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Euro 2012 Diary: Just plane crazy; Bad break for Ray; Artists make impression on supporters One unlucky Irishman will be feeling even more embarrassed than Shay Given at the moment. In haste, an over-eager fan had travelled by plane from Dublin to watch Sunday's 3-1 defeat by Croatia, but was initially refused entry in Poznan airport after immigration officers realised he had travelled using his wife's passport by mistake. He had passed through check-in and security at Dublin Airport without anyone noticing the error. Bad break for Ray The injury crisis that struck the England squad before the tournament claimed yet another victim. Ray Clemence, the goalkeeping coach, was carried off the pitch before yesterday's game after snapping his Achilles. Artists make impression on supporters To keep visiting supporters entertained in Warsaw, a number of cultural events have been put in place in the city, including an art exhibition at the Museum of Caricature and Cartoon Art called "The Ball is in Play," which hopes artists reflect "the role of football in normal life, its laughter and tears" in their pieces. Art-lover and former England goalkeeper David James would love it.

Ashley Stetts Reveals Dark Side of Modeling ABC News" Linsey Davis reports: Strutting your stuff on the catwalk and gracing magazine covers have never seemed so unglamorous, at least when seen through the eyes of model Ashley Stetts. There is so much rejection and you don't always get paid. There's no stability in this work," Stetts told ABC News. Stetts has been a cover girl and an industry insider for more than a decade. Modeling is her day job, and although trying on clothes and posing for pictures doesn't sound too strenuous, she reveals in a column she wrote for The Huffington Post called "The Finances of a Model in New York City - Revealed!" it's actually quite the contrary. "The money aspect I think is the most unglamorous part, because you're really not making any money," Stetts said. For example, Stetts said when she landed the cover for Women's Health magazine, the first cover of her modeling career, she was disappointed to learn she would only get paid $250. And many other day-long shoots pay even less, just $100 for the entire day. "A lot of models do end up working as waitresses, working in nightlife," said Stetts. She wants to clear up common misconceptions and give outsiders some insight into what she calls "the underbelly of the industry." You have to keep in mind that it is a business and they just see you as a way to make money essentially. If you need to borrow money from your agency because you're waiting to pay your rent, they'll charge you sometimes 10 percent," Stetts explained. At 30 years old, Stetts said she knows she's nearing the end of her shelf life as a model. "I was comfortable and it's easy to do this kind of job, but what's next?" she asked. Back in March, she started an advice blog called "The Frugal Model," giving tips for how to be beautiful on a budget. She describes on the site how she manages her life as a model in Manhattan: "Sure it's an unconventional job, but it's thought provoking and gives me a chance to really do something that impacts people's lives. Ok maybe not, but I'm proud of the fact that I support myself in the most expensive city in the country, and have learned how to really take charge of my money. These are skills Stetts said her life as a model has taught her first-hand. ALSO READ: Robyn Lawley: First Plus-Size Ralph Lauren Model

LaMarcus Aldridge scores 30 points in Portland's win over Toronto PORTLAND, Ore., Dec. 11 (UPI) -- LaMarcus Aldridge poured in 30 points Monday and the Portland Trail Blazers continued their dominance of Toronto with a 92-74 win over the Raptors. Aldridge also hauled down 12 rebounds while J.J. Hickson contributed 16 points and 11 boards as the Blazers notched their eighth straight win over Toronto. Nolan Smith (11 points) and Sasha Pavlovic (10) also reached double figures for the Blazers, who were playing without injured starters Nicolas Batum and Wesley Matthews. The Raptors, meanwhile, fell to 1-14 on the road as DeMar DeRozan netted 20 points in the loss.

Scarlett Johansson hacker pleads guilty to stealing naked images After hacking into the email accounts of Christina Aguilera, Mila Kunis and Scarlett Johansson to procur naked images of them, a Florida man pleaded guilty in court Monday to nine felony cyber crimes and was immediately taken into custody. Christopher Chaney, 35, of Jacksonville, pleaded guilty in Los Angeles federal court to nine counts of computer hacking and wiretapping for the unauthorized access of email accounts belonging to 50 people in the entertainment industry. U.S. District Court Judge S. James Otero ordered Chaney taken into custody following the hearing. Once Chaney got photos of the celebrities and other information, he forwarded them to another hacker and two celebrity websites that made them public, according to a plea agreement. During the hearing, Chaney admitted that from at least November 2010 to October 2011, he hacked into the email accounts of Johansson, Kunis and others by taking their email addresses, clicking on the "Forgot your password?" feature and then resetting the passwords by correctly answering their security questions using publicly available information he found by searching the Internet. Prosecutors said that once Chaney gained exclusive control of the victims' email accounts, he was able to access all of their email boxes. While in the accounts, Chaney also went through their contact lists to find email addresses of potential new hacking targets, according to prosecutor Lisa Feldman. Most victims did not check their account settings, so even after they regained control of their email accounts, Chaney's alias address remained in their settings, the plea agreement said. So for many victims, copies of their incoming emails, including attachments, were sent to Chaney for weeks or months without their knowledge, allowing him to receive thousands of emails, according to the plea agreement. Chaney obtained numerous private communications, private photographs and confidential documents from the victims' email accounts, according to the indictment. The confidential documents included business contracts, scripts, letters, driver's license information and Social Security information, the indictment said. On several occasions, after hacking into victims' accounts, Chaney sent emails from the hacked accounts to friends of the victims, fraudulently posing as the victims to request more private photographs, according to the indictment. "Today's guilty pleas shine a bright light on the dark underworld of computer hacking," said U.S. Attorney André Birotte Jr, whose office prosecuted the case. This case demonstrates that everyone, even public figures, should take precautions to shield their personal information from the hackers that inhabit that dark underworld. Chaney faces a maximum sentence of 60 years in federal prison. Mega Millions jackpot climbs to $363 million Men dressed as ninjas rob medical marijuana deliveryman Accused Scarlett Johannson hacker expected to plead guilty Photo: Christopher Chaney last November outside federal court in Los Angeles. Credit: Reed Saxon / Associated Press.

How to keep your cat off your computer keyboard

Egyptian opposition: 'There is a better democracy' By Reza Sayah and Amir Ahmed, CNN December 9, 2012 -- Updated 1208 GMT (2008 HKT) The opposition calls on protesters to converge on the presidential palace, officials say Opposition leaders are also scheduled to meet to discuss the referendum President Mohamed Morsy has refused to delay a constitutional referendum Cairo (CNN) -- Opponents of Egyptian President Mohamed Morsy's constitutional referendum this week marshaled protesters Sunday to march on the presidential palace, raising fears of a repeat of the deadly clashes that have rocked Cairo in recent days. The call for demonstrations follows news that Morsy refused to delay the vote on a new constitution even as he rolled back a controversial edict that gave himself sweeping powers. The move was an attempt to stamp out a political crisis that has spilled into the streets, pitting the president's supporters and opponents against one another and raising questions about Morsy's ability to lead the fragile democracy. Almost as soon as Morsy adviser Mohamed Selim el-Awwa laid out the offer Saturday, many in the opposition dismissed it. "No, there is better democracy than that," Amr Moussa, former head of the Arab League and a key opposition figure, told CNN. If the constitution lacks serenity and objectivity in certain of its articles, we have time, enough time to change those articles. Morsy has refused to delay the referendum, saying a constitution is essential for the fledgling democracy, while the opposition says the document does not represent all Egyptians. An independent judicial panel backed Morsy's announcement on Saturday, finding that the referendum must be carried out on December 15 to meet a legal requirement. A coalition of opposition groups, meanwhile, was scheduled to meet Sunday to discuss the Morsy's refusal to delay the referendum, said George Ishaq of the National Salvation Front, the coalition's umbrella group. At least five demonstrations were organized to begin Sunday in various parts of Cairo, with protesters then planning to march on the presidential palace. The palace has been the seen of violent clashes pitting thousands of protesters -- for and against Morsy. Egyptian authorities said at least six people have been killed in violent clashes in recent days, while the Muslim Brotherhood -- the group that backs Morsy -- has said eight of its members were killed. The crisis erupted in late November when Morsy issued the edict allowing himself to run the country unchecked until a new constitution was drafted, a move that sat uncomfortably with many Egyptians who said it reminded them of ousted President Hosni Mubarak's rule. Morsy had said the powers were necessary and temporary. But that promise did little to quiet the opposition. Thousands later protested outside the palace, where the opposition clashed with the Muslim Brotherhood. Tens of thousands of protesters -- for and against Morsy -- took to the streets. CNN's Reza Sayah reported from Cairo, and Amir Ahmed from Atlanta. In scenes reminiscent of the mass demonstrations that brought about the downfall of former president in 2011, thousands of protestors have turned out in Cairo. December 9, 2012 -- Updated 1206 GMT (2006 HKT)

Hay Festival 2012: James Bond to be a middle-aged He added: "The literary Bond is a far more interesting character than the Bond of the films, who is a sort of cartoon. The literary Bond is a much more troubled, complex, nuanced figure. Boyd, whose novels include Any Human Heart, A Good Man In Africa and his latest, Waiting For Sunrise, is the third novelist to accept the invitation from the Fleming estate after Sebastian Faulks and Jeffery Deaver. He explained: "The wonderful thing about the offer is that they give you almost total freedom - there's no sense in which you have to channel Ian Fleming. That's not something I would really want to do, I must say. What you will get is a William Boyd novel that has James Bond as a central character. Although Boyd's book is unlikely to feature Q, the gadget inventor, the author disclosed that some familiar characters will definitely be included. He said: "M is going to appear, and Miss Moneypenny. You would be a fool not to have Miss Moneypenny, as a writer of a Bond novel. I'm taking it extremely seriously but I'm going to have a lot of fun as well.

Best Place to Be a Mom: U.S Ranks 25th Just in time for Mother's Day, Save the Children has released its 13th annual State of World's Mothers report. The report, which ranks countries from best to worst in places to be a mother, saw the United States placing 25th, moving up from last year's ranking of 31. Carolyn Miles, president and CEO of Save the Children, said there's still much work to be done. "We still fall below most wealthy nations," she said on the Save the Children website. A woman in the U.S. is more than seven times as likely to die of a pregnancy-related cause in her lifetime than a woman in Italy or Ireland. When it comes to the number of children enrolled in preschools or the political status of women, the United States also places in the bottom 10 countries of the developed world. Norway came in No. 1 on the list, which, according to the Save the Children, weighs such factors as a mother's health, education and economic status, as well as such critical child wellness indicators such as health and nutrition. Niger came in last, largely because of the food crisis facing the nation. It replaced Afghanistan, which held the bottom spot for the past two years. Save the Children found that encouraging mothers to breastfeed could save 1 million children's lives a year. The report also found that less than 40 percent of all infants in developing countries received the full benefits of exclusive breastfeeding.

Senate Democrats face a very tough 2014 map

'Ace of Cakes' Duff Goldman opens do-it-yourself Cakemix The frosting is already flowing at Duff's Cakemix on Melrose Avenue. Celebrity baker Duff Goldman's decorate-your-own cake shop is expected to open by the end of the week next door to Charm City Cakes West, the L.A. outpost of the Baltimore bakery that for 10 seasons was featured on Food Network's hit reality-gâteau show"Ace of Cakes." The new Charm City Cakes West, which isn't open to the public, has been turning out custom cakes that included a 5-foot-tall wedding cake covered with 1,500 sugared flowers and a 100-pound replica of the USS Missouri with a built-in smoke machine and LED lights for the premiere of "Battleship" - the kinds of cakes made with buttercream, fondant and strategically placed Rice Krispies treats. Cakemix, on the other hand, is for anyone off the street who wants to go wild with a tube of buttercream. By decorating a cake, that is. Think Color Me Mine or Build-A-Bear, but you get to work with a lot of frosting and sprinkles and eat the results. "It's for people who've never decorated a cake before and want to get creative," says the earringed Goldman, sporting a chef's jacket, camouflage shorts (held up by a makeshift belt of plastic wrap) that expose the Little Prince tattoo on his right leg, and unlaced bright yellow Merrell running shoes. The great thing about cake is it doesn't feel like work. You forget about work. Kids, adults, they all get the same look in their eye when they're decorating cakes.... That's the magic right there. The 2,400-square-foot space has bay windows that look directly into the Charm City Cakes work area, where a giant cake version of a plushy bear from "Toy Story 3" is under construction. Cakemix's work tables seat 50 would-be decorators. Three walk-in refrigerators shared between Cakemix and Charm City Cakes are filled with cakes and buttercream. The place smells like sugar. I make my first foray into fondant during one of the test runs that Cakemix has been holding in the last couple of weeks to get ready for opening. It's not without fear; I've frosted a cake before, but I've never decorated one other than to stick a few candles in it. A chalkboard menu lists the decorating options. Choose a 6-inch ($36) or 9-inch ($52) round cake to decorate, then choose from cake flavors such as chocolate, vanilla, marbled chocolate and vanilla, red velvet, carrot or the flavor of the week. Filling flavors include cream cheese, vanilla, chocolate or the weekly special. A decorator on staff will walk a customer through the process of decorating. Goldman might teach some classes but won't usually be around for pointers. I'm armed with a 6-inch three-layer vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream (the cake is fully baked with a thin layer of outer frosting called the crumb coat). Then I must decide if I want to decorate with more buttercream or with fondant, which is a pliable frosting that can be molded and sculpted. I go with fondant. Deep pink. Decorator Ricky Webster hands me a ball of fondant, and I knead a few drops of food coloring into it. Then I take my now very pink fondant to a sheeter - a several-thousand-dollar piece of equipment that works like a pasta machine - to roll the fondant into a thin, even sheet, about an eighth of an inch thick. Next I must place the fondant over the entire cake: The trick is to get it completely smooth. Webster throws around terms like "blousing" and "skirting." I try to stay focused. "Yours looks better than mine!" says Goldman, who has just wrapped a cake with yellow fondant. Not really. Mine's slightly bubbled around the edges and I've got a few cracks. That's OK. I think of cake decorating as not so much about decorating as it is about covering up mistakes," a staffer reassures me. The next step is the "airbrush shower," a booth of floor-to-ceiling glass with a tiled floor and drain. I can spray edible paint directly onto the glass to see what colors I want to work with. Then it all gets hosed down and washed down the drain. Holding the spray gun about a foot from the cake, I spray liquid orange coloring around the base. Now I get to go crazy with more fondant: I cut out green circles and rings, brush them with water and "glue" them to the cake. I do manage to cover up the cracks, but then I leave fingerprint smudges on the airbrushing. No problem, Goldman says. He helps me mix a blue that he thinks suits the cake. "It should be warmer," he says of the blue fondant and adds a tiny amount of yellow food coloring. He cuts another circle and places it over my smudges. I add more circles, and then he says, "We need lasers." I agree. And they should be red. Goldman uses a pastry bag of red frosting to deck the cake out with laser-beam dots. Then he tops my pink and orange Saturn-ring laser-dot cake with its pièce de résistance, a bear he's shaped from fondant. "You should be doing this," he tells me. I get paid for this. But I plan to take all the credit. Duff's Cakemix, 8302 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, (323) 650-5555

Roy Hodgson approached by FA over England manager's job

Does homeowner's insurance cover floods? (MoneyWatch) As residents affected by superstorm Sandy head back to their homes, many are likely to face an unpleasant reality: Homeowners insurance does not cover flooding. Only people with flood insurance are covered against the kind of storm surges that cascaded through New York and New Jersey. Those with homeowners insurance alone are likely to be compensated for their losses only when the damage was caused by wind or water pouring in from the sky, rather than from ground level. Sandy damage estimated $10 to $20 billion "We issue a lot of news releases, and [the Federal Emergency Management Agency] spends a lot of time and money trying to inform people about flood insurance, but even still it comes as a surprise to some people that they're not covered through their homeowners policy," said Jeanne Salvatore, spokeswoman for the Insurance Information Institute. Indeed, those affected by the hurricane may find their insurance coverage befuddling. That's because whether you're covered, and exactly what is covered, varies dramatically based on what caused the loss and what was damaged. For instance, your car is covered mirrors to wheels no matter whether it was washed away in a flood or crushed by a tree. That's because "comprehensive" coverage on your car is just that -- comprehensive. In most cases, damage to a car will be the simplest claim, with insurers paying the current market value for a complete loss, minus your deductible. See Will insurance pay for storm damage to your car? When it comes to your home, however, coverage depends on what insurance you have and the type of damage that was suffered. Here's what's covered by homeowners vs. flood insurance. Homeowners coverage Breezy Point, Queens goes up in flames Fire: Ironically, the people in Breezy Point in the Queens borough of New York whose homes were consumed by fire during the storm are likely to have the easiest time making insurance claims. Fire losses are unequivocally covered by homeowners' policies to the limits of the policy. That means the insurer will pay up to the limits on your structure coverage, coverage for a home's contents, and for its loss of use, such as the cost of putting you up in a hotel or rental apartment while your residence is repaired. In most cases, insurance companies are willing to advance partial payments for current living expenses. Wind damage: If your roof blows off, windows are smashed or a tree blows over and crushes your home, you're covered by your homeowners policy. In addition, you're covered for the rain that comes into the house from the sky. Water damage: If your damage is solely from rain, you're covered under your homeowners policy. However, if the damage came from a "rising tide of water," like the storm surges that swamped many coastal cities in New York and New Jersey, you are only covered for that portion of the loss only if you bought flood coverage. Flood coverage is completely separate from your homeowners insurance and is subject to different limitations (see below). Loss of use: If your house became uninhabitable because of storm damage -- not flood -- the "loss of use" coverage on your policy would be triggered and your insurer will compensate you to live in a rental until the house is repaired, or until a set number of months has passed, depending on the details of your policy. Loss of use coverage typically lasts for 12 to 24 months after a natural disaster. Miscellaneous: A typical homeowners policy will also have numerous other types of coverage, such as for separate structures and clean-up. But it will also have some limitations on how much the company will pay for specific types of losses, such as a loss of electronics, art work or jewelry. The best advice is to read your policy carefully. Flood coverage Sandy floods Cuyahoga River in Ohio Flood insurance is provided through a federal program that's administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, better known as FEMA. The silver lining of last year's Hurricane Irene is that it was a wake-up call for many homeowners to buy flood coverage, said Robert Hartwig, president of the Insurance Information Institute. As a result, many homeowners in the coastal New Jersey and New York cities that suffered the most damage are likely to have purchased flood coverage and find that at least a portion of their losses are insured. Structure and contents: The bad news is that flood coverage has significant limitations. The maximum flood insurance policy covers up to $250,000 of losses to the structure of a home and pays up to $100,000 for a home's contents. There is no coverage for loss of use under the federal flood program. Cash value: In addition, the flood program only provides for the "cash value" of your possessions -- not the replacement cost. So if you had a 5-year-old sofa that's destroyed, unless you buy another used sofa you will likely get only a portion of the cost to replace it. Flood insurance does provide replacement costs for the structure of the home, but only to the policy limits. In many of the neighborhoods where large, two-story homes were washed out during Sandy, that's likely to prove inadequate, leaving even heavily insured homeowners with substantial losses. Combination coverage However, if you are covered by both flood and homeowners coverage, make sure you pay attention to which damages are being assessed to which coverage, advised J. Robert Hunter, director of insurance for the Consumer Federation of America. It may be tempting for insurers to push losses to the federal flood program, when the actual cause of the loss could be ambiguous or was caused by wind and rain. That not only subjects the loss to the more restrictive limits of the flood program, it shifts the cost to taxpayers rather than private insurers. "Consumers must be the first line of defense against insures shifting costs for wind losses" to the FEMA program, Hunter said. Many insurers act honorably and pay claims without a hitch. But Hunter urged consumers to be vigilant, or risk getting short-changed.

List of Winners at the 2012 Grammys Record of the Year: "Rolling in the Deep," Adele Song of the Year: "Rolling in the Deep," Adele Adkins & Paul Epworth New Artist: Bon Iver Pop Solo Performance: "Someone Like You," Adele Pop Performance by a Duo or Group: "Body and Soul," Tony Bennett & Amy Winehouse Pop Vocal Album: "21," Adele Alternative Album: "Bon Iver," Bon Iver Rock Song: "Walk," Foo Fighters Rock Album: "Wasting Light," Foo Fighters Rock Performance: "Walk," Foo Fighters Hard Rock/Metal Performance: "White Limo," Foo Fighters R&B Album: "F.A.M.E.," Chris Brown R&B Song: "Fool For You," Cee Lo Green, Melanie Hallim & Jack Splash R&B Performance: "Is This Love," Corrine Bailey Rae Traditional R&B Vocal Performance: "Fool For You," Cee Lo Green & Melanie Fiona Rap Album: "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy," Kanye West Rap Performance: "Otis," Jay-Z and Kanye West Rap Song: "All of the Lights," Jeff Bhasker, Stacy Ferguson, Malik Jones, Warren Trotter & Kanye West Rap/Sung Collaboration: "All of the Lights," Kanye West, Rihanna, Kid Cudi & Fergie Dance Recording: "Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites," Skrillex Dance/Electronica Album: "Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites," Skrillex Musical Theater Album: "The Book of Mormon," Robert Lopez, Trey Parker & Matt Stone World Music Album: "Tassili," Tinariwen Latin Pop Rock, Rock or Urban Album: "Drama y Luz," Mana Tropical Latin Album: "Last Mambo," Cachao Banda or Norteno Album: "Los Tigres Del Norte and Friends," Los Tigres Del Norte Regional Mexican or Tejano Album: "Bicentenario," Pepe Aguilar Country Solo Performance: "Mean," Taylor Swift Country Album: "Own the Night," Lady Antebellum Country Performance by a Duo or Group: "Barton Hollow," The Civil Wars Country Song: "Mean," Taylor Swift Jazz Vocal Album: "The Mosaic Project," Terri Lyne Carrington & various artists Jazz Instrumental Album: "Forever," Corea, Clark & White Improvised Jazz Solo: "500 Miles High," Chick Corea Large Ensemble Jazz Album: "The Good Feeling," Christian McBride Big Band Blues Album: "Revelator," Tedeschi Trucks Band Folk Album: "Barton Hollow," The Civil Wars Pop Instrumental Album: "The Road From Memphis," Booker T. Jones Bluegrass Album: "Paper Airplane," Alison Krauss & Union Station Americana Album: "Ramble at the Ryman," Levon Helm Reggae Album: "Revelation Pt. 1: The Root of Life," Stephen Marley New Age Album: "What's It All About," Pat Metheny Children's Album: "All About Bullies... Big and Small," various artists Producer of the Year, Non-Classical: Paul Epworth Remixed Recording, Non-Classical: "Cinema (Skrillex remix)," Sonny Moore Gospel Song: "Hello Fear," Kirk Franklin Gospel/Contemporary Christian Performance: "Jesus," L'Andria Johnson Gospel Album: "Hello Fear," Kirk Franklin Choral Performance: "Light & Gold," Eric Whitacre Classical Contemporary Composition: "Elmer Gantry," Robert Aldridge & Herschel Garfein Producer of the Year, Classical: Judith Sherman Orchestral Performance: "Brahms: Symphony No. 4," Gustavo Dudamel Opera Recording: "Adams: Doctor Atomic," Alan Gilbert, conductor Spoken Word Album: "If You Ask Me (And Of Course You Won't)," Betty White Comedy Album: "Hilarious," Louis C.K. Compilation Soundtrack Album For Visual Media: "Boardwalk Empire," various artists Score Soundtrack Album For Visual Media: "The King's Speech," Alexandre Desplat Song Written For Visual Media: "I See the Light," Alan Menken & Glenn Slater Historical Album: "Band on the Run (Paul McCartney Archive Collection - Deluxe Edition)," Paul McCartney Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalists: "Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me)," Jorge Calandrelli

Anonymous distances itself from WikiLeaks Anonymous said: 'We only hear about Julian Assange, like he had dinner last night with Lady Gaga.' Photograph: Alex Milan Tracy/Demotix/Corbis The computer hacker collective Anonymous has distanced itself from WikiLeaks, claiming the whistleblowers' site has become too focused on the personal tribulations of its founder, Julian Assange. A statement posted on the Anonymous Twitter account, AnonymousIRC, described WikiLeaks as "the one man Julian Assange show" after the website began asking users to pay for access to millions of leaked documents. The idea behind WikiLeaks was to provide the public with information that would otherwise be kept secret by industries and governments. Information we strongly believe the public has a right to know," said the statement on behalf of Anonymous. But this has been pushed more and more into the background, instead we only hear about Julian Assange, like he had dinner last night with Lady Gaga. That's great for him but not much of our interest. We are more interested in transparent governments and bringing out documents and information they want to hide from the public. Anonymous has long been one of WikiLeaks's most loyal and vocal allies. Supporters bearing Anonymous posters regularly turned out at Assange's public announcements, and members of the group have waged an online campaign against critics of the whistleblowers' site. WikiLeaks said it is funded entirely by donations from members of the public. The site angered some users on Thursday after it made a donation page automatically appear before it allowed access to leaked documents. Some users are unable to view WikiLeaks material unless they choose to donate money to the site. WikiLeaks said on Twitter that the move was an attempt to counter what it called "high costs in military courts." In the statement, Anonymous told its 285,000 followers that WikiLeaks was an "awesome idea ruined by egos" and claimed the site had abandoned the ideals of freedom of expression. The group added: "We have been worried about the direction WikiLeaks is going for a while. In the recent month the focus moved away from actual leaks and the fight for freedom of information further and further while it concentrated more and more on Julian Assange. It goes without saying that we oppose any plans of extraditing Julian to the USA. He is a content provider and publisher, not a criminal. The dispute could starve WikiLeaks of potentially newsworthy leaks in the future, as some of the site's recent disclosures - including the cache of Stratfor emails - are alleged to have come from Anonymous.

Station Airs Police Interview With Loren Herzog A convicted serial killer described in chilling detail how his friend raped and killed a woman in 1998, a victim of the so-called "Speed Freak Killers," an Oakland television station reported Friday. In a videotaped police interview obtained by KTVU-TV, Loren Herzog described how Wesley Shermantine killed 25-year-old Cyndi Vanderheiden. The station aired a segment of the videotape Friday which showed Herzog being questioned by investigators in a police interrogation room shortly after his arrest in 1999. "I heard a click I knew what it was," Herzog said. "Man I started gettin' out of the car then, it was too late, he was already slashing and hacking, man," he said. Known as the "Speed Freak Killers," Shermantine and Herzog went on a methamphetamine-fueled killing spree in the 1980s and 90s, possibly murdering dozens of people before their 1999 arrests, authorities said. The case gained renewed national attention after Shermantine, who is on death row, recently began disclosing where victims were buried after bounty hunter Leonard Padilla offered him money for the information. Shermantine was convicted of four murders, including Vanderheiden, and sentenced to death. Jurors found Herzog guilty of three murders, but those convictions were later overturned after a judge determined his confession was illegally coerced. He instead struck a plea deal on one count of voluntary manslaughter for Vanderheiden's death and was paroled in 2010. Herzog died in an apparent suicide last month, hours after receiving a call from Padilla warning him that Shermantine planned to reveal the burial locations. The station didn't disclose how it obtained the tape, which it said were played during the trial.

Amgen to buy Micromet for $1.6 billion for leukemia drug Amgen Inc., the world's largest biotechnology company, agreed to buy Micromet Inc. in a $1.16 billion deal to gain an experimental leukemia drug. Investors of Micromet, based in Rockville, Maryland, will get $11 a share, the companies said in a statement today. The acquisition will give Thousand Oaks, California-based Amgen the compound blinatumomab, being tested against two blood cancers, acute lymphoblastic leukemia and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. While Amgen spends $2.7 billion a year on research and development, the company has "a fairly empty pipeline" and needs to acquire to gain promising new products, said Geoffrey Porges, an analyst for Sanford C. Bernstein in New York. "This isn't the end of the acquisitiveness" for Amgen, Porges said in a telephone interview. This is consistent with Amgen's swing for the fences' worldview, and is consistent with both the opportunity and perils of that view. Micromet rose $2.73, or 33 percent, to $11.01 at 8:37 a.m. New York time in trading before markets open. The biotechnology company has increased 23 percent in the 12 months before today. Amgen shares fell 2 cents to $69.19, after gaining 21 percent in the previous 12 months. Porges declined to ascribe a value to blinatumomab until he's seen the results of ongoing phase 2 trials. The next set of data for blinatumomab is expected at the American Society of Clinical Oncology's annual meeting in June 2011, wrote Robyn Karnauskas, an analyst for Deutsche Bank Securities in New York, in a note to investors. It's unclear whether the drug will receive accelerated approval from the Food and Drug Administration, wrote Karnauskas, saying the acquisition is outside Amgen's "core expertise" area. In a June trial, nine of 12 patients on blinatumomab reached complete remission from acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a cancer that affects about 5,760 people in the U.S. each year. The Amgen offer values Micromet at about 31 times revenue, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That compares with a median of about 6.7 for almost 40 comparable deals since 2007. There have been more than 260 U.S. takeovers in Micromet's industry over the past five years, with the largest being Roche Holding AG's $47 billion purchase ofGenentech Inc. in 2009, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The acquisition will be discussed in more detail on a conference call scheduled after fourth-quarter earnings are released when the market closes today, Amgen said in the statement. Amgen, with a market value of $60.6 billion, declared its first quarterly dividend last year, and announced a $10 billion buyback program, promising to return more value to stockholders. Amgen's largest deal in the past five years until now was its $425 million purchase of BioVex Group Inc. in 2010 for its experimental cancer drugs. One of the BioVex drugs, Oncovex for skin cancer, is in late-stage testing along with trebananib, for ovarian cancer, and ganitumab, a therapy for pancreatic cancer, according to data collected by Bloomberg.

Minister: Armed Gang in Tunisia Had Al-Qaida Links The armed group that clashed with Tunisian forces in the south of the country earlier this month had links to al-Qaida, the interior minister said Monday as he announced a wave of arrests tied to the incident. Tunisian forces caught up with a three-man armed militant cell on Feb. 2 and killed two of them after a gunbattle the day before that wounded two soldiers and a national guard member. Ali Laarayedh said that 12 other Tunisians have been arrested on suspicion of belonging to the group and 34 Kalashnikov assault rifles were seized in a raid along with large amounts of ammunition and Tunisia, Libyan and American currency. At least nine suspects escaped. Citing confessions from the arrested suspects, Laarayedh said the group was in touch with al-Qaida elements in Libya and may have had links with Algerian members of the terror network as well. All the suspects were under the age of 30 and said they were seeking to establish an Islamic emirate, the interior minister said. Tunisia was ruled for decades by a hardline secular dictatorship that suppressed Islamists until its overthrow in January 2011. Since then, a vocal minority of ultraconservative Muslims has appeared calling for greater piety in society. Although Tunisia has been largely spared the militant violence that has wracked neighboring Algeria, the civil war in Libya has meant that much of North Africa has been flooded by weapons. Laarayedh confirmed on Feb. 1 that there has been an increase in the traffic of arms in Tunisia, mainly coming from neighboring Libya. Already 600 weapons were seized by security forces last year. The North African branch of al-Qaida has a strong presence in the deserts to the south of Tunisia and has attacked targets in Algeria and Tunisia as well as taken hostages in Niger and Mali. In response, Tunisia has boosted its security presence along its desert borders. In May, a Tunisian army colonel was killed in a border clash believed to be with elements of al-Qaida.

Army chief: Military avoids politics ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Jan. 20 (UPI) -- Army Chief Ashfaq Parvez Kayani assured President Asif Ali Zardari the military will not stage a coup as the two leaders met Friday. Kayani and Zardari had tea together at the president's residence after a military ceremony, the Deccan Chronicle reported. Gen. Kayani assured the President that the army will stick to its professional duties and will not engage in politics. He expressed his commitment to the elected government," a senior government official said. Also Friday, Attorney General Maulvi Anwarul Haq told the Supreme Court the government does not plan to fire Kayani or Lt. Gen. Ahmad Shuja Pasha, the director of the powerful Inter-Services Intelligence agency, the Dawn newspaper reported. The high court postponed a hearing on a petition asking the court to bar the government from taking any action against the two men.

Euro 2012: Steven Gerrard driven by England's past failures

Worm turns sheep clone to good fat-China scientists HONG KONG (Reuters) - Chinese scientists have cloned a genetically modified sheep containing a "good" type of fat found naturally in nuts, seeds, fish and leafy greens that helps reduce the risk of heart attacks and cardiovascular disease. "Peng Peng," which has a roundworm fat gene, weighed in at 5.74 kg when it was born on March 26 in a laboratory in China's far western region of Xinjiang. "It's growing very well and is very healthy like a normal sheep," lead scientist Du Yutao at the Beijing Genomics Institute (BGI) in Shenzhen in southern China told Reuters. Du and colleagues inserted the gene that is linked to the production of polyunsaturated fatty acids into a donor cell taken from the ear of a Chinese Merino sheep. The cell was then inserted into an unfertilized egg and implanted into the womb of a surrogate sheep. "The gene was originally from the C. elegans (roundworm) which has been shown (in previous studies) to increase unsaturated fatty acids which is very good for human health," Du said. China, which has to feed 22 percent of the world's population but has only 7 percent of the world's arable land, has devoted plenty of resources in recent years to increasing domestic production of grains, meat and other food products. But there are concerns about the safety of genetically modified foods and it will be some years before meat from such transgenic animals finds its way into Chinese food markets. "The Chinese government encourages transgenic projects but we need to have better methods and results to prove that transgenic plants and animals are harmless and safe for consumption, that is crucial," Du said. Apart from BGI, other collaborators in the project were the Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Shihezi University in Xinjiang. The United States is a world leader in producing GM crops. Its Food and Drug Administration has already approved the sale of food from clones and their offspring, saying the products were indistinguishable from those of non-cloned animals. U.S. biotech firm AquaBounty's patented genetically modified Atlantic salmon are widely billed as growing at double the speed and could be approved by U.S. regulators as early as this summer.

Kim Jong Il's sushi chef returns after fleeing for life Chef returns to N. Korea Fujimoto has written a number of books about the Kim family since leaving N. Korea During visit, Fujimoto meets Kim Jong Un and his wife Fujimoto says Kim gave him a free pass to visit N. Korea whenever he wants (CNN) -- Not many people get a personal invitation to visit North Korea's new leader Kim Jong Un. Kenji Fujimoto was the personal sushi chef of Kim's father, the late Kim Jong Il, before fleeing to his native Japan in 2001, fearing his life was in danger. More than a decade later, he returned to North Korea and described a warm reunion with the young Kim. I jumped up to hug him, shouting 'Comrade General' and instantly burst into tears ... He hugged me back, the first hug in 11 years. I said, 'Fujimoto the betrayer is back now,' and I apologized for all I did and all I disclosed about him. He said, 'OK, don't worry anymore.' Fujimoto has written a number of books about the Kim family since he left North Korea. The former chef says he often played with the young Kim before he escaped. During his recent two-week visit, he says Kim thanked him for playing with him and talked about their going horse-riding, jet-skiing; playing tennis, basketball; and rollerblading together. Fujimoto said of the young leader, "I was surprised how gentle a person he is." It is not clear why the younger Kim decided to invite Fujimoto back to North Korea, but it is clear that Fujimoto is unwilling to say anything negative about him or the country. Speaking of Pyongyang, he said, "I went window shopping from the third day. There are plenty of goods in shops. That's already a big difference. There was nothing there 10 years ago ... I guess it changed drastically since the Kim Jong Un era started. Pyongyang has improved over the past decade, but it is a city for the elite and chosen. In the countryside that few visitors are allowed to see, the situation is very different. Aid groups say food is scarce and malnutrition high. It may not surprise many that Fujimoto, with his glowing praise, sounds at times like a spokesman for the regime. His wife and children are still living in Pyongyang. Fujimoto claims they want to stay, but there is no way to know for sure. Spending every day with his family, he then stayed the night in a room in the Secretary's department, claiming he needed to for safety, as there are many who do not forgive him as he says Kim has done. I said clearly that if I go back to Japan safely, the reputation of Supreme Commander 'Comrade General' would soar enormously Kenji Fujimoto , former chef to Kim Jong Il Fujimoto also met Kim's wife whom the world did not even know about a couple of weeks ago. Of Ri Sol-ju he said, "She is just so charming. I cannot describe her voice, it's so soft... She said to me, 'Welcome to the republic. Our comrade the Supreme Commander missed you the most. He was always talking about you. Thank you for coming. Kim organized a party in Fujimoto's honor, according to the chef. He says they talked about old times and did not mention the current situation of North Korea at all. He does admit forgetting how the party ended after he had a few drinks. When I regained consciousness, I was on a bed. I asked if I did anything disrespectful. No one said I did, so I felt relieved. Fujimoto says Kim gave him a free pass to visit North Korea whenever he wanted, an invitation few have. The benefit of the visit for Kim's international reputation is not lost on Fujimoto. "I said clearly that if I go back to Japan safely, the reputation of Supreme Commander 'Comrade General' would soar enormously," he said. Fujimoto is now willing to tell all who will listen about the virtues of the young North Korean leader.

Freddie Starr returns to police station to answer further questions Freddie Starr was arrested and released on police bail on suspicion of sexual offences on Thursday. Photograph: ITV / Rex Features The comedian Freddie Starr has returned to a police station to answer further questions following his arrest and bailing on suspicion of sexual offences on Thursday. Starr was being interviewed by detectives on Friday after returning to the station on police bail, the Metropolitan police confirmed. He is being questioned by detectives from Operation Yewtree, the Scotland Yard investigation into alleged sex abuse by Jimmy Savile and others. Starr was first interviewed by police yesterday following his arrest at 5.45pm. He was released between 1am and 1.30am on Friday morning and returned to his Warwickshire home. Scotland Yard detectives working on Operation Yewtree have received information from more than 300 alleged victims of Savile, and further arrests are expected.

Hearings on John Hinckley's mental state to continue WASHINGTON - A hearing on the mental state of the man who shot President Ronald Reagan continues in Washington's federal court. The hearing will determine whether John Hinckley can make weeks-long visits to his mother's home and live there eventually. Testimony resumes Monday. A jury found Hinckley was insane when he shot and wounded Reagan outside a Washington hotel in 1981, but doctors say his mental illness has been in remission for years. He has been held at St. Elizabeths Hospital in the District of Columbia for the last three decades, but a judge in recent years has permitted him increasing freedom. The judge has so far heard from several witnesses, including a sister and brother of Hinckley. Lawyers for the government say Hinckley's request for more freedom is premature. Read more: The Post's criminal justice coverage

Geert Wilders of the Netherlands reveals a resurgent far right in Europe AMSTERDAM - Europe's most controversial politician lives in a government safe house fitted with a panic room and guarded round the clock. A self-avowed foe of Islam who compared the Koran to Adolf Hitler's Mein Kampf and called for a ban on Muslim immigrants, he travels by bulletproof car and rarely talks with journalists - choosing instead to funnel messages directly to supporters via Twitter and a personal blog. But when Geert Wilders - dubbed "Mozart" for his bleached-blond bouffant hair - brought down the Dutch government last week in an extraordinary show of force by Europe's resurgent far right, it wasn't over his high-profile war on Islam. Instead, it was part of his emphasis on another belief he and his Freedom Party now see as almost equally dangerous: an integrated Europe. The rise of Wilders in the Netherlands is a cautionary tale for a continent in the midst of a debt crisis, and where painful recessions, soaring unemployment and surging youth apathy are fueling the strongest swell of support in decades for anti-immigrant nationalists. For more than a generation, European political elites have sought to fuse the region together by adopting the euro and a series of treaties that virtually erased national borders across a vast swath of the continent. But in the recent surge of the nationalist far right, and to lesser extent the far left, European leaders are confronting not only a backlash to a united Europe but also a troubling new hurdle in their efforts to resolve the 21 / 2-year-old debt crisis. From France to Austria, Greece to Finland, the popularity of nationalists is growing as politicians like Wilders tap into voter rage not only over the crisis itself, but also over the proposed cure being pushed by mighty Germany: harsh rounds of government cuts and difficult economic overhauls to restore investor confidence in Europe's governments. That austerity crusade is already in danger of derailing, with even moderate leaders, including Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti, now saying deep cuts are driving Europe's economies into the ground. Other critics, meanwhile, are arguing the social pain from austerity is playing into the hands of politicians on the far right and left, who are portraying the cuts as part of a pattern that has seen European integration eat away at living standards across traditionally affluent Western Europe. Even German Chancellor Angela Merkel has softened her rhetoric in recent days, playing up the need for policies that favor growth, though she continues to view fiscal discipline as a necessary tonic for Europe's troubles. European Central Bank President Mario Draghi, also a fiscal hawk, called last week for a "growth compact," and European leaders appear likely to work out a series of modest policy changes in late June. In the turmoil of the debt crisis, ideas long held by European radicals are going mainstream as centrist politicians seek to find their way in a sea of discontent. In France, for instance, Marine Le Pen of the National Front stunned observers by winning almost one out of every five votes in the first round of presidential elections a week ago on a platform that would have seen Paris withdraw from the euro and buck the German-led austerity drive. Now on the ropes against his Socialist opponent, President Nicolas Sarkozy is currying the favor of the far-right ahead of the decisive second vote, vowing to pull France out of the region's open-borders treaty if negotiations underway to stem the tide of transplants from poorer quarters of Europe do not succeed in the months ahead.

Outside View: Fore! And American Exceptionalism WASHINGTON, Oct. 3 (UPI) -- "Fore!" is a loudly shouted warning in golf, alerting other players and spectators to an errant shot that could do serious injury. After all, however small, a golf ball is quite hard. Traveling at speeds in excess of 100 miles an hour, it can hurt any onlooker it strikes. American exceptionalism is the view of the uniqueness of the United States of America that has made it the greatest power in history. In both political parties, exceptionalism has achieved cult status. To disavow American exceptionalism risks political excommunication and exile and branding as a self-hating citizen. After all, who dares to say the United States is simply not the best or the greatest even if it is the lone superpower or in more laidback moments, merely the world's "indispensable" power! Wednesday's presidential debate will reaffirm the power of American exceptionalism as the two candidates vie to win the ultimate political prize of the keys to the White House promising to keep the United States great and to make it greater. Surprisingly, the warning of "fore" and American exceptionalism are linked. This past weekend's Ryder Cup competition provides that nexus. For those who don't follow golf, the Ryder Cup is that sport's most cherished prize. Started in 1926 by English seed magnate Samuel Ryder, the competition was originally between the United States and Britain pitting the best golfers on both sides of the Atlantic against each other. In 1979, because of American dominance, golfing great Jack Nicklaus argued that the competition should be expanded to include all of Europe to even the matches. Since then, Europe has emerged as the dominant force. This year's matches were contested outside Chicago at the Medinah Golf Club. Competition is based on 28 games. Eight are "better ball," called four balls; eight are alternate shots, called foursomes; and 12 are singles, individual one-against-one matches. Each counts for one point. A total of 14 points are needed to retain the cup and 14 1/2 to defeat the current holder. By any measure, this year's U.S. team was far and away the stronger and the certain victor. After the first two days of play and before the singles competition, the United States was leading 10-6 -- a seemingly insurmountable lead overcome only once before in 1999 at The Country Club in Brookline, Mass., when the United States engineered that upset. Given the overpowering strength of the U.S. team in 2012, a European victory would be a major miracle. Nonetheless, Europe amazingly triumphed winning eight of 11 singles matches and halving the 12th for an outright victory of 14 1/2 to 13 1/2. That outcome should give the United States and Americans pause to reconsider our exceptionalism. Many sectors of the United States are widely respected abroad as well as deeply resented. The United States truly provides unlimited opportunities for citizens and immigrants alike. Its universities are unmatched. It has often been a force for good. And many of its products and culture are widely celebrated as well as sought. But what is too often regarded as attitudes that range from arrogance and pomposity to superiority and indifference, the global image of America is in desperate need of repair. That we embarked on two strategically derelict and costly interventions in Afghanistan and Iraq hasn't been embellished by a war on terror irrespective of name and a policy of assassination and killing of the "enemy" by drone and special forces wherever we can find them. And the failure of the U.S. government to deal with its lurking fiscal and economic calamities has not reflected well on our "exceptionalism." It isn't that we have failed to try. President George W. Bush entered office promising a "more humble foreign policy" vowing to change the tone in Washington. Candidate Barack Obama made similar pledges. And candidate Mitt Romney assures voters that he, too, will change the way Washington works. All of this, sadly, is nonsense. It could take decades perhaps for the United States to emerge from a government broken by the extreme wings of its two political parties and a political process in which winning election has long superseded providing effective or even partially effective governance. As Americans should have learned and won't from the Ryder Cup, discounting or demeaning friends and allies isn't wise. In a world that is instantly linked by global communications and media and in which interdependence is a reality and not simply a slogan, the cult of American exceptionalism is a huge obstacle to U.S. interests. Yes, the United States is the world's richest power. It has the strongest military by a large factor as well. But so what? Is the United States any safer physically, more secure financially and happier today? Answering these questions should be part of the political debate. It is not. Hence, when someone pronounces American exceptionalism, please yell "fore!" Harlan Ullman is chairman of the Killowen Group, which advises leaders of government and business, and senior adviser at Washington's Atlantic Council. (United Press International's "Outside View" commentaries are written by outside contributors who specialize in a variety of important issues.

Reading sign Sporting Lisbon defender Daniel Carrico Reading have secured the services of Sporting Lisbon defender Daniel Carrico, the Portuguese club have announced on their website. The 24-year-old Sporting captain will be out of contract in June and, according to the Primeira Liga outfit, will join Reading next month in a 750,000 euros deal which includes a sell-on clause for a future transfer. There is no official confirmation on the transfer from Reading yet but Carrico wrote a farewell letter on Sporting's website. In it, he said: "It is with mixed emotions that I write this farewell message. I'm leaving the club of my heart, where I had the privilege of graduating (through the youth ranks) and serving for several years. I'm leaving because I understand that I am at a stage in my career when I have to take chances. Moreover, the proposed project is extremely exciting to me and know I can succeed.

Question Time: Hain says Labour should not fear EU vote

Senate race in Texas headed for runoff AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - Texas Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst and Tea Party favorite Ted Cruz were headed to a U.S. Senate election runoff in July after neither secured the more than 50 percent of the vote required to win the Republican primary on Tuesday. The nine-candidate primary for the seat that Republican Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison is leaving open also included former Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert. The Republican primary is key because Texas has not elected a Democrat to statewide office since 1994. Dewhurst led the field, but did not manage to avoid a July 31 runoff. He had about 45 percent of the vote and Cruz about 34 percent with 84 percent of the precincts counted, according to unofficial results on the Texas Secretary of State website. The election's outcome is not likely to change the party balance in the U.S. Senate, which now has a Democratic majority. But it was watched closely as another battle between the conservative Tea Party movement and more traditional Republicans for supremacy in the Republican Party. National conservative groups such as Club for Growth and the Senate Conservatives Fund poured money into Cruz's campaign, emboldened by wins from insurgent conservatives against traditional Republicans in Senate primaries elsewhere in the country. In Indiana, a candidate backed by the Tea Party beat longtime U.S. Senator Richard Lugar, and in Nebraska, first-time statewide candidate Deb Fischer beat a veteran attorney general. James Henson, director of the Texas Politics Project at the University of Texas, said the important question is who will be motivated to show up for a runoff in July. "That is almost certainly going to be the more ideological voters, it's going to be more conservative voters," Henson said. While Cruz poses a real challenge to Dewhurst on that front, they are competing over those voters and splitting them relatively evenly. Cruz does not get the support of all Tea Party activists, who want to dramatically cut U.S. government spending and want to elect conservatives who will be assertive in Washington. Brendan Steinhauser of the conservative group FreedomWorks, which backs Cruz, said those activists would get behind Cruz in the runoff. "They are all united when it comes to the belief that David Dewhurst does not represent their values," he said. The Texas race became a battle over who was the most conservative, with Republican Governor Rick Perry backing Dewhurst and former vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin endorsing Cruz. "Now, more than ever, we must work to send a proven conservative leader like David Dewhurst to Washington, where he can put the Texas approach to work to overhaul Washington," Perry said in a statement on Tuesday. Dewhurst was the front-runner in the race. He loaned his campaign $9.2 million, his campaign said last week. A businessman and a former state land commissioner who has served in the U.S. Air Force and with the CIA, Dewhurst has presided over the Texas Senate since 2003. Cruz, a Houston lawyer and former state solicitor general whose father came to Texas from Cuba, criticized Dewhurst for compromising with Democrats in the state Senate. Club for Growth says it spent $2.5 million, plus bundled more than $750,000 directly for members, in support of Cruz. In the Democratic primary to choose an opponent for Dewhurst or Cruz in the Senate race, former state Representative Paul Sadler was leading although he also did not get more than 50 percent and will be forced into a runoff in July. Texas added four U.S. House of Representatives seats because of its population growth in the 2010 census, mainly because of a rise in the number of Hispanics. But the redistricting map drawn by majority Republicans in the state may limit Hispanic gains in the Texas congressional delegation. One Hispanic incumbent, Democratic U.S. Representative Silvestre Reyes, seeking a ninth term in Congress, was losing in the Democratic primary to challenger Beto O'Rourke, a former member of the El Paso City Council. Additional reporting by Alexander Cohen, Alina Selyukh, Nick Carey and Marice Richter; Editing by Greg McCune and Eric Beech

The Indian Angle: India's sloppy stars still view fielding as beneath them Asked why fielder Zaheer Khan seldom bothered to walk in as the bowler approached the stumps, India's fielding coach Trevor Penny said, "Zaheer has his own methods." He wasn't about to let down one of his boys publicly or put his own job in jeopardy, but added, "He is a superstar of Indian cricket." The message is clear: Indian superstars do not need to field. There was a moment at Eden Gardens when the ball was played between Yuvraj Singh and R Ashwin; the former, more senior, was happy to allow the younger man to chase. In fact, he probably expected it. India's fielding has escaped censure only because the focus has been so much on their failures with bat and ball, but it has been embarrassing. Alastair Cook doesn't need the encouragement of being let off twice; both were straightforward chances. It just happened that Cheteshwar Pujara (above) at first slip was fielding in that unfamiliar position (for him) with shin guards that might have made it difficult to bend for the low, hard, catch when the batsman was 17. Then at 156, bowler Ishant Sharma let the ball hit his palms and drop. There are two aspects to India's poor fielding: fitness levels (in some cases connected with age, although Sachin Tendulkar at 39 is safe even if not brilliant) and the superstar syndrome. For so long was the trio of Rahul Dravid, Tendulkar and VVS Laxman - each with more than 100 Test catches - established in the slips that little thought was given to grooming a youngster there. Virat Kohli is a natural choice, but he is needed elsewhere, at point, or as he was today, at square leg from where he ran out Cook while thinking on his feet. "Our plan," says the fielding coach, "is to field everybody everywhere." This post-modern approach to fielding ignores the fact that cricket is a game of specialists. India's great close-catching cordon of the 1970s, Sunil Gavaskar and Ajit Wadekar at slip, S Venkataraghavan at gully, Abid Ali at backward short leg and the great Eknath Solkar at forward short leg gave their spinners an edge that they acknowledged. "We wouldn't have been as successful without Solkar's catching," the leg-spinner Bhagwat Chandrasekhar often said. Dravid took more than a hundred catches off the Anil Kumble-Harbhajan Singh combination, and finished with 200 catches. The late Tiger Pataudi was an outstanding cover point; Colin Bland once said his anticipation was sharper than Jonty Rhodes's, and he would know. Later, Kapil Dev was a delight in the outfield while Mohammad Azharuddin was possibly the greatest all-round fielder India had, quick in the covers and a brilliant catcher close in. In some ways these players may have been exceptions, though. In general, as I have said before, the philosophy is best summed up by the attitude: "As for fielding, our servants can do that for us." In the early days of Indian cricket, fielding was for servants, not masters, for the less fortunate who, for reasons of class or caste, did not find a place in the real scheme of things.The modern "maharajas" are merely continuing a tradition. No running, no diving, no attention to the modern methods of sliding, pulling the ball back for a colleague to throw or challenging batsmen to run. Fielding coaches are up against history (India's tradition of poor fielders), geography (the hard grounds where diving is fraught with danger in the early days), and perhaps economics (why take a chance on an injury when fielding which might lead to a fall in earnings?). There is such a thing as the joy of fielding. You could see it in Azharuddin, and in Rhodes. With that comes an abiding interest in fitness. When he retired at 39, Dravid was the fittest player in the side, which is both amazing and sad. There are no hiding places in the field today. India's players know where to hide though: behind their big scores, their reputations and their ability to let the fielding coach know what his boundaries are. Suresh Menon is editor of Wisden India Almanack

Givenchy Puts Virgin Mary Images on Menswear Eclectic was the word to describe Day Three of Paris menswear week. Friday's spring-summer collections had a little something for everyone: from the high-waisted gangster styles of film noir to fashions evoking Brazilian soccer and even the Catholic Church. In one collection - which its designer called the longest fashion show in history - the boundaries were blurred between clothing and performance art. Here in Paris, the only thing that defines menswear is variety, difference. You cannot put it in one direction," French fashion federation president Didier Grumbach told The Associated Press. Givenchy's enfant terrible designer, Riccardo Tisci, delivered the day's slickest show. In a provocative display, he delved into his Roman Catholic childhood in southern Italy to produce clothing loaded with Virgin Mary images. Saturday's shows include Dior Homme and powerhouse Hermes. It was an ecclesiastical tour de force in a religion-inspired collection. Incense wafted from the sidelines and organ music set the scene in a show that played with the layers of priestly garb. Tisci shows always contain a shock factor. Here it came in the form of sleeveless tops and jackets printed with effigies of the Virgin Mary with a black bar over her eyes. Jesus sandals - de rigueur for all the models - bore spiky chains. "I'm going back to my roots," Tisci, an Italian Catholic, told The Associated Press. It's about Communion, but a sex version of it. Silhouettes were knee-length or at the hip. The longer looks in black, white and blood red descended like columns, with cassock undergarments hanging underneath. The shorter looks were best, such as a printed T-shirt paired with a jacket - again featuring Virgin imagery - that opened up like a Catholic triptych. The sheer volume of clothes was unusual for a spring show, but Tisci rarely follows the rules. "It's great to see so many clothes on the runway," former French Vogue Editor Carine Roitfeld said from the front row. Each season he becomes stronger and stronger. Was it a fashion show or performance art? In their Paris debut, the fashion label Band of Outsiders is claiming to have pulled off the longest fashion show in history. The presentation - which featured a male model living in a shop widow - began Wednesday and wrapped up Friday evening, 60 hours later. Live-streamed on the Internet for three days and four nights, it became somewhat of a phenomenon, receiving 25,000 unique hits, according to designer Scott Sternberg. Sternberg decided that every 90 minutes, his model had to disappear briefly to change into a new outfit from the collection - making the event more like an installation than a fashion show. "I am a clothing designer, but the line between art and fashion is blurred," said Sternberg. For what I do, a runway isn't valid. The exaggerated silhouette of the 1940s matinee idol was behind Juun J.'s bold and exhaustive menswear offering. The Korean designer, who impressed critics last season, took for inspiration the 1948 Japanese movie "Drunken Angel" by Akira Kurosawa. "The (postwar) shapes are beautiful ... big shoulders, high waists," the designer said backstage. If only Juun had kept it that simple.

GSK: finally gets its Human The outcome was never much in doubt: GlaxoSmithKline and Human Genome Sciences have agreed a price. GSK will pay $14.25 a share, or roughly $3bn, for HGS. This is about 10 per cent higher than GSK's original offer, made in April, which was rejected. Given that HSG's share price hopped above $14 immediately following the first offer, it is easy to interpret the back-and-forth as a tiresome ritual. GSK makes a "full and fair" offer slightly below the level it knows it will have to pay; HGS spurns the offer and publicly seeks a better bid, knowing full well that, because GSK already has rights to half the profits from its primary asset (the lupus drug Benlysta), other bidders are very unlikely to appear; GSK displays a symbolically higher offer; and HGS, having symbolically done its duty for its shareholders, accepts. Formulaic perhaps, but it doesn't mean that HGS was pushed around. When a small drug developer makes a deal with a bigger company, it is getting rid of risk by taking payments upfront and sharing expenses. But it is also giving up some upside, not just through shared profits but also by in effect reducing the number of bidders for the entire company to just one. More importantly, the balance of power between cash-rich, growth-poor global pharmas (such as GSK) and small companies with promising products (such as HGS) favours the latter. GSK is paying $3bn for two things. First, Benlysta, which is generating sales at a $130m annual rate and could, if all goes well, make about $1bn in annual sales down the road. Second, the possibility it will be able to avoid paying royalties on two drugs it has already licensed from HGS, neither of which may ever get out of the clinic. Expensive and risky but when the buyer has money and an obvious need, the seller always stands to do well.

World Powers to Discuss Syria in Geneva A senior diplomat at the United Nations says world powers will gather in Geneva this weekend to discuss ways of ending the violence in Syria. The diplomat told the AP that U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov have both said they would attend the Saturday meeting in Geneva. The diplomat spoke on condition of anonymity Wednesday because a formal announcement has not yet been made. U.N. officials said they were preparing to send out invitations and expected to make an announcement later Wednesday.

6-year-old Lori Anne Madison, spelling bee qualifier, isn't feeling any pressure It will get tougher onstage at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center when the home-schooled girl from Woodbridge faces 277 opponents, most of whom are at least twice her age. Last year, the winning word was "cymotrichous," which means having wavy hair. The previous winner spelled "stromuhr," which is a medical instrument. But Speller 269, who will compete for $30,000, among other prizes, reports that she isn't particularly nervous and isn't cramming. "I just do as much as I can," Lori Anne said. I don't stress out about it. Plus, I'm 6. I can always go back next year. She said she hopes to win at age 8 or 9. Sorina Vlaicu Madison, Lori Anne's mother and primary teacher, said she and her daughter have no problem eschewing books and academic pursuits if the outside world is more inviting or their minds are tired. That means swim lessons, play dates, time for games like Angry Birds on the Kindle, and visits to an indoor play center called Kids N Motion. Madison, who teaches health policy at a local university, laughs at the assumption that she has driven her daughter to spelling heights, perhaps by sheer will or intolerance for failure. "You can't drill a 6-year-old," Madison said. You can't really force them to do anything. Marcia Invernizzi, a University of Virginia education professor who studies language, said people who think the spelling bee is all about rote memorization and "freakish" children are mistaken. "These kids are prodigies just like a young violinist or a pianist," Invernizzi said. She said great spellers memorize a lot of words, but know they can't possibly learn them all. Instead, they learn to break down words and analyze how their parts fit into the patterns of English. That someone Lori Anne's age can grasp such concepts, Invernizzi said, is "pretty remarkable." Lori Anne's favorite way to study for bees is through a site called spellingcity.com . Sometimes she picks up books, such as Verbomania, that have lists of words that she likes to read in her flowery pink car seat in the back of her mom's sport-utility vehicle as they shuttle from one activity to another. SpellingCity offers, among other games, a quizzing tool called "hang mouse," akin to the game of hangman. She works on a desktop computer in a home office she shares with her mother. Madison said Lori Anne has a natural ability with language and an insatiable appetite to learn. She likes to read books from the Percy Jackson series and The Kane Chronicles, both by Rick Riordan. She loves the thrill of competition. So when she was told about spelling bees - the stage, the microphone, the understanding of a possible "cute, shiny trophy," as her mom put it - there was little hesi­ta­tion.

The Lessons of Pineapplegate - SchoolBook Little did I know when I posted a piece on the NYC Public School Parents blog on April 19 revealing that there was a passage on the eighth-grade New York state exam about a race between a talking pineapple and a hare that a month later, people would still be talking about it. I've broken quite a few stories in my time, but none has had the viral velocity of this scandal. Within 36 hours, John King, the state education commissioner, had released the full text of the passage and questions, and announced he would not count them in scoring the results. Since then, the story has made headlines in news outlets around the world, led to the publication of not one but two leaked memos from Pearson, the company that created the test, and intensified the debate about the role of standardized testing in our schools today. Why did this story attract such a wide audience? In my view, for two reasons: Much of what is argued about our public schools seems complex and opaque to most outsiders, especially those not immersed in the debate. From the role of the Common Core standards to the impact of charter schools, unless you have children or work in the system, it is not obvious what to think about these matters. But few people who heard about a test question involving a talking pineapple could help but question the judgment of those who would include this material on a standardized test used to determine the future of children and schools. Also, as students, teachers and parents throughout the nation experience the same shock of having their schools rearranged and disrupted for weeks and sometimes months on end, to prepare, administer and score these high-stakes exams, they are predisposed to question the point of it all. All this testing, with its tremendous cost in terms of the dollars and stress it puts on children, and for what? A talking pineapple? Here in New York, the State Education Department enthusiastically signed on to "Race to the Top" and agreed to evaluate teachers by means of test scores that had been revealed to be unreliable in the past. State officials also decided to deny the public the right to see these exams after they had been given, reversing a policy of disclosure that had been in place for many years, and switched test vendors to Pearson, now getting paid $32 million to devise our third- to eighth-grade exams. This year was the first one in this new contract, and Pineapplegate was the result. What other lessons does Pineapplegate offer? According to the Pearson leaked memo, including the pineapple reading passage and questions was "a sound decision" as it "had been field tested in New York State, yielded appropriate statistics for inclusion, and it was aligned to the appropriate NYS Standard." As Pearson's "chief measurement officer" explained, this same passage had been part of the standardized exams in six other states and three large districts since 2004; indeed it had been given 27 different times and yet "we did not have any prior knowledge that the passage entitled "The Hare and the Pineapple" had any controversy associated with it from any prior use." But students, parents and teachers from numerous states had complained loudly about the very same passage and questions, for years, on Facebook and on blogs, repeatedly, which is how I found out about it in the first place. What does this show? It shows that the testing companies and state education bureaucracies have been unaccountable to the public, and have failed to provide the necessary oversight to ensure that these tests, which are supposed to measure the progress of our children and the competence of our teachers, are adequate. Indeed, we seem to be on a collision course between parents, increasingly fed up with the pointless testing regime and the stress and time taken away from real education, and the decisions of policy makers, who have decided that all that is needed is more and better tests. Here in New York City, we will have new standardized assessments starting in prekindergarten, to be given in up to four subjects, and as many as three times a year, as well as new multistate exams aligned with the new Common Core standards, that will supposedly test higher-order critical thinking, despite the fact that they will be given and scored by computer. And yet there is no evidence to support that high-stakes testing has any positive impact. The National Academy of Sciences has issued two documents, one a letter in 2009 from experts opposing the education secretary Arne Duncan's "Race to the Top" mandate to evaluate teachers by means of test scores, saying these methods are not ready for prime time, and last year, an authoritative report, warning that linking sanctions or rewards to test scores has little research backing and in fact may have harmful effects. New York City parents are now taking matters into their own hands; many are planning to boycott the Pearson field tests, starting this week at every public elementary and middle school in the city. And on Thursday there is a protest rally planned outside Pearson headquarters, in what is being called a "field trip against field tests." A national resolution against high-stakes testing has now been approved by more than 500 school boards in Texas, the state where test-based accountability began; it has also been adopted by school boards in Florida, Ohio, and at least four Community Education Councils here in the city. Many of us fear that our state and federal education bureaucracy is becoming inextricably tangled with for-profit testing companies and thus deeply compromised, like the military-industrial complex that President Eisenhower warned of just before he retired. Their testing obsession is undermining our schools, not only in this city, but nationally, and it has got to stop. This is the ultimate lesson of Pineapplegate, and one that our political leaders should pay attention to, before it is too late. Leonie Haimson is the executive director of Class Size Matters, a New York City-based advocacy group, and a founder of Parents Across America, a network of parents dedicated to progressive educational change.

Stacy Keibler wasn't afraid to let it all hangout -- well, almost -- at the Oct. 4 premiere of "Argo." She showed off her toned back, arms and abs while cuddling with boyfriend George Clooney. It was a daring dress choice, and she's not the only one going risque on the red carpet. Click through to see more stars in daring dresses. Jason Merritt/Getty Images

Bowls: Blantyre do it again to West Lothian By STEWART MEIKLE Published on Tuesday 17 April 2012 12:00 West LOTHIAN IBC found themselves playing second fiddle to Blantyre for a second time in a bowls final this season when the favourites for the Scottish Under-35 League Cup crashed to a 77-71 defeat at Auchinleck. Blantyre's triumph followed hard on the heels of them beating the Premier League champions by a single shot in the final of the Scottish Cup proper. West Lothian's Under-35 team is a powerful one with four players of international status in their ranks plus two who have just recently been crowned as members of the title- winning British Isles rink. The presence of Neil Speirs, Thomas Mann, Calum Logan, Cameron Greer, Bryan Cooper and James Speirs provide quality and experience that most club selectors can only dream of. The awesome reputation of their rivals may have commanded respect from Blantyre but certainly not fear from a team that had its own personality players in the shape of internationalists Iain McLean, Brian Irvine and Caroline Brown. A win for the rink skipped by Neil Speirs was the best West Lothian could manage in a hard-fought match that saw Irvine, Brown and McLean all deliver for Blantyre. The first seven-end phase was fought out on a tightrope with the scoring shared 25-25, however, Blantyre engaged a higher gear for the second phase and accelerated to a 31-18 lead that was to prove significant. All four West Lothian rinks were in deficit on that second phase proving Blantyre were flying and going to be difficult to peg back. West Lothian entered the third and final phase with a 13-shot deficit to wipe out and they did give it an exciting go but their 28-21 effort fell short of turning defeat into victory. Irvine and his rink proved to be the Blantyre heroes over the crucial final three ends, as West Lothian showed great menace and fighting spirit with returns of 6-0, 5-2 and 4-1. However, Irvine destroyed that revival with a 7-0 punishment of James Speirs. Team captain James Speirs and his front three of David Wilson, Liam Fairley and Cooper tumbled from 17-15 up to a costly 22-17 defeat. In a thrilling to climax to the final, Neil Speirs finished like a train carding 1, 2, 3, 1 and almost coming to the rescue of his older brother by skipping Ewan Wilson, Stuart Affleck and Paul Lynas to a 19-14 win over Mark Radigan. Logan and his rink of Claire Watson, Scott McMaster and Greer had staged a magnificent fight-back from 10-18 to 18-18 before conceding a single to lose 19-18 to McLean. Mann and his rink of Ryan Duffy, Scott Logan and Blair Mackie trailed from start to finish in a 22-17 defeat from Brown.

Feds raid City Hall of New Jersey capital By Raelyn Johnson, CNN July 19, 2012 -- Updated 1836 GMT (0236 HKT) Federal agents raided City Hall in Trenton, New Jersey, on Thursday They raided the home of the city's mayor, his brother and a campaign supporter Wednesday (CNN) -- Federal agents raided City Hall in New Jersey's capital on Thursday, one day after they swarmed the home of the city's mayor, his brother and a campaign supporter. "The FBI is executing search warrants at various offices at Trenton City Hall, pursuant to an ongoing investigation," said FBI spokeswoman Barbara Woodruff. It was not immediately clear why the raids were conducted and authorities declined to elaborate. Mayor Tony Mack responded to the Wednesday raids by saying he had "not violated the public trust in any way, nor have I violated any of my public duties."

Will euro last? Let's see what William Hill says Politicians expressed astonishment that the Government's independent forecasters are relying on the opinions of people who place bets. Angela Leadsom, a member of the committee, had to double check she had heard the economist correctly. "Are you saying we should use the Office of Budget Responsibility and William Hill when checking the economic forecasts?" she asked Mr Nickell, an Oxford University academic, replied: "William Hill gives you a good indication of the average view across people who are thinking about these things and putting their money where their mouth is." However, Andrew Tyrie, the chairman of the committee, was sceptical about the idea that the odds would be illuminating. "It certainly tells you what the group think is," he said. Last year, Professor Nickell raised eyebrows by telling MPs a white Christmas could be Britain's best hope of avoiding a double-dip recession. At the same hearing yesterday, Robert Chote, the head of the OBR, admitted that "there are elements of art as well as science" in the department's forecasts.

Fewer U.S. children hospitalized for near-drowning: study Mon Jan 16, 2012 9:23pm EST (Reuters) - The number of U.S. children being hospitalized after nearly drowning is half what it was nearly two decades ago, according to a study that suggests public health campaigns about drowning risks may be working. Researchers, whose work was published in Pediatrics, found that hospitalization rates dropped for both boys and girls, and in all age groups, from babies to teenagers. The results are also consistent with recent research suggesting that fewer children are dying from drowning now than in the past. "I think there have been some very good efforts ... to try to educate parents on the importance of helping to prevent drowning at all points in childhood development," said Stephen Bowman, from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, who led the study. Those efforts include encouraging parents to install fences around backyard pools and to make sure children wear life preservers in open water. Bowman and his colleagues used a national database that included information on eight million people admitted to about 1,000 hospitals annually to estimate the total number of children in the United States hospitalized for near-drowning. In 1993, they calculated that an estimated 3,623 children and teens aged 19 and under were admitted to the hospital after nearly drowning -- a number that fell to 1,781 in 2008. The researchers reported that the drop was due largely to a decreasing number of hospitalizations in southern and western states, though more children are still hospitalized for near-drowning in those regions than in the Midwest and Northeast. Based on their findings, they also estimated that the number of children who died after being hospitalized fell from roughly 359 in 1993 to 207 in 2008. While the findings can't attribute the decline to any one specific public health intervention, they do suggest that parent education efforts are starting to work, said Gary Smith, head of the Center for Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio. "This trend, this was really remarkable," said Smith, who is also the president of the Child Injury Prevention Alliance and was not involved in the study. But he added that much still needs to be done. "While this study shows we're making really good progress, especially in the western and southern regions of our country, we have some sobering data still that this remains one of the leading causes of death among children," he added. SOURCE: bit.ly/jsoh2P

Yoav Factor's "Reuniting the Rubins" Sinks a Planned Cruise In a good dysfunctional-family movie, by the end you have some idea of why everybody dislikes everybody else. In a lazy one like "Reuniting the Rubins," you're left to wonder about this most vital of elements because the writer and director - in this case, Yoav Factor - took the shortcut of assuming that bickering for bickering's sake was enough. Timothy Spall plays Lenny Rubins, the father of four wildly different adult children (a rabbi, an activist, a monk and a businessman) who don't care for one another. Lenny's manipulative mother (Honor Blackman) compels him to cancel a long-planned cruise and assemble the four and their youngsters for a Seder. The script includes little back story and lots of button-pushing shorthand, none of which feels genuine: a Holocaust connection, a clumsy subplot involving guerrilla fighters in Africa, a shameless pregnant-woman-in-jeopardy bit. It's the kind of stuff an amateur screenwriter reaches for when he has nothing original to say, because he's seen it work in other movies. It sure doesn't work here. "Reuniting the Rubins" is rated PG (Parental guidance suggested). It includes grown-ups talking about death and other grown-up themes.

Bush touts Arab spring, says US can't fear freedom Former President George W. Bush on Tuesday praised the Arab spring movement and said the U.S. shouldn't fear the spread of freedom, even if it doesn't know what policies newly liberated countries will pursue. "America does not get to choose if a freedom revolution should begin or end in the Middle East or elsewhere," Bush said. It only gets to choose what side it is on. And the U.S., Bush said, should always be on the side of freedom. The former president remarks came at event marking the launch of his presidential institute's "Freedom Collection." The event also featured brief remarks by his wife, former first lady Laura Bush, and a question-and-answer session by video with Myanmar democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Bush said uprisings last year in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and elsewhere marked the broadest challenge to authoritarian rule since the fall of the Soviet Union, but said some feared what that would mean for U.S. foreign policy. "America, they argue, should be content with supporting the flawed leaders they know, in the name of stability," he said. But in the long run this foreign policy approach is not realistic. It is not realistic to presume that so-called stability enhances our national security. Bush said the U.S. also doesn't have the power to "preserve the old order, which is inherently unstable." The former Texas governor, who moved to Dallas, after leaving office, seemed relaxed during his appearance. He mostly has avoided the public spotlight, including commenting on his successor, President Barack Obama, and this year's GOP presidential race. Bush joked that he had found his own freedom "by leaving Washington." As the event wrapped up, he hopped back onstage to say thanks and playfully wave goodbye to the 100 or so people in the audience.

Rangers 0 - 1 Kilmarnock: Rangers fail to repay fans despite record turnout - SPL - Scotsman.com Published on Saturday 18 February 2012 17:36 TEN-MAN Rangers ended one of the most tumultuous weeks in the club's history with a defeat to Kilmarnock that did little to restore the pride stripped away by administration. The official attendance confirmed that 50,268 fans packed into Ibrox to show their backing for manager Ally McCoist and his players during the club's darkest hour. However, Dean Shiels grabbed the only goal of the game to inflict Rangers" first home defeat of the season in the SPL, with a red card for Sasa Papac adding to the misery. Rangers made one change for this contest, with Kirk Broadfoot replacing Kyle Bartley. Daniel Cousin was unable to feature due to the Scottish Premier League's block on the striker's registration, enacted as a result of Rangers" financial position. Kilmarnock were without the suspended Dieter van Tornhout for the sold-out clash. The Rangers fans were keen to generate an atmosphere to rival that of an Old Firm derby and the home side responded early on by carving out the first real chance. Kilmarnock were forced into last-ditch defending when Garry Hay cleared a Lee McCulloch header off the line. But it was the visitors who took the lead when Dorin Goian slipped, allowing Shiels to fire a low shot past Allan McGregor after 12 minutes. The Light Blues could have hit back when Carlos Bocanegra nodded just over the bar from a Sone Aluko corner. Rangers thought they had hauled themselves back into the game when David Healy had the ball in the back of the net after 24 minutes, but the offside flag was raised. Aluko then sent a free-kick just over from 22 yards after McCulloch was fouled by Michael Nelson. However, Kilmarnock still looked dangerous and James Fowler saw his effort flash across goal and just wide. Kilmarnock goalkeeper Cammy Bell then had to react quickly to block an Aluko effort and smother on the line. Rangers were dealt a further blow when Papac was shown a straight red card for a high challenge on Liam Kelly after 42 minutes. Gers boss McCoist made a change at the interval, with Mervan Celik replacing Healy. But it was Kilmarnock who almost added to their lead when Mohamadou Sissoko collected a Fowler cross and drove just over the crossbar. Salim Kerkar was introduced to the action for Broadfoot, before Aluko blasted well over as the search for an equaliser became more desperate. Home supporters were cheering when McCulloch bulleted home a header from Aluko's corner after 68 minutes - but again they were denied a goal after referee Iain Brines ruled there had been a foul in the goalmouth area in the build-up. The fans attempted to rouse the players in the closing stages but Rangers were unable to find the leveller, leaving Celtic now in a position to extend their lead at the SPL summit to 17 points with victory over Hibernian tomorrow.

Corporation tax refunds hit £9bn The total amount of repaid tax jumped 91pc in the five years to March 31 2010, from £4.7bn, according to accountancy group UHY Hacker Young. "There has been a huge increase in the amount of corporation tax that has been refunded to companies, as losses accumulated during the recession," said Roy Maugham, tax partner. In the recent economic climate, UK businesses are likely to have incurred losses that can be offset against earlier profits, which is why they might be eligible for repayments. The average amount paid out for each claim rose 43pc in the year to March 31 2010, to £25,259 from £17,683. Mr Maugham said HMRC seemed to be getting "slower and slower" at processing refunds. Claims are now typically taking two or three months to process. Even extreme delays of two years are no longer seen as uncommon, but often HMRC wait until nine months after the year end to repay excess instalments. He said the repayment delays could cause enormous problems for businesses, particularly in the current tough economic environment. The number of claims made to HMRC for refunds has actually fallen, which raises the question of why it taking them so much longer to process claims. Job cuts at HMRC may have had an impact on its ability to function efficiently, but this is having a serious knock-on effect on businesses," Mr Maugham said.

Mervyn Westfield: How former Essex player became the first English cricketer to be convicted of spot-fixing The overseas television rights are worth around £12 million to the England & Wales Cricket Board but the downside is it exposes county cricket to the gangster underworld in Asia where any pre-match information can be worth a lot of money. Westfield's crimes would probably have remained undetected if it had not been for his inability to keep his secret quiet. There was no fake Sheikh or £150,000 tabloid sting in this case. Westfield confided in a team-mate, who followed anti-corruption guidelines issued to all cricketers in England and reported the matter to the management at Essex. An investigation was launched over the winter of 2009 and Westfield was first arrested in May 2010 alongside Danish Kaneria, the Pakistan leg-spinner. All charges were later dropped against Kaneria but he has not played international cricket since. The money trail and telephone records all led to Westfield and he soon stood alone facing the music. The judge at today's hearing said the identity of the player who corrupted Westfield will be made public at sentencing. Westfield's case was preceded by the Pakistan fixing trial, but it was the investigation into the Essex player which paved the way for charges to be brought against Asif, Butt and Amir. Under pressure to find a suitable charge to cover these unusual crimes, the Crown Prosecution Service stumbled across a 104-year-old act initially brought in for crimes involving corrupt civil servants. It took a ruling by the Attorney General to rubber stamp the charges and send Westfield to court. Westfield was released by Essex in Aug 2010 for cricketing reasons as the club tried to keep control of the situation. The player who first alerted the authorities has now also left the club while Mark Pettini, the captain at the time, resigned just six weeks after the Westfield investigation story was broken by The Sunday Telegraph. Since his departure from Essex, Westfield has played club cricket for Wanstead in the Essex league, a long established club in east London where he is a popular member of the side. Now he will face a ban from cricket by the ECB similar to those being served by the Pakistan Three. It is unlikely he will be able to play cricket or coach at any level. The ECB will hope his punishment serves as a warning and it will be a useful training tool when their new anti-corruption unit begins its education programme at the start of next season.

NI peers oppose Lords reform plan

Ross Monaghan cleared of gun charges at Kevin Carroll murder trial

Snow Globes Out, Small Scissors In: Current Airport Screening Rules Do I need to take off my flimsy straw sandals even if I know they don't have metal in them? Wait - you can bring scissors onboard now? What's the 4-1-1 on 3-1-1? Confusion can blur people's understanding of airport screening rules. It's no wonder: The rules change. The Transportation Security Administration, founded after 9/11 to keep us safe without unduly blocking our cherished mobility, designs, enforces and refines policies using evolving technologies and tools against an evolving terrorist threat. You've heard of the shoe bomber and underwear bomber. 1 threat is nonmetallic improvised explosive devices concealed on a passenger's body," said Greg Soule, a TSA public affairs officer. Here are some highlights of the current rules intended to limit that and other threats. Liquids, Gels and Aerosols - On August 10, 2006, British police foiled a plot to use liquid explosives to blow up at least 10 airplanes traveling from the U.K. to North America. Travelers" ability to carry liquids, gels and aerosols onto their flights vanished "virtually overnight," Soule said. TSA loosened the new rules a few weeks later. You can carry on small amounts of liquids, but you must follow what TSA calls the 3-1-1 rule: 3.4-ounce container (s) or smaller, in one quart-size clear plastic zip-top bag, one bag per passenger. Medications, baby formula and food, and breast milk are allowed in reasonable quantities exceeding 3.4 ounces, and don't have to be in the bag. Declare these things at the checkpoint. Officers may open some or all of them to screen them. The 3.4 ounces applies to the container. Larger containers that are partly filled and large toothpaste tubes that are rolled up aren't allowed. What's a "liquid"? Use this informal rule of thumb: If you can pour, pump, squeeze, spread, smear, spray and/or spill it, it's a liquid. Pastes, ointments and mascara are considered liquids. Frozen food is considered a solid. If it's partially melted - "such as gravy," TSA's website says - it's liquid, and subject to 3-1-1. Gel shoe inserts are forbidden onboard aircraft. Gel-filled bras are allowed. Snow globes and other tchotchkes containing liquid are prohibited, "even with documentation." Shoes - Soule said TSA originally required all shoes be removed before entering the walk-through metal detector, then only some types, then, around 2006, it went back to all shoes. Children 12 and younger may now keep their shoes on. As with all TSA rules, the reason for the rule and the changes is current intelligence, Soule said. "We know certain individuals are looking for creative concealment [of potential weapons]," he said. ID - If experience has left you braced for many officials asking you for your ID and/or boarding pass, you can relax (for now). Although in the past, at some airports, adults 18 and over have been asked to present them at multiple times and places, now you can expect to show both documents once and then put them away, Soule said. Children are not required to show ID, but all passengers on international flights, including children, need a passport. Clothing - There are no restrictions, but TSA does suggest you remove metal on your body - jewelry, cufflinks, belt buckles - to speed up screening. Transportation Security Officers (TSOs) must identify any metal detected at the checkpoint using hand-wand and/or pat-down inspection. Sharp Objects - The 9/11 hijackers used box cutters to overpower airline crew and take control of the plane, and sharp objects are still prohibited. However, scissors with blades shorter than four inches, even with pointed tips, are now allowed. Most sporting goods - bats, bows, sticks, cues, golf clubs - are prohibited for the same reason. Ice skates - despite having potentially long, sharp blades - are allowed. Most tools are prohibited (hatchets, hammers, drills/bits, etc.). Screwdrivers seven inches long or shorter are allowed, perhaps surprisingly, as are wrenches and pliers seven inches long or shorter. Firearms and Combustibles, understandably, are prohibited (this includes bb and pellet guns). TSA confiscated more than 1,300 firearms last year, Soule said. Most are allowed to be checked, the exceptions being flares and gun powder. Common lighters are O.K., as is one book of safety (non-strike anywhere) matches. Passing through electronic detection equipment is optional, though TSA assures it is safe for all, including pregnant women. Those opting out will be searched via pat-down. TSOs have discretion to prohibit any item if they think poses a security threat. Watch the full story on TSA's evolving tactics against air-travel terrorism on "20/20″ Friday at 10 p.m.

Rafael Nadal's comeback from knee injury delayed by sickness Rafael Nadal's long-awaited comeback from a knee injury has had to be postponed because of illness. The former world number one wrote on his Facebook page that he had been advised to rest while he recovers from a fever caused by a stomach infection. The 26-year-old Spaniard, who has been out of action with tendonitis in his left knee since Wimbledon, had been due to play in an exhibition tournament in Abu Dhabi on 27 December. Nadal has won 11 Grand Slam events. After suffering a shock second-round loss at Wimbledon to then 100th-ranked Lukas Rosol, Nadal pulled out of both London 2012 and the US Open because of the injury. "I am very disappointed that I will not be able to compete this year in Abu Dhabi," the world number four said in a statement. My rehab has gone well, my knee feels good and I was looking forward to competing. Unfortunately doctors have informed me that my body needs to rest in order to fight this stomach virus. I would like to say sorry to all my fans in the United Arab Emirates and around the world, but I hope to play and win in Abu Dhabi again next year. The event still features the world number one and defending champion Novak Djokovic as well as four other top-10 players - Andy Murray, David Ferrer, Janko Tipsarevic and Tomas Berdych. Nadal is now expected to return at the Qatar Open, which starts on 31 December. The first Grand Slam of the season, the Australian Open, is due to begin in Melbourne on 14 January.

The Monk (15) - Reviews - Films - The Independent Based on Matthew Lewis's scandalous novel of 1796 (written when he was 19) this intriguingly fuses English Gothic with the wilder side of Spanish Catholicism. Director Dominik Moll has investigated tormented psychologies before (Lemming, Harry, He's Here to Help) but never anything quite so lurid as this. Ambrosio (Vincent Cassel), abandoned as an infant on the steps of a Capuchin monastery, rises to become one of Spain's most eloquent preachers and revered of holy men, drawing the faithful from miles around. The arrival of a mysterious youth, Valerio, his face masked to hide terrible disfigurement, is a catalyst in the monastery's life. The newcomer alleviates Ambrosio's disabling headaches but also excites him with temptations the monk has never experienced. His initial sin - the self-righteous punishment of a nun - is merely the prompt to an escalating sequence of crimes that ultimately enfold him in an Oedipal doom. Moll is unafraid to mingle the real with the fantastical, in one sequence portraying a delirium as if in tribute to journeyman TV of 1970s vintage. He also has a fine eye for contrasting landscapes, setting the chiaroscuro of the monastery against the dazzling aridities of the Spanish countryside. What a very strange film this is, so controlled and precise yet utterly outlandish in its conjuring of evil. Dan Brown should take a look, and ponder.

'Really intense nor'easter' heads for New York, New Jersery The incoming storm will create additional storm surge, wind, and more power outages for the already besieged East Coast. Weather Channel meteorologist Jim Cantore reports. By Ian Johnston, NBC News A "really intense nor'easter" was expected to hit New York and New Jersey on Wednesday, bringing rain and wind gusts of up to 50 mph in the aftermath of superstorm Sandy, weather.com reported. Tom Niziol, a winter weather expert with weather.com, said the storm would weaken slightly Thursday but could bring snow to an area from the Catskill Mountains, N.Y., to parts of northern New England. "If the snowfall amounts get to be a few inches ... and we combine that with some brisk winds in that area, we may look at another round of power outages for areas that weren't as affected as the New Jersey and Long Island coasts from Sandy," he said. From weather.com: Storm's city-by-city forecasts Some 1.4 million homes and businesses were still without power or heat in near-freezing temperatures, Reuters reported early Tuesday. The National Weather Service said a "significant coastal storm" was expected to develop by midweek with an area of low pressure developing off the coast of Georgia late Tuesday. The storm "is forecast to strengthen as it moves along the Carolina coast on Wednesday. The low will continue to strengthen into Thursday as it moves off the New Jersey coast," it added. Potential impacts include wind gusts up to 50 mph, minor to moderate coastal flooding, heavy rain along coastal areas and wet snow across interior sections. Residents across the Northeast pick up the pieces after Superstorm Sandy killed more than 100 people in 10 states and left a trail of destruction. In a notice posted at 3:47 a.m. ET Tuesday, the NWS said the "current track of this system is expected to keep the heaviest rainfall just offshore of the New Jersey coast." With the ground in coastal New Jersey towns still saturated with ocean water, officials feared the Nor'easter could flood them again. In Belmar, Lake Como and Spring Lake, officials pumped out three lakes to allow groundwater to drain into them. The NWS also forecast "some accumulating snows from Delaware up to Maine," including Philadelphia, New York City, and Boston. Sandy roared ashore on the Jersey coast on October 29 as a rare hybrid superstorm after killing 69 people in the Caribbean and then merging with a strong North Atlantic system. It killed at least 113 in the United States and knocked out power to millions of people while swamping seaside towns and inundating New York City's streets and subway tunnels. More than 217,000 people had registered for assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and about $199 million in has been provided, Reuters reported.

Akin Defies Romney, Stays in Senate Race Aug. 21, 2012 - A defiant Rep. Todd Akin today rejected calls from Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney and running mate Paul Ryan to drop out of the Missouri Senate race over his controversial comments about rape and pregnancy. Akin let a 6 p.m. ET (5 p.m. CT) deadline pass without withdrawing his name from the ballot. "As of 5 p.m. there's been no withdrawal filed," the secretary of state's office told ABC News. [Akin] would have to have a court order now to get off the ballot. Akin can still drop out of the race. Under Missouri law, he has until Sept. 25 to obtain a court order for his withdrawal, but it would require Akin to pay for a reprinting of ballots. "Let me make it absolutely clear," Akin said on Mike Huckabee's radio show. We're going to continue with this race for the U.S. Senate. Akin wasn't swayed by appeals from Romney and Ryan as well as five current and former Missouri senators. "Today, his fellow Missourians urged him to step aside," Romney said in a statement. I think he should accept their counsel and exit the Senate race. On Monday, Ryan had a five minute phone call with Akin urging him to consider stepping down. "He didn't ask him to get out," the source said. He said, basically, 'You need to reflect on this and think about what is best for you, your family and things you believe in.' When that didn't work Ryan today endorsed Romney's suggestion that Akin quit the race. Instead, Akin posted an online video seeking "forgiveness" for saying that women rarely get pregnant from what he called "legitimate rape." "By taking this stand, this is going to strengthen our country," he told Huckabee, calling in to the show for the second straight day. It will strengthen the Republican Party. "We can't run from our shadows," he said later during an interview with Missouri-based conservative talker Dana Loesch. High-ranking GOP officials fear Akin's inflammatory words have sunk his chances of winning the Missouri race and may also scuttle Republicans' hopes of taking control of the Senate. Earlier today, Akin gained an unlikely ally in the form of Democratic rival Sen. Claire McCaskill. McCaskill, who is trailing Akin in the polls, said that Republican leaders should not be trying to overturn the results of the Republican primary that made Akin their candidate. "Elections are sacred," McCaskill told St. Louis Fox affiliate KTVS. There was an election, so I think the voters of Missouri should be respected, not have some big-wig, fancy people from Washington come in here and threaten him that he's got to drop out. The National Republican Senate Committee questioned McCaskill's motives. "It should not be lost on anyone that some of the only voices not calling for Congressman Akin to do the right thing and step aside are Claire McCaskill and the leaders of the pro-abortion movement," they said in a statement. Senator McCaskill knows that the only way she wins re-election is if Todd Akin is her opponent in November. Among the big-name Republicans asking Akin to quit are his would-be colleagues, including Missouri's junior senator Roy Blunt, who issued a joint statement together with former Missouri U.S. senators John Ashcroft, Kit Bond, John Danforth, and Jim Talent. The issues at stake are too big, and this election is simply too important. The right decision is to step aside," they wrote. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Maine's Republican Sen. Olympia Snowe, Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire and Richard Burr of North Carolina have all joined the chorus. McConnell called Akin's initial remarks a "deeply offensive error at a time when his candidacy carries great consequence for the future of our country... To continue serving his country in the honorable way he has served throughout his career, it is time for Congressman Akin to step aside. Todd Akin Won't Quit Missouri Senate Race After Rape Remark On Monday, Sens. Scott Brown of Massachusetts, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin and Texas's John Cornyn, head of the National Republican Senate Committee, urged Akin to step aside. Additional pressure came from Karl Rove's powerful Crossroads GPS Super PAC which said it will pull all of its money out of Missouri if Akin stays in and the Tea Party Express which released a statement calling for Akin to "step down." Akin tried to salvage his candidacy today by releasing a video asking voters for "forgiveness." "Rape is an evil act" and "the mistake I made was in the words I said, not in the heart I hold," Akin tells voters in the video. "Governor Romney and Congressman Ryan disagree with Mr. Akin's statement, and a Romney-Ryan administration would not oppose abortion in instances of rape," the campaign said yesterday, before dialing up the rhetoric. Earlier today, the Republican National Convention approved a plank in their platform advocating for the passage of the "Human Life Amendment," which would ban abortion in all circumstances, even in cases of rape or incest. It employs the same language that was used in the party platform in 2004 and 2008.

Protesters disrupt Libya congress as it tries to vote on new government TRIPOLI, Libya - Protesters stormed Libya's General National Congress on Tuesday, just as representatives were moving to vote on a government after months of political stalemate. The protesters said they objected to several nominees in Prime Minister Ali Zidan's proposed 27-member cabinet, including the minister of Islamic affairs, who they said was a secularist. Amid the disruption, congressional leader Mohamed Yusuf al-Magariaf adjourned the vote until Wednesday morning. "Let it be known to all Libyans and to the whole world in what conditions we are working in," he said during the session, which was televised. The political impasse is rooted in an ongoing power struggle, as towns, tribes, Islamists and liberals compete for a say in the post-Moammar Gaddafi order. Libyan officials said the absence of a functioning cabinet has hindered the government's ability to address some of the most pressing issues in postwar Libya, including the security void in which hundreds of militias operate with impunity. Members of the GNC, who were elected in July, said the stalemate has also slowed the government's investigation of an attack on the U.S. diplomatic mission in the eastern city of Benghazi last month that left Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and three other Americans dead. "It's a tragic situation that we're in," said Ahmed Langhi, a member of congress who represents Benghazi. None of the government bodies charged with investigating the attack is functioning well, he said. In the new government, all of these will work better. Libya's prime minister-elect was dismissed this month after failing for the second time to secure the GNC's approval for a new cabinet. Many GNC members expressed frustration as they left the assembly hall Tuesday night. "You don't want to be making decisions like this under that kind of pressure," said Mohamed Ali Abdallah, a representative from Misurata. The assembly will attempt to vote again Wednesday. Ayman al-Kekly contributed to this report.

Patrick Leahy sworn in as Senate Pro Tempore

SoCal widower charged in wife's '98 death ANAHEIM, Calif., Feb. 8 (UPI) -- California authorities charged a man with hiring two gang members to murder his new wife in 1998 for her insurance money. Nuzzio Begaren, 50, and two reputed gang members were charged Wednesday in the shooting death of Elizabeth Begaren, a state corrections officer who had married her husband less than a year earlier. The Orange County District Attorney's office said in a written statement that Begaren was being held without bail along with Jose Luis Sandoval, 36, and Rafael Garcia Miranda, 45. Begaren allegedly took out a $1 million insurance policy on his bride a few days after they were married on July 4, 1997. Sometime between then and January 1998, he allegedly made contact with a Los Angeles street gang to hire a hit man. The shooting took place on a highway ramp in Anaheim when the two gunmen allegedly ran the Begarens' car off the road in an allegedly staged robbery. The DA's office said the case went cold until its investigators and Anaheim detectives dug up new unspecified evidence that resulted in murder charges that could send all three defendants away for life if they are convicted.

9/11 Remembered: Vice President Biden's Remarks 9/11 Remembered: House Speaker Boehner's Remarks John Boehner gets emotional at the 9/11 commemoration on the steps of the U.S. Capitol. 9/11 Remembered: House Minority Leader Pelosi's Remarks Nancy Pelosi talks about 9/11 victims and their families on the steps of the U.S. Capitol. 9/11 Remembered: Senate Minority Leader McConnell's Remarks Mitch McConnell talks about those who served the country in the aftermath of the attacks. Trenton Mayor Arrested for Corruption in New Jersey FBI sting operation busted Mayor Tony Mack for allegedly accepting bribes. Vice President Joe Biden speaks to families at a memorial service in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. 9/11 Remembered: President Obama's Remarks President says no matter how many years pass, those lost will never be forgotten. 9/11 Remembered: Moment of Silence at the White House President Obama and first lady hold a memorial on the south lawn. Bob Woodward on New Book Detailing Debt Crisis The journalist interviewed John Boehner and President Obama for "The Price of Politics."

Jewish Group Condemns Egypt's President The Simon Wiesenthal Center, which monitors anti-Semitic incidents worldwide, has made a strong condemnation of Egypt's new President Mohammed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood, after he attended a sermon where the preacher called for the "destruction and dispersal of the Jews." A video emailed by the center showed Morsi at a mosque in the Mediterranean town of Marsa Matruh, where the congregation answers "Amen" to a cleric who recites a list of prayers in a traditional ritual. In one of the prayers, the cleric asked God to "destroy the Jews and their supporters and disperse them, rend them asunder." Morsi is then seen continuing to say Amen. The prayers were aired on state TV and caught on video by MEMRI, a pro-Israel media monitoring group. In a statement, the Wiesenthal Center strongly condemned the video, saying it is a sign of growing anti-Semitism in Egypt. "This is a slap in the face to America as Egypt's President Morsi pockets billions in U.S. aid and says Amen to principles that are repugnant to all Americans," the statement said, quoting Rabbi Marvin Hier, dean and founder of the Wiesenthal Center, and Rabbi Abraham Cooper, the Center's associate dean. The center called for President Barack Obama to condemn "the growing chorus of anti-Semitism in Egypt, led by the Muslim Brotherhood" and to cut contacts with the group. Morsi's office was not immediately available for comment. It is the second statement on Egypt this month by the center, which earlier condemned comments made by the Brotherhood's leader, Mohammed Badie, who said that Jews were spreading "corruption," had slaughtered Muslims, and desecrated holy sites. He also called on Muslims to fight Israel, saying Zionists only understood force. Prayers denouncing Israel or the Jews - two terms often used interchangeably in Arab countries - are not uncommon in hardline sermons, which were not a regular feature on state TV before the ouster of former President Hosni Mubarak. Since taking office, Morsi has refused to meet with Israeli officials, or even use the word Israel in public statements. But his government has continued security cooperation with the Jewish state and says Egypt will continue to abide by the peace treaty signed between the two countries in 1979. Last week, however, Morsi faced a chorus of angry critics when it emerged that the new Egyptian ambassador to Israel carried an endorsement letter signed in Morsi's name that referred to Israeli President Shimon Peres as "great friend." Many of Egypt's revolutionary groups and prominent opposition figures criticized Morsi for calling his Israeli counterpart a "friend." Some demanded an explanation for the discrepancy between his group's public stance against Israel and the diplomatic note. One former supporter of Morsi, prominent left-leaning TV personality Hamdy Kandil, subsequently quit a group supporting the president, citing the letter as one of the reasons. "Morsi must explain to us how his friendship was strengthened with his great friend," Kandil wrote on his Twitter account.

Canadian Politician Draws Fire for Claiming "Caucasian Advantage" A Canadian pastor running for Alberta's provincial legislative assembly took to the radio to do what all politicians do - boast about the qualities that make him the ideal candidate. But the personal trait this politician chose to highlight has done far more damage than good. "I think as a Caucasian, I have an advantage," Ron Leech told a Calgary radio station on Sunday. When different community leaders such as a Sikh leader or a Muslim leader speaks, they really speak to their own people in many ways. As a Caucasian, I believe that I can speak to all the community. Leech, a candidate for the conservative Wildrose Party, is competing in one of the city's most ethnically diverse electoral districts, Calgary-Greenway, running against incumbent Manmeet Bhullar of the Progressive Conservative Party. "These were incredibly stereotypical, disrespectful and unfortunate comments made by Mr. Leech," Bhullar told ABC News. Albertans look beyond skin color and religion, the incumbent added, pointing to himself as evidence. "You have a guy who looks like me running for a second term in Alberta," Bhullar said, with a light laugh. Bhullar, 32, was born and raised in Calgary and is of Sikh faith. Members of Bhullar's party, the Progressive Conservatives, have also come under fire recently for somewhat similar remarks. Muhammad Rasheed, a PC candidate running in another multiethnic electoral district in Calgary, told a college reporter that his opponents would not do well in the upcoming election because "people like to see someone like them in the legislative assembly." As for the Wild Rose candidate, Leech issued an official apology to the media earlier this week. His office declined ABC News" request for an interview, sending along a statement from the candidate instead. In it, Leech said his comments were "misconstrued." "What I intended to convey is that it is not a disadvantage for me, as a Caucasian, to serve in this multi-ethnic community," read the statement. I love and respect the richness of the diversity which exists in Calgary-Greenway. Beyond Leech, Bhullar also criticized Wildrose Party leader Danielle Smith for not condemning the comments. "I'm not concerned about them," Smith said Wednesday, "I think every candidate puts forward their best argument for why they should be the person to represent the community." "Albertans look for candidates" best arguments on health care, the education, the economy," said Bhullar. The best arguments are not what the color of one's skin may be, or what religious denomination one may belong to.

Royal Mail chief executive backs workplace quotas for women Ms Greene, a Canadian national, said the Royal Mail was far from an isolated example of a male-dominated workforce, but that she had been struck by the lack of women working there. This included in leadership roles and well as the general workforce, according to the Guardian newspaper. ."I am not personally against quotas at all," she said. Unless you have quotas and live by them, you won't see change in this company or the country. Greene said her enthusiasm for quotas stemmed from seeing what they achieved during her time working in the Canadian civil service, and said they had made "real progress" when using quotas. Earlier this month, it was reported Britain had launched a "diplomatic fightback" against a European Commission proposal to force companies to reserve 40 per cent of non-executive board seats for women. The legislation is expected to be introduced next month. The EU's majority voting process means Britain will not be able to veto it and will need allies to block its passage. European Commission research found that women comprised just 13.7pc of board positions in listed companies in the EU. In the UK the percentage of women on the boards of the Britain's 100 largest-listed companies had risen over the past year to a record 15.6pc.

Foreign diplomats throng to region in an effort to secure cease-fire JERUSALEM, Nov. 20 (UPI) -- Israel has yet to make a final decision concerning Egypt's proposal for a cease-fire with Hamas, Israeli officials said Tuesday. Nine members of Israel's security Cabinet continued discussions concerning a proposed truce between Israel and Hamas after talks late Monday night failed to produce decisions, Israel Radio said. Winding up his visit in Cairo, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, was to arrive in Israel Tuesday. Ban urged all sides to "halt fire immediately." "Further escalating the situation will put the entire region at risk," he said. Ban was to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu before traveling to Ramallah for talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle, also visiting Israel, met with Israeli President Shimon Peres and Netanyahu. He told the Israeli prime minister Israel has the right to defend itself against rocket attacks but expressed concern over the repercussions of a possible ground offensive, Israel Radio said. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was also expected to arrive in Jerusalem Tuesday to discuss proposals for a cease-fire and assist the sides in reaching an agreement, the radio network reported. In Gaza, Arab League Secretary-General Nabil al-Araby and 16 foreign ministers from the league's member states were to arrive in Gaza, joined by Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu. Israel demands Hamas halt rocket fire for a day or two to allow time to study proposals submitted by both sides, an unnamed Israeli official said. Hamas leader Khaled Meshal said Monday the military wing of his Palestinian Sunni Islamist group that governs the Gaza Strip would stop firing rockets only if Israel stops its airstrikes first. Despite discussions aimed at restoring the calm, dozens of rockets were fired at southern Israel in communities surrounding Gaza as well as in Beersheba, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Ofakim and Be'er Tuviya. An Israeli reservist deployed in the South was injured from shrapnel in a mortar attack and extensive damage was caused to property, the Israeli army said. In Gaza, Palestinians said four people were killed in airstrikes bringing the number of fatalities since Operation Pillar of Defense began seven days ago to more than 100. Three Israelis have been killed in rocket attacks. Israeli government sources said Israel is examining Hamas' request to ease the blockade on Gaza and wants guarantees from Hamas that it will refrain from attacks. The sources denied Hamas statements claiming Israel was first to demand a cease-fire. "Hamas is suffering hard hits in Gaza and is seeking a way to get down off the tree," the source said. Differences between the sides remain and some appear unsolvable, the Hebrew language daily Yedioth Ahronoth said. Netanyahu would first like to enforce a cease-fire 24 to 48 hours after a truce is reached and one or two weeks later stipulate the principles before a binding protocol is drawn up, the newspaper said. Israel demands a halt to all terrorist activity emanating from Gaza and wants Hamas to uphold the cease-fire and ensure militant factions in Gaza stop attacks on Israel. Israel would like an international body to monitor the situation and prevent weapons smuggling into the Gaza Strip. While Israel is willing to open border crossings to facilitate the transfer of goods from Gaza to the West Bank, the Israeli Security Agency opposes the exit of Gazans, the newspaper said. Israeli army spokesman Brig, Gen. Yoav Mordechai said preparations for a possible ground invasion in Gaza continue, until he is instructed otherwise. Speaking on Israel Radio, Mordecahi said the army has been instructed to continue hitting Hamas and intercepting rockets fired at Israel. "Military activities in the air and at sea continue," he said.

Detroit bailiff says judge's shirtless photo was not sexual harassment, she replied with 'LOL' DETROIT - The female court bailiff who received a text message containing a shirtless photo from a well-known Detroit judge told MyFoxDetroit Sunday night she did not consider the message to be a form of sexual harassment. In the interview the unidentified woman, who hid her face by turning her back to the camera and wore a baseball cap, said she enjoyed a professional relationship with 3rd Circuit Judge Wade McCree, who has become the subject of countless jokes since his topless photograph was made public by the woman's husband earlier this month. The woman told the station that the photo was sent to her by McCree after the pair had a conversation about their bodies and workout regimes. She said the photograph was "absolutely not" sexual harassment and that she believed she replied to the text message with "LOL," or laugh out loud, because she considered it a joke. She added that she considered McCree to be "very respectable and honorable." McCree issued a statement last week calling his actions a "very serious mistake." "Clearly, I made an extremely serious error in judgment," said McCree in a statement obtained Friday by MyFoxDetroit. "I ask for forgiveness from all those I have disappointed and hurt as a result of my very serious mistake," McCree went on. I also ask for your prayers as my family and I work through this issue on a personal and professional level. McCree, who specializes in sexual misconduct cases, was initially unrepentant when he was first approached by the station about the photo. "Hot dog, yep that's me," McCree told the station. The husband of the unidentified woman filed a complaint with Michigan's Judicial Tenure Commission after finding the photo on his wife's phone. The woman said she had been unable to convince her husband that nothing was going on between her and the judge. She added that she would tell the Judicial Tenure Commission that she considered the photograph harmless when she was interviewed by them about the incident. Click here for more on this story from MyFoxDetroit.

Lawyer: Ex-Ukraine PM won't seek pardon KIEV, Russia, Feb. 11 (UPI) -- Former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko does not see herself as a criminal and will not ask the president for a pardon, her lawyer says. Sergei Vlasenko said his client can appeal within the Ukrainian criminal justice system and also has the option of appealing ot the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, France, RIA Novosti reported. Tymoshenko was sentenced to seven years in prison last year for signing a 2009 agreement to buy gas from Russia that forced Ukraine to buy more than it needs at high prices. Tymoshenko's supporters and Western critics say the trial was a political one arranged by President Viktor Yanukovych. She will not address to Yanukovych. She did not commit a crime," Vlasenko told the Ukrainian weekly Zerkalo Nedeli. Some people suppose that Yanukovych will pardon Tymoshenko without her appeal. Will she accept it or not that is another question.

Justice Dept. launches criminal probe into JPMorgan's $2B trading loss The Justice Department has initiated a criminal probe into the $2 billion trading loss at JPMorgan Chase, according to a law enforcement source familiar with the situation. The inquiry is at a very early stage, said the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the matter is private. It is unclear what laws may have been violated. Dean Boyd, a Justice spokesperson, declined to comment. Richard Bove, an analyst at Rochdale Securities, talks about the outlook for JPMorgan Chase & Co. and the firm's $2 billion trading loss. U.S. Senator Bob Corker, a Republican from Tennessee, talks about his call for the Senate Banking Committee to hold a hearing on JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s $2 billion trading loss. The news came as Jamie Dimon, the embattled chief executive of JPMorgan Chase, faced questions from shareholders Tuesday about the company's recent $2 billion trading loss, its lobbying on new financial regulations and Dimon's post on the board of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Dimon opened the annual shareholder meeting in Tampa, which lasted for less than an hour, by speaking rapidly about the bank's surprising trading loss, calling the mistakes "self-inflicted." "This should never have happened," Dimon said. The company's multibillion-dollar misstep has rekindled questions about whether regulators are equipped to monitor banks making risky, complex trades. Earlier Tuesday, Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner said at an event that the JPMorgan loss strengthens the case for financial regulation. Geithner said that regulators are "going to take a very careful look at this incident." Shareholders at the Tampa meeting voted on various proposals, including one that would split the roles of chief executive and chairman of the board of JPMorgan. The proposal, often recommended by corporate governance experts, did not pass. During a question-and-answer period, a shareholder pressed Dimon on reports that the bank was lobbying to water down regulations, including a rule that would force banks to spin off trading operations that exist primarily to pad their profits. Dimon said JPMorgan supports "the intent" of the rule, named after former Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker. "We believe in strong, simple, good regulation," said Dimon, adding that it's "not simply a question of more or less" oversight. Dimon has also come under criticism for his post on the board of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, which regulates JPMorgan. Critics charge that his seat threatens the regulators" independence. Dimon said Tuesday that he is "not involved at all in the supervisory side" of the New York Fed. "It's not like a board," said Dimon. It's more like an advisory group in my opinion.

Embattled U.S. Postal Service gets help from rural America WASHINGTON (Reuters) - As the U.S. Postal Service limps along, bleeding billions of dollars every financial quarter, congressional leaders are looking to a group of outspoken rural lawmakers for help with a dramatic restructuring of the agency. Rural Americans say they regard their local post offices as the centers of their communities. With UPS and FedEx service limited or more expensive in some areas, many rely on the Postal Service to deliver medicines, while families need it to pay bills and small businesses and craftsmen use it to ship goods to customers. The lawmakers representing these communities have fought bitterly against plans to close more than 3,600 post offices, end Saturday delivery and scale back overnight delivery - moves that have been proposed to get the Postal Service on better financial footing. Now Republican backers of a controversial bill to overhaul the Postal Service by creating oversight groups to close facilities and cut costs are courting rural lawmakers in hopes of getting a proposal voted on in the U.S. House of Representatives this summer. The timing is tricky. Members of Congress want legislation to help the service avoid default on two payments totaling $11.1 billion to the federal government before the November 6 presidential and congressional elections, which could quiet talk that a taxpayer bailout of the USPS could be needed. But lawmakers in tough races, particularly in rural areas, do not want to have to defend voting for legislation that could lead to the closure of post offices in their districts. "One of the worst things a member of Congress has to endure is an onslaught of protest from people who don't want their postal facility to close," said Representative Dennis Ross, a Republican who co-sponsored the bill with Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa. "We've got to go address small groups of members and address any of their concerns," Ross said. The Postal Service, which was established in 1775, is now run as an independent government agency funded by sales of its stamps and other products, rather than taxpayer money. It has been struggling for years as consumers increasingly communicate online rather than through the mail and as its cash has been drained by massive payments for future retiree health benefits. The service lost $5.1 billion in fiscal year 2011 and $3.2 billion in the first three months of 2012. Rather than endorse legislation from the House or Senate, USPS officials want their own plan that would allow them to cut mail delivery from six days to five, make its own decisions on branch closures, end the retiree health payment, and pull employees out of federal healthcare programs and running their own plan. The Issa-Ross overhaul bill passed the House Oversight Committee in October but has stalled while the House dealt with other matters. A tentative schedule released by House Republicans last week would have the full House vote on it between the July 4 holiday and the August break. Lawmakers from both parties said if the sponsors want their bill to pass, they will have to work with rural members - many of whom feel that Issa and Ross did not consider their concerns before writing provisions to end Saturday delivery after six months and create an oversight group to close post offices. "Given the fact that there was no discussion to start with, and a draft bill got written without any interaction with any people whose districts would be severely impacted, it's about time, isn't it?" said Representative Jo Ann Emerson, a Republican who said her Missouri district's largest town has about 35,000 people. I hear concerns from pharmaceutical companies because they have mail-order drugs. Certainly the newspapers to our rural communities, all of those newspapers get mailed ... it really does change the way that we communicate with people," she said. Rural lawmakers already have won some battles. The Senate passed a bipartisan bill in April that would end Saturday mail after two years and reduce the payments for future retiree benefits. Its backers agreed to changes demanded by members from rural states, such as blocking closure of rural post offices that are more than 10 miles from another location. The Postal Service later decided to reduce hours at some post offices rather than close thousands of locations. A Reuters investigation this year found that about one-third of the offices expected to close were in communities with limited or no wired broadband access. Issa and Ross have begun negotiating changes to their bill, announcing recently an amendment capping rural post office closings that had been championed by Republican Representative Adrian Smith, who heads a group of rural members. An aide to Smith, whose district spans most of Nebraska, said he would work with Issa and Ross as part of an informal rural working group. "Most rural members are concerned about arbitrary cuts which won't yield savings," Smith said in a statement. My goal is to ensure reliable service standards are preserved and communities are allowed participation. Issa represents a California district that includes areas not far from San Diego. Ross, whose Florida district covers parts of the Tampa Bay area, some of which are rural, said he has worked with Democrats and will reach out to lawmakers who are concerned about the Postal Service eliminating union jobs. Democratic Representative Peter Welch of largely rural Vermont said the latest overtures marked a change from when many rural lawmakers and Democrats felt their opinions were ignored. "We've gone from basically no discussion and kind of a stonewall situation to active discussion and emerging concern on a bipartisan basis about preserving rural delivery," Welch said, adding that discussions had not led to specific amendments. We want to maintain rural delivery. Most of us want overnight delivery and six-day delivery, and we all support giving the latitude for innovation which is necessary with the Internet," he said. We're clearly finding some unity of interest, especially among rural members. Some House lawmakers say the bill is so flawed they do not expect to vote for it and are instead pushing for the Senate version. "Having ignored them up to now, the price they're paying is they don't have the votes to bring the bill to the floor," said Representative Gerry Connolly, a Democrat. That kind of approach is never going to get you bipartisan passage. Connolly, whose district includes populous parts of northern Virginia, said House Democrats have been meeting and have been in discussions with Senate lawmakers. Many still want to try to bring the Senate bill to a vote in the House. Issa and Ross have maintained that the Senate bill does not save enough money. In a statement after the bill passed, Issa called it a "wholly unacceptable" plan and said it would only give the Postal Service two more years rather than solve its problems. Senator Tom Carper, a Democrat from Delaware and one of the bill's authors, has a tally on his website that counts how much money the Postal Service has lost since the Senate bill passed. It was about $911 million on Friday morning. (r.reuters.com/gug58s) Editing by Bill Trott

As party chief in Yemen, Saleh threatens new political order By Hakim Almasmari, CNN March 20, 2012 -- Updated 1648 GMT (0048 HKT) Yemen's former president Ali Abdullah Saleh has threatened to withdraw all members of his party from the national government. Ali Abdullah Saleh still heads the ruling GPC party The new PM condemned the old regime's attacks against young people There have been tensions between Saleh and the new president Sanaa, Yemen (CNN) -- Ali Abdullah Saleh is no longer Yemen's president, but he is still wielding political clout as the head of the ruling party. Saleh has threatened to withdraw all members of his party from the national government and warned the prime minister he could face imprisonment. Protesters took to the streets in mass demonstrations over the past year, calling for Saleh's departure from office. He finally stepped down last month in exchange for immunity in part of a power transfer deal brokered by the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council. However, he remains president of the ruling General People's Congress party. Tension has escalated between Saleh and the new regime after new President Abdu Rabu Mansour Hadi said he was planning major reforms, said Yahya al-Arasi, Hadi's spokesman. Prime Minister Mohammed Saleh Basendowah recently attended a ceremony at Change Square in Sanaa and condemned the old regime's attacks against unarmed youth protesters. The square was the base of the protests that erupted last year against Saleh's rule. As a result, Saleh threatened to imprison Basendowah if he does not listen to his orders, al-Arasi said. Saleh informed the prime minister to take orders from him or else he will take him to prison. Saleh has not yet realized that he is not president and such actions will turn the country into chaos," al-Arasi said. Saleh must leave the country if the international community seeks to see a stable Yemen. Saleh threatened to withdraw all members of his party from the national government to protest the way Hadi's administration is dealing with the political crisis in the country, embroiled in discord and violence. "The former president is complicating matters and making it difficult for factions to go forward with reforms in Yemen," al-Arasi said. Hadi has taken precautionary measures, his spokesman said. He will announce the formation of a new unity government if Saleh orders his party officials to step down from their posts. Senior GPC officials told CNN that Saleh was angered at the president and prime minister's stances. Both men are trying to damage the image of the GPC leader. Saleh is still the president of the largest party in the country and must be treated with respect," said a senior GPC aide who asked to remain anonymous. But opposition parties condemned Saleh's verbal attacks on the prime minister. They called on Hadi to stand against Saleh and what they say are his efforts to ruin the country after he was forced out of power. Mohammed Qahtan, a senior opposition Joint Meeting Parties official, said it's sad that Saleh's GPC officials are remaining quiet about Saleh's maneuverings. We regret the fact that Saleh threatens the prime minister and his party leaders are quiet. The GPC have to choose between joining the government under President Hadi or standing with a person who lost all legitimacy to power in Yemen," Qahtan said. December 17, 2011 -- Updated 1346 GMT (2146 HKT) The desperate protest of a Tunisian fruit vendor sparked a revolution that has swept the Arab World throughout 2011. December 17, 2011 -- Updated 1353 GMT (2153 HKT) CNN looks at how the protest of a Tunisian fruit vendor sparked a revolution that's swept the Arab world throughout 2011 December 17, 2011 -- Updated 1423 GMT (2223 HKT) Mohamed Bouazizi's self-immolation one year ago was an act which symbolized the frustration and desperation of millions in the Arab world. November 21, 2011 -- Updated 2005 GMT (0405 HKT) Common factors have shaped the chaos in the Middle East and Europe, including high unemployment, slow growth, inexperienced leaders

Pie Face Offers Australia to Go January 20, 2012, 1:41 pm Do you celebrate Australia Day, that country's national holiday, coming up on Thursday? If not, this would be a good year to start. With a mess of Australian meat pies to go and some shiraz or Foster's, you're all set. And for those pies, there is a new source in New York: Pie Face, the first American outpost of a down-under takeout chain. The corner storefront, which will open on Monday, sells warm savory pies with exceptionally flaky crusts in a four-inch regular size or a three-bite mini. The well-seasoned fillings include steak, ground meat, chicken and curried vegetables, each decorated with a face whose mouth identifies the flavor (an S for steak, M for meat, X for Mexican and so forth). There are sweet pies and other desserts, including mini-cheesecakes. The company, founded in 2003 by Wayne Homschek, an expatriate American, and Betty Fong, has a French baker, François Cointrel, which explains the pastry. The owners are especially proud of their Australian-style coffee. Pie Face, 1691 Broadway (53rd Street), (212) 247-9065, www.piefacenyc.com, is open 24 hours, seven days a week. Regular savory pies are $5.95; minis are $2.95. Regular pies with mashed potatoes and gravy on top are $7.95. Sausage rolls are $2.95 to $3.95. Sweet pies, other desserts and pastries are $3.25 to $5.95. Pie Face menu

Coventry Telegraph editor Darren Parkin suspended

Telephone calls to Homs were not going through, but residents of nearby areas described a hellish night of shelling. The government denied the assault. Syrian TV said the reports were part of a "hysterical campaign of incitement by the armed groups" against Syria, meant to be exploited at the Security Council. It claimed that corpses shown in amateur videos posted online - bodies that activists said were victims of the assault - were purportedly of people kidnapped by "terrorist armed groups" who filmed them to portray them as victims of the alleged shelling. Homs is known to shelter a large number of army defectors known as the Free Syrian Army. The LCC called on residents of Homs and surrounding areas to support the people of Khaldiyeh and nearby Bayada by donating blood and housing families fleeing from the bombing. It called for sit-ins in front of all Syrian embassies and consulates in capitals across the world. In Kuwait, demonstrators stormed into the Syrian Embassy compound on Saturday, breaking windows and hoisting the flag of the opposition, witnesses there said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media. They said there were no serious injuries at the embassy, where protesters ripped down the Syrian flag. Police later cleared the area and blocked roads. There was also reports of protesters storming the Syrian Embassy in Cairo and starting a fire.

SPL Fanzone: The supporters have their say FANS from each of the twelve SPL clubs look back on the past week for their respective teams and give us their verdicts. it was rather strange on Saturday to hear our manager being interviewed about a credible league challenge at this stage in the season but, given how we played in spells against St Mirren, the question was not such a silly one. I've always enjoyed trips to Paisley, though a lot of these games have not been very successful for us, but this was a good way to bounce back from the Ross County game and a bit of revenge for the cup defeat. The freshening up of the team by Brown worked with the front three linking really well and with four goals as reward, including Reynolds" "Goal of the Day" (©Sky Sports) it was hard not to leave the ground in a buoyant mood and hotly anticipating our game against Celtic this week. Tales of woe and hard luck seem to be flowing from Fir Park after a run of only one win in our last eight outings. We've been on the wrong end of officials" decisions, failed to score in five of those eight games and haven't kept a clean sheet since the opening day of the SPL season. It is a reflection of Motherwell's success in recent years that a mid-table position can prompt alarm in a section of the support. Those with longer memories continue to be relieved that the spectre of a relegation scramble still remains a distant prospect. The pack is tightly bunched and, when our fortunes turn, a couple of wins will see us back in the top half. The players have given us plenty of good times in the last few years. Now it's our turn to repay them with some solid support. Maybe we're up with the pace of the SPL now. Two matches without defeat is not to be sniffed at, and hardly seemed possible, modest run though it is, two weeks ago. Saturday's 1-1 draw at Motherwell was an example of the sort of points we have to grind out, Nicky Riley finally getting a reward for all the hard work he has done since returning to the team, with the opener. That nuisance Higdon had to grab the equaliser on the stroke of half-time, after turning round the game at Dens in September with two late goals. And he was denied a late winner on Saturday by a tight (but correct) offside flag. Hibs, and on-fire Leigh Griffiths, are our visitors this week. There's a good chance he'll score against his old mates, but Dundee will be confident that they can get at least a draw. Oh, what a difference a few points can make. To use the old cliché, it really was a game of two halves at Easter Road on Sunday. A dreadful first 45 minutes by United was followed by one of the best halves I've seen from United this season. It's just a pity by the time they decided to get going, it was already too late. There is no doubt the change was down to the introduction of Gary Mackay-Steven and Rudi Skacel. Though manager Peter Houston continues to claim the two aren't quite match fit, the impact they made on Sunday has the fans demanding they start on Friday against Kilmarnock. While we are looking enviously up the table at Hibernian, there is no reason why we can't get up there among the action when we have our strongest team available. These are worrying times to be a Saints fan. We are struggling for form and Saturday's defeat to Aberdeen means we're now on our worst run of league results for five years. We had plenty of possession against the Dons but, aside from putting in a few decent crosses, we rarely tested Jamie Langfield. Aberdeen didn't have anywhere near as many attacks but looked far more threatening when they did make it upfield. In the last 10 minutes it looked as if they could score at will. Tynecastle is probably not the best place to go on the back of five straight defeats but the current situation there makes it an even more daunting task. Emotions will be running high and, with a full house expected, Hearts will be fired up. We desperately need something from this to stop our next game against Dundee becoming a relegation six-pointer. The diversity of fans" opinions is quite astonishing and I can only speak for myself when I say that, until we scored the opening goal in the second half, Ross County had stifled our play and neither team had played any football of note. The Heff's headed strike changed the whole outlook of the game and, from that point onwards, we stroked the ball around with more purpose and ended up with a well-deserved three points. The result potentially flattered us a wee bit but all three points were never in any doubt. Nice to see Liam Kelly's efforts rewarded with a call-up to the full Scotland squad. Our chairman better get him and Bell on new contracts soon or he'll lose this year's get out of jail free card for the AGM. Not that we would like to see either move on yet of course but, with no new revenue streams and old ones drying up, another public auction is inevitable. Barrie Richmond Another rollercoaster week with the statements from the club re the financial position. The response from all of the fans has been magnificent and gives us hope that the club can move forward in its current form. I would urge all Jambos to do what they can to help the club in its hour of need. On Saturday, we had a ridiculous kick-off time. A 12pm start at Inverness is not ideal for anyone, but an impressive support still made its way north. I thought we were poor for the first 30 minutes but, after that, improved and a draw was a deserved result. The penalty was the correct decision and it was good to see the captain come forward to take responsibility and despatch it like a striker. News has now emerged of a potential takeover of the club. Romanov should now step aside and let someone who has the best interests of the club take it forward. So much for Scottish football heading for Armageddon. Sunday's match against Dundee United at Easter Road was fantastic entertainment from start to finish. Both teams produced good performances, both sets of fans were in good voice and we even had Rudi Skacel reprising his role as chief pantomime villain to add to the fun. When the dust had settled, Hibernian were worthy winners. Some of Hibs" football was superb with Paul Cairney producing a man of the match performance. It is hard to believe that this is his first season in the SPL given how well he is playing. Pat Fenlon deserves enormous credit for making Easter Road an enjoyable place to be again. The turnaround from last season is remarkable. There is still a lot of football to be played this season, but optimism and smiling faces among the Hibs support are fast becoming the norm. John Robertson County suffered their heaviest defeat of the season on Saturday at the hands of Kilmarnock. The 3-0 scoreline suggests that Kilmarnock were far superior to County but, for the first hour of the match, County competed well. Then there was a 16-minute period in the second half where County suffered a mini collapse and Kilmarnock took full advantage. The frustrating thing was that two of the three goals were totally avoidable, although credit to Gary Harkins for his goal - a great strike. It was my first visit to Rugby Park and I was eager to sample the famous Killie pie, opting for a steak and gravy one. While it was decent, my unbiased opinion was that it was not quite to the quality we are used to at Victoria Park. Indeed, I wouldn't be surprised if Killie were to lose their long-standing crown of serving the best pie in the league. As expected, all we've heard since our excellent 1-1 draw at Celtic Park on Sunday is "oh, Celtic were tired," "Champions League hangover" and "not an easy one off the back of Barca." What tosh. Neil Lennon actually came out and said they only had half a day to prepare. Strangely, I count three-and-a-half. The fact is we restricted Celtic really well - Alan Mannus didn't have a save of note to make - and going forward we were far better than the instantly forgettable 5-0 league cup drubbing a couple of weeks ago. Hasselbaink's goal was well-worked and well-taken. We should also have had a penalty when Tade was cleaned out by Ambrose. How Iain Brines managed to award a corner is beyond me. We welcome Ross County to McDiarmid Park on Saturday - the kind of game we need to be taking points from if we're to maintain our current league position. Once again, Celtic's performance swings from haute cuisine in the Champions League to scotch pie stodge in the SPL. Okay, I know it's difficult to do Everest midweek and then Ben Nevis at the weekend; however, I might expect the team to be unprepared once, but it's now getting to the habit-forming stage where we drop points before and after every European game. The Celtic players maybe need to go back to their children's books and re-read the tale of the tortoise and the hare. Taking it easy and trying to catch up later ultimately ended in humiliating failure for the hare when he had overwhelming advantage. It will get to the stage where fans will take the same attitude to SPL as the players - ach it's just St Johnstone will I bother turning up? Our next tortoise who has made slow and steady progress is Aberdeen at Pittodrie. Never an easy game. After going through the highs of the past few weeks, it was inevitable that we'd hit a low point at some stage. Against Hearts it was a real game of two halves and we have to give John McGlynn credit for the changes he made at half-time. He replaced two more offensive midfielders with two more defensive ones and flooded the midfield. We couldn't then play through them the way that we did in the first-half and the long ball was inevitable. With the height of Andy Webster and Marius Zaliukas, Hearts were always going to cope better. After Owain Tudor-Jones" stunning strike, we should have put the game to bed by half-time but the missed chances proved to be our downfall. We threw the game away in the end by conceding a late soft penalty, but we've had our fair share of those in our favour so far this season.

Several dead in Nigeria church attacks Emmanuel Ayeni, Police Commissioner for Plateau state, of which Jos is the capital, told journalists 41 people were being treated for injuries in a local hospital. "The circumstances of the two killed by mobs is still unclear," he said. Boko Haram has been blamed for hundreds of killings in bomb or gun attacks over the past two years. Its leader, Abubakar Shekau, frequently justifies attacks on Christians as revenge for killings of Muslims in Nigeria's volatile "Middle Belt," where the largely Christian south and mostly Muslim north meet. It was too early to tell if the attacks were coordinated. Security sources say Boko Haram has many different factions that sometimes seem to operate independently. Moments after the suicide bombing in Jos, Christian youths set up roadblocks and had to be dispersed by police. Angry youths have gone wild, even attempting to prevent the security personnel from getting to the scene of the incident. They had to force their way out by shooting in the air to disperse them," said Davou. Boko Haram has linked up with other Islamist groups in the region including al-Qaida's north African wing and has become the biggest security threat in Nigeria, Africa's top oil producer. It usually targets security forces, although Christian worshippers are increasingly bearing the brunt. Last Sunday, a suicide car bomber killed at least 12 people at a church in the remote northern town of Yelwa.

Royal family leads tributes to fallen on Remembrance Sunday Also paying their respects were Mr Cameron, Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg, opposition leader Ed Miliband and Westminster Plaid Cymru group leader Elfyn Llywd, as well as high commissioners from Commonwealth countries and leaders of the Armed Forces. Thousands of veterans will also march through Whitehall to pay their respects at the Cenotaph. Veterans from Royal Hospital Chelsea arrive at Horse Guards Parade, central London Last night Rod Stewart performed for the Queen at the Festival of Remembrance in honour of Britain's war dead. The Queen was joined by the Duke of Edinburgh for the televised event at the Royal Albert Hall, which was watched by thousands - including the Prime Minister and his wife Samantha, and Labour leader Ed Miliband and his wife Justine. Sophie, Countess of Wessex and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge during the service Stewart appeared alongside Alexandra Burke, Russell Watson and the Military Wives choir, who performed with former X Factor contestant Jonjo Kerr, who is a private with the 3rd Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment. Olympians Heather Stanning, Pete Reed and Paralympian Derek Derenalagi also appeared. As the choir and Kerr sang, images from soldiers' personal family albums were beamed on to two big screens. The Royal British Legion staged the festival, which included the traditional two-minute silence as poppy petals fall from the roof of the Royal Albert Hall, each representing a life lost in war. The event, which had an audience of veterans and their families, was intended as a moving tribute to the country's fallen.

Egypt army responsible for killings, claim Hosni Mubarak's lawyers Mr Deeb said the killing and wounding of protesters began after 4:00pm on that day, which places the responsibility of the bloodshed squarely on the shoulders of the armed forces. Therefore, it does not make sense that police ordered the killing of protesters. The police did not have the jurisdiction or authority to issue any orders since the authority had been transferred to the head of the army. Whatever the authority, it was police and other elements of the interior ministry who caused the deaths of the more than 800 people who died and the injuries of the others, activists and lawyers for families of the victims say. Mubarak took the decision based on Law 183 of 1952, which stipulates that once the armed forces are in control of security, police are under their jurisdiction and the head of the army is in charge. Mr Deeb said Mubarak took that decision after he was informed by Adly that police in Cairo's Tahrir Square - the cradle of the uprising - were being attacked by protesters. Adly phoned Mubarak and told him "help me, I can't see a solution," Mr Deeb said. "Thus, any killing or injury took place either on orders from the military commander ... or was the result of an individual decision taken by officers and soldiers," added Mr Deeb. But the lawyer went on to argue that army and officers "have clearly said, and there is no question about it, that they (army) did not open fire and I believe the army because it doesn't lie. "The army's duty is to protect people and property ... so the question is who killed and caused the injuries" of protesters? This is the main point of the case. Mr Deeb went on to cite an article published in February by government newspaper Al-Akhbar that there was "a foreign conspiracy to strike Egypt." He also caused an uproar in court when he described protesters who forced Mubarak to quit as "troublemakers," triggering the ire of a lawyer representing families of the victims. "We are revolutionaries, not troublemakers," the lawyer shouted in an address to the president of the court who threatened to throw him out if he interrupted the defence again. The defence is due to continue its case on Thursday.

BoE official calls time on free banking Free banking is a "dangerous myth" that could be fuelling product mis-selling, a top official at the Bank of England will warn on Thursday. Andrew Bailey, the BoE's executive director, will say the free accounts offered to British customers who are not overdrawn make it hard to see the true cost of products and services. Mr Bailey, seen as a strong contender to head the new Prudential Regulation Authority, will say it may be necessary to push banks into charging. The PRA will supervise lenders and insurers from March next year. "I worry also that this unclear picture may have encouraged the mis-selling of products that is now causing so much trouble," he will tell the Westminster Business Forum. In short, I think that the reform of retail banking in this country cannot move ahead unless we tackle the issue of free in-credit banking, and have a much better sense of what we are paying for and how we are paying. Free banking became the norm in Britain in the 1980s and there are 120m free current and savings accounts in the country's high street banks. It is less common in other countries. British banks including Barclays, Lloyds, Royal Bank of Scotland and HSBC have recently had to pay out about £9bn in compensation for mis-selling payment protection insurance (PPI). The number of consumers complaining to the Financial Ombudsman Service has hit record levels after a rise of 28 per cent in the year 2011/12 from the year before. Mr Bailey, who has called for fees for basic banking services before, went further by saying that it may be necessary to intervene to make banks charge. He will not say how this would be done. Banks have been reluctant to be the first to start charging, for fear of driving away customers, but co-ordinating a move could be seen as collusion, he will say. He will say: "So, it may require intervention in the public interest, not least because it is a way to encourage greater competition." Elsewhere in his speech, Mr Bailey will say that UK banks would be ready for Greece leaving the euro but that it would not prevent all damage. "Whatever happens in the euro area, there is a cost of adjustment, and that, too, will act as a drag on the returns earned by banks, and in the worst scenario presents a clear threat to financial stability," he will say.

Fact check: Joe Biden, Paul Ryan clash over Libya By Ken Dilanian October 11, 2012, 6:49 p.m. GOP vice presidential nominee Paul D. Ryan said it took President Obama two weeks to label the Sept. 11 attack on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Libya that killed the U.S. ambassador and three other Americans as "a terrorist attack." In fact, Obama labeled the incident an "act of terror" during his remarks on Sept. 12 in the White House Rose Garden. "No acts of terror will ever shake the resolve of this great nation, alter that character, or eclipse the light of the values that we stand for," Obama said. Today we mourn four more Americans who represent the very best of the United States of America. We will not waver in our commitment to see that justice is done for this terrible act. And make no mistake, justice will be done. Some conservative commentators have argued that Obama's formulation wasn't specific enough. Obama administration officials have acknowledged that they were wrong to characterize the lethal attack as a spontaneous outburst of mob violence after a protest of an anti-Islam film, but say they relied on U.S. intelligence assessments for that information. They now say that dozens of heavily armed extremists - some apparently with links to Al Qaeda - carried out the assault, and that it had no connection to the film that had sparked protests in other parts of the Muslim world.

Best savings rates fall below 4pc She pointed out that any savers with five-year bonds maturing now would have taken them out in 2007, when the best rate on offer was 6.56pc. If these savers reinvest their money at 3.98pc, their returns will fall by almost 40pc. Ms Springall added: "The falls have been particularly consistent over the last 12 months. These changes are likely to affect consumers' attitudes to savings, as customers may be more persuaded to lock their money away over a shorter term or opt for an easy-access account, which means they can move their money faster and more easily. It has never been more important for savers to keep on top of the ever changing market to make the most of their deposits. ING Direct has been one of the most enthusiastic rate cutters, trimming them twice in July, twice in August and four times in September. Meanwhile, Sainsbury's Bank withdrew its Bonus Web Saver account (paying 2.9pc) on Tuesday last week and its leading two-year bond (3.25pc) on Thursday, despite the fact that this account had been launched only the previous week. The supermarket bank recently pulled the plug on a whole range of best-buy fixed-rate accounts just a day after launch.

Who are the Marines in controversial video?

Charlie spot jumpsuit - Ingenue - Telegraph Anabel Campbell Stacking bangle Ingenue Charlie spot jumpsuit£118.00 Buy Love Share 5 loves As a latecomer to the world of jumpsuits, this pretty spot-print number is just the ticket to tackle this ever-changing weather... I SPIED by: Olivia Bergin Published: 14 May 2012

Pirate bay co-founder escorted back to Sweden, jail awaits STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - The co-founder of Pirate Bay, one of the world's biggest free file-sharing websites, arrived in Sweden under escort on Tuesday to begin a one-year jail sentence for breaching copyright laws. Gottfrid Svartholm Warg, a 27-year-old Swede, fled to the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh about four years ago after being convicted of Internet piracy in Sweden. He was arrested at Stockholm's request in late August and extradited on Monday. The 2009 trial of Svartholm Warg and three other Pirate Bay backers marked a victory for Hollywood studios that had taken Sweden to task for failing to stop file sharers. The four men denied any wrongdoing. Svartholm Warg appealed that verdict but failed to attend the hearing, citing a medical condition. He subsequently surfaced in Cambodia. Launched in 2003 and still running despite the legal action against its founders, Pirate Bay provides links to music and movie files stored on other users' computers. Swedish subsidiaries of prominent music and Hollywood film companies took the company to court for damages. Media firms have also taken steps to have it blocked in other countries, including the Netherlands and Finland. After landing at Stockholm's Arlanda airport on Tuesday, Svartholm Warg was taken into custody at the city's central police station, Bertil Olofsson, who heads the international section of Sweden's crime police, said. Pirate Bay says that as it does not hold copyrighted material on its servers and that no exchange of files actually takes place there it cannot be held responsible for what material is being exchanged. The organization that now runs the website is registered in the Seychelles. Reporting by Niklas Pollard; additional reporting by Anna Ringstrom in Stockholm and Pral Chan Thul in Phnom Penh; Editing by John Stonestreet

Priest stripped of duties for celebrating Mass with woman priest Bob Graf Jesuit priest Bill Brennan, 92, was stripped of his priestly duties after he presided over a Eucharistic liturgy with a woman priest last month in Georgia. A Milwaukee-area Catholic priest was stripped of his priestly duties after he presided over a Mass with a woman priest last month in Georgia. On Nov. 17, the Rev. Bill Brennan, a 92-year-old Jesuit, performed a liturgy in Columbus, Ga., at which Janice Sevre-Duszynska, an ordained member of Roman Catholic advocacy group Womenpriests, which is not sanctioned by the Vatican, was a participant. The Archdiocese of Milwaukee and his religious order, the Society of Jesus, ordered Brennan not to perform any priestly duties in public or present himself as a priest publicly. "I was really angry when I found out ... that his faculties were suspended, too, because for God's sake, he's 92 years old," the Rev. Jerry Zawada, a friend of Brennan's who has also led liturgies with Sevre-Duszynska and was suspended for it, told NBC News. But he's so faithful to what needs to happen. "He's willing to take risks at that level," Zawada, a 75-year-old Franciscan, added. The Catholic Church prohibits women's ordination, saying it has no authority to ordain women because Jesus chose only men as his apostles. The church's Canon Law 1024 says only baptized men may receive holy orders. Pope urges 'obedience' Pope John Paul II issued a letter in 1994 saying that the church "has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women," and in 2010 the church included the "attempted ordination of women" among the list of grave crimes against its law, under the same category as the sexual abuse of minors. Grave crimes are punishable by defrocking or excommunication. Earlier this year, Pope Benedict XVI denounced the priests supporting women's ordination, saying their desire to change the church was a "desperate push" driven by their "own preferences and ideas." Instead, the pope urged for the "radicalism of obedience." About 59 percent of American Catholics are in favor of women's ordination, according to a 2010 poll by The New York Times and CBS, but the Vatican sees the initiative as having the potential to cause a rift in the church. Brennan is only the most recent priest to be penalized for his support of women's ordination. Courtesy of Janice Sevre-Duszynska Jesuit priest Bill Brennan and Janice Sevre-Duszynska, an ordained member of Roman Catholic Womenpriests, co-preside over a liturgy in Georgia on Nov. 17, 2012. Last month, the Rev. Ray Bourgeois, an American of the Maryknoll religious order, was dismissed by the Vatican's doctrinal watchdog, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, for his support of women's ordination. Last week, the Vatican also stripped an Austrian priest of his right to use the title monsignor for advocating in favor of women priests and married priests. 'Good stubborn' Sevre-Duszynska told NBC News she wasn't surprised by the actions taken to penalize Brennan, whom she describes as being "good stubborn" and "full of such fire." "It was a hope in the back of my heart that these men would walk in solidarity with Bill, stand up for justice and ... make it a new world, make it a new day in our church, as Bill has done," she said. It's time for the rest of the male priests to find the courage to listen to the workings of the Holy Spirit in their heart and conscience. The Rev. Bill Brennan attends a protest in Milwaukee in 2008. Sevre-Duszynska first met Brennan two years ago at a civil disobedience action organized by SOA Watch, an organization that seeks to close a U.S. Army training school at Fort Benning, Ga. The school used to be known as the School of the Americas, and SOA Watch claims it was involved in human rights abuses in Latin America. For many years, Brennan worked as a missionary in the Central American country of Belize when it was a British colony known as British Honduras. Brennan, who uses a wheelchair when his legs become tired, and Sevre-Duszynska were among the 29 people arrested at the protest. "He's very fragile, but he's very strong in his heart," Sevre-Duszynska said of Brennan. He's living in the heart of God, and he has lots of strength inside. Not showing off 'for the ladies' Brennan's "lifetime of service to the poor" and his work with immigrants and those marginalized by society will continue to be honored by the Jesuits, Jeremy Langford, a spokesman for the Jesuits' Chicago-Detroit province, told NBC News. While Brennan's diocesan faculties have been withdrawn, he remains a Jesuit, Langford said, adding that the Society of Jesus has no intention of taking further actions against Brennan. The Jesuits are mostly known for their missionary work and support of human rights, social justice and education. The Society of Jesus operates many colleges and universities around the world. Brennan, who lives with other retired Jesuits in the Milwaukee area, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that he understood the risks when he decided to perform a liturgy alongside a woman priest. "Sometimes in our lives we have to trust our conscience and bring about the consequences," he told the newspaper. I wasn't trying to show off for the ladies. According to Sevre-Duszynska, Brennan compared his support of women's ordination to his support for women's suffrage, remembering that when he was born in 1920, his mother was still not allowed to vote. Bob Graf, who was a Jesuit and has known Brennan for almost 20 years, spoke to Brennan this week and said he was taking the decision in stride. "He's very calm, he's very peaceful, which is surprising, but he is," Graf told NBC News. "He's a wise old man," he said, adding that Brennan will continue his life's work. He just can't wear his robe and collar.

HMO application hit by row over waste pipe leak THE leader of Midlothian Council and her MSP husband are locked in a row with neighbours who claim the couple have shown "incompetence" as landlords. Dr Lisa Beattie and her husband, Colin Beattie, have applied to renew the HMO rental licence on a student flat they own in Marchmont. However, a neighbour in the block has objected to the move over allegations the Beatties failed to fix a waste pipe leak, which left gallons of waste water pouring into a communal garden for months at a time on two separate occasions. Stephen Armstrong, who owns a neighbouring flat and says he represents three other residents, also claimed the couple embarked on "petty vendettas" against both contractors and other residents - which the Beatties have strongly denied. Another neighbour, Jane Ramsay, previously wrote to council officials complaining that she was unable to sit in her garden due to effluence pouring from the building, although she is not objecting to the application. Mr Armstrong also went on to claim the Beatties failed to contribute to communal stair cleaning for three years, which the Beatties insisted was because excessive use of water was eroding the stone steps. In response, Mr Beattie, 60, the SNP MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, said the kitchen drain first burst in 2009 and took three months to fix because of the severe winter - but insisted he and his wife had not been notified of any problems since. In a letter to the council, Dr Beattie insisted some of the claims were unfair and inaccurate, and went on to describe others as a "fabrication." Council officials would normally take a decision on HMO licences but the objection means it is being brought before councillors tomorrow. Dr Beattie had asked for the details of her application to be kept under wraps - because she is in a "sensitive occupation" - but they were published due to the objection. Mr Armstrong wrote to the council's legal department: "In December 2009 the kitchen drain failed, with effluent repeatedly pouring into the rear garden. It took the management over three months to effect this simple repair. Mr Armstrong went on to claim a second problem had run on for eight months - which the Beatties refuted. He listed a series of complaints against the couple, including that they were late to pay for communal painting. He wrote: "In 2009 the stair proprietors completed a repainting of the stair well. It has to be noted that this flat was the last, by a significant period to pay their share; the only flat to complain about the agreed colour scheme after the event and took it upon themselves to quibble with the contractor directly. He went on to claim the Beatties had been "publicly defamatory" about the contractor although he included no evidence. He claimed the "management has repeatedly imagined faults with other properties and the common fabric affecting his property" and said they had ignored professional advice for "no good reason and incompetence." Dr Beattie, who was appointed the first female leader of Midlothian Council last month, rents the property to four students. She was drawn into a terse exchange of letters with the council's legal department over the complaints. Responding to Jane Ramsay's letter, she wrote: "I regret any inconvenience to Miss Ramsay in relation to this repair although it seems to me that her inability to sit out in her garden during one of the coldest winters on record may not have been directly connected with the intermittent leak." Mr Beattie said the matter had been resolved and some of the claims by Mr Armstrong were "extraordinary." He said: "We were concerned when [Mr Armstrong] said he was acting for three other owners but when Lisa got in touch with the HMO department they said he was the only one complaining." He added: "We've been working with the other owners on major repair works to the stonework on the building, and it's actually Mr Armstrong who isn't taking part on this occasion." Mr Armstrong could not be contacted for comment.

Canadian wholesale nudges up in March OTTAWA, May 17 (UPI) -- Motor vehicle and parts sales led to a 0.4 percent gain in Canadian wholesale activity in March for a total of $48.7 billion, Statistics Canada said Thursday. "Sales in the motor vehicle and parts sub-sector rose 2.4 percent to $8 billion in March," the agency said. Of the seven sub-sectors, wholesale trade was up in three, which accounted for nearly half of total sales. "In the last 12 months, Canadian wholesalers posted nine monthly increases, which translated into a growth rate of 6 percent relative to March 2011," StatsCan said. Among the decliners, the largest was in sales in the machinery, equipment and supplies sub-sector, which were down 1.4 percent, the report said. Regionally, five of the 10 provinces showed wholesaling increases, led by Quebec and Ontario.

Defectors use balloons to send gifts to North Korea North Korean defectors living in South Korea have sent food and gifts to their compatriots using balloons, ahead of their Lunar New Year. 10 balloons were floated over the border, stocked with Chocolate, CDs and leaflets. The leaflets contain phrases such as "down with the dictatorship!" While the CDs contain video claiming to show people's lives in South Korea. It has been reported by a United Nation Special Rapporteur that the number of people fleeing the country has increased since the death of former leader Kim Jong-il. One of those sending the balloons said: North Korean civilians must now be preparing for Lunar New Year holidays, but most of them must be grieving due to lack of food. North Korea's dysfunctional food-distribution system, along with sanctions imposed over the country's nuclear and missiles programmes, and the raising price of global commodities, have all led to an apparent hunger crisis in the North. More about: Kim Jong-un, New Year celebrations, North Korea, Politics

Syria: Houla and its consequences EYE-WITNESS testimony leaves little doubt about what happened on May 25th in Houla, a small farming town on Syria's western plain. Two hours after the noon prayer, tank and mortar fire from nearby Syrian army positions began to rain down on Houla and an outlying hamlet called Taldou, perhaps in response to an attack by rebel forces on an army checkpoint. Just before sunset armed men, some in combat uniform and others in civilian clothes, swarmed in from neighbouring villages. Moving from house to house in Taldou, they herded families into single rooms and systematically gunned and hacked them down, sparing not a soul. Another wave of invaders arrived later at night, some in armoured vehicles, and continued the slaughter. UN observers who surveyed the scene the next day counted 108 dead, including 49 children. The massacre was one of the bloodiest yet in a civil war that has cost an estimated 12,000 lives since unrest started in March last year. But similar assaults, on a smaller scale and often carried out by the shabiha, as the government's paramilitary thugs are known, have been taking place across swathes of the stricken country. Shelling has also continued unabated around the major cities of Hama and Homs, north of Damascus. On May 29th near Deir ez-Zor, a town 450km (280 miles) to the north-east, UN observers found the bodies of 13 men whose hands had been tied before they were shot in the head. Houla is different, because few tragedies have been as well documented and few have prompted such global revulsion. Despite the Syrian government's blanket denials of involvement, 13 countries, mostly in Europe but including the United States, Japan and Turkey, expelled Syria's diplomats. Even Russia, hitherto protective of an old client state, joined other Security Council members in denouncing the attack, though its diplomats shied away from directly assigning blame. Kofi Annan, the joint UN-Arab League envoy and sponsor of a six-point peace plan, flew to Damascus to plead with President Bashar Assad to uphold the ceasefire ostensibly in place since April. Despite mounting opprobrium and stiff international sanctions, Syria is trapped in a grisly stalemate. Loyalist forces wield far greater firepower than the ragtag rebel bands of the Free Syrian Army. Mr Assad's exiled foes remain divided, unable to channel a significant flow of arms or aid into the country. Syria's economy is at a standstill, paralysed by fuel shortages and the splintering of the country into a patchwork of semi-autonomous fiefs, where government control is often exercised only sporadically, at gunpoint. But Mr Assad's regime can still pay its men and enjoys backing from allies such as Iran. Even so, close observers detect signs that Mr Assad's hold is fraying at an accelerating pace. The regime can no longer point to the relative calm that prevailed until recently in the centre of Syria's two biggest cities, Damascus and Aleppo. Bombings of security installations and night-time gun battles have become frequent in those places. Demonstrations have grown in size, frequency and boldness. Assassinations of security officers are going unreported. In response to the Houla massacre, shopkeepers across much of central Damascus put up their shutters. "The symbolic power of this should not be underestimated," says an influential analyst recently in the capital. "The regime has always regarded its alliance with the Damascene merchant class as vital," he says. That is now gone. Moreover, two tactics adopted by the regime, which is dominated by members of the minority Alawite sect, appear to be failing. One has been to stoke sectarian tension by provoking fears among Syria's many minorities of a backlash by extremists within the Sunni majority. Yet, despite occasional revenge attacks on Alawites and the spread of radical jihadism among some Sunnis, Syrian society has so far remained fairly cohesive. Alawite settlements that could be vulnerable have not been attacked, and the opposition has tried to maintain the rhetoric of inclusion. The other tactic, ramping up violence to provoke an armed response that would undermine the opposition's claim to be peaceful, has similarly reached the limit of its effectiveness. The rebels" resort to arms did at first alienate many Syrians who wanted the uprising to stay wholly peaceful, but the violence has reached a scale where the state can impose its will only by being even more brutal. "Events like Houla are not signs of strength but of weakness," says the analyst. It just makes clear that the regime has run out of other options.

Senate votes to end public money for party conventions The Senate has voted overwhelmingly to end public financing for political party conventions. Republican Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma, who sponsored the proposal with Democratic Sen. Mark Udall of Colorado, says taxpayers should not have to contribute, as they are doing for the two conventions this year, when the nominee has been decided. Coburn says the public this year is spending more than $36 million for the conventions. The measure, if it becomes law, would not take effect until future political conventions. The idea would need the House's OK. The Senate vote was 95-4 for the proposal, which was presented as an amendment to a farm bill.

Sinn Fein and Alliance politicians sent bullets in the post

Nick Clegg: we'll push more state pupils into university Mr Clegg's comments, in a speech to an education charity once favoured by Tony Blair, will revive Coalition tensions over "social engineering" in the admissions system. Conservative MPs said the plan to influence university admissions was "absolute nonsense" and "false." Under the social mobility strategy, officials will measure progress at narrowing the "gaps" in the health, education, and employment chances of people from the poorest homes and their peers every year. For the first time, ministers will stipulate that more state-educated teenagers must achieve at least two A grades and a B in the most academic A-level subjects, such as mathematics, history, and science. A higher proportion of state sixth-formers should then be admitted to "the most selective" academic universities, such as Oxford, Cambridge and the research-intensive Russell Group. In a speech to the Sutton Trust conference in London, Mr Clegg will deny that his plan represents the "dumbing down" of standards. The idea of carefully taking into account the impact of background in assessing university applications has been painted by some as a dangerous piece of revolutionary socialism. But far from dumbing down, it's about increasing opportunity to achieve excellence. He will claim there is compelling evidence that students" social and school backgrounds can influence the degree grades they achieve at university. Mr Clegg, who was privately educated, will not apologise for his own privileged upbringing. "I was lucky," he will say. But it should not be a question of luck. Graham Stuart, the Conservative chairman of the Commons education committee, said: "There is no short cut to raising standards in schools. Anything which suggests that there is a quick fix, or that leaning on universities will somehow deliver real improvement, is false.

Gas use falls by a fifth, British Gas says The UK's largest energy company said that average gas consumption in homes fell by 21 per cent last year, while average electricity consumption fell by 4 per cent. Despite households using less energy, average bills decreased by just 4 per cent over the year to £1,024, the company said. The small decrease reflects the steep rises in energy prices that consumers have been hit with over last year. The break-down in figures came as British Gas reported profit for 2011 of £522 million. Although this was 30 per cent less than the company made the previous year, consumer groups said that energy bills are still too high. Households should be "gobsmacked" by the scale of the profits, Mark Todd, a director at Energyhelpline.com said. Meanwhile Ann Robinson, director of consumer policy at Uswitch.com, said that customers had used less gas because of its soaring cost, rather than because of hot weather, as British Gas argued. British Gas said that over the course of 2011 it lost 97,000 residential accounts and 45,000 business accounts. Observers said that people had left the company in protest at high bills. British Gas's parent company Centrica reported profit for the year of £2.42 billion, around level on last year.

Comment: Battle must be won to make high streets work HIGH street stores are closing at the rate of one a day, according to research from PWC and the Scottish Government has ordered an inquiry led by the architect Malcolm Fraser. It's probable that Holyrood's alarm is driven not so much by concern over ugly gap sites and struggling retailers but by the loss of income when there are fewer firms paying business rates. While the consumer is blamed for refusing to spend, the issue of closures is more complex and does not necessarily mean retailers are struggling. Consumers are spending more online than in the shops so it is inevitable that some will close. As David McCorquodale, head of retail at KPMG, says, a retailer once needed up to 250 shops to give it saturation UK coverage. Now, with an effective online operation, it would require around 60. Companies adjusting to the new shopping trends are downsizing accordingly, but it does not mean they are going out of business. However, someone or something needs to replace the income lost from those 200 fewer stores and shoppers need to be encouraged to rekindle their fondness for browsing in real shops rather than virtual ones. That will require more investment in the quality of our town centres, ensuring they are real destinations of choice. It means making more effort on the little things that matter: better car parking, less litter, cleaning and fixing filthy and broken streets and pavements, improving the overall look of shops and streetscapes and helping pedestrians and motorists to mix without confrontation. Fraser will get an opportunity to find new ways of breathing life into our town centres, but one thing is clear: make them welcoming places to visit and the shoppers will come. On merger, no news is good news says City THERE was no word yesterday on the progress of merger talks between Britvic and AG Barr, though the market assumes they are heading in the direction of a tie-up. On the evidence of Britvic's weak fourth quarter and 52-week trading update there is not much to encourage its shareholders to hold out against a merger with the maker of Irn-Bru. While the recall of Fruit Shoot didn't help the figures, there are bigger concerns over long-term performance which cannot be sustained on price rises and a squeeze on consumer spending in some categories and regions. Analysts believe that without a merger there will be no dividend, although this would allow Britvic to reduce its debt. The two managements have until 31 October to reach agreement amid speculation that some expansion plans will be scrapped in order to secure benefits from centralising production, particularly in England. Every little helps for Higgins and his bank AFTER being delayed more than once. Tesco Bank finally launched its mortgage product in August and chief executive Benny Higgins is determined to make up for lost time. He has accessed the Funding For Lending (FFL) scheme which the Treasury and Bank of England hope will get more finance into the economy. He will use it lower the rates on a range of products, notably mortgages and could prompt a new round of cut-price offers. It is also a transparent way of showing that the FFL is not simply being used to improve banks" margins.

Ukraine - Ex-Premier Ends Hunger Strike - NYTimes.com Yulia V. Tymoshenko, the former prime minister, ended a nearly three-week hunger strike on Wednesday as she was moved from jail to a hospital for treatment of a severe back condition under the supervision of a German doctor. The news was likely to allay at least some Western concerns over Ms. Tymoshenko's health and handling in prison. Ukraine had to cancel a regional cooperation summit meeting this weekend after most heads of Central and Eastern European states canceled their visits because of the Tymoshenko case. Ms. Tymoshenko, 51, the country's top opposition leader, had been on a hunger strike since April 27 to protest what she said was abuse, and Ukraine's government has come under intense Western pressure to provide her with suitable medical care. Ms. Tymoshenko had been sentenced in October to seven years in prison on charges of abuse of office while conducting natural gas import negotiations with Russia in 2009. She has denied the charges, and the West has condemned the verdict as politically motivated.

If Marissa Mayer can 'have it all,' can you? After being with her son for the first 12 weeks of his life, Jennifer Compton wishes she could spend more time with him. Yahoo CEO's plan to work through maternity leave stokes debate over maternity leave Some say Mayer's experience reflects demands of corporate America on men and women Author says Mayer proves that women who have it all are "superhuman, rich, in charge" iReporters say flexible scheduling, working from home improve work-life balance (CNN) -- Depending who you ask, Yahoo's decision to hire Marissa Mayer several months into her pregnancy is either a boon to all working mothers or a misstep for the ailing tech company. Talk about lousy timing. She'll be taking maternity leave when she needs to be at work. Yahoo has enough problems without a part-time CEO," one commenter said in response to the Fortune article announcing news of her pregnancy. "It is quite possible that she can do both effectively, but it is not un-'evolved' to express concern," another said, referring to Mayer's comment that Yahoo's directors demonstrated "evolved thinking" in choosing to hire a pregnant chief executive. As a Yahoo shareholder, I am very concerned and have every reason to be. It's possible that Mayer anticipated these reactions when she revealed her plan to work during her maternity leave so she could "stay in the rhythm of things." Her announcement reignited an already hot debate over whether women can "have it all" and how family leave policies make it hard to juggle a successful career and family. But Mayer isn't your typical working mother, and some believe her experience reflects the extreme demands that corporate America places on men and women alike and how that translates to national policy. Besides, the demands of motherhood only grow with time, author and activist Gloria Feldt said. That's when benefits such as flexible scheduling, reduced work weeks and the option to work from home really make a difference in helping women get as close as possible to having it all. iReport: How do you balance career and family? "Life only gets busier as your children grow, and that's where flexible benefits comes in," she said. We have a long way to go as a country when it comes to making those benefits accessible to everyone. iReporter Jennifer Compton was away from work for 12 weeks after the birth of her son, Jack. But that hasn't made returning any easier, she said. Having flexible hours and remote cameras in day cares would help ease the transition, she said. "Before, I got to spend all day with my son, and now it's only two or three hours in the evening," the human resources manager said in an iReport submitted to CNN.com. I want more time with my little guy, but I have to take what I can get. ... It's hard to balance everything. Incoming Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer says she plans to work during her maternity leave. Superhuman, rich or self-employed That Mayer's pregnancy is a matter of concern to some even though it wasn't for Yahoo's board (as Mayer tells it) reflects a double-standard, Feldt said. It's very common for companies to negotiate time off upfront with a new hire. If she were a man, no one would judge her for taking time off, regardless of the reason," said Feldt, author of "No Excuses: 9 Ways Women Can Change How We Think About Power." Nearly 61% of women with children younger than 3 and 56% of women with children younger than 1 were in the labor force in 2011, according to Catalyst, an organization that tracks women's advancement in the workplace, citing Bureau of Labor Statistics. But ambivalence over their participation in the work force seems to persist. A 2009 Pew Research Center report found that 21% of adults said the trend toward more mothers working outside the home had been good for society; 37% said it had been bad and 38% said it hasn't made much difference. Women reported feeling stressed about balancing work and family, the report said, with 40% of working moms saying they always feel rushed compared with 24% of the general public and 26% of stay-at-home moms. As for working dads, 25% said they always feel rushed. This month's Atlantic magazine cover story, "Why Women Still Can't Have It All," has stoked intense debate on the topic. Former State Department official Anne-Marie Slaughter proposes that the only women who manage to reach the pinnacle of their careers while raising a family are "superhuman, rich or self-employed." Slaughter chronicles her decision to leave Washington and return to academia so she can play a larger role in raising her sons, using her personal journey as a jumping off point to examine the decisions and barriers women face in balancing a career with family. In Twitter exchanges this week punctuated with the hashtag #havingitall, the Princeton University professor applauded Mayer's appointment at Yahoo but noted that it seemed to prove her thesis. Women who are having it all are superhuman, rich, and in charge. I'm all for Marissa Mayer! but the norm?" she tweeted. Her exchange with Mia Farrow, who tweeted "let's hope she inspires [corporations] to create better options for all working moms," underscored what feminists and policy experts have been saying for years: that corporate culture in the United States, one of few industrialized nations without paid family leave for new parents, does not foster ideal conditions for work-life balance -- for women or men. "We live in a society where there's very little space for men or women in corporate spheres to easily juggle family lives with professional lives," said Caroline Heldman, chair of the Politics Department at Occidental College in California. When we talk about maternity leave, we assume it's only women who should be taking time off when a child is born. I think that comes from a culture where the assumption is that women are the primary caretakers and the father's bond with his children is not as important," Heldman said. I think we would have better familial bonds if we viewed parenting as something that every parent could participate in, not just women. Someone in Mayer's position likely has the resources to enable her to work through maternity leave, but that's certainly not the norm for most working mothers. If anything, her experience is representative of the rules and expectations of CEOs of major corporations, 97% of whom are male, Heldman said. "Her choices don't necessarily work for women in lower ranks and should not be held up as a standard for what all men or women should or could do," Heldman said. She's playing by the good old boys' rules, which uphold a system that doesn't allow space and time for male or female CEOs to really take time off if they need it. Facing tough choices Some parents can take time off under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, which guarantees eligible employees at companies with more than 50 employees 12 weeks of unpaid, job-guaranteed leave for the birth or adoption of a child, according to Catalyst. Similar statutes exist in Washington D.C., California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington state and Wisconsin. In 2002, California became the first state to enact a paid family leave act, allowing employees to take six weeks' leave and up to 55% of their weekly wages, with a benefit cap, to care for a newborn or newly adopted child. Every employee who contributes to the State Disability Insurance is covered, not just those who work for companies with 50 employees or more. Although some individual companies offer a paid maternity leave benefit, many parents end up using a combination of short-term disability, sick leave, vacation, personal days and unpaid family leave. Most working mothers return to work within a year of having a child, according to the 2009 report, "Opting-Out: An Exploration of Labor Force Participation of New Mothers," based on the American Community Survey three-year data file for 2005-2007. The researchers hypothesized that two groups of women may opt out: women whose earnings are so low they may not be able to afford child care and women whose family earnings allow them to forgo personal earnings. A 2004 Catalyst study found that while senior-level women and men showed interest in informal and formal flexible work arrangements, few actually took advantage of them: 44% of women used flexible arrival and departure times, compared with 36% of men; and 13% of women telecommuted or worked from home, compared with 12% of men. Perhaps the most telling is that 91% of women and 94% of men agreed that they could be flexible with their schedules when they had a family emergency or personal matter, but only 15% of women and 20% of men said that they could use a flexible work arrangement without jeopardizing career advancement. In the absence of policies that help working mothers, some end up leaving the work force or creating their own solutions. iReporter Shadra Smith of Fort Wayne, Indiana, took a pay cut when she changed jobs after finding out she was pregnant. "[I] took a position that unfortunately pays less, but it allows me to have the mental and physical strength for my son," Smith said in an iReport. "I've already accomplished some career goals, and being a mother is the career I would love to concentrate on now." she said. The most challenging thing about being a working mom is not being able to experience the day to day growth of my son.

For Nicki Minaj, the hip-hop show does not have to go on At best, it's counterintuitive to insult your headliner right before they take the stage. The rapper was set to headline Hot 97′s Summer Jam festival in East Rutherford, N.J., on Sunday but pulled out hours before following disparaging remarks from station personality Peter Rosenberg, who also hostsMTV's"Hip Hop Squares." Commenting from the festival stage on Minaj's radio-friendly single "Starships," which was produced by pop/dance powerhouse RedOne, the radio personality told the crowd that the New York station was "all about that real hip-hop." "I know there are some chicks in here waiting to sing along with 'Starships' later," he said between acts at the festival, one of only a few annual hip-hop events of its stature. He then dismissed the song with some unprintable language. The snub didn't sit well with Minaj - or with her label head, Lil Wayne. He pulled the plug on all his Young Money artists set to play at Summer Jam. "The President has spoken," wrote Minaj on Twitter. Minaj started out as an edgy, underground hip-hop artist in Queens who made a name for herself with razor-sharp raps and warp-speed rhymes. She was a rare example of a successful and respected female emcee in a largely male-dominated genre. But since the April release of her sophomore album, "Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded," Minaj has been criticized in some hip-hop circles for turning her back on the world she came from. She raised hackles among Catholics and conservative Christians with her provocative, "Exorcist"-themed Grammy performance this year, and complaints from music fans that felt she was trying too hard to be controversial, a la Lady Gaga. The glossy Euro-pop track "Starships" (the album's first single) offered an infectious chorus, fist-pumping breakdowns and a "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" sample. The song debuted at No. 9 on the Billboard pop chart, only her second solo Top 10 debut, after the equally pop-focused "Super Bass." Minaj unapologetically attempted to sate both longtime fans wanting the venomous verses they fell in love with on mix tapes and her newer, pop-loving delegation that appreciated the whimsy of "Super Bass" and singsongy pop numbers such as the David Guetta collaboration, "Turn Me On." Times pop critic Randall Roberts commented that the album's dance tracks sinked the disc: "In a spectacularly unfortunate crash-and-burn, Minaj abruptly hits the accelerator and stops rapping, leaving behind the minimal, bouncy hip-hop tracks that highlight her charm and achievement in favor of 128-beat-per-minute dance pop songs as simple as they are generic," he wrote. When Minaj burst onto the scene in 2010, hip-hop purists hoped her crossover success would resurrect female rap, and a slew of fresh talent bubbled up in her wake. New faces such as Australian bombshell Iggy Azalea, Florida girl Brianna Perry and bawdy spitfire Azealia Banks, especially, have become darlings on rap and indie blogs that have grown disenchanted with Minaj's balancing act. Minaj, who didn't respond to a request for comment, tweeted that she was especially peeved that Rosenberg, who has christened himself the "Jewish Johnny Carson" and works for a radio station with a predominately African American audience, would diss a black woman. Hip-hop has long been dominated by men, and despite the number of women who have broken through before Minaj came along, femcees have been rare sightings on the charts for nearly a decade. "It's very disturbing," Perry said when asked about the lack of female rappers on the scene. I know it's a male-dominated game in hip-hop and rap. It's kind of discouraging being that's what I want to do. But I feel like girls are coming back strong right now. A lot of women are working hard and grinding. The female empowerment is coming back. Rosenberg didn't return a request for comment but tweeted, "Last night I said nothing different than I have ever said. It was not a personal dis. It was starships is .... Hot 97's Funkmaster Flex, an on-air personality, agreed with Rosenberg and said, "We don't ... with commercial artists no more. The prolific DJ fueled the controversy after making comments clearly directed toward Minaj. He said he had a career to ruin on his radio show and joked about Minaj's record sales. After re-tweeting negative and positive comments directed toward the station following the incident, he said "all questions will be answered." Minaj was booked to appear on his radio show Monday night. The show will undoubtedly promise big ratings (Minaj's A&R and co-executive producer Safaree Samuels had promised to punch Rosenberg.) Ebro Darden, Hot 97's vice president of programming, wouldn't comment on the controversy but did said "as always Hot 97's Summer Jam was legendary and historic." Veteran rapper Nas filled in for Minaj and surprised the crowd with one of hip-hop's most revered femcees, Lauryn Hill. Both were supposed to appear during Minaj's set alongside Foxy Brown, Cam'ron, 2 Chainz, Beenie Man and more, according to a pre-show tweet from Minaj. "I do support artists standing by their beliefs, and walking with integrity," read a statement from the notoriously reclusive Hill on Monday. We have to find a better way to commercially exploit music, while giving artists their proper respect. This cannot be done while taking their contributions for granted, or trying to control the scope of their growth and power through threats and fear tactics. We can do better than this, there is a better way, or else 'we' (the proverbial we) find ourselves in danger of being hypocrites!!! Fans can still catch Minaj this summer as the rapper embarks on her first headlining tour, which stops in L.A. on Aug. 5.

Muhammad Ali to Celebrate 70th Birthday in Ky. Dozens of well-wishers chanted Muhammad Ali's name and sang him "Happy Birthday" Saturday at the beginning of a party for him in his hometown. As about 350 people mingled in a lobby of the Muhammad Ali Center at the beginning of Ali's 70th birthday party, he walked out to a second-floor balcony overlooking them. The crowd immediately began to clap, then chanted and sang while he stood and watched for about two minutes. "The reason I loved him is because of his confidence," University of Kentucky men's basketball coach John Calipari said of Ali. He would talk and then back it up. He had great courage and who had more fun than him? The guest list also includes Ali's trainer Angelo Dundee and former heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis, who grew up imitating the Ali shuffle. Singer John Mellencamp headlines the entertainment. Also invited are three American hikers who were imprisoned in Iran. Ali, perhaps the most prominent U.S. Muslim, lobbied for their release. Ali turns 70 on Tuesday, and the party his hometown is the first of five planned in the next couple of months. Not long after Ali's appearance on the balcony, the crowd began filing into a banquet hall for the party that's closed to the public and reporters. The private party doubles as a $1,000-per-person fundraiser for the Ali Center, the 6-year-old cultural and education complex seen as a legacy to the champ's social activism. The six-story center also retraces Ali's stunning career including famous bouts against Joe Frazier, George Foreman and Sonny Liston. The self-proclaimed "greatest of all time" remains one of the world's most recognizable figures, even though he's largely absent from the public eye now as he battles Parkinson's disease. When he came out to the balcony Saturday night, he walked and stood unassisted. Ali's wife, Lonnie, said Friday that her husband has mixed feelings about the landmark birthday. "He's glad he's here to turn 70, but he wants to be reassured he doesn't look 70," she said. Born as Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. on Jan. 17, 1942, Ali took up boxing at age 12 when his bike was stolen and he wanted to find and whip the culprit. The boy was introduced to Joe Martin, a police officer who coached boxing at a local gym. Ali's brother, 68-year-old Rahaman Ali, recalled on Saturday night that the champ was cheerful and happy as a youngster. "As a little boy he (said) he would be the world's greatest fighter and be a great man," he said. Ali flourished in the ring, becoming a top amateur and Olympic gold medalist. He made his professional debut in Louisville and arranged for a local children's hospital to receive proceeds from the fight. Ali won the heavyweight title in 1964, defeating the heavily favored Sonny Liston. Soon after, Ali - who was raised in a Baptist family - announced his conversion to Islam and changed his name. While in his prime, Ali was stripped of his heavyweight crown in 1967 for refusing to be drafted for military service during the Vietnam War. He cited his religious beliefs as the reason for his refusal. His decision alienated Ali from many across the U.S. and resulted in a draft-evasion conviction. Ali found himself in a long legal fight that ended in 1971, when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in his favor. Ali lost his first bid to regain the heavyweight crown when Frazier knocked him down and took a decision in the Fight of the Century at Madison Square Garden in 1971. Ali regained the heavyweight title in 1974, defeating Foreman in the "Rumble in the Jungle." A year later, he outlasted Frazier in the epic Thrilla in Manila bout. Last year, a frail Ali rose from his seat and clapped for his chief rival at Frazier's funeral. Ali's last title came in 1978 when he defeated Leon Spinks. Ali retired from boxing in 1981 and devoted himself to his social causes. He traveled the world on humanitarian missions, mingling with the masses and rubbing elbows with world leaders. Ali received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President George W. Bush in 2005.

Healthy snacks in Japan: The joy of soy IF YOU want to learn how to live longer, look at the people of Okinawa, a string of islands in south-western Japan. Raised on a diet of fish and soyabeans, their life expectancy is among the highest on Earth. There is a natural control group; many Okinawans fled to Brazil and Hawaii after the second world war, where they switched to a meatier diet of steaks and burgers. All have been studied regularly by Japanese researchers over the past three decades to prove that a soya-rich diet can prolong life. Now it is time for the taste test: can a healthy bag of soya nibbles sweep the fatty potato snack off the table? Kaoru Yamada, a young food specialist at Otsuka Pharmaecutical, a Japanese drug company, has risen to the challenge. She dislikes the taste of soya, so she invented a lightly baked soya pastry that tastes of cheese, is crispy, has soyabeans rattling inside it and can sit on a desk - or even on a bar - for months without going soggy. Called SoyCarat, her creation went on sale in Japan this month. Otsuka, which also produces a big-selling health drink called Pocari Sweat, sees it as part of a counter-offensive against Western snacks that are making Asians fatter. The science is compelling: research, albeit part-sponsored by Otsuka, suggests that eating soya protein quickly lowers blood pressure, reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease. The company notes that the average American eats less soya in a year than the average Japanese eats in a day. Otsuka is not alone in Japan in trying to use science to sell consumer products: for instance, Uniqlo, a clothes retailer, sells hi-tech underwear that it says makes sweat dry quicker. But the marketing may be a problem. Sophisticated diners insist that soya is scrumptious, but others vehemently disagree. Gary Larson, a cartoonist, once drew three disgusted lionesses spitting out the wobbly flesh of "a tofudebeest - one of the Serengeti's obnoxious health antelopes." It struck a chord. SoyCarat's brand name is tricky: whatever the spelling, it evokes the idea of two things children shun and adults munch only reluctantly. Perhaps it should be portrayed as something laid back and Okinawan instead, like a bar snack. After all, what could be better than a life-enhancing glass of Orion beer in one hand, and a life-extending bag of soya snacks in the other?

BBC News - Julius Caesar - Shakespeare's African play

Nelson Mandela leaves hospital, to recuperate at home Former South African President Nelson Mandela in London, Aug. 29, 2007. JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, Dec. 26 (UPI) -- Former South African President Nelson Mandela was discharged from a Pretoria hospital Wednesday, The Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory said. "He will undergo home-based high care at his Houghton home until he recovers fully," the organization said on its website, nelsonmandela.org. Mandela, 94, president from 1994-1999, retired from public life in 2004 and was last seen in public in 2010, when he attended the closing ceremonies of the World Cup in Johannesburg. South African President Jacob Zuma said after visiting Mandela Christmas morning the former president was "in good spirits," Britain's The Guardian newspaper reported. "He was happy to have visitors on this special day and is looking much better," Zuma said. Mandela is being treated for gallstones and a lung infection.

Woman writes of 'Mad Men'-era days on Madison Avenue in 'Mad Women' "Does she or doesn't she?" - the innuendo-filled catchphrase for Clairol from 1956 easily could have been conceived by "Mad Men's" Don Draper. It was not, of course, but rather was penned by one of the few female copywriters of her day. Jane Maas, also a pioneer in the nearly all-male world of advertising decades ago, pays homage to the hair color campaign by Shirley Polykoff in her new book, "Mad Women: The Other Side of Life on Madison Avenue in the '60s and Beyond." A witty, personal account of the "real life Peggy Olson," Maas details her climb from copywriter to creative director at Ogilvy & Mather to "Advertising Woman of the Year" for her work on the famous "I Love New York" campaign. Maas admits she was not a fan of "Mad Men" at first. "It's grown on me," she said by phone interview from her home in New York, where she was happy to point out what they get right (and wrong) in the Emmy-winning AMC show, which begins its fifth season Sunday. Was there really that much sex at the office? Was there really that much booze and cigarettes? "Yes and yes," reveals the once-two-pack-a-day smoker. Maas did take issue with a scene from the first season where a hung-over Don strolls into the agency at 9 a.m. and Roger Sterling asks if he has the big idea ready for their meeting with a big client. Don says "Not yet, but I will." "Oh, please!" shrieked Maas. If we didn't have a big idea the night before we would work all night long, otherwise we'd figure out a way to postpone the meeting. Her career offers a possible path for the TV character Peggy. "If they want to keep the realism in the show they need to hire a few more copywriters or promote Peggy to assistant creative director," said Maas of the lack of female peers on the show. Or I predict she'll leave to go to another agency or start her own. Although Maas and Olson share the same drive to succeed in a male-dominated industry, Maas wishes Peggy were more relaxed and not so prickly when people criticize her copy. The mother of two said she relates more to Roger Sterling than Don Draper. Roger is more like [her boss] David Ogilvy in terms of being debonair and able to woo clients. David was gorgeous and so charming with that British accent. "Mad Men" does get Peggy and Joan's wardrobes spot on, but she added that gloves were obligatory and they always wore heels. Once a woman became a copywriter she wore a hat in the office all day. Just like the staff at Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce, Maas had her share of difficult-to-please clients, such as "the Queen of Mean," Leona Helmsley, "the most miserable, abject, cravenly seven months I've had in my whole life." Surprisingly, children's author Roald Dahl, husband of actress and Maxim Coffee spokeswoman Patricia Neal, turned out to be a challenge as well. Coincidently, he and Ogilvy worked together at British intelligence during World War II. "I'd talk with him on the phone, and he'd leave me sputtering with indignation," Maas recalled. He made the outrageous demand that he be paid residuals because he was an unseen presence when Pat talks about her wonderful husband in the spots. Maas said no, they'd write him out of the scripts, but the client (General Foods) gave in. There's mention of a young F. Murray Abrahamwaxing (or wiping) poetic in his first commercial for Whistle Spray Cleaner and fellow Bucknell University alumni, novelist Philip Roth's occasional calls consulting with her while writing "Everyman," which has as its lead character an advertising man. Maas also discusses the pressures on her family life and struggles being just one of two full-time working moms in her daughter's class. Men felt sorry for us, thinking we must be married to some real bums. Although "Mad Men" accurately portrays the glamorous side of the business, the one thing the show doesn't capture was how much fun they had. Said Maas: "Despite all the shenanigans and distractions, we loved our jobs."

Correction: April 29, 2012 An earlier version of a slide show of the White House Correspondents" Association dinner, used on the NYTimes.com home page, misidentified a photo of Eva Longoria as Ginnifer Goodwin, who appeared elsewhere in the slide.

Petraeus and lover used al-Qaeda email tricks to keep affair secret Al Qaeda terrorists began using the technique years ago. It allowed them to exchange information without sending traceable emails. An account would be opened by one conspirator and a draft email written and saved. The account could then be opened by a co-conspirator with access anywhere in the world, who could read the draft email and delete it. Despite the care taken by Gen Petraeus and Mrs Broadwell in keeping their email exchanges secret, it was precisely the type of trail they were hoping to avoid with the Gmail trick that resulted in their affair being exposed. FBI investigators were able to use the data trail left when Jill Kelley, a 37-year-old Florida socialite who was family friends with Gen Petraeus, received emails allegedly warning her to stay away from the former CIA director. The data trail revealed that the emails were being sent by Mrs Broadwell from an anonymous email account, information which eventually brought the affair to light.

Shooter reported dead at Connecticut elementary school December 14, 2012 -- Updated 1745 GMT (0145 HKT) NEW: Two school employees are dead, an eyewitness tells CNN The suspect is also dead, source says Three people are in "very serious" condition, Danbury's mayor tells CNN Students are evacuated to nearby a firehouse, CNN affiliate WFSB reports (CNN) -- Two school employees died in a shooting at a Newtown, Connecticut, elementary school, a parent who was inside the school during the incident told CNN. Multiple local media outlets also were reporting more than one fatality in the shooting Friday morning at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Police have not confirmed those reports to CNN. Hospital officials in neighboring Danbury said they were treating three people wounded in the shooting. Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton said the victims were in "very serious" condition. The shooter is dead, a source with knowledge of the investigation told CNN's Susan Candiotti. The suspect's body is in a classroom at the school, the source told CNN. The parent, who has a second-grader at the school, said she believed more than 100 rounds had been fired. Police have recovered two weapons from the suspect, a Glock and a Sig Sauer, the source said. It's unclear if police killed the suspect. 'It doesn't seem possible' -- parents shocked by school shooting The Newtown Bee newspaper said one child had been carried out by a police officer and emergency crews had set up triage facilities, expecting additional patients. The Hartford Courant newspaper said one victim had "numerous gunshot wounds." Aerial images from CNN affiliate News 12 New Jersey showed police officers armed with rifles following a dog into woods near the school. Other officers, some in tactical gear, stood around the school with guns drawn, CNN affiliate WFSB reported. A photograph published by The Newtown Bee showed teachers and police leading students out of the building across a parking lot. One student, a third-grader, told CNN affiliate WTNH that she was sitting in her classroom when police flooded the area. "We saw police officers and we heard them on our roof and in our building," the girl said. Some of the children were crying, and others felt they had a stomachache, she said. The girl's father told the station the incident was shocking. "I was pretty shaken up," he said. All schools in the city were on lockdown Friday as police assessed the situation, state police spokesman Lt. Paul Vance said. Students were evacuated to a nearby firehouse, the Danbury News-Times newspaper reported. The first calls came into police around 9:40 a.m., according to media accounts. Police scheduled a news conference for 1 p.m. Newtown is about 60 miles north of New York. CNN's Susan Candiotti and Meredith Artley contributed to this report. School shootings December 14, 2012 -- Updated 1729 GMT (0129 HKT) The children. Initial reports of a shooting inside a Newtown, Connecticut, elementary school Friday immediately sparked fears that children could be in harm's way. February 29, 2012 -- Updated 1120 GMT (1920 HKT) Brian Todd speaks with a security expert on how to respond to a school shooting, how to prevent. March 1, 2012 -- Updated 1115 GMT (1915 HKT) After such a traumatic incident, counselors focus on two stages of recovery: the immediate response of helping people feel safe and the longer-term process of helping them cope. December 14, 2012 -- Updated 1711 GMT (0111 HKT) Learn more about school violence in the U.S. with our interactive timeline of incidents of random violence at elementary, middle and high schools since 1927.

Judge tells Justice Dept.: Clarify remarks on judicial activism amid health-care debate A federal judge on Tuesday expressed concern over President Obama's comments on the Supreme Court's consideration of the health-care law and demanded a letter explaining whether Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. believes federal judges have the authority to strike down federal laws. Judge Jerry Smith, a Republican appointee on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, was part of a three-judge panel hearing arguments in a lawsuit over the Affordable Care Act when he issued his unusual demand, saying the Justice Department must submit the three-page, single-spaced letter by noon Thursday, according to a lawyer who was in the courtroom. The demand was first reported by CBS News. Health-care at the Supreme Court The lawyer said Smith cited Obama's statements Monday, when in unusually blunt language, the president said overturning the law would amount to an "unprecedented, extraordinary step" of judicial activism. The judge "said the president has been saying that unelected branches of government shouldn't be activist and strike down federal laws,"" according to the lawyer, who spoke on condition of anonymity to avoid antagonizing either side. A court order cited the letter but did not give details. The other two judges hearing the case are also Republican appointees. The White House and the Justice Department declined to comment. The debate stems from the recent high court review of the law - which requires uninsured Americans to purchase health-care coverage - in which conservative justices appeared open to declaring the heart of the legislation unconstitutional.

Bluebirds fly to their 14th victory of the campaign Published on Saturday 17 March 2012 14:27 Impressive Bluebird AFC notched up their 14th league win of the season with a 7-1 victory over Castleview Star in the EADSAFA Second Division on Sunday. A brace a piece from Alexander Heath and Lee Hunter were supplemented by strikes from Paul Murray, James Hunter and Stuart Kidd at a windswept Saughton 3G. Castleview skipper Derek Tait replied from the penalty spot, but it was to prove little more than a consolation in a game that saw referee Darrel Lamb award three penalties. The match began in lively fashion and indeed it wasn't long before the deadlock was broken. After Star defender Nathan Smith was alleged to have pushed Paul Murray inside the area, referee Lamb pointed to the spot after ten minutes. The striker, affectionately known as "Mowgli" took the kick himself and made no mistake, clinically dispatching from 12 yards. Castleview had an outside chance to level soon after when defender Daniel McCann strolled forward, and he was unlucky to see his left footed drive strike goalkeeper Richard Hogg's crossbar. But it was league leaders Bluebird who continued to impress and they soon doubled their advantage. After Paul Murray's left footed drive looked to be dragging wide, right-midfielder James Hunter appeared at the back post to fire home from close range. Star were handed an opportunity to pull one back soon after, but Michael Osbourne's spot kick was well saved by Hogg, after Tait had been brought down inside the box. The second period proved to be decisive as Bluebird clicked into gear and began to show their quality. Alex Heath made it 3-0 after a good header from James Hunter's corner. Star did pull a goal back on 52 minutes when Tait's left-footed penalty sent Hogg the wrong way, but it would be Bluebird who dominated from there on in. Heath doubled his tally for the day with a strike on the hour mark, before substitute Lee Hunter bagged a double of his own to make it 6-1. Stuart Kidd added a seventh with virtually the last kick of the match. Bluebird manager Trevor Bennett said: "We played reasonably well, we're not a bad outfit once we get started. All the lads played well. Castleview boss Stuart Rendall was gracious in defeat, saying: "We played okay in the first half and should have been level at half-time. They made good use of the wind in the first half and the pressure got to us in the end. Bluebird AFC: Richard Hogg (GK), Robert Johnstone, Jamie Meechan, Stuart Kidd, James Hunter, Peter Gilhooley, Alexander Heath, James Aird, Lee Cairns, Robert Bennett, Shaun Cairns, Lee Hunter, Paul Murray, Keith Cairns, Jak Robertson. Castleview Star AFC: John Dewar (GK), William Barclay, Tony Chalmers, Nathan Smith, Daniel McCann, Kevin Weddell, Derek Tait, Chris Melbourne, John Donaghy, Michael Osbourne, Darren O'Donnell, Darren Gormley, Brad Leston, David Dodds, Kevin White, Scott Gordon. Referee: Darrel Lamb.