when Senderos kicked him in the calf while referee Lee Mason was looking elsewhere. The Swiss defender was trying to stop Balotelli running into the area and was lucky it went unseen. If Villa assistant Roy Keane – never popular at Anfield – had dared to appear in the technical area before he finally appeared to galvanise the troops in injury-time, you would imagine he’d have been pleased with his centre-half. Then, Hutton caught Balotellli by the touchline, high on the thigh. It was to Balotelli’s credit he kept his cool and even applauded The Kop as he was substituted after a frustrating day. Steven Gerrard gives Mario Balotelli a pep talk before the match kicks off between Liverpool and Aston Villa on Saturday evening at Anfield in the Premier League . Mario Balotelli is chased by Ashley Westwood (right) and Aston Villa's new signing from Manchester United, Tom Cleverley, during the Premier Legaue match . Mario Balotelli tries to escape the markings of Aston Villa during the first half at Anfield as Liverpool went in trailing 1-0 in the Premier Legaue clash . Mario Balotelli constantly found himself on the end of rough treatment from Philippe Senderos at Anfield as the Aston Villa defender kept the striker quiet . Brendan Rodgers wasn't looking happy during the 1-0 loss to Aston Villa at Anfield - Liverpool's second defeat of the still-young Premier League season . Adam Lallana in action for Liverpool after signing from Southampton during the summer transfer window and he is chased by Aston Villa's own new boy Tom Cleverley . Adam Lallana on the ball for Liverpool after signing from Southampton during the summer transfer window and he was later substituted for Raheem Sterling . MINS KM MILES . Liverpool total 114.95 71.4 . Philippe Coutinho 90 11.92 7.4 . Jordan Henderson 90 11.84 7.3 . Steven Gerrard 90 11.10 6.9 . Aston Villa total 113.78 70.7 . Ashley Westwood 90 12.33 7.6 . Fabian Delph 90 11.79 7.3 . Kieran Richardson 90 10.97 6.8 . Data courtesy of the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index, the Official Player Rating Index of the Barclays Premier League . The only piece of real link-up play between him and Lallana in the No 10 role came when Balotelli laid off and Lallana hit a rising half-volley wide with Brad Guzan well beaten. Balotelli’s only other moment was a spectacular solo strike that was deflected for a corner after he’d been brilliantly picked out by Gerrard. Following an insipid start to the second-half, Rodgers succumbed to the temptation of throwing on Sterling after an hour even though he ideally wanted him rested for Tuesday’s Champions League opener against Ludogorets. Within seconds he turned on the turbo’s to reach Philippe Coutinho’s pass and was flattened by a late tackle by Hutton, who was booked. It says a lot for 19-year-old Sterling’s ability how quickly Liverpool now regard him as the go-to man following Luis Suarez’s departure. He was joined by fellow subs Rickie Lambert and Fabio Borini for the last 20 minutes, a remarkable turnaround for Borini who rejected moves to Sunderland and QPR on transfer deadline day. It was Coutinho who came closest to proving an equaliser though. He twisted his way to the edge of the Villa penalty area before hitting a strike against the post with Guzan rooted to the spot. Ultimately though, on a day of great expectation on Merseyide, it was the underdogs who were able to celebrate as they maintained their unbeaten league start to the season, achieved without star defender Ron Vlaar. Last week, the film ‘One Night in Istanbul’ about Liverpool’s legendary 2005 Champions League Final win was premiered to great acclaim in the city. Raheem Sterling had about 30 minutes to make an impact after coming on as a substitute in the place of Adam Lallana on Saturday evening in the Premier League . One of Raheem Sterling's first contributions once he'd arrived on the Anfield pitch as a substitute was to be flattened by Alan Hutton in this crunching challenge . Raheem Sterling was sent in a spiral by Alan Hutton's challenge at Anfield, which warranted a yellow card from referee Lee Mason on Saturday evening . Raheem Sterling chases the ball but the substitute, who had 30 minutes to make an impact, failed to help Liverpool equalise against Aston Villa . Liverpool midfielder Steven Gerrard looks dejected during the 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa at Anfield as the captain tasted a loss for the second time this season . Aston Villa celebrate their shock 1-0 win at Anfield over Liverpool after Gabby Agbonlahor, who signed a new four-year contract this week, scored the winner . Brendan Rodgers is hoping to inspire Liverpool to another Premier League title charge after finishing runner up to Manchester City last year . Daniel Sturridge was unable to take part in the Premier League match due to injury and Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers missed his main goalscoring threat . Liverpool's key striker Daniel Sturridge was unable to take part in the Premier League match due to injury and Brendan Rodgers missed his main goalscorer . CLICK HERE for all facts, stats and graphics from the big match, including Gabby Agbonlahor's simple finish to gift Aston Villa the lead! Gabby Agbonlahor scored the winner after just nine minutes - you can see this and more in Sportsmail's brilliant match zone service by clicking here! | Gabby Agbonlahor nets winner three days after signing new four-year contract with Aston Villa .
The striker earned the 1-0 win for Villa against Liverpool at Anfield in the ninth minute .
Liverpool suffered their second defeat of the season following their 3-1 loss to Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium . |
27,904 | 4f170f1e77945ce2f0c7262141364525ba2dd173 | BANGKOK, Thailand (CNN) -- After 17 hours, Kerri Gannon and her husband were still stranded in an airport in Bangkok, Thailand, Wednesday, trying to find a way home to the United States after the facility was occupied by crowds of protesters and closed. Anti-government protesters gather in front of Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi airport early Wednesday. The newly married husband and wife, in Thailand for their honeymoon, were struggling to find a way home to California after explosions at two Bangkok airports wounded four people and both airports were shut down. The day before, thousands of anti-government protesters stormed the airports to protest the return of Thai Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat from an economic summit in Peru. "The upper level outside is really crowded with protesters and for the most part they're kind of quiet and polite," Gannon said from the airport. "They're roaming the airport, they're cheering and clapping and walking around, but it's clearly their domain." Watch protesters clash » . It was not clear which of the two occupied airports she was speaking from, but tourists were stranded in both. The People's Alliance for Democracy , which is leading the protests, said it will not end its occupation of the airports until the prime minister resigns. They accuse his government of being a front for ousted former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Ongoing protests caused authorities to cancel all incoming and outgoing flights at the main hub, Suvarnabhumi International Airport, which handles 60,000 incoming passengers daily, an assistant to airport director Serirat Prasutanond told CNN. Pro- and anti-government protesters also exchanged gunfire Tuesday, a Thai police official said. Protesters with golf clubs and long wooden sticks clashed with airport taxi drivers, with each side throwing objects at the other. Watch what's causing the protests » . Protesters blockaded people trying to get to one of the airports. They directed travelers to exit onto the access roads. See more photos » . "I'm trying to get out of this place, but I'm stuck," iReporter Arjan Sing, who was on a two-week vacation to India and stopped in Bangkok to visit a friend's family. "When we took the exit there were lots of tourists standing around wondering what they were going to do." Gannon said the situation started off fairly relaxed, but tensions were escalating. "As more and more tourists leave [the airport], the fact that we don't have any information and there's no one to give us information, now we feel stranded here and we don't know where to go," Gannon said. "It seems a little bit more hostile than it was earlier." Gannon said she's heard nothing from airport personnel and her quest for answers is hurt even more by the fact that many people in the airport speak no English. "I don't know what happened to my flight," one woman waiting in an airport told CNN. "They won't talk to us and I'm angry and sad because I have two small children and they're sick so we want to go home." The airlines have also been mum on the situation, Gannon said, making it difficult for them to decide whether to wait it out at the airport or try to find a hotel. "We've had absolutely no contact from our air carrier," Gannon said. "But that seems to be universal across the board." One traveler said the wait was frustrating. "They've started coming through and telling us that we possibly might be out of here in the morning," he told CNN. "But either way, there's no problem. We just sit here and relax and enjoy the ride." Gannon said she and her new spouse just hope to get home sometime in the near future. "We've been gone for 17 days and [the honeymoon] was good -- until now," she said. "We are just trying to go home, get back to work and Thanksgiving." | Airports closed after blasts, and thousands of protesters taking over .
Kerri Gannon, husband, on honeymoon in Thailand, stuck for 17 hours .
Protesters swarmed the airports, said they won't leave until prime minister resigns .
Continuing protests; travelers have no information about what's going on . |
42,939 | 791d9515fd87dfa59e297a4ffbff31771c44304a | A retired barber accused of shooting a California urologist to death in his exam room suffered from prostate problems and was angry about his incontinence, according to neighbors. Stanwood Fred Elkus, 75, was jailed on $1million bail after police say he shot Dr. Ronald Franklin Gilbert multiple times on Monday at a medical office in Newport Beach. Police would not say if the 52-year-old Gilbert was Elkus' doctor, but the suspect’s neighbors said on Tuesday that the man was upset by a surgery that left him running to the bathroom constantly, sometimes in mid-conversation. Suspect: Stanwood Fred Elkus, 75, of Lake Elsinore was arrested yesterday suspected of killing Dr Ronald Franklin Gilbert, 52, of Huntington Beach at the medical office . A retired barber accused of shooting a California urologist to death in his exam room suffered from prostate problems and was angry about his incontinence, according to neighbors. Stanwood Fred Elkus, 75, was jailed on $1million bail after police say he shot Dr. Ronald Franklin Gilbert multiple times on Monday at a medical office in Newport Beach. Police would not say if the 52-year-old Gilbert was Elkus' doctor, but the suspect’s neighbors said on Tuesday that the man was upset by a surgery that left him running to the bathroom constantly, sometimes in mid-conversation. ‘One day we were talking about other things outside and he says, “Oh hold it right there!” and he was rushing to his house and when he came back, he said, “I have a problem with my prostate,”’ recalled Miguel Soto, who lives across the street. ‘He said, “I had surgery and now I am worse than before the surgery.”’ Soto said Elkus never named his doctor, and Soto did not know if it was Gilbert. A few weeks ago, Elkus said he would be away from home because he was checking into a hospital again, but when Soto saw him last week, he didn't mention his health. Neighbor James Lord said Elkus mentioned Sunday that ‘he wasn't going to be around much longer.’‘I told him, “No Stan, you're gonna outlive me,”’ Lord said. Police said on Monday, they found Elkus and Gilbert in a second-floor room after several 911 callers reported six or seven shots fired. A gun was found at the scene. The doctor had been shot several times in the upper body and was pronounced dead at the scene in Newport Beach. Victim: The slain doctor was identified as Ronald Gilbert, 52, who was a urologist in Newport Beach, California . Elkus had been undergoing treatment for prostate problems, neighbors told the Los Angeles Times. He frequently visited Gilbert, neighbor James Lord said. Dr Gilbert is also the founder and . chief scientist at Absorption Pharmaceuticals LLC, the makers of a drug . called Promescent, which is dedicated to curing premature ejaculation. An autopsy was planned today and Elkus was scheduled to appear on Wednesday in court. Police searched his home but declined to disclose what they found. At Gilbert's home in Huntington Beach, mourners arrived as distraught family members and a rabbi went in and out of the house just blocks from the water. The family declined comment and asked a reporter to leave. Gilbert, a married father-of-two, appeared to be the only target of the attack, police spokeswoman Kathy Lowe said. Dr Jeffrey Lauber, a dermatologist, said he frequently referred patients with cancer symptoms to Gilbert. 'He's the best there is,' Lauber said. 'Not only is he a very good urologist, he's a pillar of the community.' Lauber couldn't imagine why anyone would want to shoot Gilbert. 'This doesn't happen down here,' he said of the wealthy enclave 45 miles southeast of Los Angeles. Gilbert dealt with general urology, sexual dysfunction and related surgical techniques including vasectomies, bladder and prostate cancer, according to his biography on the website of the Orange Coast Urology Group, which he joined in 1993. One of his specialties involved using a laser to vaporize prostate tissue blocking the urinary tract. His biography called him a 'people person' and said he enjoys helping people. He decided to become a doctor mainly because his father is a doctor, the biography said, adding that Gilbert had been a stockbroker and a singer in a rock band. He had worked for 20 years at Hoag Hospital and was its former urology chief. Murder: A doctor was shot dead inside an examination room at a medical office near Hoag Hospital in Orange County . Lake Elsinore resident James Lord, Lord said Elkus forced him to take this tool off him and said: 'I might not be alive much longer' Shooting: Police and medical personnel stand outside a medical office near Hoag Hospital where a doctor was killed on Monday afternoon . Tragedy: The gunman surrendered to cops inside the examination room and was taken into custody . The . building and much of its parking lot were cordoned off with police tape . and surrounded with many police vehicles several hours after the . shooting. Kristen Cotty, who works as an office . supervisor at a lab on the third floor, said she thought the gunfire . was construction noises. 'What's going on with the world . today?' she told the Orange County Register. 'I mean, schools, now I got . to worry about going to work. This has got to stop.' Dr Gilbert is described in a bio on . the Orange Coast Urology website as a 'people person' who 'treats his . patients as if they are members of his own family.' | Doctor shot dead inside room where police also found the shooter, who was taken into custody .
Victim reportedly identified as Dr Ronald Gilbert, a respected urologist .
Neighbors of suspected shooter Stanwood Fred Elkus, 75, say recent surgery left his running to the bathroom . |
179,476 | 746367ddef9d1b47155e490876b72a7d602b2c5d | By . Marie-louise Olson . PUBLISHED: . 15:12 EST, 3 December 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 15:22 EST, 3 December 2013 . The Baltimore man who claims to have inspired HBO's The Wire was arrested on federal drug and gun charges last month. Nathan ‘Bodie’ Barksdale, AGE, had been working for Safe Streets, a city Health Department program in which former criminals help rid the streets of the violent crime they once perpetuated, when he was arrested. Barksdale had been successful in the program, Johnson said, but he was terminated after not showing up to work on November 25, the same week he was arrested. Smooth criminal: Nathan 'Bodie' Barksdale, right, has allegedly survived 21 gunshots during his career as a criminal, some of which were fired while Barksdale was in hospital after a prior murder attempt . Back in jail: The Baltimore-born Barksdale was arrested on federal drug and gun charges last month . The Drug Enforcement Agency said Barksdale didn't cease his role as a drug boss as he has long claimed, but was instead a high-ranking official of the prison and street gang, Black Guerrilla Family. He was arrested last month on heroin and gun charges, according to The Baltimore Sun. Barksdale was a drug dealer in West Baltimore who purportedly survived twenty-one gunshots, some of which were fired while Barksdale was in hospital after a prior, failed murder attempt. When he was young, a man ran over Barksdale’s leg with his truck after Barksdale stole from him. As a result, Barksdale underwent an amputation and subsequently became addicted to opiates. 'Still a criminal': The Drug Enforcement Agency said Barksdale is still a high-ranking official of the prison and street gang, Black Guerrilla Family, despite his claims that he's gone clean . Imposter? Barksdale had been working for Safe Streets, a program in which former criminals help rid the streets of the violent crime they once perpetuated, when he was arrested . In 1985, Barksdale was sentenced to fifteen years in state prison for battery. In 2003, he was acquitted of a federal charge of being a felon with a gun. David Simon, the creator, executive producer and head writer of The Wire, denies that Nathan Barksdale or any other individual is the basis for any specific character in the show. However, in his director's commentary to the first episode of The Wire, Simon said they tended to 'mix the names up'. TV character: Barksdale, left, claims he inspired The Wire, but creators deny the claims . The Wire: Bodie Broadus is a character played by JD Williams, pictured, in The Wire. Barksdale claims this character is molded on his own life . ‘It’s our kind of back-handed homage to the reality of West Baltimore. There really was a Nathan Bodie Barksdale. We split that up. ‘There’s a Bodie character in this tale, there’s an Avon Barksdale character. The Barksdale family was famous in their day in West Baltimore back in the ‘80s for their endeavors in the projects. 'That’s how we’re playing it. They’re not based on real people, individually, but a character might be a composite.’ | Long-time criminal Nathan ‘Bodie’ Barksdale was working for Safe Streets, a program in which former criminals help rid the streets of crime, when he was arrested last month .
Barksdale is accused of still being a boss of prison and street gang, Black Guerrilla Family, that he claims he left a long time ago .
He was a drug dealer in West .
Baltimore who allegedly survived 21 gunshots, some of which .
were fired while Barksdale was in hospital after a prior murder .
attempt .
In 1985, Barksdale was sentenced to .
fifteen years in state prison for battery .
He says he was the inspiration for The Wire, a claim which creators of the television show deny . |
244,333 | c83389f11ee142b3ac647e2f304b6825f364b74e | By . Associated Press . The father of Michigan's first surviving set of sextuplets has died at the age of 39 while playing with his children. Ben Van Houten suffered a heart attack on Wednesday night shortly after setting up a trampoline at his home in the Holland-area in western Michigan. Mr Van Houten's wife, Amy, gave . birth three months' prematurely to six children over three days at a Grand Rapids hospital in 2004. Devastating loss: Ben Van Houten died on Wednesday at the age of 39. He is pictured with his family in 2008. From left, John, Ben, 15-month-old Drew, Nolan, Sammy, Kennedy, Peyton, wife Amy and Gerrit sit together in their home in Hamilton . Mr Van Houten's father-in-law said that he loved nothing more than spending time with his children (picture taken in 2006) The newborns were tiny at birth; the largest was only 2lb 1oz. The sextuplets - John, Nolan, Peyton, Gerrit, Kennedy and Sammy - are all now ten years old. Two of the boys, John and Gerrit, have cerebral palsy and require special care. 'It's scary to think we're responsible now,' Ben Van Houten joked in 2004, when daughter Samantha was the first to leave the hospital. Several years later, Mrs Van Houten, a preschool teacher, gave birth to a daughter Drew, now seven. Father-in-law Calvin Reimink told The . Grand Rapids Press that Van Houten was playing with his children when . the heart attack occurred. Mr Reimink says knowing Mr Van Houten even for one day was a 'blessing'. He added that the 39-year-old was always spending time with his children and was the best son-in-law. Ben Van Houten, pictured with five of his seven children at their home in January. The 39-year-old father and church deacon died suddenly while playing with his children on Wednesday night . Ben Van Houten and his wife Amy. Mrs Van Houten gave birth to Michigan's first surviving sextuplets in 2004 . The father-of-seven had worked for many years at UTV/SUD, a global testing company. He was a deacon at the Calvary Baptist Church and a Christian youth program leader. Mr Reimink said that Mr Van Houten's father John had died of a heart attack at just 40 years old. Sue . Herweyer of Dykstra Life Story Funeral Home in Holland confirmed the . death and says the funeral home is handling arrangements. Ben and Amy Van Houten pose in their home in Hamilton, Michigan, with their sextuplets, from left: Peyton, Gerrit, Samantha, Kennedy, John and Nolan on July 21, 2005 . Ben Van Houten talks with his daughter Sammy at their home in Hamilton, Michigan. The father-of-seven and Christian youth leader passed away suddenly on Wednesday . | Ben Van Houten suffered a heart attack on .
Wednesday night shortly after setting up a trampoline at his home in .
the Holland-area in Michigan .
His wife Amy gave birth to sextuplets in 2004 and then a daughter in 2007 .
Two of the sextuplets have cerebral palsy and need special care .
His father-in-law Calvin Reimink said knowing Ben even for one day was a 'blessing' |
205,010 | 9564d78050fb2efb815b473207c7f540646de2c4 | ALPHARETTA, Georgia (CNN) -- Ben, who's 15 months old, can already do a lot of things. He can turn on a light or open a door. He can pick up a remote control off the floor. He can pull a heavy object with his teeth. Colise Johnson, 42, spent two weeks in September at a canine training camp getting acquainted with Ben. But Ben, a gangly golden retriever, is more than a family pet. He is a specially trained seizure dog who may one day be able to save the life of his new owner, Colise Johnson. "Having epilepsy and cerebral palsy is kind of like having a nonstop roller coaster ride," said Johnson, 42, of Portland, Oregon. "You never know what's going to happen, but with him, he slows the ride down so it's manageable." Johnson, who uses a wheelchair and must wear a helmet because of persistent seizures, is among 3 million Americans who live with some form of epilepsy, a brain disorder that causes recurring seizures, violent muscle spasms or, sometimes, a loss of consciousness. There are no estimates of how many patients are paired up with assistance dogs, and the benefits of having such an animal have not been studied to any great extent. But Dr. Gregory Barkley, a neurologist at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, Michigan, and an adviser for the Epilepsy Foundation of America, believes nearly a quarter of the people who suffer from frequent, severe seizures might be helped by a canine companion. He said the dogs have "an unqualified devotion to their master" that may offer important mental health benefits. The dogs are sometimes credited with powers they really don't possess, Barkley said. "The dog does not predict a seizure," he said. "It may respond to the earlier stages of a seizure." Johnson owned a seizure dog for 12 years before he died in 2007, ironically, having his own seizure. Watch more on Ben and his new owner » . She recalled that the dog, named McKeever, "told me ahead of time when I was going to have a seizure. ... He helped me get off the floor if I fell, helped me retrieve items, helped me get clothes out of the drawer for a bath, open the fridge on command and took out the recycling." She said she'd felt lost without McKeever since his death, but that recently changed. Johnson spent two weeks in September at a training camp at Canine Assistants in Alpharetta, Georgia, getting acquainted with Ben. This year, Johnson was one of 1,100 people on the agency's waiting list. Jennifer Arnold founded the nonprofit service in 1991 and has placed more than 1,000 dogs with adults and children with physical disabilities or other special needs. "We work primarily with people who have mobility issues and have conditions like muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy and brain injuries," Arnold said. In the past few years, Arnold also helped train 100 seizure dogs to assist people with epilepsy. "We train them to do basically 90 different commands," Arnold said. "They learn to do things like go for help and press buttons to alert 9-1-1." Over time, nearly all the dogs eventually develop the ability to identify the onset of a seizure, she said. "We have no understanding of what it is that alerts the dogs that a seizure is oncoming," she said. "Is it a smell that the body produces? We don't know to what stimuli the dog is responding." By spending time with epilepsy patients, Arnold's dogs are taught what a seizure looks like and not to be frightened. Some dogs are able to anticipate a seizure 20 to 40 minutes before it happens. "If the dog feels that their person is going to have a seizure, they tend to get very restless and distressed. ... They show signs of stress and agitation," Arnold said. "Provided their human can read what that means, you have a really good alert system going on there." Barkley has heard similar anecdotal information from his own epilepsy patients, but many of those dogs were simply family pets and were untrained, he said. He warned patients to be wary of agencies that charge a lot of money for a dog that may or may not be able to perform certain tasks. Canine Assistants offers its dogs free of charge to qualified patients. The group not only covers the cost of airfare and lodging during the training sessions, but it provides a lifetime of food and veterinary care at no cost. Arnold estimated the total value at $20,000 per dog. She said that a third of her company's operating costs are underwritten by large corporate grants. The rest of the money is raised through private donations. Arnold helped train some of the 140 dogs currently at the facility. She said she has no trouble letting the animals go to new homes because she knows they'll serve an important purpose, especially for the epilepsy patients. "They become a prisoner," Arnold said. "They don't want to leave the house ... they're so vulnerable. Just having this dog with you means that you're not ever alone." Johnson, the married mother of a 15-year-old, is looking forward to regaining some independence with a new dog in the house. "He's going to be able to give my family a break. He's going to be able to let them rest a little bit easier," she said. She also looked forward to a new reason to get out of bed in the morning. "With the dog, instead of getting all bummed out or getting depressed over the seizures, I'll spend time with him and play with him and start laughing." "These dogs will change your life in such a way you won't know how you've lived without him once you've had them." | Three million Americans live with epilepsy, which causes recurring seizures .
Canine camp in Georgia has trained 1,000 dogs since 1991 to help the disabled .
Cost of training, maintaining dog is $20,000; dogs are free to qualified patients . |
160,957 | 5c16242653c2e2f46ac6893e73d31b075633a3dc | By . Graeme Yorke . PUBLISHED: . 07:48 EST, 4 March 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 07:48 EST, 4 March 2014 . Should Alan Pardew remain in charge of Newcastle? Newcastle boss Alan Pardew is not expected to contest a Football Association charge over his headbutt on Hull midfielder David Meyler. Sportsmail understands the 52-year-old will accept the charge of improper conduct announced on Monday after headbutting Meyler on the touchline at the KC Stadium on Saturday. Pardew has until 6pm on Thursday to respond, and has the right to request a personal hearing to give himself an opportunity to explain his actions. Pardew apologised immediately after the game, which his side won 4-1, but was fined £100,000 pounds and handed a formal warning by the Magpies hours later. VIDEO Scroll down to see Alan Pardew and Steve Bruce's comments after the headbutt . What was he thinking? Newcastle United manager Alan Pardew headbutts Hull City player David Meyler . Clashing point: David Meyler had to restrained by fellow player Hull City player Ahmed Elmohamady . Anger: Meyler was seen pushing Pardew as the pair clashed when a stray ball went out of play . Newcastle . United manager Alan Pardew has been charged in relation to an incident . in his side’s game against Hull City on 1 March 2014. It . is alleged that in the 72nd minute of the fixture, Pardew was involved . in an incident with a Hull City player that amounted to improper . conduct. Due to the serious violent and/or aggressive nature of the reported behaviour this case has been designated as non-standard. Pardew has until 6pm on Thursday 6 March 2014 to respond to the charge. He is likely to receive a significant further penalty if he either accepts or is convicted on the FA charge, and that could include a stadium ban. However, he will not face criminal charges over the incident with Humberside Police having confirmed neither Meyler nor Hull have made a complaint. Meyler is on international duty with the Republic of Ireland, who face Serbia in Dublin on Wednesday night. An FA statement said: ‘Newcastle United manager Alan Pardew has been charged. It is alleged Pardew was involved in an incident with a Hull City player that amounted to improper conduct. ‘Due to the serious violent and/or aggressive nature of the reported behaviour, this case has been designated as non-standard.’ His position could be reviewed by club owner Mike Ashley if the manager is hit with a stadium ban. Pardew did at least discover that he had escaped criminal charges on Monday. A Humberside police chief said Pardew’s conduct could have been deemed ‘offensive’, but added that no-one had requested that the matter be taken further. Chief inspector Richard Kirven said: ‘Having reviewed the circumstances of the incident, it has been agreed that the matter will be dealt with by the FA, rather than considering criminal proceedings. ‘There has been no complaint received from either the player involved or Hull City. Humberside Police will not be taking any further action.’ We have been working with the FA and the football club to progress the matter appropriately. Having . reviewed the circumstances of the incident it has been agreed that the . matter will be dealt with by the FA rather than considering any criminal . proceedings. There has been no complaint received from the player involved or Hull City Association Football Club at this time. Whilst . we appreciate that some people may have found the behaviour displayed . at the game on Saturday offensive, Humberside Police will not be taking . any further action.' It was only recently that the club dismissed reserve-team coach Willie Donachie amid allegations that he struck a player, understood to be 19-year-old defender Remie Streete, and the pressure could mount on the club to be just as tough. FA chairman Greg Dyke has already described it as a ‘serious’ issue while leading figures in the game have said Pardew’s position is ‘untenable’. When the then Blackpool manager Paul Ince was punished for physically confronting the fourth official in the tunnel at Bournemouth earlier this season, he was hit with a five-game stadium ban. A 10-game ban for Pardew would see . him miss the rest of the season with matchday duties switching to . assistants John Carver and Steve Stone, leaving Newcastle owner Mike . Ashley looking at the long-term repercussions. The . controversial owner, who gave Pardew an eight-year deal last season, is . understood to have acted swiftly on Saturday evening in an attempt to . draw a line under the incident and end speculation that he intends to . sack Pardew. But Ashley . holds a review of all aspects of the club at the end of every season . and Pardew’s behaviour is certain to come under scrutiny despite him . being almost certain to provide the top-half finish which was his target . for this season. Clash: Pardew reacted in unprecedented fashion to being barged by the Ireland international . Scuffle: The incident started after Meyler pushed Pardew out of the way with the ball rolling towards him . Off you go: Pardew is sent to the stands by referee Kevin Friend . From above: Pardew (centre) looks on from the stands as Newcastle secured a 4-1 win . Opinionated: Alan Shearer, who managed Newcastle in 2009, slammed Pardew for his headbutt . Newcastle United are disappointed with the actions of its manager Alan Pardew this afternoon (Saturday, 1st March). His behaviour was unacceptable and is not the behaviour we expect from the manager of Newcastle United. It is most disappointing that this incident has taken the focus away from what was a fantastic performance by the team and an excellent result away from home which leaves the club in eighth place in the Barclays Premier League. Sadly, the headlines tomorrow will not be focused on the result or the efforts of the players, but instead on the actions of our manager. Alan unreservedly apologised immediately following the game to the player, to Hull City Football Club and its fans, and to the fans of Newcastle United. We have held discussions this evening with Alan who has offered his sincere apologies to the Club and it is clear he deeply regrets his actions. Alan has accepted a formal warning from the Club in relation to his behaviour today and also a Club fine of £100,000. The Club is now drawing a line under this matter and will be making no further comment. The Newcastle manager fined himself last month for a foul-mouthed attack on Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini. At the start of last season he pushed a linesman in the back and was involved in an ugly row with ex-Sunderland boss Martin O’Neill during the Tyne-Wear derby. On Sunday even Richard Bevan, the chief executive of the League Managers’ Association, could not defend Pardew. Bevan was keen to stress that the second longest-serving manager in the Premier League was ‘extremely sorry’, but having spoken to Pardew, he said: ‘The buck stops with Alan. It’s unacceptable, it’s inappropriate and it’s insupportable from every perspective. Not happy: Arsene Wenger took issue with Pardew's celebrations as West Ham beat Arsenal 1-0 in 2006 . Heated: Martin O'Neill took exception to Pardew's over-zealous celebrations in the 2011 Tyne-Wear derby . Frankly, I was shocked and disgusted by Pardew’s incredibly irresponsible action. And yet, and even more disturbingly, I wasn’t completely surprised. Pardew has a lot of previous, a lengthy list of touchline bust-ups and misbehaviour. When manager of Ipswich Town, I had personal experience of Pardew’s touchline impropriety during a play-off semi-final with his then club West Ham. I was alarmed, to say the least, by the way he tried to influence the officials. 'Alan knows that. He immediately realised . the serious error, made sincere apologies to all parties. But Alan does . need to think about how not to put himself in that position again.’ Pardew has said he would have to ‘sit down and stay out of the way’ rather than roam his technical area. Bevan nevertheless believes certain issues need to be addressed. Bevan told Sportsmail: ‘We did a technical report last year. Now we are working on a second report. I don’t mention this now because of Alan but because it is an important project. 'There can be too much traffic in the technical areas and sometimes problems arise because of that.' Hot water: Pardew called Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini a 'f****** old c***' in January . Best of pals: Barton, who has often found himself in trouble for acting out, came out in Pardew's defence . Spitting feathers: Pardew was banned for two matches after pushing a linesman against Tottenham in 2012 . Room with a view: The Newcastle boss was banished to the St James' Park stands after the push . November 2006: Pardew had earlier in the year criticised Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger for failing to field an English player in the Champions League match against Real Madrid and matters came to a head in West Ham's 1-0 win over Arsenal. Then West Ham boss Pardew's enthusiastic celebrations appeared to irritate Wenger, who claimed he was 'provoked in a disrespectful way', with the pair having to be kept apart by the fourth official. On this occasion, it was the Gunners boss who was fined by the Football Association, with Pardew cleared of all charges. March 2012: In a Tyne-Wear derby, it perhaps comes as no surprise that the tension boiled over, with Pardew, now Newcastle boss, clashing with Martin O'Neill following his celebration to Shola Ameobi's late equaliser in a heated match. Both managers pledged afterwards to keep their emotions in check in future. August 2012: Pardew came under severe criticism and then afterwards labelled his behaviour 'ridiculous' when he shoved linesman Peter Kirkup in the Magpies' season opener against Tottenham after disagreeing with the official's decision to award Spurs a throw-in. Pardew once again apologised for his actions but the Football Association took a dim view and hit him with a two-match touchline ban and a £20,000 fine. January 2014: Pardew became involved in another touchline row, less than a month after having heated words with Southampton boss Pochettino, with Manchester City manager Pellegrini. Television cameras clearly showed the Newcastle boss launching an expletive-laden volley at the Chilean. Pardew was spared punishment but said later: 'It was a heat of the moment thing, words we always have as managers, to a degree. I've apologised and I'm fortunate that he's accepted that.' | Alan Pardew isn't expected to appeal after being charged with improper conduct for headbutting David Meyler .
Toon boss escapes criminal action but will face 'non-standard' FA action .
Newcastle could sack Pardew if he is unable to manage in coming weeks .
The former West Ham boss was fined £100,000 after the incident . |
81,504 | e6e9194eb8cf56c596b798f9e7a7efe58405ecb9 | By . Inderdeep Bains . New installation: The Tate Modern (pictured) in London has purchased a cluster of Scottish sheep droppings strung across wire for £16,000 . A cluster of Scottish sheep droppings strung across wire is one of the art works among a collection the Tate Modern purchased for more than £200,000 from a Mexican artist. The gallery bought the £16,000 installation entitled ‘S**t Models ‘ along with 17 other works by artist Abraham Cruzvillegas. The taxpayer funded gallery in London describes the 2008 creation on its website as ‘sheep excrement, dung, plaster, cardboard, steel and wood’. Mr Cruzvillega admitted he used discarded items he found on the street or in fields for his works when he spent six months in Scotland creating his exhibition; Autoconstruction. The 45-year-old told a contemporary art magazine that he used ‘wool, sheep shit, chicken wire, discarded furniture, cardboard, stones, grass and my own hair’ to make the installations. ‘They are unplanned assemblages, made to test new dialogues between odd and contradictory objects and prime matter,’ the artist explained. S**t Models appears to be made from a discarded bird table on top of which upright metal wires have been placed with lumps of sheep excrement hung on top. His collection also includes ‘Blind in Self Portrait’ which consists of scores of scraps of paper he came by in Scotland, such as leaflets, ferry tickets and receipts which he painted red. According to a report, the cost of the installations was revealed in a document showing all the artworks bought by the Tate, which is Britain’s national gallery, in the past year. Expensive purchases: The Tate, which is run by Sir Nicolas Serota (pictured), also spent £2,100 from a Government grant to buy a piece from artist Ed Herring which consisted of an old plastic card-index file . Mr Cruzvillegas’s work was bought with funds given to the Tate, which with almost 5million visitors a year is the most visited modern art gallery in the world, by wealthy benefactors. A further £229,000 was spent on a piece by Cuban Felix Gonzalez-Torres which featured two light bulbs, light sockets and cable. The Tate, which is run by Sir Nicolas Serota, also spent £2,100 from a Government grant to buy a piece from artist Ed Herring which consisted of an old plastic card-index file. Charles Thomson, of Stuckists, which promotes traditional art, told the Sunday Express: ‘If this stuff was auctioned on eBay it would sell for a fiver. ‘The Tate’s meant to be the national collection of modern art. It’s more like the national junk shop.’ However, The Tate defended its decisions saying: ‘We are pleased to acquire works by these artists using funds raised by Tate.’ Mr Cruzvillegas’s collection is currently on loan to the Haus der Kunst gallery in Munich, Germany. | London's Tate Modern bought installation entitled 'S**t Models' for £16,000 .
One of 18 works purchased for more than £200,000 from a Mexican artist .
Installation is made from sheep excrement, plaster, cardboard and wool . |
232,057 | b878bf39c87464ad38d1da7bfbd4bf69ea7eb760 | Fort Mill, South Carolina (CNN) -- Standing amid pallets of bottled water, suntan lotion and boxes of candies, Roy Tidwell says he is providing a service that can't be duplicated: shipping needed goods to dozens of charities at a low cost. "Well, my portion of it is getting goods to help people who are suffering, goods that I can deliver for pennies on the dollar," he said. "And most places that get them are very appreciative." Tidwell runs Charity Services International, which he says has 50 clients, all charities, including the Disabled Veterans National Foundation and SPCA International. His business is in the middle of a debate over how charities put a monetary value on the items they donate. In one instance, the Disabled Veterans National Foundation, using Tidwell's organization as a broker, shipped what it claimed were more than $800,000 worth of goods including chef's coats, hats and football pants to a small charity called U.S. Vets in Prescott, Arizona, in 2009. But a U.S. Vets spokesman told CNN the total value of the goods was a fraction of that amount. U.S. Vets officials also told CNN that they neither asked for nor wanted the shipment and that it arrived without their knowledge. Tidwell insisted U.S. Vets knew in advance exactly what was in the shipment. Last year, the veteran's foundation -- again using Charity Services International as a broker -- sent what it claimed was more than $500,000 worth of goods to a Veterans Administration facility in Little Rock, Arkansas. Miles Brown, a spokesman for the VA in Little Rock, questioned whether the donations were worth that much. He said the donations, sent in two shipments, consisted of hand sanitizer bottles, bottled water and tote bags. "At no time did we provide (Disabled Veterans National Foundation) with any documentation regarding the 'fair market value' (or) our assessed value of the donations," he wrote. The foundation is under congressional investigation to determine whether it deserves its tax-exempt status after doling out millions of dollars to a direct-mail company. There's an even bigger opportunity to overvalue donations provided to other countries. That's because of the different market values of items from one country to another, particularly when one of the countries is impoverished. "If a product can be purchased at one level and the charity, for whatever reason, or the intermediary raises the value significantly, then one can say there's a potential for overstatement of value," said Luke Hingson, president of Brother's Brother, a Pittsburgh-based charity that ships donated goods worldwide. Hingson says he believes some charities are purposely overinflating much of what they distribute to help their bottom line. "They can declare a lower overhead cost (and) they can claim that they are more effective to the public than their real numbers might indicate," Hingson said. SPCA International - also a client of Tidwell's Charity Services International -- claimed it sent $816,000 worth of de-worming and antibiotic medicines to an elephant charity in Nepal. But the customs declaration for the shipment, obtained by CNN, showed that its total stated value was $2,500. Little of charity's money going to help animals . While agreeing that the difference in the price of the medicines is "outrageous," Tidwell explained that the value of the shipment varies depending on the "exit market." "It would be what you would have to pay for it in the place that it's exiting," Tidwell explained. "And that fact that they might ... be able to purchase similar medicines made in a back room in Nepal for a far lower price doesn't change the value of the medicines that are U.S. produced." SPCA International told CNN it follows "industry standards and accounting regulations" in placing values on donated goods. De-worming medication has proven very tricky for many nonprofits because they say there is no uniform standard for determining their fair market value. Operation Blessing International, a charity run by Pat Robertson and the Christian Broadcasting Network, decided to stop including the value of anti-parasite medications in its donations "until industry standards for the recognition and valuation of these medications become clearer," the charity said in its most recent IRS tax filing. But CharityWatch president Daniel Borochoff says determining the worth of gifts-in-kind donations is simple: Charities should report what they paid for the items. "Rather than wasting ten thousand dollars to purchase 'market data' in order to come up with inflated valuations of pharmaceuticals, charities need to value the drugs that they purchase at the price they paid for them," Borochoff wrote. Last year, CharityWatch spotlighted the issue of how and why many charities overvalue their non-cash donations, or gifts-in-kind, in an article titled "The Alice in Wonderland World of Charity Valuation." That article called out charities that "place high values on GIK (gifts-in-kind) donations" in order to "falsely appear to be spending a higher percentage of their funds on programs than other groups that receive mostly cash contributions." On top of that, many times these charities "do not buy drugs but actually receive them as a donation" and then "wildly overstate their value," Borochoff notes. And then, Borochoff said, charities are allowed to "hide ... what specific drugs they claim to be distributing and at what price they value them." That, he said, is the heart of the problem. "Until charities start disclosing this information, the public and media should rightfully continue to doubt the reported values of in-kind goods," he said. And it's not just a few errant charities. The issue of overvaluing donations is "industry-wide," Borochoff told CNN. He said the executives of different nonprofits actually work together to determine how certain gifts-in-kind should be valued. "They conspire and say, 'Oh let's value it this way ... we'll come up with this rationale' ... and then they'll say it's an industry standard," he explained. But Borochoff said things are starting to change now that the IRS is becoming more aware of the problem. Why do charities purposefully overvalue their donations? Pretty much because everyone else is doing it, Borochoff said. He compared the situation to sitting in the audience at a baseball game or concert. When one person stands up and blocks your view, you have to stand up, and then the person behind you stands up. "It's all gotten so out of hand because in order to compete you need to exaggerate," he said. "They have to exaggerate their revenues so they look good... 'Hey we're in the philanthropy 1000 or on the Forbes list... like somehow bigger is better... which it's not if the numbers are exaggerated." Editor's note: A previous version of this story incorrectly said that Operation Blessing International made the decision to stop including the value of anti-parasite medications in its donations "as the IRS investigated its finances." CNN's reporting was inaccurate, since no IRS investigation was launched. CNN regrets the error. This is the latest in CNN's ongoing investigation into national charities as part of the Keeping Them Honest series on "AC360°." Watch Anderson Cooper 360° weeknights 10pm ET. For the latest from AC360° click here. | Several charities have valued donations much higher than their actual worth .
A charity said it sent $816,000 worth of medicine, but customs put the value at $2,500 .
Some charities say there's no uniform standard for reporting values .
But CharityWatch says charities should report the amount they paid for donated items . |
249,132 | ce6027a73d1851d82533fb294208e4150e523d42 | (CNN) -- A suspended Roman Catholic priest pleaded guilty Tuesday to a federal drug charge, the U.S. Attorney's Office for Connecticut announced. The Rev. Kevin Wallin, 61, of Waterbury, Connecticut, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute crystal methamphetamine. With the plea, he admitted that he received and distributed 1.7 kilograms of the drug, U.S. Attorney David B. Fein said in a statement. Wallin was arrested January 3 after an investigation that involved wiretaps, confidential sources and an undercover officer, Fein's announcement said. A search of Wallin's apartment found meth, drug paraphernalia and drug packaging materials, said Thomas Carson, Fein's spokesman. Wallin sold meth to the undercover officer six times between September and January, Fein said. According to an affidavit that accompanied his indictment in January, Wallin received shipments of meth from two people in California, Kristen Laschober and Chad McCluskey, with the understanding that Wallin would pay them with earnings generated by distributing the drug to his customers and other dealers. Wallin allegedly got Kenneth Devries, a neighbor in his apartment building, to receive packages and distribute the drug when he was unable to do it himself. Authorities said they believe Wallin also distributed the drug to alleged dealer Michael Nelson of Manchester. Laschober, McCluskey, Devries and Nelson were all arrested in January and are awaiting trial. Authorities are still investigating the possibility that others are involved, Carson said. Wallin faced a maximum term of life in prison and a fine of up to $10 million on seven counts, but his plea agreement calls for a prison sentence of 11 to 14 years. Judge Alfred Covello has scheduled sentencing for June 25 at the United States Court House in Hartford. CNN made several attempts to contact Fein, federal public defender Kelly Barrett and Diocese of Bridgeport spokesman Brian Wallace for comments, but calls were not returned. | The Rev. Kevin Wallin of Connecticut enters plea in federal court .
He admits conspiracy to distribute 1.7 kilos of crystal meth .
Plea agreement calls for 11- to 14-year prison term .
Four others awaiting trial in the case . |
132,548 | 376675d543fe7ab1e1a0173997c42648b48af37a | Washington (CNN) -- Longtime observers of the Middle East are baffled by allegations that high-ranking officials in the Iranian government approved a plan to assassinate Saudi Arabia Ambassador, Adel al-Jubeir, and blow up the Saudi and Israeli embassies in Washington. Commentators have described the plan as "brazen," but "bizarre" and 'bone-headed" might be more appropriate adjectives. It's difficult to comprehend either the motives or the means selected to carry out the plan outlined by the Justice Department in its criminal indictment of Manssor Arbabsiar and Gholam Shakuri. Tensions between Iran and Saudi Arabia are not new, but Iran has been both cautious and clever enough to restrain its ambitions for regional dominance. If the allegations of the assassination and bombing plot are true, and the covert operation had proved successful, Iran's leaders would have invited retaliation on a scale far more vigorous than any they might have contemplated. Indeed, I think it's fair to say that the Iranian landscape would likely have been substantially altered. Assuming, however, that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader, and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad never authorized the action or were ever aware of it, both have great cause for concern. Elements in their covert, black bag, assassination/ terrorist unit were planning an attack that could have brought about the decapitation of their leadership, the obliteration of their ambitions to enter the nuclear weapons club and quite possibly have precipitated a global depression by engulfing the region in war. Rather than dismissing the plot as a Zionist fabrication, these leaders should be looking inward and holding accountable those who were responsible for undertaking such a dangerous and destructive mission. While awaiting greater clarification from those responsible for moving forward with the prosecution against Arbabsiar and Shakuri, the United States should explore several options: . 1. Bring the assassination and bombing plan to the United Nations Security Council and seek much tougher sanctions against Iran; . 2. Encourage Saudi Arabia to review and revise its contractual arrangements with any country that refuses to support the imposition of tougher sanctions against Iran; . 3. Intensify the effort to expose the activities of those nations who are circumventing the existing sanctions against Iran; . 4. Make it clear to all members of the U.N. that Iran's nuclear weapons program poses a serious threat to global stability. If a non-nuclear Iran initiated an assassination plan through a Mexican drug cartel, what would it be tempted to do once it possesses a nuclear weapon? 5. Strengthen our ability to keep the Persian Gulf open should hostilities ever break out; . 6. Force the administration and Congress to move forward on improving the defense posture of our friends and allies who are threatened by Iran; . 7. Urge Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States to move more aggressively in constructing coordinated, regional defense and security policies; and . 8. Release intelligence information, to the maximum extent possible, which exposes those in the Iranian regime responsible for this act -- as a means of galvanizing support for the actions, such as additional sanctions, mentioned above. The above options are illustrative only. Others may have more punitive measures in mind. But right now, the United States and Saudi Arabia should proceed with vigor and not permit Iran to hide its dagger behind its back in its left hand, while professing its innocence with the right. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of William S. Cohen. | William Cohen: Longtime Mideast observers baffled by reports of the plot .
He says if Iran's leaders weren't aware, then they have a serious problem .
Iran officials must hold those involved accountable for their actions, he says .
Cohen: U.S., Saudis can take variety of steps to increase pressure on Iran . |
3,683 | 0aa5fc5f877390e263bac75501497b4d817dcbc0 | By . Sophie Borland, Francesca Infante and Daniel Martin . PUBLISHED: . 18:51 EST, 7 February 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 08:13 EST, 8 February 2013 . A healthcare assistant at scandal-hit Stafford Hospital dragged a frail dementia patient around by his pyjamas and called him an ‘animal’, investigators have said. Bonka Kostova allegedly pulled the 73-year-old out of a toilet in a state of undress and told him she ‘hated having to work with people like him’. She will appear before the Nursing and Midwifery Council next week to face charges that her aggression and treatment of the patient, who also has Parkinson’s disease, means she is not fit to practise. Fears: David Cameron has ordered probes into five more trusts following the Mid Staffordshire scandal but expert Brian Jarman believes 21 more could be added to the list . Pressure: Campaigners and members of the 'Cure the NHS' group outside the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre after reading the findings of the Francis Inquiry into the Mid Staffordshire NHS Trust Foundation . Bulgarian-born Kostova is accused of . shouting at him: ‘You are no longer a human being but an animal.’ She . is alleged to have said ‘I hate you’ or words to that effect. An inquiry found up to 1,200 patients . died on casualty wards at Stafford between 2005 and 2009 thanks to an . obsession with Labour targets. The latest incident was in 2010 – one . year after the period covered by the report – suggesting the problems . could be continuing. Last night it emerged that the . Mid-Staffordshire trust, which covers the hospital, was one of 100 who . have still not signed an Alzheimer’s Society pledge to improve dementia . care. Jeremy Hughes, the charity’s chief executive, said: ‘The appalling failures at Mid-Staffs affected people with dementia. ‘Despite the Government’s prioritisation of the condition, some hospitals are still failing vulnerable people. 'Lengthy stays in hospital can cause people’s condition to worsen, rather than helping them to get well. ‘Hospitals must act now to improve care for people with dementia. 'Only half of hospitals have made a commitment and we need Stafford Hospital to be one of them to support improvement. 'Every day of inaction threatens more scandals of neglect and inappropriate treatment.’ The latest scandal to emerge is alleged to have happened on July 22 2010, according to the NMC charge sheet. Although she is a registered midwife, . Bulgarian-born Kostova had been employed by the trust as a healthcare . support worker since April 2009. The incident happened when she was on a . night shift on ward six at Stafford Hospital. The sheet reveals that Kostova . continued to be employed at the trust for a further two months. Her case . will be heard on February 12. Analysis suggests more than 4,000 patients a year are dying needlessly in the care of 26 NHS trusts. The study shows the scandal at . Stafford hospital – where 1,200 are thought to have died through neglect . – was not an isolated case. The figure of 26 represents one in . six of the country’s health trusts. David Cameron has responded to the . crisis by ordering probes into five trusts with high mortality rates. But Brian Jarman, a globally-recognised expert on hospital performance, believes 21 more should be added to the list. To come up with that figure, the . professor compared the numbers of patients who would normally be . expected to die at a trust with the number of actual deaths. The ‘normal’ figure is based on admissions and illnesses. His technique – developed in the 1990s – led to the realisation in 2007 that too many patients were dying at Mid Staffordshire. The head of the NHS was facing . growing calls to step down yesterday. The investigator who carried out . the original inquiry into Mid Staffordshire said Sir David Nicholson . should go. Heather Wood, who headed the 2009 . Healthcare Commission probe but has since joined the campaign group Cure . the NHS, said: ‘If this were a private sector organisation that had . failed to such an extent, we would be calling for the boss to take . responsibility. ‘There is a big case to answer for the creation of that culture.’ Sorry we are unable to accept comments for legal reasons. | David Cameron ordered probe into five trusts after Mid Staffordshire scandal .
But expert warns another 21 trusts with high mortality could be added to list .
Solicitors are preparing to act against nine trusts accused of neglecting elderly patients . |
136,877 | 3d0ed3e46e19ba9e3c33202d00111088a304b138 | Nicole Scherzinger and Lewis Hamilton have split for the fourth time and Nicole is reputedly heartbroken. But I still think it's Lewis who will hurt more. Don't believe the romance novels: women aren't the love slaves. Psychologists have discovered that, while men still fall in love less often than women, when they fall, they fall harder, quicker – and out of love slower. Scroll down for video . Nicole Scherzinger split with long term boyfriend Lewis Hamilton earlier this week . So while savvy, smart women like Nicole will do their grieving but then move forward, a lot of 'new age' men like Lewis end up stuck. Here's six reasons why: . Women have better coping strategies . A typical female reaction to a painful break-up is to hotfoot it to her best friend's house and spend the next three weeks (or three months) talking about her ex and her feelings to anyone that will listen. Women are more emotionally expressive and healthily in touch with their soft underbellies. By letting out our grief and sadness, we get the pain out of our systems and are able to move on quickly. Men, God love them, bottle things up. His reaction to a split with a treasured girlfriend is to mask the pain. Nicole appeared to be heartbroken as she emerged for the first time since the split yesterday but Tracey insists that her ex will be suffering the most . He'll either a) not think about it and throw himself into work in an attempt to reaffirm his own worth; or b) not think about it and start sleeping around for the same reasons; or c) not think about it, get drunk and stay out until 3 am, running himself into the ground. In other words, he'll do just about anything rather than confront the pain and deal with it. Sleeping around makes things worse . Ironically, the more he's seen about town with replacement bimbettes on his arm, the more he's probably hurting. It doesn't mean he doesn't care – in fact, quite the opposite. When people lose someone they love, they're overcome by feelings of worthlessness. Women cope by getting their act together, proving their worth that way. For some men, it's simply easier to sleep around: 'If I can pull the chicky-babes, I must be okay.' Tracey says that unlike Lewis, Nicole will probably find it easier to talk to her friends and get her feelings off her chest rather than bottle things up . This is also why men become self-abusive. They're feeling unloved and unworthy, so treat themselves accordingly, surviving on diets of beer and curry. What he really should be doing is quite the opposite - looking after himself more and replacing the love lost with another. His own. He can't talk to his friends the same way women do theirs . While female relationships are based on talking, especially about our feelings, men's relationships are based on doing: things like playing sport, joking around, having a beer. While some men do have substantial conversations with their friends, many don't. Talking about their pain or their problems just isn't acceptable: they feel stupid, weak and pathetic if they broach personal topics. As a result, men are more emotionally independent than women and are used to being self-reliant. Fabulous - until you hit a rough spot. The female support system is infinitely more helpful at a time like this. Tracey says that sleeping around after a break up is a sign that he's struggling to cope . Even if his friends are concerned about him, they often wouldn't have a clue what to say to fix it. This is where his platonic girlfriends could well be his saving grace. It's okay to get advice from a female. 'They even seem to like doing that sort of stuff!', one male friend told me in astonishment. He didn't see it coming . Women see the writing on the wall when it's in tiny, tiny letters. Men often wouldn't notice if she wrote, 'You're about to be dumped,' on the bathroom mirror. With his shaving cream. It's the right-brain, left-brain thing. The left side of our brain is the 'thinking' part (logic and facts); the right side works with 'feelings' (emotion, intuition, expression). Usually men are more left-brain dominated and women right-brain. So he's not as in tune with the touchy-feely side that would warn him she was about to leave. Tracey says that women are the lucky ones after a split as their looks tend to improve . He loses more mutual friends . While women lean heavily on good friends after a break, men often do quite the opposite. They tend to drop 'couple' friends in favour of single males who'll go out and party with them. Sometimes he'll avoid good friends of his ex because it's too painful to hear how well she's faring without him. The end result: he's lonely and dwells on the past. Women look better after a split, men often look worse . Women tend to lose weight initially, then do a complete image overhaul when feeling human again as a 'starting over' gesture. Feeling great and looking fabulous, they're more confident and their social life blooms. Men tend to mope about depressed. Says Brendon, a friend of mine, 'My girlfriend transformed herself after I left. It was quite remarkable: she'd gone from a shy wallflower to this incredibly confident girl who everyone wanted at their party. 'No-one asked me anywhere – probably because when they did, I stood in a corner and felt sorry for myself or behaved like a total moron by getting too drunk.' He doesn't clear out the closet for next time . A crucial part of getting over someone is getting rid of – or at least putting away – remnants of the relationship. It's all part of letting go. If her old hairbrush is still in the bathroom, he may get stuck and never let go. If his next girlfriend finds herself walking into a shrine of his ex, she will not be happy. He might defend the pictures on the wall by saying she's a friend, but it's obvious to her that he's looking for a new relationship to mask the pain of the last one. Often, it's only when he's met someone new, someone he can trust, that he finally does deal with all the pain the break-up caused. He has to let go of the hurt at some point - and more often than not, it's the next girlfriend who cops it. There won't be a next girlfriend, if there's obvious evidence he's still mourning the first and the problem never gets solved! For more of Tracey's advice on dealing with a breakup, read Hot Relationships: How to Have One available here. | Nicole split from her long term boyfriend Lewis Hamilton earlier this week .
Tracey Cox says that contrary to popular belief he will be suffering more .
Here the sexpert explains why men have it worse after a split . |
73,270 | cfcbf3e7dd081d11d5828d43b22a46d72c5c2ce9 | Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Two separate bomb blasts in different parts of Pakistan on Sunday killed a total of at least 47 people and wounded more than 90 others, authorities said. The attacks are the latest in a series of violent acts that have struck Pakistan in recent weeks, underscoring the daunting challenges faced by security forces and the new government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. The deadlier of the two explosions Sunday hit Hazara Town, a Shiite Muslim district on the outskirts of the southwestern city of Quetta. A suicide bomber blew himself up, killing at least 30 people and wounding 50 others, police said. Hazara Town gets its name from the Hazaras, a Shiite minority from neighboring Afghanistan many of whom have settled in and around Quetta. Hundreds of Shiites, including many Hazaras, have been killed in bloody attacks over the past year and a half by extremist groups in Pakistan, a predominantly Sunni Muslim country. Roadside bomb kills 17 in northwest Pakistan . Human rights groups have criticized the failure of authorities to clamp down on Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, a Sunni organization that has admitted carrying out much of the violence against Shiites. Lashkar-e-Jhangvi claimed responsibility for Sunday's bombing in Hazara Town, the Urdu-language Express newspaper reported. CNN wasn't able to reach the group for comment. The other bomb attack Sunday targeted a paramilitary convoy on patrol near the northwestern city of Peshawar, the gateway to Pakistan's tribal region, a largely ungoverned area where the Pakistani Taliban and other militant groups operate. At least 40 kilograms (88 pounds) of explosives were packed into a parked vehicle and detonated remotely as the Frontier Corps convoy passed through the area of Bedhber, killing 17 people and wounding 42 others, according to police and hospital officials. Pakistani government officials condemned both the attacks that took place Sunday. The weekend violence came as British Prime Minister David Cameron visited Pakistan and met with Sharif, who took office last month. The bombings followed a number of other shocking attacks in the past month and national elections in May that were plagued by killings of participants. Last weekend, gunmen opened fire at a lodge at the base of one of Pakistan's highest peaks, killing 10 foreign tourists and a Pakistani guide. The weekend before that, militants bombed a university bus in Quetta, killing 12 young women on board. They then attacked a hospital where survivors from the blast were taken for treatment, leaving another 14 people dead. Actress in critical condition after acid attack in Pakistan . CNN's Saima Mohsin reported from Islamabad, and Jethro Mullen wrote from Hong Kong. | NEW: The death toll from a bombing in a Shiite suburb of Quetta rises to 30 .
A Sunni extremist group reportedly claims responsibility .
An attack on a paramilitary convoy in the northwest of the country kills 17 people .
The violence highlights the challenges faced by Pakistan's new government . |
230,761 | b6d08d75c7d4ede2a5a044e99fd49d35a097f2f0 | (CNN) -- After months of bomb threats at the University of Pittsburgh, an anonymous group that calls itself the Threateners has claimed responsibility for the most recent e-mail threats and announced to the school's student-run newspaper that it will stop sending them. Michael Macagnone, whose term as editor-in-chief of The Pitt News ended Sunday, said the paper received an anonymous e-mail Friday claiming that the bomb threats plaguing the school since February 13 would end if university officials revoked a $50,000 reward for anyone who came forward with information that led to an arrest. The paper received a second e-mail Saturday, after university officials revoked the reward, saying there would be no more threats, Macagnone said. The university has received more than 140 threats since February, according to spokesman Robert Hill. The threats have not yielded any explosives, but the majority of them have resulted in evacuations of dorms, libraries and other campus buildings. Hill confirmed that the university had withdrawn the reward but would not comment on why it did so. The author of the anonymous e-mail to The Pitt News said that the Threateners began sending the bomb threats March 30 because the university issued a reward for "some young kid who'd pranked the university," Macagnone said. The group said it was not responsible for threats before that date and also said it was not affiliated with anyone who had been "publically identified as suspects." Macagnone said he handed the first anonymous e-mail over to police Friday. The paper published a report on the e-mail Saturday, after a 24-hour period without any threats, which the anonymous author promised in the first e-mail. "We started thinking the e-mail was a little bit more authentic when it accurately predicted that gap," Macagnone said. Since the second e-mail promising an end to the threats, no more have been reported through the school's emergency alert system. Despite the lull, university officials are restricting final exams, scheduled to start this week, to five campus buildings. All of them will be swept for explosives at the beginning of each exam day. According to a letter posted on the university's website by Senior Vice Chancellor Patricia Beeson, any buildings that receive bomb threats will be checked for explosives but evacuated only if law enforcement officials deem it necessary. "These arrangements reflect the expert advice we have received from law enforcement professionals, the experience we have gained over the past several weeks, and the special circumstances associated with finals week," the letter says. The Justice Department said in a statement April 11 that investigators were making "significant progress." U.S. Attorney David J. Hickton said they were focused on "potential suspects." Investigators have remained mum on any potential leads. An FBI spokesman declined to comment on the investigation, and a Justice Department spokeswoman did not return calls for comment. Katherine Anne McCloskey, 55, and Seamus Johnston, 22, of Cambria County, Pennsylvania, had been subpoenaed in connection with the investigation. The pair testified before a grand jury April 17, according to Johnston. Johnston said FBI officials returned to the couple's apartment the following day and seized their computers, cell phones and other files. "I feel very violated," said Johnston, who denies any connection to the bomb threats at Pitt. Johnston, who is transgendered, is filing a lawsuit against the university alleging discriminatory treatment after being charged with trespass, indecent exposure and disorderly conduct after using the men's locker room for a weight-training class during his junior year, he said. He said he has since been expelled. "I feel that we're being investigated solely because I have a lawsuit pending against the university," Johnston said. The FBI also seized a server from the New York headquarters of Internet service provider May First/People Link on Wednesday, according to a statement from the company. The server was operated by the European Counter Network, a provider that runs an anonymous remailer service, allowing people to send e-mails completely anonymously, according to the statement released by May First/People Link Director Jamie McClelland. McClelland added that the server was seized in accordance with a search warrant issued by the FBI the previous week requesting all of the information, including IP address, in connection to bomb threat e-mail messages relayed through their servers. | University has received 140 bomb threats since February .
Anonymous group says it began sending threats March 30 .
Group tells student paper that it will stop sending threats .
University is confining final exams to five buildings . |
90,024 | ffa4f4f345f35058f54aa696d6211830ba078f12 | Many single women might at some point have thought that losing an extra ten pounds or having a slightly larger chest and blonde curly hair would be the answer to all of their dating problems. But imagine if the shoe was on the other foot - if your petite figure, pretty face and long golden locks made it hard to find a man because you are TOO pretty. Paula Jayne Allen, 33, from Chelmsford, Essex, says this is what happened to her when she joined an online dating site five years ago. She said: 'I am a size six, with long blonde hair and blue eyes and have done a bit of modelling in the past. 'When it came to trying to find a man who would see me as more than just 'piece of meat,' it was so hard. I just felt like eye candy.' Scroll down for video . Paula Jayne Allen from Chelmsford, Essex, who tried dating websites but found her size six figure and blonde hair meant only shallow men approached her. Fed up with shallow men approaching her in nightclubs just looking for a one-night stand, Paula tried online dating as a way of finding a man based on a personality match. But after reading MailOnline's interview with size 24 Verity Brown, who has struggled to find a man on dating websites because she is overweight, Paula maintains that it was even harder for her to find a partner on the same sites because men simply saw her as a trophy. She said: 'Verity is thinking that once she has lost this weight, everything will change and all of these men will come out of the woodwork. 'But it doesn't change, in fact it only gets worse. 'You get all of these men wanting one night stands or who want you to sit there, be quiet and just be arm candy. 'I went on two dating websites - Match.com and eHarmony - about five years ago, just before I met my now-husband and it was awful. Paula Jayne's looks have always attracted plenty of attention on nights out . 'I decided to try it because all of the sites guarantee to match you up with someone who shares your interests, so it's more about personality, and I was fed up with all of the men in the bars looking for skirt. 'But it made no difference. 'You'd regularly get people getting in contact just saying, "Fancy meeting up for a f**k?" 'You'd get married men just wanting fun and you'd get people saying, "I just need someone for one night, can you do me a favour?" 'It really was truly awful.' Often, Paula also found that men were just interested in using her so that they could impress their friends with a good looking girl on their arm. She said: 'If you did meet people online and then go out for a drink with them away from the websites, they'd take you out to where their mates were and they'd just want you to stand there. Paula Jayne struggled to find a decent man in nightclubs, because they were always 'chasing skirt.' The mother-of-two thought dating sites would be the answer to her problems but found they attracted similar kinds of men. 'If you tried to talk to them and they realised that you have a brain and you actually quite enjoy intelligent conversation, then they wouldn't want to see you again. 'It was really frustrating and very boring. 'Some of them I'd talk to a couple of times online and then they'd take me out in front of their friends and their male friends would look me up and down and give me the approving look. 'Then their female friends would grab hold of their men and give you the female equivalent of the snarl and you'd think to yourself, 'I'm really not after your man!' 'It got frustrating, it got disheartening and I gave up. 'I must have been on there for a good six months before I just lost faith and gave up. 'I couldn't get anywhere on those sites, it was always sleazebags and people who just wanted to use me and didn't care if I had any opinions on anything or care at all what I thought really.' Paula also used to get a constant stream of requests from married men, who would ask her to be their mistress. Despite her looks hindering her search for a partner, Paula Jayne refused to change her appearance . She said: 'I had married men approach me all of the time saying, 'My marriage is on the rocks, my wife doesn't understand me, I'm hoping you will.' It's like, do you really think I will fall for that? 'You get the sob stories, they would constantly email you expecting a reply. 'I replied saying, "Do you think I was born yesterday?" 'They have no shame.' But far from sharing her story in order to brag about her good looks, Paula is actually hoping to inspire women like Verity, who are happy about their larger figures, not to change for a man. She said: 'I was reading the article and I thought that she shouldn't lose weight - it's not the answer to anything. 'Mr Right will be there whether or not she loses the weight - she shouldn't have to change that, she should be happy as she is. Paula Jayne gave up on dating websites and six months later bumped into her now-husband Mark at a friend's party. They are now husband and wife . 'I didn't change a thing about me, even though when I was joining these agencies, all of these men were only interested in one thing. 'But I didn't change anything, I didn't change my hair colour, my size or anything. 'And I still found my husband at the end of it all. 'Just be yourself, no one should have to change. If you're truly happy in who you are you shouldn't have to change a single thing about you, because someone else will love that happiness - it will shine through in everything that you do.' Just a few months after giving up on dating sites, Paula met her now-husband Mark and they have been together for four years. The couple also share two children Molli-Jayne, who is three next month and William, who turned two years old last week. She said: 'I met my husband about 14 years ago in a nightclub, we dated for about three or four months and eventually broke up because he was quite quiet and I was too outgoing. Paula Jayne and her husband Mark with their children William (left) and Molli-Jayne (right) 'But by chance, we happened to bump into each other again ten years down the line. 'I looked him up on Facebook, got in contact, and asked him for a drink and we pretty much haven't been apart since. 'We fell in love straight away again.' Paula is hoping her story will help women who are also struggling to find love to understand that it often has very little to do with something like being overweight. She said 'I know there will be some backlash but I don't mean any of this in that way. 'I've never won awards or used my beauty to get anywhere. 'My best friend is a size 20, but she doesn't care in the slightest - we're like little and large - and but she gets more attention than I do because she has so much confidence. 'It doesn't matter about the size, just whether you are happy in yourself.' Do YOU have any dating horror stories? Or MEN - would you like to defend yourselves? Email us YOUR story [email protected] . | Paula Jayne Allen, 33, from Essex was often used just as arm candy .
The mother-of-two believes her good looks make it harder to find a man .
She only found true love after giving up on shallow dating websites . |
285,781 | fe4f1d1c76c5ccb8d8867a7788182208684ab32b | Men who drink at least two cups of tea a day could slash their risk of prostate cancer by more than a third, according to new research. Regular tea drinkers were 37 per cent less likely to develop a tumour than those who drank it less than once a week. But there was no benefit from coffee, according to scientists at Maastricht University in the Netherlands, where the latest study was carried out. Regular tea drinkers were 37 per cent less likely to develop a tumour than those who drank it less than once a week . Nearly 40,000 cases of prostate cancer are diagnosed every year in the UK and 10,000 men die from it - the equivalent of more than one an hour. The risks increase with age, with men over 50 more likely to develop a tumour, and there is a strong genetic element to it. As with some other types of cancer, diet is thought to be a key factor in the development of the disease. But there has been conflicting evidence on the role of popular beverages. Last year, for example, a study at Glasgow University found heavy tea drinkers were more at risk of the disease. The study showed that drinking coffee had no benefits in preventing prostate cancer . It tracked the health of more than 6,000 male volunteers over a period of 37 years and found those consuming over seven cups a day had a 50 per cent higher risk of prostate cancer than moderate and non tea drinkers. But the researchers stressed they could not be sure if tea really was a risk factor, or if drinkers lived to ages where cancer was more common. In the latest study, the Maastricht University team compared 892 men diagnosed with prostate cancer with a similar number who were in good health, studying their dietary and drinking habits. The study was carried out on a population of men in the US, where coffee is much more popular. Only one in five volunteers drank at least one tea a day, compared with nearly 60 per cent when it came to coffee. But the results, published in the journal Cancer Causes Control, showed two or more teas a day appeared to have a powerful anti-cancer effect, while coffee had none. The study did not examine how tea might help to prevent prostate tumours but previous investigations have found it contains disease-fighting chemicals, called polyphenols, that may protect vital tissues and organs against an invasion of cancerous cells. A 2010 study discovered women drinking just one cup of tea a day were ten per cent less likely to suffer ovarian cancer. In a report on the latest findings researchers said: 'This is further evidence that tea consumption may be a modifiable exposure that reduces the risk of prostate cancer.' | Regular tea drinks 37 per cent less likely to develop a tumour .
Study carried out by scientists at Maastricht University in the Netherlands .
Nearly 40,000 cases of prostate cancer are diagnosed every year in the UK . |
144,029 | 463f4504cb224c8d30f59fd69a0be326df86d132 | A kindly Walmart employee who organized a food drive for fellow workers has raised questions once more about pay and working conditions at America's biggest employer. A picture was posted online on Thursday of a box at an Oklahoma City store asking employees to donate canned goods for 'to associates in need' on medical leave of absence. A bake sale was also being held by employees in need in Indiana along with food drives in Ohio as campaigners put pressure on the company not to ignore the voices of employees who are going hungry. Walmart pays many of its workers less than $25,000 a year, Bloomberg reported last year, with some full-time employees averaging $15,500. The 2014 federal poverty line for a family of four is $23,850. Scroll down for video . A picture was posted of a food drive for canned goods at an Oklahoma City store, organized by a kind employee for 'associates in need', raising questions about Walmart's pay and conditions . At one Indiana store, staff have been organizing bake sales, encouraging workers to support their colleagues with food donations . A food drive for employees at Walmart who walked out after struggling to get buy of the pay and hours at the company . The kind employee behind the food collection is Dawnne Sulaitis, who has worked at the company for 19 years. She asked permission to collect canned goods and just wanted to help families down on income during the holidays. MailOnline was unable to reach Ms Sulaitis nor management at the Walmart store in Oklahoma City where she works on Friday however Walmart management provided their employee's statement. In an email from a Walmart spokesman, Ms Sulaitis' statement read: 'Two associates are on medical leave of absence and are unable to work, leaving their families who depend on two incomes down to only one. 'I think that putting a Thanksgiving meal on the table should be the last thing these people have to worry about, and so my next question was whether I could start a food drive at the store to help them out. 'Collectively, we’re 300-plus associates at this store, and I knew that together we could make a difference. Since then, we’ve gotten two good-sized boxes of food filled, and I even baked cookies at my home to sell and raise extra money. 'But what I certainly didn’t expect? Learning that there have been quite a bit of unfavorable media stories out there regarding this drive... 'I can’t reiterate it enough: I was just trying to lend a helping hand. There’s a lot of kindness in this store and a lot of good intentions. I don’t know who these associates are or the details of their situation, and it doesn’t matter. 'Thanksgiving is about helping people, and I’m going to press on and keep a positive attitude about doing what I can.' Campaign group, Making A Change At Walmart, gave other examples of employees holding food drives to feed their colleagues. Staff at one Indiana store have been organizing bake sales, encouraging workers to support their colleagues with food donations. One Pennsylvania store is reportedly organizing a holiday 'giving tree' to help out other employees, according to The United Food & Commercial Workers International Union briefing on Friday, but this has been unconfirmed. In Ohio, workers from Dayton, Cincinnati and other cities walked off the job in protest of the company's illegal treatment of workers, according to the campaign group. Community members donated food for Thanksgiving dinners while expressing outrage at the Walton family for their company's low pay and erratic scheduling. Pastor Troy Jackson, who was organizing donations, said: 'We're donating food to Walmart workers today because that's what neighbors do. But we shouldn't have to. 'The Waltons are the richest family in America and their company can afford to pay its employees a decent wage.' Rich pickings: The Walton siblings from left, Alice Walton, Jim Walton and Wal-Mart Chairman Rob Walton, the children of the late Wal-Mart Stores Inc. founder Sam Walton, appear on stage during the company's annual shareholder meeting in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The Walton clan are worth more than $150bn . Raymond Bravo and other Walmart workers block traffic in front of the San Leandro store on Thanksgiving weekend last year. Bravo who was fired from the California store after organizing for better wages and working conditions was later arrested long with four others . The organization is asking that Walmart pay a living wage of $15 an hour and provide consistent, full-time hours for its staff. One employee from Minnesota, Cantare Davunt, added: 'We work hard and we don't want charity. We want a fair wage.' The campaign group said that many employees are afraid to speak out about their conditions for fear of having their hours cut or even being fired. Black Friday strikes have been organized by Walmart campaigners across the U.S. at Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Miami and D.C. Walmart spokesman Cory Lundberg told MailOnline on Friday that Walmart offers 'extremely competitive' wages and has a unique program allowing staff members to pick up extra hours. Campaigners counter that by Walmart raising the wage standard, its influential power as America's biggest employer would have a 'trickle down effect' on other retailers. Walmart confirmed the average hourly rate for full-time and part-time associates is $11.83. For full-time associates the average hourly wage is $12.92. Walmart classes full-time as 34 (or more) hours per week. Mr Lundberg said those who are campaigning for higher wages represent a small minority of the '1.3 million people who choose to come to work at Walmart each day', highlighting the companies opportunities for promotion. The Walmart store in Oklahoma City where one employee is collecting canned food to stop fellow employees going hungry while they are on medical leave of absence . For those at the lower-end of the wage scale, Mr Lundberg said they would still earn more at Walmart 'than a unionized grocery store down the street'. He said that strikes in 2013 claimed to be taking place at 1,600 locations but in the end only represented a small segment of their workers. He added that Ms Sulaitis efforts were much appreciated by her colleagues 'because they were missing their Walmart wages'. In 2013, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation gave in cash and in-kind contributions of $1.3 billion around the world, the company added. The Walton Family is the richest family in America, with Christy, Jim, Alice and Rob Walton, consistently being in the top ten of the Forbes 400 since 2001 with a combined wealth of more than $150billion. Despite their extreme wealth, according to a union-backed report by the Walmart 1percent and cited by Forbes, the Waltons contributed just $17.6million to charity between 2008 and 2013. They make around $8.5million a day from their Walmart dividends. Over the same period, Warren Buffet contributed $8.4 billion to non-profit organizations – 477 times more than the Waltons combined. Dawnne Sulaitis, Dairy Department Manager at Walmart said in a statement on Friday: . 'To me, Thanksgiving is a time to reflect on what you have and what you can do for others. My store is practicing this for our community right now with a coat drive for an area homeless shelter, and I’ve been doing my part by washing the coats, so they’re clean and ready to go. About three weeks ago, I wondered if there was anything else I could do closer to home, so I asked our store’s personnel manager if there were any associates we work with who needed extra help this season. The answer was yes. Two associates are on medical leave of absence and are unable to work, leaving their families who depend on two incomes down to only one. I think that putting a Thanksgiving meal on the table should be the last thing these people have to worry about, and so my next question was whether I could start a food drive at the store to help them out. Collectively, we’re 300-plus associates at this store, and I knew that together we could make a difference. Since then, we’ve gotten two good-sized boxes of food filled, and I even baked cookies at my home to sell and raise extra money. It’s been great to see everyone’s positive reaction here to helping associates who are facing the unexpected. But what I certainly didn’t expect? Learning that there have been quite a bit of unfavorable media stories out there regarding this drive. I talked with at least four reporters today, and I told each of them that I really appreciate them listening and wanting to hear from me directly. I can’t reiterate it enough: I was just trying to lend a helping hand. There’s a lot of kindness in this store and a lot of good intentions. 'I don’t know who these associates are or the details of their situation, and it doesn’t matter. Thanksgiving is about helping people, and I’m going to press on and keep a positive attitude about doing what I can.' | A picture was posted online on Thursday of a green box at an Oklahoma City store asking employees to donate canned for 'associates in need'
One employee said today: 'We work hard and we don't want charity. We just want a fair wage'
Walmart says it pays 'extremely competitively' and those campaigning only represent a small number of those who choose to work at Walmart .
The Walton Family is the richest family in America with a combined wealth of more than $150billion; Walmart has $16billion in annual profits .
The Waltons make $8.5million a day from Walmart dividends but one report claimed they donated just double this amount to charity between 2008-2013 combined . |
142,969 | 44e5d08ea7d3798ddc98d8db9d63e8147b1e72ad | By . Suzannah Hills . PUBLISHED: . 12:16 EST, 1 February 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 13:53 EST, 1 February 2013 . Found: Karl Josiah's body is believed to have been in his snow-covered car for six days before he was discovered . A young man lay undiscovered in his car for nearly a week after skidding off the motorway in snow and suffering fatal injuries. Karl Josiah, 23, was discovered dead inside his Renault Clio after the car came off the busy road and tumbled down a steep embankment. The mangled wreckage of the black car was then covered by a thick blanket of snow for up to six days after up to 10cms fell. Motorists drove past the snow-covered ditch for days, completely unaware that the car was there. As the ice began to thaw the car was eventually spotted by a Highways Agency team and the grim discovery of the body was made. Paramedics rushed to the roadside but were unable to help Mr Josiah who was declared dead in the wreckage of the car. His body was discovered between Junction 6 at Windsor, Berkshire, and Junction 5 at Datchet, Berkshire, on the eastbound carriageway of the M4 at around 1.05pm on January 23. It is not known whether if he was discovered earlier he could have survived. Police were today appealing for any witnesses who may have seen the car to come forward. It was believed that Mr Josiah, who was from London, had left his home on January 18 as heavy snow and blizzards hit Berkshire. Mr Josiah's parents David and May Josiah paid tribute to their son. 'He was a shining light that lit up all the lives of all that knew him,' they said in a statement. 'He will always be loved and missed but not forgotten.' Snowfall: A car makes its way along Junction 26 of the M4 on January 22 . Blizzard: Mr Josiah's car lay undiscovered in the snow by this stretch of the M4 for six days . Locator: Karl Josiah was found dead in his black Renault Clio between Junction 6 and Junction 5 on the eastbound carriageway of the M4 . | Karl Josiah is believed to have skidded off the M4 in heavy snow on Jan 18 .
Car wreckage lay undiscovered until the ice began to thaw on Jan 23 . |
62,419 | b1502ba57a7d0f7db23e1bbb0848e9ec6aad5c80 | (CNN) -- LinkedIn hopes to jazz up its news feed with the addition of 150 super influencers on the network who fans can follow, a la Twitter. The elite circle includes President Obama, GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney, physician/writer Deepak Chopra, Virgin founder/CEO Richard Branson, motivational speaker Tony Robbins and Mashable's founder/CEO Pete Cashmore, among others. Fans can follow the celebs for regular updates, just like on Twitter. However, there are some differences. There's no 140-character limit on updates and the communication is designed to be business-related. "Our goal is to always make sure that there's high quality," says Dan Roth, executive editor at LinkedIn. When asked when the next round of super-influencers will be added, Roth replied, "The answer is we don't know." LinkedIn has reason to wade cautiously into this Twitteresque feature. While fake accounts and off-subject tweets are part of that social network's charm, unleashing the same on LinkedIn could destroy its niche as a sober forum for business. As such, the activity of the initial 150 will be different than their Twitter feeds. "People come here for a purpose," Roth says. "They're at work or thinking about work. It's not about their personal lives." The group's ability to engage LinkedIn's audience will be ranked by views, likes, comments and shares that are visible to all users. Such metrics will both act as a self-regulating feature, but will also prompt the inevitable ranking of the top 10 and bottom 10. The addition of the program is the latest evolution for the nine-year-old LinkedIn, which was initially little more than an online Rolodex. Over time, the site has emerged as a social network with its own hive of activity. Twitter's decision in June to no longer let users tweet to LinkedIn may have actually helped the company overcome criticism that it's a low-engagement network: PageLever, an analytics tool for Facebook Pages, found that the Twitter disentanglement actually prompted a 1,000% increase in page referrals from Facebook. Since the Twitter breakup, LinkedIn also ushered in a redesign that made it look more like Facebook or Google+. What do you think? Will this spur more activity on LinkedIn? Sound off in the comments below. © 2011 MASHABLE.com. All rights reserved. | LinkedIn adds follow feature to allow users to follow key influencers on the site .
The 150 influencers include Obama, Romney as well as business leaders .
Twitter-like feature comes after that site opted to no longer integrate with LinkedIn . |
16,084 | 2d95a66f1d812f4067c8ed0f983db1397777f536 | (CNN) -- Surveys indicate that most Americans didn't think shutting down the government in an attempt to dismantle the new health care law was a good idea. They apparently feel the same way about blocking an increase in the nation's debt ceiling to stop Obamacare, according to a new national poll released on Wednesday. A CNN/ORC International survey also indicates that a majority of the public would point fingers at Republicans in Congress if the nation's ability to borrow more money is not increased. With the federal government shut down due to a bitter partisan standoff over spending and the Affordable Care Act, an even more chilling deadline is approaching. The government faces a debt ceiling crunch around October 17, when it expects to run out of options to keep below the legal cap on federal borrowing. Congressional Republicans have signaled they want to use this issue to again go after Obamacare, which would set up a new fight with Senate Democrats and Obama, who says he won't negotiate. According to the poll, 56% of Americans said it would be a bad thing if the debt ceiling was not raised, with 38% saying it would be a good thing for the country. By a 51% to 43% margin, the public said it is more important to raise the debt ceiling than to delay Obamacare. A larger majority, 64% to 27%, in a Quinnipiac University survey released Tuesday said they opposed blocking an increase in the debt ceiling as a way to dismantle the health care law. If the debt ceiling is not raised, just over half of those questioned in the CNN poll, 53%, said congressional Republicans would be more responsible rather than Obama, with 31% pointing more fingers at the president. Those numbers are little changed from July 2011, the last time Obama and Congress fought over the debt ceiling, which was eventually raised. As with the battle over the government shutdown, the poll indicated that Democrats and Republicans don't see eye to eye over raising the debt ceiling. "Most Republicans think that it would be a good thing for the country if the debt ceiling is not raised, but only 18% of Democrats agree," said CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "Among most other major demographics groups, failure to raise the debt ceiling is seen as a bad thing." "You have bipartisan consensus among economists that not raising the debt ceiling would be a disaster, but politically you have a divide. Yes, more people say raise the debt ceiling and fight the health care debate somewhere else, but you have Republican lawmakers going home, most of them to safe Republican districts. And they're being told by many of their constituents not to worry about it ,' you don't have to raise the debt ceiling'," CNN Chief National Correspondent John King said. The survey also indicates independents are split. "Here's a sales problem for the president. Even among independents, a pretty even divide on whether raising the debt ceiling is a good or bad thing," King added. The poll was conducted for CNN by ORC International September 27-29, with 803 adults nationwide questioned by telephone. The survey's overall sampling error is plus or minus 3.5 percentage points. What do you think? Here's your chance to weigh in below. Which do you think is more important for Congress to do? Raising the debt ceiling to make sure the government has enough money to pay its debts . Delaying the date on which major provisions in the new health care law will take effect . Or are both equally important? | Americans don't think tying Obamacare to debt ceiling hike a good idea, CNN/ORC poll .
Nation's ability to borrow more money to pay its bills expires in mid-October .
Survey indicates a majority of the public would blame Republicans if debt ceiling not increased .
President Barack Obama said he will not negotiate with Congress on debt ceiling . |
52,258 | 940dd1565c276c3d51ea446f694f3874f962b15d | Pippa Middleton and four-time Olympic gold medal champion Sir Ben Ainslie set sail together today from Lymington on the south coast, travelling to the Isle of Wight. In spite of the blustery, icy weather, Pippa was all smiles, laughing and joking with the group on the JP Morgan-branded launch, which took the party to a yacht between the island and the mainland. The Duchess of Cambridge's younger sister wrapped up in sensible, padded navy waterproof trousers with matching anorak - with high-visibility hood to finish the whole look off. Pippa Middleton and Ben Ainslie, the most successful Olympic sailor of all time, pictured together today on the Isle of Wight . Pippa was all smiles in spite of the blustery, grey November weather . Pippa enjoyed a day on the open water today - with her windswept hair and sensible anorak, she looked very different from her normal glamorous self . Pippa Middleton was seen sailing in the English Channel between Lymington and Yarmouth on the Isle of Wight with Olympic yachtsman Sir Ben Ainslie and a group of companions . The blustery weather has the wind whipping Pippa's hair across her face, while her female companion makes sure she holds on to the launch firmly . The day started off sunny this morning on the south coast, but soon turned grey and windy - not that this put any of the outdoorsy the group off, all appeared in high spirits throughout . The look is a far cry from her normal glamorous, polished self. But rosy cheeks and windswept hair rather suited her. Once on board the yacht, Pippa even took the wheel for a spell, looking confident as she handled the craft. The party spent from 10.30am until 2.30pm on the open water, before breaking for lunch at the George Hotel & Restaurant in Yarmouth, where a small group of fans had gathered to await Pippa and Ben's arrival. Her navy padded waterproof trousers and matching anorak were a far cry from her usual polished, glamorous look . Welcome back! Pippa gets a helping hand off the launch from a friend . Pippa looks as if she's got her sea legs sorted as she hops confidently off the launch at the harbour in Yarmouth, the Isle of Wight . The group broke for lunch at the George Hotel & Restaurant in Yarmouth on the Isle of Wight . Pippa was seen grinning at her fellow sailors as the boat cruised along the water. The party spent from 10.30am until 2.30pm on the open water . Her companion for the day, Sir Ben . Ainslie, is Britain's most successful ever Olympian, having won four . gold medals in his career. He has also won eleven World Championships . and nine European Championships. The sailing legend was the special guest at a school assembly earlier in the day.Delighted pupils at Ferndown First School in Dorset welcomed the most successful yachtsman in history. Sir . Ben named its first-ever Andrew Simpson Sports Ambassadors, an . initiative in memory of Dorset’s gold medal sailor Andrew, who was . killed in a training accident in San Francisco Bay earlier this year. Pippa and Sir Ben Ainslie are taken by speedboat to a sailing vessel in the channel between the Isle of Wight and the mainland . The party speed towards the yacht - the entire Middleton family are keen sailors, so Pippa must feel quite at home on the sea . Pippa takes the wheel: The sailing party spent from hours on the open water, enjoying the fresh sea air . The sailing party stayed in the relatively sheltered waters between the mainland and the Isle of Wight . Sir Ben Ainslie, Britain's most successful ever Olympian, accompanied the Duchess Of Cambridge's sister . Ahoy there! Her rosy cheeks and windswept hair rather suited the adventurous aunt of the future king . After hours spent at sea, Pippa looked fresh-faced and rosy-cheeked as she hit dry land again - and certainly had a spring in her step . | Pippa and Sir Ben Ainslie spent the day sailing from Lymington on the mainland to Yarmouth on the Isle of Wight .
In spite of the blustery weather both appeared in good spirits .
Pippa wrapped up in navy waterproof trousers with .
matching anorak .
Sir Ben had spent the morning at a local school . |
20,238 | 396ffbff7bbad499fff952a86d69ed06819e76f8 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 17:00 EST, 25 December 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 10:11 EST, 26 December 2013 . An armed gang who smashed their way into a supermarket tycoon’s country home and threatened his wife and daughter before stealing £220,000 worth of jewellery have been jailed. Armed with a sledgehammer, a sword and a handgun in the early hours, three masked men broke into the gated property of Colin Graves, who founded the Costcutter chain of convenience stores. His wife Sharon was woken by the trio in her bedroom and forced at gunpoint to lie on the landing while they opened the family’s safe. Zak Price (left), 23, wielded a gun while Jack Menzies (right), 22, raided the safe of Colin Graves . Maidstone Crown Court was told by Judge Jeremy Carey that she is ‘a woman of commendable steel’ because she did not panic and avoided causing the incident to escalate into violence. Mr Graves, 65, the executive chairman of Yorkshire County Cricket Club, was in Barbados. The gang threatened Mrs Graves, 53, and her daughter Francesca, 16, before fleeing the property in Edenbridge, Kent, which has tennis courts, stables and an indoor swimming pool. Dominic Connolly, prosecuting, said: ‘It seems they knew where to look, they didn’t go to any other places. They seemed to be able to operate the rather complicated lighting system.’ Ringleader David Milner, 34, of Biggin Hill, Kent, was sentenced to ten years and Zak Price, 23, of Tonbridge, Kent, to eight years and three months. Jack Menzies, 22, of Eltham, South East London, was sentenced to seven-and-a-half years and getaway driver Aaron Wall, 22, of Sevenoaks, Kent, to four years and eight months. Milner and Menzies were convicted by a jury last month, after a nine-day trial, of possessing a firearm with intent to commit a robbery. All four men had previously admitted robbery. Price and Wall had also previously entered guilty pleas to the firearms offence. Wall, who is profoundly deaf, received a lesser sentence because he gave evidence against the other three, although he diluted some of the statements he gave to police. Judge Carey said Wall would be at risk in prison because he would be regarded as a ‘grass’. He told Milner: ‘As the ringleader, you attract the longest sentence.’ Fearsome: This is the handgun used by the gang to terrify Sharon Graves in her bedroom . The court had heard that Mrs Graves was ordered from her bed at gunpoint at 2am on March 19 by Price while Milner and Menzies stole the jewellery and watches from a safe. Wall was waiting nearby in a rented 4X4 Chevrolet Captiva. When the trio left the house, Mrs Graves was instructed to lie face down and count to 30. When she thought they had gone, she telephoned police. A patrol car racing to the scene passed the getaway car travelling at high speed in the opposite direction. Officers, acting on instinct, did a U-turn and followed the 4X4 to the Tonbridge area, where Price got out. Despite the risk of him being armed, officers chased on foot and caught him. The Chevrolet was found abandoned later that morning in Tonbridge. It had been hired in Milner’s name and address. A search of the vehicle uncovered a sledgehammer receipt that matched a sledgehammer dropped as the gang fled across fields to the getaway car. Wall was arrested three days later. Menzies handed himself in while Milner went on the run for 20 days before also handing himself in. Police said Milner had befriended the Graves’s housekeeper and abused the friendship to gain knowledge of the layout of the house. The firearm was found two weeks later and identified as an imitation of a Sig Sauer handgun, which fired ball bearings. Maidstone Crown Court (pictured) was told by Judge Jeremy Carey that she is 'a woman of commendable steel' because she did not panic and avoided causing the incident to escalate into violence . Speaking after sentencing on Monday, Detective Constable Don Share, from Kent Police, said: ‘It is difficult to imagine the fear that the mother and her daughter felt during this crime and that has been reflected within the sentence. ‘Anyone who possesses a firearm should expect to go to prison for a long time, even more so should they commit a violent robbery such as this.’ Police said a small amount of jewellery was recovered from pawnbrokers across South London, but the majority was never found. Mr Graves set up Costcutter in 1986 after quitting as sales director of convenience store chain Spar. He sold a 49 per cent stake in Costcutter, which has 1,700 stores, to Bibby Line Group in 2007 and the remaining 51 per cent to the same company in 2011. | Gang, armed with sledgehammer, sword and handgun, broke into gated property of Costcutter founder Colin Graves .
Wife Sharon was woken by the trio in her bedroom and forced at gunpoint to lie on the landing while they raided family safe .
The gang threatened Mrs Graves, 53, and her daughter, 16, before fleeing . |
221,122 | aa3dce85904787e39720cf9673c3d2a09b089068 | By . Matthew Blake . It is the size of a strawberry and weighs a bit less than three pound coins. But if you had this rare blue beauty in your pocket you would be carrying around a diamond that could be worth more than £60million. The ‘exceptional’ 122.5-carat blue diamond was unearthed at the Cullinan mine in South Africa which is renowned for producing giant gems. Rare gem: Petra Diamonds Ltd said it had recovered the 'exceptional' 122.52-carat gem (pictured from two angles) at its Cullinan mine in South Africa . Sparkler: The jewel, about the size of a strawberry (pictured), is so pure that it is expected to eclipse the current world's most expensive diamond - a 507-carat white diamond dug from the same mine that sold for £20 million in 2010 . A blue stone from the mine fetched . £508,000 per carat earlier this year. If this much larger one achieves a . similar valuation, it would command a price tag of £62million – . smashing the record price paid for a rough stone. Anyone . who buys it, however, will be hoping for better luck than the owners of . the famous deep blue Hope Diamond. It supposedly puts a curse on those . who possess it, as the guillotined Louis XVI and his wife Marie . Antoinette discovered. The . newly discovered diamond was dug up by Jersey-based Petra Diamonds at . its mine near Pretoria. One industry insider said it was almost unheard . of to find a blue stone weighing more than 100 carats. Diamond mine: Other notable diamonds discovered at the Cullinan mine (pictured) are the 25.5 carat Cullinan blue diamond found in 2013 and sold for £10 million ($16.9 million), and the Star of Josephine diamond found in 2008 and sold for £5.59 million ($9.49 million) Rough diamond: It comes months after Petra sold a 29.6 carat blue diamond (pictured) from the same mine for more than $25 million . Rough to royalty: A miner holds the Cullinan Diamond shortly after it was found in 1907 (left) before it was cut in two and used for the British Crown and Sceptre (pictured on the head of Queen Elizabeth II in 2009) A . carat is equal to one-fifth of a gram, so Petra’s 122.5-carat stone is . about 25g. In comparison, the average centrepiece diamond on an . engagement ring weighs about one carat and is usually white. Shares in Petra rose nearly 8 per cent on the find yesterday, adding some £66million to the value of the company in a day. The 45-carat blue Hope Diamond, which is said to put a curse on its owner, is worth more than £200million. It is thought to have been stolen in 1653 in India from a statue of Hindu goddess Sita by Jean Baptiste Tavernier, who was reported to have been killed by rabid dogs at the age of 84. The diamond is also known as Le Bijou du Roi, or The King’s Jewel, and was owned by Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette who were guillotined in 1793 by the French revolutionaries. It is then thought to have been smuggled to London. Lord Francis Hope, after whose family it is named, had to sell it in 1894 after going bankrupt. Another supposed victim, Prince Ivan Kanitovski, was killed by Russian revolutionaries. Today it is in the Smithsonian natural history museum in Washington. The . current record price for a rough stone was set by Petra’s sale of the . 507-carat Cullinan Heritage, a white diamond, in 2010 for nearly . £21million. Blue diamonds . get their colour from small amounts of the chemical element boron . trapped in their crystal structure. The more ‘blue’ it is, the greater . the value. They are the rarest diamonds after red, which are almost . never found. Petra’s blue . diamond is being kept under guard at a secret location in South Africa . and will be sold in a private tender process in Johannesburg before . being cut and polished. The . Cullinan mine is recognised as the most important diamond mine in the . world. It is famous for producing the world’s largest white diamond, the . 3,106-carat Cullinan Diamond, which was found in 1905. The . door-stopping diamond was originally discarded by a hasty mine manager . who thought it was too big to be anything other than a crystal. It was . recovered and presented to King Edward VII in 1907, and gems cut from it . are centrepieces of the Crown Jewels at the Tower of London. Petra Diamonds believe the mine has another 50 years left in it. | It was found by Petra Diamonds Ltd at its Cullinan mine in South Africa .
Comes months after it sold 29.6-carat blue diamond from mine for £14m .
It is expected to eclipse world's most expensive, a 507-carat white diamond . |
128,386 | 31ea93fb43e0c40a489d4d3de692f0738e0c78e4 | By . Associated Press . PUBLISHED: . 00:59 EST, 19 August 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 01:01 EST, 19 August 2013 . A Baltimore-bound JetBlue flight out of Boston was diverted to Philadelphia on Sunday evening after smoke was reported in the cabin. The airline says Flight 827, an Embraer 190 jet, landed just before 6 p.m. and 95 passengers and four crewmembers were safely evacuated. No injuries were reported. A JetBlue statement says the captain elected to divert out of 'an abundance of caution' after the crew reported smoke while en route to Baltimore Washington International Airport. Emergency landing: The Jet Blue Embraer was forced to land at Philadelphia en route from Boston to Baltimore . Evacuation: Passengers had to evacuate the plane upon landing in Philadelphia . Disruptive: Passengers were left stranded in a nearby field whilst waiting for the airport bus to collect them . Glad to be on the ground: Passengers console one another after many were left shaken . Escape: Passengers escape the Embraer 190 at Philadelphia International Airport which was nearing the end of its flight to Baltimore . Passengers were no doubt a bit shaken, but everyone escaped unharmed. One passenger says she smelled the smoke and found it hard not to think the worst in mid-air. 'You don't know how it's going to end, so you don't want to psyche yourself out – should I turn on my phone and call my parents?' passenger Laura-Chase McGehee told Fox 29. JetBlue says the passengers were put on a later flight. | Flight from Boston to Baltimore diverted after smoke was smelled in the cabin .
Passengers were forced to escape using the rescue slides, nobody was hurt . |
40,098 | 7129e1779f9156fbbfc45c16fd009f48b3dad340 | ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (CNN) -- Iran has condemned the kidnapping of one of its diplomats in northwest Pakistan on Thursday, calling it an "act of terrorism," an Iranian foreign ministry spokesman said. Pakistani policemen inspect a bullet-riddled car of a kidnapped Iranian diplomat on Thursday. "Pakistan should do its best to protect foreign diplomats and their residential places," the spokesman Hassan Qashqavi said, according to Iran's state-run IRNA news agency. At least four gunmen abducted Heshmatollah Attarzadeh near his home in Peshawar as he headed to work at the Iranian consulate, according to Pakistani police and Iranian diplomatic officials. His bodyguard, a Pakistani police officer, was shot and killed when the two men tried to resist, a Peshawar police official said. Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi also "strongly condemned" the attack, and informed Iran that the government "will take all necessary measures for his safe and early recovery." Attarzadeh is a commercial attache for the Iranian consulate in Peshawar. It is the second attack targeting a foreign worker in Peshawar in two days. An American aid worker was shot and killed outside the Iranian consulate in Peshawar on Wednesday. Stephen Vance worked for a non-profit foundation funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development that helped find jobs for people in Pakistan's tribal regions, according to a statement from his employer, the Cooperative Housing Foundation International. "Stephen had fully immersed himself in the community in which he worked," the statement said. "He dressed traditionally and even sent his children to local schools." Vance, 52, a native of California, is survived by his wife and five children -- all of whom lived with him in Peshawar -- CHF International official Bill Holbrook told CNN. The attacks come less than three months after gunmen opened fire on a vehicle carrying the senior U.S. diplomat in Peshawar, Lynne Tracy. She escaped unharmed. Peshawar is the capital of Pakistan's North West Frontier Province, an area rife with Islamic extremists and the site of recent clashes between security forces and militants. In late June, Pakistan's military launched an offensive in the province -- the biggest push against extremists in the tribal region since the civilian government took power in March. Islamic militants vowed to retaliate. Since then, militants have launched several deadly attacks. Pakistan's new government has tried to negotiate a deal with militants as part of its efforts to bypass military might and achieve peace through talks. | Diplomat was kidnapped and his bodyguard killed in Peshawar, northwest Pakistan .
Authorities believe he was kidnapped while traveling from his home to consulate .
On Wednesday, gunmen shot and killed an American aid worker in Peshawar . |
168,219 | 6592629c9f369bd78d40b5874f9865a319a06a8e | Donna and Troy Harvey watched in horror last months as four cows they had 'raised since they were poddy calves' were killed by a lightning bolt during a severe thunderstorm. The cows were taking shelter under a large tree as the property - in Milbong in southern Queensland - was lashed with wild winds and severe rainfall during the storm. When an enourmous bolt of lightning hit the tree Sulky, Freiser, Arthie and Blackie were killed instantly, despite the tree remaining intact. Scroll down for video . A farming family in southern Queensland lost four of their beef cattle when they were struck by lightning last month while taking shelter under a tree during a thunderstorm . The severe storm whipped Donna Harvey's property in December, killing all the animals instantly including Sulky (pictured) In a short video posted to the Higgins Storm Chasing Facebook page the woman's property can be seen being lashed with wild weather as the camera pans across her backyard. Focusing on four of her cows taking shelter under a tree, Mrs Harvey holds the shot on her cattle before a huge lightning bolt splits the sky in half illuminating the dark stormy surrounds. The 36-year-old can be screaming out in horror at the realisation she had just lost four cows she and husband Tony had care for since they were very young. Freiser, Arthie and Blackie were also killed instantly by the devastating lightning strike . Tony (left) and Donna (right) here with their daughter Georgia were left heartbroken by the tragic event . The Harvey family had raised the cattle (left) since they were poddy calves . 'It was heart breaking, the moment I saw them all hit the ground... I knew they were dead,' Donna told Daily Mail Australia. 'I balled my eyes out... (It's) very hard when you have put in all the hard work, feeding them twice a day rain hail or shine,' she continued. 'Especially when you have raised them up from babies.' Despite the severe bolt that killed the four cows - Sulky, Freiser, Arthie and Blackie - the tree 'is fine' and still standing weeks after the storm. Donna said she and husband Tony fed and cared for the cows 'rain hail or shine' The storm was so severe it plunged the Milbong property into near total darkness at 1pm in the afternoon . A new addition in the form of a little cow named Boofa has helped the family with the grieving process . The farming family had raised the cattle for almost two years, making it through one of the driest and most difficult spring seasons Donna had seen in 13 years on the property. 'You have to be careful what you wish for, Because I was just saying to my husband days earlier that I wanted to capture a photo of a lightning strike. I certainly did,' she said. The four beef cows are sorely missed in the Harvey household, but a new addition in the form of a little cow named Boofa has helped them with the grieving process. Mrs Harvey said they bought it for their son Ryan to help 'mend a broken heart' and he is smitten with his new friend. | Donna Harvey lost four cows after they were struck by lightning .
Severe thunderstorms whipped her property in Millbong, southern QLD .
Sulky, Freiser, Arthie and Blackie were nearly two years old .
The Harvey family had raised the cattle since they were poddy calves . |
197,734 | 8bf0962b7530b6424aec99cffe8346af10fc16a0 | The new watchdog regulating the Press will come ‘armed with a slim, clear book of rules and not with an iron fist’ when it tackles complaints, its chairman has said. Sir Alan Moses, who leads the Independent Press Standards Organisation (Ipso), warned editors he will ‘damn’ those that flagrantly break the rules. In a speech to the Society of Editors, Sir Alan said: ‘Mistakes and errors of judgment will always occur. Sir Alan Moses (pictured), who leads the Independent Press Standards Organisation (Ipso) which replaces the Press Complaints Commission, warned editors that he will ‘damn’ those that flagrantly break the new rules . ‘But if you do so deliberately, flagrantly, without caring one jot whether you break the code or not, Ipso will damn you.’ Sir Alan insisted he does not want to see a ‘boring’ British Press and told how he wants Ipso to support newspapers in continuing to be ‘unruly’. ‘We do not want a boring, defensive Press: we want a free, fair and unruly Press ruled only by an independent regulator, Ipso, who will support you and encourage you to remain free, fair and unruly,’ Sir Alan said. The vast majority of newspapers have signed up to Ipso, which replaces the Press Complaints Commission (PCC), with The Guardian and Financial Times among notable absentees. The vast majority of newspapers have signed up to Ipso, which replaces the Press Complaints Commission . | New press watchdog Ipso will come 'armed with a slim, clear book of rules'
Sir Alan Moses warned press regulator would 'damn' those who break rules .
Vast majority of newspapers have signed up to Ipso which replaces PCC . |
233,742 | ba9bb616c0db979781039f56f308dece91194fa3 | By . Victoria Woollaston and Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 01:14 EST, 7 June 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 01:16 EST, 7 June 2013 . The Wright Brothers face being written out of history after the Connecticut Senate passed a bill on Wednesday naming a German immigrant as the first man to fly. Gustave Weisskopf emigrated to America and changed his name to Whitehead, there is growing support for the long-disputed claim that he beat the Wright brothers by a good two years. Earlier this year aviation bible ‘Jane's All The World's Aircraft’ stated in its 100th anniversary edition that Whitehead was actually the first man to successfully fly after build his 'Condor' plane in August 1901. Gustave Whitehead next to his Condor No.21 aircraft. This photo was taken in 1901, the year Whitehead is said to have flown his 'flying car' model for a mile and a half at 50 feet above the ground . History rewritten: Wilbur Wright and Orville Wright on the Wright Flyer I in 1910. The Wright Brothers were said to have been the first people to successfully fly a plane in December 1903. The state’s bill, which could be passed into law as early as next week, would name Whitehead as the original aviation pioneer. 'We were surprised. Pleasantly surprised,' Whitehead's great-grandson Curtis Mitchell told the Daily News. Jane's All The World's Aircraft claimed earlier this year that after studying evidence put forward by aviation expert John Brown in support of Whitehead: ' [Whitehead's flight], it must be stressed, was more than two years before the Wrights manhandled their Flyer from its shed and flew a couple of hundred feet in a straight line. 'Thanks to the meticulous researches of John Brown - to whose website we recommend readers seeking greater detail - an injustice is rectified with only slight bruising to Wilbur and Orville's reputation. 'The Wrights were right; but Whitehead was ahead.' Although reports have both supported, and denied Whitehead's achievement since 1901, the claims in Jane's journal was the first time it has been officially recognized by such a widely-respected aviation body. Whitehead designed an aircraft in the . early 1900s that could be driven like a car, but was fitted with wings . that could be unfolded, turning the car into a plane. Whitehead then built his Condor aircraft, also known as No.21, based on this flying car model. The aircraft had two . engines; a 20 horsepower engine used to fly the vehicle, and a 10 . horsepower engine used for driving. The idea was that the pilot could switch between engines depending on whether they wanted to drive or fly the vehicle. Condor was also fitted with two propellers that were controlled and powered when the plane engine was selected. Reports in the Bridgeport Herald in . August 1901 claim Whitehead drove the Condor to a a field outside . Connecticut in the US, unfolded the wings and made two demonstration . flights. During the second flight, Whitehead is said to have flown for a mile and a half and reached a height of 50 feet. Further reports claim he updated the . model, called No.22, and made another demonstration flight on 22 January . 1902 in front of 17 witnesses. Gustave Whitehead emigrated to the States from Bavaria in the 1890s. He designed a 'roadable aircraft' that was small enough to fit in a garage like a car. Whitehead envisaged owners being able to drive the car to a field, or suitable runway and then unfold wings on the side of the vehicle that would then turn the car into a plane. He then built his Condor aircraft, also known as No.21, based on this flying car model. The . aircraft was fitted with two engines; a 20 horsepower engine used to . fly the vehicle, and a 10 horsepower engine used for driving. The . pilot could then switch between which engine they wanted to use, and . when the flying engine was turned on it would help power the craft's . twin propellers. A report in the Bridgeport Herald on 18 August 1901 details eyewitness accounts of Whitehead's flight, which took place in Connecticut four days earlier. The journalist confirms that the flight took off from Fairfield, flew for about a mile and a half, made two turns and then landed safely . Gustave Whitehead emigrated to the US from Bavaria in the 1890s. He was originally called Weisskopf but changed his name when he settled in Connecticut . Reports in the Bridgeport Herald in August 1901 claim Whitehead drove the Condor to a field outside Connecticut, unfolded the wings and made two demonstration flights. The journalist who wrote the story is said to have witnessed the flight himself. During the second flight, Whitehead is said to have flown for a mile and a half and reached a height of 50 feet. Further reports claim he updated the model, called No.22, and made another demonstration flight on 22 January 1902 in front of 17 witnesses. Orville and Wilbur Wright designed and flew their Flyer plane in December 1903. Five people were said to have witnessed the flight including John T. Daniels who took photographic evidence. Claims that Whitehead beat the Wright Brothers to the record first emerged in 1937. Orville Wright is said to have called the story a hoax and chief aviation historian at the Smithsonian Institute, Tom Crouch, rejects the claims. Writing in a blog for the National Air and Space Museum, Crouch said that Whitehead contradicted himself when giving evidence of his flight: 'Over the next decade, as aviators in America and Europe took to the sky following the pattern established by the Wright brothers, Whitehead would continue to built aircraft for other enthusiasts. Not one of those powered machines ever left the ground.' Crouch then concluded: 'Either Whitehead had somehow forgotten the secrets of flight, or he had never flown a powered machine at all.' | The senate has passed a bill naming Gustave Whitehead as the original aviation pioneer .
Whitehead is believed to have flown his Condor plane in August 1901 - more than two years before the Wright Brothers' infamous flight . |
232,918 | b99055eaa0fc31251e2f1f58f6ff68eb94528a3f | By . Damien Gayle . A jealous orangutan bit off the arm of a baby orangutan who reached into his enclosure at Dortmund Zoo. Walter, the orangutan famous in Germany for predicting football scores, bit off the arm of one-year-old Yenko, leaving the youngster screaming and spurting blood. Yenko, who had been in Dortmund for only a few weeks, survived after an emergency operation, but vets were unable to reattach his arm. Jealous: Walter the football score-predicting orangutan, who bit the arm off a baby orangutan out of jealousy . Keepers had separated Walter from Yenko and his adoptive mother Toba with a wire fence. The tragedy happened when the youngster put his arm through the mesh. Yenko is now back with Toba. Zoo bosses believe that Walter was jealous at the attention the baby was getting from his adoptive mother. Walter has earned a reputation for successfully predicting football results, making his selections by drawing merchandise bearing the clubs logo from identical footballs. He excited German football fans in May when he predicted that Borussia Dortmund would win the cup final in the country against Bayern Munich by picking out the Dortmund shirt and putting it on his head. It turned out on that occasion however that Walter got it wrong as Bayern thrashed Dortmund 2-0. | Dortmund Zoo's Walter is famous in Germany for predicting football scores .
But he lashed out at baby Yenko after the youngster reached in to his cage .
Yenko survived after an emergency op, but vets could not save his arm . |
233,560 | ba5f43a084d987b29fbabce4ecf033f129fab11c | By . Daily Mail Reporter . Firefighters are planning fresh strikes over the May Bank Holiday weekend as part of a long-running dispute over pensions. Members of the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) in England and Wales will walk out for five hours from noon on May 2, between 2pm and 2am on May 3, and then between 10am and 3pm on May 5. There will also be a ban on voluntary overtime across England and Wales from 3pm on May 4 until noon on May 9. In Scotland there will be a ban on voluntary overtime between noon on May 2 and noon on May 9. Striking firefighters: Members of the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) in England and Wales will walk out for five hours from noon on May 2, between 2pm and 2am on May 3, and then between 10am and 3pm on May 5 . Firefighters staged a series of strikes last year in protest at plans for a later retirement age and other changes to pensions, which they said do not take into account the unique nature of their occupation. Matt Wrack, FBU general secretary, said: 'After three years of negotiations and an intense four months presenting an indisputable, evidence-based case for the need to ensure a pension scheme that takes account the unique occupation of firefighting, the Government is still burying its head in the sand. 'Several members of Government were only too keen to praise firefighters during the winter floods, but their words amount to nothing when they simultaneously ignore issues that threaten the future of firefighters and their families. 'Nevertheless, we remain totally committed to resolving the dispute through negotiation, and are ready to meet to consider a workable proposal as soon as possible.' Matt Wrack, Fire Brigades Union General Secretary, said the government was ignoring issues which pose a threat to firefighters and their families . The last strike was on January 3, since when talks have been held in a bid to break the deadlock, while the union has met with the conciliation service Acas outlining its concerns and 'frustration' at the lack of progress. The union wrote to the Government earlier this month setting a deadline of today for an improved offer. The FBU executive unanimously decided to call more strikes. The union maintains that firefighters face the threat of being sacked 'merely for getting older', as well as having to pay increased pension contributions. Union members voted by four to one last year in favour of strikes. Fire Minister Brandon Lewis said: 'By calling unnecessary strike action, the FBU has shown it is not serious about finding a resolution to this dispute for its members and stands only to further damage firefighters' standing with the public. 'The Government has met with the FBU on many occasions, most recently during April, and has remained in ongoing communication to find a solution. Only yesterday, I wrote to the FBU saying proposals are still under consideration and stressed the importance of maintaining an open dialogue on this and other matters. 'The deal on the table gives firefighters one of the most generous pension schemes in all the public sector, and the proposals protect the earned rights of a higher proportion of members than any other public sector scheme. 'Nearly half will see no change and even firefighters who are not protected will see no change until 2015. 'Under the new scheme, a firefighter who earns £29,000 will still be able to retire after a full career aged 60, get a £19,000-a-year pension, rising to £26,000 with the state pension. An equivalent private pension pot would be worth over half a million pounds and require firefighters to contribute twice as much.' Catch a fire: Members of the Fire Brigades Union approach the gates to Downing Street during their march and rally to Central Hall, Westminster ahead of their strike last October . London Fire Commissioner Ron Dobson said: 'Today's announcement from the FBU for fresh strike action is regrettable. In London we will, of course, have contingency arrangements in place but just as before we will be asking people to take extra care to prevent fires from starting. 'We will be doing all we can to remind them to take care when cooking, to make sure cigarettes are disposed of properly and to check their smoke alarms are working, especially over the bank holiday period. 'During the strikes, 27 engines will be deployed at strategic locations across London and will be used to provide fire cover for the capital. 'The contingency fire service is provided by a contractor and is not intended to replicate the Brigade's normal operational cover arrangements. The contractor will provide basic firefighting and some rescue work.' | Members of the Fire Brigades Union will walk on May 2, May 3 and May 5 .
They are fighting proposed changes to pensions and retirement age .
FBU maintains members face threat of the sack 'merely for getting older' |
119,951 | 27086d5b58fd1d1870154ba36a146b8453455d88 | Colorado Springs, Colorado (CNN) -- Firefighters made little headway Thursday against a raging wildfire near Colorado Springs, Colorado, which has scorched close to 16,000 acres, destroyed 360 homes and claimed at least two lives. Witnesses spoke to the two victims in the afternoon, El Paso County Sheriff Terry Maketa told reporters. "They said that they could see a glow to the west. They were packing their personal belongings, trying to get out," he said. Earlier, county spokesman Dave Rose told CNN that the Black Forest Fire, burning northeast of the city, now appears to be the most destructive in terms of property lost in state history. Some 750 firefighters were battling the blaze, which was 5% contained late Thursday. With the help of helicopters and air tankers, they established a loose perimeter. "The fire is very, very active within the containment area, and we don't have a high level of confidence at all that we'll be able to hold all of these lines around this fire," Rose said. The fire's evacuation area was 93,000 acres, affecting approximately 38,000 people and 13,000 homes, and the flames were estimated to have burned through 15,700 acres, said Maketa. That marked a dramatic increase from the 8,500 acres officials said had been burned by Wednesday night, he noted. After he spoke, residents of about 1,000 homes in Colorado Springs were told to evacuate. "Wind is probably our No. 1 threat," the sheriff said. Combined with dry brush and high temperatures, the winds have fanned devastating flames. Maketa struggled to find a phrase to describe how ferocious the fire is, settling on "very dynamic." "If it's a draw, that's a victory today because we haven't had too many draws in the last couple of days," he said. 'The flames were there' Among those who lost their home were husband and wife, Jaenette and Kristian Coyne. "We literally had five minutes, and we left because it was, the flames were there," Jaenette Coyne told CNN's AC360 Thursday night. She said she grabbed a baby album and a personal computer with pictures on it. She also took a firebox, which contained most of the couple's important documents. The Coynes actually saw their home burn on live TV. "It was probably the worst thing I've ever seen in my life. You have that moment where you say: 'Is that really my house?' But we know it was. However, now I'm grateful that I know. A lot of people here just don't know," Jaenette Coyne said. In northeast Colorado Springs, CNN iReporter Heather Croze took photos outside her home, capturing a billowing plume of smoke. One shot shows just how wide the smoke was on the horizon. A county fairground northeast of the Black Forest Fire looked like a Noah's Ark with families who fled with their animals to escape the looming inferno. There were nearly 30 chickens, several hundred horses, a handful of cows and a couple calves, and many alpacas and miniature horses, according to the Elbert County Sheriff's Office. Assorted dogs, cats, goats and donkeys mingled with mules and llamas. Three stallions were there. And for good measure, one yak. At least eight families also have taken refuge at the Elbert County Fairgrounds in Kiowa, the Denver Post reported, which is about 35 miles southeast of Denver. Joanne Gaishin slept outside in her car after fleeing her home with 18 chickens and three turkeys. "I stayed in the front seat of my car with all of my fowl in there, with the roosters crowing in the morning," she told the paper. 'We have each other' Paula Warren, one of thousands of residents forced to flee her home northeast of Colorado Springs, spoke about how difficult it was to leave and wonder if her home was all right. "I thought I had about an hour, and it turned out to be about 20 minutes," she said. "I had a pillowcase full of socks, and that's basically all I have." By Thursday afternoon, she got bad news. A friend called her to say that her home was on an online list of residences that had been designated as destroyed. Warren didn't know exactly where the friend had seen the information but she believed it to be true. For a person who had just been told their home was gone, Warren had a cheerful attitude when talking with CNN, laughing and saying that she was just going to go back home when she could, hitch up a trailer on the property, live in that and rebuild her house. Her home sat on five acres and she doesn't think the land has been damaged. "Trees are still standing," she said. For now she and her two miniature horses are staying with a friend on the outskirts of Colorado Springs. The animals have adjusted fairly well, she said. "You can't just take 'em to a Motel 6," she said. "And my friend is very tolerant." Like Warren, CNN iReporter Mike Schultz lost his home. He sent images of it burned to the ground, showing charred remains. His wife, Caml Schultz, said their family was able to save only some photographs, paperwork and few items of clothes. "But we have each other, and we're blessed. So many people have suffered loss, and so we're just thankful that we're here and safe and that we're loved, and that we have so many people that are willing to help take care of us," she said. Working to protect homes . Sheriff Maketa praised the swift and strong help that civilian workers have been getting from National Guard and other military responders. Authorities said that they are watching neighborhoods and homes to do everything they can to keep them safe while combating the blaze. Still, there have been losses. Maketa said Thursday that 360 homes had been destroyed; another 14 were damaged. Rose, the El Paso County spokesman, stressed later that those figures were preliminary, and said he would expect them to increase. "There are areas of the Black Forest that we have not been able to get into at all to make any sort of assessment. So it's almost impossible to come up with another number, but it is safe to assume that that number will in fact rise," he said. Ken Litch, a 12-year resident of the area, watched Wednesday as the Black Forest Fire gained ground on his home. There wasn't much else he could do. "A hundred homes would be nothing," he told CNN affiliate KUSA. "Whatever is in its way, it's going to take." The inferno is likely to continue for a couple more days as temperatures are forecast to stay in the 90s through Friday, with winds gusting up to 30 mph. Famous bridge still intact . Another major fire in the state is the Royal Gorge Fire, which is burning 55 miles to the southwest, on the other side of Colorado Springs. It burned several buildings around the iconic Royal Gorge Suspension Bridge, and threatened the bridge itself. Authorities downgraded the number of acres burned from 3,800 to 3,100 late Wednesday. The wildfire was 20% contained, the state office of emergency management reported. Twenty structures have been lost to the flames. "We have made good progress on the fire today without any accidents or injuries," said Dennis Page, incident commander for the fire. The famous Royal Gorge Bridge that spans the Arkansas River is intact but needs to be inspected before it can reopen for tourists, a spokeswoman for the Royal Gorge Bridge and Park said. The suspension bridge, which is 956 feet above the river and among the highest in the world, is made of more than 1,000 wooden planks. "We did not know until today whether the bridge was still standing," Gorge Bridge and Park spokeswoman Peggy Gair said. Gair says fire at the park burned a visitor's center, a tramway building, a carousel and several restaurants. Are you there? Send an iReport . There were other fires in the state as well, including in Grand and Huerfano counties. Black Forest was the biggest of the blazes. Gallery: Wildfire photographer Kari Greer goes inside the inferno . Paul Vercammen reported from Colorado Springs; Dana Ford and Ashley Fantz reported and wrote from Atlanta. CNN's Dan Simon, Greg Botelho, Shawn Nottingham and Dave Alsup contributed to this report. | NEW: The two victims may have been trying to evacuate .
NEW: "If it's a draw, that's a victory today," sheriff says .
The Black Forest Fire has scorched at least 15,700 acres .
Some 360 homes are destroyed; 14 are damaged . |
92,202 | 02965da4f63c8fab66416ed4d64f4bc09417a835 | (CNN) -- In the heart of London, one of the style capitals of the world, African fashion has found its new home. Based in the UK capital's bustling center, Arise calls itself Africa's first and foremost global style and culture magazine. The bimonthly publication, which has so far been printed 16 issues, first hit the newsstands in 2009 and is now sold in 26 countries across the world. Its illustrious pages are striking a chord with what the magazine calls Afropolitans -- a new generation of young and urban "Africans of the world" who breathe fashion and are fascinated by arts and culture. Read related: Congo's designer dandies . Penny McDonald, international managing director at Arise, says there was a gap in the market for a quality offering that would showcase the wide-ranging talents of African designers while breaking stereotypes about the continent's culture. "There were lovely designers out there who never got a look into the traditional markets and the traditional outlets," she says. "We want to show the other side of the vast continent and that's what this does." Read related: Why African designers are finally in the fashion spotlight . The large-format magazine, which was initially published every four months, was determined to be competitive amongst other fashion heavy-hitters right from the start. For its first cover back in 2009 it landed some of the fashion world's most glistering stars, including supermodels Alek Wek and Liya Kebede. Since then, a wide array of African and international icons, including Charlize Theron, Alicia Keys and Denzel Washington, have all been featured in Arise. Read related: The Namibian women who dress like Victorians . According to McDonald, convincing readers and advertisers about the magazine's quality was the biggest challenge at the beginning. "A lot of people in the past thought 'oh, another black publication, oh God, I've seen it all before, it's full of hair and make-up.' And then they suddenly sat back and realized 'my God, actually the content is pretty solid.' "We have phenomenal journalists, phenomenal models and now they do want to participate. The brands are following us and that journey has been very slow, but the brands are there. The hardest battle of keeping a publication like this alive is to get the commercial viability working and that's what we do and we push everyday to find sponsors, advertisers, just everyone to support us." Bur apart from highlighting African style and culture through its pages, Arise is also bringing the continent's fashion to catwalks across the world -- over the last few years the magazine has held a series of international fashion events, helping established designers and inspiring young talents to showcase their creations. Read related: Fashion week in Lagos . More recently, Arise hosted its fifth show at Mercedes-Benz New York Fashion Week. Dubbed African Icons, this year's show featured the glamorous and chic collections of five African designers: Ozwald Boateng, Tsemaye Binite, Folake Folarin-Coker of Tiffany Amber, Amaka Osakwe of Maki Oh and Gavin Rajah. "Our aim is to create an international audience and platform for the best African fashion talent," says Helen Jennings, editor of Arise. "We always choose different designers who have different aesthetics, so together you get a really nice broad spectrum -- five different voices, five different perspectives of African fashion," she adds. "That's the joy of it," she adds. "We promote Africa, but we break those barriers and those assumptions that people have that it's all going to be wacky, overly colorful wraparound dresses or whatever". Read more: Web boutiques bring African fashion to world market . Nigerian designer Binite, who is based in Britain and has also worked for Burberry and Stella McCartney, made his second appearance at the September 6 event. His show was dominated by "marl grey jersey tracksuits with silver embossed branding, leather bomber jackets worn with denim shorts, flesh-toned panelled illusion dresses and a floor-sweeping, blood-red evening gown," according to Jennings. Binite says international events such as the New York show are crucial in helping the world understand what it really means to be an African fashion designer. "I hope it will broaden people's expectations of what African fashion is supposed to mean," he says. "We're all very global in the way that we think, the experiences we've had, the things that we do," he says. "I called myself a juxtaposed reality of a New Nigerian -- so I'm very Nigerian to the core, but global in my reach and my exposure." | Arise magazine describes itself as Africa's global style and culture magazine .
The publication is sold to 26 countries around the world .
Arise is also holding fashion shows around the world to promote African talent .
It recently held its fifth show at Mercedes-Benz New York Fashion Week . |
219,801 | a884f3712774fbe1999866fa4a82961793c15280 | The wife of a teacher accused of raping young boys at a school in Indonesia says he was betrayed by the parents of students from her own nursery class. Tracy Bantleman made headlines around the world this week when she was pictured reaching out to her husband Neil as he stood behind bars awaiting trial. The 43-year-old, who teaches alongside her husband at the Jakarta International School, is adamant he is innocent but worries he will be convicted and sentenced to up to 15 years in jail because of the country's high conviction rates. She said: 'My husband has a strong character but that doesn't mean that on the inside this hasn't been extremely demoralising for him. 'Although he is optimistic [the case will be dropped] he is extremely fearful that the outcome could be very unfavourable because there is quite a high conviction rate in Indonesia for criminal cases.' Scroll down for video . Neil and Tracy Bantleman, pictured at a wedding in Scotland in July 2013, are staying together despite allegations he has abused a young boy at the Jakarta school where they both work . Tracy Bantleman visits her husband, Canadian teacher Neil Bantleman, right, at Cipinang Penitentiary Institution in Jakarta on December 5 . Tracy Bantleman made headlines around the world this week when she was pictured reaching out to her husband Neil as he stood behind bars awaiting trial . Bantleman, 45, who was born in London and holds dual British and Canadian citizenship, and an Indonesian teaching assistant, deny raping and sexually abusing young boys. The allegations are part of a wide-reaching case that has shook the prestigious school - which is attended by the children of foreign diplomats and Indonesia's elite - to its core. Earlier in the year five school cleaners were accused of raping a young boy and a woman was accused of being an accomplice. One of the cleaners has since died in police custody. Officers say he committed suicide by drinking bathroom cleaner. Bantleman and teaching assistant Ferdinand Tjiong, known as Ferdy, were later accused of sexually abusing the same boy on June 6 - the second from last day of school. Recalling the moment they found out, Mrs Bantleman said: 'Neil got a phone call from the head saying another parent had come forward alleging that he and Ferdy had abused this boy. 'I looked at my husband and he was white. I remember clearly the first thing that came out of my mouth was, 'how could someone be so inhumane to make allegations like that so recklessly and carelessly'. 'I was furious because I knew this kind of allegation against a teacher is absolutely the worst allegation that could be made, and once it is made and it is public, your name is all over the place and you have no control over that. 'There has never been a more challenging and emotionally frustrating and tumultuous time in my life. One allegation by one woman has destroyed so many people's lives. 'The amount of stress it has caused Neil and I as a family, and our families abroad, our friends, our colleagues, is enormous. 'Everyone was shocked and appalled. 'People who know Neil and know Ferdy, know these are two absolutely good-intentioned well-rounded, balanced, very kind and gentle, well-respected members of our school community. Tracy Bantleman, visiting her husband yesterday, says he could not even pick the boys he is supposed to have abused out of a crowd . Neil and Tracy Bantleman, pictured here attending a friend's wedding in Bali, Indonesia, are staying together despite allegations he raped and sexually abusing young boys at a Jakarta school attended by the children of foreign diplomats and Indonesia's elite . Canadian teacher Neil Bantleman, right, kissed his wife Tracy prior to the start of his trial hearing at South Jakarta District Court in Jakarta, Indonesia, last week . 'Even our friends back home, our colleagues back in Canada, people we have met around the world, are shocked and appalled that these allegations have been brought forward. 'These people know that Neil is innocent and know that Ferdy is innocent - and they know these allegations are ridiculous.' Bantleman, who met his wife on a date in Calgary before marrying in Las Vegas in 2007, has so for spent more than three months in the notorious Cipinang Penitentiary Institution awaiting trial. He sleeps on a bench in a 6ft by 15ft mosquito-infested cell, separated from the main population of the prison. Mrs Bantleman hopes the case will be thrown out this coming Tuesday and says Bantleman's legal team will argue that the accusations in the inditement are too vague. 'They didn't specify a date in any of the alleged assaults. There are no specific dates,' she said. 'It could have happened anywhere between January 2013 and March 2014 or sometime in 2013 or 2014 - at a time that could not precisely be remembered. That's actually written in the indictment. 'So the fact the prosecutor has prepared the inditement without a date or a specific time is against Indonesian law. For someone to defend themselves they have to know when it is alleged to have happened.' According to documents, the alleged victims told police that Bantleman raped them in a secret room in the basement of the school while a female videotaped the attack. The accusations have been especially difficult for Mrs Bantleman, as the alleged victims came from the nursery year groups she taught. But she says she has never doubted her husband for an instance, describing them as a couple who do 'everything together'. She said: 'My husband and Ferdy are named as having abused these boys that they don't even know. 'They couldn't pick them out of a crowd. Tracy Bantleman, pictured here visiting her husband yesterday, told MailOnline: 'The amount of stress it has caused Neil and I as a family, and our families abroad, our friends, our colleagues, is enormous' Canadian teacher Neil Bantleman, left, held hands with his wife Tracy prior to the start of his trial hearing at South Jakarta District Court in Jakarta, Indonesia, last week . Neil Bantleman, pictured left, faces up to 15 years in jail if he is found guilty of sexually abusing young boys at the school but his wife is standing by him . 'I taught kindergarten and before that early-childhood, so students between three and six-year-olds. 'I was there all the time. I would walk past his office four times a day. 'The building where the alleged crimes are alleged to have taken place is a massive aquarium and made of glass walls. There is not private space in that entire building.' 'We are not the type of couple who do things separately. When we met we were both in our mid-thirties and were overjoyed to find each other. We have a very close relationship. There is nothing that would ever give me the opportunity to doubt, there is no doubt.' The school has also backed Bantleman and Tjiong, with nearly 100 people turning up to support them on the first day of their trial, on Tuesday. Mrs Bantleman says it would have been even greater if it had not been a school day. She said her husband has been an integral part of the local community and had invested in 15 local charities with the aim of inspiring young people. But they are both now questioning whether they will stay in the south-east Asian country should the trial be dismissed. 'He feels like he has given so much [to the community] and this is what he has got back in return. It just isn't fair,' added Mrs Bantleman, who said they had been hoping to start their own family soon. 'Ideally, we would like to stay. We have had nothing but a fabulous experience in this country. 'The people are very warm the culture is very rich. It's a fascinating and diverse archipelago of islands. It's an unbelievable country, that way. 'But on the human side - one or two or three individuals have really made our life a horrific experience since June.' Bantleman, from Burlington, Ontario, and Tjiong are accused of raping three young boys at the school, which teaches 2,400 students aged from three to 18 from about 60 countries. The family of one nursery school boy are suing the school and seeking $125m in damages. Bantleman's family in Canada are also backing him have called on Canadian authorities to lobby on his behalf. He is due back at South Jakarta District Court on Tuesday. | Teaching assistant Neil Bantleman was accused of attacking a small boy .
Mother said he raped boy while a woman filmed the vile assault on camera .
But Bantleman's wife says he is victim of vicious smear campaign .
She stands by him despite allegations and vows to see his name cleared . |
68,539 | c25833b94ac0975304fce0db675683d1b7f3cb1e | The birth of Kate and William's heir to the throne has been one of the most keenly awaited of our time - and his surely be the most generously welcomed. World leaders, intentional royal families, close friends, family and well-wishers will no doubt wish to shower the tiny prince with gifts - but what do you buy the baby who will have everything he could ever desire, or at least the money to buy it? To give those of you who are feeling generous some ideas, FEMAIL have compiled a selection of the most lavish, rarefied and downright extravagant baby gifts available... Happy family: The Duke and Duchess and their first little prince, who is still waiting, along with the rest of us, to find out what he is to be called . Hello, tiny prince: William and Kate's unnamed baby will be the recipient of plenty of gifts... but which will be his favourite? The Grand Victorian Playhouse: For $20,000 (£13,014) your little prince or princess can have their own life-sized playhouse, complete with bay windows and a skylight. The deluxe furnishing package features a grand piano. lilliputplayhomes.com . My little pony: Practically as expensive as a living horse, David Linley's dappled rocker will set you back £8,250, but comes complete with a secret compartment... for storing the pennies you have left over after buying it? davidlinley.com . Calling mummy to baby, do you copy? This space age monitor, left, comes with a camera that sends images of sleeping tots to parents via their iPhones (RRP £134.99, medisana.com); Regular bubble blowers not good enough for baby? Try this Elsa Peretti sterling silver one, right, from Tiffany for a mere $225 (£146) (Tiffany.com) Snuffles the $10,000 bear: This Gund teddy (made from white alpaca fur with Tahitian pearls for eyes and a 10-carat diamond necklace with a white gold chain) showcased at the American International Toy Fair in 2010. (£6,507, gund.com) Baby Dior: This £320 beige corduroy jacket with reversed leather collar is, according to Dior an 'essential piece for early fall'. Come on, Baby Cambridge. Pay attention. (dior.com) Supper time! Allow your baby to dine in real style, perched on high in the Black Beauty Supperman chair, left, designed by Ineke Hans, and just $2,125 (£1,380) (babygeared.com); Night night: Tuck your little glowworm up in this Burberry unisex sleeping bag, right (RRP £129, Selfridges) Fit for a royal locks: The silver Tiffany Bows comb from Tiffany & Co. comes in at £145 . Jingle bells: The Duchess was sent a silver Saffron Bells baby anklet - worn by a number of other babies in the public eye. £85 for one; £140 for a pair, www.saffronbells.com. Carole Middleton took the gift in and it hasn't been returned - a sign they were gladly received . Shake it like a prince: A Ralph Lauren Sterling Silver Rattle for £230 . The royal spoonful: The ABC Bears Feeding spoon, left, costs £120, while the Tiffany Chicks frame, right, is £550 . Rocking horse? Pah! The Duchess of Cambridge's Uncle Gary Goldsmith has his eye on this . £70,000 rocking elephant which he recently spotted in Royal Warranted . jewellers Asprey . Snooze in style: This snuggly Versace sleeping mat would be perfect for . the little prince, and costs £191 from Children Salon . Tote: This small Fendi bag - £100 from Harrods - will hold the baby's bottle in style, perfect for trips to a stylish restaurant . Winter attire: Kate and William can keep their precious tot warm in the . winter months with these Christian Dior mittens, £65, . www.childrensalon.com . A stellar idea: Stella McCartney has curated this adorable Teddie bib collection, with one for each day of the week, £63, . www.stellamccartney.com . Mouth candy: It was first designed for Shiloh Jolie-Pitt, but this 18-carat solid white gold pacifier . - decorated with 278 diamonds - wouldn't leave a bad taste in any baby's . mouth, £11,190 . Blinging baby: Encrusted with over 3,000 genuine Swarovski crystals, this . uber-luxe bag-turned-potty would be a great addition to any baby's . world, My Carry Potty, £700, Mycarrypotty.co.uk . Fit for a king: The royal baby is sure to be the proud owner of . a much swankier crown, but for its downtime this adorable hand-knitted . version will come in handy, Knitted Baby Crown, £45, . Notonthehighstreet.com . Tea time: The royal baby will most certainly be raised with a silver . spoon in its mouth - and now you too can literally buy one and have it personally engraved, Elsa Peretti . Padova Feeding Spoon, £110, Tiffany & Co . Change in style: This Roberto Cavalli changing bag comes complete with plenty of roomy compartments, making nappy-carrying a stylish affair. Roberto Cavalli Changing Bag, . £419, Childsplayclothing.co.uk . Not so dummy: Christian Dior's pretty white dummy would be perfect for the new little prince, and the swanky dummy even provides a dummy clip; sucking has never been so stylish! £61, www.childrensalon.com . Sweet smells: Now your baby can smell delightful, too. With chamomile and talc notes, this scent is . alcohol-free and allergy-tested. Bvlgari Baby Eau de Toilette 100ml, . price varies, Amazon . Smooth as a baby's bottom: This rich and creamy hydrating lotion will leave the royal tot super silky smooth in no time, and the bottle is cute, too! £22, www.uk.loccitane.com . Snug as a bug: This Ralph Lauren dressing gown has luxurious super soft swaddling befitting of a future monarch, £85, www.ralphlauren.co.uk . Cashmere, darling: Olivier Baby have created this stylish cashmere ensemble, perfect for the royal tot, £49 - £54, www.olivierbaby.com . Bathe in style: Kate and William can pamper their bundle of joy by giving it a scrub in this luxurious diamond bathtub, Swarovski Baby Bath Tub, £2,500, Thediamondbathtub.com . | A silver Tiffany Bows comb from Tiffany & Co. comes in at £145 .
The Duchess was sent a pair of £140 silver Saffron Bells baby anklets .
You could choose a Ralph Lauren Sterling Silver Rattle for £230 . |
224,027 | ae18ff023e645a93047424ab4d4a37450697418e | (CNN) -- Road users in Lagos were asked to keep their hands off the car horn on Wednesday. Lagos state governor Babatunde Fashola declared the date "No Horn Day" in a move to reduce noise pollution in Nigeria's biggest city and economic capital. Unsurprisingly, many in Lagos took to social media to voice their thoughts on the initiative, so CNN's Marketplace Africa has collated some of the best reactions below. Did you take part in the initiative and do you think the benefits will last beyond the day? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below. | Lagos officials declared October 15 as "No Horn Day"
The initiative aims to improve health in the Nigerian megacity of 21 million .
Citizens voiced their opinions about the initiative on Twitter . |
279,606 | f6388951f35176cb4592193ab62075773a70bb8c | By . Steve Doughty . PUBLISHED: . 18:27 EST, 26 September 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 18:32 EST, 26 September 2013 . Lord Justice Leveson, the judge who led the inquiry into the culture, ethics and practice of the Press, has been promoted to a senior High Court role. He is to be President of the Queen’s Bench Division from next month. The Division handles defamation cases and although he is not expected to hear any cases himself, he will pick the judges who do. New position: Lord Justice Leveson, the judge who led the inquiry into the culture, ethics and practice of the Press, has been promoted to a senior High Court role . The appointment means Sir Brian Leveson will be involved in further dealings with the Press. The Queen’s Bench Division previously attracted controversy in a row over judge Sir David Eady, who was responsible for a number of privacy law rulings. Critics said a single judge had been given too great a share of important cases to hear. Sir Brian, 64, was a candidate to take over as Lord Chief Justice, but the job went to Sir John Thomas. Sorry we are unable to accept comments for legal reasons. | Sir Brian Leveson promoted to senior High Court role .
He will be involved in further dealings with the Press .
QBD attracted controversy in row over Sir David Eady .
He was responsible for number of privacy law rulings . |
72,009 | cc216daa0bdc1a44f0ad9ca4828a39e614074dae | By . Lizzie Edmonds . Headteacher Peter Maddocks, who failed to attend an emergency public meeting about high levels of absent staff at his school in Dolgellau, Wales . A school has come under fire today after it was forced to hold an emergency meeting about high levels of absent staff - but when parents turned up, the headteacher was not there. Governors at Ysgol y Gader school in Dolgellau, Gwynedd, Wales, agreed to the meeting after parents created a petition voicing concerns over staff absenteeism. It also said they were alarmed about teaching and learning standards. The meeting was due to be held last Wednesday at 7pm in the school hall. However, headteacher Peter Maddocks was not present - with parents apparantly unaware he was not going to attend. The council have confirmed that he was not at the meeting and is currently absent from work - but they did not explain why. However, one parent at the 400-pupil school, who asked not to be named, said they have been told he is off sick. They said: 'The meeting was a farce and now we have been told the headteacher is off sick. Someone needs to step in to sort this mess out. 'Ysgol y Gader used to be an excellent school, but parents don't know what's happening.' Another angry parent said: 'The damage has already been done.' It is not clear whether anyone else was present to represent the headteacher. The parent petition handed to governors read: . 'We believe that the school is failing to provide suitably-qualified . staff to cover lessons during long-term staff absences, which leads to a . lack of consistence and rigour in the standard of teaching and . learning. 'It also causes a lack of progress in pupils' learning. 'We are also concerned about the number of experienced staff who have recently left Ysgol y Gader, sometimes at short notice.' The . petition went on to say: 'Pupils regularly complain that they have not . had a formal lesson and/or that lessons are poorly planned with a lack . of continuity and progression. 'Pupils . also regularly complain of being taught by classroom assistants, who . are there to support the qualified teachers, not to shoulder the . responsibility of delivering the lesson, . Parents began the petition following concerns over high levels of staff absence and teaching standards at the Ysgol y Gader School (pictured) 'This is unfair on the classroom assistant and unfair on the pupils.' The . governors' letter informing parents of the meeting said: 'Following a . petition received from parents/guardians, a meeting between the school . governors and parents will be held on Wednesday, 19 March, 2014 at . 7.00pm in the school hall.' A Gwynedd Council spokesman said: 'We . can confirm that Ysgol y Gader's headteacher was not present at the . public meeting last week and that he is not at work at present. 'In the meantime, a member of staff has been designated as a headteacher-in-charge.' Cllr Dyfrig Siencyn, chairman of governors at Ysgol y Gader said: 'The governing body recognises that there are concerns regarding staff absenteeism at Ysgol y Gader during the current academic year. 'As a school we are working with Gwynedd Council's education department and taking all possible steps to address the situation so that we ensure continuity of the pupils' education.' Cllr Dyfrig Siencyn said after the three-hour meeting he was not in a position to make an additional statement. Dewi . Jones, Gwynedd Council head of education said: 'Gwynedd Council's . Education Department works with all the county's schools to raise . educational standards. 'In . the case of Ysgol y Gader, education officers are working closely with . the staff and governors to address the concerns that have been raised.' Dear Parent/Guardian . Following a petition received from parents/guardians, a meeting between the school governors and parents will be held on: . Wednesday, 19 March, 2014 at 7.00pm in the school hall. The agenda of the meeting will be to discuss the two following points only: . 1. Staff absenteeism and staff turnover. We believe the high levels of staff absenteeism in Ysgol Y Gader are having a detrimental impact on pupils' progress and achievement in their studies. We believe that the school is failing to provide consistance (sic) and rigour in the standard of teaching and learning. It also causes a lack of progress in pupils' learning. This is particular concern in the case of core subjects such as science and maths, but also in subjects such as music. "We are also concerned about the number of experienced staff who have recently left Ysgol y Gader, sometimes at short notice. This was evident in the case of history where a member of staff left abruptly during the summer, which consequently meant a whole term of GCSE syllabus was delivered by a retired supply teacher. This adds weight to the strong anecdotal evidence to suggest there is a culture of overbearing management in the school, causing a serious issue with staff morale. 2. Monitoring of standards in teaching and learning. We are concerned about the standards in teaching and learning in some subjects. Pupils regularly complain that they have not had a formal lesson and/or that lessons are poorly planned, with a lack of continuity and progression. Pupils also regularly complain of being taught by classroom assistants, who are there to support qualified teachers; not to shoulder the responsibility of delivering the lesson. This is unfair on the classroom assistant and unfair on the pupils. In accordance with guidance no matters other than those raised in the petition can be discussed. Note also that discussion that may refer to individual members of staff, parents or pupils will not be allowed. I look forward to a beneficial and positive meeting. Yours sincerely, . Dyfrig Siencyn - Chairman . | Parents at Ysgol y Gader school, Wales, created petition about absent staff .
Meeting arranged and staff absenteeism was put at the top of agenda .
But headteacher Peter Maddocks was not present - and is now not at work .
One parent said: 'The meeting was a farce. Someone needs to step in' |
17,203 | 30bf029bf3f60f1309546855dba5b815d81e03f6 | By . Sarah Bridge . PUBLISHED: . 12:18 EST, 21 October 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 12:18 EST, 21 October 2013 . It's not often there is a centenarian in the family, least of all two. Yet identical sisters Marjorie Gilbert and Winifred Witt are celebrating a century together today as they both turn 100 years old. Marjorie Gilbert and Winifred Witt from Cwmbran, South Wales, are thought to be among just fifteen sets of twins in the world who have both turned 100, and fewer again who are identical. Identical twins Marjorie Gilbert (R) and Winifred Whitt celebrate their 100th birthday today in Cwmbran, Wales. They are thought to be Wales' oldest twins . Marjorie and Winifred, who live in a nursing home, are known as 'the Twins' and do everything together. Winifred’s son Nolan Witt said: 'They are inseparable - it has always been that way, from the day they were born, to the day they will die. 'There were times when we didn’t know which one was which, even as their children. I’m sure there were some boyfriends along the way who were the same.' The pair were born in 1913, and through their childhood they shared clothes, books and even a bed.Marjorie’s . daughter, Ann Eccleshare, said: 'I remember my Auntie Win saying to me . she cried herself to sleep the night Marjorie got married, because that . was the first night she had ever slept alone. It’s lovely the way they . have grown old so happily and sweet-natured together.' Together forever: the twins aged just six months (left, with Marjorie on the left) and aged 81 (Marjorie on right) Both sisters married aged 21 but they were determined not to live apart and so they moved both their families into one house in Pontrhydyrun, South Wales, during the war. They had four children each, with nine grandchildren on Winifred’s side, and eight on Marjorie’s side. They have 14 great grandchildren each, while Winifred has four great, great grandchildren and Marjorie has two. After their husbands had both died, in 1992, they began living together once more and they would play bingo together every Saturday at the Mecca, Cwmbran, until they were 95. Nolan said: 'They have had two families their whole lives. We think that when one dies, the other will follow too. You can’t have one without the other, they come as a pair.' Ann said: 'It was like having two mums for us children. You would buy the same Christmas and birthday presents for them both. They were never different.' Gwyneth Virgo, manager of the nursing home they share, said: 'They are real characters the two of them. They come alive at night. They sleep all day and then 7.30pm comes and bang, they are bickering away. It’s comical. 'We are going to make a big fuss of them for their birthday. We’ve got cakes, flowers, balloons - the lot.' | Thought to be only 15 sets of twins in the world who have both turned 100 .
Marjorie and Winifred have been inseparable all their lives even when married and still live together .
Between them they have 8 children, 17 grandchildren, 28 great-grandchilden and 6 great-great grandchildren . |
61,882 | afca1f695102abb9bbcfde98cb8ff1f901fa7b73 | By . Neil Ashton . The Premier League’s top clubs claim they are clean after Barcelona were banned from two transfer windows for breaching rules relating to signing Under 18 players. Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City and Arsenal insist they all acted within FIFA guidelines over the transfer of young players into English football. Barcelona have been stopped from signing players in the next two transfer windows for breaching Article 19 of the FIFA statutes. FIFA raided Barcelona’s La Masia academy over the signings of Dutch-Nigerian Under 14 Bobby Adekanye; three Korean Under 15s (Lee Seung Woo, Paik Seung-Ho and Jang Gyeolhee), France Under 16 Theo Chendri, and Cameroon Under 14 Patrice Sousia. VIDEO Scroll down to watch Transfer ban? No problem as Barcelona's youth players dazzle . Blow: Barcelona's Lionel Messi and Cesc Fabregas react after the draw against Atletico Madrid on Tuesday . Grimace: Neymar goes to ground during the Champions League quarter-final first leg against Atletico . Ouch: Playmaker Andres Iniesta (centre) and Co will be hurting over their transfer ban . Lee Seung Woo - Korean, Cadete B (U15s)Paik Seung-Ho -Korean, Cadete A (U16s)Jang Gyeolhee - Korean, Cadete B (U15s)Theo Chendri - French, Cadete A (U16s)Patrice Sousia - Cameroon, Infantil A (U14s) Bobby Adekanye - Dutch Nigerian (U14s) Barcelona have also been fined £305,000 and the Spanish FA £340,000 after the . breaching of regulations on player registration. The . Spanish champions were investigated after signing 10 minors and . registering them to play in competitions between 2009 and 2013. Barcelona’s . administration has been scrutinised since they were forced to admit the . total cost to sign Neymar from Santos will be £71.5million, not £47.3m, . including payments to Neymar and his family. Former president Sandro Rosell, blamed for breaching FIFA regulations in this latest controversy, was forced to resign. Barcelona, . winners of the Champions League three times in the last 10 years, are . owned by their members and claim to be ‘more than a club’. Premier . League clubs attend regular FIFA workshops and all four Champions . League teams claim confidence in their recruitment procedure for young . players. Read all about it: Messi, pictured on the set of Pepsi's new ad, will have no new colleagues for a while . Level pegging: Neymar's second-half goal helped Barca avoid a home defeat against Atletico . Relief: Neymar celebrates his equaliser against Atletico which keeps Barca in with a shout of progress . FIFA prevents cross-border moves for players under the age of 18 unless they meet one of three requirements under Article 19. Young . players can sign for a club in another country only if they can prove . their move, such as their parents relocating, is completely unrelated to . their football career. Players can also move within other EU countries and the final exception is if the club is within 50km of their home. After . Chelsea successfully appealed against a two-year ban for a similar . infringement after signing Gael Kakuta from Lens, Barcelona confirmed . last night they would appeal against their transfer ban. A 14-point . statement read: ‘The rule supposedly infringed exists to protect minors . against sports clubs that incorporate them without guaranteeing their . rights and education but those are the very things our youth academy . stands for.’ The club also . said all its players were legal residents of Spain and that none had . played in official games since FIFA began investigating their cases and . withdrew their registrations. Chelsea . defender David Luiz is a long-term target for club captain Carles Puyol . who will retire at the end of the season but that move is now in . jeopardy. The new Luka Modric? Barca's move for teenage Croatian playmaker Alen Halilovic (left) is now in doubt . Barca bound? Borussia Moenchengladbach goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen . The soft drinks company has teamed up with Lionel Messi, Robin van Persie, Jack Wilshere, Sergio Aguero, Sergio Ramos and David Luiz for an interactive advert set around the streets of Rio de Janiero. CLICK HERE to read more. Barca . president Josep Bartomeu was set to spend £100m in summer, but FIFA’s . sanctions will also put in doubt the transfers of German keeper . Marc-Andre ter Stegen and 17-year-old Croatian Alen Halilovic. Everton’s . hopes of keeping striker Gerard Deulofeu for another season may be . dashed if Barcelona cannot recruit players next season. FIFA’s . statement relating to Barcelona’s conduct said: ‘The disciplinary . committee emphasised the protection of minors in the context of . international transfers is an important social and legal issue that . concerns all stakeholders in football. ‘The . committee highlighted that while international transfers might, in . specific cases, be favourable to a young player’s sporting career, they . are very likely to be contrary to the best interests of the player as a . minor. Young football players are vulnerable to exploitation and abuse . in a foreign country without the proper controls. ‘This . particular fact makes the protection of minors in football by the . sport’s governing bodies, especially by FIFA, even more important.’ Dilemma: Barca will have to work out a way of coping without goalkeeper Victor Valdes . Problem: Valdes suffered a serious knee injury last week and is due to leave the club in the summer . Deep pockets: Barca have made at least one big-money buy in recent summers, including Fabregas in 2011 . The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has sanctioned the Real Federacion Espanola de Futbol (RFEF) and Spanish club FC Barcelona for breaches relating to the international transfer and registration of players under the age of 18. The sanctions follow investigations initially conducted by FIFA Transfer Matching System GmbH (FIFA TMS) over the course of last year and subsequently by the FIFA Disciplinary Committee as part of disciplinary proceedings. The RFEF and FC Barcelona were found to have violated several provisions concerning the international transfer and first registration of non-Spanish minors with the club, as well as other relevant regulations with regard to the registration and participation of certain players in national competitions. The investigations concerned several minor players who were registered and participated in competitions with the club over various periods between 2009 and 2013. Currently, the main provision relating to the protection of minors in the context of international transfers is art. 19 of the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (the 'Regulations'). According to art. 19, international transfers of players are only permitted if the player is over the age of 18. However, the same article stipulates that international transfers of minor players are permitted under three limited circumstances, and such exceptions may only be granted after evaluation by the sub-committee of the Players’ Status Committee. In this respect, the Disciplinary Committee emphasised that the protection of minors in the context of international transfers is an important social and legal issue that concerns all stakeholders in football. Above all, the committee highlighted that while international transfers might, in specific cases, be favourable to a young player’s sporting career, they are very likely to be contrary to the best interests of the player as a minor. On the basis of this analysis, the committee concluded that 'the interest in protecting the appropriate and healthy development of a minor as a whole must prevail over purely sporting interests.' The Disciplinary Committee underlined that FIFA takes the protection of minors in football very seriously. The protection of minors is one of the key principles included in the agreement concluded between FIFA, UEFA and the European Commission in 2001. The Disciplinary Committee acknowledged that young football players are vulnerable to exploitation and abuse in a foreign country without the proper controls. This particular fact makes the protection of minors in football by the sport’s governing bodies, especially by FIFA, even more important. With regard to the case in question, FC Barcelona has been found to be in breach of art. 19 of the Regulations in the case of ten minor players and to have committed several other concurrent infringements in the context of other players, including under Annexe 2 of the Regulations. The Disciplinary Committee regarded the infringements as serious and decided to sanction the club with a transfer ban at both national and international level for two complete and consecutive transfer periods, together with a fine of CHF 450,000. Additionally, the club was granted a period of 90 days in which to regularise the situation of all minor players concerned. With regard to the RFEF, the Disciplinary Committee determined that the association had also violated art. 19 of the Regulations and other provisions in the context of the transfer and first registration of certain minor players. In this respect, the RFEF was sanctioned with a fine of CHF 500,000 and granted a period of one year in which to regularise their regulatory framework and existing system concerning the international transfer of minors in football. In addition, the RFEF and the club were issued with a reprimand in accordance with art. 14 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code. The web-based Transfer Matching System (TMS) became mandatory for all international transfers of professional male players within the scope of eleven-a-side football in October 2010. As early as 2009, the use of TMS was obligatory in all applications for a first registration of a minor or an international transfer involving a minor in accordance with art. 19 of the Regulations. FIFA TMS, founded as a FIFA subsidiary in 2007, established a compliance programme in 2010 to ensure that all international transfers of professional football players are conducted through TMS in accordance with the Regulations, and to control the integrity of club and association behaviour and data in TMS. Cases involving violations of the Regulations, in particular Annexes 2 and 3, are identified and investigated and, where applicable, are then forwarded to the FIFA Disciplinary Committee for evaluation and decision. FIFA TMS monitors transfer activity using internally-developed market intelligence, external sources and information received from the FIFA Players’ Status & Governance and Disciplinary & Governance departments. | Barcelona's plans are thrown into chaos by transfer ban imposed by FIFA .
Catalan giants had planned £100m summer spending spree .
Signings of Alen Halilovic and Marc-Andre ter Stergen are now in doubt .
Ban has been imposed over illegal signing of Under 18 players .
Barcelona have confirmed they will appeal the decision .
Premier League clubs insist they all acted within FIFA guidelines . |
20,613 | 3a77d4a860ea52c053c40bbc4c15fe6a5e90a01e | These adorable cubs may look cute and unassuming but they are in fact the rarest of their species – and could grow to be the biggest cats in the world. The four handsome male ‘liger’ cubs are the first ever to be born from a white male lion and white female tiger, making them the world’s most unique big cats. There are only around 300 white lions and 1,200 white tigers left in the world, so the cubs’ father, Ivory and mother, Saraswati, are extremely rare in their own right. Scroll down for video . Meet the family: Yeti, Odlin, Sampson and Apollo are the world's first ever white lion-tiger hybrids - or 'ligers' Four of a kind: The male cubs were born from a white male lion and white female tiger, making them unique . Rare pairing: Parents Ivory, a lion, and Saraswati, a tiger, were brought together at a park in South Carolina . But now, having been brought together at Myrtle Beach Safari in South Carolina, they have produced the first ever white lion-tiger hybrids - commonly known as ligers. There are around 1,000 ligers in the world – most in captivity – but none of them are white. Born only six weeks ago, the young animals already weigh 15lbs and gain on average a pound in weight every day. And the boys, named Yeti, Odlin, Sampson and Apollo, already have their own personalities. Unique breed: There are around 1,000 ligers in the world - most in captivity - but none of the others are white . Big cats: The handsome male 'liger' cubs already weigh 15lbs and gain on average a pound in weight every day . Apollo is the smallest, who his owners say behaves more like a house kitten, purring all the time and always demanding to be stroked. Yeti is the biggest and most boisterous, pushing past his smaller brothers and always wanting to be the centre of attention. The cubs’ uncle, Hercules, is officially the world’s largest cat at 922 lbs and 131 inches long and is featured in the Guinness Book of World Records. Founder and director of the safari, Dr . Bhagavan Antle, who bred the animals, says he is sure Yeti will reach . this size – if not larger. Individual characters: The boys, who were bred at Myrtle Beach Safari, already have their own personalities . ‘I am convinced Yeti will make the Guinness Book of Records. He’s so big already – he has such a big, fat head and paws. ‘All the cubs grow so quickly, but Yeti is already so much bigger. ‘I skip a day seeing them and it looks like they’ve doubled in size. It’s like someone’s blowing them up with a tyre pump.’ Dr Antle, who set up the safari 31 years . ago and had his first litter of ligers in 1988, said: ‘People are . getting on planes to fly in to see them. Record size: Their uncle, Hercules (pictured), is officially the world's largest cat at 922 lbs and 131 inches long . ‘We’ve had everyone from Congress to people of all walks of life come. They are honestly such an incredibly unique sight. ‘They have a beautiful creamy colour that I’ve never seen on a cat before.' The cubs are expected to reach 10ft tall by two years old and weigh around 750lbs. When they are four-years-old they could weight over 900lbs. Their father, Ivory, is a white African lion and their mother, Saraswati, is a snow white Bengal tiger. Ligers tend to enjoy swimming, which is a characteristic of tigers, and are sociable like lions. | Yeti, Odlin, Sampson and Apolo are the world's most unique big cats .
First 'liger' cubs to be born from white male lion and white female tiger .
At six weeks old, they already weigh 15lbs and gain a pound a day . |
161,988 | 5d73d77da9b4a0fdc15a3a3dcbdeb3313925ca93 | By . Sophie Jane Evans . PUBLISHED: . 08:14 EST, 3 February 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 12:34 EST, 3 February 2014 . Nelson Mandela's ex-wife Winnie Madikizela-Mandela has been left out of his will, it has been revealed. The former South African president has divided up his £2.5million estate between family members, staff and the ruling African National Congress. However, he has chosen to give nothing to Ms Madikizela-Mandela - his second wife, with whom he had two daughters, Zenani and Zindziswa. Nelson Mandela's ex-wife, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela (right) has been left out of his will, it has been revealed. The 40-page document was read out by executor Dikgang Moseneke (left) in public in Johannesburg today . Reading: The former South African president has left his £2.5million estate to family members, staff and the ruling African National Congress. He has also left money to several local schools. Above, the reading of the will . Emotional: Mandela's daughter Zenani Mandela-Dlamini hugs a companion after hearing her father's will . Mandela, a prisoner during white racist rule who became South Africa's first black president, died on December 5 at the age of 95 - prompting a 10-day mourning period and a global outpouring of tributes . Meanwhile, his . third wife, Graca Machel, has been named as the main beneficiary of the . will because their marriage was 'in community of property', according to executor, Deputy Chief Justice Dikgang Moseneke. She is therefore entitled to 50 per cent of his estate, which has been provisionally valued at 46 million rand (£2.5million), excluding royalties. Mandela's 40-page will - drawn up in 2004, with provisions updated in 2005 and . 2008 - was read out in Johannesburg this morning. The division of his extensive estate was expected to spark squabbling among his 30 children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Mandela has chosen to give nothing to Ms Madikizela-Mandela - with whom he had two daughters, Zenani and Zindziswa. Above, the former couple are pictured together in Cape Town following Mandela's jail release . Ms Madikizela-Mandela speaks with Archbishop Desmond Tutu during Mandela's memorial service last year . Meanwhile, Mandela's third wife, Graca Machel (above), has been named the main beneficiary of the document . But it is believed to have been accepted by his family with no contest so far. As the main beneficiary, Ms Machel must claim her half of the estate within 90 days, said Moseneke, who was joined by executors George Bizos, a human rights lawyer who was a longtime friend of Mandela, and Themba Sangoni, a chief judge from the Eastern Cape province. He added that although Madikizela-Mandela was not mentioned in the . will, her grandchildren will each receive $9,000 (£5,500). Ms Machel is entitled to 50 per cent of Mandela#s estate, which has been provisionally valued at 46 million rand (£2.5million), excluding royalties. Above, Gordon Brown (left) meets Mandela (centre) and Ms Machel in 2005 . Hero: Mandela, a prisoner during white racist rule, leaves behind a great financial and political legacy . Moseneke said . the reading of the will to Mandela's relatives 'went well' - but added . 'There were clarifications sought from time to time'. The . anti-apartheid hero's wealth is being split between three trusts set up . by him, including a trust designed to provide for his family members, he said. Mandela, a prisoner during white racist . rule who became South Africa's first black president, died on December 5 at the age of . 95 - prompting a 10-day mourning period in the nation and a global . outpouring of tributes. He leaves behind an estate that includes an upscale house in . Johannesburg and a modest dwelling in his rural Eastern Cape home province. It also includes royalties from book sales, including Mandela's autobiography, 'Long Walk . to Freedom'. More visibly, his legacy involves a potent political and moral brand that some of his grandchildren and great-grandchildren have already used to market everything from clothing to reality TV. Family: Mandela poses with his family during birthday celebrations in Qunu. They have accepted his will so far . Some of his grandchildren have started a . line of caps and sweatshirts that feature his image under the brand . 'Long Walk to Freedom'. Meanwhile, two of his U.S.-based granddaughters have starred in a reality television show called "Being Mandela". Such aggressive marketing - as well as reports of fighting among family members over Mandela's money - have fuelled the impression in South Africa that some of the family members have exploited their famous relative. Almost 50 people or institutions are named as beneficiaries in Nelson Mandela's will, according to an executive summary. The main beneficiaries are: . | Nelson Mandela has left £2.5million estate to family, staff and ruling ANC .
Ex-South African president has also left money to several local schools .
Forty-page will was read out in public in Johannesburg this morning .
It has been accepted by family with no contest so far, says executor .
His third wife, Graca Machel, is the main beneficiary of the document .
But his ex-wife, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, was not mentioned in will .
However, her two grandchildren will each receive $9,000 (£5,000) |
221,920 | ab3f6cac4a149847a1f10eba20962ead23cd4db1 | (CNN) -- We're keeping an eye on five high-profile cases this week. We may see a verdict in one (the Whitey Bulger trial), a sentence in another (the Bradley Manning case) and more fireworks in a third (the Nidal Hasan court-martial). Also this week, the lawyer for a teen whose Facebook post landed him in jail will argue that the case be thrown out. And we wait to see if a grand jury indicts former NFL tight end Aaron Hernandez. 'WHITEY' BULGER CASE: Deliberations resume . After deliberating for 28 hours over four days, a federal jury broke for the weekend without announcing a verdict in the trial of reputed Boston crime boss James "Whitey" Bulger. The eight-man, four-woman panel will resume work Monday morning to process testimony from more than 70 witnesses and more than 800 exhibits compiled during the seven weeks of the trial. Bulger, 83, is accused of racketeering, including involvement in 19 killings, and also 13 counts of extortion and money-laundering during a 20-year "reign of terror" that defined South Boston from the early '70s through 1995, when Bulger fled Boston. Patricia Donahue, the widow of one of Bulger's alleged victims, said she believed "the jurors are looking at the situation and trying to do right by all of us." Still, Donahue said, "If deliberations go for a long period of time I'm going to start to worry about a mistrial." -- Deborah Feyerick and Kristina Sgueglia . See all the charges the jury will decide (PDF) Deliberations in 'Whitey' Bulger trial resume Monday . BRADLEY MANNING TRIAL: Awaiting a sentence . Last week, a military judge combined some of the criminal convictions in Bradley Manning's national security leak case, reducing his maximum possible prison sentence from 136 years to 90. But Col. Denise Lind has not indicated when she will sentence Manning. Manning, a former Army intelligence analyst, was convicted of stealing and disseminating 750,000 pages of classified documents and videos to WikiLeaks. The leaks dealt with U.S. military strategy in Iraq to State Department cables outlining foreign relationships. They also included a secret military video from the Iraq war. Lind acquitted Manning of the most grievous charge of aiding the enemy, which carried a maximum life sentence. But she found him guilty of other counts that include violations of the Espionage Act. Lind could decide not to slap him with the maximum for each count. She may rule that he'll serve the sentences concurrently, rather than consecutively. The government is still presenting witnesses during the sentencing phase at Fort Meade, Maryland. The defense is expected to present several witnesses as well. -- Larry Shaughnessy . What's next for Bradley Manning? Manning's father says son was 'grandstanding' NIDAL HASAN COURT MARTIAL: Quick testimonies . When the admitted Fort Hood gunman's trial reconvenes Monday, prosecutors will continue their brisk march through the witness list. By the end of Friday, they had called 48 of their 80 witnesses in three days, a fast pace enabled in part by Nidal Hasan declining to cross-examine anyone in the first two days. Hasan is accused of killing 13 people and wounding 32 others in a November 2009 shooting rampage at the Army post near Killeen, Texas. Hasan, an Army psychiatrist who was paralyzed by a police bullet during the rampage, admitted at the start of the trial that he was the shooter at the medical building where soldiers were being prepared for deployment to Afghanistan and Iraq. If convicted, he could face the death penalty. In a military capital trial, a guilty plea is not an option. Hasan is representing himself, but has three attorneys as backup. The attorneys have asked to drop out of the case, saying they believed Hasan is trying to help the prosecution achieve a death sentence. But the judge, Col. Tara Osborn, ruled Thursday that they must continue, saying it was "nothing more than their disagreement with Hasan's strategy in conducting his defense." -- Josh Rubin . Hasan's attorneys trying to leave case . Fort Hood victims feel betrayed . JUSTIN CARTER TERRORISM CHARGE: Seeking a dismissal . Justin Carter, a 19-year-old Texas teen, is facing a felony terrorism charge for posting, during an argument about a video game, what he said was a sarcastic comment. According to court documents, Cater wrote, "I'm f***ed in the head alright. I think I'ma (sic) shoot up a kindergarten and watch the blood of the innocent rain down and eat the beating heart of one of them." His father said Carter followed the claim with "LOL" and "J/K," indicating that the comment wasn't serious. Authorities said someone reported the comment, which came about two months after the mass killings at Sandy Hook Elementary School, leading to Carter's arrest February 21 on a felony charge of making terroristic threats. In Texas, that carries a sentence of up to 10 years in prison. On Monday, at a pretrial hearing, Carter's lawyer will ask that the case be dismissed on First Amendment grounds. They say his comments were taken out of context, and that Carter made no real threat because he used the words, "I think." "They need to look at the context of what's put online. Because if they would, they would have seen that it was sarcasm," said attorney Donald Flanary. -- Pamela Brown . Teen jailed for Facebook 'joke' released on bail . AARON HERNANDEZ MURDER CASE: Fiance in the spotlight . Investigators want to know if former NFL tight end Aaron Hernandez asked his fiance to hide the .45 caliber gun used in the killing of Odin Lloyd. Llyod's bullet-riddled body was found in a Massachusetts industrial park on Father's Day, about a mile from Hernandez's home. He was shot five times. The gun has yet to be found. Prosecutors have accused the former New England Patriot of orchestrating the death. Hernandez, 23, has pleaded not guilty to murder. He is being held without bail. On Friday, his hometown newspaper, The Bristol Press in Connecticut, reported on newly unsealed search warrants that seem to suggest that his fiance, Shayanna Jenkins, took a lock box from his North Attleboro home to a storage facility. Another defendant, Carlos Ortiz, allegedly told police that after the killing, Hernandez put two guns into a lock box. According to surveillance tapes, Jenkins carried a "rigid object" the size of a lock box from the home into a car. She returned about a half hour later without it. In the documents, police say Jenkins may either have dumped the gun in the woods or took them to the storage facility in Bristol, where Hernandez had rented a unit. CNN was unable to reach Hernandez's lawyers for comment. There's a probable cause hearing on Hernandez's first-degree murder charges on August 22, unless a grand jury that's looking into the case indicts him first. -- Susan Candiotti . Official: Lake search didn't turn up weapon in Aaron Hernandez case . | Deliberations resume in the Bulger case .
Bradley Manning awaits sentencing .
Nidal Hasan's trial reconvenes .
Grand jury looks into indictments in the Hernandez case . |
271,946 | ec44d1e6838a83363ee67b867e455dea4fa564a8 | With a detailed birth plan and her mother on hand to help out, actress Vivian Gray thought she had written the perfect script for the arrival of her second child. But her baby son had other ideas. Sky was so keen to make his debut that he had to be delivered on the pavement outside the hospital...in a street fittingly called Hollywood Road and with his grandmother’s Burberry coat hurriedly laid out for him on the ground. Miss Gray with her mother, who laid out her Burberry coat, and medical staff who helped her give birth on the street . Miss Gray, 31, began having . contractions in the early hours, a week before her due date. When her . waters broke, she presumed she had plenty of time to walk to the local . maternity unit. She set off for Chelsea and Westminster Hospital with her husband Adrian Jayasinha, 38, an investment banker, and her mother Alicia Gray, a plastic surgeon, who was staying at their home. But just 30 yards from the hospital doors, Miss Gray could walk no further and realised her baby had decided he wasn’t waiting any longer. Yesterday the Scottish-born actress, who is well-known in the US for playing villain Suzy Edwards in television drama Desire, said: ‘I started having mild contractions in the middle of the night. I was fairly confident I had some time, so I thought, “Relax, stay in bed a bit longer”. ‘After a couple of hours they started getting more frequent and a bit stronger, and I thought I’d time them on my iPhone to see if perhaps I was going into labour. ‘The problem was that I couldn’t quite focus on the timer. That’s when I realised the contractions were already very strong. So I woke up my husband, and unexpectedly my waters broke. I stood there stunned. Then I thought I should put some make-up on so I would look good in the pictures when the baby was born – I was clearly a bit delirious.’ Medical staff from the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital came out to assist Miss Gray, who was eventually taken into the building on a stretcher . Miss Gray left home just after 5am, thinking it would be quicker to walk than get a taxi as the hospital was so close. But the contractions quickly became more powerful. ‘It was as if my body was doing all the work and I had no power over this pushing sensation,’ she said. ‘Adrian was immobilised, he just froze. Thankfully, my mother was like Sir Walter Raleigh throwing his cloak over a puddle for the Queen, and took off her Burberry coat for me to crouch on, then ran to the hospital for help. ‘The porter must have thought she was some kind of crazy lady because she was a bit frantic. Miss Gray and baby Sky were allowed out of hospital to go home 12 hours later to join her husband Adrian and older son Liam . ‘But the hospital was extremely efficient. Within three minutes, two midwives, two assistant midwives and two paramedics were with me with all the equipment and held sheets round me to screen me from view while they delivered the baby.’ Sky was born a healthy 7lb 9oz at 5.51am on June 12, just half an hour after Miss Gray’s waters broke. She had spent eight hours in labour with her first child Liam, now two, so Sky’s speedy delivery came as something of a shock. After the birth, she spent 12 hours in hospital before taking her newborn son home the same day. | Vivian Gray thought she had time to walk to hospital to give birth .
But 30 yards from hospital she couldn't walk and realised baby was coming .
Gave birth on the street after her mother laid out her Burberry coat .
Baby Sky was born, a healthy 7lbs and 9oz, half hour after her waters broke . |
132,811 | 37bcc80fbfdbba8cb91dd040cbe5a5a9a9b28650 | By . Tom Latchem . You'd imagine playing a notorious Coronation Street baddie - and taking all the flak that comes with it - might put you off soap for life. But seven years after his character, domestic abuser Charlie Stubbs, was bumped off, Bill Ward is back in soapland. Bill's joined Emmerdale as respectable farmer James Barton and he's thrilled. 'When I started acting I played lots of upstanding, decent types - doctors, lawyers, soldiers - so it's great to be back in that territory. I like James because he has a strong moral compass, but his principles might slip - so he can get jealous or seek revenge. I'm enjoying that.' Bill Ward is enjoying his character's dramatic return to soapland . Bill, 47, knows all about exploring the dark side of characters after three years playing Charlie - a serial cheat who kept girlfriend Shelley Unwin a virtual prisoner. He finally met his match in Tracy Barlow, who bashed his head in with a statue in 2007. An ambassador for domestic violence charity Women's Aid - which he consulted over the role - Bill says, 'I loved playing Charlie because I got to be very rude and badly behaved. From an acting point of view Charlie was magnificent. He shocked me. Every week I'd get a script, shake my head and think, "He can't do that!"' There've been shocks for his Emmerdale character too. James, who had a one-night stand with his late brother John's wife Moira Barton two decades ago, has discovered he's the father of her son Adam. Bill says, 'It's a nasty secret that's been bubbling away, and it'll soon explode into the open with devastating consequences for everyone.' Bill with co-star Natalie Robb who plays Moira - his late brother's widow . So how's Bill finding it back in the soap spotlight? 'The reaction I get now from fans compared to when I played Charlie is very different,' he says. 'Some people were horrified at what Charlie got up to, while others enjoyed the fact he went beyond what most normal, decent people would do. They congratulated me for making him so good to watch! 'James is more subdued, so now people say hello and chat about the show. I'm always touched when people come and talk to me, because it means your work's being watched and enjoyed. Long may it continue.' Bill commutes to the Emmerdale set near Leeds from Bristol, where he lives with his partner and two young children. 'I'm shy and like to keep myself to myself, so when I'm not acting I'm miles away from that world.' Bill, who once described himself as a 'jobbing actor', having come into the industry late following a successful career in advertising, is just happy to be in work. 'Making a living through acting is tough, and getting tougher,' he says, 'so I'm delighted whenever I get a new job because it means I'm working. As long as that continues I'll be happy.' Holidays, active or lazy? They're always active - and cold. I've done plenty of trekking in Iceland. There isn't a lot of lying around on beaches for me these days! Cinema or restaurant? I haven't watched a movie for ages. As my partner and I have kids, on a night out we'll have some food and chat. Music , jazz or classical? I play clarinet in a jazz band and have done for 25 years, so I listen to a lot of jazz. And 'dad rock', I guess you'd call it! Box sets, Breaking Bad or Mad Men? I love Mad Men; as a former advertising executive, I find it so accurate. The people who made it really did their research. TV, sport or drama? I watch a lot of sport: football, rugby and cricket. | Bill Ward returned to our soap screens this years after seven years away .
He comes back with a bang with a dramatic love child storyline .
He is father to the son of his late brother's widow . |
67,316 | befae77316f464da95a633803da450946169042b | Former President George W. Bush has said there is a 50-50 chance his brother Jeb will try to run for president. Brother Jeb, a former Florida governor, is 'wrestling with the decision' of running for the Republican nomination for president in 2016, George W. Bush says. However he insisted he would be 'all in' for his brother if he decides to run for the office and would do whatever he asks, even if it's to stay behind the scenes. Family ties: Former President George W. Bush has said there is a 50-50 chance his brother Jeb (pictured together during a campaign rally in Niceville, Florida, will try to run for president . 'I think it's 50-50,' the former president told CBS' 'Face the Nation.' 'He and I are very close. On the other hand, he's not here knocking on my door, you know, agonizing about the decision. He knows exactly, you know, the ramifications on family, for example. He's seen his dad and his brother go through the presidency. I'd give it a tossup.' The former president was more conservative in his estimate than another family member. Jeb Bush's son George P. Bush said two weeks ago it was more likely than not that the former Florida governor would move forward. George W. Bush is promoting '41,' a book about his father, former President George H.W. Bush. 'One of the lessons you learn from George H.W. Bush is that you can go into politics and still be a good father,' George W. Bush said when asked if it's worth putting a family through a presidential campaign. 'I put our family through it,' he responded. As for their mother's position that enough Bushes have run for president, he said, 'Sometimes her prognostications haven't been very accurate.' The younger Bush preceded Barack Obama in America's highest office, and saw his Pentagon's hard-fought gains in the region reversed by troop pullouts from both Afghanistan and Iraq. Support: George W. Bush said he would be 'all in' for his brother if he decides to run for the office and would do whatever he asks, even if it's to stay behind the scenes . During the interview he also said that he has no regrets about sending American servicemen and women to the Middle East for the conflict. GOP operatives and donors have reported that Bush is beginning to signal stronger interest in a presidential run, although some suggest he needs to act relatively quickly. 'If he waits too long he'll start to lose his advantages, the built-in network,' Republican strategist and former Minnesota Rep. Vin Weber said. 'Those people are not going to wait forever.' Twice over the last six years Florida voted for U.S. President Barack Obama, and political observers warned against reading too much into the Republican Party's win on Tuesday when looking ahead to the 2016 presidential elections. Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article. | Former president said his brother is 'wresting with the decision' of running .
Said the former Florida governor is weighing up ramifications on his family .
Jeb's son George P. Bush said last week he was more likely than not to run .
George W. said he would be 'all in' for his brother if he decided to go for it . |
243,001 | c68658ad29c91adb72a2fa5d3a27cb745fe5633d | (CNN) -- Purnima lives in Nepal. She wants to be a nurse. But because she is a girl instead of a boy, she is more likely to go to work than go to school. In Nepal, government schools start charging tuition in the sixth grade. But Purnima was selected to be part of the Girls Education program with the nonprofit Room to Read and was able to continue her education. "I am the first person getting an education in my family and my brother and sisters did not get the chance due to our family background ... we are from a poor family so we cannot afford to go to school," says Purnima. Purnima lives with her family in a room above the carpet factory where her older sister works. Her father is paralyzed. Her mother became blind when Purnima was 2 years old. All her siblings stopped going to school after the fifth grade. Purnima is 17 and has just finished secondary school at the top of her class. In fact, she was at the top of her class every year. Purnima is about to start two years of Nepal's post-secondary school and she plans to go on to college. For a long time, she wanted to be an eye doctor. Now she says she is going to be a nurse and she may have a good chance to do just that. According to Room to Read, about 76% of its graduates go on to some kind of university, college or vocational training after secondary school. The nonprofit Room to Read start working in Nepal more than 13 years ago. The organization now works for gender equality in education and overall literacy in Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Laos, Nepal, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Vietnam and Zambia. "Help them see their dreams and put them on the path to success ... with the life skills, drive and understanding, we get girls to the next step," says Rebecca Hankin of Room to Read. Room to Read works to develop literacy skills and a habit of reading among all schoolchildren. But it also tries to ensure girls have the skills and support needed to complete their secondary education. More than 7 million children have been given access to education through the nonprofit's network of libraries and schools. Kamlari - Nepal's modern slavery . Another obstacle for girls trying to get an education in Nepal is Kamlari. An illegal but still widely accepted tradition in Nepal, Kamlari is a system in which parents contract their daughters into indentured servitude for several years, often when the girls are as young as 5 or 6. They work long hours and are often physically and emotionally abused. Purnima was never sold as a Kamlari. In Nepal's Bardiya district, more than 600 ex-Kamlari girls are enrolled in Room to Read's Girls Education program. How you can help Kamlari girls and girls like Purnima in Nepal: . Give . You can help girls like Purnima go to school and chase their dreams by donating to Room to Read's Girls Education program. Thousands of girls in Nepal and other countries have been helped through school with books, school fees and mentorship. According to Room to Read, 96% of girls in the program advance to the next grade. Get involved . Volunteer for Room to Read in your community. There are more than 50 chapters in the United States and abroad. Be part of local volunteer activities and fundraising. Even spreading the word in your hometown can raise awareness about the need for girls to be educated. Find a chapter near you. Impact . For even more ways to make an impact on education for girls around the world, check out CNN's Impact Your World resources or take action with 10x10. - More about CNN Films' "Girl Rising" project . - More from CNN's Impact Your World . | Purnima from Nepal has just finished at the top of her class in secondary school .
Room to Read's Girls Education program has helped more than 21,000 girls attend school .
Purnima lives with her family in a room above the carpet factory where her older sister works .
In Nepal, parents follow tradition of Kamlari, selling daughters into indentured servitude . |
201,242 | 908d1e8f3ce139cced73189cf88052e9c082d574 | By . Emma Innes . PUBLISHED: . 05:20 EST, 20 November 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 05:48 EST, 20 November 2013 . People who turn red-faced when they drink are less able to tolerate alcohol and need to watch their blood pressure, new research has shown. A study found the risk of alcohol-related hypertension, or high blood pressure, was greater in people who develop a warm glow after drinking. The risk was significantly increased when ‘flushers’ consumed more than four drinks per week. People who turn red-faced when they drink (right) are less able to tolerate alcohol and need to watch their blood pressure, new research has shown. If they drink more than four alcoholic drinks a week they are at increased risk of high blood pressure . The rosy-cheeked, often portly, drinker has long been a figure of fun and one of the cartoonist's favourite characters. But the new research from Korea suggests that flushing red after a drink is no joke. High blood pressure, including alcohol-related high blood pressure, is a major cause of heart attacks and strokes because it puts strain on the blood vessels. ‘Facial flushing after drinking is always considered as a symptom of high alcohol sensitivity or even intolerance to alcohol, unless a patient is taking special medicine,’ said lead researcher Dr Jong Sung Kim, from Chungnam National University School of Medicine. ‘The facial flushing response to drinking usually occurs in a person who cannot genetically break down acetaldehyde, [a toxic product of alcohol produced when alcohol is broken down in the liver]. ‘To my knowledge, there has been no detailed research that has analysed the relationship between drinking and hypertension while considering individual responses to alcohol. ‘Our results indicate that hypertension associated with drinking has a lower threshold value and higher risk in flushers than in non-flushers. Women and East Asians are most likely to turn red faced after drinking but the problem can also affect Westerners and men, such as Jeremy Clarkson (pictured) ‘After adjusting for age, body mass index, exercise status, and smoking status, the risk of hypertension was significantly increased when flushers consumed more than four drinks per week. ‘In contrast, in non-flushers, the risk increased with consuming more than eight drinks per week.’ ‘Facial flushing after alcohol drinking differs across gender, age, and ethnic groups,’ added Kyung Hwan Cho, president of the Korean Academy of Family Medicine. ‘In general, it is more common in women, the elderly, and East Asians versus Westerners.’ The team, whose findings appear online in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research, examined the medical records of 1,763 Korean men, including 288 non-drinkers, 527 flushing drinkers, and 948 non-flushing drinkers. The risk of high blood pressure related to alcohol consumption was compared in flushers and non-flushers. Facial flushing after drinking may potentially serve as a marker of hypertension risk associated with alcohol, said Dr Kim. ‘Our research findings suggest that clinicians and researchers should, respectively, consider evaluating their patients' flushing response to alcohol as well as drinking amount in a daily routine care, and researching hazard by drinking,’ he added. The researchers admit it is not clear why people who turn red when they drink alcohol are at greater risk of high blood pressure. | People who turn red when they drink alcohol are less able to break down acetaldehyde - a toxic substance produced when alcohol is metabolised .
If they consume four or more alcoholic drinks a week they are at a significantly increased risk of developing high blood pressure .
People who don't turn red after drinking have an increased risk of high blood pressure if they drink eight or more alcoholic drinks a week .
Facial flushing after alcohol is most common in women and East Asians .
High blood pressure increases stroke and heart attack risk . |
80,230 | e35fb44f49f3feedea24e6a598bb2c5e88318fab | By . Mark Duell . PUBLISHED: . 11:23 EST, 29 July 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 11:45 EST, 29 July 2013 . Proceedings: Both prosecutions were brought by Attorney General Dominic Grieve (pictured) A juror dropped from the trial of an alleged sex offender after posting on Facebook that he wanted to ‘F*** up a paedophile’ was today jailed for two months for contempt of court. Kasim Davey, 21, of Palmers Green, north London, said there was ‘a lot of Jimmy Savile news at the time’ and he wrote the message as a result of ‘spontaneous surprise at the kind of case I was on’. Meanwhile Joseph Beard, 29, was also jailed for two months for contempt after using the internet to research the case he was sitting on as a juror at Kingston Crown Court in Surrey. Both men must serve half of their sentences behind bars. The men were sentenced at the High Court in central London for conduct likely to interfere with the administration of justice, after prosecutions brought by Attorney General Dominic Grieve. Davey had posted: ‘Woooow (sic), I wasn't expecting to be in a jury deciding a paedophile's fate - I've always wanted to f*** up a paedophile and now I'm within the law!’ A judge at Wood Green Crown Court was alerted and Davey was discharged last December from the retrial of Adam Kephalas, who was later convicted of sexual activity with a child. Beard was found to be guilty of contempt by using the internet to research the case he was on. The jury was trying two men accused of conspiracy to defraud and money laundering last year. The trial started on October 2 but ended on November 9 when the jury was discharged after his activities came to light. He is alleged to have done research via . Google which turned up extra information about the victims to the . alleged fraud, and then to have told fellow jurors about it. Hearings: Kasim Davey and Joseph Beard were sentenced at the High Court (pictured) in central London for conduct likely to interfere with the administration of justice . The defendants in the original trial, Ian Macdonald and David Downes, faced a retrial and were convicted in March. They were jailed for eight and four-and-a-half years respectively on April 18. Beard told the court he had no intention to cause disruption to the trial process, or to investigate the case online. He said he only wanted to find out how long the trial would take as he was worried that it would drag on, affecting his job and his family life. Last week, Davey appeared before Sir John Thomas, president of the Queen's Bench Division, and Mr Justice Sweeney at London's High Court as the Attorney General appeared in person to call for his committal to prison. Sir John announced in the case of Davey that the court was sure he ‘did an act which created a real risk of interference with the administration of justice, and it was specifically intended by him to interfere with the administration of justice’. The court had reached the same conclusion in the case of Beard. In a postscript to the judgment, Sir . John said that ‘every attempt is made to try and warn jurors not to use . the internet or social sites for any purpose in relation to the case’. He . added: ‘However, as is also clear, the language used is not consistent, . giving room for argument of the type advanced before us as to what a . juror might understand was prohibited.’ Trial: A judge at Wood Green Crown Court (pictured) was alerted to Davey's post and he was discharged last December from the retrial of Adam Kephalas, who was later convicted of sexual activity with a child . Sir John said: ‘Many judges have adopted the practice not only of warning the jury in terms similar to what the judges in these two cases did, but also handing the jury a notice setting out what they must and must not do, and the penal consequences of any breach. ‘They have done this so that no juror can subsequently claim that he or she did not understand what they should not do and what the consequences might be.’ Sir John said that after Davey was . discharged as a juror, the judge told the jury ‘in very sweeping terms . that they should not use the internet’. 'Woooow, I wasn't expecting to be in a jury deciding a paedophile's fate - I've always wanted to f*** up a paedophile and now I'm within the law!' Kasim Davey . He added: ‘We can quite understand why he did this, but as Lord Carlile QC (for Davey) pointed out, what he said went beyond what would be permissible under Articles 8 and 10, quite apart from imposing restrictions on jurors properly carrying out day to day tasks which cannot be easily done without use of the internet.’ The judge said the court proposed to invite the Criminal Procedure Rules Committee in consultation with the Judicial College to ‘review the terminology used in the material given to the jury’ and to consider whether to recommend that the practice of handing out a notice as well as the warning ‘should be universally followed’. After both men were sentenced to two months’ imprisonment, the Attorney General said: ‘Jurors who use the internet to research a case undermine justice. ‘It creates a risk that the defendant will be convicted or acquitted, not on the evidence, but on unchallenged and untested material discovered by the juror. ‘Equally, the case of Kasim Davey shows that jurors must follow the directions given to them by the trial judge not to discuss the case outside the jury room, including discussions and posts on the internet.’ | Kasim Davey, 21, of London said there was 'lots of Savile news at the time'
He wrote the message because of 'spontaneous surprise at case I was on'
Joseph Beard, 29, also jailed for two months at High Court for contempt .
He used internet to research case he was sitting on as a juror in Surrey .
Both prosecutions were brought by Attorney General Dominic Grieve . |
148,766 | 4c6039783ea3a8d07e7af22cd40b5cd3aa409431 | (CNN) -- The mother of the man who gunned down eight of his colleagues at a beer distributor in Connecticut earlier this month says her son was "no monster," but a "gentle spirit" who had reached his limit after being racially harassed at work. Omar Thornton, 34, called his mother, Lille Holliday, before fatally shooting himself, putting an end to the terrifying shooting spree that left eight people dead at Hartford Distributors in Manchester, Connecticut, on August 3. "He said, 'I just killed the five most racist people,' and I knew he wasn't playing because he don't talk like that," Holliday told CNN's Soledad O'Brien in an interview that aired Tuesday. Holliday said when she looked at her caller ID and saw that the phone call was coming from her son's place of employment, "I just kind of lost it." Manchester police have said they have found no evidence of racial discrimination, and the president of Hartford Distributors said Thornton never filed a claim alleging racial discrimination. Instead, the company said it had asked him to resign after it found him stealing and selling alcoholic beverages. Holliday disputed that statement in the interview, saying, "I know he reported the [racial] problems because he brought home the papers that they signed." Thornton's girlfriend, Kristi Hannah, has said Thornton reported seeing drawings of a hangman with a noose around its neck as well as hearing the N-word directed toward him. Holliday said she had few clues as to what Thornton was planning, but noted, "I could just kind of see slowly he was just getting frustrated and aggravated." "He was getting more stressed out and he started to just kind of change," Holliday said. "He started not being so relaxed but I never thought that it would be possible that something like this would happen." Asked about the how calm Thornton sounded when he placed a 911 call to police after the killings, Holliday said, "I think that he was at his limit and the calmness is something that he's always been. I've never really seen him enraged." Instead, Holliday described her son as a "gentle spirit" who would buy his mother's favorite ice cream and leave it in her freezer or leave a rose for her on her table. "I wish he was still here with me," she said. "I miss him so much." | Omar Thornton killed eight people at a Connecticut beer distributor this month .
His mother says he was being racially harassed and had reached his limit .
Hartford Distributors says it caught Thornton stealing and selling alcoholic beverages .
Thornton killed himself as police closed in on him . |
223,106 | acd559338156a61a198adae9ce499607d11360f0 | ROME, Italy -- Captain Javier Zanetti saved Inter Milan's unbeaten Serie A record as he rifled home a stunning late volley to earn a 1-1 draw against second-placed Roma at the San Siro on Wednesday. Zanetti celebrates his late strike as Inter retained their unbeaten Serie A record with a 1-1 draw against Roma. Roma captain Francesco Totti had given the visitors a deserved first-half leadbut Zanetti's strike two minutes from time maintained Inter's nine-point lead at the top. Roma needed to win to breathe new life into the title race but they were dealt a cruel blow as French defender Philippe Mexes was sent-off late on for two bookings in quick succession. Inter capitalised and they have now lost only once in their last 65 league matches. The home side had the first clear-cut chance of the match and were within centimeters of taking the lead when Hernan Crespo met a cross from Patrick Vieira with an acrobatic volley, but saw his effort cannon back off the post. The defending champions were made to pay for that miss on 38 minutes as the visitors orchestrated a sublime goal. Neat footwork from Macedonia international Mirko Vucinic released Max Tonetto down the left and his pin-point cross was flicked home at the near post by Totti from six meters out as he stole in front of defender Cristian Chivu. Inter center-back Nicolas Burdisso should have restored parity in first-half stoppage time but his header from Luis Figo's corner flew over the bar. Figo himself had a great chance on 54 minutes but after having time to set himself up for an attempted volley, he skewed his effort so badly that it did not even go out of play. After Mexes' dismissal 10 from time, Inter laid siege to Roma's goal. Goalkeeper Doni had to be alert to tip over Crespo's header three minutes from time but he could do nothing about Zanetti's volley a minute later. Meanwhile, AC Milan slipped to fifth place as they were held to a 1-1 draw at Catania. Brazilian teenager Pato gave them the lead early in the second half with a skimming long-range shot but substitute Gionathan Spinesi's header earnt the Sicilians a point. Fiorentina are up to fourth after they defeated Livorno 1-0 at home thanks to a goal from Senegal forward Ndiaye Papa Waigo. E-mail to a friend . | Javier Zanetti scores a late goal to earn Inter Milan a 1-1 draw against Roma .
The result keeps Inter nine points clear and retains their unbeaten league run .
AC Milan slipped to fifth position as they were held to a 1-1 draw at Catania . |
108,602 | 18085823cbd6f0bfafdd032d0be3c805e7b63154 | By . Kerry Mcdermott . PUBLISHED: . 15:15 EST, 18 September 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 05:44 EST, 19 September 2012 . Accused: Convicted murderer Mark Shirley, 42, is alleged to have raped and tortured a woman in a 12-hour attack with echoes of his other crimes . A convicted murderer out on licence broke into a woman’s home and subjected her to a horrifying 12-hour rape ordeal - in a chilling copycat of his first attack 18 years earlier, a court heard. Mark Shirley, who is alleged to have targeted the now 39-year-old after she spurned his advances in a bar, was said to have burst into her home wearing a balaclava 'like a scene from a horror film'. He then tied her to her bed before repeatedly raping her at knifepoint and stabbing her in the legs over a 12-hour period, Bristol Crown Court was told. The woman claimed Shirley, 42, even took breaks during the attack to make cups of tea, and sang the nursery rhyme Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary as he busied himself in her kitchen. The jury was told that before Shirley left his victim's home he said: 'If you ever have sex again, you will only think of me.' His alleged victim says she was left so traumatised by the 2005 ordeal she did not report it to police for six years. In the meantime Shirley was convicted of a separate copycat rape - this time of mum-of-five Helen Stockford, at her home in Bristol in 2009. Miss Stockford, then 40, was subjected to a terrifying ordeal lasting three-and-a-half hours in an apparent attempt to recreate the murder he had carried out 22 years earlier. Shirley was convicted of rape and false . imprisonment and was given a second life sentence with a minimum tariff . of nine years, which he is still currently serving. It followed his first conviction as a 17-year-old in 1987 for the sexually violent and ritualistic murder of of Mary Wainwright, 67, at her home in Cardiff. Shirley was given a life sentence but released on licence in 2003. After the second conviction the victim of . the alleged 2005 attack came forward and Shirley is now on trial for 12 . charges of assault by penetration, four charges of rape and one of . unlawful and malicious wounding. The . victim has said she was too frightened to report the attack earlier as . she was 'terrified' Shirley would come back for her, and that she piled . on weight in a deliberate attempt to change her appearance. Victim: Mother-of-five Helen Stockford waived her right to anonymity and spoke out after the earlier conviction of Mark Shirley for her rape in 2009 . William Mousley QC, prosecuting, told the court that Shirley and the victim had met on a night out in Bristol three weeks before the attack. He said that, in passing conversation, the woman told Shirley where she lived and that her flatmate was going away in three weeks' time. The conversation was then said to have turned sour, and the 39-year-old woman swore at Shirley 'to get rid of him'. 'They had not parted on good terms on that occasion,' Mr Mousley said. 'He was a relative stranger to her. When he turned up in her home she was not expecting him.' On the day of the alleged attack in December 2005 the woman was at home when she saw a white van pull up in her driveway, and then a balaclava-clad man burst into her house. She told police: 'For a millisecond I thought it was somebody messing about. He pushed me to the floor - I couldn’t work out who it was. He said, "You can’t say no now". 'It was like a horror film. All I could hear was my heart in my head going bang, bang, bang.' The court heard that the attacker took off his balaclava and said: 'You recognise me now, don’t you?' The woman told police in her interview: 'He was almost spitting at me, he was so angry. It was like he was an animal, not a person. He told me if I shut my eyes he’ll slit my throat.' At this point, she added, she noticed he had a knife. Murder scene: This image shows police officers at Cardiff home of widow Mary Wainwright, 67, who was murdered by Mark Shirley in 1987 . First attack: The flat where 67-year-old widow Mary Wainwright was murdered in Cardiff, marked by an arrow . The court heard that the attacker . went outside to get a washing line, which he used to tie the woman to . her bed before raping her. The . jury was told that the attack lasted 12 hours, during which time the . attacker repeatedly raped the woman, tortured her with a knife, gagged . her and stabbed her in the legs. The court heard that at one point the man left the room to make himself a cup of tea. The . victim told police her attacker had said he wanted to put two pence . pieces on the wounds he inflicted - in an echo of Shirley's first attack . where he left two pence pieces on the body of his victim. The jury was told that, since the 2005 attack, the woman's mental health deteriorated and she was subsequently admitted to a psychiatric hospital after being diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and depression. She has drastically changed her appearance because of her fears she would be targeted again by her attacker. When asked by Shirley’s defence barrister, Sally O’Neill QC, why she started self-harming after the incident, the woman said: 'I have tried to make the scars my own so it’s not like he’s made them, because that scares me. It’s about trying to regain some control over my body.' Shirley was arrested in July last year shortly after the woman reported the crime to police. He was charged in December. He denies ever having met her, being in her home or being in the pub where they allegedly met. On trial: Mark Shirley is on trial at Bristol Crown Court for the rape of a now 39-year-old woman in 2005 . Sorry we are unable to accept comments for legal reasons. | Mark Shirley, 42, is accused of breaking into the woman's house in Bristol and repeatedly raping and stabbing her in an ordeal lasting 12 hours .
Shirley was out of prison on licence after being convicted of murdering a 67-year-old widow in 1987 when the alleged attack took place in 2005 .
The 'terrified' victim waited years to report the rape because she was afraid her attacker would target her again . |
116,116 | 21e14e9e72f99515d923ac8fc87ff35acaf7a7a7 | Johannesburg, South Africa (CNN) -- A South African white supremacist group has retracted its statement vowing to avenge the killing of its leader, Eugene Terreblanche, a spokesman for the group said Monday. "The statement was made by an emotional member of our organization," said Pieter Steyn, a spokesman for the neo-Nazi Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging, also called the Afrikaner Resistance Movement or AWB. "The person has been reprimanded. We want a homeland where we can govern ourselves, and violence is not going to do our cause any good." Terreblanche was killed Saturday following an apparent dispute over wages with workers on his farm, according to South African police. Two of his farm workers ages 21 and 16 are scheduled to appear in court Tuesday after turning themselves in, police said. Police said the 69-year-old was bludgeoned and stabbed to death with clubs and a machete in an attack at his farm near the town of Ventersdorp in South Africa's North West Province. Steyn told CNN he is pleased with the work of the South African police, who said there would be a heavy police presence at Tuesday's court appearance. The AWB has blamed the killing on the singing of a controversial apartheid-era song, "Shoot the Farmer." The ruling African National Congress party's youth leader, Julius Malema, had sung the song in recent weeks until a court ruling barred him from doing so. Steyn called on South African President Jacob Zuma to act to ease tensions. "He needs to address Julius Malema urgently," Steyn said. "We are finding it difficult to keep our members calm under the current circumstances. If farm murders continue, we cannot guarantee that our members will continue refraining from retaliating." Terreblanche's death comes amid a time of racial polarization in the country. Analysis: Terreblanche's death stokes racial tensions . Zuma on Sunday appealed for calm Sunday amid fears the killing of notorious white supremacist Eugene Terreblanche could stoke racial tensions in the country. In a statement on the South African presidency's Web site, Zuma said he had spoken to Terreblanche's daughter to express his "sincere condolences." "I call upon our people, black and white to remain calm, and allow police and other organs of state to do their work," Zuma said. Terreblanche's AWB is best known for trying to block South Africa's effort to end apartheid. The group used terrorist tactics in a bid to stall the country's first all-race vote in 1994, killing more than 20 people in a wave of bombings on the eve of the elections. Terreblanche was convicted of the 1996 attempted murder of Paul Motshabi, a black man who worked as a security guard on Terreblanche's farm. He served about two-thirds of a five-year sentence. He was also convicted of setting his dog on a black man in an earlier incident. CNN's Robyn Curnow and Nkepile Mabuse contributed to this report from Johannesburg. | AWB spokesman retracts vow to avenge leader's death .
He said original statement made by an "emotional member" of the AWB .
Eugene Terreblanche was bludgeoned and stabbed to death .
Two of Terreblanche's farm workers scheduled to appear in court Tuesday . |
106,958 | 15f8b34f52fa7235976943432ad42fc69d05cd25 | (CNN) -- It has been 17 years since France had a president from the left, but that might be about to change. Francois Hollande, a candidate from the center-left Socialist Party, has significant momentum after edging center-right incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy in the first round of France's presidential election on Sunday. If he wins a May 6 runoff against Sarkozy, Hollande would be the first left-wing president since Francois Mitterrand in 1995. Sarkozy is seeking his second five-year term, following Jacques Chirac, who served 12 years in office. Sarkozy received 27.2% of the vote in the first round of voting on Sunday, just behind Hollande's 28.6%. As the French prepare for the runoff, here are a few key points to keep in mind: . 1. This is a two-horse race, but other candidates matter. Ten candidates, spanning the entire political spectrum, took part in the first round of voting. But opinion polls always pointed to a runoff between Sarkozy and Hollande. (In France, a presidential candidate must receive more than 50% of the vote to win office. If no one claims a majority in the first round of voting -- and no one ever has, in the current system -- the top two vote-getters advance to a second round of voting.) But even with the predictable Sarkozy-Hollande finish, it was still important to see how many votes the other candidates received. That's because those votes are now up for grabs in the runoff. "The other candidates have to be given some attention because they exert an influence in the race," said Michael Leruth, who teaches a course about the election at the College of William & Mary in Virginia. Finishing behind Hollande and Sarkozy were two extreme candidates: Marine Le Pen on the far right and Jean-Luc Melenchon on the far left. Le Pen, daughter of 2002 presidential finalist Jean-Marie Le Pen, finished third with 17.9% of the vote. Melenchon finished fourth with 11.1%. Their strong showings might cause Hollande to tack more to the left and Sarkozy more to the right before the runoff. "If you're coming out of the first round with 27%, 28%, you need to make it to 50%. So you have to think of where you are going to make up that difference to prevail in the final round," Leruth said. A day after the first round, Sarkozy said he has a "duty to listen" to far-right voters after Le Pen's third-place finish. "We must respect the voters' will," he said. 2012 a year of elections: Return of the Left? 2. One issue stands out among the rest. The economy dominates the political agenda in France, much as it does in America. "Basically for months now, the top issues have been unemployment and purchasing power," said Jim Bittermann, CNN's correspondent in Paris. Jobs have been difficult to come by, especially for young people, and that is one of the main reasons that Sarkozy is vulnerable. "Even though some people would give Sarkozy high marks for doing the kinds of things that might have a positive long-term effect on the economy -- like raising the retirement age to put the system on sounder fiscal footing -- he hasn't been successful in bringing jobs back," Leruth said. Comparing Sarkozy and Hollande on their economic policy is not unlike comparing Republicans and Democrats in the United States. "Hollande is in favor of more government action to stimulate the economy, stimulate spending ... whereas Sarkozy wants to improve the climate for business by lowering some taxes, by talking about repealing the law establishing the 35-hour work week -- a Socialist measure from the late '90s -- to make it possible to work more," Leruth said. "It's more of a private-sector approach." 3. France and America have more in common than just high unemployment. Immigration, race and the assimilation of France's large Muslim community have been prominent issues leading up to the election, even before the March shootings by an Islamic extremist in Toulouse and Montauban. Sarkozy has been tough on immigration. Last year, a law went into effect banning Islamic face coverings in public places, the so-called burqa ban. And in a recent television interview, Sarkozy said France has "too many foreigners" and that the country is not integrating them properly. Sarkozy won the 2007 election by taking a strong stance on race, according to political analyst Simon Persico from the Center of European Studies. But Le Pen, this year's far-right candidate, said Sarkozy hasn't been strong enough while in office. "Le Pen is saying the original is better than the copy, and that voters should not believe Sarkozy on race," he told CNN. 4. The election's result could affect the eurozone. Sarkozy has worked closely with German Chancellor Angela Merkel throughout the European debt crisis, leading the way for strict austerity measures in Greece and other troubled countries. Would Hollande's election encourage a change in strategy? "There is concern that, within the eurozone, Hollande's election could create greater instability," Leruth said. "He's talked about renegotiating some of the accords that have been reached -- at the instigation of Sarkozy and Merkel -- to ensure greater stability in the eurozone." The reason is long-term growth. "I think some of the French like the way (Sarkozy) handled -- with Merkel -- the agreement in December to get more rigor, more austerity into European budgets. But then Hollande and other economists are saying we also need growth, and these plans are going to absolutely stifle growth," said Homer Sutton, a French professor at Davidson College near Charlotte, North Carolina. Like Leruth, he is teaching a course on the election. France's own debt is also a concern. Like the United States, the country recently had its AAA credit rating downgraded. Hollande has promised to create tens of thousands of public-sector jobs and raise taxes on the rich to pay for them. But some are concerned that might encourage the rich to just leave France. "There's some feeling that if Hollande is elected, the attack on the French sovereign debt could be quite serious," Sutton said. "And this is what Sarkozy has been saying: 'If you elect Hollande, we're going to be losing more than our AAA. We'll be going down even further.' " 5. Franco-American relations should remain strong. Hollande has pledged to remove French troops from Afghanistan by the end of this year if he is elected. Whether it's a realistic goal or not, that could create some tension between Paris and Washington. But Hollande is known for being a no-nonsense pragmatist. "Hollande knows that he needs the United States and that the United States needs Europe, so I think there would be a great deal of cooperation there," Sutton said. Sutton recalled Mitterrand's election in 1981 and how there were initial concerns about him. "Everyone said, 'Oh, he's got four Communists in his government, this is going to be the end of the relationship with the United States.' But it turns out that he was a very strong defender of American missiles in Germany, for example," Sutton said. "Mitterrand's friendship with (Chancellor) Helmut Kohl, it was a strong French-German relationship, and (U.S. President Ronald) Reagan and Mitterrand didn't get along too badly despite their ideological differences." | France's presidential election is set for a runoff to take place on Sunday, May 6 .
Incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy finished behind Francois Hollande in the first round .
A couple of extreme candidates, one far left and one far right, could still affect the outcome .
Unemployment is the biggest issue in the race, but immigration and debt are also talking points . |
255,547 | d6c2b3e6d01e231218bbf874bf096d6466708dd4 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 14:36 EST, 13 March 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 10:15 EST, 14 March 2014 . The controller of a Texas bakery famed for its fruit cake has been accused of embezzling $16 million to fund a lavish lifestyle of mansions, private jets and exotic vacations. Sandy Jenkins, who earned $50,000 a year, allegedly used 888 company checks to pay his creditors for luxury goods, and then tampered with the accounts to try to cover his tracks, Corsicana Daily Sun reported. He and his wife, Kay, were this week charged with money laundering over the alleged scam, which continued for eight years. They are accused of spending up to $250,000 a month but the disparity between Mr Jenkins' lifestyle and salary went unnoticed for years. Scroll down for video . Lavish lifestyle: Kay and Sandy Jenkins, pictured on what is believed to be a private jet, are accused of embezzling $16 million . Investigation: Sandy Jenkins, center, talks to two FBI agents outside his neighbor's house, while his own property is searched in Corsicana in August last year . Target: Jenkins is accused of stealing from the 117-year-old Collin Street Bakery where he was controller . Jenkins, the 65-year-old corporate . controller for Collin Street Bakery in Corsicana, was arrested in August . last year, and charged with ten counts of mail fraud. He was earning $50,000 a year but the FBI claims the couple were actually spending nearer to $250,000 a month. The FBI has seized luxury goods from Sandy and Kay Jenkins, who are accused of taking $16 million from the Collin Street Bakery: . The couple's mansion in Corsicana, Texas, and $784,000 villa in Santa Fe, New Mexico. 596-bottle wine collection. $2,500 Waterford Crystal 12 Days of Christmas ice bucket. $10,000 Sex in the City 2 ring with a five carat black diamond. Louis Vuitton luggage, Hermes handbag and other designer purses. $60,000 Steinway piano. Four fur coats including a $15,000 mink fur coat and a reversible mink and leather bomber jacket. Luxury cars including a BMW X53, a Lexus, a Mercedes-Benz CL500 and a GMS Yukon XL Denali. 108 watches, including a men’s Patek Philippe 18 carat rose gold 40mm Aquanaut watch. A collection of Van Cleef & Arpels jewelry, more than 80 bracelets and necklaces, and 53 rings. On Wednesday, his 63-year-old wife was indicted, and the couple will now face charges on 22 further counts, including money laundering and making false statements to a financial institution. Jenkins is said to have claimed they were paying for their extravagant lifestyle through an inheritance. The couple are accused of funding a lavish lifestyle from December 2004 to August 2012. During that time they spent $3.2 million on private jets to fly them to Aspen, Napa, Martha's Vineyard, and the Turks and Caicos islands. They 'conspired together to maintain an extensive and lavish lifestyle through expenditures of the money embezzled from the Bakery,' the U.S. Attorney's Office told Dallas News. Investigators claim the couple used the funds to buy a vacation home in Santa Fe; several vehicles including a Mercedes and a Lexus; a Steinway piano, six firearms, furs, jewelry, art work and an extensive wine collection. Jenkins and his wife are also accused of running up $11 million in charges on their American Express cards. Hayden Crawford, a partner at the 117-year-old bakery, said the company was shocked to learn of the fraud. 'When this was going down, our suspicions fell on everything except our own people. We are obviously far better at making a quality fruitcake than spotting a thief,' he said. Jenkins has pleaded not guilty to the charges and his wife is expected to self-surrender when she makes her first court appearance on March 18. The indictment has a forfeiture allegation that would require the couple to give up the full $16,649786 taken as well as surrender two homes, four cars, $440,000 in currency seized, furs, a piano, watches, handbags, luggage and artwork. The couple's luxury Corsicana house was handed over to the FBI and put on the market last month . A silver Mercedes-Benz CL500, similar to the one pictured, was handed over to the FBI by Jenkins . A GMC Yukon, similar to the one above, and BMW X53, like the one below, were among the cars taken from Jenkins . Their Corsicana home went on the market last month for $199,500, and the proceeds will be handed over to the bakery. The fraud went undetected for so long because of the trusting nature of the bakery's owners and what has been described as an almost-foolproof scheme. Tristed: Sandy Jenkins had worked at the bakery from 1998 . The bakery spent a huge sum on nuts for its cakes, and postage for promotional material. Large checks were allegedly written to the nut or postal companies, and then entered into the books without an invoice number. The checks were then canceled and the accounts' entries unchanged, before fresh checks with an electronic signature were allegedly sent to Jenkins' account. The chief executive of the bakery also never reviewed his checks. FBI Special Agent Christine Edson said in an affidavit that the bakery's books had not been audited since Jenkins started with the company in 1998. Hayden Crawford, a partner at the baker, told the Star Telegram: 'We have a family-owned, family-run business where trust is foundational.' The amount taken was just enough to not damage profits at the bakery, so although senior management were aware money was going awry, they believed it was due to mismanagement or inventory theft. It wasn't until former bank teller Semetric Williams joined the accounts department that the fraud was revealed. Lavish: A Steinway piano, similar to the one pictured, was also taken from the couple . Extravagant: A stack of Louis Vuitton luggage and collection of watches including a Patek Philippe rose-gold time piece were also listed in the FBI report . In June she questioned Jenkins about . some questionable entries, but when he brushed it off she went to senior . management telling them she had uncovered a major embezzlement and . feared for her life. The unusual entry she had noted was a $20,000 check that appeared to have been written for a $10,000 postal bill. After he was fired on June 21, Jenkins allegedly filled two Whole Foods grocery bags with jewelry, watches and $62,500 in cash. The FBI says he tried to get his daughter to look after the bags, but when she refused they mysteriously disappeared. A police officer later found 40lb of watches in jewelery in a Texas lake. Appraisers for the FBI said it would cost $4.4 million to replace the couple's collection of jewelery, watches and designer goods. If Jenkins is found guilty he could face up to 200 years in prison. He and his wife would also have to reimburse the bakery. Tradition: The Collin Street Bakery is famed for its fruit cake and trusted employees . | Sandy Jenkins 'used 888 company checks from historic Collin Street Bakery to bolster his account'
FBI seized luxury cars, jewelry and mink coats .
Bakery's new account manager revealed eight-year fraud after spotting $20,000 check had been paid for $10,000 bill . |
61,095 | ad8854e467ed0210ee6c1d848e761c1f5e01ace8 | Half naked, unarmed and trembling with fear, a group of captured pro-Assad soldiers are made to kneel to face a wall in Syria's war-torn Aleppo. Their crime is to have been members of Shabiha, a militia group aligned to President Bashar al Assad's regime, and their sentence has been decided. Even through the grainy images of this amateur recording, the guns in their captors' hands are clear, as is the punishment awaits them. Scroll down for video. Execution: Half naked, unarmed and trembling with fear, a group of captured pro-Assad soldiers are made to kneel to face a wall in Syria's war-torn Aleppo . At one point a man in the crowd attempts to stop the filming by putting his hand over the camera lens. But seconds later the air is filled with the deafening rattle of machine gun fire. What happens next is too graphic to show on a family website, but stills of the recording reveal a pile of corpses where the men had knelt. It was apparently filmed by Syrian rebels as the fight for control of the desert nation intensified. It has been impossible to verify the graphic content of this video. Chilling: Even through the grainy images of this amateur recording, the guns in their captors' hands are clear, as is the punishment awaits them . Sport of war: A few rebels raise their guns and open fire on the unarmed men . Graphic: What happens next is too graphic to show on a family website, but stills of the recording reveal a pile of corpses where the men had knelt . Meanwhile, President Assad issued a rousing battle cry to his troops insisting that their battle against rebels would determine Syria's fate. The written message, appearing in a statement in the military's magazine to mark armed forces day, gave no clues to his whereabouts two weeks after a bomb attack hit his inner circle. Defiant: President Assad issued a rousing battle cry to his troops insisting that their battle against rebels would determine Syria's fate . Assad has not spoken in public since the bombing in Damascus on July 18 killed four of his close security aides although he has been seen on television. 'The fate of our people and our nation, past, present and future, depends on this battle,' he said. In . confronting 'terrorist criminal gangs' - the government's usual term . for the rebels, the army had proved it had 'the steely resolve and . conscience and that you are the trustees of the people's values', he . said. In the northern . city of Aleppo, rebel fighters seized three police stations while . fighting the army for control of a strategically important district. Explosions . could be heard on Wednesday morning and helicopter gunships cruised the . skies as government forces tried to push the rebels out of the historic . city and preserve one of Assad's main centres of power. The Salaheddine district in the . southwest of Aleppo has been the scene of some of the worst clashes, . with shells raining dwon for hours at a time. While . the Syrian army said at the weekend it had taken control of . Salaheddine, scrappy street fighting was still underway with neither . government forces nor rebels in full control. Salaheddine resembles a . ghost town, its shops shuttered, with little sign of normal life. 'The . regime has tried for three days to regain Salaheddine, but its attempts . have failed and it has suffered heavy losses in human life, weapons and . tanks, and it has been forced to withdraw,' said Colonel Abdel-Jabbar . al-Oqaidi, head of the Joint Military Council, one of several rebel . groups in Aleppo. Oqaidi, who defected from the army six months ago, told Reuters that more than 3,000 rebel fighters were in Aleppo. Devastation: Explosions could be heard on Wednesday morning and helicopter gunships cruised the skies as government forces tried to push the rebels out of the historic city and preserve one of Assad's main centres of power . Still fighting: A Syrian rebel fighter loads an anti-aircraft machinegun atop an armoured vehicle in the northern town of Atareb, 25 kms east of Aleppo . According to an NBC News report, the . rebels have acquired nearly two dozen surface-to-air missiles, which . were delivered to them via neighbouring Turkey. The missiles could tilt . the battlefield balance if the rebels were able to shoot down government . helicopter and war planes. The . fighting has proved costly for the 2.5 million residents of Aleppo, a . commercial hub with an ancient Old City that was slow to join the . anti-Assad revolt that has rocked Damascus and other cities. Thousands have fled and those who remain face shortages of food and fuel as well as the risk of injury or death. 'We . have hardly any power or water, our wives and kids have left us here to . watch the house and have gone somewhere safer,' said Jumaa, a . 45-year-old construction worker. Street fighting: Syrian rebels commandeer a police vehicle during clashes with government troops in the Salhin district of the northern city of Aleppo . Masked fighters: Colonel Abdel-Jabbar al-Oqaidi, who defected from the army six months ago, told Reuters that more than 3,000 rebel fighters were in Aleppo . War games: A Syrian boy jumps off a destroyed army armoured vehicle in the northern town of Atareb, near Aleppo . Proud: Members of the Free Syrian Armypose for a photograph in Al-Rasten, near Homs . Makeshift clinics in rebel-held areas struggle to deal with dozens of casualties after more than a week of fighting. Up to 18,000 people have been forced to leave their homes in Aleppo and many frightened residents were seeking shelter in schools, mosques and public buildings, according to the U.N. refugee agency in Geneva. Rebel fighters, patrolling parts of Aleppo in pick-up trucks flying green-white-and-black 'independence' flags, face a daunting task in taking on the well-equipped Syrian army. Armed with Kalashnikov rifles, machineguns and rocket-propelled grenades, they are up against a military that can deploy fighter jets, helicopter gunships, tanks, armoured fighting vehicles, artillery and mortars. Western and anti-Assad Arab states have for months been urging the Syrian opposition to unite. | Unverified footage appears to show rebels shoot dead Assad mercenaries .
President Assad issues rousing battle .
cry to his troops for first time since a bombing in Damascus killed four of his close security aides .
Assad: 'The fate of our people and our nation, past, present and future, depends on this battle'
Helicopter gunships continue to bomb Aleppo where rebel fighters seized three police stations . |
235,945 | bd717fcac29ca5cf92a5ed5aa9d4efc24dcf55e2 | (CNN) -- Days after a 10-year-old girl was snatched from her bedroom in the middle of the night -- but found alive nearly 12 hours later and a few miles away -- Los Angeles police pleaded Saturday for the public's help tracking down those responsible. Though they have said they believe two men were involved in the kidnapping, by Saturday police had only identified one by name as a "wanted suspect": 30-year-old Tobias Dustin Summers. In a press conference a few hours before Summers' image and information came out, Los Angeles Police Department spokesman Andrew Smith said that police believe this was a "stranger abduction." At the same time, he said, investigators are not ruling anything out -- such as whether the abductors had something to do with her family or that acquaintances of hers might have been involved. "Until we can find these individuals that perpetrated this, we won't know if this was a random case, or whether it was targeted against this family or this child for any particular reason," Smith said. "So, right now, we don't know." Around 1 a.m. Wednesday, the girl's mother last saw her safe in bed in their home in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Northridge. The mother heard noises at about 3:30 a.m. and checked on her daughter again, discovering that she was missing. That set off an intensive search for the girl that ended about 2:50 p.m. Wednesday, when she was found about five miles southwest of her home. "A Good Samaritan ... directed the girl to some police officers nearby, and she was ... transported to a local hospital, where she received treatment," Cmdr. Andrew Smith, a Los Angeles Police Department spokesman, told reporters Saturday afternoon. By Saturday, the 10-year-old was back home with her parents, with police on site to provide security and protect the family's privacy. Some 20 members of the police department's robbery and homicide division are working the case, Smith said. In a first preliminary interview with investigators, the girl said she had been put in several vehicles during her 12-hour ordeal, driving to places around the San Fernando Valley. Police were able to locate at least one of those locations -- a storage facility about two miles from the girl's home -- Smith said. The LAPD spokesman did not detail what happened to the girl in that time, urging media to do the same so as not to "further traumatize... that poor girl." Smith said that authorities don't have any reason to believe there's any rash of child abductions in the area. Still, with the two suspects on the loose, he urged parents to take precautions, such as locking their doors and being extra vigilant. "Until these two individuals are caught, we don't know what they're capable of," Smith said. | A 10-year-old girl was taken in the middle of the night from her L.A. home, police say .
She was found about 12 hours later, some 5 miles from her home .
L.A. police release information about 1 of the 2 suspects in the case . |
125,673 | 2e779497452a44af5ca3475fd8ee0dc10a70429e | (CNN)It's like UNO, except there are goats, magical enchiladas and kittens that can kill you. And that's apparently enough for people to pledge a gajillion dollars. Matthew Inman, the cartoonist and grammar enthusiast behind the popular comic website The Oatmeal, launched a fund-raising campaign on Kickstarter Tuesday for a new card game that got more than $700,000 in pledges in just the first few hours. By Wednesday, Exploding Kittens raised over $2 million. The game is a cross between Inman's signature absurdist comic drawings and the popular card game UNO. It was dreamed up by Inman and game creators Elan Lee and Shane Small, according to the Exploding Kittens Kickstarter page. The initial goal was $10,000. Although there are a lot of reasons why the Internet loves kittens, one hint to Exploding Kittens' fiery success is the Oatmeal's cult following. Its Facebook page alone has more than 3 million followers. The game rules are explained in a short animated video on the Kickstarter page. Each player draws a card from the deck until someone draws an exploding kitten card. Once an exploding kitten card is drawn the player is booted from the game. The more cards that are drawn from the deck, the higher a player's chances of pulling an exploding kitten card. The game also adds a bit of humorous complexity, featuring cards that enable players powers such as weaponizing back hair and laser pointers to defuse a kitten's explosiveness. Exploding Kittens might seem too magically absurd to be true, but with the success of other Kickstarter campaigns such as party game favorite Cards Against Humanity, this project might be another crowd-funded home run. CNN reached out to Inman and his creative team for a comment, but no one was available to talk. "Sorry all inboxes are so flooded right now," Lee wrote. The game creators did note on their fund-raising page that they are staunchly against the harming of actual kittens. On The Oatmeal's Facebook page, Inman wrote that the Kickstarter goal was reached in eight minutes. "I love you, my precious Oatlets. Who wants a sandwich?" | A card game featuring exploding kittens goes viral on Kickstarter .
The fund-raising campaign raised more than $700,000 in a few hours . |
225,775 | b0581a9652fef6ba8ef35bbcce05ac7d00caf975 | By . Lisa Kjellsson . PUBLISHED: . 06:35 EST, 3 May 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 06:38 EST, 3 May 2013 . Painters have been left red-faced after using a 'glaring tomato' shade instead of terracotta to repaint a Grade II-listed Victorian building. The bright hue has left drivers 'dazzled' after passing the Royal Victoria Hospital Annexe, in Dover, Kent and the council has been inundated with complaints. The Royal Victoria Hospital annexe in Dover Kent, has been given a paint job in a shade of 'tomato red' Locals were horrified by the sight of the newly decorated red rooftop . Now, the decorators must put scaffolding back . up to repair the 40ft-high building, now converted to . flats. The former hospital annexe - built in . 1877 to celebrate Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee - is considered one of . Dover's finest pieces of Victorian architecture. Former glory: The Royal Victoria Hospital Annexe is considered to be one of Dover's finest historic buildings . Locals have said the flats are 'glaring tomato red', with some even saying the paint job has 'dazzled them' while driving. Accounts worker Sam Graham, 37, said: 'Every time I drive past the building I get dazzled by the paint. 'The first time I saw it I nearly swerved into another car - they really need to get it sorted soon.' The rules when redecorating or renovating listed properties are that any changes must be in keeping with the original character of the building. Care must be taken to preserve and enhance the period features, by choosing the same materials that were used originally. Listed Building Consent is needed for all kinds of work that involves alterations which affect the character of a listed building of special architectural or historic interest, which is determined by the local authority. If the property is in a conservation area, additional 'Article 4 Directions' apply, such as replacing a window with one of a similar design. For example, when replacing windows in a Victorian house, wooden frames are more appropriate than uPVC. James Robinson, who has lived in . Dover for more than 50 years, said: 'It's one of our finest buildings, . it survived the war but now look at it. 'It looks absolutely ridiculous. What moron did it and thought it looked acceptable?'One . high street businessman, who asked not to be named, took his objections . to the Dover Society, which in turn took the matter up with the . District Council. He said: 'The painting work seems so unnecessary, as the brickwork painted over was in good condition in the first place.' Bosses at Sanctuary Housing, which owns . the flats, have admitted that workers failed to match the 'terracotta . colour' and that re-painting had been arranged. A spokesman said: 'When refreshing paintwork on the flats, the terracotta colour wasn't matched correctly. 'We have been working with the local planning department in response to enquiries, and have arranged for the building to be re-painted.' A spokesman for Dover District Council said: 'We have spoken to the owners who have given us assurances that they will repaint the building a more acceptable colour in the very near future.' | The Royal Victoria Hospital annexe was built in 1877 to celebrate Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee .
It is considered to be one of Dover's finest examples of Victorian architecture .
Owners admit original terracotta colour 'was not matched correctly' |
27,494 | 4ded3634ed1a298694f156cd5b15aaf7acd21907 | By . James Rush . PUBLISHED: . 07:34 EST, 7 September 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 11:15 EST, 7 September 2013 . A paranoid schizophrenic has been detained indefinitely at a maximum security hospital after he raped three women in less than an hour during a series of violent attacks. Serial rapist Thomas Hall, 33, attacked four sex workers after prowling around Piccadilly train station, in Manchester. Hall, who raped three of the women and sexually assaulted the other, is said to have bragged to a friend on the phone 'I've done three or four now. I've had the best night of my life' after attacking his last victim. Thomas Hall prowled around Piccadilly train station, in Manchester, before attacking four women . At the time of the attacks Hall, who has been a paranoid schizophrenic since he was a teenager, was on police bail for raping another woman a month earlier . Manchester Crown Court heard how Hall had heard voices in his head telling him to 'get everyone'. Two of the women ran half-naked down the street and flagged down passing motorists to raise the alarm following the attacks, the court was told. At the time of the attacks Hall, who has been a paranoid schizophrenic since he was a teenager, was on police bail for raping another woman a month earlier. He will now be detained indefinitely at maximum security Ashworth Hospital under the mental health act. He cannot be released without the agreement of doctors and a mental health tribunal. Judge Richard Mansell QC said: 'You are a very dangerous man. Ordinarily you would receive a lengthy custodial sentence running well into double figures. Manchester Crown Court (pictured) heard how Hall had heard voices in his head telling him to 'get everyone' 'These offences demonstrate serious violence and sexual violence. You pose a risk not just to women, but people generally. 'It is impossible to know how long that risk will remain.' Henry Blackshaw, prosecuting, said Hall, formerly of Audenshaw, Tameside, went out on the evening of Tuesday, March 5, after receiving his benefits payments. 'These offences demonstrate serious violence and sexual violence. You pose a risk not just to women, but people generally' - Judge Richard Mansell QC . He was spotted at the offices of the Manchester Action for Street Health charity making derogatory comments about prostitutes. At about 8.30pm he asked his first victim, who was in her 20s, if she was working before going with her to a nearby industrial estate. He then grabbed her by the throat, put his hand over her mouth and sexually assaulted her. He punched her in the face as she fled after she had refused 'compensation'. He dragged his second victim to a wooded area where he raped her. The woman was said to be so terrified, she said she thought she was going to die. After breaking free the woman ran into the street where a university lecturer let her take refuge in his car. Hall's third victim, a sex worker in her 30s, told him she was pregnant to make him stop as he raped her in a field. She alerted a passing driver after she had managed to escape. Hall raped his last victim at about 9.30pm after taking a sex worker to an alleyway. She heard him bragging to a friend on the phone afterwards. He was arrested after police stopped a bus which was making its way out of the city centre. He is said to have told officers 'how can it be rape if you've paid out?'. Hall, who also suffers from personality disorders, pleaded guilty to four counts of rape, one sexual assault and assault causing actual bodily harm at an earlier hearing. Adrian Farrow, defending, said Hall had had a very troubling experience in childhood which led to him having flashbacks. He said: 'Before these offences he admitted himself to hospital complaining that he was hearing voices and told them they had a responsibility to protect him from others, showing a degree of insight.' | Thomas Hall raped three women and sexually assaulted a fourth .
Court hears he had heard voices in his head telling him to 'get everyone'
He was heard bragging to a friend on the phone after attacks .
He will now be detained indefinitely at a maximum security hospital . |
124,913 | 2d74cd86c5fc14e5f39d3eb4fc2a0b12bf60f62a | By . Harriet Arkell . PUBLISHED: . 04:53 EST, 18 April 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 12:24 EST, 18 April 2013 . Former Pakistani military ruler Pervez Musharraf is on the run after fleeing a court in the country's capital to avoid arrest after his bail was revoked, police said. Officers were deployed at the court building in Islamabad but Musharraf's security team rushed him out and put him in a black pick-up truck before they could detain him. The court rejected his bail in a case related to his decision to suspend the constitution and declare a state of emergency in 2007, police spokesman Ali Asghar said. Scroll down for video . Pakistan's former President Pervez Musharraf was rushed out of the courthouse in Islamabad and into a waiting SUV this morning . The former President fled at such a speed, one of his security detail was left clinging to the outside off the car as it sped off . A spokeswoman for Musharraf, Saima Ali Dada, said his legal team is trying to decide the next move. Formerly one of Pakistan's most powerful politicians after seizing power in a 1999 coup, Pervez Musharraf went from Pakistan President to self-imposed exile. During his tenure in charge of the country, which ended in 2008, he survived numerous attempts on his life. The turning point of his time in charge came after the 9/11 terror attack in 2001. He supported America's 'War on Terror', which proved hugely unpopular in Pakistan. In a bid to crush militants who supported Al Qaeda, he ordered his security forces to lay siege to the Red Mosque and its Islamic school in Islamabad, which was said to be campaigning to enforce Sharia law. More than 100 people were killed. In the aftermath, Islamist militants began a campaign of suicide bombings and Musharraf fled the country in 2008, returning last month to participate in elections. His time in power was also marked by . struggles with the judiciary, including an attempt to remove the chief . justice in 2007 - for which he faces treason charges - and clashes over his bid to remain . head of the army while still president. He attempted to appease the West by aiding the 'War on Terror' but managed to further anger militants within Pakistan... while the West criticised his dedication to fighting Al Qaeda. Musharraf was also accused of not doing enough to protect . former PM Benazir Bhutto from being assassinated in 2007, despite . allegedly being aware of Taliban plans to kill her. It followed accusations that he was indirectly responsible for the death of Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti, a Baloch nationalist leader killed in an army operation the year before. Local television broadcast footage of Musharraf jumping into a black SUV and escaping as a member of his security team clung to the outside of the vehicle. Meanwhile lawyers shouted 'Look who is running, Musharraf is running!' He sped away to his large compound on the outskirts of Islamabad that is protected by high walls, razor wire and guard towers. This week has gone from bad to worse for Musharraf, who seized power in a coup in 1999 when he was serving as army chief and spent nearly a decade in power before being forced to step down in 2008. He returned last month after four years in self-imposed exile in Britain to make a political comeback despite legal challenges and Taliban death threats, but has since faced paltry public support. A court in the northwestern city of Peshawar on Tuesday disqualified Musharraf from running in the parliamentary election scheduled for May 11, likely squashing his hopes for political comeback. The case before the Islamabad High . Court today involved Musharraf's decision in 2007 to detain senior . judges, including the chief justice of the Supreme Court, when he . declared a state of emergency and suspended the constitution. The . decision outraged many Pakistanis, and further fueled a nationwide . protest movement by lawyers that eventually resulted in Musharraf . stepping down under the threat of impeachment. Before he returned to the country, . Musharraf obtained pre-arrest bail for the judges' case and two others, . meaning he could not be arrested when he landed - a feature of . Pakistan's legal system. The Islamabad High Court refused to extend that bail today and ordered his arrest, said police officer Ali Asghar. The court previously agreed to extend . his bail in the case for six days on April 12. It's unclear why they . chose to reject it this time. Despite crowds of people, including police officers with the power to arrest him, Musharraf managed to escape to his compound . After Musharraf got away, Pakistani paramilitary soldiers were seen leaving the Islamabad High Court today . Musharraf's lawyer, Ahmad Raza Kasuri, . complained that the court didn't listen to their arguments, saying: 'It . is a one-sided decision' that he would challenge. - Ali Dayan Hasan, Human Rights Watch Pakistan . Musharraf's decision to flee the court could put the Pakistani army in an awkward situation. The former general is protected by paramilitary soldiers who officially report to the Interior Ministry, but are headed by senior army officers. Ali Dayan Hasan, the director of Human Rights Watch in Pakistan, called on the military authorities protecting Musharraf to comply with the court's order and ensure that he presents himself for arrest. 'General Musharraf's act today underscores his disregard for due legal process and indicates his assumption that as a former army chief and military dictator he can evade accountability for abuses,' said Hasan in a statement sent to reporters. Musharraf fled to his heavily-guarded compound on the edge of the city after evading arrest today . 'Continued military protection for General Musharraf will make a mockery of claims that Pakistan's armed forces support the rule of law and bring the military further disrepute that it can ill afford,' Hasan said. Pakistan has a long history of the army seizing power in military coups, and the service is considered the most powerful institution in the country. If convicted of treason, Musharraf could face the death penalty or life in prison. But the federal government would have to file charges against the former military ruler, which it has not yet done. The petitions in Islamabad High Court accusing Musharraf of treason were all filed by individuals. Musharraf faces similar accusations from petitions filed before the Supreme Court. He also faces legal charges in two other cases. | Pervez Musharraf, 69, was in court in Islamabad accused of treason .
Security team rushed him past police waiting to arrest him and into SUV .
Now in hiding in his heavily-guarded compound on outskirts of the city . |
188,978 | 80beb2910c007938b0680d4e84140f384ab7e942 | (CNN) -- Whenever a new hotel opens, guests are quick to flock there, clamoring for its shiny new rooms and state-of-the-art features. But there's something to be said for staying at a venerable older property, like these top-rated hotels that are each celebrating their centennial this year. Some of them have survived issues like war, recession, fire and lackluster management over the past 100 years, but each has persevered and truly stands the test of time. So next time you're visiting these eight cities, consider checking in at these legendary lodgings. GROVE PARK INN, Asheville, North Carolina . Opening date: July 12, 1913 . Easily distinguishable by its granite exterior and red clay-tile roof, the Grove Park Inn has long been a favorite mountain retreat, hallowed for its sweeping views, Southern hospitality and rustic yet refined Arts and Crafts design. A recent $25 million renovation, timed by current owner KSL Resorts to coincide with its anniversary celebrations, ensures this grande dame is back to form; even the giant fireplace in the lobby is working again. 7 amazing island rentals . Famous guests: Thomas Edison, Helen Keller, Henry Ford . Historical fact: In 1930, William Howard Taft resigned from the Supreme Court in the hotel's Great Hall. HÔTEL PLAZA ATHÉNÉE, Paris, France . Opening date: April 20, 1913 . Almost immediately after it opened, this testament to French culture and style became the place to see and be seen in Paris, and it remains so to this day. Now part of the Dorchester Collection, the hotel features 191 elegantly appointed rooms and suites pairing 18th-century-style touches with modern conveniences like remote-controlled air-conditioning. And you'll not just sleep well here, but eat well, too, given that all four of its restaurants fall under the supervision of famed French-born chef Alain Ducasse. Go underground: Cave hotels . Famous guests: Marlene Dietrich, Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor, Jackie Kennedy . Historical fact: Legendary designer Christian Dior loved the hotel so much he opened his House of Dior on the same street, and avenue Montaigne soon became the capital of high fashion. HOTEL DU PONT, Wilmington, Delaware . Opening date: January 15, 1913 . With its elaborate woodwork, polished terrazzo floors and plush Queen Anne furnishings, the Hotel du Pont is a perfect example of the extravagance of America's Gilded Age. Additions over the years include elegant ballrooms, dozens more guestrooms, a theater substantial enough to house a Broadway show and a collection of notable artworks by the likes of N.C. and Andrew Wyeth. 6 hot resorts for adults only . Famous guests: King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden, Amelia Earhart, Eleanor Roosevelt . Historical fact: The hotel was conceived by a pair of DuPont executives as a place for people to stay while visiting their Brandywine Valley headquarters, yet no expense was spared in its creation and the final bill totaled an estimated $1 million, a hefty sum at that time. FORT GARRY HOTEL, Winnipeg, Manitoba . Opening date: December 10, 1913 . The Fort Garry is one of a group of grand hotels built by the Canadian National Railway in the early 20th century to increase travel along its transcontinental routes. These château-inspired accommodations quickly grew in popularity, and while some have fallen by the wayside, the Fort Garry maintains its glitz and glamour, a fact that recently heralded it a spot on a list of the 10 most romantic spots in Canada. Famous guests: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Jack Dempsey, Liberace . Historical fact: The hotel once had its own bakery, butcher shop, heating plant, artesian well and printing press. The latter remains but is only accessible through a doorway on the roof. BENSON HOTEL, Portland, Oregon . Opening date: March 4, 1913 . The success of the Benson Hotel can be attributed to Simon Benson, an emigrant from Norway who moved to Portland and made a fortune in the lumber business. Ever the pioneer, he took a hotel that bled cash for the first 16 months of its life (it was originally called the New Oregon Hotel) and transformed it into a world-class property that now sits on the National Register of Historic Places. Managed today by Coast Hotels, it still oozes Benson's influences, from the Austrian crystal chandeliers to the Circassian walnut columns. Famous guests: Every seated president since William H. Taft . Historical fact: Back in the day, guests of the hotel were greeted each morning with a complimentary cup of hot clam nectar. Today, it's a cup of hot coffee. HOTEL SAVOY, Moscow, Russia . Opening date: March 30, 1913 . The two aren't related, but much like the Savoy Hotel in London, Moscow's Savoy is a landmark property dripping with opulence, albeit in a much smaller, more intimate setting. Designed as a haven for aristocrats visiting from Saint Petersburg and beyond, it still draws Russia's elite, who can often be found hobnobbing in the lobby bar. Another beloved feature is its location, which is just steps from top sights like the Kremlin, the Bolshoi and St. Basil's Cathedral. Famous guests: Isadora Duncan, Luciano Pavarotti, Richard Gere . Historical fact: The Hotel Savoy was built by the Salamander Fire Insurance Company, and images of salamanders can be found in the carpets, the pool and elsewhere throughout the property. GSTAAD PALACE, Gstaad, Switzerland . Opening date: December 8, 1913 . Gstaad is one of Europe's favorite winter sports destinations, but guests flock to this old-school resort year-round, enticed by the lighted tennis courts, Olympic-size swimming pool, high-end fitness center with saunas and massage rooms, and the hundreds of miles of hike and bike trails that weave through the Bernese Alps surrounding the property. One of the few family-owned and -operated hotels in Switzerland, the Gstaad Palace makes a point to treat its guests like one of their own, and the result is a boom in repeat visitors. Famous guests: Marc Chagall, Madonna, Jimmy Carter . Historical fact: Owing to the Palace's isolated mountainside location, the Swiss government found it a fitting place to stash a chunk of its gold reserves during World War II. GRANDE COLONIAL, La Jolla, California . Opening date: February 1, 1913 . Given the Grande Colonial's spectacular seaside setting in a charming suburb of San Diego, it's not hard to see how the hotel has survived for the last hundred years. Or how it could easily make it another hundred. The property has undergone multiple renovations over the decades, including an $8 million restoration completed in 2007 and a recent overhaul of the entry, lobby and adjacent public spaces, both meant to preserve the hotel's original European-style ambiance and aesthetic. Famous guests: Groucho Marx, Jane Wyatt and a couple of ghosts said to haunt the hotel's hallways . Historical fact: The pharmacist at a drugstore that became part of the hotel back in 1928 was the father of actor Gregory Peck, who grew up in the area and later co-founded the La Jolla Playhouse. | The Grove Park Inn celebrates its 100th birthday in July .
Gstaad Palace in Switzerland is a family-owned hotel marking 100 years in December .
The Fort Garry Hotel was built by the Canadian National Railway in the early 20th century . |
98,080 | 0a45e18aced0a91381806f6fa2488f5047ed2c63 | By . Kieran Corcoran . We have all wondered how we might spend an unexpected £1million - but few of us could match the panache of one new millionaire currently part-way through an exuberant round-the-world spending spree. Matt Myles, 27, from Hereford, was working gruelling night shifts in a factory when a Euromillions ticket bought on a whim netted him a surprise £1million windfall. And he wasted no time in putting his newfound wealth to good use - jetting off to Indonesia before the money had even hit his account. Living it up: Matt Myles, 27, won £1million earlier this year, and is currently enjoying a jaunt round the globe . Living the dream: Mr Myles, pictured cruising down the Thames, has devoted a tenth of his £1million win to his hedonistic voyage . Wild times: Mr Myles, pictured right with friends in Thailand, also has Australia, the U.S. and South America in his sights . Since then Mr Myles has been living a life of non-stop hedonism, fuelled by raucous and expensive nights out, designer clothes and beautiful women. He has also taken the time to keep all his friends - and hundreds of online fans - updated over Twitter as he makes the most of his money. Mr Myles took off on his round-the-world tour in April, taking his brother Pete, 26, along for the ride and picking up his tab. So far his lavish lifestyle has taken him to Hong Kong, Bali and Thailand. He then set off for Brazil, where England's disappointing World Cup performance failed to dampen the experience. Represent: Mr Myles, who is accompanied on his trip by his brother Pete, visited Brazil to support England in the World Cup . Dream come true: Mr Myles' shot of his time in Brazil where he went to watch the football - but sadly his team weren't as lucky as him . Vintage: The former factory worker has developed a taste of fine food and drink - and is pictured here with 2003 vintage Dom Perignon . Still on his hit list are visiting Machu Picchu in Peru, diving at Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, bungee jumping into the Grand Canyon in Arizona, driving across Route 66 in a Ford Mustang. He then hopes to canoe the Amazon, walking the Great Wall of China and seeing the pyramids in Egypt, enjoy a fortnight of partying with his friends in Ibiza and volunteer with Unicef in Africa for three months. Mr Myles, who used to serve in the Army, told the Sunday People: 'From travelling the world to meeting celebrities I couldn’t have made this up in my wildest dreams - They say money can’t buy happiness but I have never been happier.' Triumph: A Euromillions ticket bought on a whim secured the huge payout . Vista: Mr Myles has been keeping his fans, and envious onlookers, up to date with images of his tour. Pictured is Bali . Party guy: Mr Myles has taken to his new life of wealth with gusto . Before the shock win, he said: 'I was working night shifts and was worried I’d have to move back home to save some money. While the next 12 months will be incredible, I won’t change. I’ll live as I always have – go big or go home!' However, despite the apparent gusto with which he is spending his winnings, Mr Myles says he has set himself a limit of £100,000. Upon winning, he invested half of the cash and is ploughing much of the remainder into establishing a property business with friends, and hopes to train as an airline pilot. Hard life: A stunning view of a Thai beach from the pool taken by Mr Myles on his trip around the world . Fast living: Mr Myles now hopes to canoe the Amazon, walk the Great Wall of China and see the pyramids . | Just months ago Matt Myles, 27, was 'in the dumps' working a menial job .
But a £1million lottery win set him on the path of exuberant world tour .
Mr Myles is part-way through his jaunt, which includes World Cup visit .
He has visited southeast Asia and quaffed vintage champagne abroad .
Claims to have set aside £100,000 of his winnings for year-long tour .
But the rest of his winnings have been invested more sensibly for the future . |
283,270 | faf13931fd6d4722a47f6f18bb5512e7e21ae581 | (CNN) -- The 2014 Screen Actors Guild Awards were handed out at Los Angeles' Shrine Exposition Center on January 18. Take a look at the full list of winners, marked here in bold. Motion Picture Nominees . Outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture . • "12 Years a Slave" • "American Hustle" -- WINNER . • "August: Osage County" • "Dallas Buyers Club" • "Lee Daniels' The Butler" Outstanding performance by a male actor in a leading role . • Bruce Dern, "Nebraska" • Chiwetel Ejiofor, "12 Years a Slave" • Tom Hanks, "Captain Phillips" • Matthew McConaughey, "Dallas Buyers Club" -- WINNER . • Forest Whitaker, "Lee Daniels' The Butler" Outstanding performance by a female actor in a leading role . • Cate Blanchett, "Blue Jasmine" -- WINNER . • Sandra Bullock, "Gravity" • Judi Dench, "Philomena" • Meryl Streep, "August: Osage County" • Emma Thompson, "Saving Mr. Banks" Outstanding performance by a male actor in a supporting role . • Barkhad Abdi, "Captain Phillips" • Daniel Bruhl, "Rush" • Michael Fassbender, "12 Years a Slave" • James Gandolfini, "Enough Said" • Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club" -- WINNER . Outstanding performance by a female actor in a supporting role . • Jennifer Lawrence, "American Hustle" • Lupita Nyong'o, "12 Years a Slave" -- WINNER . • Julia Roberts, "August: Osage County" • June Squibb, "Nebraska" • Oprah Winfrey, "Lee Daniels' The Butler" Television Nominees . Outstanding performance by a male actor in a television movie or miniseries . • Matt Damon, "Behind the Candelabra" • Michael Douglas, "Behind the Candelabra" -- WINNER . • Jeremy Irons, "The Hollow Crown" • Rob Lowe, "Killing Kennedy" • Al Pacino, "Phil Spector" Outstanding performance by a female actor in a television movie or miniseries . • Angela Bassett, "Betty & Coretta" • Helena Bonham Carter, "Burton and Taylor" • Holly Hunter, "Top of the Lake" • Helen Mirren, "Phil Spector" -- WINNER . • Elisabeth Moss, "Top of the Lake" Outstanding performance by a male actor in a drama series . • Steve Buscemi, "Boardwalk Empire" • Bryan Cranston, "Breaking Bad" -- WINNER . • Jeff Daniels, "The Newsroom" • Peter Dinklage, "Game of Thrones" • Kevin Spacey, "House of Cards" Outstanding performance by a female actor in a drama series . • Claire Danes, "Homeland" • Anna Gunn, "Breaking Bad" • Jessica Lange, "American Horror Story: Coven" • Maggie Smith, "Downton Abbey" -- WINNER . • Kerry Washington, "Scandal" Outstanding performance by a male actor in a comedy series . • Alec Baldwin, "30 Rock" • Jason Bateman, "Arrested Development" • Ty Burrell, "Modern Family" -- WINNER . • Don Cheadle, "House of Lies" • Jim Parsons, "The Big Bang Theory" Outstanding performance by a female actor in a comedy series . • Mayim Bialik, "The Big Bang Theory" • Julie Bowen, "Modern Family" • Edie Falco, "Nurse Jackie" • Tina Fey, "30 Rock" • Julia Louis-Dreyfus," Veep" -- WINNER . Outstanding performance by an ensemble in a drama series . • "Boardwalk Empire" • "Breaking Bad" -- WINNER . • "Downton Abbey" • "Game of Thrones" • "Homeland" Outstanding performance by an ensemble in a comedy series . • "30 Rock" • "Arrested Development" • "The Big Bang Theory" • "Modern Family" -- WINNER . • "Veep" Stunt Ensembles . Outstanding action performance by a stunt ensemble in a motion picture . • "All is Lost" • "Fast & Furious 6" • "Lone Survivor" -- WINNER . • "Rush"" • "The Wolverine" Outstanding action performance by a stunt ensemble in a comedy or drama series . • "Boardwalk Empire" • "Breaking Bad" • "Game of Thrones" -- WINNER . • "Homeland" • "The Walking Dead" Life achievement award . Rita Moreno . 5 show-stealing moments . | The 2014 SAG Awards were handed out on January 18 .
"American Hustle" won outstanding performance by a movie cast .
"Modern Family" won best comedy ensemble .
"Breaking Bad" took home the award for best drama ensemble . |
178,358 | 72ee1af2b19f9e259b406f16985ea0034d48f2ae | By . John Hall . A Russian family has survived a fire on board a hot air balloon by jumping from the basket as it plunged towards the ground following a dramatic explosion. Mihail Popov, 43, his wife Lena, 41, and daughter Dasha, 10, were left with severe burns and broken bones after leaping from the balloon when its engine malfunctioned 500 feet above Nizhny Novgorod. The pilot of the craft, Gregoriy Karolev, 49, had been wresting with the balloon's gas valve for several minutes before a explosion of burning gas hit him and his guests like a flamethrower. Scroll down for video . Crash site: Mihail Popov, 43, his wife Lena, 41, and daughter Dasha, 10, were left with severe burns and broken bones after leaping from the balloon when its engine malfunctioned 500 feet above Nizhny Novgorod . Flames: Eyewitnesses on the ground saw fire suddenly spread across the basket. After the explosion, Mr Karolev managed to get the balloon back under control and was able to make it descend rapidly . After the explosion, Mr Karolev managed to get the balloon back under control and was able to make it descend rapidly. When it was just 20 feet from the ground - but in danger of rising again - the pilot told his guests to jump from the basket. He followed them seconds later. Later in hospital Mr Karolev said: 'There was a malfunction with the gas distribution. I tinkered with it and suddenly there was a jet of fire that came from nowhere.' 'The next thing I remember was a savage pain in my arms from the burns and the screams of the unfortunate people aboard,' he added. Wreckage: The pilot of the craft, Gregoriy Karolev, 49, had been wresting with the balloon's gas valve for several minutes before a explosion of burning gas hit him and his guests like a flamethrower . Eyewitnesses on the ground saw the flame suddenly spill out across the basket. Ivan Demnyansky, one of the ground workers at the Fifth Ocean club where the balloon was based, said: 'I could see that there was trouble aboard.' Describing the scene after the family and pilot jumped from the balloon, Mr Demnyansky added: 'They looked to be quite badly burned in places but I think all of them are expected to pull through.' Risk: When it was just 20 feet from the ground - but in danger of rising again - the pilot told his guests to jump from the basket. He followed them seconds later . Landing: Later in hospital Mr Karolev said: 'There was a malfunction with the gas distribution. I tinkered with it and suddenly there was a jet of fire that came from nowhere' Police are investigating accident, which took place over the weekend. Officers are focusing on the fact the pilot took to the air with a flight certification document that was a month out of date. 'The prosecutor's office will assess the actions of all participants of the accident and will respond with measures designed to bring the perpetrators to the statutory responsibility and prevent similar events in the future,' a spokesman for the local prosecutor said. The incident comes just days after two University of Richmond basketball coaches were killed in a fiery hot air balloon crash in Caroline County, Virginia. | Balloon caught fire 500 feet above the city of Nizhny Novgorod in Russia .
Pilot managed to get balloon under control but told family to jump out .
Mihail Popov, his wife Lena, and daughter Dasha had to leap from the craft .
The pilot followed them seconds later as balloon crashed to the earth .
He is now being investigated by police for flying on an expired certificate . |
48,269 | 88435d3e984257758fbfc3d4774600ac8494e228 | Prime Minister Tony Abbott has released details of the video in which one of two accused terrorists made threats about carrying out an attack on Australia and stabbing victims in their 'kidneys' and 'livers'. Mohammad Kiad, 25, and Omar Al-Kutobi, 24, were arrested in their shared squalid granny flat at Fairfield, western Sydney, on Tuesday afternoon, where a police raid allegedly uncovered a machete, a hunting knife, an Islamic State flag and a video featuring both the men, with one recorded making threats of carrying out an attack. During Question Time in parliament on Thursday, Mr Abbott said he was shown the video during his security briefing with the Australian Federal Police Commissioner and the Director-General of ASIO this morning. 'Madam Speaker, kneeling before the death cult flag with a knife in his hand and a machete before him one of those arrested said this: "I swear to almighty Allah, we will carry out the first operation for the soldiers of the caliphate in Australia," he said. Scroll down for video . Mohammad Kiad, 25 (right), and his Iraqi born housemate Omar Al-Kutobi, 24 (left), were arrested on terror charges in their shared squalid granny flat at Fairfield on Tuesday . Iraqi Minister of Foreign Affairs Ibrahim Al-Jaafari (left) shakes hands with Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott on Thursday. Al-Jaafari is in Australia to give a first-hand update on the battle against Islamic State . 'He went on to say, Madam Speaker, "I swear to almighty Allah, blonde people, there is no room for blame between you and us. We owe you only stabbing the kidneys and striking the necks". Mr Abbott made the comments while arguing that the parliament should pass the government's proposed further changes to data retention laws. This comes after social media accounts of one of the two men charged with plotting a terrorist attack involving large knives on Wednesday revealed he was a fashion-loving weightlifter with a keen eye for expensive jewellery. Pictures of Mohammad Kiad on his Facebook page show him sporting expensive watches and suits as well as taking numerous selfies while at the gym. In contrast to the snaps of him in shiny sparkling tight pants, other pictures show him wearing traditional white Islamic clothing and headpieces. However in person, the 25-year-old nurse who worked as a removalist has been described as a quiet man who never mentioned his religion, according to Fairfax. Both men arrived in Australia from the Middle East seeking a better life as refugees but allegedly became radicalised in recent months, it has been claimed. On Thursday, accused terrorist Kiad accidentally appeared briefly in court. Kiad popped up on screens at Central Local Court by audio visual link from Silverwater prison, where he is being held with his co-accused, Iraqi-born Omar al-Kutobi, in western Sydney. He was dressed in prison greens, wore glasses and his beard was trimmed close to his face. Facebook pictures of Kiad, who immigrated to Australia from Kuwait in 2009, revealed his fashion interest and showed him sporting expensive watches and suits as well as making some strange fashion statements . Bail applications by both men were set aside on a farcical day of hearings at Central when a power blackout and then a computer failure delayed proceedings. Mohammad Kiad's name was read out by the Commonwealth prosecutor and he was brought into the audio visual room at Silverwater prison by mistake. Deone Provera, a solicitor assisting Legal Aid in the two men's representation, did not require either man's appearance. Mr Provera had their release applications set down for March16. Commonwealth DPP prosecutor Kay Marenos said the brief of evidence against the men was four pages long 'but that is likely to change' and included photographs and a short video. Immigration Minister Peter Dutton told the Today Show on Thursday Kiad, from Kuwait, and Al-Kutobi, from Iraq, were granted refugee status. Al-Kutobi was granted citizenship in 2013 and was studying to be a nurse after he arrived in Australia by plane in 2009. The Daily Telegraph alleges a senior intelligence source has confirmed he arrived in the country with false documentation. A keen weight-lifter, the 25-year-old removalist also shared selfies of himself at the gym . Mr Kiad entered Australia in 2012, where he had worked as a nurse - but when he arrived in Australia he found he could not transfer his skills. He was granted a visa under the family and spousal visa arrangements and recently took up a job as a removalist but was fired and was on the dole at the time of his arrest, it has been reported. Mr Dutton told the Today Show: 'We've stopped the boats now and we need to make sure they remain stopped.’ However, Today Show host Karl Stefanovic pointed out: 'This guy came by plane though.’ Attorney-General George Brandis told parliament on Wednesday: 'Significantly, police also located a video recording of one suspect kneeling in front of an ISIL (IS) flag, with the knife and machete, making a politically-motivated statement, threatening to undertake violent acts with those weapons.' A Sydney police station and officers on the street were revealed to have been the the targets with attacks scheduled for just before midnight on Tuesday, Channel Nine reported. In contrast to the snaps of him in shiny pants, other pictures show him wearing traditional white Islamic clothing and headpieces . Pictures of the duo from mid-2013 show them poking faces and smoking shisha together. Mr Al-Kutobi was granted citizenship in 2013 and was studying to be a nurse while Mr Kiad, originally from Kuwait where he immigrated from in 2009, was reported to have been recently fired from his removalist job. While some neighbours told Fairfax that he was 'friendly', 'open minded about religion' and 'never talked about Islam', others admitted he and Mr Al-Katobi had begun acting differently after the anti-terror raids in western Sydney last September. 'He began wearing a scarf, just like ISIS and Mohammad, he grew a long beard,' Neighbour Michael David said of Al-Kutobi. 'I heard them praying in there [the granny flat] and reading the Koran,' said Mr David, who speaks Arabic. Ms Jeisele-Brown said the pair had fallen out with another neighbour over the last month or two for 'speaking sharp' and that she had been upset with them after finding a religious picture of hers dumped in the rubbish bin. Pictured smoking shisha in mid-2013: The mens' neighbours said they mostly kept to themselves but admitted their behaviour had changed drastically in the last few months following police raids in western Sydney and the Martin Place siege . 'I had been in hospital having chemotherapy and when I came back home my picture of Jesus Christ was missing,' she said. 'I found it in the rubbish. I don't know who dumped it but I thought ... I didn't say anything.' Neighbours Teresita Heisele-Brown said she had noticed that after the Martin place siege, the two men had had lengthy discussions in Arabic and had watched a lot of television, perhaps coverage of the a siege. She said when the police came around to arrest the pair, Mohammad had pretended he didn't speak English. She said detectives had made the men lie on the ground while they handcuffed them. Their home, workplaces and cars were all searched by police. On Thursday, accused terrorist Kiad accidentally appeared briefly in court. Their Fairfield home, a granny flat in Sydney's west (pictured) NSW Police Deputy Commissioner Catherine Burn and Australian Federal Police Deputy Commissioner Michael Phelan said two men have been arrested on terrorism charges . Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article. | Prime Minister Tony Abbott revealed contents of the video in Parliament .
He quoted alleged terrorist saying he swore oath to ISIS .
Abbott said he was shown the video as part of regular security briefing .
Alleged terrorist was kneeling before ISIS flag and a machete, with knife in hand .
Mohammad Kiad, 25, and Omar Al-Kutobi, 24, were arrested on terror charges in Sydney on Tuesday .
Police raid allegedly uncovered a machete, a hunting knife, an Islamic State flag and a video of them making threats of carrying out a terrorist attack .
The men will apply for bail at court appearance on March 16 .
Kiad accidentally appeared briefly in court via video link from Silverwater prison on Thursday . |
23,520 | 42caeb00c64b0b580532a3602c193b4c2061a396 | By . Meghan Keneally . PUBLISHED: . 08:40 EST, 2 May 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 08:45 EST, 2 May 2013 . The former flame of the suspected Boston Marathon bombing suspect says that she was so attracted to him when she saw him outside that she immediately went over and flirted. 'I met him standing outside a building and honestly, his face was enough to capture my heart. I walked right up to him and I was like, 'Oh my God, you are adorable. Can we hang out?' I'm very forward,' the girl told Mother Jones. The girl, who is a fellow UMASS-Dartmouth student that is not releasing her name, started a romantic relationship with Dzhokhar Tsarnaev last fall that only lasted about two weeks. Friends in low places: Dias Kadyrbayev and Azamat Tazhayakov (left and center) were identified as the two friends of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev (right) who have been held in Boston jail since April 20 . The American: Robel Phillipos, who was identified as this student by CNN, was arrested on Wednesday and charged with making false statements to police and obstructing justice in a terrorism investigation . During that time, she also met his three friends who were arrested on Wednesday for destroying evidence and lying to federal investigators. The girl said that they all looked up to Tsarnaev, whom they referred to as 'Jahar'. 'They all sort of idolized Jahar,' she said. Dias Kadyrbayev and Azamat Tazhayakov, both Kazakh nationals, were charged with conspiring to obstruct justice by destroying evidence. An American named Robel Phillipos is charged with knowingly and willfully making false statements to investigators. She said that she met the three other young men through Tsarnaev, though she described him as being the 'leader of his group'. She said that she was shocked by Tsarnaev's involvement in the bombing, as well as any help that he received from his friends. 'There was no indication that they were crazy at all. They just seemed goofy, kind of lackadaisical, not interested in their studies. But, you know, whatever, it was their first semester of college. No one really cared about books,' she said. Tsarnaev and the unidentified young woman spent their time together involved listening to music and smoking pot, though she says she ended things when he wanted to move faster than she did though she doesn't consider that as an indication that he was bound to be a killer. College friends: The first reports claim that the three people in custody all went to college with Dzhokhar at UMass Dartmouth and were thought to have helped him cover up for the bombings after the fact . 'I don't think that's necessarily being a terrorist. I think that's just called being a hands-y teenaged boy,' she said. She told Mother Jones that she was surprised by implications that the bombing had anything to do with Tsarnaev's religious beliefs as he never mentioned his religion during their time together. She said that Dias Kadyrbayev, who seemed the closest to Tsarnaev, was more conservative as he once made a comment to her at a party about her dress being too revealing. After Tsarnaev, Kadyrbayev appears to be the most in-command of the group as he was the one who texted . Kadyrbayev warned his friend that that he was plastered across television news outlets . 'Tsarnaev’s return texts contained ‘lol’ and other things Kadyrbayev interpreted as jokes,' documents say. On the same day that the FBI released pictures and video clips of the Tsarnaev brothers at the bomb scene, Kadyrbayev and Tazhayakov removed items from the younger bomber's dorm room. That was just two days before the FBI searched the room. The criminal complaint lists that they removed Dzhokhar's backpack from his room and 'agreed to get rid of it after concluding from news reports that Tsarnaev was one of the Boston Marathon bombers.' The three friends- Kadyrbayev, Tazhayakov and Phillipos- went over to Tsarnaev's on-campus dormitory after seeing the news reports. Close: Azamat Tazhayakov, seen here with bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev in an undated picture, told police that about a month before the Marathon attack, Dzhokhar said that he knew how to make a bomb . Texts: When the group arrived at the dorm, Dias . Kadyrbayev (left) showed Tazhayakov (right) a text from the bomber that . said 'I'm about to leave if you need something in my room take it' Happier times: Kadyrbayev told investigators that he suggested they take Tsarnaev's backpack and his laptop from the room, and later was the one to throw it in the garbage at his off-campus apartment . When the group arrived at the dorm, Kadyrbayev showed Tazhayakov a text from the bomber that said 'I'm about to leave if you need something in my room take it.' He did not specify where he was going, but Tazhayakov told investigators that he felt that this meant he would never see Tsarnaev alive again. Kadyrbayev 'knew when he saw the empty fireworks that Tsarnaev was involved in the Marathon bombing. Tazhayakov was more alarmed because the tubes had been emptied but not destroyed, meaning that Tsarnaev could have either used the explosives or planned to use them. Kadyrbayev found Vaseline in the room, which he told the others Tsarnaev used to make bombs. First suspects: Brothers Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev were identified as the first suspects . Alarm bells: The friends said that they became concerned that Tsarnaev actually had something to do with the bombings when they found these empty firework containers in his dorm room . At one point in the police interviews, Tazhayakev said that during a meal a month before the attack, Tsarnaev told he and Kadyrbayev that he knew how to make a bomb. Kadyrbayev was reportedly the one who 'decided to remove the backpack from the room in order to help his friend Tsarnaev avoid trouble.' In a slightly unexpected explanation, Kadyrbayev says that he took Dzhokhar's laptop because he did not want to the roommate to think that he was 'stealing or behaving suspiciously by just taking the backpack'. | Fellow UMASS-Dartmouth student talks about how she struck up a brief romance with Dzhokhar Tsarnaev last fall .
She said he wanted to move too fast so she called it quits after two weeks .
Talked about how his three friends 'idolized' Tsarnaev .
Comes the day after the three friends were taken into custody after helping Tsarnaev cover up for the bombing .
Two identified as Dias Kadyrbayev and Azamat Tazhayakov, both Kazakh nationals who were in custody already on immigration issues .
Third suspect named as Robel Phillipos of Cambridge, Massachusetts . |
210,011 | 9bfac0dfbcdf0587575550ad4d04280f357d8984 | When Alexander and Danielle Meitiv waved goodbye to their children at a Maryland park just before Christmas last year, they thought nothing of letting the youngsters walk a mile home on their own. After all, Rafi, 10, and Dvora, six, had been on three trips together already, walking up to three quarters of a mile from their parents' house in Montgomery County. Alex and Danielle, who describe themselves as 'free-range parents', encouraged them to take the journeys to learn responsibility, build confidence, and teach them about the outside world. But on this occasion the kids made it halfway home before the cops arrived. They took the infants home, Child Protective Services were called, and Alex and Danielle were accused of neglect. Danielle (pictured) says she and husband Alexander often let their children Rafi, ten, and Dvora, six, walk alone to teach them about the world - but they have now been accused of neglect . Alexander was asked to sign a form saying he wouldn't let the children go out unsupervised and initially refused, but was told that Rafi and Dvora could be taken away otherwise, so he gave in. Workers from Montgomery County Child Protective Services (CPS) even went to their children's school and questioned the youngsters without their parents' knowledge. Alex and Danielle have yet to learn whether any further action will be taken against them, but say whatever happens next, the experience has left them furious. Danielle told the Washington Post: 'I think what CPS considered neglect, we felt was an essential part of growing up and maturing. Free-range parenting is the name given to a style of raising kids in opposition to so-called 'helicopter parenting'. 'Helicopter parents' are named for their habit of hovering over their offspring, micro-managing their lives in an attempt to keep them safe. However critics believe this creates under-confident, over-reliant children, while also causing the parents stress. Free-range parents advocate a more hands-off approach, where children are allowed to go out and experience the world on their own. Instead of constantly monitoring activities to make sure children are safe, the emphasis is put on adults assessing risk ahead of time, and equipping children with the skills to deal with danger themselves. 'We feel we’re being bullied into a point of view about child-rearing that we strongly disagree with.' The Meitivs are advocates of 'free range parenting', a school of thought set up in opposition to so-called 'helicopter parents', who micro-manage every element of their children's lives in an attempt to keep them safe. Danielle insists that while their hands-off approach may panic some people, in fact she is just trying to give her children the same 'old-fashioned' upbringing she had. She told WUSA-TV: 'I grew up in New York City in the '70s and nobody hesitated to let their kids walk around. 'The world is actually even safer than when I was a child. The only thing that's changed between then and now is our fear. 'I think it’s absolutely critical for their development — to learn responsibility, to experience the world, to gain confidence and competency.' She describes parenthood as being 'an exercise in risk management' and say her and her husband spend the same amount of time as any parent worrying about what is and isn't safe. The only difference is where they decide to draw the line. She said parents should stop worrying that their children are going to be abducted, saying such disappearances are 'incredibly rare', and should instead focus on more likely problems, such as road safety. Danielle and Alex waved goodbye to their children at this park in Montgomery County on December 20. The next time they saw them they were in the back of a police car after cops picked them up . She often lets the children go for walks together, around the block, or up to the local 7/11. They even carry a card which reads: 'I'm not lost, I'm a free range kid.' However, when police stopped the children on December 20 as they were walking back home from Woodside Park, they didn't have the card on them. The children told officers that they weren't doing anything wrong by walking home, but were still put into a patrol car and driven back to their house. Alexander said he was given a 'tense' lecture by officers on the dangers of the world. But the real problem began after they left and the CPS showed up. Even now, more than a month on, their ordeal is not over. According to the Meitivs the CPS tried to search their house, but they refused to answer the door. They say they have a meeting set for next week at CPS offices in Rockville, but don't know what the outcome will be. A CPS spokeswoman told the Post that they couldn't comment on individual cases, but pointed to state law which says children under eight must be left with a responsible person aged at least 13. Police said they could not find information on the case, but a spokeswoman said that when concerns are reported, 'we have a responsibility as part of our duty to check on people’s welfare.' | Danielle and Alexander Meitiv regularly let children walk on their own .
Say 'free range parenting' teaches kids to be responsible and confident .
On December 20 police were called after children were spotted alone .
Child Protection Services were called and accused parents of neglect .
Officers even tried to search the family home but were turned away . |
120,774 | 281c155b3afb635c721a77184cdbf731a695e50e | By . Associated Press . An auction ended Friday with no bids for the New Hampshire compound of a tax-evading couple convicted of amassing an arsenal of weapons and holding federal law enforcement officials at bay for months. The auction of Ed and Elaine Brown's fortress-like home on 100 acres in Plainfield was held at U.S. District Court in Concord. The minimum required bid was $250,000. Elaine Brown's dental office in Lebanon also was being auctioned but got no bids . Prospective bidders have not been allowed to tour the property, and last year, the U.S. Marshals Service cited the possibility of land mines and other explosives buried on the property as a complication. Buyers beware: The home of Ed and Elaine Brown in Plainfield, New Hampshire, is up for sale for a minimum bid of $250,000 after the couple went to prison for tax evasion. The property may still have land mines . The court has ruled that the Browns and any heirs have no claims to the properties or any assets from their sale. If the properties sell, the first entities to be paid would be the municipalities of Plainfield and Lebanon, which are owed back property taxes. The Browns, who do not recognize the federal government's authority to tax its citizens, had a nine-month standoff with authorities in 2007 after they were sentenced to five years in prison for tax evasion. Ed Brown was affiliated with the Constitution Defense Militia, an organization against taxation and that believes there could be a federal takeover of private property, the New Hampshire Sunday News reported. He named as part of this alleged conspiracy presidents Bill Clinton and George Bush, Soviet Union's last leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, the United Nations, among others. During the 2007 standoff, he was prepared with guns, ammunition and 18 months worth of food stockpiled in his basement. He said the militia would react violently and there would be 'blood in the streets' if the government tried to take over his guns, according to the New Hampshire Sunday News. While the Browns kept federal marshals . at bay during the standoff, they welcomed a parade of anti-tax and anti-government . supporters. One such visitor was Randy Weaver, whose wife and son were killed along . with a deputy U.S. marshal in a 1992 shootout on Weaver's property in . Ruby Ridge, Idaho. The couple was arrested peacefully when U.S. marshals posed as supporters and were able to get inside. They were convicted in 2009 of amassing weapons, explosives and booby traps and plotting to kill federal agents who came to arrest them. Ed and Elaine Brown, both in their 70s, are serving 37 and 35 years in prison. As of a year ago, numerous federal agencies with explosive detection equipment and dogs still couldn't ensure the land was free of booby traps. But the hilltop house and the grounds up to the tree line have been searched extensively and have deemed free of improvised explosive devices and other booby traps. Ed Brown (right) and his wife Elaine received a parade of anti-tax supporters during their standoff, including Randy Weaver (center), whose wife and son were killed along with a deputy US marshal in a 1992 shootout on Weaver's property in Idaho . | The New Hampshire home of Ed and Elaine of Brown is up for sale for a minimum bid of $250,000 .
The compound is where the Browns held the federal government off with weapons and explosives for nine months in 2007 .
US Marshals say the property may still have buried explosives . |
220,468 | a95e628e09ab4b2468daae75edca4ddf366e6384 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 11:36 EST, 16 December 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 02:40 EST, 17 December 2013 . Injuries: Kathleen Allegrone, 70, was left with a bloody nose after being thrown to the ground . A police officer has been filmed violently body-slamming a 70-year-old woman face-first onto the pavement after stopping her for drunk driving. Kathleen Mary Allegrone was left with a bloody and bruised nose after Kevin Jones from the Glynn County Sheriff's Office threw her to the ground on St. Simons Island, Georgia on December 5. Despite the apparently brutal act, which was caught on camera by a passerby, the sheriff's office concluded that Jones acted reasonably and he has been allowed to continue working. The video shows Allegrone struggling with the officer as he leads her, handcuffed, to his patrol car before throwing her into the air and onto the street, her face hitting the ground with a smack. 'The lady was being handcuffed and did not have her arms to break her fall,' a witness said. The cameraman's friend added to First Coast News: 'I was stunned really. I think everyone was.' But the Glynn County sheriff's office insisted that Jones acted reasonably as Allegrone had become violent during the arrest. Police . Chief Matt Doering told the Florida Times-Union that Allegrone . had locked herself inside her car after being pulled over for drunk . driving and officers had to use an unlock tool to open a door. 'Attack': A passerby captured the moment officer Kevin Jones threw her to the ground for resisting him . As Jones removed Allegrone from the . car, he sustained lacerations to his hand as she dug her nails into him, . Doering wrote in his report. She continued to resist their arrest - as seen in the video posted to YouTube - and continued to dig her nails into the officer's hand and wrist, according to the report. To . stop her hurting him, Jones threw Allegrone to the pavement to stop the . assault - and he was justified in doing so, Doering wrote. Jones . had initially been taken off patrol as police investigated his conduct . but he returned to full duties on Saturday, nine days after the . incident. Stopped: Ahead of the body slam, she can be seen being removed from her car after allegedly drink driving . After the police officer threw the . woman on the ground, another cop walked over to the man who was . recording with his cell phone and asked him to stop. 'It's not against the law, though,' the witness told the officer. 'I . know it's not against the law. I'm just asking you not to do it,' the . officer said. 'I cannot stop you but all I can say is that if it was . your friend over there or if it was yourself would you want this . happening?' The young man tried to reply but was cut off as the officer demanded: 'Yes or no, sir! Yes or no, sir!' Allegrone . was arrested and booked into the Glynn County jail on charges of driving under the influence and felony . obstruction of a police officer. She was released on bail later that day. | Kathleen Mary Allegrone was pulled over for drunk driving on St Simons Island, Georgia on December 5 .
She 'resisted arrest as she was pulled from car and clawed at the officer'
The officer, Kevin Jones, can be seen lifting her and body slamming her to the ground - leaving her with a bloody cut nose in her mug shot .
The sheriff's office concluded the officer was justified in doing so . |
124,025 | 2c546f86149d8aea8be929454b2d62cdb1cc525c | Julia Pierson, the first woman to helm the U.S. Secret Service, resigned on Wednesday following two embarrassing episodes over just three days that underscored the once-respected agency's struggle to protect the president and the White House. A bitter Pierson gave an exit interview in which she claimed resigning with her agency in tatters was 'the noble thing to do,' and blamed news outlets for the quick collapse of her job. 'The media has made it clear that this is what they expected,' she told Bloomberg News. Pierson faced a hostile panel of lawmakers on Tuesday who demanded a better showing from the nation's top bodyguards after a mentally ill veteran scaled the White House fence on Sept. 19 and scampered more than 100 feet into the building, with a knife in his pocket, before agents tackled him. 'It's unacceptable,' Pierson conceded, but even President Obama's allies would hear none of it. 'I wish to God you protected the White House like you protected your reputation here today,' Massachusetts Democratic Rep. Stephen Lynch barked at her. Hot seat: Julia Pierson absorbed endless flak from Republicans and Democrats alike on Tuesday during a contentious Capitol Hill hearing . Guarded: Pierson had her own personal protection detail when she arrived to testify before Congress on Tuesday . Shortly after the hearing, news emerged that on Sept. 16 an armed private security guard was allowed on an elevator with President Obama during his visit to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. His Secret Service detail wasn't aware the man was carrying a gun. Julia Pierson told Bloomberg News that her ouster was in part driven by news outlets' demands for her head. 'The media has made it clear that this is what they expected,' she said, since 'Congress has lost confidence in my ability to run the agency.' But she concluded that 'it’s in the best interest of the Secret Service and the American public if I step down.' 'I can be pretty stoic about it, but not really,' the spurned forner Secret Service chief told Bloomberg. 'It's painful to leave as the agency is reeling from a significant security breach.' Pierson said she spoke to Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson 'in person' at his office, and 'and after that discussion I felt this was the noble thing to do.' Her resignation, she added, will 'take pressure off the organization.' 'In any organization, people are going to make a mistake,' she added, talking about the specialized bodyguard service that protects the lives of presidents and their families. 'But it’s important for the public to know that this organization is going to maintain a high degree of standards.' Calls for Pierson's ouster began to filter out to reporters within hours, beginning with Maryland Democratic Rep. Elijah Cummings, who walked back that demand on Wednesday morning. By then, however, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi had jumped on a moving train and said Pierson should step down. Several other members of Congress, mostly in the Senate, had insisted on the formation of a blue-ribbon panel to probe the Secret Service's lapses. Those demands are not likely to quiet down even after Pierson's replacement is chosen. California Republican Rep. Darrell Issa, who chairs the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee – the site of Tuesday's legislative bloodbath – said Wednesday that the resignation 'does not resolve' all the Secret Services's problems, some of which 'pre-date Ms. Pierson’s tenure as director.' 'Yesterday, the Committee called for an outside review by independent experts,' he said. 'Today, Homeland Security Jeh Johnson today agreed that such a review is critical.' Pierson told Bloomberg that it was 'in the best interest of the Secret Service and the American public if I step down. Congress has lost confidence in my ability to run the agency. The media has made it clear that this is what they expected.' 'I can be pretty stoic about it, but not really,' she said. 'It's painful to leave as the agency is reeling from a significant security breach.' That breach outraged Sen. Tom Carper, a Delaware Democrat who chairs the Homeland Security Committee in the upper chamber of Congress. He said an 'obvious dissonance that exists within an agency' was apparent because it could 'secure an event with over 100 world leaders at the United Nations General Assembly in New York City for nearly three weeks without apparent incident, but simultaneously fail to keep an intruder from running into the White House.' Obama appointed Pierson last year as pushback against perceptions that the service was becoming a boys'club. About 90 per cent of the 3,500 agents are male, and some of them were caught engaging prostitutes during an advance trip before Obama's 2012 trip to the South American nation of Colombia. Having a woman at the helm was thought to be a salve for the agency's suddenly scandalized public image. A veteran with PTSD scaled a White House fence on Sept. 19 and made it 168 feet into the presidential mansion before an off-duty agent happened to see him and brought him to the ground . White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest told reporters on Wednesday that the president and his inner circle were unaware of the elevator lapse at the CDC until 'just minutes' before the Washington Examiner broke the story Tuesday afternoon. Earnest wouldn’t say whether Pierson herself told Obama, or the White House learned of it from the media. But 'my only knowledge of this is based on public reports,' Earnest admitted. Utah Republican Rep. Jason Chaffetz claimed in an interview with The Washington Post that the man on the elevator was a convicted felon, but a Secret Service source later told the Fox News Channel that he was never prosecuted following an arrest for Assault and Battery. 'You have a convicted felon within arm's reach of the president and they never did a background check,' an angry Chaffetz said. 'Words aren't strong enough for the outrage I feel for the safety of the president and his family.' 'His life was in danger. This country would be a different world today if he had pulled out his gun.' The man, a private security guard, was stopped for questioning because he refused to stop taking a cell-phone video of the Obama during the elevator ride. His supervisors suspended him on the spot and demanded he turn over his firearm – shocking Secret Service agents who weren't aware he was armed. Better days: Obama had high praise for the first female Secret Service director when he appointed her less than 18 months ago . Jumper: Omar J. Gonzalez pleaded 'not guilty' Wednesday in federal court, despite video footage of him scaling the White House fence and eluding Secret Service as heran into the president's executive mansion while carrying a knife in his pocket . Earnest said Pierson met Wednesday with Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, who 'accepted her resignation, which she offered because it 'was in the 'best interest of the agency.' ‘The secretary agreed with that assessment. The president did as well,’ Earnest said. ‘The president concluded that new leadership of that agency was required.’ But he wouldn't directly comment on the scandal unfolding over the elevator incident. Having an armed man in an elevator with the President of the United States was a 'serious breach,' and ‘unwise and unacceptable,’ he said, but he said further comment would have to wait until after an investigation is completed. 'The president has nothing but the highest regard for the men and women of the Secret Service,' Earnest told reporters. Earnest also wouldn't say whether or not other heads would roll. But after the Homeland Security Department conducts its own probe, he said, 'the president believes that an independent panel should review the results of this assessment ... to determine what steps are appropriate moving forward.' In a statement, Johnson said: ''I salute her 30 years of distinguished service to the Secret Service and the nation.' Pierson told Bloomberg of her resignation that she had 'met in person' with Johnson, 'and after that discussion I felt this was the noble thing to do' because it would 'take pressure off the organization.' Earnest said there is no immediate timetable for Pierson's permanent replacement, which will require Senate confirmation. And in this corner ... Pierson (center) shook hands with House Oversight Committee chairman Republican Darrell Issa before her dressing-down, as ranking Democrat Elijah Cummings looked on; he would later call for her ouster and then withdraw the demand just hours before Pierson resigned . Joe Clancy, a retired Special Agent, is 'a good candidate for serving as acting director until a more permanent replacement can be found,' Earnest said. He also revealed that Clancy is taking a 'leave of absence from his private sector job' to run the Secret Service in the interim. 'The president is grateful that he has taken on that very significant responsibility,' Earnest told reporters. Pierson studied criminal justice at the University of Central Florida and served for three years with the Orlando Police Department. She was among the first female officers assigned to a beat on that force. She served on the Presidential Protective Detail for President George H.W. Bush, and was put in charge of overseeing protective details for presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. Moving her up the chain of command made sense on paper in April 2013: Pierson was already serving as chief of staff to then-director Mark Sullivan. Her working life started in a less-serious way, however. As a teenager in Orlando, she worked at nearby Disney World as a parking lot attendant – and even did a stint in the theme park as a costumed character in parades. Pierson was still listed on the Secret Service's website as the agency's director as of 3:45 p.m. Wednesday. | September 19 fence-jumper got deep inside the White House despite heavy security surrounding the building, and entered through an unlocked door .
Days earlier, an armed man rode in an elevator with Obama – and his Secret Service detail wasn't aware he was packing .
White House learned of elevator incident 'just minutes' before media reports blasted it to the public .
Pierson is a 30-year veteran of the Secret Service; she said resigning with her agency in tatters was 'the noble thing to do'
'The media has made it clear that this is what they expected'
The White House had steadfastly expressed confidence in her but accepted her resignation as calls for her ouster mounted on Capitol Hill .
Joe Clancy, a retired agent, will return to the Secret Service as interim director until the president picks a permanent successor . |
106,400 | 153a82e5567aba466dab7921d6b3047982ac77ab | Mexico City (CNN) -- Five gang members have confessed to involvement in last week's torching of a casino in Monterrey in which 52 people were killed, Nuevo Leon Gov. Rodrigo Medina de la Cruz told reporters Monday. The five are members of Los Zetas and carried out the attack because the owners of the casino had not complied with their extortion demands, Medina de la Cruz said, according to the state-run Notimex News Agency. The State Agency of Investigations identified the suspects as Luis Carlos Carrazco Espinosa, 25; Javier Alonso Martinez Morales, alias "el Javo," 37, from Monterrey; Jonathan Jahir Reyna Gutierrez, 18; Juan Angel Leal Flores, 20; and Julio Tadeo Berrones, 28, alias "El Julio Rayas." The five have been arrested and "have confessed, and we have scientific proof that these people participated," Medina de la Cruz said. The attorney general's office said evidence points to involvement by all five men, "some as intellectual authors, others as accomplices and lookouts, others as material authors, others as drivers." "Presumably, there was a disagreement and this crime was perpetrated as a reprisal," Medina de la Cruz said. At least two other people were being sought for alleged participation in the killings, he said, adding that he would not reveal details that might jeopardize the investigation. The attack appears to have been directed at the casino and not at city residents, "and the situation got out of the criminals' control." "They may not have counted on killing 52 human beings," he said. Medina de la Cruz, who was accompanied at the news conference by Nuevo Leon Attorney General Leon Adrian de la Garza, and the state's security spokesman, Jorge Domene, underscored that the investigation into the casino properties is continuing. The governor presented a video that he said showed two vehicles that participated in the attack, with people putting gasoline in tanks later used at the casino. He added that a fingerprint taken from one of the cars led investigators to one of the suspects and, from him, to the others, who have criminal records that include homicide and kidnapping, among other offences. He called for any witnesses who may recognize the suspects to contact authorities. Mexico's Attorney General's Office had offered a 30-million peso ($2.4 million) reward for information leading to the capture of the men they suspect were behind Thursday afternoon's attack in the affluent city. The ambush left a charred shell of a building where the high-end casino had stood. Photos of the scene at the Casino Royale showed singed slot machines. A video released by Mexican authorities showed armed men bursting into the casino carrying what appeared to be gallons of gasoline. Seconds later, dozens of people fled as smoke and fire engulfed the building. On Saturday, 300 soldiers from the Mexican Army and Air Force boarded planes in the nation's capital, bound for Monterrey as part of President Felipe Calderon's plan to help local authorities fight drug trafficking and organized crime, Mexico's defense department said. The number of victims in the casino attack drew national attention in a country where headlines routinely describe brutal drug-related violence. "It is evident that we are not facing common criminals," Calderon said Friday. "We are facing true terrorists who have crossed all the limits, not only of the law, but also of common sense and respect for life." Over the past three years, the state of Nuevo Leon in northeastern Mexico has seen an increase in violence due to clashes between rival gangs -- the Gulf Cartel and The Zetas -- over control of drug-trafficking routes to the United States. Two mayors were assassinated in 2010. Last month, four civilians were wounded when two grenades were thrown at a prison in Apodaca. Monterrey, the state's capital, is a key industrial hub and Mexico's wealthiest city. Since 2008, the government has stepped up the military's presence in Nuevo Leon as it tries to crack down on crime. It sent more troops to the state last November. More than 34,600 people have died since Calderon announced a crackdown on cartels in December 2006, according to government statistics. Other reports have listed higher tolls. The latest Mexican government tally was released in January. CNN en Espanol's Krupskaia Alis and journalists Javier Estrada, Mauricio Torres and Victor Badillo contributed to this report. | All five have confessed to involvement in the arson, the governor says .
The fire killed 52 people .
Attorney general says the suspects are members of the criminal gang Los Zetas .
"We have scientific proof" of their participation, the governor says . |
84,113 | ee8e272d3357364802a9cf32a41b483a9181c98d | (CNN) -- An Antarctic cruise ship was under way again Wednesday after spending a day slowed by electrical malfunctions in rough weather and crashing cold waves, the organization that promotes the southernmost cruises said. The MV Clelia II was making its way northbound back to Argentina Tuesday when a large wave crashed over the 290-foot ship, "breaking the starboard bridge window and dousing some electrical circuitry," the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators said. "This caused a temporary loss of communications and affected engine performance," the organization said. "Both engines remained operational and speed was reduced." No passengers were injured, but a member of the crew suffered minor injuries, the group said. Another Antarctic cruise ship, the National Geographic Explorer, stayed with the Clelia II while repairs were made, and the ship resumed its journey across the Drake Passage when the repairs were complete. The association said all 88 of the Clelia's passengers were Americans and that most of the ship's 77 crew members were Filipinos. The Clelia II is expected to join with an Argentine channel pilot Thursday evening and arrive in Ushuaia, Argentina, early Friday. | The Clelia II is returning on its own power to Argentina .
A large wave doused electrical circuitry and broke a bridge window .
The ship's engines remained operational but speed was reduced . |
247,664 | cc7d534ff5a8576987be8cdae9cccfe3bf1eaa8c | Usher is hosting a Senate fundraiser, but Bill Clinton is getting top billing. The Atlanta-based singer and dancer will hold a campaign event for Georgia U.S. Senate candidate Michelle Nunn on September 13, and the former President will be the fundraiser's marquee guest. "Both in office and out, President Clinton has been a tireless advocate for Georgia families and a force for consensus building and creative problem solving in Washington," Nunn said in a statement about Clinton's support. "I have been honored to work with him as CEO of President George H.W. Bush's Points of Light Foundation, and I am very grateful to have his support in this race." Nunn is locked in a race with Republican David Perdue that could determine the balance of power in the Senate. Both are looking to succeed Republican Sen. Saxby Chambliss, who is retiring at the end of this term. Usher, whose full name is Usher Raymond IV, has worked with Nunn and Clinton in the past. The Grammy-winning singer honored Nunn for her work with the Points of Light Foundation at a charity event in 2010 and has been a semiregular attendee at Clinton Foundation events since 2009. Usher's New Look Foundation also awarded Clinton its Service Legacy Award in 2010. For his part, Clinton has kept up a busy endorsement schedule ahead of the 2014 midterm elections. As the Democrats' most popular and most requested endorser, he has hopscotched the country, making appearances with Democratic candidates and attending fundraisers. The former President has already helped Senate campaigns in Kentucky and Arkansas, and on Tuesday, he is set to campaign for Dannel Malloy, Connecticut's incumbent governor, in New Haven, and Rep. Mike Michaud, Maine's Democratic gubernatorial candidate, in Portland. The former President will also campaign for Florida governor candidate Charlie Crist on Friday. | Usher is having a fundraiser for Senate candidate Michelle Nunn at his Atlanta home .
He has worked with Nunn and former President Bill Clinton on nonprofit work .
Clinton has a full endorsement calendar, with events in Maine, Connecticut, Florida this week . |
210,840 | 9d1552b529ccbab20dc1271cbf85f8a3d307c550 | Aged just 12, maths genius Xavier Gordon-Brown is almost certainly the youngest university student in Britain. Although he is still too young for Facebook and is only allowed a mobile phone for emergencies, he’s just embarked on a maths degree with the Open University. He is already studying weighty and complex concepts such as abstract structures, vector calculus and Newtonian mechanics in his spare time – when he’s not either at school, practising his musical instruments or playing football. Whizz kid: Xavier Gordon-Brown, aged 12, is the youngest university student in Britain after taking up a degree in maths . Xavier, who celebrated his 12th . birthday last month, knew his times tables before he was four and could . do double-digit mental arithmetic before starting school. He achieved an A* in his maths GCSE when he was eight. By the age of ten he had his A-level and could recite and memorise the first 2,000 digits of the mathematical ratio Pi. Young prodigy: Although he is still too young for Facebook and is only allowed a mobile phone for emergencies, brainy Xavier has already started a maths degree . He manages to fit his degree into the . free hours between practising for grade eight on the clarinet, piano . and violin, learning three languages and playing football with his . friends every Sunday. Busy boy: Xavier is teaching himself Latin at home outside of full-time school, university lectures and playing sports . Despite his intellect, Xavier has to be accompanied to his lectures on Monday evenings by his mother because of his age. But even in a room full of students twice his age he is still top of the class. His mother Erica, of Haywards Heath, . West Sussex said: ‘He absolutely loves it. 'It’s one of those things we . thought about for a while, but seeing how much he enjoys it has made it . all worthwhile. ‘People make a lot out of keeping . children in their age group, but it is good for him to be among his . intellectual equals too. 'When he’s with kids his own age he’s fine, but . when it comes to maths he needs to be with people on his intellectual . level.’ Mrs Gordon-Brown added: ‘He’s at . school full time and then goes to Open University lectures in East . Grinstead two to three times a month. 'When he goes to his lectures he . has to have an adult with him because of his age. ‘When I go I absolutely don’t understand a word of what’s going on. ‘But he’s not falling behind. If anything he’s top of the class. And everyone gets on with him really well.’ | Xavier Gordon-Brown can recite 2,000 digits of Pi and passed his GCSE aged eight .
He gained his A-levels in maths aged nine .
Due to his age his mother accompanies him to the weekly lectures at Open University . |
203,432 | 9355cdacae0c7cb66cffa35822d88d06d29b6e92 | (CNN) -- President Obama will deliver a eulogy on Sunday for the 29 workers killed in a mine explosion in West Virginia. Before the service in Beckley, the president and Vice President Joe Biden will meet privately with the miners' relatives. "All the hard work. All the hardship. All the time spent underground. It was all for their families. For a car in the driveway. For a roof overhead. For a chance to give their kids opportunities they never knew; and enjoy retirement with their wives," Obama will say in his eulogy, according to excerpts that the White House made available. "It was all in the hopes of something better. These miners lived -- as they died -- in pursuit of the American dream." The April 5 blast at the Upper Big Branch Mine was the worst U.S. mine disaster since 1972, when 91 miners died in a fire at the Sunshine Mine in Kellogg, Idaho. Obama ordered a review, saying the mine explosion was due in part to failures by both the management and loopholes in existing laws and regulations. "We cannot bring back the men we lost. What we can do, in their memory, is thoroughly investigate this tragedy and demand accountability," the president said soon after the explosion. Obama called Massey Energy Co., the coal producer that owns the mine, a "safety violator" and described the safety record at the mine as "troubled." Massey Energy later called Obama's criticism "regrettable" and defended its safety record. "We fear that the president has been misinformed about our record and the mining industry in general," the company said. | President Obama to attend memorial service for West Virginia miners killed in explosion .
April 5 blast was worst U.S. mine tragedy in nearly 40 years .
Obama has ordered review into cause of explosion . |
264,136 | e21ced825f4eb94a4aa2de825c0de31375146e16 | John Terry insists Chelsea's strength in depth is the main reason for his side's success so far this season. The Blues have strolled through to the Champions League last 16 and the Capital One Cup semi-final while maintaining top spot in the Premier League. Despite a difficult trip to Stoke to come on Monday night, Terry believes the Blues squad is strong enough to cope with any challenge. John Terry believes Chelsea's strength in depth is the reason for improved results this season . Terry has led his side to the Capital One Cup semi-finals and the Champions League last 16 . He told the Sunday Mirror: 'They probably don't come any tougher than Stoke away. But we are doing well and it's important we go into games doing the dogged stuff, putting our bodies on the line. 'The strength in depth of the squad (is the difference'). This season we are winning games that maybe we drew last season. 'We speak among outselves about regrouping and going againg.' Terry heaped praise on Chelsea's January signing Nemanja Matic (pictured) The Chelsea captain also compared Matic to former Blues midfielder Claude Makelele . The Chelsea captain, who has been at Chelsea since of age of 14, also believes that Serbian midfielder Nemanja Matic has been key to Chelsea's good form. Matic re-signed for Chelsea in January and has been a brilliant foil to the talent and flair of Cesc Fabregas in the Chelsea midfield, drawing comparisons to for Blues enforcer Claude Makelele. Terry added: 'You look at the exciting days when the manager first came, and Claude Makelele was the master in that position where Matic plays and Matic is very close to that. 'We missed him at Newcastle.' Jose Mourinho's Chelsea side face Stoke at the Britannia on Monday night . | John Terry confident Chelsea can continue fighting on all four fronts .
Blues captain believes strength in depth will be key to success this season .
Terry compares Nemanja Matic to former team-mate Claude Makelele .
Chelsea visit Stoke City at the Britannia Stadium on Monday night . |
283,462 | fb2e63527ea1673811bb09dc11aa562ce1cafaf0 | Loic Remy insists Chelsea remain well placed to pursue silverware on four fronts despite a mixed festive period. Jose Mourinho's team still top the Barclays Premier League but a lead that once numbered eight points has been reeled in by Manchester City, with a draw at Southampton and a 5-3 defeat at Tottenham over Christmas weakening their position. A 3-0 victory over Watford on Sunday has secured passage into the fourth round of the FA Cup, but it took the second-half arrival of Diego Costa and Willian to ignite a flat performance. Loic Remy believes Chelsea can win the Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup and League Cup . Remy believes that now Chelsea have negotiated a mini slump, they can continue chasing multiple trophies. 'It will be hard but we want to win every competition. That's where the mentality and quality of the squad can make the difference. Every player has to be ready,' Remy told Standard Sport. 'The mood is really positive. We are still focused on all the targets. Every team will be in trouble at some time and I hope ours is behind us now with the last two games. Remy celebrates with Willian and Diego Costa after scoring Chelsea's second goal against Watford . Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho could guide Chelsea to glory on four fronts . 'There is no problem inside the camp, the players are still happy at training. We have shown everyone that we can react after two bad results. 'Was our confidence badly affected by what happened at Tottenham? No. We are still in first and top of the League. We have qualified for the next round of the FA Cup, so there is no point to be negative or anything like that. 'We just try to be a strong squad because a lot of things can happen in the season. We are just focussed on winning games.' | Chelsea beat Watford 3-0 in the FA Cup to progress to the fourth round .
The Blues are still at the top of the Barclays Premier League .
Jose Mourinho's side are also in the Champions League last 16 and League Cup semi final . |
170,003 | 68058aac3dbcb1d57db788fdfc0f2d8cd04f6c1e | By . Sam Webb . and Lucy Crossley for MailOnline . At first glance, Myrtle Avenue, with leafy gardens in pleasant semi-detached houses seems like a suburban idyll. But appearances can be deceptive as the street, located in the London borough of Hounslow, is believed to be one of the noisiest in Britain - as it's just a stone's throw from Heathrow Airport. The road is one of the closest streets to the airport's busy southern runway at just 100 yards from the airport perimeter, with planes regularly flying low over the houses as they jet off and come in to land. Scroll down for video . An A380 Airbus Super Jumbo comes into land over rooftops at Heathrow Airport South runway . Planes coming in to land over Myrtle Avenue, Hounslow, one of the noisiest streets in Britain . Behemoth: An Emirates planes coming in to land over Myrtle Avenue, Hounslow , believed to be one of the Noisiest Streets in Britain . Neighbours: The road is one of the closest streets to the airport's busy southern runway at just 100 yards from the airport perimeter, with planes regularly flying low over the houses as they jet off and come in to land . Currently . there are around 1,280 arrivals flights coming in and out of Heathrow . every day, mostly between 6am and 11pm, with the airport alternating the . runway used by landing aircraft in a bid to provide noise relief for . those living nearby. Airlines are also fined if their planes breach . noise restrictions set at 94 decibels during the day, and 87 at night. A . Heathrow spokesman said: 'We recognise that as well as bringing huge . benefits to the UK and the local communities, an airport of the size and . importance of Heathrow can have downsides for people living nearby. 'We . are taking significant steps to tackle noise; we encourage airlines to . fly only their quietest aircraft into Heathrow, charge airlines more for . noisier aircraft and have schemes to insulate local properties. We are . committed to reducing the impacts of noise further and will continue to . work with local residents to do this.' Noise pollution: The leafy and picturesque street is just a short distance away from the perimeter of the busiest airport in Europe . What a view: The view of the runway from the end of the street means it is a popular spot for plane enthusiasts to watch the aircraft take to the skies . Precautions: Airlines are fined if their planes breach noise restrictions, which have been set at 94 decibels during the day, and 87 at night to protect those living nearby . Plans . for a third runway would enable Heathrow to handle 260,000 more flights . a year, but the good news for residents in Myrtle Avenue who might be . reaching for the ear plugs at the prospect is that the shortlisted . proposals place the new runway to the north west of the airport. The . road's views of both runways make it a popular base for plane spotters, . who come from around the world to watch the world's largest planes . landing on one of the two runways at Heathrow, the busiest airport in . Europe. Peter Graham, 71, told the BBC the plane spotters' cars block the road back and residents often can't get out. Busy: Currently there are around 1,280 arrivals flights coming in and out of Heathrow every day, mostly between 6am and 11pm, with the airport alternating the runway used by landing aircraft in a bid to provide noise relief for those living nearby . Taking care: A Heathrow spokesman said airlines are encouraged to only fly their quietest planes into the airport, and run schemes to help those living nearby to insulate their homes . Distance: Plans for a third runway would enable Heathrow to handle 260,000 more flights a year, but the good news for residents in Myrtle Avenue who might be reaching for the ear plugs at the prospect is that the shortlisted proposals place the new runway to the north west of the airport . Meanwhile Himesh Patel, 22, who has lived on the street his entire life, said: 'Sometimes I have beeped the horn on my car for an hour to get their attention and find out who is blocking the driveway.' The . aviation enthusiasts bring chairs, blankets, picnics and cameras with . long lenses, so they can enjoy the massive aircraft coming in to land . and taking off in comfort. Plane . spotter Gerhard came from Austria to see the spectacle: 'I think there . is no place in Europe where you can get so many planes landing in such a . short time, so it's a special place here,' he told the Telegraph. Despite . the noise and disruption, the houses are still worth an estimated . average £276,946, because of the site's proximity to the capital. Despite the noise and disruption, the houses are still worth an estimated average £276,946, because of the site's proximity to the capital . Location: Myrtle Avenue is one of the closest residential roads to the airport's southern runway, making it popular with plane spotters . Issues: Neighbours have complained that the number of plane spotters flocking to the street can make it difficult to get in and out . | The neat street of semi-detached houses in Hounslow is just a stone's throw from Europe's busiest airport .
It's a popular spot for plane spotters who come from all over the world to watch planes land on the two runways .
Road is one of the closest residential streets to the airport's southern runway, with planes flying low over houses .
Around 1,280 flights a day come in and out of Heathrow, mostly between 6am and 11pm . |
70,919 | c9168c876d8debad9e4b2a8b72a8ecec2c09093f | By . Suzannah Hills . Many people try to bravely soldier on when they have the flu but new research has shown it really would be best - for both them and their employer - if they stayed home. Staff who take two days off work when sick with the flu reduce the risk of their colleagues getting the bug by 40 per cent, a study has found. And the simulated flu epidemic showed that even having just one day off was still beneficial - cutting workplace transmissions of the virus by 25 per cent. Stay home: Staff members who take two days off sick when ill with the flu cut the chances of their colleagues getting the virus by 40% (stock image) Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh found that staff staying home when sick with the flu prevented further illness among their colleagues and reduced the overall cost to their company. Epidemiologist Dr Supriya Kumar said: 'The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends people with flu stay home for 24 hours after their fever breaks. However, not everyone is able to follow these guidelines. 'Many more workers in small workplaces than in large ones lack access to paid sick days and hence find it difficult to stay home when ill. 'Our simulations show allowing all workers access to paid sick days would reduce illness because fewer workers get the flu over the course of the season if employees are able to stay home and keep the virus from being transmitted to their co-workers.' Dr Kumar and her colleagues found that ‘flu days’, in which all employees had access to one or two paid days off work to recover from the virus, drastically reduced the spread of the bug in the workplace. The analysis, the first of its kind, . showed staff are more likely to keep away when the bug is at its most . infectious if they know they won’t lose any pay. But flu days worked best in large workplaces with 500 or more employees, the American Journal of Public Health reports online. Dr . Kumar added: 'These findings make a strong case for paid sick days. Future research should examine the economic impacts of paid sick-day . policies.' Transmitting the virus: Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh found that paid flu days cost companies less in the long run (stock image) Her researchers used a computer model called ‘Framework for Reconstructing Epidemic Dynamics’ (FRED). Co author Professor Donald Burke said: 'Our mission is to protect the US and the global community against communicable infectious disease threats. 'Our modelling work allows scientists both here and worldwide to investigate strategies to minimise epidemics. At the heart of this effort is free, open data sharing.' A previous study by scientists at the University of Arizona found that when just one person comes to work sick, more than half of the commonly touched surfaces in the office become infected with the virus by lunchtime. Conducted in an office, the study included about 80 participants, some of whom received droplets on their hands at the start of a normal work day. While most of those droplets were plain water, one person unknowingly received a droplet containing artificial viruses mimicking the cold, the flu and a stomach bug. Employees were instructed to go about their day as usual. After about four hours, researchers sampled commonly touched surfaces in the office, as well as employees' hands, and found that more than 50 per cent of surfaces and employees were infected with at least one of the viruses. Researchers swabbed surfaces and hands again at the end of the work day. By then, the cold and flu viruses, known for their short survival time, had dissipated, but the stomach virus had continued to spread, infecting up to 70 per cent of surfaces tested. However the study also revealed that . simple interventions, such as hand washing and the use of hand sanitiser . or wipes, can drastically reduce employees' risk of infection. | Staying home for just one day can still cut transmissions of the virus by 25% .
University of Pittsburgh made findings using a flu epidemic simulation .
Results suggest paid sicks days cost companies less in the long run .
Back to Mail Online home .
Back to the page you came from . |
36,889 | 6893536030d7c3e3ad6b2ec1ddfc2a816dfc083b | (RollingStone.com ) -- Like many authors, Courtney Love is a victim of writer's block. For over a year, the Hole singer has been penning a memoir with Rolling Stone writer Anthony Bozza. "The Girl With the Most Cake" was originally supposed to hit bookshelves in December 2013 before being pushed back to early-2014. Three-quarters of the way through the year and Love's memoir is still nowhere on the release schedule, and as the singer tells Paper, don't expect to be reading her life story anytime soon. As it turns out, not everyone can write a 460-page autobiography as quickly and easily as Morrissey. RS: Q&A with Courtney Love on her memoir and 'I'm Still Alive' tour . "It's a disaster. A nightmare," Love told Paper (via Billboard) of her memoir. "I never wanted to write a book in my entire life. It just sort of happened. And I have a co-writer, but it's just not working." While Love originally told Rolling Stone the book would cover her life up until 2008, she's since subtracted a few years from the tome. "What happens from 2006 on in the book is my personal business. I've been discreet from that time on, and I want to keep it that way," Love said. RS: Courtney Love wrote letters of apology over Springsteen diss . When Love first discussed her memoir with Rolling Stone in June 2013, she had high hopes for the book, citing Patti Smith's "Just Kids" and Russell Brand's "My Booky Wook" as influences. (But not Keith Richards' "Life," since it was "just so bloody long, I didn't even finish it.") If and when Love's memoir finally arrives through William Morrow at Harper Collins, she promises it will focus on her battles with drug addiction, her "tragic romance" with Kurt Cobain, her relationships with Billy Corgan and Trent Reznor, and her early years as a stripper. While Love won't be hosting any book signings soon, you can see her on TV this fall: The 50-year-old rocker will appear in multiple episodes of "Sons of Anarchy's" upcoming season, where she'll play a preschool teacher. Love also told Paper she hopes to reunite Hole's classic lineup of Eric Erlandson, Patty Schemel and Melissa Auf der Maur at some point in 2015. See the original story at RollingStone.com. Copyright © 2011 Rolling Stone. | The book has been over a year in the making .
It was originally scheduled for December 2013 .
Love says "it's just not working" |
125,098 | 2db510ad4d448d8512eb599fb9a804aa2c48a74f | Tortured: Shaurya Bulhara, aged six, was subjected to various forms of abuse from the age of three, suffering fractures and scars . The parents of a boy who was subjected to various forms of torture are now facing jail after being found guilty of attempt to murder. The abuse started when Shaurya was three-years-old and getting justice for him, now aged 13, was a long hard-fought battle for his maternal grandparents. His mother died when he was young and he lived with his father Lalit Balhara, a former Army Major, and step-mother Preeti Balhara. During the trial, Shaurya said he was . repeatedly tortured by the pair and claimed he was often locked up in a . room without food and beaten with a stick when he would cry, reported The Times of India. He also said they would insert a stick in his mouth which broke some of his teeth. The couple denied the . allegations, saying the child was 'special' by birth. They claimed he had suffered . injuries after falling off chairs and tables, but the medical report coupled . with the child's statement proved their guilt. Shaurya endured a cycle of abuse - when he was aged three he was rushed to hospital for consuming insecticides. After that incident, the abuse increased and he also suffered fractured ribs, a bleeding skull and smashed teeth, while his weight dropped significantly. Yesterday the pair were charged with attempt to murder and also convicted under the Juvenile Justice Act. The judgement was a victorious moment for Shaurya's grandparents who . sought custody of the child in 2005 alleging his father, Lalit Balhara, . and his wife, Preeti, were torturing the child after his mother died. Damning X-rays: Multiple injuries sustained by Shaurya, including bone fractures and brain swelling, were explained away by his father and step-mother as him falling from chairs or tables . Terrible damage: A close-up photo of Shaurya's mouth shows damaged teeth, scarred skin and cut lips. It is alleged his parents forced a stick into his mouth as part of his punishment . When Shaurya was presented before the . court on February 20, 2005, his physical and mental condition shocked . the officials, according to the newspaper. Doctors were then asked to file a medical report and the Major . Balhara and his wife underwent psychiatric consultation at the Base . Hospital, Delhi Cantontment. The report stated the 'parents were unable to explain why the child . sustained injuries and concluded Shaurya was suffering from a 'battered . baby syndrome' - a combination of physical injuries such as broken bones, . bruises, burns and malnutrition as a result of gross abuse by a parent . or caregiver. Convicted: Former army officer Lalit Bulhara and his second wife Preeti have been charged with attempted murder and have also been convicted under the Juvenile Justice Act . Birth mother: Malit in 1997 with his first wife, unnamed in court papers, the biological mother of Shuarya . In February 2005, custody of Shaurya was granted to his grandparents. Attempt to murder entails a maximum punishment of life imprisonment and the pair will find out their fate this week. Soon after the judgment was pronounced, the Balharas who have been out on bail throughout the trial, were taken into custody. Away from harm: Shaurya, pictured in 2009, is now attempting to live a normal childhood after being freed from his torment . | Shaurya was three when he was first hospitalised for consuming insecticides .
He also endured fractured ribs and smashed teeth .
Shaurya's father, a former army major, and his second wife Preeti were charged with attempted murder . |
152,106 | 509218e57cc709478f14b0a112dc87b9cbad6343 | LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- He got a standing ovation before the orchestra even played a single note. Gustavo Dudamel has been compared to the legendary Leonard Bernstein by one critic. For weeks now, anticipation has been growing for the arrival of fiery young Venezuelan conductor Gustavo Dudamel to take over the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and the crowd couldn't wait to roar its approval at his arrival. Dudamel, 28, engenders a passion among music lovers that is entirely new to the world of classical music. Tickets for his Saturday debut as music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic disappeared within minutes -- the fastest sellout in the history of the 18,000-seat Hollywood Bowl. "He is a phenomenon," said Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times music critic. "He generates excitement the likes of which hasn't come around in a very, very long time -- maybe since Leonard Bernstein." Watch the exciting Dudamel wield the baton » . Swed was in the audience two years ago when Dudamel conducted the Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, delivering a reading of Beethoven's Fourth Symphony that left fans delirious. "I haven't seen that kind of reaction from a crowd since I saw the Beatles at Dodger Stadium," Swed said. Dudamel's face has been a common sight for months in Los Angeles. His billboards look down on freeway commuters. He adorns city buses. At the famous Hollywood hot dog stand Pink's, there is even a dog named in his honor -- the "Dude Dog," piled high with jalapeno peppers, guacamole and tortilla chips. While it's not exactly Venezuelan cuisine, in Los Angeles, there can be no surer sign that the conductor known as "The Dude" has arrived. So where did Dudamel get this musical magic? He said at least a part of his talent is inherited. "I started studying music when I was 4," he said. "I wanted to play trombone like my father." Soon young Gustavo entered into El Sistema, Venezuela's state-financed music education program. Hundreds of thousands of children have received instruments and music instruction through the nation's massive system of youth orchestras. "You cannot imagine," said Dudamel, "how it changes the life of a kid if you put a violin or a cello or a flute [in his hand]. You feel you have your world. You have your life there, and it changes your life. This happened to me." As music director of the philharmonic, Dudamel said he hopes to spread a little of the El Sistema magic in Los Angeles. He already has organized one youth orchestra in the run-down neighborhoods of south Los Angeles. Those music students opened for the orchestra at the Hollywood Bowl. The concert also featured student musicians playing alongside jazz legend Herbie Hancock. Cuban pianist Alfredo Rodriguez and bluesman Taj Mahal rounded out an eclectic bill designed to pull in a broad cross-section of music lovers. But it was Dudamel and Beethoven's Ninth Symphony that brought the crowd to its feet at the concert's end. It was a promising beginning for a man many are hailing as the savior of classical music. They hope Dudamel can bring a whole new audience to symphonic music, and believe the Los Angeles Philharmonic is the perfect podium for the young maestro. "He fits in with this town in a lot of ways," Swed said. "Obviously being Spanish-speaking in a city where the majority of people either speak Spanish or understand some Spanish ... you know he fits in. The youth culture? He is young. He is also great, which doesn't hurt." | Gustavo Dudamel, known as "The Dude," brings Beatles-like frenzy to Los Angeles .
The Venezuelan, 28, is the new conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic .
His Saturday debut sold out 18,000-seat Hollywood Bowl faster than anyone ever .
Los Angeles Times music critic calls Dudamel "a phenomenon" |
256,144 | d791f4b65f097bf5bd4fe532cc2655ad0476c114 | (CNN) -- In March, 9 million viewers tuned in to AMC to watch a farm -- which served as a safe haven to survivors of a zombie apocalypse -- burn to the ground on "The Walking Dead." This Sunday, TNT (a Time Warner network, like CNN) commences its second season of "Falling Skies," which sees a group of survivors fight back against alien invaders while their home state of Massachusetts lies in ruins. Switch over to NBC, and you're likely to see promos for "Revolution," a series about what happens 15 years after the loss of all advanced technology and electronics. Post-apocalyptic scenarios are cropping up all over the small screen -- oddly enough, in the year 2012. But is the runaway success of "The Walking Dead" the main reason for it, or is there something else going on here? "There's always a copycat trend in the industry," TV critic Ryan McGee said, pointing to last year's "Pan Am" and "Playboy Club," both of which drew comparisons to "Mad Men." "There's no way executives aren't looking at the ratings for 'The Walking Dead' and aren't salivating." At the same time, he says, "Revolution" has to forge its own creative path to survive. "Everyone imitates everything that's successful," said fellow critic Alan Sepinwall, who doesn't see it so much as a trend but as a coincidence. "Or simply that ideas go in cycles." Indeed, TV has been down this road before, with the short-lived cult favorite "Jericho" exploring a scenario of society rebuilding after a nuclear attack. Jamais Cascio, an ethical futurist with a background in television, noted that various aspects of "The Walking Dead" are being replicated now: "The rule of TV production is to figure out what aspect of a surprisingly success show made it a winner. We're seeing other comic book-based stories in development, other supernatural stories and other post-apocalypse stories." Actress Jessy Schram, whose character, Karen, was last seen having been "harnessed" by the aliens on "Falling Skies," actually took a look at "The Walking Dead" as a sort of homework assignment. "It was interesting to watch and take notes, and compare the similarities and differences," she said, "to compare it to 'Falling Skies' to see what a world taken over by another species would be like." Schram, also known for her recurring role as Cinderella on "Once Upon a Time," has another upcoming series, ABC's "Last Resort," with something of a twist on the same themes: The crew of a submarine disobeys orders to avoid nuclear war and ends up retreating to an island. "They're having to start over and form their own living and way of protecting themselves," she explained. "Even though it's very different (from 'Falling Skies'), it has that same theme of 'who do I trust?' " She said she and other actors on "Falling Skies" asked themselves what they would do in a post-apocalyptic scenario like this. "What tools would I have to work with? If I don't have transportation or a gun or a knife or even a steak dinner, what am I actually feeling? There's a lot of desperation in that situation, but there can also be a lot of joy as well." 'Falling Skies' cast and crew interviews . "Revolution's" creator, Eric Kripke ("Supernatural"), hopes to explore that joy or at least have more fun with it. "The apocalypse kind of bums me out," he admitted in a meeting with J.J. Abrams' Bad Robot Productions when the series was being developed. Kripke wanted to do a show based around the elements of Joseph Campbell's "hero's journey," which were perhaps best exemplified in "Star Wars." The Abrams team was looking at a series that began with the cataclysmic scenario of that loss of electricity and technology. Instead of dealing with the immediate consequences of that event, "Revolution" flashes forward 15 years later. "That is an interesting world," Kripke said. "It transforms into a kingdom with good warriors and bad warriors. That's a world that's gone back to swords. It's about people living in a world that nature has reclaimed." Kripke can see the current mood being reflected in series in a post-apocalyptic vein. "There's something in the collective zeitgeist that people feel we're headed towards a cliff," he said. "The population is massive, we're separated from our food supply, we're eventually going to run out of oil, and there's international tensions. People feel like we're really out of balance and due to be knocked down a peg by war or disease or something." Kripke wanted to explore the story on the "other end" of that. "We're not interested in nihilism or hopelessness. We'll all survive and be OK if we remember the things that bring us together: family, brotherhood and mercy." Ultimately, though, as McGee points out, "What 'Revolution' needs is what every show needs: five characters people care about. Why the lights went out turns into a bit of boring trivia without that emotional investment." The rules of great TV are the same, even when the world seems to be coming to an end. | Life after apocalypse portrayed on multiple current television series .
"Falling Skies," "Walking Dead," upcoming "Revolution" have different takes on the topic .
Critic: "Everyone imitates everything that's successful" |
257,033 | d8afc866aa5d38cbe4616c6990b05c547d9a38a1 | She used the offensive word during an ITV2 interview after being voted off I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here! By . Ben Spencer . PUBLISHED: . 20:57 EST, 29 November 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 04:21 EST, 30 November 2012 . A TV chef was embroiled in a race row last night for referring to boxer David Haye as a ‘monkey’. Rosemary Shrager, 61, used the offensive word in an ITV2 interview after she was voted off I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! She said: ‘I have to just say this live on television – David is such a hunk!’ Bursting out laughing, she added: ‘I’m a middle-aged lady, and I saw him coming through the jungle, like this monkey! ‘But lovely, you know, he looked so fit, and I thought, this is terrific.’ Scroll down to watch for yourself . Massage: David Haye helped Rosemary Shrager relax during her time in the jungle . Laura Whitmore, who was interviewing her, looked flustered after Mrs Shrager’s outburst, fanning her face with her notes and saying: ‘This conversation is a bit … whoof, we’d better move on from this.’ Viewers took to internet forums and social networking sites to express their dismay. Chloeb said on Digital Spy: ‘I just had to rewind ... did Rosemary say seeing David was like seeing a monkey?’ Jambob replied: ‘Rosemary is just a bit oblivious, sure she isn’t aware of the offensive connotations.’ Lostindex added: ‘She said that too. Horrifying!!! Hope it gets picked up on.’ And Cassy990 said: ‘Awkward moment to say the least, clearly she didn’t engage her brain when she said that!’ Gaff: Shrager said the offensive word during an ITV2 interview after she was voted off the programme . Close: The pair got on during their stay in the jungle and Haye said Shrager was one of the camp mates most interested in boxing . Viewers also took to Twitter to express their shock. Daniel Maxwell added: ‘Wow. Rosemary Shrager just described seeing David Haye walking through the jungle like seeing a monkey!!! Can’t say that these days Rosie!’ But others dismissed the fuss, saying she had not said it out of racism. Scott Geller said: ‘I’m pretty certain it was harmless but I smell a storm-a-brewin’.’ Mrs Shrager, who survived for 12 days before her eviction, had an argument with fellow contestant and former Made In Chelsea star Hugo Taylor which appeared to turn viewers against her. Earlier this week the show’s producers were accused of cruelty for using seven-year-old Kiki, the daughter of actress and jungle competitor Charlie Brooks, as a prize during a game to win luxuries. Hundreds of viewers complained on discussion forums. VIDEO: A relaxed David explained the need for his naked showers on yesterday's show . | She used the offensive word during an ITV2 interview after being voted off I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here! |
262,954 | e0983aafbdef7f521ee4eddd4a2b1f6d49095d03 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 23:31 EST, 24 September 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 02:07 EST, 25 September 2012 . A European court has ruled that radical Muslim cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri can be extradited to the United States to face terrorism charges, including allegedly trying to set up an al-Qaida training camp in rural Oregon. The decision ends a long-running legal battle and means that al-Masri, considered one of Britain's most notorious extremists, could be deported to the U.S. within weeks along with four other terrorism suspects. Authorities in the U.S. have for years asked for Al-Masri and the others to be handed over, but the process had been delayed because the men raised human rights objections. Kicked out: The ruling brings an end to a legal saga over Abu Hamza which has lasted eight years and cost more than $1.5million . The men had argued before the European Court of Human Rights that they could face prison conditions and jail terms in the U.S. that would expose them to ‘torture or inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment’ in breach of the European human rights code. In April, the Strasbourg, France-based court rejected those claims. Al-Masri and the four others lodged an appeal to the court's highest judges, but on Monday the court said it refused to hear it. That ruling brings an end to a legal saga which has lasted eight years and cost the British taxpayer more than $1.6million (£1million). ‘Today the Grand Chamber Panel decided to reject the request,’ the court said in a brief statement. It did not give a reason for refusing the appeal. Britain's Home Office and the U.S. Department of Justice welcomed the decision. ‘We will work to ensure that the individuals are handed over to the U.S. authorities as quickly as possible,’ said the Home Office. Worshippers: Hamza (pictured centre, wearing blue) earned global notoriety for his vile sermons outside the Finsbury Park Mosque in London . In Washington, Dean Boyd, spokesman for the National Security Division of the U.S. justice department, said: ‘We are pleased that the litigation before the European Court of Human Rights in these cases has come to an end, and we will be working with the U.K. authorities on the arrangements to bring these subjects to the United States for prosecution.’ The suspects, who are accused of crimes such as raising funds for terrorists, could face life sentences in a maximum-security prison. One of the world’s most dangerous preachers of hate, Al-Masri was arrested in Britain in 2004 at the request of U.S. authorities, who have called him ‘a terrorist facilitator with a global reach.’ They accuse him of assisting the taking of 16 hostages - including two American tourists - in Yemen in 1998 and of conspiring to set up a terrorist training camp in Bly, Oregon, between 2000 and 2001. U.S. authorities have called Hamza ¿a terrorist facilitator with a global reach¿ . He also is accused of conspiring with a U.S. citizen to facilitate a jihad - or holy war - in Afghanistan and providing material support to al-Qaida and the Taliban. The cleric, who is blind in one eye and wears a hook for a hand, lost several British court cases in his fight against extradition before taking the case to the European court in 2008. Known for his fiery anti-Western and anti-Semitic outbursts, he claims he has lost his Egyptian nationality, but Britain considers him an Egyptian citizen. He is currently serving a seven-year prison term in Britain for separate charges of inciting hatred. The other four suspects due to be extradited to the U.S. are Babar Ahmad, Syed Tahla Ahsan, Khaled al-Fawwaz and Adel Abdul Bary. Ahmad and Ahsan are charged in U.S. federal court in Connecticut with running a terrorist website in London, providing material support to terrorists, conspiring to kill U.S. nationals, and money laundering. Supporters of Ahmad, who was arrested in 2004 and has been held in a British jail since then without charge, are trying to help him get a trial in Britain because his alleged offense happened in London. Radical muslim clerk Sheikh Abu Hamza allegedly lost an eye and had both hands blown off by a mine in Afghanistan . Al-Fawwaz and Bary, accused of being key aides to Osama bin Laden in London, are wanted in a New York federal court for the 1998 bombings of two U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania that killed 224 people. Al-Fawwaz faces many counts of murder. The human rights court said that it has not decided on the case of a sixth suspect, Haroon Rashid Aswat, who was accused of being Al-Masri's co-conspirator in attempting to set up the camp in Oregon. The court said it needed to consider more information about his case. Hamza was first arrested at the request of the U.S. in May 2004 but the extradition was halted when the UK decided to charge him on allegations relating to his sermons. In 2006, he was jailed for seven years for preaching hate and inciting murder at Finsbury Park Mosque. The extradition proceedings resumed once Hamza became eligible for release. He arrived in Britain more than 30 years ago and has seven children from a second marriage. In the late 1980s, he headed to Afghanistan but returned a few years later having lost an eye and both hands – allegedly blown off by a mine. | Accusations against the radical Muslim cleric include trying to set-up an al-Qaida training camp in Oregon .
Legal battle has lasted eight years and cost the UK taxpayer more than $1.5m .
Hamza expected in the U.S. within weeks along with four other terrorist suspects .
All face life sentences in a maximum-security prison . |
119,291 | 2614dc3340c00c4c46ca5c419db7eea86081220f | By . Richard Spillett . and Neil Sears . A tycoon ordered by a judge to hand his ex-wife £2 million has failed to pay up, claiming she is jealous of his relationship with a Ukrainian 12 years his junior. Paul Grundy, 50, was said to have ‘recklessly’ splashed out a fortune on a playboy lifestyle and watched with ‘contempt’ as former wife Jennifer Francis, 48, ‘descends into poverty’. She claimed the businessman – who lives on Dubai’s luxurious Palm Island – has been driving a Lamborghini Gallardo and spending thousands at Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Harvey Nichols and Yves Saint Laurent, frittering away £60,000 on ‘luxury goods’ last year alone. Paul Grundy (left) has been ordered to pay his . wife Jennifer Francis (right) a £2million divorce settlement or face six . weeks in jail after the High Court heard he was living a lavish . lifestyle while she struggled financially . Mr Grundy has been told he will be jailed if he fails to pay his ex-wife, a former teacher, within three months. But last night he accused her of being bitter over his relationship with blonde Ukrainian Asya Riabko. The 38-year-old has started using his surname, but Mr Grundy said their wedding is on hold until he has resolved the dispute. ‘If . I want to spend £1,000 in Harvey Nichols I’m not going to ask her [Miss . Francis’s] permission,’ he said. ‘My Lamborghini was sold over 18 . months ago and I spend more than £40,000 a year on our son’s attendance . at the top private school in England, which Jenny put him into, and lots . of my shopping is for our son or Asya.’ The court heard Mr Grundy (right) lived a lavish lifestyle in Dubai, visiting racetracks and spending thousands in expensive boutiques after divorcing his wife of seven years . He said he suspected Miss . Francis’s claims about his ‘reckless’ spending were due to jealousy, adding: ‘I’m now engaged to a Ukrainian girl who’s 38 – and Jenny . doesn’t like it. But she has not communicated with me directly for seven . years. ‘She’s already had more than £1.6 million out of me and it’s . impossible for me to get £2 million immediately because the business is . in dire straits. ‘She lives in a five-bedroom house while I’m living in a two-bedroom flat, although it is on Palm Island in Dubai … . ‘All . I want to so is settle this thing by getting time to pay the . money … the judge doesn’t seem to understand how business works in the . Middle East.’ Mr Grundy and his former wife met in the late 1990s and . lived in Pudsey, West Yorkshire. The couple moved to Dubai (pictured) and made huge amounts of money from Mr Grundy's fencing business. But the High Court has heard their fortunes varied wildly after they split in 2009 and divorced in 2012 . They married in 2002 and moved to Dubai, where he launched a lucrative business providing fencing for construction sites. The . couple bought a six-bedroom house with a swimming pool, a holiday home . in France and a luxury flat in Miami. They were divorced in 2009. According . to Miss Francis – a mother of two boys, one from a previous marriage – . she has since descended into poverty, renting accommodation in Oakhill, . Somerset, while her ex-husband has lived the high life. In 2012 Mr . Grundy was assessed as having £2.5 million available – and was told to . pay a £2 million lump sum and £300,000 in legal costs. He has failed to . do so, claiming he does not have the funds to hand. A judge at London's High Court has now ordered that Mr Grundy pay the divorce settlement or go to jail . But Miss . Francis’s barrister Michael Bradley told a High Court judge on Thursday . that Mr Grundy had ‘utter contempt for his wife and for the orders of . this court’, adding: ‘It is clear he continues to lead a lavish . lifestyle and that his claims of poverty are hollow. ‘She … is having to eke out her funds and watch every penny.’ Finding . Mr Grundy does have enough money to pay, Mrs Justice Parker said: ‘He . has money to fritter away on luxury goods but gave so little to the . wife.’ She ordered him to sell his business interests to fund the divorce settlement. | Paul Grundy and wife Jennifer Francis moved to Dubai and made millions .
But Ms Francis returned to UK after they split in 2009 and divorced in 2012 .
Claims his ex-wife is bitter about his relationship with Ukrainian woman .
Mr Grundy was ordered to pay his ex-wife £2.3million divorce settlement .
But he continued to live lavish lifestyle while she had to sell her house .
He claims he can't pay up because he 'recklessly spent' much of his wealth .
High Court judge now orders him to pay her the money or face jail . |
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