Unnamed: 0
int64 0
287k
| id
stringlengths 40
40
| article
stringlengths 117
14.7k
| highlights
stringlengths 37
3.97k
|
|---|---|---|---|
89,202 | fd2be135c26e23eadb9621b9f7563bd9bd008ee1 | By . Anthony Bond . PUBLISHED: . 13:11 EST, 17 May 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 07:54 EST, 18 May 2013 . At least 49 people have been killed in Iraq today following two separate devastating bomb attacks at a mosque and funeral procession. The deadliest attack occurred when two bombs exploded outside a Sunni Muslim mosque in the Iraqi city of Baquba as worshippers left Friday prayers. It killed at least 43 people and was one of the deadliest attacks in a month-long surge in sectarian violence. Scroll down for video . Devastating: At least 49 people have been killed in Iraq today following two separate devastating bomb attacks at a mosque and funeral procession. This picture shows one injured man after two bombs were detonated outside a Sunni mosque in Buquba . Another eight people were also killed . and more than 20 wounded today when a roadside bomb hit people . gathering for the funeral of a Sunni Muslim cleric killed in Baghdad in . an attack a day earlier. No group claimed responsibility for the attacks. Today, one bomb exploded outside the . mosque in Baquba, about 30 miles northeast of the capital Baghdad, and a . second explosion tore into crowds of people rushing to help victims of . the first attack, police said. Local television showed images of bodies, pools of blood and the victims' scattered shoes. 'I . was about 30 metres from the first explosion. When the first exploded, I . ran to help them, and the second one went off. I saw bodies flying and I . had shrapnel in my neck,' said Hashim Munjiz, a college student at the . site. Attacks on Sunni and Shi'ite mosques, security forces and tribal leaders have mounted since troops raided a Sunni protest camp near Kirkuk a month ago, and fears are intensifying of a return to all-out conflict. Horrific: A second explosion tore into crowds of people rushing to help victims of the first attack outside the mosque in Baquba. At least 43 people were killed. This picture shows an injured man being treated in hospital . The increasingly sectarian civil war in . neighbouring Syria is emboldening Iraqi Sunni insurgents and straining . relations between the two Muslim groups in Iraq, where tensions are at . their worst since U.S. troops pulled out at the end of 2011. Shi'ite Islamist militias, which fought U.S. troops for years after the 2003 invasion, have said they are prepared in case they need to return to war. Sunni insurgents also sometimes hit Sunni targets to provoke conflict. Sunni Islamist insurgents and al Qaeda's local wing, Islamic State of Iraq, have stepped up attacks since the start of the year to try to provoke a wide-scale sectarian confrontation like the slaughter that killed tens of thousands of Iraqis in 2006-2007. The Sunni militants accuse Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's Shi'ite-led government of discriminating against their sect. Grim: A street is littered with bodies in Baquba after the two bombs detonated outside a Sunni mosque . The United Nations said leaders from all groups needed to end the violence. 'Small children are burned alive in cars. Worshippers are cut down outside their own mosques. This is beyond unacceptable,' said U.N. envoy Martin Kobler. April was Iraq's bloodiest month for almost five years, with 712 people killed, according to U.N. figures. Since the American withdrawal, Iraq's coalition government has been caught up in a power struggle between majority Shi'ites, minority Sunnis and ethnic Kurds who split cabinet posts between them. Sunnis, who lost their dominance when the U.S.-led invasion toppled Saddam Hussein, have been protesting for months against Maliki, demanding reforms to tough anti-terrorism laws they say are used to unfairly target their sect. Iraqi Sunni insurgents, some linked to al Qaeda, say they have formed an alliance with the al-Nusra Front Islamist group fighting against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. | WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT .
Two bombs exploded outside Sunni Muslim mosque in Baquba .
Second blast tore into crowds rushing to help victims of the first attack .
It killed at least 43 people and was one of deadliest recent attacks .
Eight people killed when bomb exploded at funeral of Sunni Muslim cleric . |
235,255 | bc8dddbf6f1eb0cc43006ce911ebc805adce470c | By . Associated Press . MariePaule Vermersch, the woman who, with her parents, first introduced the now famous Belgian waffle to the U.S. at New York's World's Fair in 1964, has detailed how the fluffy breakfast treat fast became a culinary sensation. 'From the moment we opened there was a . line. We couldn't see the end,' recalls Ms Vermersch, 66, who . helped her parents serve an average of 2,500 waffles a day during the . fair, which opened on April 22, 1964. 'It was wild.' The Belgian family, who served their waffles topped with fresh whipped cream, powdered sugar and sliced strawberries, touted their creation as a 'light, crispy and fluffy' alternative to the American variety. Fluffy delights: Belgian Waffles were introduced to the American public at the 1964 World fair (pictured) by Belgians Maurice and Rose Vermersch and their daughter MariePaule . The Vermersches first served the treat . two years earlier at the 1962 World's Fair in Seattle, and for years . after they made the waffles at the annual New York State Fair in . Syracuse. But it was at the 1964 event in New York City that the waffles became a sensation. According to Ms Vermersch, they were supposed to be called Brussels . waffles — named for the Belgian capital, where they were a specialty — but her mother Rose soon realized many Americans didn't know where Brussels . was. To this day, baby boomers . fondly recall the memory of enjoying them at the fair. Where it all began: The actual pitcher and waffle iron (pictured) used to make the now famous waffles, sit on a table in the Vermersch family home in Queens, New York . Ms Vermersch said that for years she ran a . coffee shop, MariePaule's Authentic Belgian Waffles, in her current . home of Albuquerque, New Mexico, that featured a picture of the 1964 . World's Fair. 'People would . look at the name and see the picture and say, "I ate those waffles at . the World's Fair," and they'd pick up the phone and call their parents,' said Ms Vermersch, who is in New York to attend the fair's 50th . anniversary celebration this month, and also to care for her 95-year-old . mother, who lives in Queens. 'I couldn't believe how often that would . happen.' What made the waffles so good? Ms Vermersch cites a special cast-iron pan that heats up to 500 degrees. Family ties: Rose Vermersch, 95, (left) and her daughter, MariePaule, 66, (right) pose for a photo in their home, 50 years after they introduced Belgian waffles to America . 'As . soon as the batter touches the grill, it gets crispy on the outside and . soft on the inside,' she says. 'You don't want to put anything syrupy . on it or it will turn it into a sponge.' They served the waffles with whipped cream, adding hand-sliced strawberries for color. Waffles in the United States date back . to the Pilgrims, who were familiar with them from time spent in the . Netherlands, which has a similar waffle culture. From the moment we opened there was a . line. We couldn't see the end . And during the latter part of the 18th century, 'waffle parties' were all the rage. Today, a version of the Belgian waffle can be found in diners and restaurants across the country. Ms Vermersch . said she vowed never to create an instant mix because the recipe . requires fresh, carefully prepped ingredients: pure vanilla, fresh yeast . or self-rising flour, melted but cooled sweet butter, and eggs at room . temperature, with egg whites added at the end. But . that's as much information as she'll divulge. About 12 years ago, she . sold the Maurice Authentic Belgian Waffle recipe to a Syracuse family on . condition that it be served only at the New York State Fair. The exact recipe, she says, is a secret. | Delicacy was first served in the U.S. by Maurice and Rose Vermersch and daughter MariePaule at New York's 1964 World's Fair .
Family recipe remains a closely guarded secret . |
256,558 | d80f1d77ce65a877e951b49fb1f7a3e625e63bb2 | (CNN) -- Forgot to charge your cell phone last night? Imagine that you could power it by walking. Weirder still, you might be able to just spray a new battery on. Z.L. Wang shows an enlarged image of zinc oxide nanowires, less than the width of a hair in reality. These concepts are being developed by two leading nanotechnology researchers who are developing cleaner, more efficient ways of delivering electrical power. In working toward making these ideas realities, they are making use of structures that are 100 nanometers or smaller, where one nanometer is a billionth of a meter. "[The nanoscale] can make the components small, sensitive and high-performance," said Zhong Lin "Z.L." Wang, distinguished professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology's College of Engineering. "The toughness and the flexibility increase by orders of magnitude." Barely lifting a finger . Wang and colleagues are working on harnessing the energy of the body's natural movements to power small devices. Even the simple act of moving your fingers while typing creates energy that could power a small device, and these researchers are showing that nanotechnology can enable this transformation. Here's the hard science: To take advantage of animal movement for energy, Wang's team makes use of the piezoelectric effect, which refers to the ability of certain materials to generate an electric potential when a stress is applied to them. For instance, if you compress a crystal, it temporarily changes shape, causing the ions inside the crystal to polarize and produce a voltage drop. Learn about other applications of nanotechnology » . That potential can drive a transient flow of external electrons to function as an energy output. Zinc oxide nanowires, which are environmentally friendly, have this property. Wang and colleagues are using these materials in making solar cells, which would have less potentially harmful impact on the environment than the traditionally-used silicon. They also use them make nanogenerators that can potentially harvest the energy from any mechanical movement. The group had success in animal models -- for instance, in harvesting energy from a hamster running on a wheel that wears a nanodevice on its back. They have also implanted a nanogenerator on the heart of a mouse, and are able to capture energy from just the heart beat -- albeit only some picowatts (one million millionth of a watt). The eventual goal is to create a way for people to self-power a blood pressure or glucose monitor -- for instance, by implanting a small device in the arm. Read about nanotechnology and cancer research . "Within three years, the power generated should be enough to power these kinds of devices," Wang said. Wang also demonstrated how one of these tiny devices on a wire attached to a person's finger can harvest energy from stretching and bending the finger. 'Next-next generation' batteries . Scientists want to develop energy sources based on inexpensive, abundant, eco-friendly materials that generate higher power. At the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, researchers are doing that by engineering viruses that build materials for batteries. "We're letting biology help us work on solving those problems, solving what the next-next generation batteries are going to be," said Angela Belcher, professor of materials science and engineering at MIT and winner of a 2004 MacArthur Foundation genius grant. Here's how it works: Belcher and colleagues synthesize a virus called M13 bacteriophage, which is wire-shaped and only about 9 nanometers thin. This virus is common -- "you have bacteriophage all over you," Belcher said -- and is harmless to humans. A traditional battery has a negatively charged "anode" and a positively charged "cathode," and charged particles called ions flow between them. As they demonstrated in a paper in the journal Science in April, a cathode can be made when engineered viruses coat themselves with iron phosphate, then bind to carbon nanotubes, which are cylindrical carbon molecules. The result is an extremely conductive network of these nanotubes. Ten grams of their cathode materials can power one portable media player for about 40 hours, which is equivalent to three normal portable media batteries in the same device, Belcher said. In 2006, the team showed that the anode could also be built by viruses -- this time, coating themselves with cobalt oxide and gold. The viruses essentially become small wires. Given that the battery grows itself, there's basically no manufacturing waste. No toxic materials are involved either, Belcher said. During the assembly process, the viruses are not alive, Belcher said. "They're just a protein scaffold to be able to grab ions out of solution or build materials exactly the way we need them to grow," she said. Once the battery is made, the virus can no longer make copies of itself, she said. While the current prototypes are powerful, they won't come to market because researchers want to make them out of even better materials. In five or 10 years, though, they could be available for specialty applications, Belcher said. She and colleagues are also working on spray-on batteries -- just spray on the components, including the viruses, like spray paint -- and batteries that attach like rubber stamps. The stampable batteries could be used for cards on which information is stored, such as IDs and credit cards, she said. The business of nanotech . Some of the nanotech energy devices sold today include nano-enhanced lithium ion batteries that perform better and are safer than their predecessors, he said. Several companies also are working on flexible solar cells -- meaning one day "you could even have something like an awning or a backpack made out of a material that produces solar electricity," said Michael Holman, research director at Lux Research, an independent research and advisory firm providing advice about emerging technologies. But "there's still a big disconnect between the hype and the reality," of nanotechnology in the energy sector, he said. Only 0.6 percent of nanotech revenues in 2007 came from energy and environment applications, according to a report from Lux, and they predict only 1.8 percent in 2015. Holman cautioned that many of the technologies that have come to the market, such as the lithium ion batteries, are incremental advances rather than breakthroughs. Still, the studies that Wang and Belcher are doing are important, he said. It may be decades before human motion could translate into more than a small fraction of general energy use, but in the nearer term it could hold promise in small sensor applications such as environmental monitoring, Holman said. Belcher's work on batteries is "exactly the kind of research we need to keep doing" as scientists progress toward goals such as powering electric cars, for example, he said. | Device could allow people to self-power a blood pressure or glucose monitor .
Materials for an efficient battery, waste-free battery were made by viruses .
Spray-on and stampable batteries are being tested at MIT .
Energy and environment applications are a tiny portion of nano revenues now . |
177,511 | 71caec9f1227dfdf31979b39b71adc2f105b26ae | This is the shocking moment an undercover cop pulled a gun on Micheal Brown protesters in Oakland. The cop had been marching with the demonstrators on Wednesday night, but pointed his pistol at protesters after he and his partner were attacked. KTVU reported that demonstrators screamed at the undercover officers during the march 'Hey, they're undercover, they're cops!' The officers' faces were masked at the time, the affiliate station reported. Scroll down for video . Incident: An undercover police officer, who had been marching with the demonstrators, pointing his pistol at protesters after he and his partner were attacked . Tense: About 20 uniformed officers were quickly on the scene and detained one man . The hollering continued when the officers tried leaving, KTVU reported. An undercover officer shoved a demonstrator to the side, before the demonstrator shoved him, the affiliate station reported. The man was reportedly handcuffed and brought down on the ground. The other officer brandished his weapon after demonstrators started to surround the two men, KTVU reported. About 20 uniformed officers were quickly on the scene and detained one man. Demonstrators broke windows and looted stores and that there was one arrest for assaulting an officer in the latest U.S. protest over police violence. Oakland and neighboring Berkeley have seen nightly demonstrations since the weekend in response to decisions by two grand juries not to charge white police officers in the killings of unarmed black men in Ferguson, Missouri, and New York City. On Wednesday night, about 150 protesters, a smaller crowd than on previous evenings, left the campus of University of California-Berkeley and demonstrated without incident before marching south into Oakland, the city of Oakland said in a statement. Arrest: A spokesman for the Oakland Police Department said only that it had responded to a request for assistance 'made by an outside agency,' and referred all inquiries about the incident to the California Highway Patrol . By that point, the protesters' numbers had dwindled to about 50 people, the statement said, some of whom broke windows at a T-Mobile store and a Chase bank. Looting also was reported in an area of small businesses at a downtown intersection, it said. A spokesman for the Oakland Police Department said only that it had responded to a request for assistance 'made by an outside agency,' and referred all inquiries about the incident to the California Highway Patrol. Lt. Chris Bolton with the Oakland Police Department tweeted early Thursday morning 'The #OaklandProtest pictured man isn't an OPD officer & not an OPD arrest. OPD 1st responded to scene on report from other agency. 1/1.' '2/2 That outside agency has been notified to provide details and address concerns re #OaklandProtest concerns.' He later tweeted, 'Last night #OaklandPolice responded to a request for help during a California Highway Patrol arrest at Bay & Harrison St. (1/2)' '2/2 #OaklandPolice PIO is referring all inquiries regarding this incident to the California Highway Patrol.' Bolton answered a Twitter user's query, and said 'Yes, it was a CHP arrest conducted by CHP officers.' CHP media officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Before the incident, demonstrators reportedly screamed at the undercover officers 'Hey, they're undercover, they're cops!' Twitter user Dave Id also published a series of tweets online about the incident early Thursday morning. 'March definitely OOO-VER!' he wrote. 'But I got better info from direct eyewitnesses on undercover incident... #Oakland #BerkeleyProtests.' He also said 'Tall 6'8" undercover and shorter 5'8" undercover with mask on were confronted in dark part of 27th street. Tall cop pulled out baton...' A third tweet from Id alleged 'Tall cop quickly threw baton on ground and then pulled out gun, holding it sideways all gangster. Someone then clocked the masked cop...' He also claimed that 'Masked undercover wasn't beaten badly as I first heard from witness further away, but hit straight in face and knocked down...' The City of Oakland said in a statement one arrest was made overnight after an officer was assaulted, but it was not immediately clear whether that was same incident witnessed by the Reuters photographer. Two subway stations in downtown Oakland were shut down for a time late on Wednesday due to the protest, city officials said. On previous evenings this week in the Bay Area, riot police have fired tear gas and pepper spray to disperse demonstrators, some of whom have thrown stones at the officers. The protests are part of nationwide actions by activists amid turmoil over the policing of black communities. Erica Garner, daughter of Eric Garner, leads a march of people protesting the Staten Island, New York grand jury's decision not to indict a police officer involved in the chokehold death of Eric Garner in July . | A photographer witnessed an undercover police officer pointing his pistol at protesters after he and his partner were attacked .
The undercover officer had been marching with protesters in Oakland .
About 20 officers were quickly on the scene and detained one man .
A spokesman for the Oakland Police Department said only that it had responded to a request for assistance 'made by an outside agency' |
112,802 | 1d8bec8fbb411ccc501faccb7cda7edf466cbdb0 | (CNN) -- I remember a chalk line drawn on blacktop by a group of kids at recess when I was young. The message was clear: This is the line you do not cross. If you stepped over it, you would face the wrath of those kids in whatever game we were playing. Now turn that line crimson and color it toxic. This is the adult version of "do not cross." This is the infamous red line. We first heard about it in terms of Syria a year ago. President Barack Obama said that the use of chemical weapons by Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad would cross a "red line" that would have "enormous consequences." As chemical weapons were deployed in Syria in August, Obama's tripwire was triggered. Then Obama told reporters: "First of all, I didn't set a red line. The world set a red line." When Obama says "the world" did it, he was indicating that much of the world long ago decided chemical weapons were an abhorrent thing to unleash in war. More than 160 countries signed a treaty attesting to this view. But why has "the world set" this one line in the blacktop, and not others? The United States and its allies ignore the violation of treaties all the time. They ignore the use of other terrible weapons in global conflicts daily. As someone who grew up wondering why we intervened in Bosnia but not Rwanda, as someone who directs a project on rape in war, I want to know: How do we decide what suffering matters enough to get a red line? At the Women's Media Center's Women Under Siege project, we've been keeping a live crowdmap of sexualized violence in Syria. I've personally reported multiple stories of rape in which women were hung by their wrists or burned. We've also documented how hundreds of thousands of women have been raped in 16 years of fighting in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Yet Congress is not debating whether to intervene in Congo. It is not struggling over what to do about the rape and torture of women and men in Syria or anywhere else. Why? Here's one gut-wrenching answer: . "People divide their understanding of militarized violence into normal and not normal, acceptable and not acceptable," says Yifat Susskind, executive director of women's human rights organization MADRE. Susskind argues that violence against women has been "normalized," especially in Africa. "World leaders, like representatives in Congress, have turned a blind eye to the violence in DRC for a simple reason: It does not disturb their preconceived notions about where violence is normal," she says. If this statement makes my heart hurt, I'm not sure I can imagine what it means to the people of Congo. I spoke to Eve Ensler, the founder of V-Day. She conceived of the City of Joy, which empowers survivors of sexualized violence, and built it with the women of Congo. Just returned from there, Ensler says she witnessed a kind of dismay about the recent U.S. response to Syria's use of chemical weapons. "Although the Congolese I spoke to felt great empathy for the Syrians, they felt confused by the U.S.'s immediate and overwhelming reaction when -- after 16 years and 8 million people dead -- they have been waiting and demanding that the U.S. stop supporting Rwanda," she says. Ensler and others have long argued that the United States reconsider its relationship with Rwanda, which they say supports the rebel militia M23, one of the main perpetrators of atrocities in Congo. They are pushing for the opposite of military intervention -- they want a political intervention based on human rights violations. "For how many years have we been banging on the doors of the White House, saying thousands and thousands of women have been raped?" she asks. Unlike the obvious effects of chemical weapons use, the fallout of rape is often invisible: It doesn't always leave marks, and it is so heavily stigmatized we don't see how it psychologically, and physically, tears women apart. With chemical weapons, gases seep in an indiscriminate cloud and infect whoever is in their path. They've been called "weapons of mass destruction in slow motion," says Jeffrey Lewis, director of the East Asia Nonproliferation Program at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies. Lewis argues that "the goal is to have a world in which people don't settle for disputes with violence," but he recognizes that "we're a way off" from such a day. "We still need to prevent a world that uses the very worst weapons," he says. But "worst" is subjective. "There's a hierarchy of sensation around weaponry," Ensler says. "But in my mind chemical weapons and mass rape are both weapons of mass destruction." You could argue that the United States gets involved in wars based on careful geopolitics. You could argue, as many do, that the United States intervened in Bosnia because there was a politically viable solution on the table. You could say we stayed out of Rwanda because it was "messy." It's a nasty kind of calculus, this business of deciding the red line of intervention, of what kind of pain matters most. Ultimately, however, it may not be as complicated as it first appears. "Do the people at risk matter to the people in power?" Susskind asks. "Does intervention serve the political aims of the powerful? In that calculation, human rights fall far behind." The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Lauren Wolfe. | Lauren Wolfe: Obama says world set "red line" on chemical weapons that can't be crossed .
She asks: Why does world have no such red line on abhorrent weapon of mass rape?
She says in Syria and Congo, rape is "normalized," doesn't draw threat of intervention .
Wolfe: U.S. should rethink ties to Rwanda, which backs Congo militia known for atrocities . |
191,723 | 84444ab826170843bc9931455a8028c69bfce514 | By . Bianca London . Princess Beatrice is fast becoming the Royal Family's most enthusiastic gourmand, sampling London's finest culinary haunts night after night. Last night, the 25-year-old was spotted leaving Roka Mayfair, the upmarket haunt by Rainer Becker, creator and founder of Zuma, Roka and, most recently, Oblix at The Shard. In the last few months, she's visited the Chiltern Firehouse, Zuma, Nobu, Restaurant C, Balthazar, La Petite Maison, Les Trois Garcons and China Tang - it's a veritable roll-call of the capital's hottest dining destinations. Out AGAIN? Princess Beatrice loves to dine out and last night saw her enjoying the Japanese culinary delights of Roka in Mayfair . Last night's choice Roka is best known for its Japanese Robatayaki cuisine, but also serves up fresh sushi, sashimi and salads. Dishes include grilled lobster hot pot with crab miso butter and mitsuba, as well as rock shrimp, wasabi pea seasoning and chilli mayonnaise - although the website doesn't reveal the prices. Never encouraging if your means are more limited than Princess Bea's. The night before: Princess Beatrice enjoyed date night with her long-term boyfriend Dave Clark at exclusive Mayfair restaurant, La Petite Masion on Tuesday night . Beatrice appeared in good spirits as she left the restaurant wearing a waist-cinching black dress with an Aztec-print jacket. Beatrice looked fresh-faced despite a late night the evening before, which saw her and long-term boyfriend Dave Clarke enjoying a low-key evening at La Petite Maison, a French restaurant in the heart of Mayfair. The flame-haired royal, who is making a name for herself as quite the fashionista, . looked sophisticated and chic in a fitted black dress, which she teamed . with a tailored monochrome blazer. Writing about the restaurant, a Square Meal reviewer writes: 'If you're pining for the Côte d'Azur, or neighbouring Liguria, you might consider heading over to La Petite Maison, which aims to capture some of that region's gastronomic spirit.' The menu features tender grilled veal . chops, lamb cutlets with smoked aubergine and whole sea bream cooked en . papillote with lemon and herbs. Who knew they were friends? Beatrice was last . week joined by long-term boyfriend David Clark a meal with Jimmy Carr . and his partner Karoline Copping . In one of . the more surprising buddy-ups of recent times, Princess Beatrice enjoyed a . double date last Wednesday with funny man Jimmy Carr. The two apparent pals dined out at exclusive London restaurant Zuma with their other halves. Beatrice . was joined by long-term boyfriend David Clark for the meal, while Jimmy . was accompanied by his partner Karoline Copping. Zuma in London's upmarket Knightsbridge is another of Becker's restaurants and describes itself as 'offering something completely new - a sophisticated twist on the traditional japanese izakaya style of informal eating and drinking. Dishes . include seared, miso marinated foie gras with umeboshi compote and . moromi miso marinated baby chicken, oven roasted on cedar wood. Yet . again, the website states no prices. She loves a night out! Princess Beatrice seems to be an unofficial restaurant reviewer and has visited the trendiest restaurants that London has to offer, such as The Chiltern Firehouse, right . Two weeks ago, she was . seen strolling hand-in-hand with Prince Harry's ex-girlfriend Cressida Bonas as . they enjoyed an evening out at Annabel's - a very exclusive private members club. The week before that, at the end of April, she enjoyed a romantic night out at celebrity hotspot, The Chiltern Firehouse, which she has visited a few times in recent weeks. 'Firehouse', as it is called (or hashtagged) by those who get to dine within its very exclusive confines, is the latest offering from hip hotelier André Balazs. The past fortnight alone has seen the likes of Tony Blair, Orlando Bloom, Lily Allen and Kate Moss dine there. Chiltern . Firehouse is part of the group owned by renowned hotelier André Balazs' collection of bespoke, luxury hotels which include celebrity favourites The Mercer in Soho, . New York, Chateau Marmont in Hollywood and Sunset Beach in Shelter . Island plus The Hamptons. Starters . include sea trout crudo, yellow mole, coriander (£11) and steak . tartare, pine nuts, chipotle and Firehouse hot sauce (£12), while main . courses include blackened salmon, sea kale, crispy skin and trout roe . (£24) and pan-roasted chicken, charred leek heart, mustard tops (£26). The comfy, modern interior of the Chiltern . Firehouse. Diners sit in close quarters and are able to watch the . bustling open kitchen at work...if they can take their eyes off the . revolving celeb doors that is . Princess Beatrice and Sarah Ferguson enjoyed two mother-daughter dates in a week. The . royal pair were seen leaving glamorous 45 Park Lane Hotel restaurant in . Mayfair in April, having enjoyed another gourmet dinner. While . most of us have to curtail nights out during the week, or risk falling . asleep at our desks, the 25-year-old royal is lucky enough not to have . to get up for work in the morning. The dinner marked the third time that Beatrice had hit the town that week. On the Wednesday night, Sarah Ferguson and . Princess Beatrice were joined by her ex-husband the Duke of York for dinner . at smart Mayfair restaurant ‘Restaurant C’ while the Friday before, Beatrice . was seen leaving the Chiltern . Firehouse (again), where she had been dining with friends. Date night: Bea is often accompanied by her long-term boyfriend Dave Clark. One of the couple's favourite eateries is The Chiltern Firehouse . In mid-April, Sarah Ferguson and Prince Andrew dined with their daughter in London's . fashionable East End. The happy trio had a quiet family supper at the fashionable Les Trois Garcons on Bethnal Green Road. It was an unusual choice for the group - edgy Shoreditch, although gentrified, isn’t yet a royal stamping ground. Les . Trois Garcons is a former pub decorated with stuffed animals and . dangling handbags, and serves up dishes such as £25 dish of poached . ballotine of chicken and lobster, and a £21.50 organic salmon with . spinach, potato Dauphine, and a champagne butter sauce. Roka, MayfairLa Petite MaisonZuma, MayfairAnnabel's45 Park LaneRestaurant CThe Chiltern Firehouse . Around Valentine's Day, the Princess enjoyed a night out with boyfriend Dave Clark at famous Mayfair restaurant Nobu. A . notorious celebrity hangout, the young royal was at Nobu at the same . time as singer Ronan Keating and friends but confident Beatrice seemed . unfazed by the media attention, smiling for the waiting press as she . exited the pricey restaurant, loved by Cheryl Cole and Victoria Beckham. Princess Bea must have a penchant for Japanese food, considering that over half of the restaurants she's visited in recent weeks serve sushi and sashmini, perhaps that's how she maintains her trim figure. While the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge prefer a quiet night in (the royal couple were once spotted buying pizza and salad at their local Sainsburys), at least Princess Beatrice is representing the young royal set, showcasing some serious style credentials and helping support Mayfair's gastronomic economy. | Princess has dined out at Mayfair's swankiest restaurants recently .
Favourites include Chiltern Firehouse, Zuma and Roka . |
113,004 | 1dd55c5e838399f7248afe7f20eeddaee61ea34b | Christianity has declined sharply over the past decade, according to the census returns. Numbers who choose to call themselves Christians fell by more than four million. The collapse in belief in the religion which has been central to the history of the country for 1,500 years means that fewer than six out of ten, or 59 per cent, now describe themselves as Christian. A decade ago nearly three quarters, 72 per cent, did so. The diminishing number of Christians is mirrored by a rapid growth in those who profess no religious affiliation. A quarter of the population, 14.1million, now say they have no religion, nearly double the 7.7million who said the same thing in the 2001 census. Religion: This graph shows how Christianity has been in decline as every other faith grows more popular . The growth religion in England and . Wales is Islam, the census returns showed. Over a decade, numbers of . Muslims have gone up from around 1.5million to 2.7million, and almost . one in 20 of the population is now a Muslim. The lowest level of Christian belief . is in London, where fewer than half the population, 48 per cent, now say . they are Christian. Returns showed the most Christian . district is Knowsley on Merseyside, where more than four out of ten are . Christian. More than a third of people in the London borough of Tower . Hamlets are Muslim. Norwich is the most Godless place in Britain with . 42.5 per cent of its population professing no religion. The Church of England said it was . pleased a majority of the population remain Christian. Spokesman the Rev . Arun Arora said: ‘These results confirm that we remain a faithful . nation. ‘England remains a country where the . majority of the nation actively identifies the role that faith plays in . their life. When all faiths are taken together, people of faith account . for two-thirds of the nation – two in every three people identify . themselves as having a faith. Map: The darker areas of this map show the regions of England and Wales with the most Christians . ‘The fall in those choosing to . identify themselves as Christians is a challenge. One of the reasons may . well be fewer people identifying as “cultural Christians” – those who . have no active involvement with churches and who may previously have . identified as Christian for cultural or historical reasons.’ Andrew Copson of the British Humanist . Association said: ‘In spite of a biased question that positively . encourages religious responses, to see such an increase in the . non-religious and such a decrease in those reporting themselves as . Christian is astounding. ‘Of course these figures still . exaggerate the number of Christians overall – the number of believing, . practising Christians is much lower than this and the number of those . leading their lives with no reference to religion much higher.’ Around 177,000 people claim to be Jedi . – the ‘faith’ made famous in the Star Wars films – though this number . is down on the 2001 figure by more than a half. And 6,242 people subscribe to the Heavy Metal religion, set up in 2010 by the Rock music magazine, Metal Hammer. Other alternative religions included 56,620 Paganists, 39,061 Spiritualists and 2,418 Scientologists. Tower Hamlets: The borough in east London is the only area where Muslims outnumber Christians . Explore the census statistics on religion with this interactive map from the ONS . | Proportion of Christians in England and Wales down to 59.3 per cent .
Quarter of people say they do not follow any religion following rise of aggressive atheism .
Number of Muslims up to 2.7million, 4.8 per cent of the population . |
211,906 | 9e694ea463ecc51eccb83ddbef711831ba0c773f | By . Peter Campbell . Court appearance: Taxpayers have already paid out half a million pounds in legal fees to defend Fred Goodwin . Taxpayers have forked out almost half a million pounds in legal fees to defend disgraced former Royal Bank of Scotland boss Fred Goodwin, it emerged last night. Costs of £400,000 have already been racked up by law firms representing four former directors of the bank against a lawsuit brought by its shareholders – even though the case has still not reached court. If it does, the final bill will run to millions of pounds. Mr Goodwin’s legal fees are being paid by the bank, despite the fact he draws a £342,500-a-year pension. RBS is 82 per cent owned by the taxpayer after being bailed out during the financial crisis. It means that the bank is effectively being subsidised by public funds to defend bosses who led it to the biggest state rescue in British corporate history. The Mail revealed last year that taxpayers would end up footing the bill for the lawsuit, because it is normal for companies to pay the legal fees of former directors. Leading City law firm Herbert Smith is representing RBS and the former directors, but it is understood that other firms have also been drafted in. Banking sources last night said it was ‘absolutely impossible’ to estimate how much the suit would end up costing. RBS has previously said that the total could reach an eye-watering £42million. The revelations of the scale of the costs so far caused fury. Labour MP John Mann said: ‘This is a disgrace. It’s a staggering amount of money and will only climb higher. It shouldn’t be happening, especially when the taxpayer owns this bank.’ Almost 400,000 shareholders, including many retail investors, have joined the RBS Shareholder Action Group, which is bringing the case. RBS is 82 per cent owned by the taxpayer after being bailed out during the financial crisis . During 2008 investors were asked to spend £12billion buying new shares to help the bank fund new deals. The bank held large breakfast gatherings for interested shareholders, in which directors assured them of the health of the business. But in the months that followed the value of the shares collapsed as the bank came to the brink of financial ruin. In total, there are four cases being brought against the bank, which will be wrapped into one hearing expected to start next year. Mr Goodwin, who was stripped of his knighthood, is expected to appear in court. The other directors named in the case are former chairman Sir Tom McKillop, ex-finance chief Guy Whittaker and former investment banking boss Johnny Cameron. RBS refused to comment on the cost. A spokesman said: ‘We believe we have strong defences to the claims that are being brought against the bank.’ | Costs of £400,000 have already been racked up by law firms .
Mr Goodwin’s legal fees are paid by the bank despite the fact he draws a £342,500-a-year pension .
RBS is 82% owned by taxpayers after it was bailed out during financial crisis . |
234,919 | bc16782184b658a5611d0a37900ac09493fd3818 | By . Emily Allen . Last updated at 3:46 PM on 28th November 2011 . Jonathan Bloomfield, 37, was filmed by a neighbour viciously punching and swearing at his 18-month-old Staffordshire bull terrier, Butch . A dog owner filmed punching his pet in the head has been banned from keeping animals - but now claims he should be compensated for an invasion of his privacy after the footage was posted on Facebook. Jonathan Bloomfield, 37, was filmed by a neighbour viciously punching and swearing at his 18-month-old Staffordshire bull terrier, Butch, earlier this year. The footage was posted online and went viral and his violence enraged people so much that an angry mob turned up on his doorstep and forced him to flee with his family from his home in Grimsby to London. Bloomfield was banned at Grimsby magistrates' court from keeping dogs for 15 years after admitting two counts of animal cruelty, but now claims he 'should be compensated for the invasion of privacy'. The 37-year-old said he felt sorry for what he did but added: 'If my neighbour had concerns, he should have got in touch with the RSPCA, not made videos of my family and put them on Facebook and YouTube. 'I will be seeking the advice of a solicitor and should be compensated for the invasion of privacy which has left my family homeless and denied my young son a better future.' The court heard how Bloomfield claimed that he punched the dog because it had bitten his three-year-old son's hand when taking a packet of crisps from him. He also claimed he was stressed from work and was 'sick of the dog barking'. Bloomfield said: 'I heard my son crying and he was holding his hand, saying the dog bit him. I was angry so I went out and bashed him. 'It is not in my nature to be cruel to animals and I know it was not the best way to go about things but I was upset.' Bloomfield claims to be an animal lover and insisted that his neighbours didn't like his family because they were from London. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO . The video, shot from a neighbour's window, shows Butch being kicked, . punched in the face and repeatedly hit in Grimsby, north-east Lincolnshire . During the court case, magistrates . were warned the footage - filmed between September 9 and October 18 - . contained 'disturbing' images. It shows Butch at the back door whimpering to . be let inside the house and then being beaten twice with a . pole by Bloomfield. In a . separate shot, Butch is then seen standing outside the door whining when it is flung open and he flinches in fear. Bloomfield grabs Butch by his neck before punching him in the head and kicking him while a small boy stands . behind him, seemingly egging him on. Right, a woman in a bra and trousers with a towel on her head opens the door and appears to whip the dog with a cloth . As Butch cowers in terror, a pole is brandished at him from the doorway of the property. The Staffordshire bull terrier was taken to Grimsby Blue Cross Animal Hospital to be checked over and the RSPCA took hundreds of calls . Next, a woman in a bra and trousers with a towel on her head opens the door and . allegedly whips the dog with a cloth before slamming the door. One shot shows the dog eventually being allowed into the house, but . not before it cowers in terror. Finally, the most disturbing piece of footage shows Bloomfield seemingly grabbing Butch by his neck before punching the dog twice in the head and kicking him. A small boy appears . behind Bloomfield, apparently egging him on. Bloomfield can be heard shouting . 'shut the f**k up'. Bloomfield was arrested on October 18 after his neighbour Michael Currie posted the video on Facebook. People gather near Bloomfield's house in Grimsby after the footage was posted on Facebook . Bloomfield continued: 'Neighbours didn't like us because we are from London. 'They would come round complaining that the dog was making a noise and then film me when I smacked him.' Bloomfield . also kept lizards, a bird and a fish - but has since got rid of them . because he 'genuinely thought' he was going to prison. He . added: 'I plan to replace the lizards but after everything that has . happened, I will never keep a dog again - even after the 15-year ban is . up. 'We are now living with my mother in London. 'My son has had to leave the nursery he went to and the friends he made. We lost everything we loved in the space of an hour. 'I have lost my house over this and it is wrong.' Butch . was taken into the care of the RSPCA. Mr Bloomfield was also ordered to . complete 260 hours of unpaid work and pay £100 costs. | Jonathan Bloomfield says footage posted online was an invasion of his privacy .
He claims the dog bit his son and he was sick of it barking .
Apologises for what he did but claims his family are now homeless . |
174,729 | 6e24e4df4d6f6edd63cb20d2712633622cfac5ba | (CNN) -- He has a long way to go to emulate the success of his father, who won five majors and thrilled the world of golf, but Javier Ballesteros is off to a promising start. The 21-year-old made his debut on the professional golf circuit Thursday, 38 years after Severiano began his pro career on exactly the same course. After starting at the Sant Cugat course in Catalunya, Spain, Seve went on to win three British Opens and two Masters titles and etch his name into the record books as one of the most entertaining and flamboyant players ever to pick up a club. Seve died in May last year, at the age of 54, provoking an outpouring of grief from the world of golf. Many stars of the game attended his funeral in his home village of Pedrena. Javier insists he doesn't feel any weight of pressure being the son of one of golf's most revered characters, but he offered a glimpse of his talent as he shot a five-under-par round to sit three shots off the lead after day one of the Peugeot Alps de Barcelona. "My goal for this competition is enjoy it," he said on the European Tour's official website. "I don't set goals when I play a tournament, especially being an amateur. "What I have to do is enjoy and learn. I have no extra pressure being Seve's son, I don't really have anything to prove. I'm just going to be myself. "When I registered for the Peugeot Tour event at Sant Cugat I didn't know that my father played his first professional tournament here and now that I know, it's double the excitement for me." Seve won 91 tournaments in a 33-year career and was a crucial part of Europe's Ryder Cup team during much of the 1980s and 1990s, forming a formidable partnership with fellow Spaniard Jose Maria Olazabal. Javier clearly has inherited a wealth of talent from Seve but says he is yet to decide if he will follow his father's footsteps and become a golf professional once he has finished studying law in Madrid. "I have always played golf," he added. "I was on the national team when I was 14 to 16 years old, and being surrounded by golf at home always made me think about being a pro in the future. "But I have to finish university first. It is something my parents have always told me to do, especially my father, and that is my priority. Then we will see. "I have not made a schedule or set a time. It's not just a case of turning professional as soon as I finish college. We will just see what happens." | Seve Ballesteros' son Javier competes in first professional golf tournament .
The 21-year-old's first pro start comes at same course his late father made his debut .
Seve is one of the most famous names in golf winning five majors during a glittering career .
Javier to decide whether to become a full time pro after completing law studies at college . |
269,049 | e889fce554d7e6cd5c886d29afab5d6535e49767 | By . Associated Press . and Alexandra Klausner . [publistyhed] | . Updated: . 17:20 EST, 29 April 2014 . Three women were arrested after twerking at an impromptu dance party in the Beaverton City Hall parking lot. Police say Coura Valazquez, 20, of Vancouver, Washington went to municipal court with two friends Brittany Medak, 20, of Vancouver, Washington and Leokham Yothsombath, 22, of Portland, Oregon on Monday afternoon to pay a fine. The show began as they headed to the parking lot. Police say Medak lifted up her skirt and urinated between two cars in the parking lot as Yothsombath filmed the event, reports The New York Daily News. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO . Coura Velasquez, 20, was arrested on Monday for twerking in a court parking lot where she visited on Monday in order to pay a fine . Brittany Medak, 20, allegedly lifted up her skirt as she twerked in a court parking lot and at one point even urinated between two cars . Leokham Yothsombath, 20, filmed the events on her cell phone and was also arrested on Monday . A number of municipal court employees also got the ladies' antics on film. The Oregonian reports one lifted her skirt and urinated between two cars. They also were accused of bringing drugs to the Courthouse. Police stopped their car as they were driving away on a nearby highway and arrested all three women. KPTV reports that the women were charged with multiple offenses including disorderly conduct, littering, drug possession, and tampering with drug records. Police say they found cocaine, prescription pills, and marijuana in their car. | Police say Coura Valazquez, 20, of Vancouver, Washington went to municipal court with two friends so she could pay a fine .
One friend named Brittany Medak, 20, allegedly lifted her skirt and urinated between two vehicles .
Another friend Leokham Yothsombath, 22, apparently filmed the event .
The women were charged with multiple .
offenses including disorderly conduct, littering, drug possession, and .
tampering with drug records . |
998 | 02d123388fbdf6da1466253313fe6641595c291c | By . Rob Cooper . Last updated at 5:05 PM on 24th January 2012 . It must be every car fans dream but they might not get much sleep with the engine noise in this superpowered 600bhp bunkbed. The unusual vehicle, which goes under the hammer next month, boasts a V8 engine, automatic transmission, disc brakes and super-wide Goodyear tyres. It can in theory be driven in comfort from either the top or bottom bunk. Superpowered bunkbed: The unusual car, which is fitted with a 600bhp engine, goes under the hammer in Weybridge, Surrey, next month . Auctioneers Historics at Brooklands, Surrey, expect offers in the region of £12,000 to £15,000 for the custom car. Also on the list for the February 18 auction at Mercedes-Benz World is the iconic ‘Bugaloos Buggy’ made famous by the children's television show in the 1970s. Broadcaster NBC commissioned George Barris to make the Bugaloo who made the original Batmobile and later versions of the KITT car in Knight Rider. Unorthodox car: The vehicle has been fitted with superwide Goodyear tyres, disc brakes and an automatic gearbox . Creator: George Barris made this bunkbed car which is going to be sold-off next month. He also made the original Batmobile and later versions of the KITT car in Knight Rider . Using a four-passenger fibreglass body mounted on a Volkswagen floorplan, the car was built to look like a bug - reflecting the programme’s characters who could fly and walk on water - with wings set on a T-shaped roll bar and oversized headlights designed to look like eyes. The car is fully street legal and also has a guide price of £12,000 to £15,000. Also going under the hammer is a 23-foot long multi-engined Snake Pit car which is fitted with six synchronised Ford Cobra V8 engines. For sale: A replica of the the iconic 'Bugaloos Buggy' made famous by the children's television show in the 1970s . The custom car took George Barris, Harry Bradley, Joe Bailon and Jay Ohrberg four years to build and has an estimated 2,000bhp,12 Holley four-barrel carburettors, 48 . exhausts, two Ford C-6 automatic transmissions and a pair of Pontiac . rear axles, the Snake Pit is all about extraordinary figures. Joe Bailon, a car customiser also famous for introducing the three part process used to create candy paint colours, added than 30 coats of lacquer to compliment the orange and pearl white paintwork. It has an estimated value of £65,000. Constructed on top of a VW: Bugaloos Buggy was built to look like a bug and mounted on a Volkswagen floorplan . | High-speed bed is fitted with a V8 600bhp engine and could sell for £15k .
Snake Pit car with SIX synchronised Ford Cobra V8 engines capable of 2,000bhp also going under the hammer . |
116,597 | 227fa839c8926f3d3d333f6e35ac85c394b08449 | Liverpool Chairman Tom Werner is confident Raheem Sterling will end his contract impasse and commit to a long-term deal. Brendan Rodgers warned Sterling’s advisors earlier this week that Liverpool would not be held to ransom over their demands. And Werner said in an interview with the Liverpool Echo: ‘All I can say is that I’m hopeful that we’ll conclude a deal. Obviously it’s important for us. He’s an exceptional player. Tom Werner is confident Raheem Sterling will sign a new long-term contract at Liverpool in the near future . Liverpool chairman Werner was at Anfield to see the side beat Tottenham 3-2 on Tuesday . Sterling (second left) has established himself as an integral part of Liverpool's first team . ‘Brendan and Ian Ayre are quite involved and Brendan is talking to Raheem about this and I hope and expect a very positive outcome that is good for Raheem - and good for the club. ‘I would say that I’m confident that we will reach an agreement that works for all parties.’ The England international has yet to agree new terms after talks stalled for a number of months. Sterling has just over two years left on his current deal and Liverpool manager Rodgers said on Monday he is confident that the issues will get finalised sooner rather than later. 'Raheem is going to get rewarded. He has been offered a wonderful deal, an incredible deal for a young player. He is very happy here and you can see that in his play,' Rodgers said. 'We are certainly not going to be a club that gives out way, way above what they are worth. We reward our best players. 'It is very important for young players to have something to strive for and if they get too much too soon it will sabotage their development. Raheem has been outstanding since he was put in the team but you have to remember this was a 17-year-old who was put into the team. Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers said that Sterling has been offered 'an incredble deal' Attacker Sterling (right) has just over two years remaining on his current Liverpool contract . 'We believe this is the best place for him. But you have to leave something there for the next one for them to progress.' Liverpool play Crystal Palace in the fifth round of the FA Cup on Saturday at Selhurst Park. | Tom Werner was at Anfield to see Liverpool's 3-2 win over Tottenham .
The Liverpool chairman is confident Raheem Sterling will sign a new deal .
Sterling's advisors and Liverpool are reportedly yet to agree on terms . |
234,333 | bb59d135c3fda4d94a9ba6ab6902d3bf37193bb4 | '@natsecwonk': Under an anonymous Twitter account Jofi Joseph bashed his bosses and other Washington elites . A White House national security adviser is out of the job after it was revealed he was behind a Twitter page popular amongst Washington D.C.'s foreign policy community that he often used to anonymously insult many of his bosses and other powerful D.C. insiders. Additionally, Jofi Joseph, a director in the non-proliferation section of the National Security Staff at the White House, used the account - with the moniker @natsecwonk - to reveal internal information about the Obama White House for more than two years. At times, Joseph even used the page to take shots at Jews. 'Is it just me, or with the Jews celebrating Rosh Hashanah tonight, is Twitter much quieter?' he posted on September 4. Joseph started posting on the account . in February 2011 and used it to insult powerful politicians until it was . deleted last week, presumably after he'd been shown the door at the . White House. Two administration officials confirmed to the Daily Beast that Joseph was the man behind the account. 'I'm a fan of Obama, but his continuing reliance and dependence upon a . vacuous cipher like Valerie Jarrett concerns me,” he once tweeted, referring to one of the president's senior advisers. 'Vacuous cipher': Joseph had some choice words about senior Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett . 'Beer goggles': Joseph tweeted that Huma Abedin must have been wearing beer goggles when she married Anthony Wiener . Other targets Joseph's Twitter rants include former National Security Advisor Tom Donilon, Deputy National Security . Advisor Ben Rhodes, Secretary of State John Kerry, and many others. 'Was Huma Abedin wearing beer goggles the night she met Anthony Wiener? Almost as bad a pairing as Samantha Powers and Cass Sunstein ....,” he . tweeted in 2011, prior to the sexting scandal that ended Wiener's career in Congress. In another tweet, he took a swipe at former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin and her family. 'So when will someone do us the favor of getting rid of Sarah Palin and . the rest of her white trash family? What utter useless garbage .... ,' he tweeted last October. 'White trash': Joseph not only went after Sarah Palin, but took shots at her family, too . Joseph is married to Carolyn Leddy, is a well-respected professional staffer on the Republican side of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Politico reporter Glenn Thrush said Tuesday that he spoke with Josephand asked if behind the Twitter account. Joseph would neither confirm nor deny whether he was. According to Thrush, Joseph said his that asking him about the Twitter account was 'ridiculous' and 'would affect his ability to get a new job.' Prior to his job in the Obama administration, Joseph was an adviser to Under Secretary of State Ellen Tauscher on a range of . multilateral arms control treaties; and before serving in the White . House he advised and worked with U.S. Senator Robert Casey Jr. and . Senator Joseph Biden Jr. | Jofi Joseph is a director in the non-proliferation section of the National Security Staff at the White House .
In one Twitter rant he called Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett a 'vacuous cipher'
In other posts he called Sarah Palin and her family 'white trash' |
24,040 | 443dbcfa3306b39853f749d8f93f58bcaeba5b9f | By . Stuart Woledge . PUBLISHED: . 07:29 EST, 28 August 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 11:11 EST, 28 August 2013 . A publishing company has released a colouring book aimed at children which features one of the Boston Bombing suspects on the front cover. The controversial black and white line drawing parodies last month's infamous Rolling Stone cover in which prime suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev - currently awaiting trial for the deaths of four people, plus 30 counts of using a weapon of mass destruction - featured in the style of a hippy rock star. The amended magazine title reads: 'Rock Him and Stone Him'. Reignite: A publisher from St Louis released its answer to Rolling Stone magazine's controversial cover (right) when it released this colouring book for children (left) Educational: The company behind the controversial colouring book have said they want to help youngsters understand terrorism. It contains images of Bin Laden being buried at sea . It also has spoof headlines including: 'I ran over my brother with a carjacked SUV', and 'my shoplifting mother can't visit me in jail.' Missouri-based Really Big Coloring Books has defended it's latest offering called 'Tell the Truth - Tell it Often - Tell the Children', which went on sale this week. The firm claims it was 'designed to help youngsters learn and understand more about terrorism as they read or colour'. They say the series will engage . parents, teachers, educators and children from an honest, direct point . of reference that may elicit public response for open discussion. Demands: The colouring book has called on Imams to acknowledge Sharia Law is secondary to the US constitution . Publisher Wayne Bell said: 'In . regards to our initial comic publication, we listened to customer input . and decided to cover the subject of terror. 'With . the advent of members in the national media being accused of . "glorifying a young terrorist", our company received a mountain of . hostile feedback and comments directed at that topic. 'We . are simply not going to put up with radical Jihadists in this country. As far as radical Islamic Jihad goes, you don't win now, you don't win . here, you don't win tomorrow, you don't win next week, you simply don't . win. 'America's not going to let you win, and we want you to know that.' Hate figures: The book also features other controversial people such as Bradley Manning (bottom left), jailed for leaking classified documents . Defiant: The colouring book has warned terrorists 'America's not going to let you win . Included inside is a letter of declaration to Imams in America asking them to 'help rid America of radical Islam', and urging them to start a day of recognition dedicated to honouring those who have died 'at the hands of Radical Islamic Jihad'. The edition also features a graphic drawing of Osama Bin Laden's body at the bottom of the sea. The St Louis publisher's CBC Coloring Book Comic line of publications will feature real life 'true-to-culture' hero and villain comics. The new title comes as a 12-page supplement when ordering older books from the company called 'We Shall Never Forget 9/11 The Kids Book of Freedom' and 'The True Faces of Evil Terror'. Educational: The company behind the controversial colouring book has said it wants youngsters to 'understand' terrorism . Mr Bell added: 'People say they only want the truth without influence of personal opinion or hidden agenda. 'Americans are more than fed up with politically motivated correctness to the point of frustration that quickly turns into disgust, distrust and then anger. '"Do not mislead my children; kids are smarter than you think" - we hear that often, especially from grandparents. 'People have told our company in essence: tell the truth, tell it often and tell the children.' Three people, including an eight-year-old boy, were killed and 176 injured, 17 critically, in the attack on the Boston Marathon as the nation celebrated Patriots Day on April 15. Horror: As Americans celebrated Patriots Day, terrorists launched an attack on the Boston Marathon . Pressure cookers packed with shards of metal, nails and ball bearings - a weapon favoured by al-Qaeda - were detonated near the finish line causing mayhem. Three days later, police tracked two suspects - brothers Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev - to Watertown, where a firefight broke out in which a police officer was killed, bringing the death toll to four. Suspects: Tamerlan Tsarnaev (left) was killed during the manhunt, while his brother Dzhokhar (right) was captured and is currently in custody . Tamerlan, the elder brother, was also killed after being shot by police, while Dzhokhar, 19, escaped in a car, but not before running his brother over. His five-days on the run was brought to an end when police found him hiding in a boat, which was parked up on the driveway of its owner. The Massachusetts college student was shot several times as the authorities attempted to capture him. Rolling Stone magazine later published a controversial front page which depicted the teenager as a rock star. Fugitive: Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was shot several times by police as they attempted to capture him . Snared: Dzhoktar Tsarnaev was taken alive after being discovered hiding on a boat parked on the drive of its owner . | The colouring book was launched to help children 'understand terrorism'
Bosses have defended it saying 'we are not going to put up with terrorists'
It was released in answer to Rolling Stone magazine's cover last month .
The edition also features an image of Bin Laden at the bottom of the sea . |
118,782 | 256186bd0b20986ca85d823e947c232185a95496 | By . Nick Mashiter, Press Association . Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke has hinted he is ready to return to training and bring an end to his five month injury nightmare. The 23-year-old ruptured his Achilles in April, forcing him to miss Belgium's World Cup campaign. However, he tweeted on Sunday he is looking forward to 'the big day' as he gears up for a Villa comeback. Christian Benteke is close to returning to training after five months out with an Achilles injury . Benteke wrote: '5months today! The road was long but tomorrow it's the big day! Doing what I love the most. Thank you for all the support you're the best.' The forward was expected to return in September, with boss Paul Lambert confirming his recovery was going well. He has been working with private physio Lieven Maesschalk, who revealed Benteke is closing in on playing again. The 23-year-old ruptured his Achilles in April, forcing him to miss Belgium's World Cup campaign . Maesschalk told Sporza: 'Over the past five months Christian worked very hard. His rehabilitation was done in phases. 'Alternately he worked at the club and in my practice. The hard work has paid off because Christian is now finally back to his club. 'Initially he worked off running sessions but now he is training with the group. Again, everything is going as desired. I expect him to return by the end of the month.' Villa are second in the Barclays Premier League after their 1-0 win at Liverpool on Saturday. Aston Villa are second in the Barclays Premier League after their 1-0 win at Liverpool on Saturday . | Christian Benteke is close to returning to training for Aston Villa .
Belgian forward has been out for five months with a ruptured Achilles .
Benteke missed 20 Premier League games last season because of various injuries . |
198,123 | 8c711344deeaf4fff5d18486c685dc5287097dd2 | Hands-on: Ed Miliband holding his newborn son Samuel in 2010. The Labour leader has floated plans to double the length of paternity leave and increase statutory paternity pay from £100 a week to £260 . New fathers are to be offered a month of paternity leave under a £150million Labour plan to encourage them to be more hands-on with their children. Labour leader Ed Miliband today promises a sharp increase in paternity pay to £260-a-week – the equivalent of the minimum wage – so more working fathers can afford to take time off. But the plan has faced some criticism from business leaders, who warn it will cause uncertainty and staff shortages for employers, especially small firms. It comes after Labour has faced sustained criticism for being anti-business. But the party claimed 'good' businesses will welcome the policy as a way to encourage both men and women to stay in work. Mr Miliband unveiled the 'Father's Month', expected to help 400,000 men a year, as part of a coordinated push of family-friendly policies. It includes increasing free childcare for three and four year olds from 15 to 25 hours a week and guaranteeing breakfast and after school clubs from 8am to 6pm. He said: 'The modern British family needs government to be more flexible in what it does to help. 'Parents work long and stressful hours, at different times of the day, and it is increasingly tough to balance this with giving our kids the best start in life they can get.' Mr Miliband, a father of two sons, said more and more fathers want to play a hands-on role in childcare particularly but are 'frustrated by out-dated laws and entitlements'. He criticised the Tory plan for a married couple's tax break, which will cost £700million but only help one in five families with children. 'At the heart of Labour's plan, is the belief that Britain succeeds when modern working families succeed,' Mr Miliband said. 'That means giving Dads, as well as Mums, the chance to spend more time at home in the those crucial weeks after babies have been born.' The idea of offering fathers a month off work when they have a child was first put forward last year by the left-leaning IPPR think tank. Labour claims it would benefit up to 400,000 families a year. Under existing rules new fathers qualify for a statutory £138.18 a week, equivalent to £3.45 an hour for a 40-hour week, with employers encouraged to make up the gap in the employee's usual pay. Only just over half of new fathers (55 per cent) take it up at present. Bringing the taxpayer-funded contribution up to minimum wage level would increase take-up to around 70 per cent, the IPPR estimates, at a cost to the Treasury of around £150 million in 2015-16. Scroll down for video . Mr Miliband insisted the modern British family 'needs government to be more flexible in what it does to help' Mr Miliband today met Sarah Phillis and her son Milo at her home in Peckham, south east London, as he unveiled plans for a significant boost to paternity leave if it wins the election . Ed Miliband today spoke of his fear that being leader of the Labour party means he does not see his children enough. He insisted that being a father was more important than being Labour leader, but struggles to find time for his wife Justine and his family. Appearing on ITV's This Morning, he said: 'I’ve got two young boys of four and five and the greatest pleasure in life is spending time with them and Justine. 'It is really hard because like many, many parents, you’re working long hours and you become more and more aware of how important that quality time is. Part of the thing I’ve learnt to try and do is try and carve out that time with them, mainly obviously at weekends, but to carve out that time because I don’t want them to think of me as a dad who wasn’t around. 'My job as leader of the Labour party is important but my most important job is being a good dad.' With the party's spending plans under close scrutiny ahead of the election, Labour said House of Commons figures showed its policy of extending free childcare to three and four-year-olds - paid for by a bank levy - would save 'significantly' more in tax credits than the cost of the extra paternity pay. 'The modern British family needs government to be more flexible in what it does to help,' Mr Miliband said. 'Thanks to the last Labour government, fathers have two weeks' paid paternity leave. 'Millions of families have benefited, with parents saying this has helped them support each other, share caring responsibilities and bond with their children. But the money isn't great - and too many dads don't take up their rights because they feel they have to go back to work so they can provide for their family.' He pointed to the party's weekend announcement that it would end the 'crazy' situation of underused and mothballed Sure Start children's centres by restoring an obligation on councils to provide childcare via them. Shadow education secretary Tristram Hunt said using private and charity providers would mean 50,000 new places could be laid on at no cost to the taxpayer - a claim disputed by campaigners. The Pre-School Learning Alliance welcomed the commitment to restore facilities but said 'it would be short-sighted to suggest that such an initiative would not require additional funding from government'. Labour says increased paternity pay will be funded via the current tax credit budget. Labour's shadow work and pensions secretary Rachel Reeves, who is expecting her second baby, dismissed the concerns, dismissed the concerns of business about the impact of the plan . Last year when the plans were floated, BCC executive director of policy Adam Marshall said: 'Parental leave has changed more than five times already over the past decade, and every time it changes employers face significant adjustment costs.' Last night John Longworth, BCC director general, said: 'The 'father's month' amounts to a tax on business. 'Although well-meaning, proposals such as this create very real costs for businesses, which can in turn lead to reduced productivity, reduced growth and fewer jobs,' he said. 'It also raises the spectre of a dad being off for a month, returning to work for a couple of weeks, and then asking for shared parental leave as soon as he is eligible – which could be hugely disruptive to small and mid-sized firms whose success depends on the talents and contributions of each employee.' But Labour's shadow work and pensions secretary Rachel Reeves, who is expecting her second baby, dismissed the concerns. She told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'This is exactly what people used to say about maternity leave, that it was a big burden on businesses. But the reality is, what good businesses know, is that it is really important to keep women in the workplace once they have children and not let them drift off because they can't manage work and family life. That's increasingly the case for dads.' 'Good employers like Asda, National Grid and Citibank are already giving more than the statutory paternity leave.' 'What good businesses know is that unless they give that flexibility to mums and dads, they are likely to lose their best employees as they will go to a business that does value them, or they will sadly drop out of the workforce altogether.' | Labour leader Ed Miliband announces increase in leave from a fortnight .
Paternity pay to increase from £138.18-a-week to £260 under plan .
Proposals are in addition to government plans for shared paternity leave .
British Chambers of Commerce says 'Father's month' is a tax on business .
But Labour insists 'good' businesses will not lose their best employees . |
173,511 | 6c88be2376cfc535d751d6a65732c7cddf03222d | (CNN) -- Bubba Watson won the 76th U.S. Masters as he beat South African Louis Oosthuizen at the second hole of a sudden death playoff at Augusta National on Sunday. Watson, who won his first major title, played a remarkable recovery shot from the trees at the 10th to find the green. Oosthuizen, the 2010 British Open champion, saw his par putt miss to leave his American opponent with two shots to take the title. Golf.com: Watson's magnificent shot . The 33-year-old Watson rolled his first to within six inches before completing the task, bursting into tears as he embraced his mother, Mollie, by the side of the green. "I never got this far in my dreams," said Watson as he prepared to don the famous green jacket, won last year by Oosthuizen's fellow South African Charl Schwartzel. Watson and his wife have recently adopted their first child and he added: "To go home to my new son is going to be fun." The playoff pair had finished tied at 10-under 278 in regulation play, as Watson produced a burst of four straight birdies on the back nine to draw level with his playing partner. Oosthuizen had taken control of the tournament when he holed his second shot at the par-5 second hole for a remarkable three-under-par double-eagle, only the fourth in the history of the Masters. Oosthuizen makes history on No. 2 . But he mixed two bogeys with two birdies to give Watson the chance to force a playoff, his second in a major after losing to Martin Kaymer of Germany at the 2010 U.S. PGA Championship. First-round leader Lee Westwood of England, home pair Matt Kuchar and Phil Mickelson, and overnight leader Peter Hanson of Sweden finished tied for third at eight-under 280. Mickelson's challenge was disrupted by a triple bogey six at the short fourth and he was never able to get on terms in search of his fourth Masters crown as he finished with a level-par 72. Hanson also struggled early in his round before a late rally. Up ahead, world No. 3 Westwood, once again immaculate from tee to green, carded a four-under 68 to set the clubhouse pace in search of his first major crown and was joined on that mark by local favorite Kuchar. But Oosthuizen and Watson kept their nerve, parring both the 17th and 18th to stay locked together at 10 under par to go into the extra holes. Two of the pre-tournament favorites, Tiger Woods and Northern Ireland's world No. 2 Rory McIlroy, finished tied together at five over, 15 shots adrift after final rounds of 74 and 76 respectively. | Bubba Watson wins the 76th U.S. Masters at Augusta for his first major title .
American beats South Africa's Louis Oosthuizen at second hole of playoff .
Lee Westwood, Matt Kuchar, Peter Hanson and Phil Mickelson tied for third .
Pre-event favorites Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy finish 15 shots back . |
84,254 | eef74e9865a993663ebd064d4ff56355c39d6688 | By . Anthony Hay . Tottenham goalkeeper Hugo Lloris has committed his long-term future to the north London outfit despite being continually linked with Ligue 1 outfit Paris Saint-Germain. Lloris, who joined the north London outfit in August 2012, has established himself as one of the most consistent shot stoppers in the Premier League since making the switch from Lyon to Tottenham. VIDEO Scroll down to watch Hugo Lloris in action during France World Cup training . Staying put: Hugo Lloris has extended his stay at Tottenham . Delighted: Mauricio Pochettino will be pleased with Lloris' decision to stay in north London . VIDEO Lloris agrees new Spurs deal . The 27-year-old has put pen to paper on a new five-year contract which ends talk of a move back to his homeland. News of his desire to stay at White Hart Lane will provide a major boost to Tottenham's new head coach Mauricio Pochettino. Lloris said on signing a new deal to stay at Tottenham: 'I spoke with the Chairman and I know the Club is as ambitious as ever. 'It’s very important to feel at home at a club and for my family to feel well. I enjoy a great relationship with the Club and the fans. 'The arrival of Mauricio Pochettino is important as well. I have a good feeling with him. He is also ambitious. 'Everything is clear in my head and if I’ve signed a new contract it’s because I trust the Club and I’m sure we will progress in a positive way. 'Last season wasn’t the season we all hoped for but we were still able to finish sixth in the league. We know where we have to improve, the Club also knows and there is a feeling and a confident connection between the Club and the players.' Lloris, who captained the French national team to the quarter-finals of the World Cup, is now expected to take a short break before linking back up with Tottenham for their pre-season tour of America. Leader: France captain Lloris consoles teammate Antoine Griezmann . | The Frenchman believes Tottenham are moving in the right direction .
France international Hugo Lloris has shunned a move back to Ligue 1 .
Hugo Lloris discussed his future with Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy . |
286,356 | ff0adb7bb4281cba2fea1333fe7b44015f9ad57f | London (CNN) -- What do artificial whiskers and coffee-filled balloons have in common? The answer is that they are both tools on experimental robots -- but they are also being put forward as possible ideas to help future planetary explorations. "Shrewbot" is the latest in a line of robots developed by teams at the UK's Bristol Robotics Laboratory (BRL) that aims to test whether artificial whiskers could help a robot find its way around. Inspired by the Etruscan shrew -- one of the world's tiniest mammals -- scientists wanted to find out if a robot could explore its environment using touch instead of vision, just as rats, mice and shrews find food in the dark. Team leader Martin Pearson, who works at the Biotact project, said the research was primarily to assist biologists in their understanding of how an animal's touch sensing works. But he added: "Future robotic applications for this kind of sensing could be in search-and-rescue robots operating in smoke filled buildings or for sub-sea pipeline inspection robots in the murky depths of the sea." The idea has also been suggested as a way to explore planetary surfaces where there is limited vision. Speaking at a space conference at the UK's Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, robotics expert and co-founder of the BRL, Alan Winfield, identified it as one of a number of advancements that might be useful to space scientists planning future missions. "I was speculating that whiskers could provide a planetary rover with the ability to feel its way around," he told CNN. "It may be that certain types of geology would be helped if you could, for instance, run the whiskers across the rock sample because you can get texture from whiskers. "You can also imagine planets with thick, heavy atmospheres where vision would be completely useless. One of the beauties of whiskers is that the whisker can get damaged but still works -- all the sensing is done at the root." Winfield also pointed to research carried out by Cornell, the University of Chicago, iRobot Corp and Liquidia that produced a robotic gripper using coffee granules and a latex party balloon. It exploits the way vacuum-packed coffee is rigid until the seal is broken and then the coffee granules can flow, adapting to the shape of an object it is pressed against. The vacuum can then be restored and the balloon 'jams' solid to form a grip. Watch how the gripper works at Cornell Creative Machines Lab . In 2010 "jamming gripper" researcher Heinrich Jaeger described in the Cornell Chronicle how the project had "opened the door to applications none of us had originally thought about." One of those applications, Winfield suggested, is a potential alternative for gathering samples on a planetary rover mission. "Almost any planetary exploration robot is likely to need a gripper to pick up or collect rock samples for analysis or collection," he said on his blog. "Something like the Jaeger-Lipson coffee balloon gripper would -- I think -- provide a much better solution. This soft gripper avoids the hard control and computation because the soft material adapts itself to the thing it is gripping." Speaking to CNN, Jaeger said it would be exciting to work with space scientists. "It's wonderful to see engineers and researchers come up with new ideas based on granular jamming. "The main advantage of the jamming gripper is that it can deal effectively with very irregularly shaped objects and needs to cover only a fraction of the sample's surface in order to hold on to it. "Perhaps even more importantly for a rover mission on Mars -- there are no mechanical parts that can get clogged up by dust. "A third advantage is that the gripper is exceedingly gentle. It will put very little stress on the object to be gripped because it distributes the holding force over a large contact area that very closely conforms to the object's shape." Winfield said this new field of "soft robotics" could be well suited to space exploration, explaining that the BRL is now working on touch sensors for robots. "It's easy to see that giving planetary robots touch sensing could be useful, but there's another possibility ... the potential to allow Earth scientists to feel what the robot's sensor is feeling," he told CNN. Looking further into the future, Winfield believes so-called swarm robots -- large groups of simple robots that work together like social insects -- ones that can self-assemble and adapt to the environment in the way living creatures do, could also aid scientists exploring new worlds. "Imagine that robots can actually remake parts of themselves -- we can't even do that in the lab yet -- but in theory you can imagine robots that can adapt their physical shape as well as their behaviors to meet a particular environment ... it's almost like evolution except these are mechanical devices," he said. However, he also believes that this technology -- along with fully autonomous robots that can think for themselves -- is a long way off. "This field is very much a concept that we are developing in the lab -- I wouldn't expect these swarms of robots in space any time soon," he said. | "Shrewbot" aims to test whether artificial whiskers could help a robot navigate .
Robotics expert Alan Winfield suggests they could be useful for planetary rovers .
He also points to work on soft robotics that could aid space exploration .
So-called 'swarm robots' might be able to adapt to an alien planet's environment, he says . |
13,587 | 268463410e1934e02cc39dbd97b19d96b5e0bf57 | Frustrated commuters faced fresh travel misery today thanks to a signal failure outside London Waterloo and flooding in tunnels between St Pancras and Farringdon. Flooding from the burst water main has left Thameslink unable to run any trains between Farringdon and London St Pancras International until at least the end of today’s service. Thames Water is working to stop the massive leak and Network Rail said it has pumped out more than 300,000 litres of water after the water main ruptured Friday and continued to flood the tunnels over the weekend. Scroll down for video . Flooding from a burst main has left Thameslink unable to run trains between Farringdon and St Pancras . Network Rail has pumped out more than 300,000 litres of water since the water main burst on Friday . Thameslink operator Govia said around 50,000 litres of water remained in the tunnel yesterday and full train service will not resume until it is cleared and the safety equipment and infrastructure are inspected. A reduced service is in place on the Thameslink line, which runs 140 miles from Bedford to Brighton. Commuters have been forced to switch to buses or alternative train services to get to work as some trips have been delayed by up to an hour. Thameslink said service between Farringdon and St Pancras will not resume until the water is pumped out . Thameslink has apologised to passengers for the service disruption which began last week . Meanwhile South West Trains were disrupted through the morning commute due to the signal failure outside London Waterloo, one of the country’s busiest railway stations. It led to delays for the second Monday in a row. Normal serviced resume at about 10am. A signalling problem at London Liverpool Street and a broken-down train at Gidea Park also caused delays of up 30 minutes to trains between London Liverpool Street and Shenfield in Essex. Commuters suffered delays and disruption every day last week because of signalling problems and broken-down trains. Passengers have been stuck in long queues due to the disruption between Farringdon and St Pancras . The disruption involving Thameslink trains has put stress on other services and led to additional delays . Mick Cash, general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union, said that after last week’s ‘dire failures on Britain’s privatised railways’, there had now been wholesale cancellations on the basket-case Thameslink franchise, leaving thousands of passengers stranded in the cold. He said: ‘There can be no more excuses from government officials. Their privatised and fragmented rail system leaves the British paying the highest fares in Europe to travel on clapped-out and unreliable services. ‘Two decades of profiteering and under-investment has reduced our railways to chaos.’ A fault affecting live train information across the rail network compounded commuters’ misery, leaving passengers struggling to track services amid the delays. A signalling problem at London Bridge caused delays of up to 20 minutes to Southern services to and from the station, with no firm estimate of how long the disruption will last. | Thameslink unable to run trains between Farringdon and St Pancras .
Network Rail has already pumped out more than 300,000 litres of water .
South West trains disrupted by signal failure outside London Waterloo . |
185,806 | 7ca725c105a27a33891638bad0171fdb4b1b1c02 | By . Rosemarie Lentini . A 50-year-old man accused of murdering his wife spent more than a decade behind bars for murdering his first wife. Tony Degrafreed allegedly beat and stabbed to death 47-year-old Rebecca Degrafreed in the bedroom of their Indianapolis home about 8am Sunday. He then allegedly stabbed his wife's son, 19-year-old Jordan Yarbro, in the chest. Family members said Rebecca married Tony in 2006 after he'd been released from prison for killing his first wife. But the mother-of-three accepted his past and devoted herself to his rehabilitation. Scroll down for video . Couple: Rebecca Degrafreed (left) married Tony Degrafreed (right) after he was released from prison where he spent more than a decade for murdering his first wife in 1994 (undated picture) Tragic: Tony Degrafreed, 50 (left) allegedly murdered his wife Rebecca Degrafreed (right) in their Indianapolis home on Sunday morning . Victim: Rebecca Degrafreed, 47 (right) worked at IU Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis . 'He was my sister’s first love,' Christopher Birdsong, Rebecca Degrafreed's brother, told The Indianapolis Star. 'She put her name on his parole papers . in order for him to get out. She married him and took . him home and had a home already well fixed for him.' Birdsong said Tony connected with Rebecca, who'd met as teenagers, as soon as he left prison. The IU Methodist Hospital worker helped him find a job and 'picked him back up.' It's this generosity of spirit and kindness that Rebecca Degrafreed's loved ones will remember most. 'She was the foundation of her family,' family friend Lynn Howard told WTHR. 'Today she would've been picking her mom up and taking her to church.' Rebecca's son, Jeffery Yarbro, said his mother pushed everyone to be their best and taught her children that family came first. 'She was taken from us. You know it would be a completely different story if it was natural causes or it was a slip and fall, but she was taken from us,' he told WISHTV.com. Arrest: Officers nabbed Tony Degrafreed on Sunday ar the intersection of North Arlington Avenue and Devington Road, not far from the alleged murder . Scene: Rebecca Degrafreed, 47, was found dead in the bedroom of her Laurel Hall Drive, Indianapolis home (pictured) on Sunday morning . Rebecca's son, Jordan Yarbro, told police he heard thumping noises coming from his parents' bedroom on Sunday. When he knocked on the door, Tony stabbed the teen in the chest before fleeing. He was arrested near the intersection of North Arlington Avenue and Devington Road, not far from his home. Rebecca was found dead on the bedroom floor with head trauma. Jordan Yarbro was not seriously injured. Grief-stricken: Rebecca Degrafreed's sons Jordan (left) and Jeffery Yarbro (center) pictured with their cousin outside the victim's Indianapolis home . 'We were all just sleeping and we heard a thumping noise and he normally has seizures so we thought he was in there having a seizure and I was knocking on the door banging on the door multiple times,' Yarbro told WTHR. 'I stepped back to kick the door in and he swung it open and came at me trying to stab me... 'It is a hard thing for any child to see, definitely being the baby and losing a twin at birth.' The Marion County coroner’s office will perform an . autopsy to determine the manner and cause of death, as Indianapolis investigators work to establish a motive. On Sunday, Tony Degrafreed faced preliminary murder charges. Past conviction: In January 1994, Tony Degrafreed (center) was arrested and charged with murder, two counts of attempted murder and illegal possession of a handgun . Past conviction: Tony Degrafreed (pictured during his arrest in January 1994) murdered his then wife Stacy. The couple were estranged . In January 1994, Tony Degrafreed was arrested and charged with murder, two counts of attempted murder and illegal possession of a handgun, the The Indianapolis News reported. According to news reports at the time, he shot his estranged 26-year-old wife, Stacy Degrafreed, in the chest and thigh. She died in hospital. Police said he also shot two neighbors, Frank and Phyllis Sommerville, in the same incident. Tony Degrafreed was convicted of murder in 1995 and sentenced to 30 years in prison, but served about half of that. 'He actually got out of prison not too long ago and he came here,' Rebecca Degrafreed's heartbroken son, Jeffery Yarbro, said. 'My mother gave him a place to stay, she put clothes on his back. She found a way to get him a job, make sure he could try to provide.' | Tony Degrafreed, 50, allegedly beat and stabbed his wife Rebecca Degrafreed to death on Sunday in their Indianapolis home .
He then allegedly stabbed Rebecca's son, Jordan Yarbro .
Tony spent about 14 years in jail for murdering his first wife in 1994 .
On his release, Tony married Rebecca who devoted herself to his care .
Rebecca, a hospital worker, and Tony first met as teenagers . |
235,327 | bca3d872fb0ff36ba5d90df3b39d1960fe6c4721 | Washington (CNN) -- Eight weeks after the massacre of 20 Connecticut first-graders, a ban on the kind of semi-automatic rifle used by the killer remains elusive -- if not impossible. Such a ban became a rallying cry for victims' families, advocacy groups and politicians supporting tougher gun laws in the emotional aftermath of the Newtown shootings in December. President Barack Obama still calls for updating a 1994 assault weapons ban that expired 10 years later as part of his package of steps intended to reduce chronic gun violence in America, especially in major cities. However, fierce opposition by the powerful National Rifle Association and millions of American gun owners has shifted debate away from prohibiting specific weapons to making it harder for criminals, terrorists and the mentally ill to obtain guns. Along with a renewed ban on semi-automatic weapons, Obama also wants to limit magazine clips to 10 rounds, expand background checks to all gun sales, crack down on gun trafficking, and strengthen efforts to prevent firearms from falling into the wrong hands. The multi-faceted proposal provided Congress with options on legislation, enhancing chances of passing some provisions, said Lanae Erickson Hatalsky, director of social policy and politics at Third Way, a Washington think tank that proposes policy compromises on major issues. Gun violence plans: What's in the works . While her group supports a renewed ban on military style weapons, Erickson Hatalsky said "political reality" dictated a different approach. "Keeping guns out of the wrong hands is not only more politically palatable but also more effective to stop gun violence," she explained. That strategy reflects "an understanding of gun crime in the country," she added. Opinion polls back up her assertion. A Quinnipiac University survey released Thursday showed that 92% of respondents support expanding background checks to all gun sales. In households with guns, support was 91%. However, a majority of households with guns opposed a renewed ban on semi-automatic weapons, while the full survey showed 56% of respondents backed the provision. The poll also found that 46% of respondents believe the NRA better reflects their views on guns, compared to 43% for Obama. Newtown calls on Connecticut to 'show America the way' on gun control . Diverse views in America . Obama acknowledged on Thursday that Americans have diverse views on the issue, depending on where they grew up and how they live. "There are different realities and we have to respect them," he told House Democrats at their policy retreat, noting rural hunters and urban dwellers come from distinct gun cultures. At the same time, the president called for action, saying "there are commonsense steps we can take and build a consensus around, and we cannot shy away from taking them." Earlier this week, White House spokesman Jay Carney made clear that the goal was progress on reducing gun violence, rather than any specific provision. Carney called proposals backed by legislators from both parties "the first progress we've seen in many, many years dealing with gun violence." But none of the measures he mentioned -- expanded background checks, cracking down on gun trafficking, criminalizing "straw" purchases in which legal buyers obtain weapons for those unable to do so -- included a new ban on semi-automatic weapons. Gun debate: Where is the middle ground? NRA President Bob Keene said he expected few substantive changes in law because "people are smarter than politicians," which means "common sense ultimately prevails." "They hope that they can use emotion to achieve an anti-firearms agenda that they haven't been able to achieve in the past," Keene told a recent Christian Science Monitor breakfast event. "I am convinced that as these things are discussed, that we're going to come out about where we have come out in the past," he added. His organization keeps a scorecard for each Washington legislator on gun issues, and spends millions on campaign contributions to favored candidates. In the nearly two months since the Newtown shootings, Obama and the White House have sought to maintain public attention on the issue. Loaded language poisons gun debate . Vice President Joe Biden will take part in a roundtable discussion on gun violence on Monday in Philadelphia. Four days later, Obama will award the Presidential Citizens Medal -- the nation's second-highest civiian honor -- posthumously to the six educators killed with the 20 first-graders at Sandy Hook Elementary School. In Congress, some influential Democrats join virtually all Republicans in opposing, or at least questioning, a renewed ban on semi-automatic weapons like the Bushmaster AR-15-style rifle used in the Newtown shootings. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who gets high marks from the NRA for his opposition to past gun control efforts, has indicated support for expanding background checks but refuses to endorse a new weapons ban. According to Reid, a bill from the Senate Judiciary Committee was unlikely to include an updated weapons ban, but he would allow a vote on the provision during floor debate. Weapons like the Bushmaster mimic the appearance and some features of fully automatic military rifles, though they technically do not meet the definition of an assault weapon because they are semi-automatic -- meaning each shot requires a trigger pull. Supporters of a ban say such weapons have no place in the general public because they are designed solely for rapid-fire killing capacity, rather than hunting or sport shooting. Opinion: Nothing stops a bullet like a job . Right to bear arms . The NRA and other opponents contend that any limit on private gun ownership violates the constitutional right to bear arms. Even partial steps in that direction, such as prohibiting specific models, are considered a path to potential confiscation or other future elimination of Second Amendment rights, they argue. In recent decades, the NRA has led lobbying efforts that shifted the discussion away from stronger gun controls -- such as an outright ban on handguns and a national registration of gun ownership pushed by top Democrats in the 1980s and 90s -- to the incremental measures under consideration now. Erickson Hatalsky of Third Way noted examples of the NRA's influence in the last significant gun legislation -- the Brady Bill of 1993 that required background checks on guns purchased from licensed dealers, followed by the limited assault weapons ban a year later. While the Brady Bill led to the background check system in use today, the NRA made sure it didn't apply to private sales, such as those at gun shows, she said. How the violent mentally ill can buy guns . Obama and other Democrats now want to close what they call a loophole to make background checks a requirement for any gun sale. The issue gained prominence after the Columbine high school shootings in 1999 in which three guns used by the two underage killers had been purchased by 18-year-old Robyn Anderson at a Colorado gun show to avoid a background check. Anderson later told a Colorado House of Representatives committee that the gun purchases had been "too easy." "I wish it had been more difficult," she said. "I wouldn't have helped them buy the guns if I had faced a background check." The 1994 weapons ban targeting military style weapons was gone 10 years later, when Congress let it expire in the administration of President George W. Bush -- an outcome sought by the NRA. Keene and other NRA officials argue the ban failed to reduce gun violence because it targeted firearms used in only a fraction of the nation's gun violence. They also contend the government isn't properly enforcing the background checks created by Brady Bill, making an expansion illogical. "We are not willing to support measures we feel unduly burden innocent and law-abiding Americans, and on the other side do not have any real impact on the problem we're trying to solve," Keene said. To Erickson Hatalsky, the goal is to get laws on the books that make it harder for criminals, terrorists and the mentally ill to obtain guns -- either through private sales or from traffickers through straw purchases. Minor exceptions would apply to family members giving guns to each other, or people borrowing guns on a hunting ground, she said. "How are they going to stop somebody who's a gun trafficker if there's no federal law against that now," she wondered. January's FBI gun background checks are second-highest . Limits on magazine rounds . A tougher issue involves proposed limits on ammunition magazines to 10 rounds, she said. Larger capacity magazines allow semi-automatic weapons to fire dozens of rounds in seconds. At a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on gun control last week, Mark Kelly argued that the proposed limit could have prevented the death of a young girl in the Tucson, Arizona, attack that seriously wounded his wife -- former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. According to Kelly, the 13th shot fired killed 9-year-old Christina-Taylor Green, and the shooter got tackled when trying to reload. With a 10-round limit, Green might still be alive, he said. Gabby and Mark: The new 'Bradys' of gun control . The NRA and its supporters say larger-capacity magazines are popular, with millions already in the possession of American gun owners who want them to feel secure against criminals armed with similar firepower. They also contend citizens have the right to such weaponry to protect against future government tyranny, which they say was the intent of the Second Amendment's right to bear arms. Erickson Hatalsky rejected any inference by the NRA or its supporters that Obama's proposals or other measures being discussed in Congress amount to taking away people's guns. She praised the president's strategy of presenting a broad package for Congress to consider, saying: "It behooves people who are working on this issue to keep the NRA arguing about lots of different issues, rather than allowing it to concentrate on one and defeat it." Ted Nugent sings praises of gun ownership . CNN's Halimah Abdullah contributed to this report. | NEW: President Obama will honor the six educators killed in the Newtown shooting .
Obama includes a partial weapons ban in his package of gun measures .
The National Rifle Association mounts fierce opposition to any kind of ban .
A policy expert says political reality shifts the debate from a ban to background checks . |
77,197 | dad95251cbff95b2aef72332a3c8e594cdf2a4e7 | By . Lucy Waterlow . PUBLISHED: . 06:16 EST, 13 January 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 11:41 EST, 13 January 2014 . Ordeal: Gemma was raped by her father when she was 12 . A young woman who was raped by her father at the age of 12 has shared her story in the hope it will help other victims of sexual abuse. Gemma Schembri, now 21, from Lincolnshire, revealed her father, Mark, had always been controlling but took his abuse further after he split up with her mother. She said: 'He started to sexually abuse me when . I stayed with him and it went on for over a year. He was very . manipulative and controlled my thoughts to make me believe it was . normal. 'The first time he raped me he said afterwards, "Well it was . better that it was with me than with some random person in a hotel".' Gemma said she didn't realise what her father was doing was wrong and it took her years to pluck up the courage to reveal she was a victim of abuse. She explains: 'My mum hadn't spoken to me about sexual . abuse and what type of touching was acceptable and what wasn't. It took . me two years to tell someone I was being abused as I didn't realise it . was wrong at first and then, when I did, I didn't know how to broach the . subject with my mum.' As a result of her ordeal, Gemma is now supporting a campaign by the NSPCC - who supported her as she came to terms with her experiences. The charity have launched a campaign called PANTS that encourages parents to have simple, age appropriate conversations with their children to make them aware of the dangers of sexual abuse. PANTS stands for 'Privates are private', 'Always remember your body belongs to you', No means no', 'Talk about secrets that upset you' and 'Speak up someone can help'. Don't suffer in silence: The NSPCC campaign encourages parents to tell their children not to keep things that upset them secret (posed by model) They advise parents to tell primary . school children of the 'underwear rule' - that they shouldn't be touched . by anyone else in the areas their underwear covers. It's something Gemma wishes she had been taught at a young age. She said: 'I think for me to have known that what was . happening was wrong my mum would have needed to have said, "You shouldn't . let people touch you in areas that your underwear would cover" so I . knew what was acceptable and what wasn't. 'I'd had sex education at . school when I was younger but that was just about safe sex and I think a . girl should be told about what constitutes sexual abuse by her mum not . teachers.' Help: Gemma finally confided in her mother and the family were supported by the NSPCC and her father was jailed . It was after she finally confided in . her mother that Gemma's abuse at the hands of her father finally ended . and he was arrested, charged and eventually jailed for nine . years. Gemma explained: 'Telling my mum about the abuse was the . worst conversation of my life. 'I sat down with her and couldn't get it . out at first. Then I was just really blunt and blurted it out. Mum was . shocked and started crying and we all sat crying together.' But despite Mark being behind bars, Gemma's ordeal was far from over as she had to cope with the aftermath of his abuse, something she eventually learnt to deal with thanks to the NSPCC's help. She said: 'Mark was arrested and our family was . in bits. Mum blamed herself and there was lots of arguing. I felt . broken and suicidal and was self harming. I started acting out. I was . drinking constantly and didn't care what I did. 'I had lots of social . workers but they didn't stick around so when I was introduced to a . worker from the NSPCC I told her I didn't like her. But she stuck with . me and was always there for me. She made me realise a lot of things . about myself and helped me understand why I was acting out and helped me . work through it. 'I'm better now and love my life but I think that if . I'd spoken out and stopped the abuse earlier and gotten help earlier I . would have recovered more quickly.' Victoria, from Dewsbury, who has a seven year old daughter said following the advice of the PANTS campaign has given her more peace of mind. Moved on: But Gemma wishes she has spoken out earlier about the sexual abuse . She said: 'We . had a great discussion, without fear or embarrassment about The . Underwear Rule and what she must do should she ever find herself in that . position. I feel confident that should my daughter find herself in such . a position (which fingers crossed never happens), she'll be able to . address the issue in an informed manner and without fear of . repercussion.' Another mother, Gillian, from Clydebank, who has a son, aged five, agreed: 'It was a difficult subject to approach with my son, but using the Underwear Rule and the materials provided by the NSPCC gave me the confidence to start having these conversations with him.' Claire, from Swansea, who has two young girls added: 'I think this education campaign is a great idea. I have two daughters and when I watch the news I really fear for them. But I worry about spoiling their innocence; frightening them and making them feel they can't be normal around people. 'I know I have to prepare them for those times I am not with them and that they are more likely to be abused by someone they know, so I have tried to start talking to my girls but I worry that I might say the wrong thing or that they will start to ask questions I can't or don't want to answer! Any advice on what to say and how to cope with such a sensitive but important subject is great. 'I am going to start Talking PANTS to my girls, my goddaughter, nephew and all my friends with children - it's much better to talk to our kids about how they can be safe rather than how awful the last report about a child suffering abuse was on the news and now I have got some help to do it well.' For more information visit www.nspcc.org.uk/underwear . | Gemma Schembri, from Lincolnshire, was raped by her father, Mark .
She was only 12 at the time and didn't realise it was wrong .
Wishes she'd been told more about dangers of sexual abuse at young age .
New NSPCC campaign, PANTS, shows parents how to talk to children about subject in appropriate way . |
41,209 | 7446f321785fc1bedabe7351ba303c723f94ca5c | (CNN) -- Mitt Romney press secretary Rich Gorka's outburst in Warsaw, Poland, on Tuesday, during which he told a reporter to "shove it," is of a piece with the Barnumesque spectacle of his candidate's world tour. But to this veteran of many campaign tours, the incident raises a provocative question about modern campaign history: When and how did the Republicans become the championship party of whining? Rahm Emanuel brought it up earlier this month with his bracing instruction to Romney to quit complaining about Democrats' negative campaign ads. Such ads, deployed against Rick Santorum et al, were after all the instrument that brought Romney the GOP nomination. Any short history of the whining sweepstakes should start by noting that a tectonic shift is taking place when the candidates and handlers of one side begin asking, in some form, this question: Why are they being allowed to do to us what we've happily been doing to them since -- to choose a recent precedent to this partisan shift -- the swift boating of John Kerry? You see what's that led to? Why, these Obamians want to turn Romney's brilliant business career into an unpatriotic defect! News: Romney trip an 'embarrassing disaster,' Obama team says . The current situation is noteworthy because the Democratic Party seemed to have the exclusive franchise on piteous bleating dating back to Richard Nixon's victory in 1968 and throughout the Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush years. Truth be told, the Democrats managed to keep whining throughout most of the triumphant Bill Clinton years. The game changer clearly has been Barack Obama, whose surprising taste for bloodying the noses of domestic critics and foreign adversaries seems to hark back to the last time the Democrats were unashamed political warriors. That would be 1960, when John F. Kennedy and his snarling little brother Bobby made political "ruthlessness," unrestrained campaign spending, Teamster support and Mayor Richard Daley's vote-counting techniques into virtues. The era of bullying Democrats pretty well ended with Jimmy Carter's cardigan sweater and "malaise speech." Video: Romney aide to media: 'Show respect!' Then, with the victory of Reagan in 1980, the Democrats' claimed the whining trophy outright. Walter Mondale sealed the Democratic ascendancy with his high-pitched complaints about Reagan's "compassion gap." And it has taken Romney to mount a full-scale effort to take back the title. (Pioneering credit, however, must be given to Sen. Bob Dole with his plaintive cries of "Where's the outrage?" in response to voters' apparently bottomless forgiveness for Clinton's shenanigans.) To find the wellsprings of 2012 Republican whining, I think one has to look at the party's setters of tone and themes. Start with Romney and his cries of foul over the Obama campaign's use of "Chicago-style" politics. The vibe of this complaint is that of a suburban prep schooler who has wandered into a playground where the mean city boys took his football and then twisted his arm really hard. News: Romney trip may not matter much to voters in November . The signature moment in this year's use of the W word came in early July when an Obama staffer said that Romney was either a "felon" or was "misrepresenting" in his Federal filing about the length of his tenure as head of Bain Capital. Like much of today's campaign talk, the accusation was hyperbolic, verging on the demagogic. In other words, it was well within the strike zone the Republicans institutionalized in 1988 when they turned the GOP's amiable hitman Lee Atwater loose with his "Willie Horton" ad against Michael Dukakis. But when the White House dared escalate the rhetorical arms race, Romney feigned outrage. Now he wanted an apology even though he had defended his own blistering attacks last spring on his primary rivals as a standard part of grown-up politics. Romney's campaign even piled one whine upon another by running a commercial showing a plaintive Hillary Clinton saying "Shame on you, Barack Obama" during the savage 2002 Democratic primaries. "Stop whining!" Chicago Mayor Emanuel, Obama's former chief of staff, demanded on the George Stephanopoulous Sunday show recently. ""If you want to claim Bain Capital as your calling card to the White House, then defend what happened at Bain Capital." There's something inescapably petulant about Romney's preference for critiquing all aspects of the economy—but not his role at Bain. The Democrats should turn a deaf ear to his pleas for mercy on his record as a businessman and tax shelterer. The new Quinnipiac poll figures showing Obama ahead in Florida, Ohio and Pennsylvania demonstrate that Republican-style attack politics work for anyone with the gumption to use them, including this year's pugnacious Democrats. For the rest of this election season, if Democrats are smart, they'll keep reaching into the Lee Atwater bad-boy trick bag and let the season's reigning choir of complaint blend its many voices: the charismatic duo of John Boehner and Mitch McConnell, the tea party, the anchors and panelists of Fox News and now the hapless Rich Gorka. They all seem to know the same tunes: Why don't voters believe what we do? Why isn't Obama the milquetoast he looks like? Why can't we change the photo-op rules for Mitt? The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Howell Raines. | Howell Raines: Romney press secretary's outburst at reporters part of new GOP whining .
He says you know political ground shifting when a party complains about mistreatment .
He says Romney faces team more like tough Kennedys of '60s, not usual whiny Democrats .
Raines: Romney cries foul when opponent uses his own attack tactics; Dems being effective . |
177,776 | 7224a0cf566b2b0e9b9a612882c2475d86f8e3cb | By . Simon Tomlinson and Sam Adams . PUBLISHED: . 05:41 EST, 17 January 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 12:09 EST, 17 January 2013 . Mechanical diggers are being used to excavate part of a busy airport in Burma as archaeologists step up their search for a lost squadron of World War II Spitfires. The machines were spotted working by the side of a runway at Yangon (Rangoon) International Airport, with tents erected nearby. The 21-strong team of archaeologists, led by Lincolnshire farmer David Cundall , is searching for rare Marx XIV Spitfires that were believed to have been buried in crates in August 1945. Excavation: Heavy diggers have been brought in to help with the search for the buried Spitfires at Yangon International Airport in Burma . Searching: The dig is being led by Lincolnshire farmer David Cundall (left) and has attracted international media attention . Big dig: JCB excavators and tents line the side of the runway at by the side of the runway at the busy airport . Earlier this month the team found a wooden crate believed to contain one of the planes, but it was full of muddy water. Britain . built a total of about 20,000 Spitfires, although the dawn of the jet . age meant the propeller-driven planes quickly became obsolete. As . many as 140 Spitfires - three to four times the number of airworthy . models known to exist - are believed to have been buried in . near-pristine condition in Myanmar by American engineers as the war drew . to a close. The . single-seater Spitfire, which helped Britain beat back waves of German . bombers during the war more than six decades ago, remains the most . famous British combat aircraft. Hope: The Spitfires are believed to have been buried as a way of disposal when the war came to an end . Blessing: Mr Cundall speaks with a Buddhist monk who was brought to bless the site before digging began . Technology: Mr Cundall (left) looks at ground scans with two of his team of British archeologists. The group are using sophisticated techniques to try to locate the Spitfires . Site: the Burmese Government has given Mr Cundall's team permission to dig for the planes at Yangon (Rangoon) International Airport . The wooden crate located in northern Burma was found in Myitkyina in Kachin state during a dig that began last month. Mr Cundall said the search team in Kachin state inserted a camera into the crate and found it was full of water. It was unclear what was inside the crate, he said, but the water will be pumped out during an operation that could take weeks, he said. The go-ahead for excavation came in October when Myanmar's government signed an agreement with Mr Cundall and his local partner. Publicity: A journalist takes photos of research materials related to buried British Spitfires which are thought to be buried in the Burmese jungle . Lost: One of the Spitfires (pictured: the tail fins) being crated up in Burma in 1945 ready to be buried . Valued: The team hopes to be able to uncover the Mark XIV Spitfires in a good enough state so that they can be reassembled upon their return to Britain (file photo) Under the deal, Myanmar's government will get one plane for display at a museum, as well as half of the remaining total. DJC, a private company headed by Mr . Cundall, will get 30 percent of the total and the Myanmar partner . company Shwe Taung Paw, headed by Htoo Htoo Zaw, will get 20 percent. During the project's first phase, . searchers hope to recover 60 planes: 36 planes in Mingaladon, near . Yangon's international airport; six in Meikthila in central Myanmar; and . 18 in Myitkyina. Others are to be recovered in a second phase. Critics have said it's . possible all they might find is a mass of corroded metal and rusty . aircraft parts. But the search team say the Spitfires are believed to be in good condition because they were waxed, wrapped in greased paper and had their joints tarred by RAF crews. Mr Cundall, 62, from Scunthorpe, started his treasure hunt in 1996 after hearing a throwaway remark from a group of US veterans who said they once buried Spitfires in Burma. He tracked down an eyewitness who led him to the area where the aircraft were buried. He eventually located the buried planes using ground-penetrating radar equipment. His team dug a borehole and sent down a camera to look at the crates, which were said to be in ‘really good condition’. Mr Cundall said the practice of burying aircraft, tanks and jeeps was common after the war. 'Basically . nobody had got any orders to take these airplanes back to (the) UK. They were just surplus ... (and) one way of disposing them was to bury . them,' Mr Cundall said. 'The war was over, everybody wanted to go home, . nobody wanted anything, so you just buried it and went home. That was . it.' Stanley Coombe, a . 91-year-old war veteran from Britain who says he witnessed the . aircraft's burial, traveled to Myanmar to observe the search. A place in history: A poster unveiling the Spitfire from around 1939 . | Mechanical diggers brought in to aid search for aircraft in Rangoon .
Spitfires are thought to have been buried in crates during WWII .
Hunt being led by British farmer David Cundall . |
58,401 | a5987d12b7aede0219b2b853508cf16da4683754 | Now this really is how to sweet talk your way into a job. Designer Matthew Hirsch came up with the idea of wrapping his CV around a chocolate bar after noticing the similarity between his name and that of famous confectionery brand Hershey's. Armed with dozens of Hershey's bars, Mr Hirsch, from Grand Rapids in Michigan, then began recreating the iconic bar's wrapper after being given an assignment to create promotional material for himself while attending a summer class. Designer Matthew Hirsch came up with the idea of wrapping his CV around a chocolate bar after noticing the similarity between his name and that of famous confectionery brand Hershey's . Mr Hirsch has found a creative way to show off his skills and qualifications . Some of the components he changed include an established date to match his date of birth, the nutritional information to rank his skills and the barcode became his phone number. Mr Hirsch said the response he has received has been overwhelming after images of the bar were spread across the internet. Mr Hirsch, who already has a full-time job, said: 'When I was young my nickname was Hirschy, a play on my name in relation to the Hershey's line of products that everyone knows and loves. 'After I was given the class assignment, I scrambled for a few weeks to come up with something interesting - and that's when I remembered the idea I had from years ago about the Hirschy's bar. Mr Hirsch, who already has a full-time job, recreated the iconic bar's wrapper after being given an assignment to create promotional material for himself while attending a summer class . He said the response he has received has been overwhelming after images of the bar were spread across the internet . 'I started by buying dozens of Hershey bars to study the layout and then I recreated the same basic components and changed them to fit me. 'On the front people can see my weight and the year I was born; on the back I wanted to showcase skills and contact info, which I managed to tuck into the barcode. 'The response to the idea has been overwhelming - I'm quite honoured and very grateful to those who appreciate it.' | Matthew Hirsch came up with the idea after noticing similarity between his name and that of famous confectionery brand Hershey's .
Design features his date of birth where established date should be while his skills set replaces nutritional information and barcode is his phone number .
He said the response to the idea has been overwhelming after it was widely shared online . |
86,150 | f466463169e65fe0cc2f8b0ded00face09891aa6 | By . Matt Chorley, Mailonline Political Editor . The majority of babies will be born out of wedlock within three years, new figures suggest. The decline in marriage has led to a huge change in the way children are brought up in a generation. A record 47.5 per cent of babies were born to unmarried mothers in 2012, compared to just 8.4 per cent 40 years earlier. Record rise: Dramatic social change has seen the proportion of babies born to unmarried parents soar from just 11.8 per cent in 1980 to 47.5 per cent last year . Baby boom: The number of babies born in Britain was the highest for 40 years but a record 47.5 had unmarried parents . If the trend continues at the same rate, most babies will have unmarried parents by 2016. David Cameron has come under growing pressure to introduce tax breaks for married couples to send a signal that the institution is still valued. Experts say children whose parents have tied the knot are happier and achieve more success later in life. The Office for National Statistics said the proportion of babies born to unmarried mothers stood at 46.8 per cent in 2010, up from 40 per cent in 2000, 28.3 per cent in 1990 and 11.8 per cent in 1980. ‘This continues the long-term rise in the percentage of births outside marriage/civil partnership, which is consistent with increases in the number of couples cohabiting rather than married or in a civil partnership,’ the ONS said. When records began in 1938, the year before the outbreak of Second World War, 95.8 per cent of babies had married parents. The figures for 2012 also include births registered by a same-sex couple outside of a civil partnership. Boom: The number of babies born each year has been gradually rising since the turn of the century, but is still much lower than the post-war baby boom . The change comes after the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 allowed two women in a same-sex couple to register a birth. In 2012 there were 556 babies born to same-sex couples in a civil partnership and 252 births registered by gay couples outside a civil partnership. Mr Cameron has promised gay and straight married couples will benefit from a tax break, worth around £150-a-year. Tim Loughton, the former Children's minister, urged the government to introduce the allowance to halt the decline in marriage. 'If people are prepared to make a public declaration to each other in front of their friends and family they are more likely to stay together. Without marriage people drift in and out of relationships very easily,' he told the Telegraph. 'In families where parents break up children do less well at school, are more likely to suffer mental health problems and are more likely to have substance abuse problems. 'The government needs to send a very clear message that it supports marriage. That's why married tax breaks are so important.' Over the last three-quarters of a century the number of babies born in England and Wales has fluctuated. In 2012 there were 729,674 live births, up around 6,000 on the year before, continuing a rising trend seen since 2001 when there were only 594,634. The lowest number of babies born on record was in 1977, when there were only 569,259 as the country was still emerging from the deep recession earlier in the decade. The post-war years saw record numbers of babies born, hitting 881,026 in 1947 and the emergence of the generation known as the baby boomers. | Last year a record 47.5 per cent of babies were born to unmarried mother .
If trend continues children with marries parents will be in minority by 2016 .
724,000 babies born in England and Wales in 2012 - highest since 1971 . |
199,974 | 8ee6c7333a24bd02c269af6a5096b341c05782a3 | (CNN) -- Starbucks is closing more than two-thirds of its stores in Australia, days after announcing that hundreds of its American coffee outlets are also being shuttered. Starbucks announced plans to close 600 stores in the U.S. last week. The Seattle-based global coffee franchise said Tuesday that it will close 61 of its 84 locations in Australia by the weekend. The closures will mean that only 23 cafes will remain open in and around three major cities: Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney, the company said in a statement Tuesday. Earlier this month, the company announced it would close 600 company-owned stores in the United States. Starbucks, named after the first mate in Herman Melville's 'Moby Dick,' was founded in 1971. It has more than 8,000 company-operated stores and another 6,800 licensed cafes in 44 countries. Starbucks has seen rising competition from privately-held Dunkin' Donuts and McDonalds recently, and welcomed founder Schultz back as CEO in January after a lackluster performance by the company in the latter half of 2007. | More than 60 Starbucks cafes to close by August 3 .
Closures follow news of more than 600 outlets to shut in U.S.
Move by Seattle company will end 685 jobs in Australia, reports say . |
45,552 | 8064bf71b2bb3031f86dbd28a36190107fb273e1 | By . Hayley Peterson . PUBLISHED: . 08:49 EST, 28 April 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 09:03 EST, 28 April 2013 . Former vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin lashed out at D.C. journalists and politicos on Saturday, calling them all 'a**clowns' for partying at the annual White House Correspondents' dinner. 'That #WHCD was pathetic,' Palin, the former governor of Alaska, tweeted at 10:15 p.m. 'The rest of America is out there working our a**es off while these DC a**clowns throw themselves a #nerdprom.' Palin, who likely watched coverage of the dinner on television, may have just upset that she didn't get any invitations to this year's events. She certainly had no harsh words for the dinner two years ago, when she attended two star-studded after-parties - one hosted by Bloomberg and Vanity Fair and the other hosted by MSNBC. She was also spotted the morning of the dinner at multimillionaire Mark Ein's Georgetown abode for an exclusive brunch. Not impressed: Sarah Palin lashed out at D.C. journalists and politicos on Saturday, calling them all 'a**clowns' for partying at the annual White House Correspondents' dinner . Her daughter, Bristol, attended the after-parties with her mother and Bristol was also spotted at a pre-party thrown by Time, CNN, People magazine and Fortune that year. Palin's Twitter remark was retweeted 2,407 times and it was 'favorited' nearly 1,000 times. In a Facebook post, she expanded on her criticism of the dinner, saying, 'Yuk it up media and pols. While America is buried in taxes and a fight for our rights, the permanent political class in DC dresses up and has a prom to make fun of themselves. No need for that, we get the real joke.' Palin's remark was retweeted more than 2,000 times and it was 'favorited' nearly 1,000 times . The post garnered more than 44,000 'likes.' The dinner has become a target of criticism over the years as media companies compete for the most high-profile guests, many of them celebrities. In that vein, many say the dinner - which has been a tradition since the 1920s - is now less a celebration of the work that reporters do in covering the administration, and more of an opportunity for media and politicians to schmooze with Hollywood's biggest stars. Some journalists, such as Tom Brokaw, have refused to attend the dinner as its list of attendees from Hollywood expands. 'Somewhere along the line, it began to freewheel out of control,' Brokaw told Politico of the dinner. The 'breaking point' for him, he said, was Lindsay Lohan's attendance last year as a guest of Fox News' Greta Van Susteran. Party girl: Bristol Palin attends the TIME/CNN/People/Fortune White House Correspondents' dinner cocktail party at the Washington Hilton on April 30, 2011 . | The former vice presidential nominee railed on the dinner, even though she has attended related events in the past .
Following the 2011 dinner, Palin attended two after-parties - one hosted by Bloomberg and Vanity Fair and the other hosted by MSNBC .
Prior to the 2011 dinner she attended an exclusive brunch in Georgetown .
Daughter Bristol Palin also attended an exclusive pre-party thrown by Time, CNN, People magazine and Fortune . |
192,982 | 85dc79081b7311b06b3a278b8a555fd82d43d807 | (CNN)Ian Foster learned how to drive when he was six years old. Growing up on a farm in Northern Ireland, he would help his father herd cattle on a motorcycle, going up and down a mountain close to his parents' home. For the 50-year-old Hong Kong based architect, this sparked a lifelong motoring passion, and today he owns a collection of 40 classic cars and 130 motorcycles. Even though Foster's day job entails designing master-plans for cities and big resorts in China, he managed to devote enough time to his hobby to create a classic car museum, housed in former sheds of his parents' farmhouse in Northern Ireland. "When I buy or when I'm looking at new cars, there's got to be something that I'm passionate about -- maybe the age of the car, maybe I remember a movie or when my father had it when I was a youngster. My collection is based on that, not necessarily a collectible car," he says. The most prized possession Foster acquired in his 25 years of collecting is a rare Belfast-made DeLorean DMC 12. It has a right hand drive, and Fosters says it is one of only 12 ever made. "I can remember when I was 14, coming back from rugby practice and seeing the two test cars going through my local town, and always wanting to have one of those cars, thinking one day I'll have that car," he recalls. For the past three years, this architect with a serious penchant for automotive history has been the chairman of Classic Car Club Hong Kong, and has also been researching a book on the first 100 years of motoring in the city. "I've been collecting photos, old stories, stepping through the decades," he says. There is however, one car that he would still like to add to his impressive collection: "If I could afford it, I would like an Aston Martin from the 1990s." | Architect Ian Foster has amassed a huge classic car collection .
He owns 40 cars and 130 motorcycles .
Foster has also opened a classic car museum in his native Northern Ireland . |
154,651 | 53da97235ea6fd5a1e9babcc79864646ce0bc7a7 | Long Beach, California (CNN) -- It seems simple: Walk to the refrigerator and grab a drink. But Brett Larsen, 37, opens the door gingerly -- peeks in -- closes it, opens it, closes it and opens it again. This goes on for several minutes. When he finally gets out a bottle of soda, he places his thumb and index finger on the cap, just so. Twists it open. Twists it closed. Twists it open. "Just think about any movement that you have during the course of a day -- closing a door or flushing the toilet -- over and over and over," said Michele Larsen, Brett's mother. "I cannot tell you the number of things we've had to replace for being broken because they've been used so many times." At 12, Larsen was diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder, or OCD. It causes anxiety, which grips him so tightly that his only relief is repetition. It manifests in the smallest of tasks: taking a shower, putting on his shoes, walking through a doorway. There are days when Larsen cannot leave the house. "I can only imagine how difficult that is to live with that every single living waking moment of your life," said Dr. Gerald Maguire, Larsen's psychiatrist. In a last-ditch effort to relieve his symptoms, Larsen decided to undergo deep brain stimulation. Electrodes were implanted in his brain, nestled near the striatum, an area thought to be responsible for deep, primitive emotions such as anxiety and fear. Brett's OCD trigger . Brett says his obsessions and compulsions began when he was 10, after his father died. "I started worrying a lot about my family and loved ones dying or something bad happening to them," he said. "I just got the thought in my head that if I switch the light off a certain amount of times, maybe I could control it somehow. "Then I just kept doing it, and it got worse and worse." "Being OCD" has become a cultural catchphrase, but for people with the actual disorder, life can feel like a broken record. With OCD, the normal impulse to go back and check if you turned off the stove, or whether you left the lights on, becomes part of a crippling ritual. The disease hijacked Larsen's life (he cannot hold down a job and rarely sees friends); his personality (he can be stone-faced, with only glimpses of a slight smile); and his speech (a stuttering-like condition causes his speaking to be halting and labored.) He spent the past two decades trying everything: multiple medication combinations, cognitive behavioral therapy, cross-country visits to specialists, even hospitalization. Nothing could quell the anxiety churning inside him. "This is not something that you consider first line for patients because this is invasive," said Maguire, chair of psychiatry and neuroscience at the University of California Riverside medical school, and part of the team evaluating whether Larsen was a good candidate for deep brain stimulation. "It's reserved for those patients when the standard therapies, the talk therapies, the medication therapies have failed." Deep brain stimulation is an experimental intervention, most commonly used among patients with nervous system disorders such as essential tremor, dystonia or Parkinson's disease. In rare cases, it has been used for patients with intractable depression and OCD. The electrodes alter the electrical field around regions of the brain thought to influence disease -- in some cases amplifying it, in others dampening it -- in hopes of relieving symptoms, said Dr. Frank Hsu, professor and chair of the department of neurosurgery at University of California, Irvine. Hsu says stimulating the brain has worked with several OCD patients, but that the precise mechanism is not well understood. The procedure is not innocuous: It involves a small risk of bleeding in the brain, stroke and infection. A battery pack embedded under the skin keeps the electrical current coursing to the brain, but each time the batteries run out, another surgical procedure is required. 'I feel like laughing' As doctors navigated Larsen's brain tissue in the operating room -- stimulating different areas to determine where to focus the electrical current -- Larsen began to feel his fear fade. At one point he began beaming, then giggling. It was an uncharacteristic light moment for someone usually gripped by anxiety. In response to Larsen's laughter, a staff member in the operating room asked him what he was feeling. Larsen said, "I don't know why, but I feel happy. I feel like laughing." Doctors continued probing his brain for hours, figuring out what areas -- and what level of stimulation -- might work weeks later, when Larsen would have his device turned on for good. In the weeks after surgery, the residual swelling in his brain kept those good feelings going. For the first time in years, Larsen and his mother had hope for normalcy. "I know that Brett has a lot of normal in him, even though this disease eats him up at times," said Michele Larsen. "There are moments when he's free enough of anxiety that he can express that. But it's only moments. It's not days. It's not hours. It's not enough." Turning it on . In January, Larsen had his device activated. Almost immediately, he felt a swell of happiness reminiscent of what he had felt in the OR weeks earlier. But that feeling would be fleeting -- the process for getting him to an optimal level would take months. Every few weeks doctors increased the electrical current. "Each time I go back it feels better," Larsen said. "I'm more calm every time they turn it up." With time, some of his compulsive behaviors became less pronounced. In May, several weeks after his device was activated, he could put on his shoes with ease. He no longer spun them around in an incessant circle to allay his anxiety. But other behaviors -- such as turning on and shutting off the faucet -- continued. Today, things are better, but not completely normal. Normal, by society's definition, is not the outcome Larsen should expect, experts say. Patients with an intractable disease who undergo deep brain stimulation should expect to have manageable OCD. Lately, Larsen feels less trapped by his mind. He is able to make the once interminable trek outside his home within minutes, not hours. He has been to Disneyland with friends twice. He takes long rides along the beach to relax. In his mind, the future looks bright. "I feel like I'm getting better every day," said Larsen, adding that things like going back to school or working now feel within his grasp. "I feel like I'm more able to achieve the things I want to do since I had the surgery." OCD in children: 'A darkness has overtaken me' | With deep brain stimulation, electrodes are implanted in the brain .
The experimental treatment is more commonly used to treat nervous system disorders .
Doctors are testing it out for depression and OCD . |
259,782 | dc57ec485ef1aa3dfcb7203d20ac2bddb901aa5c | By . Matt Chorley, Mailonline Political Editor . PUBLISHED: . 08:00 EST, 26 March 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 08:03 EST, 26 March 2013 . MPs were told that traces of pig and horse DNA have been found in meatballs . Horse and pig DNA has been found in beef meatballs, lasagne and burgers sold in the UK, fresh testing results revealed today. Official figures released to Parliament showed that of 357 beef products for possible contamination has found two contained horse DNA and three contained pig DNA/ . Environment Secretary Owen Paterson told MPs all five products, which contained more than one per cent horse or pig DNA, have been withdrawn from sale. The three beef meals which were found to contain pork were ASDA Spaghetti and Meatballs, ASDA Beef Cannelloni and Apetito Beef Lasagne. The Food Standards Agency testing also confirmed that horse DNA had been found in Whitbread burgers and IKA meatballs. A further five samples are 'in dispute'. There have been no positive tests to date for the presence of bute in any of the UK food samples found to contain horse DNA, Mr Paterson said. The UK-wide survey of products including burgers, meat balls, minced beef, ready meals and tinned products is in addition to the results of 5,430 industry tests reported on March 4. Testing continues on the contents of processed beef sold in British shops and restaurants, with the next round of results due in early June. Mr Paterson added that although the short term priority had been to focus on the deliberate substitution of beef with horse, 'this does not mean that we have ignored the possibility of beef products containing undeclared pork or pig DNA'. The string of revelations about what is really in the food we buy has raised serious concerns about the security of the food supply chain . He said in a written statement: 'Consumers have a right to expect that all the food they are eating is correctly described. I recognise that even trace levels of pork contamination, below the 1% threshold, are unacceptable to some faith communities. Environment Secretary Owen Paterson said testing of processed meat on sale in the UK would continue . 'Where a product is labelled as Halal . and is found to contain traces of horse or pig DNA, the relevant local . authority will investigate each case and take steps to ensure that . consumers are informed. 'It remains the responsibility of all food businesses, including processors, catering suppliers and retailers, to ensure that the food they sell is what it says it is on the label, and Kosher and Halal certification bodies have a part to play in this. 'Any claims on a product certified by a certification body must be accurate. It is for the certification body to set out the standards which a certified product must meet, and for that body to work with food businesses to ensure those standards are adhered to.' The food industry has been rocked by revelations about horsemeat being found in processed beef for months. Last week it emerged pure horsemeat imported from Hungary was sold to British shoppers as 'diced beef'. Nearly half the meat had already been sold to the public before its true provenance was discovered. The Food Standards Agency said that 100kg (220lb) of horsemeat was imported by Hungarian Food Ltd in Preston, Lancashire, and sold on its market stall in town and a shop in Liverpool. The remaining unsold 1kg bags were withdrawn from sale. | Pork found in ASDA beef meals including meatballs and cannelloni .
Horse DNA confirmed in Whitbread burger and IKEA meatballs . |
250,882 | d0af8f25305a7cf4da85cfca43577334652208ab | Los Angeles (CNN) -- Maria Shriver cited "irreconcilable differences" in a petition filed Friday to dissolve her 25-year marriage to former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. The move comes more than a month after Schwarzenegger acknowledged that he fathered a child outside of his marriage. The couple announced their separation on May 9, calling it a mutual decision made "after a great deal of thought, reflection, discussion, and prayer." It became clear a week later that the split was triggered by Schwarzenegger's revelation to his wife that he had fathered a child with his housekeeper. "After leaving the governor's office I told my wife about this event, which occurred over a decade ago," Schwarzenegger said in a statement May 17. "I understand and deserve the feelings of anger and disappointment among my friends and family." Shriver, in a written statement that same day, described it as "a painful and heartbreaking time." "As a mother, my concern is for the children," she said. "I ask for compassion, respect and privacy as my children and I try to rebuild our lives and heal. I will have no further comment." It was confirmed several days later that a son fathered by Schwarzenegger with his housekeeper was born less than a week after Shriver gave birth to Schwarzenegger's son, Christopher, who is now 13. Shriver's signature on the divorce papers is dated June 18, but her lawyer filed them with the Los Angeles County Superior Court on Friday. Shriver's petition proposed that she and Schwarzenegger share joint custody of their two minor sons, Patrick, 17, and Christopher. They also have two adult daughters, Katherine and Christina. The date of their separation was listed as "to be determined." The filing did not detail the assets to be divided between Shriver and Schwarzenegger . "There are community and quasi-community assets and obligations of the parties, the exact nature and extent of which are unknown to petitioner at this time," Shriver's petition said. Schwarzenegger, a naturalized U.S. citizen from Austria who gained fame as the youngest winner of the Mr. Universe bodybuilding contest, was governor until January. He has been busy in recent months reviving his acting career and signing movie deals -- including plans for another installment of the "Terminator" series. CNN's Paul Vercammen contributed to this report. | NEW: Shriver wants joint custody of the couple's two minor children .
Shriver and Arnold Schwarzenegger split after more than 25 years together .
He has admitted to fathering a child outside of his marriage .
Shriver and Schwarzenegger share four children . |
14,146 | 28294674392d210bc3515db9503d3f1e1ac493db | By . Kerry Mcdermott . Even the most verbose of Germans are unlikely to be sorry to see the back of this tongue-twister. The country's longest word - Rindfleischetikettierungsüberwachungsaufgabenübertragungsgesetz - has officially ceased to exist. The compound noun, which stretches to 63 letters, is the name of a law relating to the testing of beef. Tongue-twister: The 63-letter word, which refers to the law regulating the testing of beef, has been dropped from the German language . A regional parliament repealed the word, meaning the 'law for the delegation of monitoring beef labelling', after the EU lifted a recommendation to carry out BSE tests on healthy cattle, the Telegraph reported. Germany is notorious for lengthy compound nouns, many of which are gradually whittled down to abbreviations when they become impractically extensive. Germans simply add extra concepts to existing words, meaning that, in theory, a word could become never-ending. Linguistics expert Professor Anatol Stefanowitsch, from the Free University of Berlin, told German news agency dpa the word was the longest 'authentic' word in the German language. It is recognised by linguists because it crops up in official texts, although it was never an entry in the German dictionary, which includes words based on their frequency of use. At 36 letters, Kraftfahrzeug-Haftpflichtversicherung - motor vehicle liability insurance - is thought to be the longest German word with an entry in the dictionary. The Oxford Dictionary of English can top that; pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis - which describes 'an artificial long word said to mean a lung disease caused by inhaling a very fine ash and sand dust' - has 45 letters. Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis: The 45-letter word is the longest to appear in the English dictionary . | Rindfleischetikettierungsüberwachungsaufgabenübertrag-ungsgesetz has officially ceased to exist .
Refers to the 'law for the delegation of monitoring beef labelling'
Repealed after EU lifted recommendation to test healthy cows for BSE .
Experts say it is the longest 'authentic' word in the German language . |
35,123 | 63d22d2b81b42a24324f1546207c56e034adb6a3 | By . Ruth Styles . PUBLISHED: . 05:28 EST, 23 December 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 08:44 EST, 23 December 2013 . For most of us, Christmas is a wonderful time of year. But for Victoria Harris, 33, from Jersey, December 25th is loaded with bittersweet memories. For three years in a row, the festive season brought heartbreak as she suffered one miscarriage after another. But this year, things will be different as she, and her boyfriend James Cornick, 27, now have a son, Jack, to share the big day with. Relief: Victoria with her son Jack who was born on 17th December 2010 following three miscarriages . Miss Harris, who has chosen to share her story three years after her final miscarriage, said her experiences have left her a stronger person and a loving mother, and she hopes to offer encouragement and comfort to women in similar situations. 'Throughout everything, I have stayed positive, but Christmas is still a difficult time of year for me and James,' she said. 'We have sad thoughts every now again. 'We do our best to keep that feeling away from Jack. While I was growing up, Christmas was the most magical time of the year for me, and I want my son to have that feeling too.' Miss Harris, a former sales advisor, and Mr Cornick, an electrician, celebrated Jack's third birthday on December 17th. For Miss Harris, a former sales advisor, the date was a significant milestone on the long and difficult journey she has taken to have children. Happy ending: Victoria's longed-for son Jack (pictured as a newborn, left) is now a healthy three-year-old . 'I had half my cervix removed when I was 18, and tried getting pregnant for three years with no luck, so when the doctor said it was unlikely I would conceive I wasn't surprised,' she revealed. 'When I fell pregnant for the first time I was shocked but really pleased.' Sadly, she lost the baby boy on November 22nd 2007. 'My body had been trying to expel blood clots, but the amniotic sac was expelled too, which meant I lost the baby,' she remembers. 'Going through the miscarriage was terrible, but I was determined not to let the experience defeat me, so we started trying again fairly quickly.' Six months later, Miss Harris discovered she was pregnant again. 'This time, the pregnancy was perfect - there was no bleeding,' she recalls. 'But the week before Christmas, I started leaking fluids. The doctor tried to reassure me that my bladder was leaking, but I wasn't convinced. 'They kept me in hospital overnight and sent me home the next day. Then, on Christmas morning, I started to experience leaking and pain and went to hospital again. Heartbreaking: A scan taken in 2007 of Victoria's first baby at 12 weeks. She miscarried soon after . 'Everyone expected the baby's heartbeat to be strong, but the senior doctors couldn't find it at all. 'There was no water left inside me - it had all leaked out. All the doctor could say was, "I'm sorry, you've lost the baby". Then, everything became a blur.' Miss Harris delivered her stillborn daughter, Harriet, on Christmas Day 2008. She said: 'James and I had Harriet with us in the hospital family room for two days and nights. Eventually the nurses said, "it's time to go". Then it was time to say goodbye. It was like a bad dream. 'It was heartbreaking, leaving her there. I'd arrived at hospital half-expecting to leave with Harriet. But instead, I left with nothing. I'm still grieving for her today.' The following December, when she was six weeks pregnant, Miss Harris endured yet another miscarriage, this time requiring a surgical procedure. Tragic: Victoria when she was 32 weeks pregnant with Harriet, the baby girl she lost on Christmas Day . Memories: The grave of baby Harriet who was born and died on Christmas Day 2008 . But finally, in the spring of 2010, she discovered she was pregnant once again. 'I felt like I knew something bad would happen,' she explains, adding: 'I didn't dare look ahead - I took one day at a time. I would only believe it once the baby was in my arms, crying.' There were nervous moments when she experienced bleeding in the early stages of the pregnancy and again when her cervix began to open at 25 weeks. 'After two days in hospital, my cervix closed again,' she adds. 'Everyone was amazed. They let me go home, but under strict orders to relax and avoid physical exertion.' Their son's due date was December 30th 2010, but in order to prevent the baby arriving on Christmas Day, Miss Harris chose to be induced on December 17th. Thrilled: Despite some scary moments, Victoria and James were delighted when their son Jack finally arrived . Magical: Victoria hopes to make Christmas a wonderful of year for her much-loved son Jack . She said: 'Christmas Day is Harriet's . day - a day to remember her. We didn't want to celebrate a birthday and . an anniversary on the same day.' A . week before the birth, Miss Harris's grandmother, Barbara, passed away. But finally, after weeks of a mixture of anxiety, grief and growing . expectation, the fateful day arrived. 'Jack didn't cry when he was first born and the cord was wrapped around his neck three times, which meant the nurses had to ring the emergency bell. But eventually I heard him cry and it was an enormous relief.' Her son Jack is now a cheeky, adventurous three-year-old and his parents are looking forward to celebrating Christmas with him. 'He's coming through his terrible twos and is tall for his age,' said Miss Harris. 'Me and James are so protective of him. 'There are lots of fears which have been left over from our experiences - I'm sure most parents would understand what I mean.' Miss Harris says she hopes to offer comfort to women who are going through the heartbreak of unsuccessful pregnancy. 'My advice would be to stay strong and stay positive - don't despair,' she says. 'It was terrible after the losses, but there was joy at the end. Don't give up.' | Victoria Harris, 33, from Jersey, suffered three miscarriages in a row .
One, on Christmas Day 2008, was a full-term daughter named Harriet .
She and her boyfriend James Cornick, 27, now have a son named Jack .
Hopes her story will comfort other women experiencing the same thing . |
188,795 | 808713126fb477bd34c8b37decc0fbbefa68fdd5 | By . Suzannah Hills . and Associated Press . They say it pays to complain, but it seems there is a limit to what even the most generous of companies will tolerate. A rabbi who was tossed out of an airline's frequent flyer programme for constantly complaining has lost his lawsuit against the company. Rabbi S. Binyomin Ginsberg attempted to sue Northwest Airlines over its decision to strip him of his top-level frequent flier status and then end his membership. But U.S. Supreme Court justices unanimously dismissed his lawsuit on Wednesday. Complainer: Rabbi Binyomin Ginsberg sued Northwest Airlines for breach of contract after the airline said he had abused their frequent flyer program by complaining 24 times in seven months . Northwest Airlines, which has since absorbed by Delta Air Lines Inc., said it cut off Ginsberg because he complained too much. The rabbi said Northwest did not act in good faith, and was trying to cut costs because of its merger with Delta. Justice Samuel Alito said that the federal deregulation of the airline industry in 1978 prohibits most lawsuits like the one filed by Ginsberg. The frequent flyer programme is clearly connected to the airline's prices, routes or services, which are covered under the Airline Deregulation Act, Alito said. Ginsberg and his wife flew almost exclusively on Northwest, logging roughly 75 flights a year to travel across the U.S. and abroad to give lectures and take part in conferences on education and administration. He said he flew on Northwest even when other airlines offered comparable or better flights and in 2005, reached the highest level of the WorldPerks programme. Court battle: Northwest Airlines accused the rabbi of abusing its frequent flier programme. The U.S. Supreme Court dismissed Ginsberg's lawsuit . Northwest cut him off in 2008, shortly after Northwest and Delta agreed to merge. Ginsberg said Northwest was looking to get rid of the high-mileage customers. Northwest says Ginsberg complained 24 times in a seven-month period, including nine instances of luggage that turned up late on airport baggage carousels. Northwest said that before it took action, it awarded Ginsberg $1,925 in travel credit vouchers, 78,500 bonus miles, a voucher for his son and $491 in cash reimbursements. The airline pointed to a provision of the mileage program's terms that gives Northwest the right to cancel members' accounts for abuse. Alito said the court ruling does not leave airline customers without recourse. The Transportation Department has authority to punish unfair and deceptive practices in air transport and can investigate complaints about frequent flier programs. Customers also have the option of enrolling in a rival airline's program, he said. Defense: Ginsberg's lawyers said he and his wife had been averaging about 75 flights on Northwest each year, and that Ginsberg estimated that only about 10 percent had resulted in a call to Northwest's customer care . In a statement, Delta said it was pleased with the decision and would continue 'to provide customers with a loyalty program that offers valuable benefits and rewards our members' travel'. Ginsberg's attorney, Adina Rosenbaum of the consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, said she was disappointed. 'We think it's one that harms consumers by giving airlines greater freedom to act in bad faith in performing their contracts with consumers,' she said. A federal trial judge cited earlier Supreme Court cases involving claims against frequent flier programs in dismissing Ginsberg's lawsuit, including his claim that Northwest did not live up to the terms of the contract. The judge said the contract gives the airlines the right to kick someone out of the mileage program at its 'sole judgment'. But the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco said part of the suit could go forward involving whether Ginsberg and others can sue under state laws that require parties to a contract to act in good faith. | Rabbi S. Binyomin Ginsberg flew with Northwest Airlines 75 times a year .
But the airline threw him out of its frequent flyer programme in 2008 .
Airline claimed the Rabbi was abusing his membership with his complaints .
Ginsberg insisted he complained on less than 10% of his journeys .
U.S. Supreme Court justices dismissed Ginsberg's lawsuit on Wednesday . |
57,261 | a240a42cabdcf2e7b6ad4d0e0e9cf829f5157acb | Los Angeles (CNN) -- Cardinal Roger Mahony visited Bryan Stow Tuesday to pray for the 42-year-old, who remains in a medically induced coma nearly two weeks after he was attacked after a baseball game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants, a hospital spokeswoman said. "His condition remains critical and doctors are hoping Bryan's condition improves over the next 24 hours," said hospital spokeswoman Rosa Saca, a spokeswoman for Los Angeles County-University of Southern California Medical Center . Relatives of the Giants fan launched a website -- www.support4bryanstow.com -- in part to provide daily updates on his condition. Stow's sister, Bonnie Stow, told CNN that one priority of the neurosurgeons is keeping him sedated to prevent seizures and swelling in the brain. In a recent Web posting, she wrote: "The doctors want to limit visitors, noise and physical contact with Bryan. They're wanting to keep his brain calm and just ... quiet ... to see how that works. ... That way the neurologists can get a better reading of brain activity. Fever down." Bonnie Stow said her brother's seizures have subsided, and over the next 24 to 48 hours doctors want to gradually reduce the sedation he is under and, hopefully, bring him out of the medically induced coma. "We can't wait for Bryan to wake up so he can see for himself just how much people love him, whether they are family, friends or strangers." Since the unprovoked attack after the March 31 game at Dodger Stadium, money has poured in from numerous donors and fundraising events to help pay for medical costs and provide support for his two young children. Bonnie Stow said the website also identifies fundraising activity endorsed by Stow's family. L.A. officials ask two suspects to surrender . "We are trying to post only legitimate fundraisers that we can confirm because unfortunately there are those trying to take advantage of this tragic situation," said Bonnie in a posting. At a dual fundraiser Monday at Dodger Stadium and AT&T Park in San Francisco, where the Giants and Dodgers played Monday, more than $120,000 was raised, said American Medical Response spokesman Jason Sorrick. More than $200,000 has been raised for Stow, who works for AMR. Meanwhile, investigators continued their search for the two suspected assailants, who fled after the beating in a light-colored, four-door car driven by a woman with a young boy inside, authorities said. Since the release of composite sketches, police have investigated more than 100 clues based on calls and tips, said Los Angeles Police Detective PJ Morris. About 100 witnesses saw Stow attacked as he left the stadium parking lot, and Morris said some of them have provided useful information. Officials are offering a $100,000 reward for information leading to arrests and convictions. "Whether it's the reward money or a Good Samaritan who wants to help solve a horrific crime, there has been a tremendous outpouring of calls from people who might have useful information," Morris said. Morris said detectives have compiled and presented photographic lineups of possible suspects to witnesses in the Los Angeles area but no one has identified Stow's attackers. Another team of detectives has been showing the photos to witnesses in the Bay Area. "Every call and tip is helpful in some capacity, even if it eliminates someone who may resemble the composite sketches," Morris said. "There is no forensic evidence in this case, therefore that person who comes forward is most likely how we're going to solve this thing." LAPD officials released a tip line for anyone with information: 1-800-222-TIPS (8477). | Cardinal Roger Mahony visits Bryan Stow, 42, to pray for the injured father of two .
Doctors want to gradually reduce the sedation keeping him in a medically induced coma .
Stow, a paramedic, was attacked after a baseball game at Dodger Stadium on March 31 .
Police have gotten many tips, and money has poured into funds to help with medical bills . |
82,430 | e9b63de664e3289fdbe7a29c90fcb2c35b792200 | (CNN) -- A lock break occurred on the Ohio River near Warsaw, Kentucky, on Sunday, stopping barge traffic for several hours as the Army Corps of Engineers investigated. The lock break stopped traffic on the Ohio River about 65 miles northeast of Louisville, Kentucky. The incident involved structures, and there were no reports of injuries. All traffic on the river was stopped in both directions at about 9 a.m. ET, Corps spokesman Todd Hornback said. By 8 p.m., an auxiliary lock was set up to start allowing the half-dozen blocked barges through. "It's going to take more time, but we're keeping the river open tonight," Hornback said. The river is a major artery for commodities shipping, with more than 50 million tons of cargo passing through the affected area annually, according to a waterways organization. It was not known what caused the break at the Markland Locks and Dam. Engineers were going to the site, about 65 miles northeast of Louisville, Kentucky, Hornback said. The lock's gates are 1,200 feet long and 110 feet wide. A smaller auxiliary lock is 600 feet long and 110 feet wide. Watch traffic backed up on Ohio River » . A lock is a section of a waterway, such as a river, that is closed off with gates. Vessels in transit enter the lock and the water level is raised or lowered in order to raise or lower the vessel to adjust to elevation changes. One of the broken portions is known as a miter gate, Hornback said. The Corps of Engineers, on its Web site, says a miter gate "has two leaves that provide a closure at one end of the lock." They are so named because the two leaves meet at an angle pointing upstream and resembling a miter joint, the Web site said, referring to a joint meeting at a 45-degree angle, such as the corner of a picture frame. A public policy organization, in a February 2008 report, graded the locks' performance as a D, "based primarily upon risk of failure due to unreliability of miter gates." The federal government allocated $10.6 million to install new chamber miter gates, according to Waterways Council Inc., which describes itself as an organization "advocating a modern and well-maintained national system of ports and inland waterways." Hornback said the work was scheduled for 2011, adding that it's unclear whether Sunday's break will speed that up. "The risk is very high that a failure of the lock gates will occur, forcing traffic through the auxiliary lock for an extended period, causing huge delays and costs to the towing industry," the council said in the report last year. Engineers hope to have the river back open as soon as possible, Hornback said, but an exact time frame was not known. Some 55 million tons of commodities pass through the Markland Locks each year, according to the Waterways Council. The principal commodity passing through Markland is coal, which fuels numerous electric power plants along the Ohio River, and those plants typically stockpile only about a 30-day supply, the council said. | NEW: Auxiliary lock used to relieve blocked river traffic .
Lock broke Sunday morning; cause not known, Army Corps of Engineers says .
Break happened about 65 miles northeast of Louisville, Kentucky .
In locks, vessels are raised or lowered to match elevation ahead . |
61,893 | afd5d270e70fe39ea7e07b5469267a6985c9b2c7 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 04:15 EST, 20 November 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 05:12 EST, 20 November 2012 . Charged: Eugene Palmer has been charged with the murder of his daughter-in-law Tammy . A pensioner has been charged with the murder of his daughter-in-law two months after she was killed. Eugene Palmer, 73, from Haverstraw, New York, has been missing since Tammy Palmer's death on September 24 but police took the action against him in his absence. The 39-year-old was shot dead as she returned home after putting her two children on the school bus. After allegedly killing his daughter-in-law, Palmer is believed to have confessed to his sister, Elaine Babcock. He then fled from the scene and has not been seen since. His truck was found in nearby Harriman State Park on the same day Tammy was killed and officers began a search for him. Palmer was a recreational hunter familiar with the rocky, hilly terrain of the 45,000-acre park. However, experts have cast doubt on the possibility he could have survived outdoors in the cold days that followed the killing. Mrs Palmer was found dead with shotgun pellet wounds to her chest and arm. It is believed she was first hit in the arm and then a second and third time in her chest, killing her. The gun was found near her body in the yard of her Willow Grove Road home. Tammy Palmer's family claimed that . Eugene Palmer had began a campaign of harassment against her after the . 39-year-old took out an order of protection against her estranged . husband, John. The order prevented him from entering . the home where she was raising their two children, aged 12 and 16. She . lived in a separate house but on the same property as her father-in-law. Dead: Tammy Palmer, pictured right with her two children, was shot dead on Monday September 24 . Mrs Babcock, Palmer's sister claimed he rushed to her house straight after the killing and admitted what he'd done. 'He just came in and said, 'Here’s money to pay my taxes with, I’ve had enough. 'I . shot and killed Tammy. Give me an hour to get away and then do whatever . you have to do — call the police... whatever you have to do,' and then . he just took off,' Babcock told CBS. Ms Babcock said she immediately called police, who believe he fled into Harriman State Park, which backs onto his property. Search teams began hunting woods . for the man, a retired park ranger, using tracking dogs and helicopters. They soon discovered his vehicle, a 1995 green Dodge Ram . pickup truck. Tammy Palmer's parents are struggling to come to terms with the loss of their daughter. They say her relationship with her father-in-law had grown increasingly ugly, culminating in a fight. 'She . told me 'Mommy, don’t worry I’ll be alright.' I don’t think she ever . thought that this man would kill her,' Tammy's mother Violet Pannirello . told CBS. Harassed: Tammy Palmer, pictured left, was found dead with a bullet wound to her . chest, hours after the attack . Mourning: Violet Pannirello, left, says her daughter Tammy's, right, relationship with her father had grown ugly. Tammy had just dropped her children at the school bus when she was shot dead . Crime scene: Palmer's body was found with a shotgun nearby at her home, pictured . 'She’s gone. She’s resting. She’s not scared anymore. It’s so sad,' Pannirello said'. Detectives have previously revealed the details of . Palmer's criminal past and warned that he is believed to be dangerous - . owning to a large gun collection. It has been reported by police that the grandfather had previously threatened to kill a Department of Environmental Conservation officer. He was arrested and charged . with second-degree aggravated harassment after he made repeated 'life . threatening' calls to Department of Environmental Conservation employee Kenneth Didion’s home over a period . of months starting in December 1984, The Journal News reported. Palmer, working as a truck driver at . the time, pleaded guilty in April 1986 and the next month was sentenced . to one year probation and fined $750. He also was ordered to avoid any . contact with Didion for a year. | Grandfather Eugene Palmer charged with murdering Tammy Palmer .
He has been missing since the mother-of-two was found dead .
He is alleged to have admitted to the murder to his sister Elaine Babcock .
Police found Palmer's 1995 green Dodge Ram pick-up truck in nearby woods . |
64,601 | b776779d1c68abeef61711fb66c908dc88475f39 | By . Marie-louise Olson . PUBLISHED: . 10:46 EST, 22 November 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 20:28 EST, 22 November 2013 . He's back: Darwin Vela, 22, was located Friday afternoon after going missing two days ago while walking his Chocolate Lab, who returned home with blood on his leash . A California man who disappeared while walking his dog the day before he was supposed to testify in a burglary case involving Nicolas Cage’s ex-girlfriend turned up alive today. Darwin Vela, 22, was located at about 1.30pm, the Los Angeles Police Department said in a written statement. There was no immediate word on his condition. ‘The detectives are talking to him to find out the circumstances’ of his disappearance, Officer Gregory Baek said. TMZ reported Friday that Vela allegedly told police that he was kidnapped, but he somehow managed to get away from his abductors and asked a passerby to call 911. Vela was last seen around 9 p.m. Tuesday when he took his 3-year-old chocolate Labrador, Koco, for a walk in South Los Angeles. His fiancee, Kelly McLaren, said the dog later returned to their home hunched over and 'crying' with a 6-inch smear of blood on its leash. No one heard from Vela, who was recently unemployed, and he had left his cellphone, wallet and keys at home, McLaren said. On Friday, an officer at LAPD's Pacific Station in the Del Rey neighborhood told McLaren and Vela’s mother that the 22-year-old was 'bruised' but otherwise fine, KTLA reported. Vela was last seen leaving his home in the 2900 block of South Redondo Boulevard about 9pm on Tuesday, according to Los Angeles police. A short time later police said the dog returned alone. Missing: Darwin Vela, 22, went for a walk with his dog in Los Angeles on Tuesday night and never returned . Witnesses: Vela and his girlfriend, Kelly McLaren were scheduled to testify against a man who is standing trial for breaking into the home of Nicholas Cage's ex-girlfriend, Christina Fulton . Vela’s girlfriend said she noticed blood on the dog’s leash, according to KTLA. 'He [the dog] was crying, and Darwin wasn't anywhere,' McLaren said. 'So I took the leash, and I noticed on the leash there was a thumb print of blood and a drag mark, where it looked like the leash had been pulled from his arm.' Vela has never gone missing before and his family and friends are very concerned for his safety, police said. McLaren fears Vela’s disappearance could be linked to a high profile case the couple is involved in, in which they were both expected to testify. ‘We were witnesses to a crime and we were supposed to testify today,’ McLaren told KTLA. The crime was a break-in at the home of actor Nicolas Cage's ex-girlfriend, Christina Fulton, earlier this year. Walking the dog: Vela, left, was last seen on Tuesday when he went out to walk his dog. The dog returned with a bloody leash, according to his girlfriend McLaren, right . First time: Vela, left, has never gone missing in the past and his girlfriend, McLaren, right, says she is worried about his safety . Former lovers: The home of actress Christina Fulton, left, who used to date actor Nicolas Cage (both seen here in 1990), was broken into earlier this year . The home of actress Christina Fulton, who is the mother of Cage’s son, Weston Coppola Cage, was broken into earlier this year, according to Gawker. Weston, 22, was the lead singer of the . black metal band Eyes Of Noctum that disbanded last year and has since . joined metal band Arsh Anubis. Fulton, who dated Cage from 1988 to 1990, has had roles in films as The . Doors, Bram Stoker's Dracula, Dangerous Game, The Girl with the Hungry . Eyes, Enemies of Laughter, Lucinda's Spell and Snake Eyes. Cage has been married three times with his marriages to actress Patricia Arquette and Lisa Marie Presley ending in divorce. The actor, who is the nephew of Godfather producer Francis Ford Coppola, married his third . wife Alice Kim, a former waitress, in 2004. They have . eight-year-old son Kal-El together. Burglary: The home of Christina Fulton, right, who dated Nicolas Cage, left, from 1988 to 1990, was broken into earlier this year. Vela was meant to testify against the alleged thief who reportedly stole four computers and a box of sex pictures from her home . Disappearance: Vela was last seen leaving his home in the 2900 block of South Redondo Boulevard, Los Angeles, California . Police arrested Fulton's handyman, . Ricardo Orozco, 39, on October 22 and charged him with felony burglary . after he reportedly broke into Fulton's house and made away with four . computers and a box of sex pictures. Orozco is currently being held on $1 million bail after pleading not guilty to the crime. | Darwin Vela, 22, was last seen leaving his home about 9pm on Tuesday .
His Chocolate Lab returned home from a walk alone and with human blood on his leash .
Police said Friday Vela was 'bruised' but otherwise in good condition .
He was due to testify the next day against Ricardo Orozco, 39, who allegedly broke into the home of Hollywood actor Nicolas Cage's ex-girlfriend, Christina Fulton .
Fulton is the mother of Cage's first son, Weston Coppola Cage .
Orozco is being held on $1 million bail after pleading not guilty to the crime . |
182,590 | 786ee92063116b3e74ec2dfb5f7f9c07afe7eabf | Felix Magath's chaotic first days in charge of Fulham will end with confirmation that Alan Curbishley and Ray Wilkins are to be dismissed. Curbishley was told he would be fired after a short meeting at the club's Motspur Park training centre on Monday morning and Wilkins' fate was sealed later in the afternoon. Fellow Fulham coaches John Hill and Mick Priest have also been relieved of their duties, while Magath was pictured at Fulham under-21s' 3-1 loss to Leicester with long-term allies bernd Hollerbach and Wener Leuthard. VIDEO Scroll down to watch Magath's first interview as Fulham boss - in full . Watching on: Felix Magath (right) watched Fulham U21s with Werner Leuthard (left) and Bernd Hollerbach, who worked with the new Fulham manager at Bayern Munich, Schalke and Wolfsburg . Bernd Hollerbach is a coach who joined up with Magath's Wolfsburg side in 2007 before following him to Schalke. Werner Leuthard has been with Magath even longer, serving as fitness coach at Bayern Munich from 2004 and joining Magath's team at Wolfsburg and Schalke. Incredibly head coach Rene . Meulensteen, who has been deposed by Magath, is still agonising over a . decision to return to Fulham to work alongside the German manager. League . Manager’s Association chief executive Richard Bevan has been attempting . to mediate after Meulensteen believed he had been fired on Friday . night. Remarkably Fulham . seemed to think they can somehow persuade the former Manchester United . coach to remain at the club and work alongside their new German manager. Curbishley . feels embarrassed and humiliated by chief executive Alistair Mackintosh . after he was persuaded to take on the role of technical director in a . Christmas Eve shake-up at the club. The . former Charlton and West Ham manager, a popular and highly-respected . figure in the game, has been at Fulham for just over three months. Despite . his huge experience within the game, Magath believes they cannot work . together as Fulham battle to escape relegation from the bottom of the . Barclays Premier League. Not looking good: Fulham assistant manager Ray Wilkins has been told to stay away from the training ground . Short spell: Alan Curbishley has left Fulham after being appointed in December . Arrival: Felix Magath arriving at Fulham's Motspur training ground for the first time . Hardline: Fulham's players are in for a rude awakening when Felix Magath takes charge of training, according to Bayern Munich chief Uli Hoeness . Introduction: Magath meets his players for the first time . Replaced: Fulham moved to replace Rene Meulensteen with Magath as they seek to climb away from the foot of the Premier League table . Wilkins . has similar respect in the game, but he was ordered away from the . Fulham training ground by Mackintosh and spent the day . at home. Behind the scenes . Fulham were attempting to come to a compromise agreement after their . disastrous handling of the situation developing at Craven Cottage. The . clumsy leadership structure at Fulham has also been highlighted after a . series of rows involving coaching staff and players during their slump . to the bottom of the Barclays Premier League. Tensions . were so high at the training ground and in the dressing room that it . has threatened to spill over before Fulham took the dramatic decision to . replace their Dutch head head coach. Brede . Hangeland and Rene Meulensteen were involved in spectacular row after . the central defender was axed from the team who drew 2-2 at Manchester . United. Hangeland paid the . price for a diabolical performance in the 1-0 defeat at home to . Sheffield United in the FA Cup fourth round on February 4. Well-versed: Lewis Holtby (right) is one of three players in the squad to have experienced Magath's methods . In trouble: Fulham are four points adrift of safety . Meulensteen decided to drop him for the trip to Old Trafford and replaced him with rookie centre half Dan Burn. Hangeland . was livid with the decision and although he was named as a substitute, . he was involved in a heated confrontation with the club’s head coach . following the decision. Hangeland has claimed there was no disagreement. Right-back . Sascha Riether, who signed for the club permanently in the summer following a successful season long loan spell, was also . involved in a training ground bust-up with midfielder Scott Parker in the . head coach’s final days in charge. It’s . understood that a row between the pair escalated over a training ground . tackle, but it did not result in a physical confrontation. Despite . the obvious problems on the field, Fulham’s players liked Meulensteen . and had respect for his attempts to change the culture of the club. But . that does not hide the fact that they are bottom of the Premier League . and have just 12 games to avoid relegation to the SkyBet Championship. They have not won in the Premier League since January 1, when they beat West Ham 2-1. Fulham’s . next clash is with relegation threatened West Brom at the weekend and . then head into the west London derby with Chelsea the following week. However, there was one bright note of Fulham U21s' loss, as January signing Kostas Mitroglou completed his first ninety minutes for his new side. New boy: Kostas Mitroglou completed his first ninety minutes in a Fulham shirt during Monday's defeat . | New manager Felix Magath makes changes to Fulham backroom team .
Wilkins and Curbishley leave after being brought to the club by Rene Meulensteen in December .
Magath is Fulham's third manager of the season .
German confident of survival despite being four points from safety . |
137,658 | 3e081e697bb865fcf3f7dfdb70752aed204e58cd | Big, bright and bubbly -- comedian Ross Mathews never apologizes for who he is. Between duties as a "Tonight Show" correspondent and guest appearances on E!'s late-night talk show "Chelsea Lately," the 33-year-old covers a lot of ground in the 200-plus pages of his new memoir "Man Up!" He shares with readers the story of how he came out to his parents and why overcoming personal insecurities, like his high-pitched voice, were key to his success. Ahead of his memoir's May 7 release, Mathews sat down with CNN to share a few juicy details and explain why he's not leaving anything out. CNN: In your book, you say you always knew you'd write a memoir. You've been in the business for a little over a decade, so why did you decide to do it now? Mathews: As I was working in Hollywood and sort of amassing these stories I thought, 'Remember all of this. Write it down.' It just felt like the right time. Especially with Chelsea's (Handler) success in the literary world, when she heard I wanted to write a book she said 'I want to publish this.' It just felt like the perfect time. CNN: You divulge more than a few secrets in the book. Was there anything that you held back or something you thought twice about before printing? Mathews: Well, you know this book is about me, and the world through my eyes. If I didn't tell every story -- the ones where I was a hero and the ones where I wasn't a hero -- then there was no point in telling it. The only time I ever held back is when it was about someone else. I didn't want to throw anybody else under the bus, but I definitely bear everything out about me. I mean there's nothing off limits in the book. I mean, I tell every sordid detail of my life -- the pretty and the not-so-pretty. CNN: You said that you got your start, in part, because of an attribute you were once ashamed of, your voice. How has that shaped who you are today? Mathews: (Laughs) OK, listen, at a certain point I just had to realize puberty d*cked me over. So I just said, 'Use it! Shake your moneymaker.' My brother used to make fun of me, people in school used to make fun of me and I just realized one day that this is the card you've been dealt, use it to your advantage. And when I did that, everything changed for me. CNN: A lot of kids and, let's face it, adults struggle with their insecurities. At what point in your life, did you decide you were going to let go? Mathews: I don't know if I can mark the day. I remember feeling it happening, though. It was when I found really great friends in school. Suddenly, I had those moments where I forgot to be insecure. Sometimes I'd catch myself and be like 'God, I wish I could be like this all the time.' So I just eventually began challenging myself to feel that way. And not to be too preachy, but I would really recommend to people, if you get the chance, to trust yourselves to leap without a net, because that will build the confidence. You know, you might shock yourself with how much you don't need a net because you can catch yourself. CNN: You decided to make the very last chapter of the book about the day you realized you were gay. Was there a reason behind that? Mathews: That was very much on purpose. Again, I define 'man up' as you are what you are. Love yourself, whatever makes you different, and use it to make you stand out. Mine is my voice and the fact that I'm gay, well, the fact that I'm flamboyantly gay. But I didn't want the book to only be about that. I am a gay man, but it's not only a gay story. Whatever people have to 'man up' about, that's their own version. It can be big ears, skin color, freckles, acne, whatever it is, mine is what it was. It's a universal message. You know, everybody, everybody has that thing that makes them question their worth, their importance, and, you know, this book speaks to that in each of us. CNN: What's the one thing you hope readers take away from your book? Mathews: The most important thing to take away, if you step back, is that all these stories -- celebrity stories, stories about being caught stealing clothes from a women's store in the mall -- every one of these stories has a common thread which is: I never compromised who I was. And when I did, I made sure I never did it again. People should never apologize for who they are and they should never hide who they are. Hating yourself is so 2011. CNN: If you could interview anyone now, who would it be? Mathews: I would like to sit down with Oprah, just because I'd like to talk to her. I want to sit down and like, converse. Like, 'Honey, let's chat!' Actually, just put that in the story. I'm asking if anybody reading this has Oprah's e-mail or number, just call her or text her about the book! Do Uncle Ross a solid. CNN: You started one of the last chapters by saying that one person can change the world. Do you really believe that? And if so, what's the one thing you would change? Mathews: Listen, I know it's true because I've lived it, and I've done it, OK? I brought butternut squash back. There was a restaurant, they took an item off, I fought, they brought it back, and they named it after me, OK? And I'm just one person. And of course it's silly to say that it's changing the world, but it's just an example. It's the little things you do to say, 'No I'm not going to stand for that! I'm not going to stand for it!' Those little things add up. CNN: Is there any other societal issue that weighs heavily on your mind? Mathews: Yes. I think if I record a program, we have got to have the technology where I could record something on my DVR and like, e-mail it to a friend. I know this is lame, but why haven't they invented that yet?!?! | Ross Mathews doubles as "Tonight Show" correspondent and "Chelsea Lately" guest .
His memoir "Man Up!" is due out on May 7 .
Mathews: "This book is about me, and the world through my eyes" |
56,923 | a13ec85c71d4cc47884369d6bb9b77d7d58efb1e | Donkey milk and horse oil are having a renaissance as South Korea's hottest new skincare ingredients - and they are already making their way to into US products. The beauty savvy country, which introduced American women to BB and CC creams and ten-step skincare routines, is on its way to making the unlikely animal-based ingredients the next big thing. Alicia Yoon, a Harvard Business School graduate and co-founder of Korean beauty site Peach and Lily, told New York Magazine that she sees donkey milk and horse oil as the newest trends in Korean skincare. Scroll down for video . Natural wonders: Napoleon Perdis Auto Pilot Hydrating Cleanser features donkey milk, while Elizavecca Milky Piggy Origin Ma Cream is made from horse oil. The animal-based ingredients are the newest trends in Korean skincare . Beauty expert: Alicia Yoon (pictured), co-founder of Korean beauty site Peach and Lily, said horse oil is 'renowned for its absorbent properties' and donkey milk is 'rich in proteins' Ms Yoon explained that donkey milk 'is known to be gentle and soothing for those with sensitive skin and eczema, and [has] four to five times more vitamin C than cow’s milk and [is] rich in proteins'. She also said that horse oil is 'featured front and center' at some of the flagship locations of Olive Young, a popular beauty supply store in Seoul. 'Chinese tourists have come to love this product,' she said. 'Horse oil is known to sterilize and also renowned for its absorbent properties.' When asked how Korean skincare differs from American skincare, Ms Yoon said Korean products often contain more 'niche and adventurous' ingredients because Korean women tend to be more willing to experiment. 'I find that the major beauty brands are careful about launching anything too zany because, perhaps historically, American women would rather stick to more known ingredients like retinol and vitamin C,' she explained. Ancient tricks: Australian make-up artist Napolean Perdis (pictured) said his eponymous line's donkey milk cleanser was inspired by Cleopatra's beauty regimen . Historical beauty: Elizabeth Taylor (pictured) portrayed Cleopatra bathing in the 1963 film. Cleopatra was said to have taken daily baths in the milk of more than 700 lactating donkeys . But donkey milk and horse oil aren't the only bizarre beauty ingredients to come out of South Korea. The country helped turn snail slime into a must-have skincare product. In 2010, Korean brand Missha launched Super Aqua Cell Renew Snail Cream, which contains 70per cent snail extract. The mollusk mucus is said to clear acne, heal scars and beat wrinkles, and it has been reported that Katie Holmes uses a cream containing the slime. Korean face masks containing pig collagen have also gained popularity. Holika Holika's Pig Collagen Jelly Pack is certificated by the Korea Food and Drug Administration and created using 70,000ml of collagen extracted from pig skin, which promises to erase wrinkles and give tired-looking skin a youthful glow. These products may seem strange, but Ms Yoon pointed out that Korean skincare 'tends to include more natural ingredients and formulations because of the rich history of using ingredients found in nature'. For example, donkey milk and horse oil have been touted for their cosmetic uses throughout history. Innovative ingredients: South Korea also helped turn snail slime into a must-have skincare product. Korean brand Missha launched Super Aqua Cell Renew Snail Cream (pictured) in 2010 . Animal skin: Pig collagen is another strange beauty ingredient to come out of South Korea. Holika Holika's Pig Collagen Jelly Pack (pictured) is face mask certificated by the Korea Food and Drug Administration . Cleopatra was said to have taken daily baths in the milk of more than 700 lactating asses. While American beauty connoisseurs have to search Amazon and eBay for foreign skincare products containing horse oil, a donkey milk cleaner is already available in major US department stores, including Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom. Napoleon Perdis Auto Pilot Hydrating Milk Cleanser features lactation-by-donkey and retails for $69. Australian make-up artist Napoleon Perdis told Refinery 29 last August that the facial product from his eponymous line was inspired by an ancient beauty regimen. 'After learning Egyptian queen Cleopatra had reportedly bathed in donkey milk for its youth-enhancing effects, my team and I did some research into the benefits,' he said. 'We discovered that, due to its vitamin-rich composition, it was perfectly suited to the face.' | Donkey milk contains almost five times more vitamin C than regular milk and is said to improve skin elasticity .
Horse oil is known for its healing properties and highly moisturizing capabilities .
Alicia Yoon, co-founder of Korean beauty site Peach and Lily, said the animal-based products are the newest skincare trends in South Korea .
The beauty savvy country also introduced American women to other products containing bizarre ingredients, including snail slime and pig collagen . |
200,223 | 8f337a1e552af749f6e6fd98303b81534e142d1e | Frank Lampard has revealed that he rejected an offer from his uncle Harry Redknapp to join QPR before deciding to sign for New York City. Lampard was unveiled in Brooklyn on Thursday after it was confirmed that the former Chelsea midfielder has agreed a two-year deal to play for the Manchester City owned club in Major League Soccer next season. But the 36-year-old admitted that he and his father Frank Snr spoke with QPR boss Redknapp – who gave him a first-team break at West Ham in 1996 – about staying in the Premier League after he left Stamford Bridge at the end of last season. VIDEO Scroll down to watch Frank Lampard in his first press conference at New York City . Snub: Frank Lampard rejected an offer from QPR before signing for New York City . ‘We had some conversations and so did my dad,’ said Lampard. ‘I think my dad spoke to Harry quite a lot. But it wasn't really an option for me. ‘I had 13 years at Chelsea and it's something very dear to me, so it would have been difficult to play for a club so close. From that point of view coming out here to New York is a good option. It's a new start. ‘I was aware before the World Cup that I was leaving Chelsea. I had a decision to make and I didn't want to make it during the World Cup, even though I was thinking about my future. ‘I’ve only made the decision very recently but I've been handed something which is an outstanding opportunity. ‘There were other options, yes. Some in England, other parts of the world but this was the one that always stood out to me. The idea of coming to this city and playing for a new team with a really good vision for the future, it just made it easy for me. It wasn't a hard decision.’ Option: Lampard and his father Frank Snr spoke with QPR boss Harry Redknapp about a move . Lampard will team up with David Villa at New York next season but is unlikely to follow the Spanish star to City’s other sister team, Melbourne, to stay fit in the meantime. It is unclear where the England midfielder will train before pre-season begins in January, but he is determined to be ready for the new challenge. ‘I really don't know but I will have to keep fit,’ said Lampard. ‘I'll have to train at the very top level, whether that's on my own or with a club somewhere. I'll have to see. ‘Pre-season here will start mid to late January and that will soon come around. I've had time out of football with injury before – three or four months sometimes and it's not that long. ‘In the meantime of course I'll keep fit and make sure my levels don't drop too much. When we come here for pre-season I want to be ready to go. I want to fly out of the blocks. I don't want to come out sluggish.’ Wanted: Redknapp had hoped to lure his nephew to Loftus Road along with Rio Ferdinand . Lampard is certain there will be an increasing trend of top players moving to MLS, and believes his old Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho will approve of his decision. ‘Absolutely, the quality has grown and there are players from England and players from all around the world coming here,’ he added. ‘There are new clubs springing up like this one. Players like David Villa are coming in. You're hearing names linked with clubs here all the time and it's a very attractive option for players to come and play here. ‘I haven't spoken to Jose that much about it but he'll understand why I've done it. He loves coming out here for pre-season. Maybe he'll come out and have a game against us, he'd get that for sure. ‘But this was a decision for me to take, nobody else. And I know it's the right one. I'm sure Jose will respect my decision. He'll support me no matter what. Wherever I'm playing we'll always be close. Even if we're far away, I'll still admire him and support Chelsea.’ Blessing: The Chelsea legend claimed he is sure Jose Mourinho respects his decision to play for New York City . | Frank Lampard reveals he could have signed for Queens Park Rangers .
Lampard and his father Frank Snr spoke with Harry Redknapp about a possible move .
The Chelsea legend has signed a two-year deal with New York City FC . |
16,145 | 2dbee8513313297f4d79e5d6061bb0c575007f86 | By . Ian Parkes, Press Association . Lewis Hamilton is wary of the effect the euphoria currently being experienced by Nico Rosberg could have on his Formula One world title rival's bid for a home race triumph in Germany this weekend. Rosberg departed the British Grand Prix on his first serious low of the campaign as he suffered his maiden retirement this season after finishing the opening eight races either as winner or runner-up. Up for it: Lewis Hamilton feels World Cup factor will boost his hopes at German Grand Prix . With Hamilton claiming victory on his own . home soil at Silverstone, the gap between the duo was also slashed to . just four points in the German's favour. But following that blow for Rosberg, in the space of a few days he then got married, watched Germany win the World Cup and signed a new long-term contract with Mercedes. In terms of attempting to wrest back the initiative from Hamilton, Rosberg could not have asked for more, and will now be buoyed by the backing of thousands of ecstatic Germans at Hockenheim. 'For every driver when he goes into his home race he gets a boost, and I think Nico will have that extra boost this weekend,' said Hamilton. On the charge: Hamilton is just four points behind German Nico Rosberg in F1 standings . 'Not least because Germany have just won the World Cup and the whole country is on a serious high. 'Hopefully that will also have a positive effect on the whole team, as Mercedes-Benz.' Rosberg, who concedes he has had a 'very positive week', is naturally hoping to tap into the positive vibe that has swept his country in light of the World Cup triumph. Relishing the challenge: Lewis Hamilton arrives at the circuit in Hockenheim on Thursday . 'The effort of the team as a whole, how they all played together was really great to see and that's what helped them win the tournament,' said Rosberg. 'That's what we at Mercedes are trying to do as well, to really work well, everybody together, to make the most of it. 'We're also on the right track in that respect because to dominate the sport as we are doing indicates we work pretty well together as a team. 'Of course there's room for improvement, but we're going in the right direction.' The only low note for Rosberg over the past few days has been FIFA putting a block on his planned helmet design for this weekend. Sign of the times: Mercedes hospitality unit has been customised to celebrate Germany's World Cup triumph . Following Germany's fourth World Cup triumph via their 1-0 victory over Argentina at the Maracana in Rio de Janeiro, a thrilled Rosberg immediately sought to reflect his team's achievement. On Tuesday Rosberg tweeted a picture of the helmet he had planned to wear at Hockenheim, resplendent with the colours of the German flag. Primarily, it was adorned with four stars to indicate the number of times they have been crowned champions, whilst on top was an image of the World Cup. FIFA, however, caught wind of the situation and contacted Rosberg's manager Georg Nolte to inform him his driver would have to remove the image due to an infringement of its intellectual property rights. Defending its decision to ban the design, a FIFA spokesperson said: 'FIFA is obliged to take action against any unauthorised reproduction of its intellectual property in a commercial context. 'If FIFA would not follow up on any potential infringements of its intellectual property, it would risk losing its legal right and title to such works, thereby endangering the foundation of its commercial programme which is driven primarily by the access to and usage of our brand marks, including the FIFA World Cup trophy. No way: FIFA have blocked Nico Rosberg wearing special World Cup helmet . 'An example of the strength of FIFA's intellectual property assets is reflected by recent research in seven key global markets where the FIFA World Cup trophy recorded an average recognition level of 83 per cent. 'These levels are significantly higher than any other sporting trophies. 'As a result, we cannot allow a commercially branded helmet to feature the FIFA World Cup trophy as this would jeopardise the rights of our commercial affiliates. 'We appreciate Nico Rosberg's desire to congratulate the German team and have therefore been in discussions with the Rosberg team to attempt to find a solution, whereby he is still able to show his support for Germany without using FIFA intellectual property in a commercial context.' Rosberg conceded to being caught by surprise by FIFA's regulations, saying: 'The World Cup as a trademark - these are the kind of things you have to think of. It's amazing. 'I was surprised but of course I fully understand. It was a pity because the helmet looked really cool with the trophy on top. 'I've replaced it now with a big star and no-one can take that away. The star is ours!' | Lewis Hamilton hopes World Cup triumph will boost his Mercedes team .
Hamilton just four points behind German Nico Rosberg in F1 standings .
FIFA block Rosberg's plans to wear World Cup trophy helmet . |
88,119 | fa0ee9dcb876c66035e473d1a50bedd63833beac | Swansea striker Bafetimbi Gomis has been backed to fill the void left by Wilfried Bony's departure to the African Nations Cup. Gomis has been very much in top goalscorer Bony's shadow since his summer move from Lyon, starting just four Barclays Premier League games and scoring only once - the decider in a 2-1 home victory over Arsenal in November. But Gomis, who has been linked with a move to Crystal Palace in the January transfer window, will start his second game in the space of 48 hours in Saturday's FA Cup third-round tie at Tranmere and Swansea boss Garry Monk expects the 29-year-old Frenchman to seize his chance. Bafetimbi Gomis has been been backed to be lead the line for Swansea while Wilfried Bony is away with the Ivory Coast . 'Bafe has been waiting for his chance to stake his claim,' Monk said. 'It's been difficult but unfortunately for him Bony has been in good form in the first half of the season. 'I've tried to give him game-time but Bony's been scoring goals. 'I'm sure it's been in Bafe's mind that this chance has been coming up and I think you will see a real, real player in this period.' Gomis arrived in Swansea on a free transfer but with a big reputation having scored over 100 goals in French football for St Etienne and Lyon and winning 12 caps for France. But he has been unable to dislodge Bony as Swansea's primary striker with the Ivorian having finished 2014 as the Premier League's top scorer and started 2015 with the last-gasp equaliser in the 1-1 draw at QPR being his ninth of the campaign. Gomis has played second fiddle to Bony this season since his move from Lyon . Bony has been linked with a potential £30million move to either Chelsea or Manchester City in January but Monk insists Gomis will keep the shirt if he performs well while his striking rival is away on international duty. 'I've said it's Bafe's shirt to lose no matter what happens,' Monk said. 'If Bafe's in good form when Bony comes back then he will keep the shirt. 'It's a good period for him to really stamp his authority on the team and I've proved it already this season that I'm consistent with players. 'The players that have come in and put on good performances have stayed in the team and warranted the shirt.' Wilfried Bony has been in fine form for Swansea this season but is heading off to the Africa Cup of Nations . Swansea have hardly time to pause for breath during a demanding festive schedule which has already taken them to Hull, Liverpool and QPR over the past fortnight as well as having a Boxing Day visit from Aston Villa. So Monk will utilise his squad at Tranmere, who are 22nd in League Two and managed by former Swansea boss Micky Adams, with several fringe players set to receive an opportunity in the absence of Bony, the suspended Jonjo Shelvey and injured winger Jefferson Montero. Midfielder Ki Sung-yueng is also away on international duty with South Korea at the Asian Cup in Australia and skipper Ashley Williams could be among those rested, but Monk insists Swansea will not be taking their lowly opponents for granted. Swansea City manager Garry Monk has backed Gomis to be a success at the south Wales club . 'We won't allow any complacency and that message will come from me through to the players,' Monk said. 'I've played at Tranmere and it's a tight, bobbly pitch and difficult conditions in which to play football. 'They'll be looking forward to playing against a Premier League side and they'll be up for it. 'But I take it very seriously and we'll have to use our experience because we've got players in the squad who have played in these types of games. 'We will have to make changes because we've had so many games, but hopefully we can use that experience to get us through to the next round.' | Bafetimbi Gomis has been backed to fill Wilfried Bony's boots .
Bony is off to the Africa Cup of Nations with Ivory Coast .
Gomis scored over 100 goals during his years playing in France . |
243,684 | c76c28d03ea7e3277615475103c71bbce9366bc3 | Listing violently to one side, its cargo of 2,000 containers balanced precariously on deck, this massive container ship remains stuck fast after its captain failed to negotiate a shallow reef. The 47,230 tonne Liberian-flagged Rena ran aground about 12 nautical miles from Tauranga, on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island. Maritime New Zealand said the 236-metre vessel had been holed in several places and was leaking a small amount of oil. Stranded: The 47,230 tonne Rena aground about 12 nautical miles off the New Zealand coast . But they said its heavy fuel tanks were . intact and none of the 25 crew members had been injured or was in any . immediate danger. Its cargo is not yet known. Spokesman Renny van der Velde said: 'Weather conditions are very, very good, the current situation of the vessel is stable, there is no oil spill. 'There is significant flooding in two cargo holds, there is a significant amount of water, some pumping has occurred and is ongoing.' With the ship listing at an angle of 10 degrees, heavy . fuel oil has been pumped from tanks in its damaged side. A small amount . of hydraulic oil has been detected around the vessel, but is posing no . hazard. Balancing act: The Liberian registered cargo ship, with more than 2,000 containers on board, lists at an angle of 10 degrees . On the rocks: Maritime New Zealand said the 236-metre vessel was stuck 'hard and dry' on the reef . A specialist oil spill team is in the area and ready to respond to any escape of fuel oil. Refloating the vessel is the responsibility of the owners and salvage experts, but any plan would need official approval. Mr van der Velde said: 'The vessel is hard and dry on the reef so it may take some time, certainly from current indications this will be an ongoing and quite a long process.' He said it was not yet known how the ship came to hit the reef. The Rena, operated by the Mediterranean . Shipping Co, was headed for Tauranga to load further cargo. Towering: The vessel was holed in several places and leaking a small amount of oil, but its main fuel tanks remain intact and none of the 25 crew members has been injured . There was no immediate comment from the shipping company. Tauranga, 120 miles south east of New Zealand's biggest city, Auckland, is one of the the country's largest ports. The district is a popular holiday resort, with long beaches renowned for surfing. Salvage advisers are due to arrive tomorrow to assess the damage and advise how to refloat the vessel. | Liberian-registered vessel stranded 12 miles from New Zealand . |
266,871 | e5a91e7f19beb8b5811f71689c20b6f850fa84fd | By . Daily Mail Reporters . PUBLISHED: . 15:07 EST, 4 July 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 09:18 EST, 5 July 2012 . Quaffing cocktails at beach houses and an Ivy League education - it is a lifestyle that seems at odds with someone capable of unleashing foul-mouthed tweets on British politicians. A day after sticking up two fingers at the British establishment, images reveal the charmed life of Nell Diamond, the Princeton-educated daughter of disgraced Barclays Bank chief Bob Diamond. Images capture the 23-year-old cosying up to award-winning New York designer Prabal Gurung, whose creations are adored by celebrities including Michelle Obama and Lady Gaga. Other photographs show Nell, who enjoyed a privileged upbringing in British schools and now works for Deutsche Bank on Wall Street, parading designer dresses at Fashion Week or charity events. Scroll down for video . Glamourous: Nell Diamond, the daughter of Barclay's bank chief Bob Diamond, lives in New York City, where she is a stalwart of the social scene. Right, she is pictured with designer Prabal Gurung . Famous friends: Nell, second right, is pictured with Daphne Oz, presenter of The Chew and daughter of Dr. Oz. They laugh with friends Danny Shea, right, and Kyle Hotchkiss Carone, left . She is also captured laughing with The Chew presenter Daphne Oz, the daughter of Doctor Oz, and enjoying gin and tonics in the sun on breaks to Nantucket with friends. In another photograph, she is shown vacationing in Aspen, Colorado and standing outside the five-star Little Nell hotel, where rooms cost between $650 and $4,000 a night. But despite this apparent hard partying lifestyle, friends told MailOnline Nell does not drink and she spent more time in the library during her university years than in bars. This work ethic has continued in her job as an analyst for Deutsche Bank, where she works 14-hour days and briefly attends social events before returning home to bed, friends said. They added that she is humble about where she came from as she recognises her father, who earned millions each year as Barclays chief, did not have much money in his younger years. One friend said she is not talking about her father's recent resignation and, even though they are close, she will not be rushing to his side. Instead, she has the outlook that 'life goes on'. Serious: Nell, posing with a friend, sent an offensive tweet to politicians to stick up for her father on Tuesday . Carefree: She lives in New York with college friends and works as an analyst for Deutsche Bank on Wall Street . Glamour girl: Miss Diamond and a friend prepare for last year's UNICEF Snowflake Ball . Nell has . stayed in touch with university friends, and shares a rented apartment . with them in Manhattan. She studied at the $25,000-a-year Godolphin and Latymer School in Hammersmith, before going . to Princeton, where she was president of the Pi . Phi sorority. The Deutsche Bank analyst is also a . campaigner for Unicef and was named by website Business Insider as one . of 'Wall Street’s Hottest Offspring'. This privileged education and . high-flying career - as well as her well-preened appearance - are at . odds with the foul-mouthed remarks she made on Twitter on Tuesday. Nell jumped to the defense of her father Bob Diamond after he quit his $8 million-a-year role over the Libor interest rate fixing scandal. She took to Twitter to tell British politicians George Osborne and Ed Miliband to 'go ahead and #HMD' - an abbreviation for 'hold my d***'. Party lifestyle: Nell is pictured with friend Danny Shea, left . Famous friends: She has been pictured partying with TV presenter Daphne Oz, seen left with her father Dr Oz, and regularly attends Unicef events, such as in 2011, right . Specs appeal: Nell and a friend usher in the New Year . Just moments later, Nell thought better of the tweet and deleted it. Instead, she wrote: 'No one in the world I admire more than my dad. 16yrs building . Barclays. Shame to see the mistakes of few tarnish the hard work of so . many.' Miss Diamond did not respond to MailOnline's requests for a comment. Amid pictures of designer shoes and fashion shows on Nell's own Twitter account, other images hint at her close relationship with her father. In November last year she tweeted a . picture of them together at a Jay-Z concert making his famous 'diamond' hand gesture - actually a symbol for his Roc-A-Fella Records company. Her tweets came after Mr Diamond fell on his sword amid intense pressure from on the bank to force . him out, it was claimed. As he announced his resignation, Mr Diamond said he was standing down because: 'The external pressure placed on Barclays has reached a level that risks damaging the franchise.' Diamonds are together: Nellie with her father Bob in a private box at a Jay-Z concert last year. The young bank worker came out in support of her father today . Bob Diamond in a Princeton hoodie - the university attended by his daughter Nell, not him . Pricey: In another picture, she poses outside The Little Nell, a five-star hotel in Aspen, Colorado . Mr . Diamond was grilled in the Commons by the Treasury Select Committee on . Wednesday and his resignation a day earlier left him free to speak . openly about what went on at the bank. He apologised as he admitted there . had 'clearly been mistakes' and 'reprehensible behaviour' at the bank, . while adding that he had stepped down to prevent anymore damage to the . bank. But he declared 'I love . Barclays', and added: 'History will judge Barclays as an incredible . institution because of its people. We need to get through this and best . way was for me to step down.' The millionaire banker, 61, came . under pressure from visibly angry MPs as he swerved questions, . repeatedly saying that it had been 'wrong' for a 'handful' of traders to . fix the rate at which Barclays borrowed from other banks - potentially . affecting millions of homeowners. All a Twitter: She took down her offensive tweet minutes after posting it, but not before it was retweeted by Times journalist David Rose . Sense of humour: She also retweeted cutting messages about her father Bob Diamond . Mr Diamond admitted his shame over . damming emails between staff who were fixing the interest rate. In one, a trader . at a different bank wrote to 'Trader G' at Barclays: 'Dude. I owe you . big time! Come over one day after work and I’m opening a bottle of . Bollinger.' Mr Diamond said he was ‘physically ill’ when he read emails. Other emails revealed how they would . ‘shout’ across the desk at each other to ‘beg’ for the interest rate to . be fixed at a certain level in the hope of making millions for . themselves. Another said: ‘Coffees will be coming . your way either way, just to say thank you for your help in the past . few weeks.’ His colleague replied: ‘Done...for you big boy.’ Expensive taste: Nell made an appearance at Paris Fashion Week, left, and New York Fashion Week, right . Family: Nell is the only daughter of Bob and Jennifer Diamond . On the social scene: She attends the launch of the Prabal Gurung Resort 2013 Collection last month, left, and the UNICEF Snowflake Ball in New York last November . Mr Diamond said: ‘That behaviour was . reprehensible, it was wrong. I’m sorry, I’m disappointed and I’m also . angry. There is absolutely no excuse for this type of behaviour.' But he pointed the finger at '14 . or 15' other banks - including government-owned Royal Bank of Scotland, . Lloyds and Halifax Bank of Scotland - suggesting that they were lying . about their rates. Mr Diamond is said to be furious that . he and the bank have been blamed for ‘lowballing’ the rates at which . Barclays said it could borrow from rivals. Bankers insist the authorities knew . these rates were inaccurate but did not act because they feared the . truth would destabilise the markets. It is also claimed that regulators . possessed evidence of rate-fixing. Snap happy: Nell appears to be a prolific social networker, posting numerous pictures of herself at various events . Mr Diamond is in line to pocket 13.2million shares worth $35 million - which he . is entitled to because he has served for more than 15 years - as part of . a golden pay off. Barclays said the terms of Mr Diamond's severance package are 'still under discussion'. Shareholders will reportedly attempt . to force the banker to surrender $30 million worth of unvested shares . awarded to him in previous years. However, he will receive a minimum of at least a year's salary worth $2.1 million. Mr Diamond, who joined the . bank 16 years ago, said in his resignation statement: 'I am deeply . disappointed that the impression created by the events announced last . week about what Barclays and its people stand for could not be further . from the truth.' Grilling: Bob Diamond was questioned by the Treasury Select Committee this afternoon . Fallen on their swords: Bob Diamond (centre) and chairman Marcus Agius (right), pictured here with former chief-executive John Varley, have both resigned over the Libor rate scandal . 'My motivation has always been to do what I . believed to be in the best interests of Barclays. No decision over that . period was as hard as the one that I make now to stand down as chief . executive.' He went on: 'I know that each and . every one of the people at Barclays works hard every day to serve our . customers and clients. That is how we support economic growth and the . communities in which we live and work.' He . added: 'I leave behind an extraordinarily talented management team that . I know is well placed to help the business emerge from this difficult . period as one of the leaders in the global banking industry.' George Osborne said Mr . Diamond's resignation was 'the right decision for Barclays' and the . 'right decision for the country'. VIDEO: Key points in Bob Diamond's evidence to Treasury Select Committee . | After her father resigned from Barclays Bank, Nell Diamond sent tweet to British politicians saying they could 'hold my d***'
Photographs show privileged lifestyle and partying with designers .
But friends say she is hardworking and humble about her father's wealth .
Attended Princeton where she was president of her sorority .
Now works as an analyst at Deutsche Bank in New York . |
166,108 | 62c73ceb69eb5303dabe0fe45e193f55664f176b | (Mashable) -- The rumor that Facebook will suddenly start charging users to access the site has become one of the social media era's perennial chain letters. While Facebook prominently advertises that its service is "free and always will be" on its homepage, it hasn't stopped false rumors of a pay scheme from going viral on numerous occasions, most recently in conjunction with the major profile redesign that the site announced earlier this month. Given the ubiquity of these rumors, we thought it was worth exploring their origin -- and why we can guarantee Facebook will never charge you to use its service. A long history . Chain letters -- which date back to the days of snail mail -- have dogged nearly every online service that achieved critical mass. While they vary in the details, the general premise is that something negative will happen to your account unless you spread the message to your friends. On AIM, this took the form of IMs that needed to be shared with friends to avoid account deletion. On Friendster, rumors spread that the service was getting "too crowded" -- and hence, they needed to determine which accounts were active and remove those that weren't. On MySpace, word was that the service was getting so popular that the site would soon start charging members, and the only way to avoid the fees was to -- you guessed it -- forward the message to your friends. Of course, none of these situations ever actually materialized, but it didn't stop millions of users from passing the message along. Snopes has a detailed overview of these scams and others that have permeated the web over the years, going all the way back to the early days of Hotmail. Facebook's business model . The recent round of Facebook rumors suggest that the site will start charging for membership as a result of the upcoming new profiles. The new Facebook does indeed feature some dramatic changes, but you can rest assured that one of them isn't that the site will start charging you. Here's why: For starters, it doesn't need the money. Facebook is estimated to be on track to pull in around $4 billion in revenue in 2011, and has raised more than $2 billion in venture capital. It's also on track to go public in 2012, a move that would bring in significantly more capital for the company and value it at between $80 billion and $100 billion. More importantly, the company's business model revolves around having as many users as possible. Remaining free is paramount to doing that. Facebook makes its money on highly targeted advertising that's based on the plethora of data that its members share on the site. Restricting users' ability to use the site would actually be detrimental to that model. Facebook didn't even introduce its ad platform until 2007 -- because the company wanted to focus on adding users as quickly as possible. That's not to say social networking sites haven't found success in charging members for some services. LinkedIn offers premium memberships with features such as enhanced search, direct messaging and seeing who has viewed your profile. Some dating sites, like Match.com and eHarmony charge users to message each other. Still, those services are appealing to a specific audience -- Facebook's goal is to connect everyone in the world. That can't be done if you need a credit card to use the service. Why it will never charge you . Of course, Facebook is in business to make money. Beyond advertising, it has found ways to profit directly from its users through Facebook Credits, a form of currency that can be used on the site in social games like FarmVille and Mafia Wars. In the future, we expect Facebook to find additional ways to monetize. The company could grow its credit system to become a rival to PayPal. We could also see Facebook extending its ad platform beyond the social network itself and onto the wider Web -- in order to compete with Google's AdSense. There's also potential in e-commerce. Although Facebook's Deals product fell flat, an increasing number of merchants are starting to sell their wares directly on the social networking site. Might Facebook one day provide its own tools for powering such activity? It's certainly possible. The one thing that all of these models have in common is that they need a critical mass of users to be successful. Facebook has that, and would never risk losing it by charging people for basic access to the tools that make its multi-billion dollar business work. See the original story on Mashable.com . © 2013 MASHABLE.com. All rights reserved. | False rumors of a Facebook pay scheme have gone viral on numerous occasions .
Facebook makes its money not from users but from highly targeted advertising .
It doesn't need the money; Facebook is estimated to earn some $4 billion in 2011 . |
246,389 | cae468b6e7f02c2bc80063640ad966b06b8c61c8 | There are major concerns for more than a dozen Australians trekking in Nepal who have not been heard from since a blizzard and avalanche hit the area, claiming the lives of at least 29 people. The death toll is expected to rise as search teams, hampered by bad weather, scour the snow and debris in the areas hit by the storms. Rescue members carry the dead bodies of trekkers from the Thorung La mountain pass in Nepal, which was hammered by severe snowstorms and avalanches . The storm has claimed the lives of at least 29 people, and that number is expected to rise as search teams scour the snow and debris in the areas hit by the storms . The severe storm was caused by the tail end of Cyclone Hudhud, which hammered southern India over the weekend. Many of those who have died during the storm are foreigners. A spokesperson for The Department of Foreign Affairs has told Daily Mail Australia 'the Australian Embassy in Kathmandu is in close and on-going contact with Nepalese authorities following the snow storm in the Annapurna region on Tuesday 14 October.' 'Our Embassy is actively seeking information about the welfare and whereabouts of Australians possibly in the affected area. 'Embassy staff remain ready to assist any Australians affected by this tragedy. Nepalese authorities continue to advise there are no reports of Australian casualties, so far.' Amongst the missing Australians are Melbourne brothers David and John Hallford from Melbourne. The Sydney Morning Herald has reported the pair had been trekking without a guide in the days leading up to the storm. The last post on John Hallford Facebook reads: . 'Tomorrow we flight out to the Himalaya foothills, escape from our phones and start our long trek. Cya soon friends and family' Fears are also high for Nicole Wise, a Sydney woman who was trekking with a Sherpa in the area hit by the storm. Sydney woman Nicole Wise was trekking with a Sherpa in the area hit by the storm. Her boyfriend Bazil Plumb says he has been told Ms Wise has been rescued from the area, but he has yet to hear from her directly . Amongst the missing Australians are Melbourne brothers David and John Hallford from Melbourne, who had been trekking without a guide in the days leading up to the storm . British woman Lizi Hamer (pictured left in each photograph) and her New Zealand partner Lisa Walton are among those feared missing after becoming caught in the avalanche in the Annapurna Range in Nepal . Bazil Plumb, Wise's partner, said he last spoke to her last Saturday, but has since received word she has been rescued. 'She has contacted someone at at Thorong Phedi village', Plumb says. 'The Sherpa she was with called for help yesterday morning, and his brother passed the message on to someone on the mountain.' 'I managed to contact this person today and they said she has been found and airlifted to safety.' He says he was overjoyed at the news. 'I felt so relieved, I hadn't heard from anyone at all and was stressing so much. I've been watching all these bodies and tourists on television: I've barely slept. I thought I lost my girl.' Plumb says he has been contacting the Department of Foreign Affairs, numerous trekking companies and rescue crews and missing person lists.' While the news today is uplifting, Plumb remains anxious that he has yet to hear from her. 'I can't get too excited as I haven't heard from her. I have taken the news with a grain of salt but it was awesome hearing news about her.' A New Zealand national, Lisa Walton, and her British partner Lizi Hamer are also feared missing. Anyone with concerns for the welfare of family and friends in NepalI should call the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade's 24-hour Consular Emergency Centre on (02) 6261-3305 or within Australia on 1300 555 135 (local call cost).' | Severe snowstorms and avalanches have hammered Nepal this week, leaving at least 29 dead .
Many of those who died in the storm are foreigners .
There are fears for over a dozen Australians trekking in the area .
The weather has impaired telecommunications in the Himalayas .
Loved ones are left with little means of reaching the missing Australians . |
66,970 | bdf98dbbba88c54fcf8165805ade18adbe348d58 | 'Parting favour': One of Andrew Mitchell's final decisions as International Development minister was to unfreeze aid to Rwanda . Andrew Mitchell overruled Foreign Office advice to hand £16million of British aid money to a controversial African dictator accused of fuelling a bloody civil war. A senior Foreign Office source told the Daily Mail that Mr Mitchell’s decision to lift the freeze on aid to Paul Kagame’s Rwandan regime was a ‘mistake’ which would damage Britain’s reputation for standing up against human rights abuses. Mr Mitchell, now David Cameron’s chief whip, is reported to have overruled his own civil servants by making the decision in his final hours as International Development Secretary last month. Half of the money will go directly into the Rwandan government’s coffers – despite fears that it will be used to fund a murderous rebellion in the neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). One human rights campaigner yesterday described the move as a ‘parting favour’ to President Kagame, a personal friend of Mr Mitchell. The revelations will pile pressure on the chief whip, who is already fighting to save his job after being accused of hurling foul-mouthed abuse at police officers who stopped him riding his bike through the gates of Downing Street. Labour yesterday called for the publication of the civil service advice received by Mr Mitchell. Shadow International Development Ivan Lewis accused him of putting ‘personal friendship above proper foreign policy considerations’. The Department for International Development insisted his decision had been ‘based on advice from policy officials within the department’, but refused to detail the advice. In June, a United Nations report produced detailed evidence showing that Rwanda is backing the notorious M23 militia which is leading a bloody uprising in the DRC. Dictator: Rwandan president Paul Kagame (pictured with David Cameron in 2007) is accused of backing a murderous militia operating in neighbouring Congo . The militia, led by alleged war criminal Bosco Ntaganda, is accused of widespread murder and rape and has driven 470,000 people from their homes in recent months. Kagame, who was re-elected in 2010 with 93 per cent of the vote, has also been accused of suppressing political opponents and journalists in his own country. A senior Foreign Office source said: ‘The evidence against Kagame’s regime is absolutely overwhelming. The UN experts’ report found incontrovertible evidence that there had been support from Rwanda to the M23 rebels in terms of supplying weapons, uniforms, tactical advice and command and control assistance. There was also evidence of Rwanda fomenting strife in the area. ‘Most people in the Foreign Office think the time has come to take a really tough stand.’ Sources close to the new International Development Secretary Justine Greening have indicated she is also unhappy about the decision and will review it when the next aid payment to Rwanda is due in December. Congolese troops and tanks hunt for M23 rebels . in the east of Congo: The UN found evidence of support . from Rwanda to the M23 rebels in terms of supplying weapons, uniforms, . tactical advice and command and control assistance . Foreign aid accounts for more than 40 per cent of the Rwandan government’s income, and Britain is the country’s single biggest donor, giving £75million this year. A £16million aid payment was frozen at the end of July following the publication of the UN report. It was released just six weeks later on Mr Mitchell’s last day in office. Aid freezes imposed by the United States, Germany, Holland and others remain in place. In a statement last month Mr Mitchell said he was releasing the cash because Britain had a ‘responsibility to protect the poor’ in Rwanda. He said he had ‘sought assurances’ from Kagame that he was not abusing human rights. | New chief whip said to have made the decision in his final hours as International Development Secretary .
Senior Foreign Office source tells the Mail it was a 'mistake' and that Mitchell overruled civil servants .
Rwandan president Paul Kagame accused of backing militia leading a bloody uprising in neighbouring Congo . |
161,830 | 5d41d8eb9ebae19569dffdaaf5bdd032b6d35be3 | MEXICO CITY, Mexico (CNN) -- Buses that carry women only are experiencing a smooth ride with passengers in Mexico's capital. A woman rides on a bus exclusively for female passengers last month in Mexico City. Fans of the new service call their daily commutes more pleasant now that bus rides steer clear of too-close-for-comfort contact with men. "We're not just talking about sexual harassment, about rapes or about incidents of violence," said Ariadna Montiel, director of the Network of Passengers' Transportation for the Government of the Federal District. "But also about touching, staring, which is what generally occurs on public transport." The single-sex service, which started in January, is available on four major lines in the city, and it's expected to expand to another 15. Other plans include replacing male drivers with women. One woman described the service as "excellent," saying it's "more comfortable too because it doesn't make as many stops." Another passenger said she feels more comfortable and safer. Last year, the government received seven complaints of sexual abuse aboard the city's buses, which provide 200 million rides each year, officials said. Authorities said that a single complaint is enough to justify taking such measures. Juan Flores, who has driven buses in Mexico City for 15 years and now steers one for women only, said he even notices a difference. "I feel more tranquil, I work more peacefully and the interior of the bus is cleaner," he said. E-mail to a friend . CNN's Mario Gonzalez contributed to this report. | Passengers on female-only buses describe their commutes as more pleasant .
Seven complaints of sexual abuse aboard Mexico City buses made last year .
Single-sex service is available on four major lines in Mexican capital . |
26,892 | 4c5578d1a7af91d37c67f92a764079c839be035c | A helicopter tracked a man from 1,300ft so he could be arrested after he repeatedly shone a laser pen into the eyes of a pilot, dazzling him. Chris Vowles targeted the National Police Air Service (NPAS) while he was drinking in his garden below the plane with his friends. The crew were left dazzled by the bright green laser and decided to track Vowles using thermal imaging cameras so that police on the ground could arrest him. Scroll down for video . The laser was shone at the police helicopter four times, creating a 'bloom effect', which momentarily blinded the pilot . The crew on the police helicopter used powerful thermal imaging cameras to track down Chris Vowles so officers could arrest him . Vowles had been with friends in his garden in Birmingham when he shone the laser four times at the helicopter, which was on the way to do surveillance in the city, at about 1.15am on July 31. Birmingham Crown Court previously heard the laser created a 'bloom effect' which momentarily blinded the pilot and could have caused serious catastrophic consequences. After he had dazzled the pilot Vowles then appeared to gesture up at officers and wave beer bottles in apparent celebration. But he was foiled when the helicopter tracked him from 1,300ft (396m) and passed his location onto police who turned up 15 minutes later to arrest him. The thermal imaging cameras managed to pin point Vowles' precise location, so police on the ground could track him down . Vowles tried to cover his tracks by throwing the laser pen over a fence. But his tactic was captured on footage from the helicopter. Officers found the laser pen and, after he was shown the on-board footage, the 23-year-old TK Maxx worker admitted the offence acting reckless in a manner likely to endanger an aircraft. Footage from the helicopter captures Vowles throwing the laser pen over a fence in a bid to cover his tracks . Police arrived at his home in Birmingham and arrested Vowles, who later admitted acting reckless in a manner likely to endanger an aircraft . At a hearing at Birmingham Crown Court he was sentenced to seven months in prison, suspended for two years and 250 hours of unpaid work. Judge Paul Farrer QC said: 'It was conduct that caused real danger. 'The helicopter was over a built-up area. 'That which you did plainly had the potential to lead to catastrophic results both for the occupants of the helicopter and wholly innocent members of the public below who were probably sleeping in their beds.' Martin Knowles, West Midlands region NPAS manager, said: 'This was not accidental... it was a deliberate act. The demeanour of the people in the garden illustrates the attitude of many people - laughing and joking and believing their actions were somehow harmless fun. 'But aiming a laser pen at any aircraft, be it a police helicopter, air ambulance or commercial plane, can have disastrous consequences - it's certainly no laughing matter. 'The police take laser pen incidents very seriously - and of course it's easy for us to identify offenders as the light beam directs us straight to them, whilst high-tech on-board cameras enable us to keep tabs on them should they try to disappear.' The National Police Air Service said shining a laser pen into the eyes of pilots can cause permanent eye damage . Andy Shanks, a pilot with NPAS, said he'd been hit 'countless' times by laser pens during his 33 year flying career. 'When the light bounces off the screen it's like a disco-ball strobe effect in the cabin,' he said. 'It's disorientating, makes it impossible to focus on the instrument panel and is extremely dangerous as even a momentary loss of control can be crucial.' He said that people targeted with laser pens can suffer eye damage. Vowles was also ordered to pay a £100 victim surcharge and £300 of costs. | Chris Vowles shone laser pen into pilot's eyes on police helicopter .
Laser created 'bloom effect' which momentarily blinded the pilot .
Crew were dazzled and used thermal imaging to track him from 1,300ft .
He was part of group brandishing beer bottles as they celebrated prank .
Vowles, 23, was arrested by police and given suspended sentence .
Judge said Vowles' antics had 'catastrophic' potential to cause danger . |
266,311 | e4f01ff7c9bbb6d1ad6094bd390c3c72f515ee33 | Stephen Colbert plays a dangerous game. He walks a tightrope every night, and it's amazing that he doesn't fall on a regular basis. He tells jokes about race, gender, class and people love him or hate him. Does everyone get a joke? No. But of course he does say, in persona, amazingly offensive things sometimes. Last week things went south, and Twitter exploded in calls to #CancelColbert. The offense? A 140-character long foot-in-the-mouth that came from the Twitter feed @ColbertReport. The tweet was a joke that played off of a show segment that mocked an attempt by the owner of the Washington Redskins to make peace with the Native American community without having to change the team's name. "I'm willing to show the #Asian community I care by introducing the Ching-Chong Ding-Dong Foundation for Sensitivity to Orientals or Whatever." Race, meet satire. But it didn't work. The controversial tweet, it turns out, was not written by Colbert himself, or from anyone on his show. But it was a Comedy Central account that presumably had license from the show's producers to publicize and magnify Colbert's voice. But instead of repudiating the tweet, Colbert on Monday night made further jokes about how the incident almost silenced "my message of core conservative principles mixed with youth-friendly product placement." Following the lead of Asian-American activist Suey Park, some have been demanding that "The Colbert Report" be canceled. These words perpetuate hateful stereotypes and bring up a history of very public repression and personal shame. To use them now is to call forth that history. And in calling it forth, these words create more racism. Defenders say he's a "satirist" in the best Swiftian mold. He has a license to say such things, for he speaks in the name of truth and justice. They're saying that the tweet wasn't from him (even though they were his words). And they're saying that these words were perhaps taken out of context. Colbert's responses on Monday night were uninspiring. The whole show was devoted to it, but it was the cold opening that people will remember: Colbert imagined a dystopian post-Report world. Think hell ... er Manhattan ... freezing over, before prominent Chinese-American actor B.D. Wong saves the day by explaining to him that it's all been a bad dream! This is still "The Colbert Report." #CancelColbert has failed. I wasn't disappointed because I think the show should be canceled. It shouldn't. But I was hoping for something more sincere, perhaps even an apology or a sit-down with Ms. Park to let her issues be aired. (On the show, he made no mention of whether he tried to invite her to appear). Instead, he invited Twitter co-founder Biz Stone for a mock apology to Colbert himself, and -- offering a tepid "I never want this to happen again"-- shut down the Twitter account, @colbertreport. Many of Colbert's defenders have been asking why Park and her followers should get to decide what Colbert can and cannot say? Who cares what they think? Colbert should care what they think. Park and her followers represent a point of view that Colbert takes himself to be speaking for, liberals, racial minorities, the underprivileged. As a privileged white male, Colbert (just like the character he plays) gets his license to use what would otherwise be outrageous language because of his associations to those communities themselves. Colbert, his defenders will say, is a liberal with a history of fighting for the underprivileged. True. But white satirization of racial politics is conditioned on the blessing of the underprivileged themselves. This is why Colbert, in persona, sometimes cites the existence of a "black friend" and why Jon Stewart regularly discusses issues of race with his "Senior Black Correspondent." They know that it is precisely the underprivileged themselves that get to determine what should be done with the words that have been used to repress and embarrass them. Colbert, out of persona, should know that. Without an apology, what we have here is a case of a white liberal comedian trying to have his cake and eat it too. He's saying: "I have license to say hateful things because everyone knows I don't mean them or because I have an Asian friend." But the way he should show he doesn't mean them is by being sensitive to how his saying them affects others. If Park and the broader community are offended, he can't hide behind his liberalism. Liberalism is a license that comes with responsibilities that Colbert ought to abide by. "The Colbert Report" was never in any danger of being canceled over this. But whether or not he ever recognizes it, Colbert owes Park, as well as the broader Asian community, an apology. At the very least he should consider dropping the Ching-Chong Ding-Dong character. | A controversial tweet from @colbertreport raised a firestorm over racial satire .
Aaron Schiller: Though Stephen Colbert didn't post it, he should apologize .
He says the tweet, taken from a line he spoke, is offensive for Asian-Americans .
Schiller: Just because he is a comedian doesn't mean he can tell offensive jokes . |
62,086 | b0634e10722e6ad39a10011825176f40119717e1 | As fresh faced children who murdered their father as he slept in a chair, Derek and Alex King caught the nation's attention in 2001. But now, after spending a third of their lives behind bars, the brothers who were found guilty of murder when they were 12 and 13 are hoping for a more positive future. After years of being moved between foster homes and being occasionally cared for by their father, Terry, at a Florida home that had no power, the King brothers' main ambition is stability and a family of their own they told People magazine. New beginnings: Derek King, left, and his brother Alex, right, are coming to terms with life outside prison . Poor start: Alex, left, and Derek, right, pictured during their trial for murder in 2001 . 'I'm trying to figure out what a typical . family is,' Derek, now 25, said. The restaurant worker who is saving money so he can finish college, was convicted of killing his father with a baseball bat when he was 13, while his younger brother, then aged 12, egged him on. The brothers, who set fire to their family home after killing their father, don't like to talk about the past, but both accept responsibility for it. Derek, who is only now learning how to build relationships, told People he is keen to get married and settle down. 'My dream is to have a family,' the young man, who after his release in 2009 was left baffled by the changes in the world, said. 'I'd never heard of Facebook,' he said, adding that in prison he had turned to the Harry Potter children's books for inspiration. The 25-year-old said he could relate to Harry Potter's dismal family life and added that like that character: 'I was a kid who finds he really is special and has things to offer.' His brother, Alex, who was accused of suggesting that Derek killed their father, also struggled with life on the outside. He is currently back in prison after violating his parole and leaving the scene of an accident in 2011. But, like his brother, the 24-year-old who loves to study math and microbiology, is keen to live a simple, quiet life. On trial: The boys' court case gripped the nation as the youngsters were found guilty of killing their father . Accused: Ricky Chavis, pictured in court, was found guilty of accessory after the fact of murder . 'I don't need luxury' he told People. 'I like creature comforts: a nice couch, a flat-screen TV.' He added that 'being around others motivates me to do right,' and is looking forward to his release so he can be reunited with his girlfriend in California. Alex had a little extra help settling into life outside the prison walls after journalist Kathryn Medico welcomed him into her family, and acted like a surrogate mother to him when he was first released. She met Alex when she was researching a book on the brothers' crime, and soon started visiting him regularly and supporting him. Mrs Medico said while she was devastated when she missed the chance to hear him give his valedictory speech at his prison high school graduation, the teenager was just excited to have someone to celebrate with. 'He . had so many disappointments in his life that it didn't matter I wasn't . there for the speech,' she told People. 'It mattered that I was the family . there and meeting everyone.' While they were in prison the boys had no contact, but after their release they were were able to spend time together, and both are keen to prove to their supporters that they will do something positive with their life, Today reported. Before killing their father both boys had a difficult upbringing. They had been abandoned by their drug-addict mother and had been raised separately in a succession of foster homes. Guilty: Derek and Alex were sentenced to prison for killing their father in 2001 . It was during a brief moment of living together again at their father's home, that the boys met convicted child molester Ricky Chavis, who was accused at the trial of manipulating the youngsters. At their trial, the convicted child molester was accused of taking an inappropriate interest in Alex. The boy testified in court that he and Chavis had been having oral sex but the court deemed there wasn't enough evidence and Chavis was acquitted of molesting the child. However, he was sentenced to 35 years in prison after being found guilty of being an accessory to murder and tampering with evidence. The King brothers say Chavis gave them attention and treats they didn't get at home. 'We looked up to Ricky,' Derek said. The 41-year-old had a secret room in his home where the boys were allowed to play video games, miss school and smoke marijuana, their trial heard. Hope: Derek and Alex King want to move on with their lives and have families of their own . The judge felt that Alex had been vulnerable and manipulated by Chavis, leading to the 12-year-old's second-degree murder charge being replaced with a lesser third-degree charge. However, both brothers are ready to admit their crime and take responsibility for it. 'I take responsibility for killing him. I will pay for it for the rest of my life,' Derek said. | Derek and Alex King were children when they were sent to jail for murder .
Young men say they now want stability and families of their own . |
232,393 | b8eb57e3e9d1dfc909b53c1cc407375b7416a5de | Los Angeles (CNN) -- The unfolding saga of the Los Angeles Clippers co-owner Donald Sterling touches upon big, explosive issues in American society: Racism. Money. Sports. Secret recordings. And an estranged marriage. Sterling, an attorney and billionaire real estate mogul, is now fighting to keep his co-ownership of the NBA franchise after the league said it would ban him forever in the wake of allegations that he disparaged African-Americans in an audio recording. The Sterling controversy contains as many surprises and exchanges as the ongoing NBA playoffs, which, by the way, still include the Clippers in contention for the league title. In fact, on Thursday, the attorney for Sterling's wife, the other co-owner, told CNN that she's distancing herself from her husband and has informed the NBA she wants the team in her name. How the scandal began . Last month, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver announced the league was imposing a lifetime ban and a $2.5 million fine against Donald Sterling, co-owner of the Clippers since 1981, for "offensive and disturbing" remarks he made about blacks. Those remarks were uttered in an audio recording published by the celebrity news outlet TMZ, which asserted the two people talking on the tape were Sterling and his "girlfriend," V. Stiviano. TMZ hasn't stated who made the recording or how it was obtained. But Silver said the Clippers owner "acknowledged it was his voice on the tape." CNN hasn't independently confirmed the audio recording. Sterling and Stiviano haven't returned CNN's calls for comment. In a recent interview with ABC's Barbara Walters, however, Stiviano tacitly confirmed the authenticity of the recording when she stated she and Sterling often discussed race: "There's been a number of occasions where Mr. Sterling and I had conversations just like this one." In the recording, Sterling argues with Stiviano about how she posted to Instagram a photo with legendary NBA player Earvin "Magic" Johnson. "In your lousy f**ing Instagrams, you don't have to have yourself with -- walking with black people," Sterling says. "If it's white people, it's OK?" the woman responds. "If it was Larry Bird, would it make a difference?" Bird was also a NBA star who played with the Boston Celtics and a storied rival of Johnson, who played for the Los Angeles Lakers. "I've known [Magic] well and he should be admired .... I'm just saying that it's too bad you can't admire him privately," the man on the recording says. "Admire him, bring him here, feed him, f**k him, but don't put [Magic] on an Instagram for the world to have to see so they have to call me. And don't bring him to my games." When the woman says she doesn't share the man's views about race, he tells her: "Well, then, if you don't feel -- don't come to my games. Don't bring black people, and don't come." Stiviano's response . In her only substantial interview, Stiviano, 31, told ABC that Sterling, 80, is now hurting. "Tormented. Emotionally traumatized," Stiviano said. About her relationship with Sterling, Stiviano said she plays a big role in his life, but they are not romantically involved. "I love him just like a father figure," she told ABC. She also described herself as his "right-hand man," "confidant," and "best friend." They also have a financial arrangement, she said. "He at first started paying me as an employee, and then he started paying me off the books," she said. Her attorney, Mac E. Nehoray, said Stiviano was a platonic friend of Sterling's and not his "girlfriend" or, as some media outlets, including CNN, put it, his "mistress." "They were more like friends. Platonic," Nehoray told CNN. Stiviano is writing about book about her life, but she doesn't have a book deal connected to the Sterling controversy, Nehoray said. Even before the racial controversy erupted, Sterling's wife, Shelly, was well aware of Stiviano. In fact, in March, Shelly Sterling sued Stiviano, accusing her of having an affair with her husband and targeting extremely wealthy older men. Stiviano's attorney dismissed as "absolutely false" any description of Stiviano as a "gold digger" and a "con artist." Shelly Sterling's suit claims that her husband used the couple's money to buy Stiviano a Ferrari, two Bentleys and a Range Rover. Stiviano also took over a $1.8 million duplex through fraud and received about $250,000 in cash from Sterling, the court document claims. Stiviano is fighting back, saying in another court document that there was nothing wrong with Donald Sterling giving her gifts. She also says she never took advantage of him. Donald Sterling's response . Sterling had largely been silent on the controversy. The only significant comment he made was published last week on DuJour.com, which quoted Sterling as saying "I wish I had just paid her off" in reference to Stiviano. The website specified that Sterling was referring to Stiviano in a discussion with one of its writers, but the publication didn't state when the remark was made. CNN couldn't independently confirm the remark. On Thursday, however, another celebrity news outlet, RadarOnline.com, published a new audio recording of Sterling conversing with an unknown man about allegations of Sterling being a racist. Sterling emphatically denies being a racist in the conversation. "You think I'm a racist?" Sterling tells a person Radar Online calls "a long-time friend in the recorded phone conversation." "You think I have anything in the world but love for everybody? You don't think that! You know I'm not a racist!" Sterling says on the recording. "I grew up in East L.A. ..." Sterling continues. "I was the president of the high school there. I mean, and I'm a Jew! And 50% of the people there were black and 40% were Hispanic. ... So I mean, people must have a good feeling for me." CNN couldn't independently confirm the new audio recording. Radar Online said it obtained "a secret audio recording" from an unidentified source who also provided an affidavit confirming the phone call was made by Sterling. Sterling also declares in the recording that he won't sell his co-ownership in the Clippers as the NBA is now demanding. "You can't force people to sell property in America," Sterling says. At one point in the conversation, Sterling sounds bewildered when the friend tells him that rapper-producer Sean "Diddy" Combs is among the celebrities seeking to buy the Clippers. Friend: "I'm just saying they got Sean Combs Diddy... Sterling: "Who?" Friend: "Sean Combs and Oprah." What's next for the Clippers . The "Oprah" cited on the recording is Oprah Winfrey, who is among a long list of public figures reportedly seeking to buy the Clippers, one of 30 teams in the NBA. Other interested celebrities include Floyd Mayweather Jr., ranked by Forbes as one of the highest-paid athletes in the world; former boxing champion Oscar De La Hoya; basketball great Magic Johnson; producer-musician Dr. Dre; rapper Rick Ross; music mogul David Geffen; Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison; Rick Caruso, a real estate developer and Los Angeles civic leader; and actors Matt Damon, Whoopi Goldberg and Frankie Muniz. Meanwhile, Shelly Sterling has no intention of surrendering her stake in the team and has been in touch with the NBA about keeping the team, according to her attorney, Pierce O'Donnell, who spoke Thursday to CNN. Shelly Sterling owns 50% of the team, and her husband the other 50%, through a family trust, O'Donnell said. O'Donnell asserted that as of now, "she's the owner in charge." The couple continue to share properties, he added. But the Sterlings have been estranged and not living together for more than a year, O'Donnell said. Moreover, Shelly Sterling is now distancing herself from the racist comments attributed to her husband, O'Donnell said. "Mrs. Sterling has denounced in the strongest terms possible terms her husband's racist comments," O'Donnell said. Whether Shelly Sterling can keep the team in her name is being robustly discussed by analysts. Complicating the matter is how Donald Sterling intends to fight the forced sale, according to the RadarOnline.com recording. Donald Sterling could be forced to sell his team if three-quarters of the NBA team owners agree, NBA Commissioner Silver said. CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin said that for all practical purposes, the NBA effort to make Donald Sterling sell the team also applies to his wife. "They're the same ownership group. That is not separate ownership," Toobin said. As for the Clippers' more immediate prospects, the team is now tied 1-1 with the Oklahoma City Thunder in a best-of-seven-games playoff series. Both teams are vying to advance to the Western Conference playoffs, whose winner will play for the league title against the Eastern Conference winner. The Clipper's next game is Friday night at home, though the team's off-court drama is proving to be equally compelling. CNN's Stephanie Elam and Rosalina Nieves contributed to this report. | The saga of Clippers co-owner Donald Sterling involves secret recordings .
CNN hasn't been able to confirm new audio recording .
Attorney for Sterling's wife tells CNN the couple has been estranged for over a year .
Sterling's wife is now seeking full ownership of the Clippers, attorney says . |
81,412 | e6a96c4c73c8396584ac67c8dec98853bc3e0d51 | By . Becky Evans . PUBLISHED: . 23:44 EST, 28 April 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 02:36 EST, 29 April 2013 . Apprentice star Karren Brady has revealed how a potentially fatal illness changed her life forever. The businesswoman and West Ham vice-chairman was told she had a 30 per cent chance of dying when doctors discovered a brain aneurysm seven years ago. Brady, who has two children, said surviving the illness made her realise that 'life is short' and spurred her into joining The Apprentice. Karen Brady, pictured with her children at home, said a brain aneurysm changed her life . The businesswoman, pictured with Lord Sugar and Nick Hewer, said she would not have joined The Apprentice if she had not been ill and said it made her realise 'that life is short' She told Hello! Magazine: 'I would never have done The Apprentice had I not gone through the experience. 'It made me realise that life is short - and fun - and that you should try new things. I really believe in life-long learning. The moment you think you know it all is when you don't know anything at all.' At the time, doctors said it was a miracle she had survived giving birth to her children, Sophia and Paolo. Within a week of being diagnosed, the businesswoman had been operated on. Her husband Paul said the illness changed his wife considerably. Read the full article in Hello!, out now . He said: 'It made her softer and she's less likely to get so fraught about the unimportant things that used to wind her up.' Brady, who started her working life at Saatchi & Saatchi when she was 18, said she now regrets going back to work within days after giving birth to her daughter Sophia 17 years ago. She said: 'I regret that, but I didn't understand then. 'In those days, there was no such thing as flexible working or a work-life balance. 'It . is absolutely essential that you take time off when you have a family. I . just didn't know that then and nobody told me that it was okay. I was . still trying to prove myself so I carried on working.' Brady said she now liked nothing more than staying at home and cooking for her family. She . said: 'We rarely go out and I love to cook. We do a lot of Friday night . dinners and Sunday lunches. 'A slow-roast lamb is my speciality, or a . king prawn curry on a Saturday night.' In 2002 she became the first woman to hold such a post in the top flight of English football when the team was promoted. The next series of The Apprentice begins on May 7. Read the full article in Hello! magazine, out now . Brady is West Ham vice-chairman and used to be managing director of Birmingham City Football Club . | Businesswoman diagnosed with potentially fatal illness seven years ago .
Said it spurred her into joining BBC1 series The Apprentice .
Brady said she regrets not taking time off after having her two children . |
146,458 | 496405878ca1b405a90e77e7fb7c7906632d0a15 | By . Alex Greig . PUBLISHED: . 16:33 EST, 10 August 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 16:33 EST, 10 August 2013 . More than 100,000 people have applied to be a part of the Mars One project, which aims to colonize the red planet starting in 2022. Out of the thousands, 40 people will be selected. Of the 40, just four will participate in the first passage to Mars, which is scheduled to leave in September 2022 and land seven months later in April 2023. None of the four will ever return to Earth. Mission to Mars: The selected candidates will live in pressurized cabins equipped with 'plant production units' for growing food . More than 30,000 Americans have applied for the chance to be the very first settlers on Mars, paying a $38 application fee. The audacious project is the brainchild of a Dutch company run by CEO and creator Bas Lansdorp. Lansdrop told CNN that the price based is on the gross domestic product per capita of different nations. For example, Mexicans pay a $15 application fee. 'We wanted it to be high enough for people to have to really think about it and low enough for anyone to be able to afford it,' Lansdorp said. The very first mission to Mars will cost $6 billion, according to Lansdorp. Desolate: The first four settlers on Mars will have to contend with a cold, hostile planet and the knowledge that they'll never see their loved ones again . He intends to fund the mission by creating a 'reality TV' series about the mission, documenting everything from the astronauts' training on Earth right through to touch-down on Mars and their daily lives once on the planet. Sponsors and media agencies would pay to broadcast the Mars mission. 'What we want to do is tell the story to the world. When humans go to Mars, when they settle on Mars and build a new Earth, a new planet. This is one of the most exciting things that ever happened, and we want to share the story with the entire world,' Lansdorp said. Another second group of four will leave two years after the first. Wannabe astronauts: View some of the potential space travellers on Mars One's website . The astronauts will complete eight years of training. According to the Mars One website, candidates will be isolated from the world for a few months every two years in groups of four in simulation facilities, to test how they respond to living in close quarter with just three other people. They'll be trained in 'physical and electrical repairs to the settlement structures, cultivating crops in confined spaces, and addressing both routine and serious medical issues such as dental upkeep, muscle tears and bone fractures.' The seven to eight month journey will be 'arduous'. There will be no showers and only canned or freeze-dried food. Astronauts must complete three hours of exercise a day to maintain muscle mass. The atmosphere on Mars is so thin that settlers won't be able to go outside without a space suit. Cabins will need to be pressurized at all times. The point of no return: Once the newest Martians take off in their spacecraft, they'll never touch back down on Earth - no return mission is planned . There is no vegetation on the planet, but the Mars One settlers will begin to grow crops in specially designed 'plant production units'. By the admission of Mars One, 'You could say that most people would rather lose a leg than live the rest of their life on a cold, hostile planet, having said goodbye to friends and family forever, the best possible video call suffering from a seven minute delay - one way.' So just who are these would-be astronauts? Number one: A potential Mars One astronaut shows his support of the mission . Generous: Sean Holt has offered to make tinfoil hats for his fellow Mars astronauts should he be successful . Bailey, 19, from Arizona says she wants to be the first musician on Mars. 'I see this trip as an artistic opportunity, as well as a scientific one,' she says. 'I'm willing to dedicate my life to this mission, but I have a very positive outlook. I'm very light-hearted, and I love to joke around,' she says, before cracking some highly questionable jokes. A love of Star Wars and Star Trek seems to be a common thread with many applicants. Live from Mars: 19-year-old Bailey wants to be the first musician on Mars . Ready: John says his life experience, including a successful career, three children and a divorce has prepared him to dedicate the rest of his life settling on Mars . Sean Holt, 18, of Australia, says he has to go on the Mars One mission in order to escape aliens who are seeking him. He says will make all his fellow travelers tin foil hats. John, 50, says his life experience - even his divorce - have 'forged' him a perfect candidate for the mission. 'I can go to Mars without regret, and I will do whatever it takes to get the job done,' he says. | The Mars One mission aims to take four settlers to live on Mars in 2022 - forever .
More than 100,000 people, including 30,000 Americans, have applied so far . |
211,149 | 9d75400e9cc073883b3c7f903a250eae50ee37e1 | The annual Pimm’s wars have begun, with supermarkets under-cutting each other on the popular summer drink. Get in there quick at Tesco, where it’s £12 for a litre bottle until the end of today, or go to Asda where it’s £9 for a 70cl bottle (which works out at £12.86 a litre). At Morrisons it is £15 a litre and at Ocado it is £18, but you get a £5 jug free. Scroll down for video . The annual Pimm’s war has begun, with supermarkets under-cutting each other on the popular drink, you can snap up a taste of summer for £5.99 with Aldi's Austin's 70cl (left) and Sainsbury's Pitchers is £12 for 1 litre (right) Or why not try one of the alternatives? There are drinks made specifically by the supermarkets to compete with Pimm’s at a lower price — or to offer a more upmarket version. They are all gin-based, like Pimm’s, with added sugar and fruity flavours, though the alcohol content varies and some taste better than others. I had the onerous task of blind-testing some in the sunshine at the weekend (made up to the same proportions of alcohol, lemonade and fruit). It’s a tough job . . . Austin’s from Aldi . £5.99, 70cl (£8.56 per litre) You could tell the difference between this and Pimm’s only if you tasted them side-by-side — made up in a jug with lemonade and fruit, I am sure that no one would twig that you’d used a cheap version. Austin’s is slightly more citrussy and less sweet, and at 21.9 per cent alcohol against Pimm’s 25 per cent it is also less alcoholic. The bottle is quite a naughty copy — there’s even a signature scrawled on the lid just as there is with Pimm’s. VERDICT: By the time you’ve added lemonade, a sprig of mint and loads of fruit, your guests will never know. SCORE: 4/5 . Summer in a cup: Pimm's is usually served with a selection of fresh fruit including strawberries, cucumber, mint and orange . Pitchers from Sainsbury’s . £12, 1 litre . A few years ago, Diageo, which makes Pimm’s, tried to sue Sainsbury’s over this copy (they ended up with just a few minor label changes), and I can see why. It tastes so similar it’s incredible! It’s got the same amount of alcohol as Pimm’s, but there is a slightly stronger orange tang in Pitchers, and — at a push — I would say it’s sweeter, with less herbaceous notes. However, they’ve done incredibly well at making a near- perfect version. VERDICT: Hide the bottle and make up a pitcher . . . SCORE: 5/5 . Jeeves from Lidl . £5.99, 70cl (£8.56 per litre) My immediate reaction to this drink was it seemed less potent than Pimm’s, and indeed it is, with 17.5 per cent alcohol. Also, it doesn’t have any of Pimm’s bitter, complex flavours that make it such a clever drink. It just tastes like a sweet — and refreshing, mind — alcopop. Perfectly acceptable for some, just not quite the same as Pimm’s. VERDICT: Sweet and summery drink — good for those who really don’t like the taste of alcohol, but not my cup of Pimm’s. SCORE: 3/5 . Worthy contenders: Jeeves from Lidl is just £5.99 for 70cl (left) while Heston from Waitrose (right) is £21.35 for the same quantity . Heston from Waitrose . Fruit Cup, £21.35, 70cl (£30.50 a litre) Ideally you’d make this up with ginger ale and a sprig of rosemary, as Heston suggests, but I wanted to keep this test consistent (and I didn’t have any ginger ale to hand). It’s nothing like Pimm’s in taste or look — why on earth would Heston try to copy anyone — but it is rather lovely nonetheless, with flavours of red berries and blackcurrants, and interesting back notes of Earl Grey tea. VERDICT: It’s pricey but makes an excellent alternative to Pimm’s. SCORE: 4/5 . Sipsmith from Ocado or Waitrose . £15, 50cl (£30 a litre) I was excited to try this as I love Sipsmith gin, and the bottle is beautiful, but it’s very alcoholic — 29 per cent — and tastes herbaceous rather than fruity. For me, it needs to be far more diluted than a Pimm’s — more like a G&T. I far preferred it with tonic water and a squeeze of lemon. VERDICT: Better for a fruity, evening G&T than a lunchtime Pimm’s-a-like. SCORE: 3/5 . Pimm’s Blackberry and Elderflower . £9, 70cl at Asda; £12, 1 litre at Tesco (until today), Waitrose . This Pimm’s special edition sounds appealing — how can anyone not like blackberries or elderflower? But it tastes just like cola cube sweets to me — sweet, with no bitter or herb notes, and no redeeming features. VERDICT: Yuck! Is this aimed at children? SCORE: 0/5 . Bringing up the rear: Sipsmith Summer Cup (left) is a traditional take on the original and is available for £15 for 50cl at Ocado. Pimm's has brought out a special edition blackberry and elderflower flavour for the summer £9 for 70cl at Asda and £12 for 1 litre at Tesco (right) Gail’s Russian Rye Sourdough . £3 for 500g, Ocado . You’d be hard-pushed to find bread better than Gail’s and this is my favourite, made from a 15-year-old wild yeast starter, and allowed to rise naturally to produce a complex, delicious loaf. Heston from Waitrose Pork & picCalilli pie 280g . £2.69, Waitrose . You can’t have a picnic without a pork pie. And you can’t have a pork pie without piccalilli. Trust Heston to combine the two in this sensational, flaky-pastry pie. Belvoir raspberry lemonade . Around £2.29 for 750ml, widely available . Made from pressed raspberries, lemon juice, sparkling water and sugar, this stunning-looking pink lemonade tastes as wonderful as it looks. Waitrose mojito chicken cigarillos . 110g, £2.69 . It’s three for £6 on Waitrose picnic products until July 15, including these delicious filo ‘cigars’ filled with minced chicken mixed with rum, mint and lime. Belvoir raspberry lemonade (left) is made from pressed raspberries, lemon juice, sparkling water and sugar and is a wonderful accompaniment to any picnic. Waitrose chicken cigarillos (right) are on offer until July 15 . Tesco blue & red striped drinks bucket . £10 . Keep your drinks cool in this fabulous retro bucket — it goes with the deckchair, left. Asda Little Angels Soft Fruity Hand & Face Wipes . 30 pack for 77p . If you’re having a picnic you need a pack of wipes and these are cheap, hypoallergenic, smell lovely and are suitable for the whole family. Asda Extra Special Smoked Salmon With Cider . 120g, £5 or two for £8 . I love Asda’s Extra Special smoked salmon — it’s carved into lovely thin pieces and well-priced. This is also good, and has an interesting flavour. Epicurean Sorrento Picnic rug . £14.99, Ocado . Let your children climb trees or play hide and seek — they’ll be able to spot you a mile off on this funky rug. Asda Little Angels Soft Fruity Hand & Face Wipes (left) are great for mopping up and smell lovely, while the Epicurean Sorrento Picnic rug (right) will keep clothes dry to from any damp ground and looks very stylish . Gail’s Russian Rye Sourdough (left) is a delicious loaf while Asda Chosen by You Pretzel Bread (right) is baked daily in store and come either plain or topped with cheese, poppy seeds or sesame seeds . Asda Chosen by You Pretzel Bread . 50p each or three for £1 . Baked daily in Asda’s in-store bakeries, these are available plain or topped with cheese, poppy seeds or sesame seeds. Harry Brompton’s alcoholic ice tea . 275ml, £1.52, until July 15, then £2, Waitrose . This moreish drink was tried out in a selection of Waitrose stores and was so popular it has been rolled out into 235 branches. Tesco Blue Wooden DeckChair . £30 . Give your picnic a retro seaside feel with this gorgeous traditional deckchair. This Tesco Blue Wooden DeckChair, which costs £30, can help give your picnic a retro seaside feel . Compare and save on your grocery shop at mysupermarket.co.uk . | Pimm's is well known as one of the most popular summer party drinks .
Supermarkets haven't failed to notice offering their own alternatives .
Food writer Anne Shooter has tried and tested the summer cup offerings .
Sainsbury's scores top marks whereas a Pimm's variation fails to impress . |
219,790 | a8827e5e3a67aedffeacdbb5ce963bf97937fb8e | Juneau, Alaska (CNN) -- It started when a friend handed her the book "Scream Quietly or the Neighbors Will Hear," about violence against women. "I took it home and didn't put it down all night," Caren Robinson told me, laughing nervously and then tearing up, her voice quavering. "And I realized it was me. We just didn't talk about it back then ... I just thought I was the only one." That was in the late 1970s, shortly after Robinson -- a fiery 63-year-old who looks like the Alaska version of Reba McEntire -- moved to Juneau, Alaska, to escape an abusive husband who, at different points over years, held a gun to her head, beat her and, one time, sexually assaulted her. She called the cops on him twice, she told me, but he never was arrested or charged. The police told her maybe she should consider a divorce or that, when he used a gun, he was just "teasing" and it had gotten out of hand, she told me. Robinson would go on to become a pioneer of the women's rights movement in a state that needs it more than any other. Alaska is estimated to have the highest rate of reported rape in the county, according to FBI crime data. The rate is three times the national average. State surveys show 37% of women will face sexual violence; and 59% will suffer from threats, domestic abuse and/or sexual assault. Because those numbers are still so high, Robinson sometimes wonders if all her work to end violence against women here has been a waste of time. It hasn't, of course. The results can be seen inside the walls of the Aiding Women in Abuse and Rape Emergencies, or AWARE, shelter in Juneau, which first opened in a two-bedroom house in the late 1970s and at its current location in 1985 -- a time when there were few if any women's shelters in the state. They can be seen in the lives changed because she took battered women into her houseboat before there was any formal place for them to go. And they can be seen in Alaska's Council on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, which she helped lobby for and create, and which continues to fund violence prevention and treatment programs here. It's the rest of the state that needs to step up. The lawless 'end of the land' Too many women aren't believed when they come forward to report rape and domestic abuse. Too many offenders aren't prosecuted. (Only 46% of reported sexual assaults in Alaska are referred for prosecution and 22% result in a conviction, according to the University of Alaska Anchorage Justice Center.) Too many families tolerate or just accept abuse and rape they see and hear in their own homes. And far too many communities remain virtually lawless. All that could change if the state would follow Robinson's lead. Her life story should be enough of a wake-up call for this state. Alaska's pioneer woman grew up in Weatherford, Texas, about as far from Alaska as an American could get. She was a beauty queen -- became Miss Parker County at age 17, wearing a gown her mother made. But she remembers that night more for the violence. It was the first time her then-boyfriend gave her a black eye. He was jealous of the attention, she told me. But she stuck with him, thought she was in love. The rapist next door . "I remember ... hiding, putting makeup on around my eyes, trying to avoid my mother and father for a few days," she said. "Embarrassed." It only escalated from there. She tried to leave and he came back for her, one time riding after her on a motorcycle, she said. She ended up moving to Alaska to finally get away, for good. They were divorced by then, and a group of her friends drove up to the state on a bus and she followed with her 4-year-old son, on a plane. "I lucked out," she said. "It's the best thing that ever happened to me." Shortly after she arrived in Juneau, that's when a friend gave her the book that would open up all her thinking -- make her realize that she hadn't done anything to deserve being beaten and raped, that violence against women was a disease that grew from silence and oppression. She learned that Juneau was not up to protecting its women; the city had no 911 service, let alone a shelter for battered women. So she did something about it: She and a group of like-minded friends started housing survivors of rape and domestic violence in their homes. That's when she started letting women stay in her tiny houseboat, which she rented because she couldn't afford a home in picturesque Juneau. To hear her son, Shane Robinson, in his 40s, tell it, his mom was at this work virtually on her own, his whole life. "She worked pretty much all the time," he told me. And he said he thinks now that their lives were at risk because of her advocacy. States where rape is most common . Her voice is one Alaska didn't want to hear. Robinson set up a hot line for victims and responded to some of the emergency calls herself. She remembers waking up in the middle of the night and throwing Shane in the car to go to a hospital with a rape kit, to be sure it was used. "Unfortunately, the case never went anywhere," she said. "I even remember (police) called her to take two lie detector tests to make sure she was telling the truth." "We even did radical things like post pictures of known rapists in all of the bar bathrooms," Robinson told me, "because we couldn't get the assistance we needed from the local law enforcement at the time." When other survivors of violence weren't willing to speak up, Robinson met with members of the state legislature. She said that sharing her story openly helped men who might otherwise ignore these issues pay attention and change laws. Forcing that conversation may be Robinson's greatest contribution. She realizes that. 5 ways to help end rape in Alaska . "It's now in the public eye," she said. "People can't turn their heads any longer. They see it. They hear it. They know it's happening." But she wrestles with her legacy. Several years ago, she backed away from advocating for victims of rape and domestic violence. After several public officials and community pillars in Juneau were outed as abusers, she became paranoid, she told me. She started thinking everyone she met was an abuser or rapist. "There is a blessing in not knowing how bad it is around you, except by picking up the paper and seeing it daily: a 30-year-old man, a 45-year-old woman, a 27-year-old man have been arrested for domestic violence," she said. Talk to her about the statistics now -- that Alaska is still America's rape capital -- and the life drains from her face as she says she's not sure anything's changed. Alaska needs to prove her wrong. This state can change. It just needs to wake up, like Robinson did all those years ago. "Violence inside the home, within the family, is not new, and because it is not new, it is not easy to see it for what it is," Erin Pizzey, a women's rights activist in the UK, writes in the book that changed the course of Robinson's life back in the 1970s. "People have had lots of practice in ignoring it. They will turn a blind eye or cross the road. They will even, as one woman told Women's Aid, turn up the TV to block out the shouting and sobbing next door so that they can no longer hear it." Turn down the TV, Alaska. And do it for Caren Robinson. Alaska faces its 'resident evil' The opinions expressed in this column are solely those of John D. Sutter. | John Sutter meets a pioneer of the women's rights movement in Alaska .
Caren Robinson once sheltered battered women in her houseboat in Juneau .
She later would open one of the first women's shelters in the state .
Alaska is estimated to have the highest rate of reported rape in the country . |
718 | 021762c16e4e3b65a336bf4a59c4534705d2dbfb | Leading U.S. CEOs, angered by . the Obama administration's challenge to certain 'workplace . wellness' programs, are threatening to side with anti-Obamacare . forces unless the government backs off, according to people . familiar with the matter. Major U.S. corporations have broadly supported President . Barack Obama's healthcare reform despite concerns over several . of its elements, largely because it included provisions . encouraging the wellness programs. The programs aim to control healthcare costs by reducing . smoking, obesity, hypertension and other risk factors that can . lead to expensive illnesses. A bipartisan provision in the 2010 . healthcare reform law allows employers to reward workers who . participate and penalize those who don't. Scroll down for videos . Upset: Leading U.S. CEOs, angered bythe Obama administration's challenge to certain 'workplace wellness' programs, are threatening to side with anti-Obamacareforces . But recent lawsuits filed by the administration's Equal . Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), challenging the . programs at Honeywell International and two smaller . companies, have thrown the future of that part of Obamacare into . doubt. The lawsuits infuriated some large employers so much that . they are considering aligning themselves with Obama's opponents, . according to people familiar with the executives' thinking. 'The fact that the EEOC sued is shocking to our members,' said Maria Ghazal, vice-president and counsel at the Business . Roundtable, a group of chief executives of more than 200 large . U.S. corporations. 'They don't understand why a plan in . compliance with the ACA (Affordable Care Act) is the target of a . lawsuit," she said. 'This is a major issue to our members.' She then added, 'There have been conversations at the most senior levels of . the administration about this.' Business Roundtable members are due to meet Obama in a . closed-door session on Tuesday, where they may air their . concerns. It is not clear how many members of the group, whose . companies sponsor health insurance for 40 million people, are . considering any action. It is also not clear if the White House . can stop the EEOC from challenging wellness programs. Angered: Maria Ghazal (above), vice-president and counsel at the BusinessRoundtable, which represents over 200 corporations, is due to meet Obama in aclosed-door session on Tuesday . Obamacare allows financial incentives for workers taking . part in workplace wellness programs of up to 50 percent of their . monthly premiums, deductibles, and other costs. That translates . into hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars in extra annual . costs for those who do not participate. Typically, participation means filling out detailed health . questionnaires, undergoing medical screenings, and in some cases . attending weight-loss or smoking-cessation programs. One of the arguments presented in the lawsuit against three . employers is that requiring medical testing violates the . Americans with Disabilities Act. The lawsuits are based on the view that it is no longer . voluntary if employees face up to $4,000 in penalties for . non-participation, loss of insurance or even their jobs. Employers, however, see the lawsuits as reneging on the . administration's commitment to an important part of the . healthcare reform. In practical terms, large corporations have several ways to . undermine Obamacare if they decide to. One is to support legal challenges to the subsidies given to . low-income individuals who buy health insurance on the federal . exchange established under the law. Neither the Business . Roundtable nor any of its CEO members have done this so far. Another option is to make top executives available for . hearings on repealing or diluting Obamacare. 'We never did this . before,' said the person familiar with the executives' thinking. 'But they could turn up the noise. I don't think the White House . would want the CEOs turning on them and supporting these efforts . on the Hill.' The nuclear option would be to radically change . employer-sponsored health insurance. Large corporations are . highly unlikely to eliminate it, but they might give workers a . fixed amount of money to buy coverage on a private insurance . exchange. That would allow employers, almost all of which pay . workers' medical claims out of their earnings, to cap their . healthcare spending. | Many CEOs are angry with the Obama administration thanks to three new cases challenging parts of his 'wellness program'
In order to participate in the 'wellness program' and receive a low health care rate under Obamacare, employees must take a physical .
Now it is being argued in three cases that forcing someone to take a physical for work violates the Americans with Disabilities Act .
The CEOs now have a number of ways they can undermine Obama because of this development . |
31,864 | 5ab1967414ba2673f1621d408d2786e788a7dee4 | (CNN) -- A scholar of world religions writes a book about Jesus. A woman, whose politician husband is caught in a sex scandal twice, decides to stand by him. Nothing out of the ordinary. But two giants of American mainstream media -- one on the right, the other left-of-center -- have come under criticism this week for interpreting the actions of the two through glasses tainted with ethnic slant. A FoxNews.com interview segment was widely derided online when the anchor kept asking author Reza Aslan how a Muslim can write a book about Jesus. While Aslan patiently explains -- repeatedly -- that it's his scholastic expertise that qualifies him to do so, the anchor presses on with the same question. On the other end, New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd posited in an editorial that Huma Abedin continues to stay by the side of her philandering husband, Anthony Weiner, because of her alleged harsh upbringing in Saudi Arabia. Foxnews.com interview . Aslan spoke to Piers Morgan on Monday night about his experience on Fox. "Truly, I was kind of embarrassed," he said. He felt uncomfortable having to repetitively parade his academic credentials by Fox anchor Lauren Green. "You really come off as a jerk, when you do that," said Aslan, who holds three degrees in religion. He has studied the life of Jesus for 20 years and calls him his "hero." Green seemed wholly uninterested in Aslan's qualifications. Her first question set the tone for the rest of the conversation, in which she spent nearly 10 minutes casting religious doubt on his motivations for writing the book. "You're a Muslim, so why did you write a book about the founder of Christianity?" The video of the interview went viral, and Green's reduction of Aslan to his religion triggered a backlash on social media. "reza aslan's interview on fox news was so painful to watch, he was basically being interviewed by a wall," said @nimbaaa on Twitter. Some lambasted Green for tenaciously skirting Aslan's academic credentials, posting satirical comparisons, like this one on Twitter from @RadhikaMadhani: . "I'm a vet who has a Ph.D. in treating animals. Lauren Green: But you're a human. Reza Aslan: But I have a Ph.D..." "I have a Ph.D. in oceanography, I study the ocean. But you live on land. Yes, but my area of study is the ocean," tweeted @lamaquinapls in the same vein. Critics from established media joined in. The Los Angeles Times called the interview "strange," adding that Green gave Aslan the "proverbial third degree." Slate.com called the interview "cringe-worthy." "Is This The Most Embarrassing Interview Fox News Has Ever Done?" BuzzFeed asked in a headline. Aslan told Morgan that he feels bad for Green. People get emotional, when academics write about their religion, fearing it is being attacked, he said. "Nothing could be further from the truth. The most important people in my life are Christian -- my wife and my mother," he said. Aslan was born a Muslim but felt inspired by Christianity in his youth and converted, as he explains in an essay he wrote for CNN. "When I was 15 years old, I found Jesus," he wrote. He later converted back to Islam, the religion of his ancestors. The Fox interview and subsequent media coverage have garnered his book more attention. On Monday, it was the bestselling title on Amazon. Times article . The New York Times' ethnic slant was less belabored. It didn't take up a 10-minute segment but instead just one single paragraph. Huma Abedin is a longtime aide of Hillary Clinton. Her husband, Anthony Weiner, has been caught twice sending explicit messages to women on social media. He was recently caught for the second time sending out lewd photos of himself. Abedin pledged her love for him at a news conference. Columnist Maureen Dowd explained Abedin's decision this way: "Huma was raised in Saudi Arabia, where women are treated worse by men than anywhere else on the planet." First, Abedin is not exactly Saudi Arabian. Her late father was from India; her mother from Pakistan. She was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan, but the family moved to Saudi Arabia when she was 2. She moved back to the United States to attend George Washington University. She began her Washington career as a White house intern, before working in Hillary Clinton's office, when Clinton was first lady. Some could not help but see the irony in the same situation connecting both women, in light of the Monica Lewinsky affair during the presidency of Bill Clinton. "Commentary on Huma Abedin's ethnic reasons for standing by her man ignores the fact that her white boss Hillary Clinton did the same #Weiner," @SaeedShah posted to Twitter. Moroccan author and novelist Laila Lalami tweeted: . "Maureen Dowd: Huma Abedin stands by Anthony Weiner because she was raised in Saudi Arabia. Remind me, where was Hillary Clinton raised?" | Fox News and The New York Times come under fire for ethnic slant .
A reporter kept asking author Reza Aslan how a Muslim can write a book about Jesus .
Columnist: Anthony Weiner's wife stands by him because she's from Saudi Arabia .
Aslan has studied Jesus for 20 years and calls him his "hero" |
79,346 | e0ee64b55a7f9cb60780dc0fc18bb5a151c584bb | By . Bianca London . PUBLISHED: . 11:54 EST, 31 October 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 14:01 EST, 31 October 2013 . Sam and Billie Faiers have lost a stone each in less than 12 weeks, so it's no wonder that they wanted to showcase the results of their efforts. The TOWIE stars displayed their enviably toned figures in a photoshoot to launch their winter clothing range for their store, Minnies Boutique. Sam, 22, has lost a stone through sensible eating and intense group workouts. 23-year old Billie also lost a stone, three inches off her waist and dropped a dress size in less than 12 weeks thanks to a DNA-based diet and fitness regime. New figures: Billie (L) and Sam Faiers (R) have each lost a stone and celebrated by posing in their new winter range for their store, Minnies Boutique . The DNAFit test, which examines gene variants linked to a body’s capacity to cope with training and certain types of food, revealed that Billie loses weight most successfully by following a low-carbohydrate diet – proving that old TOWIE adage ‘No Carbs Before Marbs'. Speaking about her weightloss, she said: 'I now feel I have more energy and am less sluggish. I’m really happy with a more toned body, dropping a dress size and losing three inches from my waist. 'I still want to lose another six pounds . but this test has given me the confidence to know what I should be . doing in the gym and what foods I should avoid. I’ve so much more energy . now I’ve reduced my carb intake.' Before and after: Billie (pictured left before her weight loss in Marbella) has shed a stone by cutting out most carbs . As she was: Sam, pictured left before her weight loss, has also shed a stone by eating sensibly and working out more - and you can see the results as she models her Polar dress, right, £49 . Biggest loser: 23-year old Billie lost a stone, three inches off her waist and dropped a dress size in less than 12 weeks thanks to the DNA diet (velvet houndstooth crop top, £20) She works out: Sam, 22, has lost a stone through sensible eating and group work-out sessions (L- brown houndstooth shorts suit, £87, and R - leather sleeve biker jacket, £60) Entrepreneurs: The sisters have been running Minnies Boutique for two years now and are loving every minute (lacey sweater dress, £55) She can't be stopped! Billie says she feels less sluggish since cutting out carbs but still wants to lose some more weight (L- electric blue dress, £34, R- Himalayan coat, £89) Sam and Billie showcase . their weightloss efforts in the new campaign and sport typically . glowing tans, toned physiques and blinding pearly whites. The . range, which includes graphic prints, fitted dresses complete with . pussy-bow collars and cosy faux fur coats, is priced between £34 and £89. Speaking about the new range, the sisters told MailOnline: 'Minnies Online is always busy and continues at a fast pace, but in the past 6 months we have been busier than ever. 'When we are buying we have to predict the latest trends and what we think people will go mad about. We really take time to get to know our customers and work out what they will want to be seen in.' The reality TV stars have . been running . their lucrative business in Brentwood, Essex, for two years and have . seen such success that they have launched a series of pop-up stores . across the UK. 'Our Pop-Up Shop Tour has been so . successful over the past two years and in constant demand so we . have scheduled two more Southern and Northern dates before the end of . 2013.' Exciting: The sisters say they can't wait for 2014 and have lots of exciting ventures on the go (L- Minnies dressing gown pink, £39.99, R - Eav sweater, £42) Billie added: 'Minnies is a family project. We all work together to make it a success. My mum and aunt Libby are . the owners with myself and Sam, and we take care of the buying . and making sure the stock is right online and in the boutique while . they run the business and retail side.' Speaking about the future of their fashion empire, the duo said: 'We are looking forward to 2014 which is going to be our most exciting year yet. 'We have so many Minnies and personal projects lined up that we can’t wait to hit the ground running'. All items are available from Minnies Boutique Online: www.minnies-boutique.co.uk – The Minnies Boutique Pop Up Shop Tour will be visiting Southampton’s WestQuay Shopping Centre on the 30th November & 1st December 2013 & Preston’s Fishergate Shopping Centre on the 7th & 8th December 2013. | Billie, 23, lost a stone on a DNA-based diet and fitness regime .
Sam, 22, lost a stone through sensible eating and work-out sessions .
New winter range priced between £34 and £89 . |
436 | 01481086a0345380b54bc7e2ba6acb72d61b3a67 | (CNN) -- "The Darkness II" is a gore-filled, blood-enraged slaughterfest that really wants to be a feel-good, love story. Oh, and you get to fight with characters who have four arms. Set a couple of years after the conclusion of the original game in this series, players control Jackie Estacado, a crime boss who is also host to an ancient evil known as The Darkness. This force imbues Jackie with superhuman powers including two extra arms -- called "demon arms" in the game -- that look like snakes with piranhas for heads. It's scary stuff. And these extra arms are essential for in-game combat. Jackie has been keeping The Darkness bottled up inside, but there are others who want the power for themselves. As the game starts out, The Darkness gets released and helps Jackie in his war against the Brotherhood. At its core, "The Darkness II" is a first-person shooter that adds in the demon arms and provides four different opportunities of attack. The shooting aspect is solid, with plenty of different weapons to choose from, and allows Jackie the ability to carry around two sets of weapons, at least sometimes. When you're carrying four weapons with four arms, that's when the action and that's where it really gets bloody. The two arms, which resemble snakes with piranha heads, can lash out at opponents, grab and destroy doors and fences, and help gather Essence -- the element that helps Jackie increase his powers. The arms also have some pretty bloody (and cool) finishing moves that raise the gore to med-school-dissection-class levels. Opponents get various extremities ripped off and tossed aside or violently torn in two using the legs as a wishbone. The more gruesome the kill, the more Essence can be collected. And the stronger Jackie can become by spending Essence on improved weapons, special demon arm kill bonuses or super powers. Using four arms to fight enemies works fairly naturally, but does get a little hectic in some of the group battles. In trying to gain as much Essence as possible, I found myself rushing toward distance opponents to grapple with the demon arms, but taking a bunch of damage along the way. Eventually, I decided just to pick off far-away bad guys with weapons and wait for the grunts to come rushing to me. In the game, there is no mini-map or radar to let you know where the villains are located and there will be times you just have to get hit to find out there was someone behind you. Enemies do spawn from every direction -- even places you just cleared out -- so be prepared to swivel around a lot. The artwork in the game is very graphic-noir, with a hand-painted look. It looks great. Gritty exteriors, colorful interiors and a hell-scape that was foreboding helps immerse the player in whatever environment they were in. Each area was distinct with the appropriate overall emotional landscape. Darklings are back from the first title. Or, I should say, a Darkling is back. These physical manifestations of the Darkness in your brain were used as weapons in the previous game. This time, there is only one and he acts more like a sidekick than a destroyer. Looking like an agile goblin, the Darkling provides some good comedic moments, but he's also handy in distracting opponents, getting into tight places, and short-circuiting electrical boxes when needed. There is also a point in the game where Jackie takes over the Darkling and you get to directly control it. The new viewpoint makes for a nice change of pace. For all these game-play nuances, however, the story of "The Darkness II" is where the game developers really wanted to make their mark. Jackie, still mourning over the murder of his girlfriend, has visions of her in the early part of the game. Players discover an eternal love between the two that eventually crosses over the barriers between life and death. That type of romantic story plays out mostly in cut scenes and cinematics. This love stuff felt jarring and out of place at times when compared to the brutality of the battles. Do you get invested in the story? Sure. However, there are a few disjointed moments that left me scratching my head and wondering what it all meant. Also, the game seemed short. Compressed action and lengthy cut scenes did nothing to make the adventure last, and the ending came around too quickly. So I was a little disappointed when I realized the story was coming to a close. Overall, "The Darkness II" is a solid shooter that gets amplified by the fact that you get to fight with four arms. Using the demon arms to rip opponents to shreds or fling them into the sky never seems to get old. Oh, and much like today's movies, stick around after the credits. You'll really want to see this. "The Darkness II" is available in North America on February 7 and in Europe on February 10. It can be played on Windows PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The game is rated (unsurprisingly) M for Mature due to blood and gore, drug references, intense violence, strong language, and strong sexual content. This review was done with the Limited Edition version for the PS3. | Players control Jackie Estacado, a crime boss .
The Darkness gets released and helps Jackie fight the Brotherhood .
The game is a first-person shooter that adds in the demon arms . |
214,505 | a1c0d0619526a7e5beb8e3cc16f7408f45c24845 | Former Germany goalkeeper Oliver Kahn thinks Sir Alex Ferguson has never forgiven him for snubbing the chance to join Manchester United. Kahn told German fans' website Fanbookz that he had a 'serious offer' from the Red Devils in 1994, but he instead opted to join Bayern Munich, with whom he played 14 seasons before retiring in 2008. 'Alex Ferguson has never forgotten that,' Kahn said. 'He still holds that against me to this day.' Oliver Kahn believes Sir Alex Ferguson holds it against him that he refused an offer to join Manchester United . Peter Schmeichel (left) believes Kahn would have had 'a good experience' if he joined Ferguson (right) According to former United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel, Kahn committed a cardinal sin. 'You never say no to Sir Alex,' the Dane said on the same programme. 'It would have been a good experience for Kahn (at United).' Schmeichel and Kahn were in opposing goals in the 1999 Champions League final, which United won with two stoppage-time goals after Mario Basler's early strike had put Bayern ahead. Kahn lifted the trophy two years later when Bayern beat Valencia on penalties, while he won a record eight Bundesliga titles. | Oliver Kahn won eight Bundesliga titles during his Bayern Munich career .
He could have joined Manchester United in 1994, but chose Bayern .
Kahn believes Sir Alex Ferguson was upset not to bring him to Old Trafford . |
166,543 | 635c004cc80cb47eea4781464870f9a1bcfb0642 | (CNN) -- Police in Maryland are on the hunt for the perpetrator of what appears to be an April Fools' Day prank that left a man glued to a toilet at a Wal-Mart store. If caught, the jokester who doused the seat with glue at the Elkton Wal-Mart on March 31 could face second-degree assault charges, said Lt. Matthew Donnelly of the Elkton Police Department. Police, along with the Singerly Fire Co. and the Cecil County paramedics, were called to the scene at about 7 p.m. There, they found the 48-year-old victim, who called for help after realizing the sticky situation he was in when he tried -- and failed -- to stand up and leave the superstore's restroom, Donnelly said. It took responders 15 minutes to remove the victim from the stall, but they were unable to disconnect the toilet seat from his body, Donnelly said. Instead, the victim was taken to Union Hospital of Cecil County, where the seat was detached. He left with only minor injuries to his buttocks, Donnelly said. Police do not suspect that the victim was specifically targeted, but that the incident was a random prank, Donnelly said. They have not received reports of glue-laden toilet seats since. | Apparently random victim had to be taken to hospital .
Wal-Mart incident appeared to be April Fools' Day joke .
If caught, prankster could be charged with second-degree assault . |
186,784 | 7dee7c2b24652c432bf80b472551b8982f967c51 | MOSCOW, Russia (CNN) -- The head of a leading Russian human rights group accused the presidents of Russia and Chechnya of complicity in murdering their top activist in Chechnya. Natalya Estemirova, pictured in 2007, had been openly critical of Chechnya's president, Ramzan Kadyrov. "I am confident about who killed Natalya Estemirova. We all know this person. His name is Ramzan Kadyrov, President of the Chechen republic," Oleg Orlov, the chairman of the Russian human rights group Memorial said on the group's Web site Thursday. "Ramzan was intimidating and insulting Natalya, and considered her his personal enemy. We don't know whether it was him personally who ordered her [murder] or it were his aides who wanted to please their boss. As far as [Russian] President [Dmitry] Medvedev is concerned, it seems that he doesn't mind having a murderer as head of one of the Russian regions." Estemirova, 50, was kidnapped outside her home in Chechnya Wednesday, Orlov said, citing eyewitnesses, and found dead in the neighboring Russian republic of Ingushetia later the same day. Her body was riddled with bullets, Russian prosecutors said -- several shots to the abdomen, and one to the head. The winner of three international human rights awards, she was a leading activist in the North Caucasus area who had been openly critical of Kadyrov and his methods. Kadyrov vowed Thursday that he would personally oversee the investigation and assure her killers were punished. "She couldn't have had enemies among reasonable people," he said in a statement on the Chechen government Web site. "Those who took away her life have no right to be called humans, they don't deserve any mercy, and should be punished as the most cruel criminals. "I have no doubts whatsoever that those who ordered and conducted this crime will face trial," he said. "That is the very least that the government and society must do in commemoration of Estemirova." Medvedev said Thursday the murder was "a very sad event," adding it was "absolutely clear... her murder is linked to her professional activities. "Her type of professional activity is needed by any normal state. She did very useful things. She spoke the truth. She openly, sometimes harshly assessed some types of processes that occurred in our country, and this is the value of human rights workers, even if they are not comfortable," Medvedev said Thursday on a visit to Germany. His host, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, warned the killing could affect Russian-German relations. "This is an unacceptable event, and especially if we want to intensify the relations between our two countries, it cannot remain unsolved," she said in a joint appearance with Medvedev. Medvedev had earlier condemned the murder and said her killers should punished to the full extent of the law, his office said. Estemirova shouted that she was being kidnapped, as she was forced into a white Lada automobile that had stopped on the road in front of her house on Wednesday morning, Orlov said. An unidentified man grabbed her and shoved her into the car, Orlov told CNN. Estemirova had spent years investigating human rights abuses in Chechnya, the restive Russian republic where Russian forces have fought two conflicts against separatists since 1991. Russia officially ended its military mission in Chechnya in April of this year. The activist told CNN in 2007 she was investigating dozens of abductions and murders that had become the norm in Chechnya, where security forces were fighting a dirty war against separatist rebels. She joins a growing list of journalists and activists killed after criticizing the Russian authorities, many of whose murders remain officially unsolved. Top United States and European officials condemned the murder of Estemirova and demanded that the killers be brought to justice. "Such a heinous crime sends a chilling signal to Russian civil society and the international community and illustrates the tragic deterioration of security and the rule of law in the North Caucasus over the last several months," U.S. National Security Council spokesman Mike Hammer said in a statement. "How many more Natalya Estemirovas and Anna Politkovskayas must be killed before the Russian authorities protect people who stand up for the human rights of Russian citizens?" Council of Europe Secretary General Terry Davis demanded, referring to the Russian investigative journalist who was killed in 2006. The Committee to Protect Journalists said in a written statement that Estemirova had "uncovered massive, ongoing human rights violations in Chechnya by the federal and regional authorities." "The killers of this courageous reporter, one of the few left in Chechnya, must not be allowed to walk free like so many before them," CPJ Deputy Director Robert Mahoney said. She won three international awards for human rights activities -- including the inaugural Anna Politkovskaya Award, named for the murdered journalist with whom she often worked. Estemirova was Politkovskaya's "most frequent companion during travel and investigations in Chechnya," the organization Reach All Women in War said in announcing the prize for Estemirova. "They investigated a number of cases together -- about which Anna wrote for (the newspaper) Novaya Gazeta and Natalya wrote for Memorial's Web site and for local newspapers." Estemirova studied history at Grozny University, then taught history before turning to journalism and human rights in 1998, Memorial said. She joined the organization in March 2000. CNN's Senior International Correspondent Matthew Chance, Maxim Tkachenko and Mike Sefanov in Moscow, Russia, contributed to this report. | Estemirova was abducted outside her home in Grozny, Chechnya .
Rights group Memorial says Chechen president involved in murder .
Leaders of Russia and Chechnya condemn the murder . |
124,762 | 2d40f23b6625ecb29b0179919d684355b3be7284 | By . Helen Pow . PUBLISHED: . 15:17 EST, 10 October 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 15:24 EST, 10 October 2013 . A 55-year-old Baltimore grandfather has been charged with involuntary manslaughter after he accidentally left his 16-month-old granddaughter to die in his hot truck three months ago. Sabriya Towles was discovered in her Anthony Jerome Towles' vehicle in Lansdowne in mid-July but her death was initially ruled an accident and the result of hyperthermia, the medical term for excessively high body temperatures. But on October 5, more than three months later, authorities arrested Towles, who they say forgot to drop the infant at child care, instead leaving her in the car at their shared home while he went to have a nap. Tragic: Sabriya Towles, pictured, was discovered dead in her grandfather's truck on July 5 but her death was initially ruled an accident . Mark Cheshire, a spokesman for Baltimore State's Attorney Gregg L. Bernstein, declined to comment on the case but he told the Baltimore Sun that 'based on the evaluation of the evidence, this is the appropriate charge.' Towles slept for four hours after returning home on July 5. As time passed, the temperature rose to a blistering 88 degrees and even hotter inside the truck. When he woke, he went to pick up his granddaughter at daycare. Young life: Towles said he forgot to drop the infant, pictured, at child care, instead leaving her in the car at their shared home while he went to have a nap . 'He had been told that the child was never dropped off in the morning. When he ran back out to his vehicle, he discovered that the child was unresponsive in the back seat,' Cathy Batton, of Baltimore County Police, told CBS Baltimore. Police and fire units were called to the 4100 block of McDowell Lane just before 1 p.m. The child was pronounced dead at St. Agnes Hospital. Death: The grandfather parked the car at the family's home on South Paca Street, pictured, and slept for four hours before driving to pick up the little girl at daycare. It was only then he realized she had been in the vehicle all along . Donna Schindele of Brooklyn, Maryland, said her daughter, who is friends with Sabriya's mother, often baby-sat the little girl. 'It's a tragedy, and him being charged won't bring her back. But I don't understand how you can only drive two miles and forget you had a child in your vehicle,' Schindele told the Baltimore Sun. Towles was released on $25,000 bond. He could receive a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison if convicted. After her death, the distraught family set up a website to raise funds for the hospital fees and her funeral. | Baltimore infant Sabriya Towles' July death was initially ruled an accident .
But her grandfather, Anthony Jerome Towles, has now been charged with involuntary manslaughter .
Authorities say Towles forgot to drop the infant at child care, instead leaving her in the car at their shared home while he went to have a nap .
Four hours later he went to pick her up at daycare, discovering her lifeless in the back seat .
The temperature reached 88 degrees outside that day and even hotter in the vehicle . |
124,410 | 2cd605493531c8a13f1711ed435ca0d0487f9039 | By . Becky Barrow . The longest pay squeeze in history could finally be over, with millions of workers expected to receive pay rises which beat inflation this year, experts said yesterday. For the past five years, the average worker’s pay rise has been far below the rate of inflation, an unprecedented squeeze which has left people struggling to cope with soaring household bills. The Office for National Statistics said yesterday inflation dropped to 2 per cent in December – the first time it has been at or below the Government’s target of 2 per cent since November 2009. In a surprise drop, CPI inflation fell to the Bank of England's 2 per cent target in December . Private sector bosses expect to reward their workers with an average pay rise of 2.5 per cent this year. This would represent the first inflation-beating pay rise since the financial crisis began. At present, private sector workers are getting average pay rises of just 1.3 per cent. Andrew Goodwin, a senior economic adviser to the accountants, Ernst & Young’s Item Club, said: ‘It has been a long road, but after a gap of four years we’re finally back at the 2 per cent target.’ Rob Harbron, senior economist at the Centre for Economics and Business Research, said: ‘With a more benign inflation outlook ahead, the coming 12 months could see the first return to sustained increases in real wages since the financial crisis.’ Chris Williamson, chief economist at the consultancy Markit, added: ‘A return to real wages growth is becoming a distinct possibility for 2014.’ The squeeze on families has been long and painful. Yesterday the ONS said the cost of food and soft drinks had grown at a faster rate than inflation for ‘each of the last eight years’. It is a trend which has pushed many families to cut back on the amount of food they buy, or to switch to cheaper supermarkets, such as Aldi and Lidl. Contributions to the change in the 12-month CPI rate for December . There is growing pressure on bosses to reward workers with a proper pay rise, with millions of workers earning less today than they did when the financial crisis began after pay has been adjusted for inflation. Chancellor George Osborne said yesterday: ‘You see in the inflation numbers that the economic plan is working for people. ‘Inflation is at its lowest level for four years. It’s on target and it’s by working through our economic plan that we can deliver for people, deliver the economic security and peace of mind that people want in this country.’ Anne Sharp, chief executive of Acas, the employment relations service, said: ‘While the economy is showing signs of recovery, pay may well loom large on the employment relations agenda in 2014 as workers look to catch up for past pay restraint.’ House prices are nearly 80 per cent higher in London than they are in the rest of the country, according to the ONS. While house prices rose by 5.4 per cent in the UK in the 12 months to November 2013, they rose by only 3.1 per cent if London and the South East is excluded. The ONS said house prices in London had jumped by 11.6 per cent over the last year. The figures make clear how London’s rampant house price inflation affects the figures for the whole of the country.Stephen Smith, director of housing at the insurer, Legal & General, said: ‘It is important to consider the overall picture. ‘While London and the South East have been forging ahead with exponential growth, prices in the rest of the country have risen at a much slower rate.’ | CPI inflation rate fell to Bank of England's 2% target rate .
Analysts had expected a rise fuelled by gas and electricity price increases .
Economists unanimous that wage increases will outstrip inflation this year . |
273,925 | eecf6d9bc2a6c778f6296f119fc53c6bbbadcaa1 | A new report claims that actor Stephen Collins will not be prosecuted in molestation cases involving underage victims that are currently being looked into by the New York Police Department, Los Angeles Police Department and Los Angeles Sheriff's Department. TMZ reports that they have spoken to law enforcement sources who say 'the cases will go nowhere.' This, despite audio obtained by the site from 2012 that has the actor allegedly confessing to molesting underage girls. Scroll down for video . Getting off: Stephen Collins (above) may not be charged for allegedly molesting three underage girls according to law enforcement sources . Recorded: The scandal first erupted when recording made by Collins' wife Faye Grant (above) allegedly had the actor admitting to molesting underage girls . The audio was taped by Collins' estranged wife, Faye Grant, during a therapy session and without his knowledge. The problem apparently is that since the three cases in question as decades old, prosecutors will be barred by the statute of limitations. Speaking with US Weekly this Wednesday, the LAPD say they are still very much investigating whether or not Collins molested an underage female neighbor. 'Special Victims Bureau detectives are working with New York Police Department authorities on this case,' they told the magazine. 'There is no further information at this time. The investigation is active and ongoing.' Missing out: Collins was fired from the film Ted 2 and the ABC show Scandal after the news broke . Grant has also claimed her estranged husband molested a girl in California during the time he appear on the show 7th Heaven, sometime between 1996 and 2007, but it appears no victim has come forward. The case in New York may still have a shot however, as the victim came forward in 2012. That being said, the incident happened sometime in the 70s and TMZ is reporting 'law enforcement has all but given up on a viable case.' The NYPD has yet to respond to requests for comment. And while Collins has yet to be charged with any crimes, the allegations have had a major impact on his career, with the actor being dropped from the hit ABC show Scandal as well as the film Ted 2, which he was set to start filming just days after this story first broke. | A new report claims that law enforcement sources feel that actor Stephen Collins will not be charged for allegedly molesting underage victims .
The three cases being investigated are in New York City and Los Angeles, but decades old and will likely be barred by the statue of limitations .
The LAPD however claimed earlier this week they are still working on this case with the NYPD . |
100,238 | 0d25ca514c2340ea5de8c0738bbc7d73af87c040 | By . Associated Press . and Chris Spargo For Mailonline . Prosecutors said Thursday they will not file charges against a Northern California mother accused of grabbing the throat of a 12-year-old boy she suspected of bullying her daughter. The Sonoma County District Attorney's Office said there were conflicting witness statements, and that prosecutors could not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Delia Garcia-Bratcher attacked the youngster earlier this year at the Olivet Charter Elementary School. No adult saw the confrontation at the time, and Miss Garcia-Bratcher apparently had not checked in with the school office before coming on campus, meaning no school officials were with her to witness what happened. Scroll down for video . Delia Garcia-Bratcher, joined by her fiance Shaka Hay, reacts outside of the Sonoma County Superior Court in Santa Rosa, Calif., after the charges she choked a young boy were dropped . A lawyer for Garcia-Bratcher called her a 'folk hero' and 'mother of the year' for defending her 10-year-old daughter from a boy who allegedly called her a 'dirty Indian' Regardless, Miss Garcia-Bratcher, 30, was arrested on suspicion of child abuse in the aftermath of the May 16 confrontation at the Santa Rosa elementary school. Most of the eyewitnesses interviewed by prosecutors were children, according to Sonoma County Chief Deputy District Attorney Bill Brockley. Two of these children claimed to have seen Miss Garcia-Bratcher grab the young boy by the throat, authorities said at the time. However, there was no consensus about whether Miss Garcia-Bratcher did indeed touch the boy. 'Ethically, I can only file charges that I can prove beyond a reasonable doubt to a unanimous jury,' Mr. Brockley said. 'If I don't have that evidence, then I can't file charges.' Sheriff's officials also said they could not find any evidence linking the boy to the bullying allegations, and that Miss Garcia-Bratcher might have targeted the wrong person. Miss Garcia-Bratcher acknowledged confronting the boy but said she did not touch him. In a seven-page report, an investigator hired by her attorney, Ben Adams, quoted a 10-year-old saying he saw the boy put both hands around his own neck after the encounter with Miss Garcia-Bratcher. Mr. Adams said Thursday his client was glad to have the case behind her. 'They arrested her for no reason and dragged her to court for no reason,' he said. The Olivet Charter Elementary School in Santa Rosa, where Miss Garcia-Bratcher confronted the young boy who was bullying her daughter . The incident occurred after Miss Garcia-Bratcher went to the school to discuss her children's registration. When she ran into her son in the hallway, she asked him to point out the boy who has been calling her 10-year-old daughter a 'dirty Indian.' The boy said Miss Garcia-Bratcher yelled at him and grabbed him by the throat. Administrators called police after they noticed red marks on the boy's neck. Miss Garcia-Bratcher was arrested the next day and released several hours later after posting $30,000 bail. Following the incident, her lawyer called her a hero. ‘She is the mother of the year,’ Mr. Adams declared. ‘She did nothing wrong. Her daughter was being bullied, and she confronted the bully. What is wrong with that?’ The case, at the time, sparked much debate on social media over how best to respond to bullying at schools. | Delia Garcia-Bratcher, 30, came to Olivet Charter Elementary School in May and confronted a boy she suspected of bullying her daughter .
She was accused of grabbing the young boy's throat and leaving red marks on his neck .
Prosecutors say they will not file charges because of conflicting witness statements . |
109,116 | 18a77e1e6c8086a938354100944e1b08a17a2267 | Germany printed five million stamps commemorating their fourth World Cup title before the final on Sunday had even started. The 60-cent stamps are due to go on sale this week after the first commemorative copies are offered to the players and staff. If Germany had lost the final, the stamps, printed by Deutsche Post, would have had to be pulped. Germany printed five million stamps commemorating their fourth World Cup title before the final on Sunday . The stamps were ordered by Germany's Finance Ministry, which holds 21 per cent of Deutsche Post's shares through the state-owned KfW bank. 'This year I dared to hope very early on that our team would take the title,' Finance Minister Wolfgang Scaeuble told AFP. 'It's wonderful that the team turned this dream into a reality. I hope that this stamp will remind many citizens of the immense joy the team has given us.' Meanwhile, it was reported yesterday that a new German football shirt bearing the four stars for Germany's four World Cup wins sold out within hours of the team's triumph in Brazil. Germany were crowned world champions on Sunday night and Adidas wasted no time in commemorating the achievement - by revealing a kit with four stars above the badge. On Monday morning Adidas' website was already displaying a 'sold out' sign next to the new shirts. A new German football shirt bearing the four stars for Germany's four World Cup wins sold out on Monday within hours of the team's triumph in Brazil . Hundreds of thousands of Germans attended a victory celebration in Berlin today as they welcomed home their World Cup winners at the Brandenburg Gate. The players, in matching black T-shirts bearing '1,' lapped up the celebrations by playing up to the estimated 400,000 people packing the 'fan mile' in front of the Berlin landmark. Fans began arriving overnight to secure good spots to welcome home coach Joachim Loew's team and the trophy. Mario Goetze, the scorer in the 1-0 win . over Argentina in the final on Sunday, was greeted with deafening cheers . by the sea of fans waving black, red and gold Germany flags. If Germany had lost the final on Sunday, the stamps, printed by Deutsche Post, would have had to be pulped . Hundreds of thousands of Germans attended a victory celebration in Berlin today as they welcomed home their World Cup winners at the Brandenburg Gate . Midfielder Toni Kroos led the crowd in a chant of 'Miro Klose' - a tribute to veteran striker Miroslav Klose, whose two goals took his World Cup tally to 16 and made him the tournament's all-time leading scorer. When the players emerged on stage to take their accolades, the fans welcomed each of them with a chant of 'football god' - giving Bastian Schweinsteiger, Thomas Mueller, Goetze and Klose the loudest cheers. 'We're just mega-proud of this achievement, after standing here in 2006 and 2008 as third and then as second - and now we've finally done it after this long journey, with this sensational team,' defender Per Mertesacker said. | Five million of the stamps were printed commemorating the victory .
If Germany had lost the final, the stamps would have had to be pulped .
The 60-cent stamps were ordered by Germany's Finance Ministry . |
237,663 | bf99835dfb4034b4bdb066793f876c88c267044c | Sheffield United eased into the FA Cup third round at Plymouth’s expense in a tale of three penalties. League Two Argyle were left to wonder what might have been had Reuben Reid not skewed a spot-kick into the stand early in the second half. They were punished in ruthless fashion by Jose Baxter, who sent the League One promotion contenders through with two textbook penalties. Jose Baxter (centre) slots in his second penalty during Sheffield United's 3-0 victory over Plymouth Argyle . Sheffield United players congratulate Baxter as the Blades secure their place in the FA Cup third round . Sheffield United: Howard; Flynn, Basham, McEveley, Harris; Campbell-Rice (McNulty 46), Doyle (c), Scougall (Reed 76), Murphy; Baxter (Cuvelier 85); Higdon . Substitutes not used: McGahey, Kennedy, Khan, Turner . Scorers: Baxter (penalty) 55, (penalty) 61; McNulty 89 . Plymouth Argyle: McCormick; Mellor, Nelson (c), Hartley, Purrington (Norburn 71); Alessandra, O’Connor; Blizzard (Harvey 80), Kellett, Banton (Cox 71); Reid . Substitutes not used: Bittner; Allen, Bentley . Booked: Purrington, Nelson . Referee: Gary Sutton (Lincolnshire) Attendance: 7,348 (638 away) And the impressive Marc McNulty rounded off the win in the final minute, sweeping in a right-wing cross from Florent Cuvelier. The Blades battled their way to the semi-finals in this competition last season - losing in an eight-goal thriller to Hull City - but Wembley in the springtime was a world removed from this. On a chilly afternoon, Bramall Lane was barely a third full and those that did turn up had to endure a pretty soporific first-half. The hosts, who needed a replay to beat Crewe in round one, started the brighter and skipper Michael Doyle wasn’t too far wide with a 25-yard sighter after Michael Higdon had teed him up. A couple of minutes later, Ryan Flynn roared forward from right-back and his firmly-struck shot was pushed clear by Luke McCormick. Plymouth, who saw off Conference North outfit AFC Fylde to reach the second round, threatened sporadically. Jason Banton was their liveliest player and keen to make an impression having not started a match since mid-September. He swapped passes with Andy Kellett as Argyle sprung forward but the latter was pulled up by referee Gary Sutton for diving in the box. Banton also dragged an effort wide after Lewis Alessandra intercepted a loose Stefan Scougall pass and raced down the right flank. Players from both sides lined up together to commemorate the First World War Christmas Truce . Michael Doyle of Sheffield United (left) tackles Plymouth's Lewis Alessandra . Sheffield United's Michael Higdon (centre) holds off Curtis Nelson (right) of Plymouth Argyle . Reuben Reid misses the chance to give Plymouth the lead after slicing his penalty wide . Accrington Stanley 1-1 Yeovil Town . Bury 1-1 Luton Town . Cambridge United 2-2 Mansfield Town . MK Dons 0-1 Chesterfield . Oldham Athletic 0-1, Doncaster . Oxford United 2-2 Tranmere Rovers . Preston 1-0 Shrewsbury Town . For a while, the League Two promotion challengers were setting the pace and Dominic Blizzard enjoyed their best chance of the half, firing across goal and wide after Banton played him in. United, who have a Capital One Cup quarter-final with Southampton coming up on Tuesday week, roused themselves and Flynn was able to cut inside and roll the ball just wide of the post. The second half could only be an improvement and Plymouth immediately had a chance to steal the lead. Alessandra got goal side of Jay McEveley and was dragged to the turf for a clear penalty. But, in front of the end where the 638 travelling fans were gathered, Reid sliced his spot-kick into the stand. It was a massive let-off for the Blades and they went straight on the offensive, with half-time substitute McNulty firing a fraction wide. McNulty was making quite an impact and when Ben Purrington grappled with him as he tried to break into the Argyle area, the referee had no hesitation in awarding another spot-kick. Baxter (right) opens the scoring from the penalty in the second half at Bramall Lane . Plymouth Argyle keeper Luke McCormick shouts instructions from his goalline . Ryan Flynn (left) of Sheffield United is chased down by Plymouth's Andy Kellett . Team-mates rush to congratulate Baxter after he doubles the Blades' lead with his second penalty . Marc McNulty (right) completed the comprehensive victory with a goal in the dying minutes . Baxter showed Reid how to dispatch from 12 yards, leaving McCormick no chance with a drilled penalty into the bottom left corner. And just after the hour, United were awarded another penalty when Peter Hartley brought down Jamie Murphy in the area. Again, Baxter made no mistake. Baxter had an excellent chance to complete his hat-trick with 12 minutes left but missed the target when well placed. His job was done, however, and he received a standing ovation when replaced in the final five minutes as the Blades made further Cup gains. | Sheffield United reached the FA Cup third round by beating Plymouth .
Jose Baxter scored two penalties to help Championship side through .
Marc McNulty netted in the dying minutes against the League Two side .
Reuben Reid missed an opportunity to give Argyle the lead from the spot . |
138,571 | 3f2fa6b4feb6ec1cbda7303d11cb1c21cac9eecd | A smuggler tried to sneak 94 iPhones into China by strapping and concealing them around his torso - but was foiled when customs officers noticed his 'weird walking posture'. Embarrassing pictures show the man standing with his trousers down as officers reveal the startling number of mobiles attached to his body. He was seized at Futian Port, an immigration port of entry on the border between mainland China and Hong Kong. Foiled: A smuggler was caught trying to sneak 94 iPhones into China by strapping and concealing them around his torso . Customs officers grew suspicious after seeing a male passenger with 'weird walking posture, joint stiffness and muscle tension', reports the Huffington Post. Smuggling under Hong Kong law, where this man was said to be caught, can warrant a seven-year prison sentence and a fine as high as $2m (£171,000). According to the report, so-called 'mobile armor' is a fairly common tactic for phone smugglers. All of Apple's iPhones are actually made in China under contract before being shipped to countries around the world -but purchasing one in the country can be a challenge. Not long ago, the only way to do so was through the black market. Recently, deals can be agreed to with legitimate providers such as China Mobile but supplies of the latest models are usually limited. Cluee: He was foiled when suspicious customs officers noticed his 'weird walking posture' And contracts and handsets are expensive compared to the devices made by Chinese manufacturers. According to the FT, an unlocked 16GB iPhone 6 is around £577. At around 18 per cent of the annual salary in China, it's a costly buy. As a result, buying new or second-hand handsets outside China and smuggling them into the country can be a lucrative business. Most of the devices in the pictures appear to be the iPhone 5S but there are also some iPhone 6 and 6 Plus models in view. The smuggler was seized at Futian Port, an immigration port of entry on the border between mainland China and Hong Kong . | Embarrassing set of photos capture caught smuggler with trousers down .
Seized at Futian Port, immigration point between China and Hong Kong .
Despite being made in China, iPhones difficult and expensive to buy there .
Smuggling in handsets from abroad is therefore a lucrative business . |
110,515 | 1a772281f5b099cbf85ea67da39b8250e50829b7 | Washington (CNN) -- Despite the bruising battle over their proposals to overhaul health care, congressional Democrats have maintained an advantage over their Republican counterparts on one key measure, according to a new national poll. A CNN/Opinion Research Corp. survey released Wednesday indicates that a bare majority of Americans, 51 percent, believe that the Democrats' policies are good for the country, with 46 percent saying that those policies would take the U.S. in the wrong direction. Fifty-three percent of people questioned in the poll said the GOP's polices would move the nation in the wrong direction, with 42 percent saying Republican policies are good for the country. "The numbers for both parties are virtually unchanged since late August, just before President Barack Obama's health care speech to Congress opened the latest round of debate on this divisive issue," said Keating Holland, CNN's polling director. Democrats will be defending their large majorities in Congress next year when all 435 House seats and more than a third of the Senate seats are up for grabs. "This advantage on policy could be an important edge for the Democrats heading into the 2010 midterm elections," Holland added. "But independents will be the key to the midterms, and the numbers among independents spell bad news for both parties among that important group." In an August survey, independent voters' views of GOP policies were evenly divided. But a majority of independents now say Republicans would move the country in the wrong direction. Nonetheless, the number of independents who dislike Democratic policies, now at 57 percent, is higher than the 52 percent who hold a negative view of Republican policies. The survey suggests that Sen. Joe Lieberman is taking a hit in popularity due to his opposition to a major element in the health care bill. The Connecticut independent, who caucuses with the Democrats to give the party a 60-vote filibuster-proof majority in the Senate, threatened to undermine the bill unless compromises were made. Lieberman opposed the creation of a government-run public insurance option and the expansion of Medicare to individuals as young as 55. Both of those proposals were dropped from the bill this month, enraging many liberals. According to the poll, Lieberman's favorable rating has dropped 9 percentage points, from 40 percent to 31 percent, from early December. His unfavorable rating has risen 6 percentage points, from 28 percent to 34 percent. "Lieberman's biggest decline -- a 14-point drop -- came among independents," Holland said. "Only Republicans continue to like Lieberman." The survey also indicates that just one in five Americans trust the federal government always or most of the time, down 4 percentage points from a year ago. The CNN/Opinion Research poll was conducted December 16 through Sunday, with 1,160 adult Americans questioned by telephone. The survey's overall sampling error is plus or minus 3 percentage points. CNN deputy political director Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report. | Poll: Fifty-one percent believe Democratic policies are good for the country .
Forty-two percent say Republican policies are good for the country, poll shows .
Views of independents spell bad news for both parties in 2010 elections, CNN polling chief says . |
20,347 | 39bad0f4cca4a1295a5585adaa7b544be30fcf7e | A five-month-old dog that fell into hot tar spilled around a construction site in northern India was eventually saved by a four-hour rescue operation. Claire Abrams from the animal welfare group, Animal Aid Unlimited, says staff from the charity rushed to the scene in the city of Udaipur, Rajasthan, after receiving a phone call from a passerby. They found the dog lying motionless, his hardened body stuck to the ground: "There was no way he could have come out of his own, without any intervention," Abrams said. The rescuers spent hours massaging a large amount of vegetable oil into his body to loosen the tar, avoiding the use of kerosene because of its harsh effects on skin. After about four hours, the crew were able to pull the dog out of the sticky liquid, before taking him to the animal shelter. It took several days to clear his body of the tar. On his first night of arrival at the shelter, Abrams says: "He was petrified and breathing heavily." The dog, now affectionately known as "Tar Baby", has recovered successfully and has also been vaccinated. Based in Udaipur, Animal Aid Unlimited is home to a number of dogs, cows, donkeys and pigs. The charity provides emergency assistance and shelter to street animals, responding to calls made to their dedicated helpline. | A 5-month-old dog fell into hot tar at a construction site in northern India .
It took four hours to massage vegetable oil into his body and save him .
The dog recovered successfully and is now known as "Tar Baby" |
14,096 | 28001fb8a3a3876a2128117cb7272047c8e2d7a9 | By . Dan Bloom . PUBLISHED: . 14:41 EST, 8 November 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 14:49 EST, 8 November 2013 . A thief who was just 17 when he murdered a bed-ridden dementia sufferer as he burgled her flat has been jailed for a minimum of 18 years. Margery Gilbey, 88, was found covered in blood at her sheltered accommodation in Shadwell, East London, after convicted thief Imran Douglas ransacked her room and left her to die. He strangled the 'old-fashioned East Ender' and stabbed her in the neck in a crime described by a judge as 'wholly gratuitous'. Thug: Imran Douglas, left, was just 17 when he murdered 'old-fashioned East Ender' Margery Gilbey, 88, right, at her home in Shadwell, East London. The Old Bailey heard he left her to die in her bed, covered in blood . The Old Bailey heard Douglas, who had been expelled from six schools and put in a children's home just six days earlier, went to Mrs Gilbey's flat on May 24 with the intention of killing her. After fatally wounding her, Douglas rummaged through her drawers with blood on his hands. When a nurse looked through the letterbox and saw him in the room, Douglas clambered over the balcony and escaped in a car waiting nearby. Mrs Gilbey's son Alan, 55, from nearby Bethnal Green, visited with her favourite fish and chip supper just as staff were raising the alarm. Together he and the care assistants found his mother already dead in her bed, covered in blood. Known as Madge, the well-known former cafe cook had nursing care at the first-floor flat because she had dementia and difficulty walking on her own. In the last few years she had been almost entirely confined to her bed. In an emotional tribute, her son said she the 'kindest most gentle person' who was liked by everyone she met. The Sonali Gardens sheltered flats in Shadwell, East London, where Mrs Gilbey was murdered on May 24 . He added: 'I can’t believe what has happened. 'She was a wonderful person and mother. She was very straightforward and kind - she had old-fashioned East End values. 'Everywhere she lived she was well-liked. The staff at the sheltered accommodation loved her and they have no blame for what happened. Now I just need to mourn. All this is just sinking in.' He was not at court, saying it would have been too traumatic to look his mother's killer in the eye. Douglas even made a reconnaissance trip to the flat the day before the murder, the court heard. He . conned his way into the building pretending to be the grandson of a . resident, then returned to his children's home in Bow, East London. The next day he gained access in the same way and headed straight to Mrs Gilbey's flat. Detectives identified him on CCTV and went to the children's home the same day. There they found his clothes covered in blood in a laundry basket, and a bag on his bed which had the pensioner’s blood on it. Douglas . initially denied murder, but changed his plea to guilty on the first . day of his trial when faced with overwhelming evidence. 'Although I would clearly love to attend sentencing to see justice done for my mother, I cannot,' he said. 'If I were to see Imran Douglas in person, it would make him real to me. 'He would haunt me and I know those momentary flashes would be unbearable.' Douglas, who turned 18 last month, had previously been granted anonymity because of his age. He stared at the floor while he was sentenced, and as he was led away a family member of Mrs Gilbey shouted: 'I hope you rot, scum'. The court heard social services failed to heed warnings from Douglas's own father that he was a danger. Judge John Bevan QC told him: 'Clearly you have significant problems controlling your anger, and it is a tragedy that social services totally failed to have regard to the reality of the extreme danger you posed in May this year and will continue to pose in the future. 'It is in my judgement, and sadly, a crime at the top end of the scale of gravity. 'You used a knife to attack a defenceless and vulnerable old lady in the privacy of her own home, on premises you must have seen to be sheltered accommodation. 'You could have burgled her to her heart's content without doing what you did. 'It seems you were observed being driven away in a car but you lack the courage to name your accomplice. 'You rooted through her property after stabbing her, leaving her blood on her wardrobe. 'It was wholly gratuitous and, I fear, callous.' The court heard Douglas still faces two outstanding charges of carrying a knife. Detective Chief Inspector Graeme Gwyn said: 'Margery was killed as she lay in her own bed, in a place where she should have been safe. To see such violence used against a defenceless, elderly lady was truly shocking. 'Only Douglas can explain why an attempted burglary had to end in murder. 'I would like to pay testimony to Margery's family who have demonstrated incredible dignity throughout this difficult process.' | Imran Douglas was 17 when he killed retired cafe cook Margery Gilbey .
Her son Alan discovered her covered in blood in Shadwell, East London .
He said she was a wonderful mother who was loved by all who knew her .
Thug expelled six times and his father told social workers he was dangerous .
Douglas has been jailed for at least 18 years for 'gratuitous' murder . |
16,646 | 2f3247e9bdb42a6d368a1e1a4858715cc6814fd3 | By . Alasdair Glennie . PUBLISHED: . 06:26 EST, 18 February 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 06:39 EST, 18 February 2014 . Kate Middleton's trademark chestnut curls usually give the impression that she has stepped straight out of the salon after hours of styling. But according to Scots stylist Denise McAdam - who cut the hair of the Royal Family for more than three decades - the Duchess of Cambridge’s style is, though wonderful, ‘maybe a little overdone'. Looking back on her years tending to the locks of royal women, the veteran hairdresser described Princess Anne as ‘scary’ and said the Duchess of York has had her ‘fair share of disasters’. Style: Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge - pictured in April 2011 (left) and November 2012 (right)- has hair that is 'a little overdone' on occasion, according to the royal hairdresser . She told the Radio Times: ‘I don’t do the royals any more, although I’m a good friend of the Duchess of Cambridge. I think her hair is wonderful, maybe a little overdone at times. But she always looks lovely.’ Miss McAdam, from Edinburgh, was awarded the Royal Victorian Medal for her services to the royals in 2010. She said the medal was ‘for 35 years of keeping my mouth shut’. But now the 55-year-old hairdresser has . left their employment, she clearly felt able to throw some of that . discretion to the wind. 'I'm a good friend of the Duchess of Cambridge. I think her hair is wonderful, maybe a little overdone at times. But she always looks lovely' Denise McAdam . Reflecting on the Queen’s daughter, she said: ‘I ended up dedicating most of my career to royal women and their hair. Princess Anne was the scary one, particularly when I was young. ‘It was a simple up-do, so I just used to go in, close my eyes and do it as quickly as possible. Sarah Ferguson, on the other hand, is a great friend.’ The stylist claimed she helped the Duchess acclimatise to life with the royals before she married Prince Andrew in 1986. Comments: According to Scots stylist Denise McAdam (right) - who cut the hair of the Royal Family for more than three decades - the style of the Duchess (left) is, though wonderful, 'maybe a little overdone at times' Styling: Looking back on her years tending to the locks of royal women, hairdresser Miss McAdam described Princess Anne (left) as 'scary' and said the Duchess of York (right) has had her 'fair share of disasters' She said: ‘In the early days I knew the Palace better than her so I used to show her the important places like the carpenter’s where you go to have your wardrobes built. Royal hair: Kate is pictured in London in May 2012 . ‘Then one day I was walking up by Bond Street when this red apparition came running towards me. I said, “Oh my God, you’re marrying him aren’t you?” and she said, “Yes and you’re doing the hair”. ‘A royal wedding is always wonderful, but Sarah and I have had our fair share of disasters. She always wanted to put bloody flags in her hair. ‘But then she also had a super-trendy ponytail at one point, so there were some fabulous times, too.’ Next Tuesday, Miss McAdam will appear as a judge on new BBC3 show Hair, in which eight hairstylists will compete for the title of Britain’s best amateur hairdresser. She will be joined by celebrity stylist Alain Pichon, who has worked with such global A-listers as pop superstar Kylie Minogue, supermodel Claudia Schiffer and former England footballer David Beckham. The Frenchman revealed he has a ‘strategy’ when cutting Beckham’s hair because the 38-year-old’s style is so important to him. He said: ‘I never go against his wishes. Saying that, a few years ago he wanted to keep his hair long, but I told him to cut it short. ‘Then he tried to grow it again and I said, “This isn’t happening. We’ll end up with another ponytail and we’ve done that”…we worked something out.’ He added: ‘Madonna has the best hair of anyone I’ve ever worked with. If you want it straight, it goes the best straight you’ve ever seen, but if you want it curly, you get brilliant curls. Contrary to what you might think, she wasn’t difficult to please.’ Miss McAdam will be joined on new BBC3 show Hair by celebrity stylist Alain Pichon, who has worked with such global A-listers as pop superstar Kylie Minogue (left) and supermodel Claudia Schiffer (right) | Denise McAdam says Duchess's style is 'maybe a little overdone at times'
Calls Princess Anne 'scary' and says Duchess of York has had 'disasters'
Scots stylist will appear as a judge on new BBC3 show Hair next Tuesday . |
118 | 005ed10e2fa927c69aa9d881c51ccca9ce2c789c | Outgoing Iowa Democratic Sen. Tom Harkin, who said just a few weeks ago that Republican Senate candidate Joni Ernst was "wrong for the state of Iowa," has changed his tune. Harkin, who was an ardent supporter of Democratic Congressman Bruce Braley in the race to succeed him, sees promise in Ernst as she prepares to represent the Hawkeye state for the next six years. "I think she has the potential to be one, yes," Harkin told reporters in typical "Iowa nice" fashion on Capitol Hill, when asked if Ernst would be a good senator. They all have the potential when they come here. I think maybe some of the statements she's made in the past -- I don't know -- you know people grow, people grow into jobs. I'll give her the benefit of the doubt." The senator got into hot water while campaigning against her when he compared Ernst's looks to Taylor Swift as the race came to a close, though he's apparently shaken off the results. "Obviously I was disappointed that Bruce Braley didn't get elected. Fine guy, great congressman, but hey, that's the breaks of elections, right?" he said. Ernst beat Braley by eight points in the midterms earlier this month. Her win was a key seat Republicans needed to take the majority in the upper chamber. Harkin did reach out to Ernst on election night to congratulate her for running a "great campaign" but didn't offer any other details. Asked for advice he would give Ernst as he concludes his 40-year career in Washington, Harkin said "if you want to be a good senator, when you come here, forget about the headlines, learn the rules, try to get on good committees, and think about the long term -- about what you can do for your state, for Iowa, in the long term because things don't happen overnight around here. You gotta start thinking about what you want to do that may take you four or five or six years or even beyond to get accomplished." | Iowa Democratic Sen. Tom Harkin is retiring at the end of his term .
He'll be replaced by Republican Sen.-elect Joni Ernst .
Harkin, who backed Ernst's opponent, said she could turn out to be a good senator . |
84,278 | ef0c17588abbd251f31591c8cc78f97143130063 | (CNN) -- Lightning strikes killed two people in two days in Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado, said Kyle Patterson, public information officer at the park. Both strikes hit the people on trails off Trail Ridge Road at elevations of 10,829 and 11,400 feet, Patterson said. On Saturday afternoon, lightning hit four people near Rainbow Curve trail, he said. They were taken by ambulance to Estes Park Medical Center where one man died, he said. The man was not identified. On Friday, lightning hit eight people on the Ute Crossing Trail, about 500 feet from the trailhead, Patterson said. Rebecca R. Teilhet, 42, of Yellow Springs, Ohio, died on the scene, Patterson said. An air ambulance landed during periods when the weather broke and two others, including her husband, were taken to Estes Park Medical Center, he said. Five of the other hikers transported themselves to the medical center. The park 75 miles from Denver had not had a lightning death since 2000, when a technical climber was struck on the Diamond on Longs Peak, Patterson said. Dr. Martin Koschnitzke, of the Estes Park Medical Center, speaking to CNN affiliate KUSA, urged walkers to be aware of changing weather conditions. "We can't emphasize enough that when it starts getting dark and clouds are forming, it's time to get down," he said. "My understanding is this group was actually in the process of doing that and still got caught, which is really a sad thing." Fire lieutenant resuscitated after lightning strike in Ohio . | NEW: Strikes happened on trails in Rocky Mountain National Park .
NEW: A man died, three others injured Saturday .
NEW: On Friday, a woman from Ohio was killed, 10 injured .
Hikers urged to be aware when storm clouds gather, they should head to lower ground . |
60,553 | ac19b149afb2b17eef690cc4636c649562f9931b | By . Leon Watson . PUBLISHED: . 06:38 EST, 5 March 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 08:27 EST, 14 May 2013 . Melissa Thomas, who embarked on a Facebook campaign to frame a disabled man for cyber bullying, leaving Manchester Crown Court . A feuding university student embarked on a Facebook campaign to frame a disabled man for cyber bullying after she was caught vandalising his front garden. Melissa Thomas, 20, first accused innocent David Parnell of beating her up then created a social media page in his name so she could post spiteful and abusive messages to her own account - and pretend they came from him. As a result of the lies, Mr Parnell, 30, who has special needs and walks with the aid of a crutch was arrested four times, charged with common assault and wrongly spent a total of 30 hours in a police cell. He was left feeling suicidal for fear . of being falsely sent to prison suffered panic attacks and also became . fearful of leaving the house amid fears he might be evicted. All . allegations made against him by Thomas were later dropped. Mr . Parnell’s ordeal emerged as Thomas, from Eccles, Greater Manchester, . was spared jail after she pleaded guilty to four counts of perverting . the course of justice. Manchester . Crown Court heard Thomas - a marketing and tourism student in . Chester - and Mr Parnell had been friends but fell out after a . disagreement. In June last . year Thomas was arrested and accepted a police caution for criminal . damage for smashing plant pots outside Mr Parnell’s home. Prosecuting . Miss Lisa Boocock said: 'Thomas then made a complaint to police of . common assault in which she said he hit her on the head. 'He . was charged and bailed and the conditions were that he did not contact . the defendant Thomas. From these bail conditions, further allegations . arose.' Thomas alleged he . had threatened her and police went to Mr Parnell’s home and despite him . protesting his innocent officers arrested him on suspicion of breaching . bail. Miss Boocock added: 'He was refused bail. He has moderate learning difficulties and suffers from depression and anxiety and had to spend time in a police cell after bail was initially refused. He did not think he would be able to cope if he was remanded in custody.' A court bailed Mr Parnell the following day and he refused to leave his home alone and was forced to get taxis to avoid Thomas in the street. Yet on July 10 Mr Parnell was arrested again after Thomas falsely claimed he was shouting abuse at her at Eccles bus station. He spent a further four hours in police custody before being bailed again. The following week Thomas claimed Mr Parnell left her abusive Facebook messages and he was arrested for a fourth time after she falsely alleged he had shouted abuse at her in the street. Police became suspicious when CCTV backed up Mr Parnell’s account that he had been in Manchester all day at the time of Thomas’ last allegation. He also had a cash machine receipt making it impossible that he could have breached his bail. Officers found that there were two Facebook accounts in the name of David Parnell. Miss Boocock added: 'One was genuine and the other had been set up by Thomas in order to engineer abusive messages from that account to hers. Manchester Crown Court heard Thomas and Mr Parnell had been friends but fell out after a disagreement . 'David Parnell had to spend two nights in police custody. She provided two false statements to the police and he spent almost 30 hours in police stations which he describes as the most traumatic time of his life and knew that if he was put in prison it would have killed him. 'He lost his self-esteem and has issues from spending time in custody. He said he was being made ill by the allegations against him and almost lost his tenancy. 'He is worried about leaving his flat and meeting the defendant and has panic attacks when he thinks what may have happened.' 'You are a young woman who has suffered in your life with considerable disadvantages.' Judge Michael Henshell . In mitigation defence counsel Mr Martin Callery said that Thomas had endured a 'troubled history'. He added: 'She was a very troubled soul indeed, a very troubled upbringing. 'She is in full-time education in Chester, a university course in hospitality and management. She is presently in university halls of residence and living there during the course of term and out of term. 'She would not deal well with a custodial sentence, she’s small in stature and small in demeanour. Custody would crush her.' Thomas was sentenced to four months in prison suspended for two years and was ordered to pay Mr Parnell £200 compensation and was banned from contacting him under the terms of a restraining order. Judge Michael Henshell told her: 'You are a young woman who has suffered in your life with considerable disadvantages. 'But the effect of your offences has been considerable on him. He did suffer terrific trauma when he was detained in the police station, 30 hours was spent in custody. 'The effect of that on somebody who the affect would be magnified was very considerable. I do not believe the offences were motivated by hostility towards him or because of his disability. Your immaturity led you to take advantage of him. 'But each offence caused him distress and he could as a result have been sent to prison.' We are happy to clarify that Ms Thomas has always denied the accusation that she admitted setting up an artificial Facebook page in Mr Parnell’s name. | Melissa Thomas first accused David Parnell of of beating her up .
The 20-year-old then created a social media page in his name .
From that she posted spiteful and abusive messages to her account .
As a result of the lies, Mr Parnell, from Eccles, was arrested four times .
The 30-year-old has special needs and walks with the aid of a crutch . |
192,647 | 85613c3be1c7cbd190849ce2a48f1b6fd4533d97 | By . John Stevens . A coroner has today condemned the 'chaotic response' of an ambulance service after a baby girl died when an emergency vehicle got lost and a second stopped for petrol. Three-month-old Bella Hellings died at hospital after she suffered a fit and stopped breathing at her home in Thetford, Norfolk. Paramedics took 26 minutes - more than three times longer than national targets dictate - to arrive and Norfolk Coroner's Court William Armstrong today said the delay was 'wholly indefensible'. 'Wholly indefensible': The coroner criticised the 'catalogue of catastrophes' in reaching Bella Hellings (pictured). Her mother Amy (left) is considering launching legal action against the ambulance service . He concluded the baby girl died from congenital heart disease after delays in medical assistance reduced her chances of survival. The inquest at Norfolk Coroner's Court heard how an emergency first response car struggled to find the new build house because its satnav was not up-to-date and 'there were too many blue doors'. An ambulance also diverted to the house following the emergency call at 11.09am on 3 March was delayed because it was low on fuel and stopped at a petrol station. Controllers failed to tell the paramedics that an air ambulance had also been dispatched - if they had known they would not have needed to refuel. Recording a narrative verdict, Mr Armstrong criticised the delays. He said: 'By anyone's standard this was a grave emergency - what happened here was a long, long way from the eight minute response target. 'It is a fact that the prospect of a . child surviving a cardiac arrest are low. Notwithstanding that the . chance of resuscitation are improved if attempted immediately. Parental grief: Amy Carter wipes the tears of her partner Scott Hellings as they left Bella's inquest . Distraught: The couple said they 'will always believe in our hearts' that she was let down by the health service . 'The . delay in giving Bella the care that she needed was wholly indefensible. There was a catalogue of catastrophes and a chaotic response.' Mr . Armstrong described Bella as a 'star which will always shine' adding: . 'She will never grow up, she will never lose her innocence, she will . always be loved.' After the . inquest the East of England Ambulance Trust apologised for the delays . and said steps had been taken to avoid future tragedies. But Bella's parents, Amy Carter and Scott Hellings, said they were considering civil action against the trust. They . said: 'We will always believe in our hearts that Bella was let down by . the health services when she was at her most vulnerable and when she . needed help the most.' Paramedic . Sharon Jaggard, who was travelling in the ambulance, said that she and . her colleague, Karen King, had not been told an air ambulance was also . on its way. Under fire: The East of England Ambulance Service has apologised to the Hellings family for the delays . Because of the . mistake, they believed they would be required to take Bella to hospital . rather than simply administer care at the scene. She added: 'If we had known the air ambulance had been sent, we would have got straight to the property.' The . inquest heard that because of the problem with the trust's mapping . system, crews were regularly forced to 'zone' to nearby areas and use . local knowledge to find exact addresses. John . Martin, interim director of clinical quality at the East of England . Ambulance Service NHS Trust, said: 'I would like to express my . condolences to the family. The trust's response to Bella was delayed for . a number of factors, primarily the difficulty in locating the address . due to it being a new build. 'As . a result, a number of specific measures have now been put in place, and . the trust has raised the problems of the delay in new buildings and . developments appearing on maps and sat nav systems on a national level. 'In . addition, the trust is recruiting more frontline staff and getting more . ambulances on the road in order to improve our service for patients.' | Bella Hellings died after an ambulance took 26 minutes to arrive .
Coroner criticised 'chaotic response' of East of England Ambulance Service .
Parents Amy Carter and Scott Hellings considering civil action against trust . |
131,488 | 360513c0efba1e6311568e018cdd91f2113c8a92 | By . Ted Thornhill . A woman is lucky to be alive after her new sunbed started getting 'too hot' - then burst into flames and caused £1,000 of damage to her home. Mother-of-one Christine Bradley, 56, had rented the device from a tanning salon for £80 and planned to get a nice tan ahead of a holiday in Gran Canaria. She lay down on the sunbed but within moments realised its lamps were getting 'unbearably' hot. Shocking: Christine Bradley, 56, at her home in Hartlepool, where her hired sunbed burst into flames . Unbearable: Christine leaped off the sunbed when it became far too hot for her . Damage: The fire destroyed all her new holiday clothes, TV, carpets, wallpaper, blinds and a window . Christine knew something was not right when she could only handle the heat for 15 minutes, rather than the half hour she planned. The heat got so intense she eventually had to jump off and then watched in horror as it burst into flames. Christine, of Hartlepool, fled to her neighbour's home in her dressing gown and dialled 999 as the blaze spread through her spare room. The fire caused £1,000 worth of damage - including destroying all her newly purchased holiday clothes, TV, carpets, wallpaper, blinds and a window. Lucky escape: Christine fled to her neighbour's home in her dressing gown and dialled 999 as the blaze spread through her spare room . Close call: Bosses at Stranton Fire Station, which sent two appliances to the scene at 4pm on Saturday, said Christine has been very 'lucky' The fire also burnt into the ceiling, cutting the house's electricity for days. Christine said: 'I only got it delivered on Friday. It was five minutes between getting off and smelling smoke. 'I can't believe how lucky I am. Five more minutes and I dread to think what could have happened. I wouldn't have got out. 'Normally they take time to warm up, but this one didn't - it was really quite hot straight away. I thought "this is too hot", so I got out. 'I went to get a towel, but the next thing I looked up and flames were coming from the top of it. If I had been on five minutes later I would have been dead. 'I'll never in my life use sunbeds again - the experience was just horrendous.' Shop-worker Christine rented the sunbed from Golden Brown tanning salon in Hartlepool. They declined to comment. Bosses at Stranton Fire Station, which sent two appliances to the scene at 4pm Saturday, said Christine has been very 'lucky'. | Mother Christine Bradley rented the sunbed for £80 from a tanning salon .
Christine, from Hartlepool, jumped off when it became 'unbearably hot'
The sunbed then burst into flames and a fire spread through her house .
The fire caused £1,000 worth of damage, destroying all her holiday clothes . |
38,026 | 6b95cbeb158a25c8f5dc967e89aca44f7ae83982 | In "Stand Your Ground" Florida, Michael Dunn said he felt threatened by a car full of teens playing loud music and pumped about 10 rounds from his 9 mm pistol into their SUV, killing 17-year-old Jordan Davis. There were, of course, no return shots, because the teens were unarmed. Dunn is white, and all the teens in the car were black. He didn't bother to call the police afterward. Dunn, 47, is on trial, charged with murder. He took the stand Monday, detailing how he was pulled up at a gas station when he asked the teens to turn down the music -- "rap crap" he called it. Through the teenagers' tinted windows he saw menace, someone reaching for something. "You're not going to kill me, you son of a b***h," Dunn recalled saying as he reached for his loaded gun in his glove box. And he only "stopped firing when it appeared the threat was over." Under Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law, which could be used in this case, you are granted immunity from criminal and civil charges -- even if you didn't first try to retreat -- if you can show you had a reasonable fear of imminent bodily harm or death. And reasonable is up to interpretation. A 2012 study by The Urban Institute found that in the "Stand Your Ground" states, when white shooters kill black people, "34% of the resulting homicides are deemed justifiable. Only 3% of deaths are ruled justifiable when the shooter is black and the victim is white." And Dunn feels justified. "I am NOT a murderer," Dunn has said. Instead, he has taken on the mantle of victimhood and claimed, "I am a survivor." Dunn saw black and Dunn saw "threat." And he still does. He wrote, while awaiting trial, "This jail is full of blacks, and they all act like thugs. ... This may sound a bit radical, but if more people would arm themselves and kill these **** idiots when they're threatening you, eventually they may take the hint and change their behavior." But it's not just the vigilantes. In January, Philadelphia police determined that a group of African American teens wearing hats and scarves in 13 degree weather looked "suspicious." The resulting stop and frisk led to the crushed testicles of a straight-A student who was simply on his way to a high school basketball game. He is now in a wheelchair. Recently, researchers at Stanford University conducted studies where police and others, cued with an image of a black person, quickly deciphered very blurred images often associated with crime, such as a gun. White people see an African American, and they're immediately looking for something illegal. They almost instantly see a threat. Trayvon Martin, Renisha McBride, Jonathan Ferrell and the scores of other unarmed African Americans gunned down because the killers felt threatened make that clear. Still, there's another story. The toll that the assumption of white innocence has on public safety is rarely examined. For example, years ago in Wisconsin, one of Jeffrey Dahmer's young victims ran naked, bleeding and screaming into the arms of Milwaukee's finest. But the serial killer's blond hair worked like pixie dust: The officers ignored the pleas of several African American women, who begged the police to protect the child and get him to safety. Instead, the cops took Dahmer's word that this frail 14-year-old Asian American boy was really a consenting adult and handed the child back over to the cannibal. For most Americans, danger doesn't look like Jeffrey Dahmer. The second part of the same study at Stanford affirmed it. Researchers found when they flashed pictures of whites to police and others, subsequent fuzzy images linked to crime remained a blur for a lot longer. In the Rorschach psyche of America, the words "white" and "crime" are not synonymous. This means that authorities are slow to recognize the threat even of serial killers and certainly by gun-toting shooters in neighborhoods, malls, schools, and airports -- if they're white. The ability of white skin to mask a threat was evident in Atlanta last year. In October, a white man pulled up to an elementary school and breezed through an elaborate security system while packing multiple guns, including an AK-47, and nearly 500 rounds of ammunition. Eight hundred children scrambled out of the building and a SWAT team set up outside. Then, Michael Brandon Hill pointed his gun out the school window and started shooting. As dramatic as the shootings may be, the assumption of white innocence has a more widespread, corrosive effect on the criminal justice system and society. The New York Police Department has documented evidence that the relatively small number of whites who were stopped and frisked accounted for nearly twice as many illegal firearms and one-third more contraband than blacks or Latinos. Still, Deputy Inspector Christopher McCormick instructed his officers to target African Americans. "I don't have any trouble telling you this," he said, "male blacks 14 to 20, 21." In other words, where the presumption of white innocence is concerned, facts carry much less weight than perception. Similarly, whites and Hispanics are two-thirds of all crack users in the United States; yet, the U.S. Sentencing Commission found that 79% of sentenced crack offenders in 2009 were black. As journalist Saki Knafo noted, "When it comes to illegal drug use, white America does the crime, black America gets the time." Law professor Jonathan Simon wrote about the ways that the American obsession with crime has created "a culture of fear." Yet, any sense of real safety and security will continue to elude this nation as long black is the default threat setting in America. | Michael Dunn says he was justified in killing black teen because he felt threatened .
Carol Anderson: Dunn thinks he's a victim even though teens had no weapons .
She names Trayvon Martin, Renisha McBride, Jonathan Ferrell -- all gunned down .
She says "white" is seen as innocent, "black" carries presumption of being a thug . |
189,583 | 817fecd79c885f977fa8071ad38d3775394bc870 | By . Associated Press . PUBLISHED: . 22:23 EST, 21 September 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 22:23 EST, 21 September 2013 . The Defense Department says the three troops killed on Saturday in eastern Afghanistan by an Afghan wearing a security forces uniform are Americans.It appears to be the seventh such attack by a member of the Afghan forces against their international allies.A Defense Department official says no details will be released about the three American troops killed in the attack until after notification of relatives. Paratroopers from the 3rd Battalion, 509th Infantry of the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division along hesco barriers at FOB Gardez in Afghanistan's Paktiya Province last July . Troops returning home from Afghanistan last year as part of the American withdrawal of troops by the end of 2014 . An Afghan Defense Ministry spokesman says the shooting took place on Saturday near the Pakistan border in the capital of eastern Paktia province, the city of Gardez. A security official there says the attack took place inside a base of the Afghan army in Gardez.So far this year, 11 foreign soldiers have been killed in such attacks, including the attack on Saturday. The surge in insider attacks is a sign of how security has deteriorated as NATO prepares its military exit from Afghanistan by the end of 2014. The U.S. will remain with about 68,000 troops at the end of September. NATO and U.S. forces are working with the Afghan government to tighten vetting procedures and increase security between the forces, but nothing has so far been able to stem the attacks on troops, which NATO frequently asserts are standing 'shoulder by shoulder.'In unusually blunt remarks to the Pentagon's own news service, the American Forces Press Service, Dempsey said the Afghan government needs to take the problem as seriously as do U.S. commanders and officials. | So far this year, 11 soldiers have been killed in insider attacks .
The surge of attacks is a sign of how security has deteriorated as NATO prepares military exit from Afghanistan .
American troops and allied troops are standing 'shoulder to shoulder' |
12,540 | 239057889af0ed6a8710a2c9c0cdc5d72ead3563 | Tony Abbott's budgie smugglers are 'confronting' - but we're not calling for them to be banned. That is the common refrain of the Islamic community to fierce calls for the burqa to be outlawed. The joke is told by community leaders such as Mariam Veiszadeh, by Muslims on the streets of south-west Sydney and is the subject of a meme widely shared by the Islamic community on Facebook. 'It's a light hearted way of making the point.... if you want to dress down or dress up we should all be able to do it,' Ms Veiszadeh told Daily Mail Australia on Friday. Scroll down for video . Budgies: Tony Abbott's choice of swimwear has been labelled 'confronting' by Islamic community leaders, such as Mariam Veiszadeh. Controversial. but rare: For a brief moment, people who wear the niqab, pictured left and right, were to sit in a glass enclosure if they watched parliamentary proceedings. Prime Minister Tony Abbott, centre, has kyboshed the plan. Female leaders: Both Mariam Veiszadeh and Maha Abdo wear the hijab, rather than the niqab. Ms Veiszadeh has joked she finds Mr Abbott's budgie smugglers 'confronting' but would defend his right to wear it. Hijab . The hijab. A head scarf which covers both the hair and the neck with cloth. The hijab, often accompanied with modest clothing, is the most popular form of dress for Islamic women in Australia. The niqab. Niqab . A full body Islamic dress that covers the entire face except for the eyes. Only a 'tiny minority' of Islamic women in Australia wear it, but it is more popular than the burqa. The burqa. Burqa: Full body Islamic dress which covers the entire face. The face is covered with by a mesh grill. It is very rare in Australia. Information courtesy of Mariam Veiszadeh . The burqa debate - fuelled by conservative senators' calls and Prime Minister Tony Abbott's comment he finds the face-covering 'confronting' and 'wishes it was not worn' - has frustrated the country's Muslim community, who say only a tiny minority of women wear the full face covering anyway. For a brief moment on Thursday, there was even a plan to keep Muslim visitors who wanted to watch proceedings at Parliament House in a glass enclosure. The plan was quashed late last night by Prime Minister Tony Abbott, following community uproar and backlash from members of his own party. Islamic community leaders told Daily Mail Australia they are sick of the burqa (a form of dress where the face is covered by a mesh grill) being confused with the niqab, a more popular dress where the face is covered but the eyes are not. 'It (the burqa) is not common,' Ms Veiszadeh said. And while there are no reliable statistics, 'only a tiny minority' of Australian Muslim women wear the niqab, she said. A number of Muslim women told Daily Mail Australia that Australians who wear the niqab find it liberating, rather than oppressive, as critics have said. 'It's an amazing feeling of freedom,' said Maha Abdo, the executive officer of the Muslim Women's Association. 'You can see clearly, but no one can see you.' Ms Abdo chose to start wearing a hijab 30 years ago, but she has worn a niqab while spending time overseas. She said her headscarf reminds her of her spirituality. 'For me it's a reminder of my own purpose in this life and how to be the best that I can be,' she told Daily Mail Australia. Mary Succati, who sells Islamic clothing to women at a store in Greenacre, in south-west Sydney, agreed that the handful of people she knows who wear the niqab found the experience rewarding. 'They're not perceived as oppressed - they feel liberated,' she told Daily Mail Australia. The furious debate is occurring at a time of celebration for many Muslims. The Eid Festival, one of the most important dates in the religious calendar, will be held over the long weekend, concurrent with the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca. Friday was the busiest day of the year at Ms Succati's store for Islamic women. Her small shop was crowded with women buying new clothes for Eid. Ms Succati, who wears a hijab, was planning to keep her store open until midnight. Ms Succati's store in Greenacre has been bustling this week as Eid approaches. All types of clothing: Shop owner Mary Succati, who sells Islamic clothing in Greenacre, in Sydney's south-west. Shopping: Floral prints are the theme of the season at Ms Succati's store in Greenacre. Busy day: With Eid celebrations occurring at the weekend, Ms Succati's Greenacre store was packed with people. She does not sell niqabs in her store, but many women in niqabs come in to buy clothing for their children. The fashion of the season? 'There's a lot of floral at the moment,' Ms Succati said, with customers ditching drab winter clothing for more colourful, but still modest, spring wear. It will be a big weekend in Greenacre for another reason, too. The Bulldogs are facing off with South Sydney in the NRL Grand Final at ANZ Stadium on Sunday. Ms Succati's staff, avid Bulldogs supporters who insisted her store be decked out in blue and white, will be watching. | Muslim community leaders respond to burqa debate with quip about Tony Abbott's Speedos .
Mr Abbott has backed down on a plan to place Muslim visitors to Parliament in a glass enclosure .
Leader says: 'If you want to dress down, or dress up, we should all be able to do it'
The burqa has often been confused with the niqab .
As the debate rages, Australian Muslims prepare for important celebration . |
63,494 | b450185f0cedc6bd5def66535f978e3769459260 | Controversial QPR footballer Joey Barton is taking his time writing an autobiography sure to cause the same kind of stir as the Roy Keane and Kevin Pietersen books this week. Barton has spent more than two years on the project — rejecting the manuscripts of two ghost writers and then parting company with publishers Penguin, who wanted to rush out the book for this year’s Christmas market before Barton was ready. The midfielder, whose desire to gain a wider sporting perspective saw him at the Leaders in Sport conference on Wednesday so he could listen to cycling innovator Sir David Brailsford, is now writing the life story himself. Joey Barton has spent more than two years on his autobiography, rejecting manuscripts from two ghosts . Barton is talking to other publishers after the fall-out with Penguin but is also examining digital self-publishing and releasing the contents chapter by chapter. Barton’s first ghost was Times sports writer Matthew Syed but it was felt he had portrayed his views of Barton rather than those of the footballer. Penguin then put forward author Jeff Hudson but his effort read more like a fictional novel to the former Newcastle player. Now, with the guidance of the head of humanities at Roehampton University, where Barton is studying for a degree in philosophy, the firebrand has completed nine chapters. The delay has allowed Barton to include his spell at Marseille plus QPR’s return to the top flight and his appearance on Question Time. Barton wants to create a stir with his book like Roy Keane and Kevin Pietersen have done this week . Such are the problems at troubled Leeds under owner Massimo Cellino that the English players and the large Italian contingent sit at separate tables for pre-match meals. The first half of FA chairman Greg Dyke’s England Commission report was derailed by the Premier League vetoing their chairman Anthony Fry being on the panel. But the second edition, to be announced tomorrow, has been notable for the warring bodies working closely for a change. PL chief Richard Scudamore even travelled to St George’s Park to spend three hours addressing the Commission. The big focus in part two is improving grass-roots facilities and coaching — to be piloted in Sheffield. It is due to be funded by the FA, the Premier League and the Government. Liverpool are following Manchester United and Manchester City by opening a commercial office in London. But while United are based in plush Mayfair, Liverpool have chosen, like City, to have their satellite operation near Euston railway station. This shortens the commute from the North West. UEFA 'pirates' snubbed . Jeffrey Webb has welcomed UEFA’s plan to play pre-season tournaments outside Europe . UEFA’s plan to play pre-season tournaments outside Europe, revealed by Sports Agenda, has been welcomed by Jeffrey Webb, the president of the CONCACAF federation that governs the favoured host countries in North America. But Tim Leiweke, the Los Angeles Galaxy owner who took David Beckham to the USA, is not in favour, claiming European clubs want to ‘take money out of that landscape’. Leiweke’s brother Tod, CEO of Tampa Bay Sports, also questioned whether it was a ‘pirate move’ by UEFA at Leaders in Sport. Meanwhile, Webb’s admirable stance on the racism scandal of Chelsea’s black youth coach Eddie Newton not getting near any managerial openings would have more credence if the FIFA anti-discrimination task force Webb heads had met in the last calendar year. ......................................................................... It makes sense for England to play home matches around the country when Wembley will only be half full for the visit of San Marino on Thursday. But that will have to wait until the FA negotiate a more flexible contract with Wembley from 2017. The FA are prioritising a full NFL franchise at Wembley, which could see England games played elsewhere. However, American football taking precedence over association football seems bizarre. Manchester City, whose women play Arsenal Ladies in the FA’s Continental Cup final at Wycombe a week today, are angry the game is being staged so close to London and aggravated by the FA not responding to their complaints. The FA say the venue was chosen months ago. | Joey Barton has spent more than two years on his book .
Book is expected to cause the same stir as Keane and Kevin Pietersen's .
Italian and English players at Leeds sit separately during pre-match meals .
The FA are prioritising a full NFL franchise at Wembley . |
148,379 | 4bdc986e678c2ab771e879d1cc949978da8b9ee9 | By . Daily Mail Reporter . Last updated at 11:28 PM on 1st December 2011 . Streaming movies at home is cheaper than going to the cinema, but that may soon change. Cable and pay-TV companies are trying to find the best ways to profit from the rising demand of Internet bandwidth, in large part because of Netflix and Hulu. Some, including giant Time Warner Cable, are on the brink of imposing new fees based on data usage. So long, cheap streaming? Companies like Time Warner are eyeing usage-based payment models . Analyst Craig Moffett of Sanford C. Bernstein and Company in New York said companies like Cox Communications, Charter Communications, or Time Warner could be the first to start charging for the amount of data users consume on the internet, not just bandwidth. ‘As more video shifts to the Web, the cable operators will inevitably align their pricing models,’ Mr Moffett told the Chronicle. ‘With the right usage-based pricing plan, they can embrace the transition instead of resisting it.’ The San Francisco Chronicle reports that high definition offerings on websites like Netflix and Hulu eat up large amounts of data. Netflix creates 32 per cent of peak downstream traffic, according to the 2011 Sandvine Internet Phenomena Report released in October of this year and their streaming video is responsible for nearly 28 per cent of all bandwidth usage nationally. Usage-based pricing is hardly a new idea. U.S. providers have for years debated whether or not to switch to the model in order to gain more profits from increased Web use. According to the Chronicle, these fees may very well become a permanent fixture in customer’s monthly bills. Dish Network chairman Charlie Ergen warned that Netflix subscriptions could again inflate. ‘That Netflix subscription of $7.99 could go to an extra $20 a month for bit streaming,’ he said. Data eaters: Programs streamed in high definition on Netflix and Hulu eat up large amounts of data . Netflix spokesman Steve Swasey said increasing broadband prices was ‘not in the consumer’s best interest as consumers deserve unfettered access to a robust Internet at reasonable rates.’ ‘As more video shifts to the Web, the . cable operators will inevitably align their pricing models. With the right usage-based pricing plan, they can embrace the transition instead of resisting it.’ -Sanford C. Bernstein and Company analyst . Netflix customers have already received largely unwelcome news this year, when the company announced it would split its subscriptions. Rather than offering mailed DVDs and streaming together, the two were only offered separately, and at higher prices. The model has already taken part in some inception in Dallas, Texas, where AT&T charges DSL customers who exceed a monthly limited of 150GB an extra $10 for every 50GB of data they use. Not every household will consume that kind of data. Comcast generally offers users 250GB per month, which allows 60 standard definition movies to be streamed and 12,000 emails to be sent and received. In December, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski supported publically a usage-based pricing model. | Streaming video sites like Netflix and Hulu eat up Internet data .
Netflix streaming video is responsible for 28% of all bandwidth use in the U.S. |
109,357 | 18f476fa6d7377f7c2ded65acc0c9fee692de507 | Abidjan, Ivory Coast (CNN) -- At least five people were killed Tuesday in clashes between police and supporters of Ivory Coast's president-elect as a tense political standoff continued Tuesday in the West African nation. The governor of Abidjan said three police officers and two demonstrators were killed. The violence comes a day after the U.N. Security Council deplored the violence in the country since the November 28 election and "urged all parties to exercise restraint." The cocoa-producing West African nation was plunged into crisis when Alassane Ouattara was declared the winner of the presidential runoff election, but incumbent Laurent Gbagbo refused to leave office. The Security Council expressed its backing for the efforts by the African Union and the Economic Community of West African States in pursuing a peaceful resolution of the crisis. At the same time, the council repeated its readiness "to impose measures, including targeted sanctions against people "who threaten the peace process," block the work of the U.N. mission and other international people there or "commit serious violations of human rights and international humanitarian law." Meanwhile, Ouattara is willing to add supporters of self-proclaimed president Gbagbo to his Cabinet, provided the defiant incumbent steps down, the West African nation's ambassador to the United Nations said Monday. Ambassador Youssoufou Bamba said Ouattara would not enter a power-sharing government similar to that in Zimbabwe but that he would be open to a unity cabinet. U.N. spokesman Farhan Haq could not confirm any such offer from the Ouattara government and said that Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon still called for Gbagbo to step down in favor of an orderly transition. Ouattara told CNN last week that he welcomes a proposal for direct negotiations with Gbagbo -- on the condition that Gbagbo recognize Ouattara as president. But in a telephone interview on Tuesday, Gbagbo's government spokesman, Ahoua Don Melo, rejected the proposal, saying Ouattara "should first go to the Constitutional Council to get recognized as the president before making any proposal." An independent election commission declared Ouattara the winner of the runoff election in November, but the country's Constitutional Council then declared Gbagbo the winner. The U.S. Treasury froze Gbagbo's assets in the United States last week and barred Americans from doing business with him. His wife and three top aides also were sanctioned. Ouattara remains holed up in the Golf Hotel under the protection of U.N. peacekeepers. The United Nations and an ever-increasing number of other nations have recognized Ouattara, a former prime minister, as the rightful winner. The United States and other countries have offered Gbagbo what they call a "dignified exit," which could mean living and working in other countries, including the United States. Gbagbo, however, has ignored those offers and has refused to accept telephone calls from U.S. officials. Ouattara has said he will ensure protection for Gbagbo if he concedes, said Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga, the African Union envoy for a multinational mediation effort. The U.N. Security Council welcomed AU and ECOWAS' intention to send "another joint high-level mission as soon as possible to continue discussions with the two parties." It expressed deep concern over continued violence and human rights violations, including against U.N. peacekeepers, and "condemned deliberate attempts to impede the United Nations Operation in Côte d'Ivoire from fulfilling its mandate," referring to the country by its French name. Security Council members also "strongly condemned and demanded an immediate halt" to media efforts to "propagate false information to incite hatred and violence." Council members also condemned the ongoing blockade around the Golf Hotel. Meanwhile, the U.N. refugee agency is building a refugee camp for Ivorians fleeing to neighboring Liberia. The camp will initially be capable of housing some 18,000 refugees. At present, there are about 25,000 Ivorian refugees in Liberia, with about 600 people arriving daily. "Refugees continue to tell us that in most cases they are fleeing fear of violence rather than actual violence against them," said the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees. The UNHCR has sufficient relief supplies for about 30,000 people in Liberia and said it "is ready to mobilize stocks from Ghana for an additional 30,000 people if the need arises." CNN's Whitney Hurst contributed to this report. | At least five people have died in new clashes .
The U.N. Security Council urges peaceful resolution .
25,000 Ivorian refugees are now in Liberia . |
156,562 | 566ace752d3008b81d7cba80d2f9aa6867389aa3 | Councils across the U.S. Midwest are closing hills and banning sledding to prevent being sued in injury claims. It is not known just how many cities have banned or restricted the pass time, but every year the list grows. The latest city council to get on board is Dubuque, Iowa, where they are moving ahead with plans to ban sledding in all but two of its 50 parks. Councils across the U.S. Midwest are closing hills and banning sledding to prevent being sued in injury claims; the latest council to propose restrictions is in Dubuque, Iowa, where they are moving ahead with plans to ban sledding in all but two of its 50 parks (stock image) Marie Ware, Dubuque's leisure services manager, told Newsok that the council had 'all kinds of parks that have hills on them' and can't 'manage the risk' at all of the locations. More than 20,000 children each year were treated at emergency rooms for sledding-related injuries between 1997 and 2007, according to a study by Ohio-based Center for Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Children's Hospital. Dubuque council members had been against the move, but conceded it was necessary given liability concerns and to meet demands from their insurers. They had cited two sledding lawsuits. One had involved a $2 million judgement against Omaha, Nebraska, after a 5-year-old girl was paralyzed when she hit a tree, and the other involved a $2.75 million payment to a man who injured his spinal cord after hitting a sign. Instead of out-right bans on sledding, some cities had lessened their liability by banning sledding only on certain slopes and by posting warning signs. In 2013, Paxton, Illinois officials removed their sledding hill altogether out of fears sledders may crash into trees. The 20-foot rise was more of a dirt mound - made to cover rubbish and junk metal - but it was often crowded with sledders. Steve King, who runs a website that promotes sledding, said he understands why cities impose restrictions as most sledders don't wear helmets and it's near impossible to steer away from obstacles (stock image) After losing a lawsuit, Omaha banned sledding at a popular hill one winter, but later dropped the restriction as people were continuing to sled there. The city has now posted warning signs at sledding sights and put pads around posts and hay bales around trees. Kenneth Bond, a New York lawyer who represents local governments, told the website that most people realize that cities must restrict potentially dangerous activities to protect their citizens. He said previously people may have accepted they were responsible for their own actions, but they now expected the government to prevent dangers whenever possible. Steve King, who runs a website that promotes sledding, said he understands why cities impose restrictions. Most sledders don't wear helmets and it's near impossible to steer away from trees, rocks or signs, he said. Mr King said: 'We live in a lawsuit-happy society and cities are just being protective by banning sledding in areas that pose a risk for injury or death.' | An Iowa council plans to ban sledding in all but two of its 50 parks .
A study showed 20,000 children a year were being injured in accidents .
In two sledding law suits, the victims were awarded at least $2 million . |
259,279 | dba3f9e9a9f48430a38699e5bb5604269bf494f4 | By . Ryan Gorman . PUBLISHED: . 15:00 EST, 18 August 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 01:46 EST, 19 August 2013 . A Georgia high school football player died during a pre-season game Friday night. DeAntre Turman, 16, and only a junior at Creekside High School, died of a broken neck after making a routine tackle. He had considerable interest from major college football programs and was considered one of the state’s top recruits for next year’s graduating class. Turman had already been offered a full scholarship to play football for the University of Kentucky, according to ESPN. A tragic end to a promising young life: DeAntre Turman died less than a month before his 17th birthday . Called ‘Tre Tre’ by friends, Turman was one of only a couple dozen juniors with Division-1 scholarships. A young life with seemingly limitless potential was cut short by what the medical examiner called ‘blunt force trauma,’ according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. A cornerback, Turman was an aggressive defender making a clean, solid tackle on a wide receiver in the open field, according to witnesses who spoke to local media. Nothing about the play seemed out of the ordinary until he didn’t get up after the tackle. T%alented: Turman was 'definitely one of the best players' at a football camp he attended over the summer . ‘Tre broke on it, dislodged the ball and his body just went limp. (He) immediately just went limp and he was on the ground,’ coach Glenn Ford told WSB. ‘[Everyone was] calling out his name, just trying to get him to come back to open his eyes up to move until the ambulance got there,’ Ford added. The ambulance arrived 15 minutes later, Turman was pronounced dead at a local hospital. Turman fractured the third vertebrae in his neck, according to the medical examiner. The young star attended a football camp during the summer and was slated to play in a December all-star game. As a tribute his number two jersey will not be worn by anyone on the field, according to the Journal-Constitution. ‘He was definitely one of the best players at the camp, and the thing I really loved about him, that he was real quiet and reserved,’ Joe Burns, co-founder of RisingSeniors.com, told the Journal-Constitution. ‘He was one of those kids that was really focused, and trying to make the most out of the opportunity.’ Well liked: Turman, pictured in white, had many friends and was respected by both teammates and coaches . Other experts agreed, Turman had real potential. A national recruiting analyst told the Journal-Constitution that ‘it was a no-brainer to invite Turman to the camp because of how well he made plays on the ball and defended receivers.’ Former coach Johnny White had nothing but praise for Turman. ‘He’s one of the best kids I’ve ever dealt with in my 18 years of coaching, period, hands down,’ White told WSB. ‘He was quiet, but always smiling. He had a real good spirit. It was always yes sir, no sir. He enjoyed his team, and he loved his teammates. Just a great kid’ The fallen star’s mother died when he was young, his guardian told WSB of his love for football. ‘That is what made him the happiest. Being the competitor and playing different sports made him happy,’ said Tarsha Keller, adding that Turman’s dream was to get a college scholarship and play at the next level - a dream he came so close to realizing. High school football players rarely die on the field, with an average of only three deaths a year the past decade, according to the National Center for Catastrophic Sport Injury Research at the University of North Carolina. No players died last year, the first season without a death in almost 20 years. | DeAntre Turman was one of the top high school football players in Georgia .
He was one of only a couple dozen juniors with college scholarship offers .
Turman was slated to play in an all-star game in December, it will now be played in his honor . |
196,720 | 8a9307cab1a3711629d18b887cfffb1a86388461 | By . Peter Allen, Ian Sparks and Alexandra Williams . PUBLISHED: . 21:14 EST, 15 March 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 05:32 EST, 25 June 2012 . A British boy killed in the Swiss coach disaster was known as ‘the little cherub’, his former headmistress revealed yesterday. Sebastian Bowles, 12, had told his family that he was having a ‘really great’ holiday and could ‘already ski quite well’. Just two days later he was one of 22 children from a Belgian school killed when their coach crashed as they returned home. The two drivers and four teachers on board were also killed. Swiss investigators yesterday said they believed the coach had clipped a kerb before veering into a lay-by which led to a solid brick wall. Flowers and the faint outline of a heart mark the site of the devastating accident that claimed 28 lives when a bus smashed into the wall of the tunnel . Tragedy: Police officers carry the coffin of one of the 28 victims of the Swiss bus crash into a Belgian military cargo aircraft at Sion airport in Switzerland . They added there was no evidence the . driver was changing a DVD at the time, as had been feared, and there was . no evidence either of the drivers were intoxicated or tired. They are however examining whether the angle of the tunnel wall contributed to the severity of the crash on Wednesday. Sebastian had moved with his family to Belgium two years ago so they could be closer to the relatives of his mother Ann. He . had been a popular pupil at Our Lady of Muswell Catholic Primary in . London and was remembered there with a minute’s silence yesterday. Headmistress . Teresa McBride said: ‘He was a wonderfully vibrant boy who is so fondly . remembered by pupils, staff and parents at Our Lady of Muswell. ‘He was known by staff as “the little cherub”. 'He will be greatly missed.’ Sebastian’s mother had been a governor at the school two miles from their former home in Crouch End, North London. Speaking outside the school Miss . McBride added: ‘Sebastian was a smiling, bubbling boy who looked like an . angel and he was an angel. 'We are all struggling to deal with this.’ Sebastian . had posted an online message to his parents reassuring them he was . having a great time at the Alpine resort of Val d’Anniviers just 48 . hours before his death. With the joy of a child enjoying his . first taste of freedom, Sebastian tells his parents and his sister . Helena about his adventures ski-ing and eating a barbecue on the slopes. He had written: ‘Dearest Mama, Papa, Helena and Flopsy. I can already ski quite well. It’s really great here.’ The schoolboy adds: ‘After breakfast we had a lovely walk and the teacher told us a story about the area. ‘Then we went ski-ing and ate a . barbecue on the slopes. 'That was great. 'We could eat as much soup and . hotdogs as we wanted ... mmmmmmmm jummmmie.’ Sebastian’s . father Edward, who is regional head of public affairs for the Standard . Chartered Bank, and his Belgian mother Ann had travelled to Switzerland . to identify their son’s body. They . had returned to Belgium yesterday but the shutters were down at their . detached house on the outskirts of Leuven, near Brussels. A neighbour . said: ‘He was such a fantastic, polite boy. 'He always said hello. It’s . such a shocking thing.’ Both Sebastian and his sister attended St Lambertus School in Heverlee, two miles from their home, where Belgian flags were draped from windows in the neighbourhood as a mark of respect. One of the three children fighting for their lives after the accident came out of a coma yesterday. Medics said the girl, who had suffered a spinal cord injury, was fully conscious and able to interact with her parents at her bedside. The other two girls remain in induced comas. Belgium came to a standstill yesterday as the remains of the 22 children – aged 11 to 13 – and six adults killed in the crash were flown home. The bodies, with the children in white coffins, were returned to Melsbroek military airport near Brussels in two army planes where 28 hearses were waiting for them. Before the 11am silence Elio Di Rupo, the Belgian Prime Minister said: ‘The whole country weeps for its children.’ Sadness: Police officers with the coffin of one of the 28 victims of the bus crash. They were then flown back to Belgium . Greeted: Hearses arrived at the Melsbroek military airport, near Brussels in Belgium, to pick up the coffins of the 28 killed in the crash . Victims: These children, from the Stekske school in Belgium, were all killed in the Swiss bus crash that claimed the lives of 22 children and six adults . Tragic: The Stekske pupils were returning from a skiing holiday when the bus they were travelling on careered into the wall of a tunnel . Lost lives: The majority of the children were aged just 12 years old. Scores of tributes have been left outside the Stekske school . Sadness: Families of the victims, including teacher Mr Raymond (far right), were taken to leave tributes at the crash site today . Tributes: A woman pictured at Lommel City Hall where a condolences register has been set up, and (right) teacher Mrs Vanheulekom . Signing: Citizens sign the condolences book at Lommel Town Hall in front of photographs of children who died in the Swiss bus crash . Tragic: Relatives of the Swiss bus crash victims pictured at the morgue in Sion where their bodies have been taken . Sad trip: A bus carrying the relatives of the bus crash victims is escorted by a police motorbike as it leaves the tunnel after the families paid tribute at the site . Victims: A mourner outside St Lambertus school pictured holding up a photo of pupils that could have been on the trip . Grieving: Visitors pictured in tears outside . Stekske primary school in Lommel (left) as notes are left outside St . Lambertus school (right) | Minute silence observed across Belgium at 11am today in memory of 28, including 22 children, killed in bus crash .
Parents of Sebastian Bowles, 11, have rushed to Switzerland to await formal confirmation of their son's death .
The family, originally from Crouch End, London, moved to Belgium two years ago .
School pictures shows some of the children believed to have been killed in the accident . |
164,521 | 60bfedd659d6981e873168519f412082a242be1b | A woman has been accused of running into a school wielding a baseball bat in her underwear. Chesie Lawton, 23, has been charged with trespassing at Westside Elementary in Memphis, Tennessee, moments before hundreds of children were due to arrive for their lunch. According to WMC5, the first officers on scene were flagged down by a teacher who said the woman was 'acting out' during the bizarre disturbance. Chesie Lawton, 23, has been charged with criminal trespassing Westside Elementary in Memphis, Tennessee. Officers said she was 'acting out' and screaming while wielding a baseball bat . Officials say the woman came onto campus and entered the cafeteria through a back door while screaming. Reports from earlier in the day suggest she had been running round the neighbourhood with her shirt on, but then removed it before entering the school. According to an incident report, 'officers opened the door and the female tried to get away. The female was yelling and acting out. She was nervous and squirming all over the place.' A statement by Shelby County Schools said: 'This person entered the building through a door located in the rear of the building.' A statement from Shelby County Schools suspects she may have been able to get in because one of the doors was not locked properly . 'This is not a public entrance/exit or an entrance/exit used by students. 'All exterior doors are designed to lock automatically when pulled shut; however, it appears someone who used the door accidentally failed to shut it completely. 'This incident did not occur in the presence of any children, and police responded within a few minutes.' However parents were concerned that they were not told about the intrusion that could have harmed their children. Tori Fink told WMBF: 'The school didn't notify any parents. No way, form or fashion.' Police say Lawton also has a warrant out for her arrest in Millington. She is locked up in the Shelby County jail on $100 bond. According to the New York Daily News, Lawton told the officers she had problems with her diabetes. However it is not clear how she connected those health issues to her odd behavior. Parents at the school reacted angrily to the alleged trespassing, saying they were not notified 'in any form' even though the children could have been harmed . | Chesie Lawton has been charged with trespassing at Westside Elementary .
She entered the building in Memphis minutes before students had lunch .
First officers on scene were flagged down by teacher during disturbance .
They alleged that Lawton was 'acting out' as she ran through the halls .
She reportedly told the officers she had problems with her diabetes . |
78,414 | de3e50d8a0b46ee6c468cde33c333dda0ee28e70 | By . John Stevens . PUBLISHED: . 16:05 EST, 2 August 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 18:27 EST, 2 August 2013 . Genevieve Hippisley was at her home late one night when her ex-boyfriend Jonathan Nolan showed up . This is the woman at the centre of a love triangle that saw one of the Queen’s riders brutally attack a former PR director of the Jockey Club. Genevieve Hippisley, 26, was at her new home late one night when her ex-boyfriend Jonathan Nolan showed up and caught one of his friends there. Nolan, 32, a work rider for the Queen’s trainer Sir Michael Stoute, had been living with Miss Hippisley in Newmarket, but she ended their relationship and moved out. When he paid an unannounced visit to her new flat in the town on July 21, he was shocked to find his friend John Maxse, 45, with her. Nolan attacked Mr Maxse and left him with a suspected broken eye socket, broken collarbone and broken nose. Appearing at Ipswich Crown Court, Nolan pleaded guilty to grievous bodily harm with intent. Judge Rupert Overbury told him: ‘Be under no illusion that the likely prospect is that you will be going to prison.’ He faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. Nolan claimed he acted in self-defence. Andrew Shaw, defending, added: ‘Mr Nolan is absolutely adamant that he was not aware that Mr Maxse was at the address when he went there.’ Mr Maxse, a former jockey, is a prominent figure in horse racing, working as PR director for the British Horseracing Authority and Jockey Club. He now works as a consultant for Qatar Racing. He also rides out for trainer Michael Bell, for whom Miss Hippisley is a work rider. Genevieve Hippisley and Jonathan Nolan. Nolan has apparently attached Maxse after he found him with his ex-girlfriend . It is thought Mr Maxse knew Miss Hippisley through his friendship with Nolan, but the pair became closer at Mr Bell’s yard. Nolan is a work rider at Sir Michael’s Freemason Lodge Stables. He used to ride the Queen’s horse Carlton House when it was trained there. Since the attack Mr Maxse and Miss Hippisley have exchanged flirty Twitter messages. Mr Maxse has been seen with injuries such as a black eye, thought to have been caused by the attack . After Mr Maxse, who has been seen with a black eye and a number of cuts and bruises on his face, joked on the site that he looked like film character Rocky Balboa, she replied ‘a bit harsh on Sylvester (Stallone)’. ‘Peut-etre. But life generally is unfair,’ he responded. Nolan will be sentenced in September. He was granted conditional bail but cannot go within 100 metres of Miss Hippisley’s home. As he left court on Thursday he declined to comment. Mr Maxse and Miss Hippisley were last night unavailable for comment. | Genevieve Hippisley was home when Jonathan Nolan showed up .
She was found with former jockey John Maxse, one of Nolan's friends .
Nolan attacked Mr Maxse and left him with a suspected broken eye socket, broken collarbone and broken nose . |
129,978 | 3404d73faf57aee26f89a8396fc38fa0aac09ed5 | By . Steve Robson . PUBLISHED: . 14:36 EST, 27 March 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 02:42 EST, 28 March 2013 . A Romanian gang wore pin-striped suits to trick their way into jewellers and carry out a £1million robbery campaign, a court heard. The Old Bailey heard today how the ten thieves came to Britain with the sole purpose of committing crime. After targeting a series of Indian and Turkish jewellers in London and Essex, the gang was finally caught red-handed as they attempted to rob another shop in north London in September last year. Targeted: The gang stole almost £250,000 worth of jewellery from Asha jewellers in Ilford, Essex, in April last year . The court heard that as they were rugby tackled to the ground by officers from the Met's Flying Squad, one of the gang members Ovidiu Gabor, 25, told them: 'I don’t care I go to prison to be on holiday.' Prosecutor Jonathan Polnay said: 'It appears that all came to this country with the sole purpose of committing robberies and taking part in this particular conspiracy.' 'These were not people who had come here for work and got diverted. This is effectively a professional gang who came here to rob.' The gang targeted Indian and Turkish jewellers because they held large quantities of gold which could be melted down. Jewellery which was suitable for the Romanian market was sold on market stalls and to pawn shops across the eastern European country. In each raid a smartly dressed man in a Trilby or a pin-striped suit would buzz the door to entry and then hold open the door to allow the others to run in with sledgehammers. Within minutes the gang would smash open the cabinets, grab as much jewellery as possible. They would run off across nearby railway lines, knowing that it was thought too dangerous for police to chase them. Catalin Paise, 19, Puiu-Danut Paunescu, 26, Marius Barbu, 25, Vasile Batarga, 23, Iulian Culba, 22, Ovidiu Gabor, 25, Ioan Gavrilit, 26, Constantin Irina, 30, Gheorghe Macovei, 23, and Iulian Roman, 21, are now all facing jail after pleading guilty to conspiracy to rob. Guilty: The ten Romanian thieves will be sentenced at the Old Bailey in London tomorrow . The Old Bailey heard a police officer had spotted ten Romanians with hammers and an axe on waste ground next in Wembley, northwest London, on March 26 last year. Two days later they raided a jewellers in Copland Road, Wembley, and got away with £511,287. A man approached the shop in a pin-striped suit and was let in through the first security door by staff. He then held the door open so three men wearing ski masks could burst in and smash through the second security door using sledgehammers. One of the robbers shouted: ‘Go down, go down or I will kill you’ and another swore in Gujarati. The staff managed to activate the panic alarm and smoke system but the robbers got away after setting a car on fire to divert the attention of the public and the emergency services. Police later recovered clothing thrown away by the gang as they fled and found a DNA link to Barbu, Macovei and Gavrilit. On April 5 the gang took £248,659 worth of gold from Asha jewellers in Ilford, Essex, using the same method. ‘The door was buzzed by a man dressed in a smart suit and trilby hat,’ said Mr Polnay. ‘The man held the door open and repeatedly wiped his feet. Then three or four men burst in through the open door and smashed their way in through the airlock. ‘Staff fled into the back room and locked the door. They could see on CCTV the shop being cleaned out.’ Detectives again recovered clothing linking Batarga and Barbu to the attack as well as three holdalls containing £73,146 of jewellery buried in a hole in the ground. On August 25 last year the gang struck at Pakeeza jewellers on Green Street in East Ham and stole gold worth £341,545. The gang next planned to raid a jewellers on Walworth Road near Elephant and Castle in south London on August 31 but backed out when a fire engine drew up by chance nearby. Caught: The gang were rugby-tackled to the ground by police after attempting to raid Sabha jewellers in Turnpike Lane, north London . Nearly two weeks later on September 12 Flying Squad officers watched the gang leaving the campsite and travelling by bus first to Romford and then Ilford and Stoke Newington. They were seen to stake out the shop in Butterfield Green but the gang backed out because of a large police presence in the area by coincidence. Three days later on September 15 the gang were watched as they attacked Sabha jewellers in Turnpike Lane, north London. Batarga, wearing sunglasses and a trilby hat, buzzed his way in followed by the rest of the gang. One of the robbers hit an elderly customer, Mohammed Hussain, with a sledgehammer on the knee to knock him to the ground. Mr Hussain said in a statement he had lived in the UK for 42 years and added: ‘I never had any problems with anybody. This incident has changed my entire life.’ The gang were arrested as they tried to leave the shop with £62,587 worth of jewellery. Gabor was rugby-tackled to the ground and arrested. When asked about the attack on Mr Hussain, he told officers: ‘**** him. I’m not interested.’ Paise was later arrested at the campsite and told officers He had only come to the UK to see the Paralympic Games. He said he didn’t know any of the others in the gang and added: ‘I haven’t come to this country to steal from people. It is a sin to do that.’ Roman also pleaded guilty to a £1million jewellery robbery in Handsworth, Birmingham, in February last year. Two men have already been sentenced. The court heard all ten robbers were living on a campsite in woodland near Gallows Corner in Romford, Essex. They were remanded in custody to be sentenced tomorrow. | Ten thieves came to Britain with 'sole purpose of committing robbery'
Targeted Indian and Turkish jewellers in London and Essex for gold .
Caught during raid in Turnpike Lane by Met police Flying Squad .
All admit conspiracy to rob and will be sentenced at the Old Bailey tomorrow . |
257,398 | d92233a7efe5449f69010e365514ae875386e41a | They will normally do anything to avoid the water. However, not only has this cat learned how to swim, it seems to have perfected the doggy paddle. This hilarious video shows a cat in Russia walking into the water and taking a dip with its owner. It has since become an internet sensation after the video was uploaded to YouTube and went viral. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO . Taking a dip: The cat tentatively steps into the water ready for the swim ahead . Moggy paddle: It launches itself into the water, seemingly unafraid of the water . Far from being afraid of the water, the cat voluntarily walks into it. The footage shows the black and white moggie taking tentative steps from the shore into the water. Encouraged by its owner, it starts to paddle, its tail trailing behind it on the water's surface. It is then joined by the woman, who swims alongside her pet cat as the pair make their way toward some rocks. The moggie shows no signs of distress throughout the short clip and seems relaxed after its dip. Little is known about the cat, except that the footage was filmed in Russia. Swimming buddies: The cat is joined by its owner and the pair swim alongside each other . Feline fine: The cat seems relaxed after its dip as it dries off in the sun . NOW WATCH THE VIDEO . | Video of cat taking a dip with its owner goes viral on YouTube . |
1,407 | 0404bb322f09c52b86ee0939f03362872bdb003f | Gerard Pique is a target for his former side Manchester United and two other English clubs, according to reports in Spain. Barcelona-based Sport claim that Chelsea and both Manchester teams have submitted offers ranging from £20-£24million for the Spain star. The paper say that Jose Mourinho is hoping to replace John Terry, and believes he can bring the Spaniard to London in the same way he lured Cesc Fabregas this summer. Sport lead with the story of three offers for Gerard Pique while Mundo Deportivo highlight Barca's new tactics . Manchester City, meanwhile, are desperate to sign the Barca defender as early as January, Sport claim, having missed out on his signature last summer. Mundo Deportivo also focus on Barcelona, claiming that Luis Enrique is set to try a new formation with both Sergio Busquets and Javier Mascherano in central midfield. The tactical switch is intended to free the front three of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez, in a style similar to Brazil in 2002 and Spain in 2010, claim the paper. Elsewhere in Spain AS lead on claims from the La Liga president Javier Tebas that Cristiano Ronaldo would not have won the league's player of the year award if the voting was public. Javier Tebas hits out at voting in Spanish awards while Juventus are on alert after poor form in Italy . 'If it wasn’t private a Barca player would never vote for him,' Tebas told the Madrid-based paper, after the Ballon d'Or winner added another award to his personal haul. Meanwhile, in Italy the focus is on Juventus' recent drop-off in form, after the Italian champions won just one of their last four games. La Gazzetta dello Sport splash on 'Juve alert' and highlight 'away form, midfielders and the decline of Carlos Tevez' as manager Massimiliano Allegri's biggest issues. | Sport claim Barcelona have received three offers for Gerard Pique .
Jose Mourinho aiming to lure defender like he did Cesc Fabregas .
City believe Spanish star could answer central defensive problems . |
153,211 | 51f9a068a1b0ab8c8b64519ae4fdac751ce52464 | By . John Drayton . Manchester City's squad have flown to Dundee ahead of their Scottish pre-season tour - with unsettled striker Alvaro Negredo in good spirits as he boarded the plane. Manuel Pellegrini's side will play Dundee on Sunday before travelling to Edinburgh to face Hearts the following Friday. And Negredo, who has been linked with a move away from the Etihad, was pictured boarding the private 'City Jet' on Wednesday evening, with new goalkeeper Willy Caballero also in tow. VIDEO Scroll down to see Alvaro Negredo's first goal for City . All smiles: Unsettled Manchester City triker Alvaro Negredo laughs as he boards the plane to head to Dundee . Arrival: New goalkeeper Willy Caballaro is also going on City's pre-season tour to Scotland . Boss: City manager Manuel Pelligrini will take his side to Scotland and then on to America . Chilled: Samir Nasri gets settled on board the short flight to Scotland . Flying high: City players sit aboard the plane in a photo tweeted by the club . Prime seats: Aleksander Kolarov and Stefan Jovetic grab the spots at the back of City's plane . Private: City flew to Dundee in a personalised plane which bore the logo 'CityJet' Taking off: The plane leaves Manchester for Dundee as the City squad start pre-season . The Beast was spotted along with midfielder Samir Nasri, who was left out of France's squad for the World Cup in Brazil, and right-back Micah Richards, who is believed to be a potential target to replace Mathieu Debuchy at Newcastle. The Premier League champions will play two matches in Scotland before flying to America to play Sporting Kansas City, AC Milan, Liverpool and Olympiacos. They then face Arsenal in the Community Shield on August 10 before beginning their title defence with a trip to face Newcastle at St James Park. Looking down: Samir Nasri, who was left out of France's squad for the World Cup, boards the plane . Wanted man: City right-back Micah Richards is attracting attention from clubs including Newcastle . Squint: City left-back Gael Clichy is also in Pellegrini's squad to play in their Scottish tour . Jog: City midfielder Jack Rodwell sprints up the stairs on to the plane in Manchester . Looking good: Stefan Jovetic, clad with headphones and baseball cap, boards the plane . Outward bound; Aleksandr Kolarov (left) and Matija Nastasic board the plane to Dundee . VIDEO Negredo's first goal for City . | City will play Dundee and Hearts on their pre-season tour .
The squad flew up to Dundee in a personalised 'City Jet' on Wednesday .
Unsettled striker Negredo laughed as he boarded the plane .
Goalkeeper Caballero is also included in City's squad .
Nasri and right-back Micah Richards were also seen leaving Manchester .
They fly out to America to face Sporting Kansas City, AC Milan, Liverpool and Olympiacos after their Scottish tour . |
199,667 | 8e7902d266865de07e3bc04dd2169753c25450eb | By . James Nye . PUBLISHED: . 13:38 EST, 10 April 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 17:09 EST, 10 April 2013 . A notorious . Rockefeller impostor has been found guilty of first-degree murder in the . death of a man whose bones were found buried beneath a California home in 1985. Christian Gerhartsreiter was tried 28 years after the . disappearance of newlyweds John and Linda Sohus in a heavily . circumstantial cold case. Much of the prosecution’s evidence focused on . the strange behavior of the man who adopted many names including Clark . Rockefeller. He masqueraded as an heir to the fabled oil fortune for 20 . years. The verdict was reached on Wednesday after the jury deliberated about a day. Scroll down for video . Christian Karl Gerhartsreiter of Germany is found guilty of first degree murder in his murder trial in Los Angeles Superior Court in Los Angeles, California, today . Authorities said Gerhartsreiter was a German immigrant who lived . another life long ago, occupying a guest cottage at the home of Sohus’ mother in the ritzy suburb of San Marino. He was known then as Chris . Chichester and intimated he was of royal lineage. He joined the church, . befriended residents and told some he was a film student. A friend . said Linda Sohus once described the tenant in the cottage owned by . John’s mother as 'creepy' and said she and her husband never spoke to . him. The town folk didn’t connect him with the disappearance of the Sohus couple in 1985, but shortly after they vanished, so did he. No . trace of Linda has been found but John’s bones were unearthed during . excavation of a swimming pool at the San Marino property in 1994. With . no clues, the mystery went cold again. Christian Gerhartsreiter sits with one of his attorneys as a verdict was reached at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center in Los Angeles today . Gerhartsreiter, who went by the alias Clark Rockefeller,was found guilty of killing his landlord, John Sohus, in February 1985 . The German native who consorted for years with New Englandís social elite by pretending to be a Rockefeller was convicted Wednesday in Los Angeles of first-degree murder . But across the country, a man variously known as Chris Crowe, Chip . Smith and Clark Rockefeller was inventing new lives for himself. This . impostor wormed his way into high society and talked his way into . important jobs. He married a wealthy woman and controlled her funds, but . his identity unraveled when he kidnapped their daughter during a . custody dispute. She testified that he became increasingly paranoid when . police begin inquiring about him. When he was unmasked, he became . the subject of magazine articles, true crime books and TV movies that . sought to explore his bizarre story and get to the heart of the man . behind the pseudonyms. The resulting publicity led California . authorities to revisit the Sohus disappearance. They realized the man in . custody in Boston was not an heir to the Rockefeller fortune but was . the man who had lived in San Marino decades ago. Christian Karl Gerhartsreiter, 52, was accused of bludgeoning his landlady's adult son with a blunt object and then digging a 3-foot-deep grave in the backyard of the victimís home . Ellen Sohus, sister of John Sohus whose remains were unearthed in San Marino, California in 1985, speaks to the press after Christian Karl Gerhartsreiter of Germany was found guilty of first degree murder in Los Angeles . A photo of swimming pool area being unearthed 1994 and finding the remains of John Sohus in the backyard of a home on Loraine Road in San Marino, California . Already serving . time for the kidnapping of his young daughter in a Boston custody . dispute, Gerhartsreiter was close to the end of his sentence and headed . for freedom when the murder charge changed that. After a quarter . century, authorities believed they had linked him to the disappearance . of his old neighbor, Sohus. Defense attorneys suggested that Linda . Sohus, not their client, killed her husband. But no motive was offered . for her or Gerhartsreiter to have killed the young man. Prosecutors . filled in the blanks of the defendant’s whereabouts during the decades . of his disappearance. But some details were unlikely ever to be . explained. He chose not to testify in his own defense and much of . the trial testimony came from people now hobbled by age who knew him in . San Marino as Chris Chichester, a stranger with a murky past. Yesterday, prosecutor Habib . Balian told the jury that Christian Gerhartsreiter murdered John Sohus . in San Marino 28 years ago and said that all the evidence they needed to . convict him was there. 'This . isn't a movie, a book, a TV show, a docudrama,' the Deputy District . Attorney said in his closing argument, referring to the fact that the . case has been turned into all of those things over the years. 'This case is about two people who lived and died,' Balian said. Gerhartsreiter is on trial in California, U.S. for the 1985 murder of John Sohus, who disappeared from his home in San Marino with his wife, Linda . Defendant . Christian Gerhartsreiter was charged only with the murder of Mr Sohus in . suburban San Marino, but the prosecutor was allowed to say he . believes Gerhartsreiter also killed Mr Sohus' wife, who remains missing . after nearly three decades. 'She's . dead', Balian said repeatedly as he described the disappearance of . Linda Sohus and her husband, John - newlyweds he said had no reason to . vanish. The . bones of John Sohus were unearthed in the backyard of his mother's . former house in San Marino a decade after he and his wife disappeared. He was found to have died from multiple fractures to the skull, probably . caused by a blunt instrument such as a baseball bat. Gerhartsreiter . lived as a tenant on the property in 1984 and 1985, but called himself . Chris Chichester then. He vanished around the same time the couple . disappeared in 1985, according to witnesses. As part of his closing argument, Balian used a Powerpoint presentation that showed pieces of a jigsaw puzzle falling into place. Balian predicted that the defense would seek to paint Linda Sohus as the murderer of her husband. Previously the trial heard from Gerhartsreiter's ex-wife Sandra Boss, right, to whom he lied about who he was . 'They're going to . batter her over and over and say she was the mastermind,' Balian said in . his presentation. 'But all the evidence in this case is going to point . you to the fact that only one person was the mastermind. ... He is . charged with murder.' However, . defense attorney Jeffrey Denner was less demeaning of Linda Sohus than . he was of his own client. He said Gerhartsreiter, a German immigrant, . was a white-collar criminal with a long list of offenses including . identity theft and immigration fraud. 'Over . a period of time in this country, he committed a lot of crimes with . which he was never charged', Denner said. 'It's no wonder he would want . to stay under the radar.' But the lawyer said his client had not been running from a murder investigation. The defendant, seen here with pen in his hand, took copious notes as the prosecutor summed up the case against him . Denner noted that . no trace evidence was scientifically connected to the defendant, and he . suggested it was more likely that Linda Sohus had a 'dark side' of her . life that led her to kill her husband. But he offered no evidence to . support that contention. 'That's . the stuff that reasonable doubt is made of', he told jurors. 'You don't . know what happened. If you don't know what happened, you can't convict . anybody.' Balian noted that Monday was the 28th anniversary of the day Linda and John Sohus were reported missing. 'What do we do with a case 28 years old?' he said, acknowledging there are no eye witnesses or physical evidence in the case. 'Circumstantial evidence is just as powerful', Balian said as he detailed the pieces of his puzzle. 'Not . only does he flee, he changes his identity and discontinues contacts . with friends. Why? Because he's a murderer', the prosecutor said. Eventually, . Gerhartsreiter turned up on the East Coast using the name Clark . Rockefeller and living well at the expense of his wealthy wife. Gerhartsreiter was previously prosecuted for kidnapping his own daughter and is serving a prison sentence for that crime. Defense . lawyers have suggested that he lived a life of pretense, making up wild . stories about royal lineage, but they say he never killed anyone. 'He . lied at will and his life was based on that', Denner said. 'He said he . was a filmmaker and he could amend the script anytime he wanted.' Gerhartsreiter was previously accused of kidnapping his own daughter Reigh, above, in 2009 . Balian reminded . jurors of testimony by former friends from San Marino. A woman . remembered seeing dirt in his yard where a large hole had been dug. A . forensic expert said traces of blood were found on the concrete floor . beneath a rug in the guest cottage the defendant occupied, bt it was . never clear if the blood was human or animal, and it was not linked to . Gerhartsreiter. The . prosecutor also emphasized what was found in the backyard grave along . with bones - plastic shopping bags from the University of Southern . California and University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee, two colleges the . defendant attended. 'The case is easy', said Balian. 'The evidence is right in front of your eyes.' The only thing missing, he acknowledged was a motive. Why would the defendant kill John Sohus? 'The . prosecution need not prove why', he said. 'It's not part of our burden . of proof. Nor do we need to prove the type of weapon used or where he . was killed.' Superior Court Judge George Lomeli instructed jurors . that if they cannot agree on the charge of first-degree murder, they . have the option of considering second-degree murder, which does not . require premeditation. He told jurors to return Tuesday for Balian's rebuttal before the start of their deliberations. Accused: Christian Gerhartsreiter is accused of the 1985 murder of John Sohus . Man of mystery: Gerhartsreiter did not tell the women in his lift that he was actually a German immigrant . Connection: The bones believed to belong to Mr Sohus were found buried at a home Garhartsreiter was living at while going by the name Chichester . Violent death: The remains believed to be of John Sohus, seen with his then-wife Linda, who is also missing, were found to have died of multiple fractures of the skull inflicted by a blunt object, possibly a baseball bat . | Christian Gerhartsreiter, 52, found guilty of murdering John Sohus 28 years ago .
Prosecutor tells Los Angeles court that defendant was expert manipulator .
Summing up before today's verdict, prosecutor says all the evidence to convict is there for jury - despite it being circumstantial . |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.