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New court documents give an eerie glimpse of Jaycee Dugard's 18 years in captivity at the hands of alleged kidnappers, with diary entries by her painting a picture of growing despair. "It feels like I'm sinking. I'm afraid I want control of my life ... this is supposed to be my life to do with what I like ... but once again he has taken it away," Dugard writes in a July 5, 2004, entry. "How many times is he allowed to take it away from me? I'm afraid he doesn't see how the things he says makes me a prisoner." The journal entries are included in court documents filed Thursday by the El Dorado County district attorney to oppose a motion by Phillip Garrido's lawyer for information on the current whereabouts of Dugard, who is in seclusion. Dugard was abducted from the street where she lived in South Lake Tahoe, Calif., on June 10, 1991, when she was 11 years old. Prosecutors allege Phillip Garrido and his wife, Nancy, kept the girl in their hidden backyard compound, where she was sexually assaulted and imprisoned for the next 18 years. Garrido allegedly fathered two children by Dugard during her ordeal. Dugard, now, 29, was found by police in late August. She and her children have been staying at a secret location, and prosecutors say she does not want any further contact from the Garridos. Acting as a family? Public defender Susan Gellman has asked the district attorney to provide photos of Dugard's daughters, videos of interviews with the girls, and permission to talk with Dugard in preparation for trial. Gellman's court request claims the Garridos, Dugard and her two daughters acted as a family in recent years. "They took vacations together; they went to the library together; they ran a family business together," the defense motion said. "The children home schooled. They kept pets and had a garden. They took care of ailing family members together. They had special names for each other." However, the district attorney's response filed Thursday paints a different picture, saying Dugard and her children were not part of a "family," but rather captives. Phillip Garrido is seen with his court appointed attorney, Susan Gellman, during his arraignment on 29 felony counts stemming from the abduction of Jaycee Dugard, in the El Dorado Superior Court in Placerville, Calif., on Aug. 28. 'I want to be free' The court documents contain several journal entries that prosecutors say exemplify the Garridos' attempt to gain trust and control over Dugard. On July 16, 1993, two years after her abduction, Dugard wrote: “I got [a cat] for my birthday from Phil and Nancy … they did something for me that no one else would do for me, they paid 200 dollars just so I could have my own kitten.” On Sept. 5 of that year, she wrote: “I don’t want to hurt him … sometimes I think my very presence hurts him … so how can I ever tell him I want to be free. I will never cause him pain if it’s in my power to prevent it. FREE.” Prosecutors contend that even after his arrest, Garrido has continued to try to exert control over Dugard. As recently as Jan. 28, according to court documents, Garrido's attorney sent a letter to her that stated, “Mr. Garrido has asked me to convey that he does not harbor any ill will toward [Dugard] or the children and loves them very much.” Gellman has also asked that Garrido and his wife, Nancy, be allowed to meet in the jail while they prepare for trial. That motion is scheduled to be heard in court Feb. 26. ||||| Thank you for visiting Contra Costa Times. We are sorry the article that you requested is no longer available. Please search for this article in our archive search.

– California prosecutors today made public excerpts of a journal kept by Jaycee Dugard during her 18 years of captivity. The entries show a yearning for freedom but also demonstrate the amount of control Phillip Garrido wielded over her, reports MSNBC. "How can I ever tell him I want to be free," she wrote at one point. "Free to come and go as I please. ... Free to say I have a family. I will never cause him pain if it's in my power to prevent it. FREE." Another entry, from 2004: “It feels like I’m sinking. ... This is supposed to be my life to do with what I like ... but once again he has taken it away. How many times is he allowed to take it away from me?” Dugard, now 29 and with two children fathered by Garrido, was moved last week to a safe house within driving distance of the Antioch, Calif., residence where she was imprisoned. A church has offered to pay her rent for a year, sources tell the Contra Costa Times, but Dugard is still strapped, and unlikely to get much aid from the state. “Let’s be praying for them,” one church member says. “It’s as bad a situation as we’ve seen.”

Amanda Bynes ARRESTED FOR Driving Under Influence of STIMULANT Weed Problem Resurfaces Amanda Bynes -- ARRESTED FOR Driving Under Influence of STIMULANT EXCLUSIVE was arrested in Los Angeles Sunday after cops determined she was driving under the influence ... and our law enforcement sources say she was on a... but we're told she has also developed a serious weed problem ... again.Here's what we know -- Bynes was driving a Mercedes in the San Fernando Valley when she stopped in the middle of an intersection on Van Nuys Blvd.A CHP officer spotted her and determined she was under the influence. She was taken to the LAPD Van Nuys division where a drug recognition officer determined she was under the influence of a stimulant. Toxicology tests are being performed now to determine the exact drug or drugs.According to the incident report ... Amanda had a "disheveled" appearance.Amanda was then booked for DUI. She posted $15,000 bail.Amanda has had trouble with mental problems for years now. Her parents had a conservatorship which ended earlier this month and as one source says, "Things started going haywire."We're told Amanda has moved out of her parents home and is now living in an Orange County apartment. We're told she has been smoking weed for weeks and things are bad again.The arrest triggers a legal problem. Amanda is on probation for a reckless driving conviction last February. ||||| These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites.

– Amanda Bynes hasn't made headlines in a while, so perhaps you thought she'd finally gotten her life together—but apparently not. The troubled actress allegedly ran a red light and then stopped in the middle of a Los Angeles intersection around 3:30am Sunday; a CHP officer pulled her over and found that she couldn't complete field sobriety tests, a spokesman tells the New York Daily News. She was arrested for driving under the influence of a stimulant, TMZ reports; sources say that stimulant was Adderall. The sources say a doctor prescribed it, but that Bynes was "out of it" and "disheveled" when she was arrested. Sources also tell the gossip site Bynes has been smoking quite a bit of marijuana lately and has gone off her medications for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Her parents apparently let their conservatorship over her lapse, thinking she was doing better, but others believe this is not the case and say "things started going haywire" since she moved out of their home. She is still on probation for a reckless-driving conviction.

O'Reilly: Media Ignoring 'Pernicious, Far-Left' Group Behind Trump Protest 'Be Careful, Bernie': Trump Warns Sanders to Stop 'Lying' About Protesters UPDATE: The March 21 GOP debate has been cancelled after Donald Trump said he would not participate, prompting John Kasich to also drop out. Fox News Channel will host its fourth Republican presidential debate in Salt Lake City, Utah, on Monday, March 21. The two-hour debate will take place at the Salt Palace Convention Center, starting at 9:00pm ET, with Bret Baier, Megyn Kelly and Chris Wallace returning as moderators. All remaining candidates in the primary race will be invited to participate in the debate, which gives voters in Arizona and Utah one last chance to hear from the Republican contenders before they go to the polls on March 22. Fox News Channel’s three previous primary debates delivered the three highest-rated telecasts in the network’s history. The August 6 debate delivered a record-breaking 24 million viewers and remains the highest-rated non-sports cable broadcast of all time. Additionally, the network’s most recent debate on March 3 in Detroit delivered the highest ratings for a debate in 2016. Rubio: Debates Are About Informing, Not Entertaining WATCH: SS Agents Rush to Guard Trump After Man Tries to Take Stage Would Rubio Get Behind Trump As the GOP Nominee? 'I Don't Know' Judge Jeanine to Trump Protesters: 'The Silent Majority Will Not Be Silenced' ||||| Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump Donald John TrumpHouse Republicans push Mulvaney, Trump to rescind Gateway funds Pruitt spent K flying aides to Australia to prep for later-canceled visit: report Rosenstein told Trump he is not a target of Mueller probe: report MORE mocked Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly on Tuesday, calling her "Crazy Megyn." "@SCNAK45: @megynkelly is trying so hard to bash @realDonaldTrump it's ridiculous" Don't worry, everyone is wise to Crazy Megyn! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 15, 2016 The real estate mogul quoted someone in his tweet who was apparently complaining about Kelly's coverage of Trump as election results came in Tuesday night. And then he added another tweet. Can't watch Crazy Megyn anymore. Talks about me at 43% but never mentions that there are four people in race. With two people, big & over! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 16, 2016 Trump and Kelly have had a tense relationship ever since the first Republican debate, in August last year, when Kelly pressed him about derogatory comments he's made about women. Trump later demanded that she pull out of a debate ahead of the Iowa caucuses. After Fox News responded by releasing a statement that mocked Trump for worrying about her tough questions, the business mogul skipped the debate. ||||| GOP debate canceled after Trump, Kasich pull out 'I think it's enough,' Trump says about the primetime debates. Monday's Republican presidential primary debate has been canceled after GOP front-runner Donald Trump declined to participate, citing a scheduling conflict. "On Feb. 20, the Republican National Committee announced that a GOP presidential primary debate would be held on March 21 in Salt Lake City. They offered that debate to Fox News Channel to host, provided there were enough candidates actively campaigning," Fox News Executive Vice President Michael Clemente said in a statement. Story Continued Below "This morning, Donald Trump announced he would not be participating in the debate. Shortly afterward, John Kasich's campaign announced that without Trump at the debate, Kasich would not participate. Ted Cruz has expressed a willingness to debate Trump or Kasich — or both. But obviously, there needs to be more than one participant. So the Salt Lake City debate is cancelled," Clemente said. Trump said earlier on Wednesday that he was scheduled to speak at a conference of the pro-Israel lobbying group AIPAC, and would be skipping the Utah debate. “Nobody told me about debates. As you saw, I thought the last debate on CNN was the last debate," he said on "Fox & Friends" Wednesday morning. “I’m doing a major speech in front of a very important group of people that night," Trump said, adding that it had been "scheduled a while ago." "I think it's enough," he added, about the dozen debates the Republican candidates have participated in so far. But during an interview on stage directly after CNN's debate last week, Trump acknowledged there were more debates planned and seemed more open to participating. He told anchor Chris Cuomo, "I think they want to do two more debates, and I guess I’m pretty much OK with it," though he added he's "had enough" of the debates. Sean Spicer, the Republican National Committee's chief strategist, had initially confirmed on Wednesday morning that the debate would go on even without Trump on stage. But then Ohio Gov. John Kasich's campaign declared that he wouldn't appear without Trump, forgoing the opportunity to debate Texas Sen. Ted Cruz one-on-one. "Donald Trump's decision to scuttle the Salt Lake City debate is disappointing, but not surprising. His values are out of step with the people of Utah," Kasich's chief strategist John Weaver said on Wednesday. "We had hoped to contrast Governor Kasich's positive inclusive approach to problem solving with Trump's campaign of division. If he changes his mind, we will be there." The debate had been scheduled for the day before nominating contests in Arizona and Utah. Trump's announcement aome after he scored a big win on Florida on Tuesday night, knocking Marco Rubio out of the race. But he failed to clinch Ohio, potentially setting the GOP on the path for a brokered convention, with Cruz and Kasich still vying for the nomination. The real estate mogul has been flirting for days with skipping the upcoming debate, which the RNC had set on Feb. 20. Trump had called last Thursday's debate hosted by CNN "a really nice way to finish off the debate season" and said he was not aware of other upcoming showdowns. While it's not clear if Trump can reach the 1,237 delegates needed to secure the nomination, he has called on the GOP to unite behind him so that he can take on Hillary Clinton in the general election. This wouldn't be the first time Trump has skipped a debate. He boycotted the Fox News showdown in Iowa in January, following a feud with Fox News host Megyn Kelly, and subsequently lost the state to Cruz. Trump later said that skipping the debate could have cost him the win.

– The front-runner will once again be absent: Donald Trump says he's skipping Fox News' GOP debate in Salt Lake City on Monday because nobody told him about it, per Politico. Trump is already scheduled to speak at a conference of the pro-Israel lobby AIPAC, and he says there have been "enough" debates already. Or perhaps he's just had enough of Megyn Kelly, who will return as one of three moderators, reports Fox News Insider. Trump tweeted Tuesday that Kelly is "trying so hard to bash" him, reports the Hill. "Can't watch Crazy Megyn anymore," he added.

Got a friend who takes five minutes to rattle off the details of their Starbucks drink to the barista? Feel like punching them in the gut every time they do? Then you’ll be especially revolted by the latest record-setting drink at the behemoth coffee chain. Related Content Making use of the company’s loyalty “Gold” program, which entitles a customer to a free drink after every 12, a guy named Andrew ordered the most expensive Starbucks drink ever at $54.75; beating the purported previous record of $47.30, recorded when a customer used a Birthday coupon for the over-the-top coffee drink. The difference? Supposedly this latest concoction was actually drinkable–relying less on a mash up of expensive but unharmonious ingredients. What tipped the scales this time? A whopping 60 espresso shots (or 4.5 grams of caffeine), according to the article at Consumerist. A call to the Starbucks corporate office to find out where this happened and maybe who the barista was yielded little more information. In fact, they said that this was the first they’d heard of it and that they were looking into the details. Based on the picture of the drink posted at Consumerist from Andrew's Twitter feed (and pictured here) Starbucks PR rep, Linda Mills, said it “looked like Dallas.” She also said that while they love their free drink program, “this type of beverage order is totally excessive and not something we encourage people to do. After they make that beverage, it’s pretty inedible. Nor is it safe,” she said, referring to the caffeine levels. While the Consumerist article says that Andrew's barista collaborated with him on the drink and that "Everyone behind the counter seemed to be on board with the plan, and they produced the massive confection in about ten minutes," Mills claims “they don’t encourage their baristas to try” this. Why would this particular barista have wholeheartedly helped, then, and wouldn’t they get in trouble, I asked. “They get excited about that Birthday beverage,” she said, “but [in this case] had a little too much fun with it.” Mills said she did not know who the barista was. When asked about barriers to entry, such as cup size, Mills said “there is no specific policy about bringing your own glass,” but added that she thinks their standard Starbucks large glasses would only be applicable. Yet Andrew brought in a 128-ounce glass which is certainly not your average Starbucks size cup. It seems odd that Starbucks employees would participate in these experiments given Mills negative assessement of the situation. But based on the lack of company response to YouTube video that got over a half million hits from last year's record-setting drink, it doesn't seem like Starbucks has done anything to discourage the practice. Mills said she would get back to me when they had more information. Until then, if you harbor any dream of beating Andrew's record, I guess you can take your chances on a renegade barista. ||||| What did you accomplish this weekend? Maybe you opened your pool, planted a garden, or took care of some pesky errands. Not Andrew. Andrew set what is, as far as we can determine, a world record for the most expensive drink possible at Starbucks. Tamping down the previous known record at $47.30 is the Sexagintuple Vanilla Bean Mocha Frappuccino at $54.75. Update: on day 5, the drink is gone. Andrew didn’t actually hand over that much money for his 128-ounce espresso milkshake. He’s a Gold member of Starbucks’ loyalty program, which entitles him to one free drink after every twelve that he buys. The free drink coupon entitles him to any drink available. Any drink? The only limits, it seems, were his imagination and what the baristas would let him get away with. They were game to let him get away with a lot. For Andrew, taste was key. He had recently watched last year’s famous quadringoctuple frap video where another customer used a similar birthday coupon to assemble a 48-shot beverage with a bunch of other pricey substances in order to reach the mind-boggling $47 goal. Andrew’s goal was to break that record, and to produce something that’s drinkable. “The $47.30 guy put in two bananas, strawberry, matcha powder, pumpkin spice, and lots of other things that probably don’t go well together and definitely don’t go well with 40 shots of espresso,” Andrew told Consumerist in an e-mail. “They help raise the price, so I can’t fault him for the strategy, but I didn’t want to go that route.” He had a secret weapon: a 128-ounce glass. Well, okay, more like a vase that you would fill with marbles or river rocks and use to decorate your house, but Starbucks considers it a glass for their purposes, unlike the other record-seekers who brought in a giant fishbowl. (We disqualify them from the single-drink record because a bunch of lattes in one fishbowl is not a single drink.) The key step for Andrew’s world-record run was getting the baristas on his side. He walked up to the counter and laid out his goals. “So, this might sound a little weird, but I saw a video on youtube where a guy orders the most expensive Starbucks drink. I want to beat the record.” The cashier had seen the video, and through math and teamwork they figured out how to make a record-busting drink that would fit in his cup and break the record. “It took a few minutes to figure out all the math, but in the end, it took about 55 shots to get us over the $50 line, and we just rounded it up to 60 to make it easy,” he explained to Consumerist. Everyone behind the counter seemed to be on board with the plan, and they produced the massive confection in about ten minutes. “I gotta say, it was delicious,” Andrew declared. He reports that he drank maybe a third of it, then put the drink away for later enjoyment. The key question you’re probably asking about this beverage: will it kill me? Well… maybe. Starbucks doesn’t publish information about how much caffeine is in a single espresso shot online, but estimates put it at about 75 milligrams per shot. If that’s the case, Andrew’s beverage would contain 4,500 milligrams (4.5 grams) of caffeine if made correctly. One expert told Popular Science that, not accounting for pre-existing medical conditions, a lethal overdose of caffeine for most adults would be about 10 grams. Large doses of the drug will still make you feel nervous and jumpy, affecting your blood pressure and heart, and you should not drink sixty shots of espresso in one sitting, ever.

– Today in the annals of First-World feats: America has a new priciest-ever Starbucks drink. The customer behind the beverage, identified as Andrew, used his loyalty card to get a free Sexagintuple Vanilla Bean Mocha Frappuccino, a concoction made with 60 shots of espresso that happens to be worth $54.75. Consumerist calls it a new record; Andrew calls it "delicious." And that, he tells Consumerist via email, was the intention. He says he was aiming to beat the record set last year: a $47.30 frap with a mere 40 shots and a long list of additives (from mocha drizzle to caramel brulee topping to strawberries) that raised the price while seriously lowering the taste. How Andrew managed the feat: He says he got the baristas at the unidentified Starbucks to agree to help him break the record, and he brought a mammoth glass to help him in that quest, a 128-ouncer. Seattle Weekly talked to a Starbucks rep who was unaware of the feat but points out that pictures from Andrew’s Twitter feed reveal his location as Dallas. "This type of beverage order is totally excessive and not something we encourage people to do," she says. "Nor is it safe." To wit, Consumerist estimates that Andrew’s drink contained 4.5 grams of caffeine, and points to a 2012 Popular Science article that suggested 10 grams of caffeine could kill an adult. Andrew says he drank about a third of his drink on site before taking the rest with him.

Murder on Maui -- that's what prosecutors are calling a deadly crash involving twin sisters. That's because police investigators believe that single-vehicle accident was no accident at all. Alexandria Duval was reportedly driving a 2016 Ford Explorer when it went off the Hana Highway on Sunday May 29. The SUV plunged 200 feet to the rocky shoreline below. Rescuers were able to take out Alexandria with critical injuries, but her twin sister Anastasia Duval died. What led to the deadly crash? According to court documents, the women were seen and heard arguing in the SUV. Witnesses spotted "the passenger pulling the hair of the driver, who appeared to be in a rage." Click here to read the court documents. Then two witnesses saw the Explorer "suddenly accelerate, and make a sharp left turn, slamming into a rock wall and plunging onto the rocks below." Police found the roadway evidence and the SUV's own black box confirmed the sequence of events. It also showed through it all -- the driver NEVER attempted to put on the brakes. Duval had a preliminary hearing for the murder of her sister, a woman who had once been half of their West Palm Beach yoga Studio: Twin Power Yoga. According to reports, it was a success, at least for six years before suddenly shutting down. The twins also briefly opened a Twin Power Yoga studio in Utah in 2014, after shuttering their Palm Beach studio. According to published reports, this is not Duval's first brush with the law. She and her sister had past arrests for driving under the influence, battery and numerous other charges. Prosecutors now believe Duval is a flight risk because she tried to leave the islands last Wednesday and had a flight booked to the mainland on Friday, but was arrested before she left. Because of that concern, Judge Blaine Kobayashi ordered her to be held without bail. Duval's next court appearance will be Wednesday for a preliminary hearing. Related articles: ||||| "The fear we have is that she could easily go to a country where we don't have an extradition treaty. She has already changed her identity once, so she could change her identity again and we wouldn't be able to locate her," said deputy prosecuting attorney Emlyn Higa. ||||| In this May 29, 2016 photo provided by Tom Johnson, a vehicle sits at the bottom of a cliff off Maui’s Hana Highway in Hana, Hawaii. A Maui woman who was driving the vehicle when it plunged off the cliff... (Associated Press) HONOLULU (AP) — A woman who was driving a vehicle when it plunged off a Maui cliff is charged with second-degree murder in the death of her twin, who was in the passenger's seat. Prosecutors say Alexandria Duval, who is also known as Alison Dadow, intentionally caused the death of her identical twin sister, Anastasia Duval, also known as Ann Dadow. The 37-year-old sisters were in a Ford Explorer traveling south on Hana Highway when they crashed into a rock wall last week, plunging about 200 feet onto a rocky shoreline, police said. Anastasia Duval was pronounced dead at the scene. Her sister was taken to a hospital in critical condition. Witnesses saw the two women arguing while the vehicle was stopped and said the passenger was pulling the driver's hair, Maui Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Emlyn Higa said. Then they saw the vehicle "accelerate forward and then take a sharp left over the cliff," he said. One of the witnesses said the driver appeared to be in a rage before the vehicle went over the cliff, according to probable cause documents filed in court. The vehicle's air-bag control module showed that the driver didn't attempt to brake before accelerating, making a hard left and hitting the wall, the documents said. Hana resident Margie Aumaier said she was surprised anyone survived the crash after seeing that the vehicle landed on its side. Emergency workers used her yard as a helicopter landing zone for the complicated rescue, she said. After being extricated from the vehicle, the driver didn't want to give officers any information and only identified herself as "Alex," the document said. Alexandria Duval was arrested Friday at the Seaside Hotel. "We had information after she was discharged from the hospital she attempted to fly out of the jurisdiction Wednesday night," Higa said. She wasn't able to leave Wednesday and had flight arrangements to fly to the West Coast Friday night, prompting police to arrest her, according to the court documents. "All we know is she was trying to leave the state," Higa said. "We were afraid she would try to leave the country as well." She appeared in court Monday with her arm in a sling, said her defense attorney, Todd Eddins. A judge ordered that she continue to be held without bail. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Wednesday. "Alison did not try to harm herself or the person she most loved and was closest to in the world," Eddins said after the hearing, calling the situation a "heart-shattering" tragedy for the sisters' family. Eddins said the family still refers to the sisters by their given names. It's not clear when the twins changed their names, Higa said. Their Hawaii driver's licenses are in their new names, bearing the same Haiku address, he said. They're originally from Florida, where they ran a successful yoga business, and moved to Hawaii in December from Utah, Eddins said. "They were in the process of building a business plan and were aspiring to open up studios here," he said. "They had an extremely close bond." ___ Follow Jennifer Sinco Kelleher at http://www.twitter.com/JenHapa. Her work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/jennifer-sinco-kelleher. ||||| UPDATE 6/8/16: A judge has dropped the second-degree murder charge against Alexandria Duval. Get the full story here. A Maui woman is accused of killing her twin sister after allegedly driving their SUV off a cliff along Hana Highway last week. Alexandria Duval, 37, of Haiku, survived the dramatic, 200-foot plunge and crash that wrecked the Ford Explorer on a rocky coastline. Her twin sister, identified as Anastasia Duval, was pronounced dead at the scene. Authorities say the sisters were also known as Allison (Alexandria) and Ann (Anastasia) Dadow. Alexandria Duval appeared in a Wailuku courtroom Monday on a second-degree attempted murder charge, her arm in a sling but, surprisingly, able to walk. She is currently being held without bail. Newly released court documents reveal more bizarre twists to an already shocking incident, including witness accounts that the two women were “screaming and arguing with each other,” and “the passenger was pulling at the driver’s hair and the steering wheel.” Maui firefighters and police responded to the Puuiki area, about four miles south of Hana at 4:42 p.m., Sunday, May 29, after the SUV went over the makai shoulder directly across of St. Peter Catholic Mission Church. Rescue crews had to manually pry the sisters from the vehicle as it lay on lava rock surrounded by water. Lawrence Lau told KHON2 he saw the two fighting before the SUV drove off the cliff. “I saw a pair of hands jerking the head, pulling the hair,” Lau said. “There were hands pulling her head down like this, and her head was jerking.” Lau says all of a sudden, the driver took off and drove right past them and off the cliff. “My first thought when she was coming past us was, ‘Don’t hit me, don’t hit me,’ because she was slightly out of control. She was doing 40 miles an hour from a dead stop at that point,” Lau said. “I’m just sad about it. I’m amazed that that lady survived. I am really amazed because I saw how far she fell.” Records say investigators found that there were no attempts of braking, based on witness accounts, roadway debris at the scene, and the vehicle’s airbag control module, which “showed that prior to and at the time of the vehicle’s collision into the wall, there was hard acceleration and a hard left steering input…” Documents show that Alexandria tried to take a flight to the mainland on Wednesday but missed it, and that she was booked on another flight that night. Her attorney, Todd Eddins, told the court she was not trying to evade the law. “Miss Dadow is making plans to return home to attend her sister’s funeral,” he said. “There is no attempt to flee the jurisdiction with respect to any alleged crimes here.” Eddins says the sisters ran a successful yoga studio in Florida, and that this has been a devastating, heart-shattering tragedy for the family. “People have reasons for having a different name. There’s nothing to suggest that she came here with a fake name,” he said. Records show that the sisters were arrested for disorderly conduct on Dec. 24. They posted bail but did not appear for their hearing, so a bench warrant was issued for their arrest.

– A woman has been charged with her twin's murder after allegedly driving an SUV off a seaside cliff in Maui. Police say Alexandria Duval, 37, was driving a Ford Explorer that went through a rock wall, plunging 200 feet onto rocks on May 29. She was flown to a hospital in critical condition, while her passenger, sister Anastasia Duval, was pronounced dead at the scene, reports the AP. Prosecutors say the crash was no accident. Witnesses saw the twins arguing in the SUV with "the passenger pulling the hair of the driver, who appeared to be in a rage," per KITV. One witness says Alexandria then accelerated into the rock wall from a dead stop, per KHON. Vehicle records show she made no attempt to brake, investigators say. Authorities add Alexandria Duval was attempting to flee Hawaii when she was arrested Friday on second-degree murder charges. Her lawyer, however, says she was only "making plans to return home to attend her sister's funeral." He adds his client—who has pleaded not guilty to murder and is being held without bail—"did not try to harm herself or the person she most loved and was closest to in the world," and the accident was only a "heart-shattering" tragedy. Hawaii News Now reports the crash was just "the latest twist in the bizarre lives of the twins." They opened two yoga studios in Florida as Alison and Ann Dadow, but suddenly closed both in 2014. They resurfaced in Utah where they claimed bankruptcy, then appeared in Hawaii a few months ago apparently having changed their names. They were arrested for disorderly conduct and terroristic threatening on Christmas Eve, posted bail, but did not attend a hearing, leading to warrants for their arrest. (In Pennsylvania, the attorney general is being sued by her twin sister.)

“I would not feel so alone,” sang Bob Dylan back in 1966, “everybody must get stoned.” It would seem lots of people have obliged: cannabis is now far and away the world’s favourite illicit drug, with approximately 180 million people having taken it in the past year. In England and Wales about 13.5% of 16 to 24 years olds have used cannabis in the past year, and almost one in three people will try it at least once during their lifetime. Of the 6.4% of adults aged 16-59 who reported using cannabis in the past year, over 40% said they used it at least once a month. Given that a significant chunk of the population are consuming the stuff, it is perhaps not surprising that most people believe the risks involved in getting stoned are more or less equivalent to the risks from getting drunk. US president Barack Obama seems to be one of them: “I smoked pot as a kid, and I view it as a bad habit and a vice, not very different from the cigarettes that I smoked as a young person up through a big chunk of my adult life," he explained to the New Yorker. "I don't think it is more dangerous than alcohol." Certainly many people use cannabis without adverse effects, and indeed with plenty of very pleasant ones. Moreover, there is evidence that cannabis can bring real medical benefits, for example in alleviating chronic pain. But there is also known to be a link between cannabis and paranoid thoughts. “Paranoid” in this context means the unfounded or excessive fear that other people are trying to harm us. It’s a feeling that is far more common than previously thought. That is understandable given that we are all constantly compelled to interpret social situations, weighing up the attitudes and intentions of the people we meet. Because it is impossible to know for sure what other people are thinking, there is ample scope for our anxiety to get the better of us. Like most psychological experiences, there is a spectrum of paranoia within the population: many people have a few, relatively mild paranoid thoughts, while for a few people those thoughts are numerous, persistent, and profoundly unsettling. Cannabis users are more likely to be at the problematic end of that spectrum. For instance, our study of the population of England found that the belief that people are deliberately trying to harm you is three times as common among cannabis users as it is among non-users. The belief that people are trying to cause you serious injury or harm is five times as common among cannabis users. However, what we see here is an association between cannabis and paranoia. Experts generally agree that regular use of cannabis starting from an early age is an accurate predictor of later severe mental health problems, but what hasn’t been established is whether the drug causes paranoid thoughts. Maybe people suffering from paranoia are more likely to start taking cannabis; or perhaps the drug use and the suspicious thoughts are independent consequences of another factor entirely. This question of the tangled interrelationship of paranoia and cannabis use was at the heart of a study we conducted with colleagues from the University of Oxford, the Institute of Psychiatry at King's College London, and the University of Manchester, published on Wednesday in Schizophrenia Bulletin. Why did we focus on paranoia rather than mental health in general? Other studies tend to lump all such problems together under the heading of “psychosis” or “schizophrenia”, but as we’ve argued previously on this blog such experiences frequently occur independently: having paranoid thoughts doesn’t mean, for example, that someone will also hear imaginary voices. To discover whether cannabis really does cause paranoia in vulnerable individuals, we carried out the largest ever study of the effects of THC (∆9-tetrahydrocannabinol, the drug’s principal psychoactive ingredient). We recruited 121 volunteers, all of whom had taken cannabis at least once before, and all of whom reported having experienced paranoid thoughts in the previous month (which is typical of half the population). None had been diagnosed with a mental illness. The volunteers were randomly chosen to receive an intravenous 1.5mg dose of either THC (the equivalent of a strong joint) or a placebo (saline). To track the effects of these substances, we used the most extensive form of assessment yet deployed to test paranoia, including a virtual-reality scenario, a real-life social situation, self-administered questionnaires, and expert interviewer assessments. The results were clear: THC caused paranoid thoughts. Half of those given THC experienced paranoia, compared with 30% of the placebo group: that is, one in five had an increase in paranoia that was directly attributable to the THC. (Interestingly, the placebo produced extraordinary effects in certain individuals. They were convinced they were stoned, and acted accordingly. Because at the time we didn’t know who had been given the drug, we assumed they were high too.) THC also produced other unsettling psychological effects, such as anxiety, worry, lowered mood, and negative thoughts about the self. Short-term memory was impaired. And the THC sparked a range of what psychologists call “anomalous experiences”: sounds seemed louder than usual and colours brighter; thoughts appeared to echo in the individuals’ minds; and time seemed to be distorted. Why is cannabis such a potent trigger for paranoia? Our statistical analysis showed that in our experiment the culprits were THC’s negative effects on the individual’s mood and view of the self, and the anomalous sensory experiences it can produce. Negative emotions leave us feeling down and vulnerable. Worry leads us to the worst conclusions. So when we try to make sense of the anomalous experiences – when we try, in other words, to understand what’s happening to us – the world can appear a weird, frightening and hostile place. Hence the paranoia. Our analysis suggests that the impairments in short-term memory did not increase the paranoia. Clearly cannabis doesn’t cause these problems for everyone. And the suspiciousness wore off as the drug left the bloodstream. But the study does show that paranoia isn’t tenuously linked to THC: for a significant number of people, it’s a direct result. Perhaps most importantly, the research shines a light on the psychological processes underlying paranoia in general. When we worry, think negatively about ourselves and experience perceptual disturbances, it’s much more likely that we will feel needlessly suspicious of others. Follow @ProfDFreeman and @JasonFreeman100 on Twitter ||||| In what is deemed the largest and most in-depth study of the effects of the main ingredient in marijuana, researchers say they have identified the psychological factors that can lead to feelings of paranoia among users of the drug. The research team, led by Prof. Daniel Freeman of the University of Oxford in the UK, recently published their findings in the journal Schizophrenia Bulletin. Marijuana, also known as cannabis, is a drug that is produced from the plants Cannabis sativa or Cannabis indica. The main active ingredient in marijuana is delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is responsible for the majority of the drug's psychological effects, such as hallucinations and delusions. Researchers suggest that THC - the main active ingredient in marijuana - causes certain negative feelings and changes perceptions that induce paranoid feelings among users of the drug. Researchers suggest that THC - the main active ingredient in marijuana - causes certain negative feelings and changes perceptions that induce paranoid feelings among users of the drug. Past research has indicated that marijuana use can induce paranoia - which Prof. Freeman describes as "excessive thinking that other people are trying to harm us." "It's very common because in our day-to-day lives we have to weigh up whether to trust or mistrust, and when we get it wrong - that's paranoia," he explains." Many people have a few paranoid thoughts, and a few people have many paranoid thoughts." For the study, Prof. Freeman and colleagues tested the effects of THC on 121 participants ages 21-50 in order to see whether the compound triggers paranoid feelings and how it does this. All participants had used cannabis at least once previously and had no history of mental health conditions. Two thirds of participants were injected with THC at a dose equivalent to a strong joint, while a third of participants were injected with a placebo. The researchers note that they chose to inject the participants with the compound as it ensured they all had similar levels of THC in their bloodstream. The researchers report that the effects of THC on participants lasted for 90 minutes. THC causes 'negative feelings and changes in perception that induce paranoia' Results of the study revealed that among participants who were injected with THC, around 50% reported paranoid thoughts, compared with 30% of participants who received the placebo. The researchers note that as the compound left the bloodstream, feelings of paranoia reduced. The team found that THC also induced anxiety, worry, reduced mood, negative thoughts about oneself, changes in perception - including the report of louder noises and clouds being brighter - and altered their perception of time. Using a statistical analysis, the researchers found that it may be these negative feelings and changes in perception that cause paranoid feelings among marijuana users. The team says their findings not only "very convincingly" show that cannabis can cause short-term paranoia in some users, but they may also explain how our mind encourages paranoid feelings. "Paranoia is likely to occur when we are worried, think negatively about ourselves, and experience unsettling changes in our perceptions," says Prof. Freeman, adding: "The study identifies a number of highly plausible ways in which our mind promotes paranoid fears. Worry skews our view of the world and makes us focus on perceived threat. Thinking we are inferior means we feel vulnerable to harm. Just small differences in our perception can make us feel that something strange and even frightening is going on." He notes that although the study - funded by the UK's Medical Research Council - provides more information about the immediate effects marijuana can have, it does not look at the effects of cannabis addiction and therefore "does not necessarily hold implications for policing, the criminal justice system or legislation." "The implication is that reducing time spent ruminating, being more confident in ourselves, and not catastrophizing when unusual perceptual disturbances occur will in all likelihood lessen paranoia," adds Prof. Freeman. This research is the latest in a line of studies that reveal potential negative implications of marijuana use. Earlier this year, Medical News Today reported on a study suggesting that marijuana use may increase the likelihood of sleep problems, while another study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association links cannabis use to cardiovascular complications and death.

– There has long been a known association between marijuana and paranoia, but UK researchers wanted to find out if cannabis actually causes paranoia in some people—and the answer is a resounding yes, write researchers Daniel Freeman and Jason Freeman in the Guardian. They studied 121 people who had taken cannabis at least once, reported paranoid thoughts sometime during the past month, and had not been diagnosed with a mental illness. Then, in a random and blind test, two-thirds received an intravenous dose of THC (equivalent to a "strong joint," Medical News Today notes) while the rest got a placebo. Then paranoia was comprehensively tracked, and half of the subjects who'd received THC experienced it, compared to 30% of those who got the placebo. "That is, one in five had an increase in paranoia that was directly attributable to the THC," the researchers write. The study shows that "paranoia isn’t tenuously linked to THC: For a significant number of people, it’s a direct result." The researchers also found that the THC produced other negative mental health effects, including anxiety, negative thoughts, and lowered mood. Oh, and it also caused "anomalous experiences" like echoing thoughts and a distorted sense of time, sounds, and colors. Trying to make sense of those experiences while already in a vulnerable state (thanks to the lowered mood) could lead to the paranoia, the researchers suggest. The good news? Subjects' paranoia decreased as the drug left their bloodstream. (Cannabis is also genetically linked to schizophrenia.)

Topics: 2012 Elections, Libya, Libya embassy attack, Mitt Romney, Politics News Yesterday, the Romney campaign accused President Obama of “sympathizing” with violent mobs that attacked American embassies in Cairo and Benghazi, Libya. In Benghazi, where the mob was armed and the attack possibly planned in advance, four Americans, including the U.S. ambassador, were killed. Romney’s accusation was based on a statement released not by the White House but by the embassy in Cairo, and that statement was designed to quell the protests before they became dangerous, which they did, shortly thereafter. This morning, when the scope of the tragedy was clearer, Romney personally affirmed that he believes the administration “sympathized” with the mob in Egypt. “I think it’s a terrible course for America to stand in apology for our values,” he said, in order to evoke his oft-repeated lie about the president “apologizing” for America. Romney’s response has been widely denounced as beyond the pale, for combining dishonesty, breathtaking insensitivity (the statement was released on Sept. 11 while the violence was still underway), and obscenely cynical political opportunism in one neat package. The outrage has come not just from Democrats and the left, but also from members of the objective press and a few (many anonymous) representatives of the right and the Republican Party. It may be true, as Joan Walsh says, that Romney will never be president. But, unfortunately, I think people predicting (or hoping) that Romney’s shameless performance over the last day will end up hurting his campaign are themselves jumping the gun. This wasn’t McCain suspending his campaign, the moment a few commentators have compared it to. That was so bizarre it caught the attention of even uninterested voters, and it was a fiasco that lasted for days — days immediately preceding a debate. Romney’s shamelessness added up to a morning’s worth of bad headlines, honestly, even if the stink lingers for a while. ||||| (CBS News) In response to Mitt Romney's criticism of the Obama administration for its handling of recent violence in Egypt and Libya, President Obama told CBS News on Wednesday that Romney "seems to have a tendency to shoot first and aim later." "There's a broader lesson to be learned here," Mr. Obama told "60 Minutes" correspondent Steve Kroft at the White House. "And I -- you know, Governor Romney seems to have a tendency to shoot first and aim later. And as president, one of the things I've learned is you can't do that. That, you know, it's important for you to make sure that the statements that you make are backed up by the facts. And that you've thought through the ramifications before you make 'em." Asked if Romney's attacks were irresponsible, the president replied, "I'll let the American people judge that." Romney's campaign released a statement on Tuesday night -- Sept. 11 -- asserting "that the Obama administration's first response was not to condemn attacks on our diplomatic missions, but to sympathize with those who waged the attacks." The criticism was in response to a statement put out by the U.S. embassy in Egypt, not the Obama administration. In addition, the embassy statement was released in an apparent effort to head off any possible violence. At the time, there were no attacks to condemn. On Wednesday morning, Romney stood by the statement despite criticism that he was injecting politics into a national tragedy, telling reporters the president is acting "in apology for our values." "I also believe the administration was wrong to stand by a statement sympathizing with those who had breached our embassy in Egypt, instead of condemning their actions," Romney said. The claim came despite the fact that the administration had actually distanced itself from the embassy's statement, something Romney acknowledged during the press conference. "It's never too early for the United States government to condemn attacks on Americans and to defend our values," Romney added. Steve Schmidt, senior campaign strategist to Sen. John McCain in McCain's 2008 presidential campaign, told CBS News Wednesday that Romney's "comments were a big mistake, and the decision to double down on them was an even bigger mistake." "There are legitimate criticisms to be made but you foreclose on your ability to make them when you try to score easy political points," he said. "And the American people, when the country is attacked, whether they're a Republican or Democrat or independent, want to see leaders who have measured responses, not leaders whose first instinct is to try to score political points." In a statement to CBS News, former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright said, "Governor Romney's ill-advised and politically-motivated statement last night concerning the tragedy in Benghazi is deeply regrettable." "Our nation should stand as one in condemning the lawless attacks on American diplomatic personnel and in doing everything possible to see that such attacks are not repeated," she added. Four Americans, including U.S. Ambassador to Libya J. Christopher Stevens, were killed after an attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi tied to the production of an amateur anti-Islam film. (That attack appears to have been independent of the Cairo violence, but both appear to have been related to the production of the film.) Romney's initial statement was released before the killings, but his comments standing by it came afterward. ||||| One can question the timing and tone of Mitt Romney’s statement last night. One can note he wasn't as fluent and clear as he might have been at his press conference this morning. Still, the fact remains that the events of September 11, 2012, represent a big moment for the country. Romney is right to sense this, and to seize on this moment as an occasion to explain the difference between his foreign policy and President Obama’s. He’s right to reject the counsel of the mainstream media, which is to keep quiet and give President Obama a pass. Mark Halperin tweeted this morning, “Unless Mitt has gamed crisis out in some manner completely invisible to Gang of 500, doubling down=most craven + ill-advised move of ‘12.” Halperin couldn't be more wrong. Romney is right to bring home the weakness of the Obama administration, exemplified in the disgraceful statement issued yesterday, September 11, by the American embassy in Cairo—a statement, I believe, that would have to have been cleared by the State Department. I'd add this: Romney deserves credit for emphasizing today that the events in Cairo and Benghazi remind us of the need for American leadership. He refused to cater to what must be a widespread (and understandable, if short-sighted) ‘let's just get out of that crazy part of the world’ sentiment among the public. He spoke in the tradition of conservative internationalism. So, so far, I believe, pretty much so good. The question is, what comes next?

– Mitt Romney's criticism of President Obama after the violence in Libya and Egypt continues to spin off into a political story of its own. Now Obama himself weighs in, telling CBS News that Romney spoke too soon when he accused the White House of sympathizing with the protesters: "There's a broader lesson to be learned here," he says. "Governor Romney seems to have a tendency to shoot first and aim later. And as president, one of the things I've learned is you can't do that. That, you know, it's important for you to make sure that the statements that you make are backed up by the facts. And that you've thought through the ramifications before you make 'em." Bill Kristol defends Romney from the right, however, writing in the Weekly Standard that Romney correctly sensed that the anti-US protests illustrate the need for strong American leadership abroad. Whether it helps or hurts his campaign depends on what happens next. "If Romney can prove both strong and thoughtful on foreign policy over the next few days, it could be an inflection point in the presidential campaign." At Salon, Alex Pareene finds Romney's attack "shameless" but says it's not "horrible politics." Click for that.

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption The BBC's Shaimaa Khalil: "Morsi attempting to assert control" Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi has ordered the military to maintain security and protect state institutions in the run-up to a controversial referendum on a new constitution. The army has also been given the power to arrest civilians. Mr Morsi has tried to calm public anger by annulling a decree giving him huge powers, but rejected a call to scrap the 15 December constitutional vote. Opposition leaders called for protests on Tuesday against the referendum. The opposition was "not aiming at toppling the president" but wanted a better constitution, former Foreign Minister Amr Moussa told the BBC. Islamist groups have said they will hold counter demonstrations, raising fears of further bloody clashes on the streets of the Egyptian capital. Egypt's crisis 22 Nov: Presidential decree gives Mr Morsi sweeping new powers Presidential decree gives Mr Morsi sweeping new powers 30 Nov: Islamist-dominated constituent assembly adopts draft constitution Islamist-dominated constituent assembly adopts draft constitution 1 Dec: Mr Morsi sets 15 December as date for constitutional referendum Mr Morsi sets 15 December as date for constitutional referendum 2 Dec: Judges go on strike Judges go on strike 5 Dec: Clashes outside presidential palace Clashes outside presidential palace 7 Dec: Protesters breach palace cordon Protesters breach palace cordon 8 Dec: Mr Morsi rescinds his presidential decree but remains firm on referendum In another apparent concession, the president suspended a big tax increase on the sale of a variety of goods including soft drinks, cigarettes and beer. The decision was carried in a statement that appeared on Mr Morsi's Facebook page in the early hours of Monday, state-owned al-Ahram newspaper reported. Weakened police As tension increased before Saturday's referendum, Mr Morsi ordered the military to maintain security "up to the announcement of the results from the referendum", AFP news agency reports. The BBC's Jon Leyne in Cairo says the step will raise fears that Egypt is moving back towards military rule. Under the new presidential decree, the military is asked to co-ordinate with the police on maintaining security and is also entitled to arrest civilians. The police have been seen as weakened since the fall of former President Hosni Mubarak and failed to intervene when anti-Muslim Brotherhood protesters ransacked the Islamist movement's Cairo headquarters last week, correspondents say. Arab Uprisings week on the BBC Two years since a young Tunisian street trader's death prompted a wave of rebellion across the Arab world A special week of coverage across BBC TV, Radio and Online Correspondents reporting from key locations Jeremy Bowen's 10 key moments Postcards from the Arab Uprising Arab Uprisings: Special report An increased military presence was visible on Monday close to the presidential palace, which has been the focus of opposition demonstrations. The army has sealed off the area with concrete blocks. It is not yet clear whether the opposition will boycott Saturday's referendum. However, a group of senior judges announced on Monday that they would be prepared to oversee the vote, on certain conditions. Votes in Egypt are traditionally supervised by the judiciary but the 22 November presidential decree led thousands of judges to go on strike. Now, with the decree rescinded, the State Council Judges' Club has agreed to oversee the vote as long as pro-Morsi supporters call a halt to a sit-in outside Egypt's Supreme Constitutional Court. The court suspended work on 2 December, citing "psychological pressure" from Islamists who had prevented a meeting on a draft of the new constitution. The protesters had wanted to block a ruling on the legality of the document. 'Division and sedition' The opposition argues that the constitution was drafted by an assembly dominated by Mohammed Morsi's Islamist allies. Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Nobel peace laureate and founder of the Constitution Party, Mohamed ElBaradei: "The whole process is hostage to religious institution rather than judiciary" In a statement after talks on Sunday, the opposition National Salvation Front said it would not recognise the draft constitution "because it does not represent the Egyptian people". "We reject the referendum which will certainly lead to more division and sedition," spokesman Sameh Ashour said. In a BBC interview, one of the Front's main leaders, Amr Moussa, insisted they were not "aiming at doing anything that would lead to the disintegration of the state". "Why should we make the people swallow a constitution that could have been much better and should have been much better?" On Sunday, hundreds of opposition protesters protested against the referendum outside the presidential palace. Analysis Many Egyptians are furious that their lives have not got better since the revolution. They point to a lack of reform, with no economic progress, no attempt to cleanse the notoriously brutal and corrupt police force, let alone any success in sorting out Egypt's many other problems, such as the piles of rubbish on the streets, the terrible traffic, and the filthy and polluted environment. As for President Morsi, he is fighting a battle on two fronts. While many opponents object to the Islamic tendencies in the new constitution, he is also under enormous pressure not to give ground to the liberals. No easy way out of Egypt crisis They chanted anti-Muslim Brotherhood slogans and held up banners reading slogans such as "Morsi, hold back your thugs" and "The people demand the fall of the regime". But Mohamed Soudan, foreign relations secretary of the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party, said Mr Morsi was constitutionally bound to go ahead with the vote because the date had been announced by the constituent assembly. The president says he is trying to safeguard the revolution that overthrew Hosni Mubarak last year, but his critics accuse him of acting like a dictator. Mr Morsi's decree of 22 November stripped the judiciary of any right to challenge his decisions and triggered violent protests. Although the decree has been annulled, some decisions taken under it still stand. The general prosecutor, who was dismissed, will not be reinstated, and the retrial of former regime officials will go ahead. ||||| Photo Advertisement Continue reading the main story CAIRO — The political crisis over Egypt’s draft constitution hardened on both sides on Sunday, as President Mohamed Morsi prepared to deploy the army to safeguard balloting in a planned referendum on the new charter and his opponents called for more protests and a boycott to undermine the vote. Thousands of demonstrators streamed toward the presidential palace for a fifth night of protests against Mr. Morsi and the proposed charter, and the president, a former leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, formally issued an order asking the military to protect such “vital institutions” and to secure the vote. With the decision to boycott the referendum, the opposition signaled that it had given up hope that it could defeat the draft charter at the polls, and had opted instead to try to undermine the referendum’s legitimacy. The call for new protests — with major demonstrations expected at the presidential palace again on Tuesday and Friday — ensures that questions about Egypt’s national unity and stability will continue to overshadow debate about the specific contents of the charter. Although international experts who have studied the draft say it is hardly more religious than Egypt’s old constitution, opponents say it fails to adequately protect individual rights from being constricted by a future Islamist majority in Parliament. Continue reading the main story Video Over the past two weeks, hundreds of thousands of people have poured into the streets to oppose the charter, crowds have attacked 28 Muslim Brotherhood offices and the group’s headquarters, and at least seven people have died in clashes between Islamist and secular political factions. The opposition “rejects lending legitimacy to a referendum that will definitely lead to more sedition and division,” said Sameh Ashour, a spokesman for a coalition that calls itself the National Salvation Front. Holding a referendum “in a state of seething and chaos,” Mr. Ashour said, amounted to “a reckless and flagrant absence of responsibility, risking driving the country into violent confrontations that endanger its national security.” Advertisement Continue reading the main story Whether to ask voters to vote no or to stay home has been the subject of heated debate in opposition circles in the week since Mr. Morsi announced the referendum, to be held on Saturday. Now the question is whether opponents can translate the energy of the protests against the charter into more votes and seats in parliamentary elections that are expected to take place two months after the referendum. Both sides acknowledge that President Morsi, who belongs to the Muslim Brotherhood’s political party, has hurt himself and his party politically with the act that first touched off the protests: a decree giving himself authoritarian powers and putting his decisions above the reach of judicial review until the new charter is passed. He suffered even more, they say, when the backlash against the decree and the new constitution led to a night of clashes between his Islamists supporters and their more secular opponents that left at least six dead and hundreds more injured. Advertisement Continue reading the main story Mr. Morsi surprised his critics after midnight on Sunday by withdrawing almost all the provisions of his decree, a step he said he took on the recommendation of about 40 politicians and thinkers he convened on Saturday for a “national dialogue” meant to resolve the crisis. Leading opposition figures were invited to take part, but nearly all declined; according to a list broadcast on state television, most of the attendees were Islamists of various stripes, and the only prominent secular politician on hand was the former presidential candidate Ayman Nour. A spokesman for the group said at an authorized news conference that Mr. Morsi was issuing a new, more limited decree, giving immunity from judicial scrutiny only to his “constitutional declarations,” a narrow if hazily defined category of presidential actions. Steps he took under the previous decree would also be protected, including dismissal of the public prosecutor, who was appointed under the ousted former president, Hosni Mubarak. Through the spokesman for the “national dialogue” group, Mohamed Salim el-Awa, Mr. Morsi even signaled a willingness to allow his opponents and allies to negotiate a package of amendments to the constitution that all sides would agree to enact once the draft is approved. But Mr. Morsi did not concede to the opposition’s main demand: to postpone the referendum long enough for an overhaul of the draft. Mohamed ElBaradei, the former diplomat who now acts as a coordinator of the secular opposition, was the first to fire back on Sunday, resorting again to the language of revolution. “We have broken the barrier of fear: A constitution that aborts our rights and freedoms is one that we will bring down today, before tomorrow,” Mr. ElBaradei wrote in a Twitter posting early on Sunday. “Our power is in our will.” As his proposed compromise faded and tensions mounted on Sunday, Mr. Morsi followed through on plans announced the day before to authorize the military to protect national institutions and polling places. His order, printed in the official gazette on Sunday, amounts to a form of martial law, because it will allow soldiers under the direction of the defense minister to arrest civilians under a military code of justice. The move indicated that, at least in the short term, Egypt’s powerful military was lining up behind the new Islamist president to complete the transition to a new constitution. Muslim Brotherhood leaders cheered a Defense Ministry spokesman’s televised statement explaining that the army might step in to maintain order for the balloting next Saturday because the spokesman’s wording echoed passages in many of the president’s speeches about the need for Egyptians to come together for the referendum. The apparent alliance between the Brotherhood and the military reverses 60 years of mutual hostility, and it is likely to disappoint some Egyptians who fear the Islamists and had begun to whisper that the military might remove Mr. Morsi from power. Advertisement Continue reading the main story Advertisement Continue reading the main story One person close to Mr. Morsi said the president issued the order so that troops could secure the voting process, as they have done in each of Egypt’s elections since the ouster of Mr. Mubarak. Islamists, including some around Mr. Morsi, have become increasingly distrustful of the Interior Ministry, whose police forces have failed to stop attacks on Muslim Brotherhood offices or vandalism outside the presidential palace. But Amr Moussa, a former foreign minister under Mr. Mubarak who is now an opposition leader, said it may have been the military’s idea, not the president’s, to issue the authorization, and with it a veiled warning. “Everybody — all of us in civil society — are getting really disturbed by this very serious situation,” he said. “Everybody is upset, and that extends into the army.” After taking office in June, Mr. Morsi spent months courting the generals, sometimes earning the derision of liberal activists for his public flattery of their role. The constitution his supporters eventually drew up included protections of the military’s autonomy and privileges within the Egyptian government, despite the protests of the same activists. The “national dialogue” group concluded on Saturday, as Mr. Morsi had, that the constitutional referendum had to be held quickly and could not be delayed. The timing was forced, they said, by an earlier constitutional declaration that was approved by voters in March 2011, a month after Mr. Mubarak’s overthrow, over the objections of the liberals. That referendum also set up the framework for parliamentary elections, which were won handily by Islamist parties and candidates; the Parliament was later dissolved by the country’s constitutional court.

– The opposition's debate on how to handle Mohamed Morsi's scheduled constitutional referendum has been decided: Boycott it. In opting not to push voters to actually show up and vote no on Saturday, the move suggests Morsi's opponents determined they didn't have the votes to squash the charter. By taking the boycott route, they likely hope to erode the vote's validity, the New York Times reports. The opposition "rejects lending legitimacy to a referendum that will definitely lead to more sedition and division," says a spokesman. The proposed constitution isn't actually much more religious than the old one, according to outside experts—but opposition activists say it paves the way for any Islamist parliamentary majority to limit individual rights. More demonstrations are planned for tomorrow and Friday, even as Morsi offered a carrot: He today rolled back a wide-ranging tax increase on items ranging from soda and beer to cigarettes and oil—levies that were announced only yesterday, reports the Financial Times. But then there's the stick: The Egyptian leader has given the army the power to arrest citizens. Troops, who have blocked off areas around the presidential palace with concrete blocks, are set to maintain security until referendum results are announced, the BBC reports.

Photo of Jane Wicker - the wing walker who was tragically killed in a plane crash at the Dayton Air Show. Photo contributed by: jerseygal2009 By Breaking News Staff A stunt pilot and a wing-walking performer were killed in a fiery crash at the Vectren Dayton Air Show Saturday. The pair was identified as Jane Wicker and pilot Charlie Schwenker on the “Jane Wicker Air Shows” official Facebook page. “It is with sad hearts that we announce that Jane Wicker and Charlie Schwenker were tragically killed while performing at the Vectren Dayton Airshow. We ask for your prayers for the families and privacy of all involved and allow them time to grieve and work through these events,” said the post. Saturday’s portion of the air show was cancelled in the aftermath of the crash. Dayton International Airport was closed for 25 minutes, but resumed normal operations in the afternoon. Director of Aviation for the city of Dayton Terrence Slaybaugh confirmed that two people died in the crash, which occurred at 12:46 p.m. The wreckage of the plane was removed from the field at about 4:45 p.m. “Obviously this is a tragedy for what is a very small community,” he said. Wicker was wing walking at the time of the crash, sitting on the underside of the inverted 450 HP Stearman named “Aurora”. The Ohio State Highway Patrol is investigating along with the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration, which was already on scene for the show. “Right now there is no conclusive answer about why the accident happened,” Slaybaugh said. He said the investigation could take months. The plane did a cartwheel and burst into flames as it hit the ground. A fire truck was at the crash within two minutes and extinguished the flames. “My understanding is there was nothing (emergency responders) could do for the victims of the crash,” said Lt. Mark Nichols. There have been no reports of injuries to anyone on the ground. “All of a sudden I heard screaming and looked up and there was a fire ball,” said Stan Thayer of Wilmington. Shawn Warwick of New Knoxville said he was watching the plane through binoculars. “I noticed it was upside down really close to the ground. She was sitting on the bottom of the plane,” he said. “I saw it just go right into the ground and explode.” His wife was getting a drink when the crash happened. “I came back and everybody was just in shock,” said Cara Warwick. Tonya Whittaker of Dayton said she has attended the air show the last six years and never expected to see anything like this. “It’s nothing you’d ever want to see and it’s instant terror,” she said. Even those without a clear view of the crash said they knew something was wrong. “I just saw the flames go up from being further back and you knew it was a bad situation immediately,” said Michael Peresta of Cincinnati. 15-year-old Griffin Hopkins, of Englewood, was with two of his friends when they heard an announcement over the PA about an act going on. The three teens then turned away from the booth they were looking at and saw a woman outside of a plane. “She was at the bottom of the plane, but the plane was upside down,” Hopkins said. “They were kind of getting pretty close to the ground there. It was upside down and it kind of curved down.” Hopkins remembered the announcer saying, “look at that.” The teens watched for 15 seconds before the plane hit the ground. “We didn’t know if this was an act and they got out of the plane,” Hopkins said. “At first, we were like did they get out of the plane before it crashed?” The announcer then told the crowd that this was not a part of the act and that parents should turn their children away. “We were just in shock and standing there,” Hopkins said. “People were just in shock, everybody was kind of standing there looking at it.” Vandalia City Councilman Dave Gerhard was seated alongside his family members inside the city’s chalet when the crash happened. “It seemed like everything was just routine,” Gerhard said. “It was flying upside down. I just nose-dived into the ground. Quick as you can blink your eye there was an explosion. It was a nose dive. Boom. Big Explosion.” He said the crowd was stunned and some onlookers began to cry. According to Wicker’s web site wingwalk.org, in addition to performing in air shows she also worked as a budget analyst at the FAA full time, as a freelance writer and had returned to college to finish her degree in finance. She was engaged to fellow team member and pilot Rock Skowbo, who was not involved in the crash. According to a wedding web site made by the couple they planned to wed on Wicker’s plane while it was in flight at an air show in 2014. Many spectators were already leaving when show organizers cancelled the show for the day at 1:30 p.m. Organizers said the show will go on as scheduled on Sunday. The show will honor Saturday’s tickets at Sunday’s show. Just before 3:30 p.m. and again at 4:30 p.m. show staff set off parts of a “wall of fire” that was supposed to be detonated as part of the day’s headlining act. The explosions had nothing to do with the earlier crash. Wicker was the third act at the 39th Vectren Dayton Air Show after the Wright-B Flyer and the F-86 Sabre. Veteran stunt pilot Jim LeRoy was killed when his stunt plane crashed and burned at the 2007 Vectren Dayton Air Show. ||||| Photo of Jane Wicker - the wing walker who was tragically killed in a plane crash at the Dayton Air Show. Photo contributed by: jerseygal2009 By Breaking News Staff A stunt pilot and a wing-walking performer were killed in a fiery crash at the Vectren Dayton Air Show Saturday. The pair was identified as Jane Wicker and pilot Charlie Schwenker on the “Jane Wicker Air Shows” official Facebook page. “It is with sad hearts that we announce that Jane Wicker and Charlie Schwenker were tragically killed while performing at the Vectren Dayton Airshow. We ask for your prayers for the families and privacy of all involved and allow them time to grieve and work through these events,” said the post. Saturday’s portion of the air show was cancelled in the aftermath of the crash. Dayton International Airport was closed for 25 minutes, but resumed normal operations in the afternoon. Director of Aviation for the city of Dayton Terrence Slaybaugh confirmed that two people died in the crash, which occurred at 12:46 p.m. The wreckage of the plane was removed from the field at about 4:45 p.m. “Obviously this is a tragedy for what is a very small community,” he said. Wicker was wing walking at the time of the crash, sitting on the underside of the inverted 450 HP Stearman named “Aurora”. The Ohio State Highway Patrol is investigating along with the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration, which was already on scene for the show. “Right now there is no conclusive answer about why the accident happened,” Slaybaugh said. He said the investigation could take months. The plane did a cartwheel and burst into flames as it hit the ground. A fire truck was at the crash within two minutes and extinguished the flames. “My understanding is there was nothing (emergency responders) could do for the victims of the crash,” said Lt. Mark Nichols. There have been no reports of injuries to anyone on the ground. “All of a sudden I heard screaming and looked up and there was a fire ball,” said Stan Thayer of Wilmington. Shawn Warwick of New Knoxville said he was watching the plane through binoculars. “I noticed it was upside down really close to the ground. She was sitting on the bottom of the plane,” he said. “I saw it just go right into the ground and explode.” His wife was getting a drink when the crash happened. “I came back and everybody was just in shock,” said Cara Warwick. Tonya Whittaker of Dayton said she has attended the air show the last six years and never expected to see anything like this. “It’s nothing you’d ever want to see and it’s instant terror,” she said. Even those without a clear view of the crash said they knew something was wrong. “I just saw the flames go up from being further back and you knew it was a bad situation immediately,” said Michael Peresta of Cincinnati. 15-year-old Griffin Hopkins, of Englewood, was with two of his friends when they heard an announcement over the PA about an act going on. The three teens then turned away from the booth they were looking at and saw a woman outside of a plane. “She was at the bottom of the plane, but the plane was upside down,” Hopkins said. “They were kind of getting pretty close to the ground there. It was upside down and it kind of curved down.” Hopkins remembered the announcer saying, “look at that.” The teens watched for 15 seconds before the plane hit the ground. “We didn’t know if this was an act and they got out of the plane,” Hopkins said. “At first, we were like did they get out of the plane before it crashed?” The announcer then told the crowd that this was not a part of the act and that parents should turn their children away. “We were just in shock and standing there,” Hopkins said. “People were just in shock, everybody was kind of standing there looking at it.” Vandalia City Councilman Dave Gerhard was seated alongside his family members inside the city’s chalet when the crash happened. “It seemed like everything was just routine,” Gerhard said. “It was flying upside down. I just nose-dived into the ground. Quick as you can blink your eye there was an explosion. It was a nose dive. Boom. Big Explosion.” He said the crowd was stunned and some onlookers began to cry. According to Wicker’s web site wingwalk.org, in addition to performing in air shows she also worked as a budget analyst at the FAA full time, as a freelance writer and had returned to college to finish her degree in finance. She was engaged to fellow team member and pilot Rock Skowbo, who was not involved in the crash. According to a wedding web site made by the couple they planned to wed on Wicker’s plane while it was in flight at an air show in 2014. Many spectators were already leaving when show organizers cancelled the show for the day at 1:30 p.m. Organizers said the show will go on as scheduled on Sunday. The show will honor Saturday’s tickets at Sunday’s show. Just before 3:30 p.m. and again at 4:30 p.m. show staff set off parts of a “wall of fire” that was supposed to be detonated as part of the day’s headlining act. The explosions had nothing to do with the earlier crash. Wicker was the third act at the 39th Vectren Dayton Air Show after the Wright-B Flyer and the F-86 Sabre. Veteran stunt pilot Jim LeRoy was killed when his stunt plane crashed and burned at the 2007 Vectren Dayton Air Show. ||||| A plane carrying a wing walker crashed Saturday at an air show in Ohio and exploded into flames, killing the pilot and stunt walker instantly, authorities said. This photo provided provided WHIO TV shows a plane after it crashed Saturday, June 22, 2013, at the Vectren Air Show near Dayton, Ohio. There was no immediate word on the fate of the pilot, wing walker... (Associated Press) Dayton International Airport spokeswoman Linda Hughes and Ohio State Highway Patrol Lt. Anne Ralston confirmed the deaths to The Associated Press. The crash happened at around 12:45 p.m. at the Vectren Air Show near Dayton. No spectators were injured. The show has been canceled for the remainder of the day. The names of those killed weren't released immediately, but a video posted on WHIO-TV showing the flight and crash identified the performer as wing walker Jane Wicker. A schedule posted on the event's website also had Wicker scheduled to perform. The video shows the plane turn upside-down as Wicker sits on top of the wing. The plane then tilts and crashes to the ground, exploding into flames as spectators scream. "All of a sudden I heard screaming and looked up and there was a fireball," spectator Stan Thayer of Wilmington, Ohio, told WHIO. Another spectator, Shawn Warwick of New Knoxville, told the Dayton Daily News that he was watching the flight through binoculars. "I noticed it was upside-down really close to the ground. She was sitting on the bottom of the plane," he said. "I saw it just go right into the ground and explode." Wicker's website says she responded to a classified ad from the Flying Circus Airshow in Bealeton, Virginia, in 1990, for a wing-walking position, thinking it would be fun. Her full-time job was as a budget analyst for the Federal Aviation Administration, according to her website. She told WDTN-TV in an interview this week that her signature move was hanging underneath the plane's wing by her feet and sitting on the bottom of the airplane while it's upside-down. "I'm never nervous or scared because I know if I do everything as I usually do, everything's going to be just fine," she told the station. Wicker wrote on her website that she had never had any close calls. "What you see us do out there is after an enormous amount of practice and fine tuning, not to mention the airplane goes through microscopic care. It is a managed risk and that is what keeps us alive," she wrote. In 2007, veteran stunt pilot Jim LeRoy was killed at the Dayton show when his biplane crashed and burned. Organizers were presenting a trimmed-down show and expected smaller crowds at Dayton after the Air Force Thunderbirds and other military participants pulled out this year because of federal budget cuts. The air show, one of the oldest in the U.S., usually draws around 70,000 people. Without military aircraft and support, the show expected attendance to be off 30 percent or more.

– A wing walker and pilot were killed today in a fiery plane crash at an air show near Dayton, Ohio, the AP reports. They were identified as stunt woman Jane Wicker and pilot Charlie Schwenker, according to the Dayton Daily News. "My understanding is there was nothing [emergency responders] could do for the victims of the crash," says a police official, as per WHIO TV. The Vectren Air Show was canceled for the rest of the day, and the Ohio State Highway Patrol and Federal Aviation Administration are investigating.

When Adam Lanza entered Sandy Hook Elementary School on Friday, December 14, inexplicably bent on ending as many lives as possible, he was carrying a Bushmaster AR-15 assault rifle and several high-capacity magazines. Sadly, this isn’t the first time the country has had to deal with the aftermath of a horrific shooting spree, nor is it the first time we’ve encountered an AR-15 in this context: only days earlier, it was the weapon of choice for a shooting at an Oregon mall that killed two people. Five months earlier, it was used by James Holmes in an attack that wounded fifty-eight people and killed twelve in an Aurora, Colorado, movie theater. And several years before that, a man and his teenage accomplice used a Bushmaster AR-15 to terrorize the Washington, DC, area with a series of random shootings. Although it is not yet clear where the Bushmaster AR-15 used by Lanza (and registered to his mother) was purchased, the model is familiar to many Walmart shoppers. It’s on sale at about 1,700 Walmart stores nationwide, though the retail chain pulled the weapon from its website three days after the attack. While the deadly rampage in Connecticut has finally and unmistakably highlighted the madness of making such weapons readily available, it’s a concern that many people with a Walmart in their community have been trying to address for years. Several months back, the Rev. Greg Brown had a troubling conversation with two members of his youth group from the northwest side of South Bend, Indiana. “They were honor roll students and little young folks that love the Lord,” Brown recounted. “One of the kids came up to me and said, ‘Rev, you ain’t gonna believe what happened the other day at Walmart.’” The kids went on to describe how, on a recent visit to the big-box store, a man asked them to fill up a gym bag with ammunition and sneak it out of the store for him. They declined. Walmart’s ammunition sales have troubled Brown since at least 2009, when two teenagers shoplifted bullets from the local Walmart, shot at an employee who tried to stop them in the parking lot, and then embarked on a citywide robbery spree in which one man was seriously injured. When Brown headed down to the store to see how easy it would be to steal ammunition, he was shocked. Not only were there bullets arrayed on the unlocked shelves; there were rows of guns as well, including assault rifles. South Bend has the most violent crime per capita in Indiana and well more than double the national median. Brown was outraged that Walmart was even selling these weapons, let alone that they were unlocked and under the supervision of hourly employees without specific training in firearm handling and sales. (Brown says a former Marine handles the gun sales at a nearby Dick’s Sporting Goods.) “It’s totally wrong, and it’s totally unacceptable,” he said. “You look back there and see a dad holding a gun, his son pulling on his pocket. And the son knows the gun is going home. The son’s going to know where the gun is.” South Bend isn’t the only place where Walmart is stocking guns, including combat-style weapons and gun-related paraphernalia. The big-box chain at one point sold guns in only about a third of its stores, mainly in remote rural areas where hunting is popular. But in 2011, without much fanfare, Walmart expanded gun sales to about half of its 3,982 stores nationwide, including those in more urban areas like Albuquerque and Spokane. The expansion of gun sales at Walmart came after a five-year slowdown. In 2006, the chain announced that it was rolling back gun sales, citing declining profit margins on the relatively expensive weapons, which even at Walmart can retail for hundreds of dollars. But in 2011, company executives were looking at eight straight quarters of declining sales at stores open for a year or more—the worst slump in Walmart’s history. They must also have noticed that Barack Obama’s inauguration had sparked a rally in gun sales, which have steadily increased every year since 2008. The government isn’t allowed to track firearm sales, but the FBI does release figures on how many retailers ask it to run background checks—a relatively reliable indicator of total gun sales, although likely a lowball estimate, since a person can buy multiple guns on a single background check, and many gun shows aren’t required to perform such checks. In 2007, retailers asked the FBI for just over 11 million background checks; by the end of 2009, 14 million checks were requested—a 27 percent increase. In April 2011, Walmart began stocking guns in more and more stores, expanding the sales to 1,750 outlets nationwide. By the end of that year, the FBI received 16.4 million background check requests; the number is 16.8 million this year. Overall Walmart sales figures are back on track after the 2011 slump, and executive vice president Duncan Mac Naughton told shareholders at a meeting in October 2012 that gun sales in particular are a staple of the chain’s strategy to continue boosting its numbers. He said that over the past twenty-six months, gun sales at Walmart stores open for a year or more were up an astonishing 76 percent, while ammunition sales were up 30 percent. Walmart is now the biggest seller of firearms and ammunition in America. “This gun thing, it’s really just a nightmare,” says Bertha Lewis, president of the Black Institute, which has been organizing Walmart workers this year to protest wages and working conditions. Given its aggressive gun sales, Walmart’s logo “shouldn’t be a smiley face; it should be an automatic weapon,” she adds. * * * Nearly 400 guns are available in Walmart’s catalog. And even if your local store doesn’t sell a particular model, you can special-order it (assuming you pay half the cost ahead of time). With the exception of its stores in Alaska, Walmart doesn’t sell handguns, though it does sell ammunition for them, along with a wide variety of semi-automatic long-barrel weapons. For example, at half the Walmarts in America, you can buy a semiautomatic Colt M4 Ops .22 rifle; it carries a thirty-round magazine, which you can also purchase in the store. Or perhaps a Sig Sauer M400 assault rifle, advertised on Walmart’s website as “designed for use in law enforcement, military operations…as well as competitive shooting,” which is just one of several AR-15 assault rifles for sale. In keeping with the store’s pitch as a one-stop destination for shoppers, with everything from gas to groceries, gun enthusiasts can also obtain a wide range of gun accessories—including the 360 types of ammunition listed on Walmart’s website. You can buy a 555-pack of Winchester hollow-point bullets, which the website advertises as “great for plinking and varmints,” but which would cause extensive damage should they enter a human body and expand, as they are designed to do. There are full clips of ammunition for assault rifles, including “quiet ammo” that makes only a quarter of the noise of regular bullets. Laser-pointing sights for handguns are also available, as well as belts for holding shotgun shells (only $4.97 at select stores). Walmart, which declined to comment for this story, has said elsewhere that its stores will always respect local laws and ordinances on gun sales. But in 2005, Walmart was busted by Bill Lockyer, then the California attorney general, for thousands of state gun law violations—including selling to people that the AG’s office had notified Walmart were prohibited from owning firearms; delivering guns to customers before they passed a background check; and sometimes even failing to ascertain a customer’s identity. The company settled the suit for $14.5 million. And, of course, Walmart has contributed to efforts to change state gun laws and make the possession and use of firearms even easier. It was one of the key backers of the American Legislative Exchange Council when the group aggressively pushed “stand your ground” laws in states across the country. (Walmart has since dropped out of ALEC under public pressure.) In 2008, the store reached an agreement with Mayors Against Illegal Guns to adopt tough new standards for sales above the federal requirements for gun retailers. But even if every regulation is adhered to, the mass sale of weapons and ammunition will undoubtedly contribute to this country’s horrifying gun violence problem. In fact, Walmart is increasingly popping up in court documents. In 2011, on the morning that he killed six people, including a federal judge, and injured thirteen others, including Representative Gabrielle Giffords, Jared Lee Loughner went to two Walmarts in Tucson in search of ammunition. He was turned away at one store for “strange behavior,” according to police, but got what he was looking for at the next Walmart. (“We share in the sadness for those people whose lives were ended too soon,” the store said in a statement at the time.) In November, a disturbed 20-year-old in Missouri was arrested for planning mass shootings at a screening of the new Twilight movie and at the local Walmart—the latter because he could reload there. “He decided that he would go and shoot people at Walmart in Bolivar,” according to the court documents. “He would walk into the store and just start shooting people at random and if he ran out of ammunition…he would just break the glass where the ammunition is being stored and get some more and keep on shooting until police arrived.” Local news reports are rife with stories of gun thefts at Walmart stores, often apparently because of lax oversight of the weapons inventory. In October, a man and a woman cracked open a display case at a Walmart store in Tyler, Texas, “while a clerk wasn’t looking,” according to local reports, and stole four assault rifles. The two have yet to be apprehended. A week earlier, at a Walmart in Missoula County, Montana, a clerk was showing a Sig Sauer semiautomatic rifle to a man who then “grabbed it and ran for the store’s entrance,” according to the charging documents. The police nabbed him a short time later, after he had tossed the AR-15 from his car. In early November, police in Summerville, South Carolina, were on the lookout for suspects in incidents at two separate Walmarts, where display cases had been smashed with a hammer and the AR-15s and other assault rifles inside them stolen. And these are just a few of the incidents involving guns or ammunition at Walmart in the past two months. Since the start of 2012, there have been at least fifty shootings in a Walmart store or parking lot, incidents tracked on a blog called Walmart Shootings (walmartshootings.blogspot.com). * * * The possibility that South Bend could end up on that list once again is what has the Reverend Brown so alarmed. For forty-eight years, he has lived with his mother, Bertha, a retired schoolteacher, in a house less than a mile from a Walmart. The neighborhood is a rough one, and he’s seen it get worse; Brown said that the locals sometimes call it Babylon, “because ain’t nothing righteous.” Bertha, who has lived in South Bend for sixty-five years, says the violence is the worst she’s ever seen. “It’s real sad, because we’ve got a lot of young people, and people are getting killed—every time you look, someone is getting shot,” she says. “Every time you pick up the paper…. I don’t know who’s doing it, and they can’t seem to catch these people, but the guns are out there.” For four months last summer, Reverend Brown’s prayer group, nicknamed the God Squad, walked around town sticking three strips of tape (symbolizing the Father, Son and Holy Spirit) with anti-violence messages onto telephone poles. The group was “praying that we could cease the violence, cease the drama. And it worked in some areas,” Brown said. “But I’m going to be honest with you: we’re at an all-time high.” So when he saw the weapons for sale at Walmart, Brown took action. He called the chief of police and members of the City Council, who in turn applied pressure on local Walmart managers. In response, the chain promised the city in writing, in June, that it would no longer sell assault weapons in South Bend. Brown thought the problem was solved. Then, this past fall, his phone rang: “I had a parent call me and say, ‘Mr. Brown, they’re selling them.’” He went back to Walmart, and indeed, the weapons were still on display—without much in the way of security. “I saw the glass unsecured,” Brown said. “The employee who worked there said, ‘I only work part-time back here.’ He opened the glass…. This guy left the cabinet open and walked away.” This time, Brown came prepared: he’d brought a police officer and a reporter for the local ABC station with him. They took pictures, and the reporter did a story that made waves in South Bend. Walmart apologized and promised to fix the error. A month later, Brown said he’d heard from a police officer that the combat-style weapons were being sold inside the packed store on Black Friday. He said he’ll keep up the fight and plans to visit the City Council again to ask for tougher action. “I’m not against guns; I’m not trying to go against the NRA,” Brown said. “But I’m against the way they sell them. You can go in Walmart at 3:30 in the morning and you can’t buy a can of beer. But you can walk in there to the ammunition [counter] and buy as many boxes as you want. I have a problem with that.” Other anti-violence activists are disturbed by Walmart’s ballyhooed expansion into urban markets like Chicago, Washington, Los Angeles, Reno, Detroit and other cities. That, combined with the increased gun sales, could be a recipe for disaster. The chain says it won’t sell guns at those stores—a condition of approval for a new Walmart in Washington, DC—but Bertha Lewis is wary. Even if that turns out to be true, the guns are likely to be sold at a Walmart somewhere else in the area. “Guns are a scourge in black and brown and low- and moderate-income communities,” Lewis said. “And here comes Walmart with Mr. Smiley Face: ‘Here, here’s a $5 sweater—and, oh, by the way, you can get this gun.’” Lewis thinks the gun sales will soon be a new front in the activist campaign against Walmart. “You’re going to see it more and more and more as folks organize against Walmart,” she said. “One of their vulnerabilities is their stance on guns. Don’t try to sell me an apple and a gun at the same time. Don’t tell me that you’re trying to give fresh fruit and vegetables to people so that they can have a healthy life, and then you turn around and on the next counter you have instruments of death.” Also in this issue, the editors say nothing like the Newtown massacre ever needs to happen again and Katherine S. Newman examines “The Roots of a Rampage.” ||||| A sporting goods chain says it's suspending sales of modern rifles nationwide because of the school shooting in Connecticut. (Click Prev or Next to continue viewing images.) ADVERTISEMENT (Click Prev or Next to continue viewing images.) Cars are parked in the lot outside the Dicks Sporting Goods store in Cranberry, Pa. on Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2012. The sporting goods chain says it's suspending sales of modern rifles nationwide because of... (Associated Press) Cars are parked in the lot outside the Dicks Sporting Goods store in Cranberry, Pa. on Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2012. The sporting goods chain says it's suspending sales of modern rifles nationwide because of... (Associated Press) Dick's Sporting Goods also says it's removing all guns from display at its store closest to Newtown, where the massacre took place. Authorities say a gunman killed 26 people, mostly children, with a military-style rifle at Sandy Hook Elementary School on Friday after killing his mother. He then killed himself. A statement posted on Dick's website expresses sympathy for the victims' families. It says sales of modern sporting rifles will be suspended during "this time of national mourning." Dick's declined to answer Associated Press questions about how long the suspension would last or which weapons were being pulled. Pittsburgh-based Dick's Sporting Goods Inc. has more than 500 stores in 44 states. ||||| Straight Talk The Daily Beast asked readers whether or not they own guns—and if so, why. More than a thousand people have weighed in so far. The results might surprise you, writes Matthew DeLuca. In the wake of a horrific school shooting in Newtown, Conn., lawmakers and activists have come forward to demand a serious discussion about gun control in America. The National Rifle Association has been silent, while the president has said we have an “obligation” to try to prevent another massacre at the hands of a crazed gunman. But who actually owns guns in America—and why? Surely, they can’t all be Adam Lanzas. To find out, we asked our readers a simple question: Why do you own a gun? And if you don’t own a gun, why not? Almost immediately, the answers came pouring in. As of Tuesday evening, more than a thousand people had submitted answers—nearly 600 who own guns, and the rest who don’t. The anonymity of the Internet and Twitter character counts do not always lend themselves to thoughtfulness and insight, but many readers seemed eager to put hyperbole and political expediency aside. Some offerings were misguided attempts at humor—from both sides of the fence. Others were downright puerile. Many of the responses we received, however, were both civil and illuminating. The gun owners were not radical fantasists intent on the violent overthrow of the government. The non-gun owners did not wave the bloody shirt. Taken together, they represent the kind of conversation about gun ownership that responsible Americans should be having—both on the public airwaves and in their living rooms. Among the gun owners, some common threads emerged. Readers from rural areas said that they own guns for practical concerns, like personal safety in homes located far from law enforcement, or as a necessary tool for their livelihoods. “We target shoot. We live in a rural area with livestock,” LP from Colorado said. “We have to be able to defend ourselves from aggressive wildlife, put an animal out of its misery if it is severely injured, and defend ourselves in our isolated environment. People are responsible with their guns here.” A respondent from New Mexico said he or she owns a “.22 pistol to shoot rattlesnakes only in my yard.” Hunters, not surprisingly, represented a good number of gun owners who responded to our survey. “I grew up in a family that hunted and fished,” said Jeff from Minnesota. “However, I do believe that private ownership of semi-automatic and automatic guns and handguns should be totally prohibited. I am perfectly willing to give up all of my guns for the greater good.” A third group of gun owners was made up of hobbyists. An anonymous reader from Minnesota wrote that he or she owns a gun “because the hunting and shooting culture I grew up in taught me to respect life, my elders, and firearms. The relationship between me and my father that developed out of firearms and hunting is incredibly meaningful and the most positive one in my life.” “It’s a family heirloom,” Regina from Maine said of the gun she owns. “It’s a breech-loading deer shotgun that was passed from my grandfather to my dad to me.” In a number of cases, readers who owned guns said that they also support more stringent restrictions on the ease with which people can purchase firearms. “I enjoy shooting,” wrote a respondent from Colorado. “Mine are kept locked and disassembled. Ammunition is kept separately. I grew up with firearms but support much tighter controls on firearms.” “I want to be prepared to defend my family and home,” wrote Scott from Alabama. “However, access to guns through shows must be prohibited, and more extensive background checks with longer waiting periods seems a good step in the right direction. Elimination of all high capacity mags should also be strongly considered.” In the same way that many readers who own guns were willing to explore the idea of new and more effective restrictions on gun ownership, readers who said they do not have guns often framed their decision as a personal one. Guns may work for other people, they said, but they are certainly not for everyone. Get The Beast In Your Inbox! Daily Digest Start and finish your day with the smartest, sharpest takes from The Daily Beast Cheat Sheet A speedy, smart summary of news and must-reads from The Daily Beast and across the Web By clicking "Subscribe," you agree to have read the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy Subscribe Thank You! You are now subscribed to the Daily Digest and Cheat Sheet. We will not share your email with anyone for any reason “Shooting sports are fun, and legitimate,” Andy from Texas wrote of why he chooses not to own a gun. “But the anxieties of the self-defense crowd are just too much for me. I refuse to believe there are that many bogeymen in the world.” “I don’t need one today, but would want the option to buy one if I change my mind. I could agree with special, renewable permits/licenses and required annual safety training for owners,” wrote one anonymous reader. Other respondents wrote that they see no need to put the fearsome power of a firearm in the hands of civilians, outside of controlled circumstances like hunting. Christina from California wrote that “the purpose of a gun is to kill someone or something. God is the judge of people’s actions, not me. You don’t need an assault weapon to kill a deer or pheasant. If your life feels threatened, you are in the wrong place.” “I have curious kids,” wrote Matt from Maryland in a post that summed up many respondents’ feelings about the unreliable hands even a legally purchased weapon might fall in to. “I might lose my job or my wife and have a nervous breakdown.” The readers who responded to The Daily Beast’s question are undoubtedly an imperfect sampling of Americans. There are reasons to suspect, however, that the impression they give of a country not divided into gun nuts and bleeding-heart liberals is accurate. Conservative Democratic congressmen, including lifelong NRA member Senator Joe Manchin, have shown interest in taking on gun laws after Newtown. While both President Obama and Mitt Romney for the most part stayed away from talking about restrictions on guns during their presidential campaigns, Americans have never stopped debating the issue. The great majority of NRA members support restrictions on gun ownership for domestic-violence offenders, as well as criminal background checks on all gun buyers. ||||| Joe Raedle/Getty Images With President Barack Obama endorsing sweeping gun restrictions in the wake of the school shootings in Newtown, Connecticut, prices for handgun magazines are surging on EBay (EBAY) and semi-automatic rifles are sold out at many Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) locations. Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, said yesterday that it would continue to sell guns, including rifles like the one used at Newtown, where 26 people, most of them children, were killed on Dec. 14. By contrast, Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc. (DKS) suspended sales of similar guns at its more than 500 stores. Searches of five kinds of semi-automatic rifles on Wal- Mart’s website showed them to be out of stock at stores in five states, including Pennsylvania, Kansas and Alabama. Wal-Mart doesn’t sell guns online, instead asking customers to input a zip code to see if their local store carries a specific weapon. “We remain dedicated to the safe and responsible sale of firearms in areas of the country where they are sold,” David Tovar, a spokesman for Wal-Mart, said yesterday. He didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on this story. Wal-Mart has about 10 modern sporting rifles, the gun industry’s term for firearms that look like an M-16 military rifle, listed on its website. The retailer removed a description and picture of the Bushmaster AR-15, which was the model used in Newtown, after the shootings. In 2006, Wal-Mart reduced the number and variety of guns it offered in stores, and replaced them with more upscale products such as exercise equipment. It then reintroduced firearms to many stores in April 2011 as part of strategy to add merchandise back to shelves and revive sales growth at its Wal-Mart locations in the U.S. Gun Revenue The move may have helped as U.S. Wal-Mart stores posted their first gain in same-store sales in more than two years in October 2011. Wal-Mart doesn’t disclose how many guns it sells, though at an analysts’ meeting in October it said gun revenue gained 76 percent in the first half of this fiscal year. The chain advertised a Sig Sauer M400 as one of its Black Friday doorbusters last month, offering the rifle for $50 off at $867. Cabela’s Inc. (CAB), an outdoor retailer that also sells guns, didn’t return several calls seeking comment on whether it planned to change its firearm policies. Hunting equipment, which includes firearms, made up 41 percent of Cabela’s sales in 2011, according to a company filing. The retailer doesn’t provide sales data for just guns. Prices Tripling On EBay Inc.'s auction website, shoppers have recently bid up gun magazines. The current bid for four Glock handgun magazines, ammunition for one of the guns used at Newtown, is $118.37 compared with $45 on the day before the shooting. The bid for seven Glock magazines hit $201 on Dec. 17 from $71.01 before the massacre. Gun buyers have flooded other firearms retailers too. The Hyatt Gun Shop in Charlotte, North Carolina, racked up more than $1 million in sales yesterday for the best single-day performance since the store opened in 1959, according to Justin Anderson, director of online sales. At the top of shoppers’ lists was the Bushmaster AR-15, the model of rifle used at Newtown that sells for as much as $4,000 and had almost sold out, he said. Revenue at one of the largest U.S. gun stores surpassed even the spike just after Obama was elected president in 2008, Anderson said in a telephone interview. Sales weren’t as robust when Obama was re-elected last month because the president hadn’t backed major new gun laws, he said. ‘Concrete Proposals’ Today, Obama said his administration would come up with “concrete proposals” by next month to curb gun violence. Speculation over stricter gun laws will continue to boost sales, Anderson said yesterday. “It’s kind of the perfect storm for the gun industry,” he said. “When these things happen, even though it’s sad, it does pick up sales.” Wal-Mart has received some pressure to curb gun sales in the past. That continued this week when Lauren Buglino, a fourth-grade teacher from the Bronx, created an online petition on Change.org exhorting the retailer to stop selling rifles like the one used at Newtown. It had more than 57,000 supporters today. Wal-Mart entered into an agreement in 2008 with the Mayors Against Illegal Guns that included video recording of purchases and the use of databases to identify people who have bought guns recovered in crimes. When Wal-Mart added guns to stores in 2011, Mayor Thomas Menino of Boston criticized it for trying to increase the number of guns on the streets, according to the Boston Herald. Menino and Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York founded Mayors Against Illegal Guns. The mayor is founder and majority owner of Bloomberg News parent Bloomberg LP. To contact the reporter on this story: Matt Townsend in New York at mtownsend9@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Robin Ajello at rajello@bloomberg.net

– The decision by Dick's Sporting Goods to suspend sales of "modern sporting rifles"—industry vernacular for weapons similar to M-16s—might be paying off for Walmart. Bloomberg reports that the semi-automatic weapons are out of stock at many Walmarts across the country, including those in Pennsylvania, Kansas, and Alabama. Walmart sells about 10 types of the rifles, though it removed a description and photo of the Bushmaster AR-15—the gun used at Sandy Hook Elementary—from its online store after the shootings. Guns are big money-makers at Walmart, but the chain doesn't disclose exact numbers. (One of its Black Friday sales was $50 off a Sig Sauer M400, putting it at $867.) In addition to the surging gun sales, Bloomberg says prices of handgun magazines are rising quickly on eBay. Four Glock magazines were going for $118 today, up from $45 the day before the shooting. Shooter Adam Lanza had a Glock with him, too. Two related stories: The Daily Beast is collecting responses to a simple query: "Why do you own a gun? And if you don’t own a gun, why not?" It's turning out to be an interesting forum for both sides. The Nation has a piece headlined "How Walmart Helped Make Newtown Shooter's AR-15 the Most Popular Assault Weapon in America."

MEXICO CITY (AP) — A group of 29 inmates have tunneled their way out of a prison in the northern Mexico border state of Tamaulipas, authorities said Thursday. One of the inmates shot to death a passing motorist in an apparent carjacking as part of the mass escape in the state capital, Ciudad Victoria. The Tamaulipas state security spokesman Luis Alberto Rodriguez said 12 of the 29 have been recaptured. Rodriguez said the inmates had dug a tunnel about 5 yards (meters) deep and 40 yards (meters) long to flee. Rodriguez said the tunnel was hidden in a hut that inmates had illegally constructed in a part of the prison they essentially controlled. Overcrowding, corruption and inmate control of prison areas have been persistent problems in Mexican prisons. Rodriguez said about 30 guards at the facility had been placed under investigation, and appealed for help from neighboring states in re-apprehending the escaped inmates. He said the prison dates to the 1940s and was outmoded. State authorities have been looking into moving the prison to other facilities, outside the city. Ciudad Victoria has been dominated for years by the fragmented Zetas cartel. ||||| Story highlights 29 inmates escape via a tunnel The tunnel was sealed with concrete Saturday (CNN) Fourteen of 29 inmates are still on the run after they escaped by tunneling underneath a Mexican prison wall, authorities said Sunday. The inmates escaped Wednesday from a prison in Ciudad Victoria, Tamaulipas state secretariat of security said Saturday According to Mexican authorities, the inmates used a tunnel that was 5 meters (16.4 feet) deep and 40 meters (131 feet) long. During the escape, one of the inmates shot a man during a carjacking. The Tamaulipas' state secretariat of security said 20 of the prisoners were incarcerated for "common" crimes such as robbery, assault, homicide and kidnapping. Nine were incarcerated for federal crimes such as drug trafficking and carrying weapons. Of those nine, four were members of organized crime organizations. Read More

– Sixteen inmates are still at large after breaking out of a prison in the Mexican border state of Tamaulipas, CNN reports. The inmates dug a 5-yard-deep, 40-yard-long tunnel to escape from the Ciudad Victoria prison, the AP reports; 29 inmates in total escaped Thursday, but 13 have since been recaptured. The tunnel was hidden in an illegal hut in an area of the prison essentially controlled by inmates; following the escape, security officials destroyed other such illegal shelters at the prison, leading to riots in which three inmates were stabbed to death Friday night.

HOUSTON (AP) — A spokeswoman for Republican Sen. Ted Cruz says a package addressed to Cruz's Houston campaign headquarters caused a lockdown, which was later lifted. The Houston Fire Department says two people were taken to a hospital Tuesday after apparently being exposed to a "white powdery substance," though it didn't provide details about the two people or say whether they are fine. Cruz's spokeswoman, Catherine Frazier, says no one from Cruz's staff was taken to the hospital. The fire department tweeted that tests for hazardous substances were negative after the building floor where Cruz's office is located was evacuated. Frazier says the package was opened in the lobby, and that the authorities locked down the lobby and elevator for a couple of hours. It comes on the same day that authorities at the Pentagon say they found at least two packages believed to contain ricin, a deadly white powdery poison made from castor beans. ||||| WASHINGTON—Two letters that arrived at a Pentagon distribution center have tested positive for the poison ricin and a “suspicious envelope” had been sent to the White House, defense officials and the Secret Service said Tuesday. The letters sent to the Pentagon were addressed to Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Adm. John Richardson, the chief of naval operations, an official said. It...

– Ricin has been detected in two pieces of mail that arrived at a Pentagon mail distribution center, defense officials announced Tuesday. The building is near, but not in, the Pentagon; the mail was addressed to Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Adm. John Richardson, the Chief of Naval Operations. After the poison was detected, all mail received at the mail-screening facility Monday was put under quarantine, a Pentagon spokesperson says. The FBI took possession of the envelopes in question and is leading the investigation, including conducting further tests, the Wall Street Journal reports. The mail initially caused suspicions because it contained a sticky substance, per a defense official. Also Tuesday, a package addressed to Ted Cruz's Houston campaign headquarters caused a lockdown, the AP reports. A spokesperson for the Republican senator says the package was opened in the lobby and two people—not members of Cruz's staff—were exposed to a "white powdery substance" and taken to a hospital. Their conditions were unknown. The fire department tweeted that all tests for hazardous substances came back negative. The lockdown has since been lifted.

LONDON (Reuters) - An aardvark was killed and four meerkats are missing believed dead after a blaze tore through part of London Zoo early on Saturday, destroying a cafe and gift shop. The fire broke out shortly after 0600 GMT at the zoo’s Animal Adventure section before spreading to the shop and cafe, near to an area where visitors can handle and feed animals, the zoo and London Fire Brigade said. More than 70 firefighters took three hours to bring the fire under control while desperate keepers who live on the site in Regent’s Park in central London moved animals to safety. Some of the staff needed treatment for smoke inhalation and shock. Ten-year-old Misha the aardvark, one of the zoo’s best-loved animals, perished in the fire and four of the meerkats were unaccounted for and are also presumed to have died. Taking their name from the Afrikaans word for “earth-pig”, aardvarks are large burrowing mammals found across much of Africa. Firefighters are seen tackling a blaze at London Zoo following a fire which broke out at a shop and cafe at the attraction, in this photograph received from London Fire Brigade, in central London, Britain December 23, 2017. London Fire Brigade/Handout via REUTERS “We’re absolutely devastated that Misha the aardvark has been killed and we’re still trying to find out what happened to the meerkats, but at the moment the site where this fire took place is closed down,” Dominic Jermey, the zoo’s Director General, told BBC TV. “At the moment we’re not certain what has happened to the meerkats but I’m not optimistic at this stage, unfortunately.” Other animals nearby are being monitored by vets, but the zoo said indications were that they were unaffected. It said it hoped to reopen on Sunday. It is the world’s oldest scientific zoo, dating from 1826, and houses 20,166 animals, according to its inventory for 2017. The fire brigade said it had sent 10 fire engines and 72 firefighters to the scene and added that the cause of the blaze was under investigation. “The fire mainly involved the cafe and shop but part of a nearby animal petting area was also affected,” said Station Manager David George. Slideshow (12 Images) “When they arrived our crews were faced with a very well developed fire. They worked incredibly hard in arduous conditions to bring it under control as quickly as possible and to stop it from spreading to neighboring animal enclosures.” ||||| Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption London Zoo 'devastated' by aardvark fire death Staff have been injured and an aardvark and possibly four meerkats killed in a fire at London Zoo. About 70 firefighters tackled the blaze at its height in the Animal Adventure section that spread to a shop. One person was taken to hospital and eight were treated at the scene. The zoo said an aardvark called Misha died in the fire and four meerkats were still unaccounted for, presumed dead. The zoo was shut on Saturday but said it would reopen on Sunday. The cause of the fire is not yet known. Image copyright Brendan Cooney/Reuters Image caption Photographs posted on social media showed orange flames rising from the building Ten fire engines went to the zoo, which sits in the capital's Regent's Park, shortly after 06:00 GMT and the fire was brought under control about three hours later. Six people were given help at the scene for the effects of smoke inhalation and two for minor injuries, London Ambulance Service said. One person was taken to a north-west London hospital, the service said. Image copyright London Fire Brigade Image copyright Charlie Bard Duty staff who live on site were on the scene "immediately" and started moving animals to safety, the zoo said. In a statement the zoo said it was "devastated" about what had happened. It said: "Sadly our vets have confirmed the death of our nine-year-old aardvark, Misha. There are also four meerkats still unaccounted for, but we are now presuming these have also died. "All other animals in the vicinity are being monitored closely by our vets, but early signs suggest they have not been affected. We will continue to monitor them over the coming days. "We are all naturally devastated by this, but are immensely grateful to the fire brigade, who reacted quickly to the situation to bring the fire under control. " You might also be interested in: Adnan Abdul Husein said he saw the blaze from a nearby park when he was out walking his dog, and alerted zoo security. "It didn't look like smoke just coming out of a chimney - it was quite heavy", he said. "As I got closer to the zoo I could see that it was actually inside the zoo so I went over to the security and told them, 'there's flames or there's smoke coming from inside there, do you know anything about it?'. And they obviously didn't have a clue." Image copyright Getty Images London Fire Brigade (LFB) station manager Clive Robinson, who was at the scene, said three-quarters of the cafe and shop had been affected by the fire and half of the roof. He said: "Firefighters worked hard to bring the fire under control as quickly as possible and to stop it from spreading to neighbouring animal enclosures." Image copyright @PaulWood1961 Image copyright London Fire Brigade Image caption The cause of the fire is not yet known, London Fire Brigade said

– A beloved aardvark is dead and four meerkats are missing after a fire tore through part of the London Zoo on Saturday, Reuters reports. The fire mostly damaged a cafe and gift shop but impacted an animal petting area, as well. Misha, a 10-year-old aardvark and one of the most popular animals at the zoo, was killed. Four meerkates are missing. “We’re not certain what has happened to the meerkats, but I‘m not optimistic at this stage, unfortunately," the zoo's director general says. Staff appear to have been successful getting all other animals to safety. One person was hospitalized and eight others were treated at the the scene for smoke inhalation, shock, and minor injuries, according to the BBC. The London Zoo—the oldest scientific zoo in the world and home to over 20,000 animals—plans to reopen Sunday. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

local Officials, family and friends say a man killed this week by a commuter train was a Silicon Valley tech worker trying to save another victim who was critically injured. George Kiriyama reports. Officials, family and friends say a man killed this week by a commuter train was a Silicon Valley tech worker trying to save another victim who was critically injured. Philip Scholz, 35, was trying to pull another man from the tracks Monday. The second man, whose name has not been released, has been too injured to talk to investigators but apparently did not want to leave the tracks, leading both men to get hit by the train traveling between 50 and 70 mph through Santa Clara. Scholz, a Santa Clara University grad who lived in Pleasanton, was a marketer for computer graphics company Nvidia, where co-workers said they weren't surprised at all that he was willing to risk his life to save a stranger. “He's not a person that would have just stood by,” Scholz’s wife Emily said in a telephone interview with NBC Bay Area. People who knew him say it was not in Scholz's DNA to stand by when somebody needed help. On Monday, Scholz was at the Santa Clara station when he saw a man down on the Caltrain tracks. He tried to pull the man off the tracks by lying on his stomach and reaching out to him as a train came toward them. Scholz died. The man he was trying to help survived. “He saw someone in danger and did what he could, or what he thought he could, to assist,” Emily Scholz said. She said her husband's actions define the man she met at Santa Clara University so many years ago. RELATED: Man Killed, Another Injured at Santa Clara Caltrain Station “It says to me he was a person that was willing to do the right thing,” she said. “I know that sounds generic—but a person who didn't stop to really worry about why was that person out there.” Her husband was always willing to drop what he was doing to help others, Emily said. “He was really an open person who made himself available to anyone, whether it was my family or friends in need or helping out with a friend's kids,” she said. “He's just an incredibly generous person.” For the past few days, Emily Scholz said her family and friends have been there for her, celebrating his life and his actions to save another in need. “It's just incredible that we have this amazing network that I think is going to help me through the next years and the rest of my life.” Copyright Associated Press / NBC Bay Area ||||| Philip Scholz, 35, was killed when he was hit by a Caltrain while trying to pull another man out of harm's way at the Santa Clara station Jan. 20, 2014, according to transit officials and his wife, Emily. (Courtesy of Emily Scholz) SANTA CLARA -- As the express train came hurtling toward the Santa Clara station, Philip Scholz was waiting on the raised platform for his train home when he saw a man down on the Caltrain tracks. Scholz acted fast. He dropped his backpack, lay down on his belly and reached for the stranger on the tracks. "As the train approached, the person did want to get out of the way," said his wife, Emily Scholz, "but between him and Phil, something happened and they were hit." Scholz died on the tracks. The man he tried to help survived. Speaking publicly on Friday for the first time since her husband's rescue attempt went wrong Monday evening, Emily Scholz said she learned he was dead -- and what he did -- when San Mateo County sheriff's deputies arrived at her doorstep that night to deliver the horrible news. Read and sign Guest book in memory of Philip Scholz The only person who knows exactly what happened remains in critical condition at the hospital, unable to talk to investigators. Why he was on the tracks is still a mystery -- and it also isn't clear how he escaped death. But based on surveillance footage, Caltrain knows that Scholz -- a popular Silicon Valley marketer -- was looking at the man on the tracks, maybe even talking to him before he made his last-ditch effort to pull the stranger to safety. "It ... appears Mr. Scholz was attempting to help the surviving victim, based on preliminary information," said Christine Dunn, a Caltrain spokeswoman. Advertisement The commuter train, however, was barreling through the station at 50 to 70 mph, Caltrain officials said. The express train didn't stop and plowed into the men about 5:30 p.m. on the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. Scholz, a 35-year-old Pleasanton resident who worked as a marketing manager for Santa Clara-based computer graphics company Nvidia, was dead at the scene. The identity of the man who survived has not been released. Scholz's death left friends and co-workers stunned -- shocked to lose a well-loved and respected companion but not surprised to hear he died trying to save someone else. He helped people. That is what he did, they said, even to the extent of risking his life for someone he'd never met. "That's totally Phil, putting someone else before himself," said Matt Conwell of Portland, Ore., who met Scholz 12 years ago in a professional capacity but became fast friends. "That's the way he was. I can only hope to live life like he did." Nvidia co-founder Chris Malachowsky said the act "completely resonates with something consistent with the guy." "He was confident, aggressive, capable, I could see that without a moment's hesitation, he's going to act," Malachowsky said. "I'm sure his knee-jerk, no hesitation to help someone else is what caused this -- he goes down as a hero in my book." A Facebook page dedicated to remembering Scholz soon brimmed with more than 500 "likes," something Conwell called a "testament to how he lived, and how this guy was loved by friends and family." Scholz grew up in Washington state, moving to the Bay Area after high school to attend Santa Clara University. That's where he met his wife, although they didn't start dating until after college, eventually moving to Pleasanton together a decade ago. He made friends quickly at work, at gaming conventions and on the field playing a host of recreational sports. Despite his video-game related job, Scholz preferred off-screen endeavors, Emily Scholz said. "Once in a while he might sneak away on a Friday night to play 'Call of Duty,' but I wouldn't identify him as a gamer," she said. "He was a huge A's fan, and very into sports. And more than just drinking beer and playing softball -- he played competitive baseball on a league." But he meshed that competitive spirit with compassion and a genuine interest in others that made him very charismatic and "that guy you wanted to hang out with," Conwell said. "I'm still in shock and disbelief," he said. "There's this residual feeling that this was just too soon, and not very fair." Caltrain did not have any more information Friday about the man who survived. Reeling from her sudden loss, Emily Scholz said she's not concerned with what investigators find out about why the man was on the tracks. "It just doesn't matter at this point," she said in a tearful phone interview, instead reflecting on Philip's final act. "I just want people to know that he wasn't doing something stupid, or that he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. He wasn't in some kind of argument. "He was doing the right thing when it happened." Contact Eric Kurhi at 408-920-5852. Follow him at Twitter.com/erickurhi.

– Those who knew Philip Scholz couldn't figure out why he got so close to the tracks on Monday that he ended up being struck and killed by a commuter train in Santa Clara, California. Now they know: He was trying to save a life. Caltrain surveillance video shows that the 35-year-old Scholz, who was on a raised platform, spotted a man lying on the tracks as an express train approached, reports the San Jose Mercury News. He took off his backback, got down on his stomach, reached for the man, and appeared to talk to him. "As the train approached, the person did want to get out of the way, but between him and Phil, something happened, and they were hit," says Scholz's wife. The train struck them both at about 60mph, and while Scholz died at the scene, the other person somehow survived and remains hospitalized, reports NBC Bay Area. Authorities aren't identifying him or offering further details. It "appears Mr. Scholz was attempting to help the surviving victim," says a Caltrain spokesperson. Adds Scholz's boss at computer graphics company Nvidia: "I'm sure his knee-jerk, no hesitation to help someone else is what caused this—he goes down as a hero in my book."

“The bonus system has gone beyond a means of rewarding talent and is now Wall Street’s primary business,” the newspaper editorial stated, adding: “Institutions take huge gambles because the short-term returns are a rationale for their rich payouts. But even when the consequences of their risky behavior come back to haunt them, they still pay huge bonuses.” Well thought and well put, but for one thing: If you were looking for bonus excess despite miserable operations, the best recent example I can think of is Gannett, which owns USA Today. The week before the editorial ran, Craig A. Dubow resigned as Gannett’s chief executive. His short six-year tenure was, by most accounts, a disaster. Gannett’s stock price declined to about $10 a share from a high of $75 the day after he took over; the number of employees at Gannett plummeted to 32,000 from about 52,000, resulting in a remarkable diminution in journalistic boots on the ground at the 82 newspapers the company owns. Never a standout in journalism performance, the company strip-mined its newspapers in search of earnings, leaving many communities with far less original, serious reporting. Given that legacy, it was about time Mr. Dubow was shown the door, right? Not in the current world we live in. Not only did Mr. Dubow retire under his own power because of health reasons, he got a mash note from Marjorie Magner, a member of Gannett’s board, who said without irony that “Craig championed our consumers and their ever-changing needs for news and information.” But the board gave him far more than undeserved plaudits. Mr. Dubow walked out the door with just under $37.1 million in retirement, health and disability benefits. That comes on top of a combined $16 million in salary and bonuses in the last two years. And in case you thought they were paying up just to get rid of a certain way of doing business — slicing and dicing their way to quarterly profits — Mr. Dubow was replaced by Gracia C. Martore, the company’s president and chief operating officer. She was Mr. Dubow’s steady accomplice in working the cost side of the business, without finding much in the way of new revenue. She has already pocketed millions in bonuses and will now be in line for even more. Forget about occupying Wall Street; maybe it’s time to start occupying Main Street, a place Gannett has bled dry by offering less and less news while dumping and furloughing journalists in seemingly every quarter. It’s tempting to write off Gannett’s enrichment amid the ruins as anomalous. But Gannett is not the only big media enterprise where the consequences of bad decisions land on everyone except those who made them. The Tribune Company, a chain of newspapers and television stations run into the ground by Sam Zell after he bought it in 2007, is paying out tens of millions of dollars in bonuses as part of a deal in which it would exit bankruptcy. Over 4,000 people in the company lost their jobs, and the journalistic missions of formerly robust newspapers it operates — including The Los Angeles Times, The Chicago Tribune and The Baltimore Sun — have been curtailed. And even though Randy Michaels and some of his corporate fraternity brothers who operated the company into bankruptcy are gone, more than 600 managers who were there while the company cratered remain. Not only do they have jobs while so many others were sent packing, but the remaining leadership will be eligible for a bonus pool from $26.4 million to $32.4 million under the current plan. Through the magic of blunt force cost-cutting — about $800 million over the last three years, much of it in the form of layoffs — a lawyer for the senior creditors told the judge in charge of the bankruptcy case that the bankrupt enterprise would generate an estimated $517 million in cash flow for 2011. Over the past three years, counting the payment scheduled for 2011, the bonuses could amount to $115 million, according to The Chicago Tribune. The drawn-out legal process hasn’t stopped lawyers and the current managers from picking the carcass clean. The Tribune story includes overleveraged purchases, feckless management and a culture of personal enrichment, all hallmarks of the Wall Street way that have left protesters enraged. This is a not a finger-waving screed to suggest that some layoffs are more damaging than others just because they landed on people like me who type for a living. (It’s worth noting that Arthur Sulzberger Jr., the publisher and chairman of The New York Times Company, and Janet Robinson, the president and chief executive, were criticized by various unions for a 2009 compensation package that cost a combined $12 million. It’s also worth noting that Mr. Sulzberger chose to forgo additional compensation in other years.) ||||| The job of Wall Street is to raise capital and put it to good use. "God's work," as Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein once put it. For people who consider themselves financial geniuses, that mission shouldn't be too hard. Apparently it is. The failure is most evident in the fortunes that Wall Street — defined broadly as New York's major banks, plus hedge funds and private equity houses — poured into high-risk mortgage products, triggering a financial crisis and ruinous recession. Until recently, the popular response to Wall Street's excesses has been muted, except for conservative critics of the distasteful but ultimately profitable "bailouts" that averted a depression. Now, from the left, comes a ragtag assortment of college kids, labor unionists, conspiracy theorists and others who've taken to the streets in protests dubbed "Occupy Wall Street." USA TODAY OPINION About Editorials/Debate Opinions expressed in USA TODAY's editorials are decided by its Editorial Board, a demographically and ideologically diverse group that is separate from USA TODAY's news staff. Most editorials are accompanied by an opposing view — a unique USA TODAY feature that allows readers to reach conclusions based on both sides of an argument rather than just the Editorial Board's point of view. The protesters' rhetoric against capitalism and "corporate greed" is over the top, and they seem devoid of remedies. But at a gut level, they are on to something. Financial institutions that should be the enablers of economic growth have become, at least in part, destructive. Here are five legitimate reasons why people — left, right and center —should be angry at Wall Street: •Economic distress. The Great Recession was a direct consequence of Wall Street's insatiable demand for mortgages to package into securities and sell. This demand spurred reckless lending, abetted by the government, and inflated a huge housing bubble, the bursting of which continues to inflict pain on millions of people more than three years later with no end in sight. •Bonus excess. The bonus system has gone beyond a means of rewarding talent and is now Wall Street's primary business. Institutions take huge gambles because the short-term returns are a rationale for their rich payouts. But even when the consequences of their risky behavior come back to haunt them, they still pay huge bonuses. Last year, bonuses paid to New York City-based securities industry employees totaled $20.8 billion, up from $17.6 billion in 2008 — this at a time when unemployment nationally is above 9% and household incomes are stagnating. •Brain drain. Because of this outsized compensation, banks and hedge funds lure some of the country's smartest people away from more productive endeavors, such as building companies. That's not easily fixed. People have every right to make their own choices. But the nation suffers if its best brains are busy manufacturing risk through schemes such as high-frequency computerized trading rather than creating jobs. •Too big to fail. The largest institutions have grown so large that the failure of any one of them is a cataclysmic event. While last year's bank reform law creates a system for a rapid, supposedly bailout-free dissolution of failing institutions, it is highly questionable whether future leaders would let them go under. Bank CEOs know this, and it gives them confidence to pile on risk. •The Washington racket. Through lobbyists and campaign contributions, the banking industry has long had its way in Washington. This was evident in the Clinton-era legislation that repealed a post-Depression safeguard and allowed banking behemoths to combine banking and brokerages under one roof. It was even more apparent during the Bush administration when Washington closed its eyes to reckless subprime lending. Now, after a brief period of contrition, the bank lobby is back in full force. Demands that megabanks maintain more conservative balance sheets, so bailouts won't be needed, are cast in Alice-in-Wonderland fashion as Big Government intrusion, not taxpayer protection. And hedge fund managers continue to enjoy an indefensible tax break that allows them to pay just 15% on earnings that sometimes exceed $1 billion a year. Wall Street's misbehavior is hardly the only thing harming the economy, and its denizens make handy scapegoats for larger global forces. But Americans across the spectrum increasingly see Wall Street's shortcomings as a form of modern thievery. If things do not change soon, Wall Street will have a lot more to worry about than boisterous protesters.

– USA Today applauded Occupy Wall Street for attacking firms that give “huge bonuses” to execs who makes terrible decisions. The paper’s right—but it’s being hypocritical. Gannett, owner of USA Today, is a champion of “bonus excess despite miserable operations,” David Carr writes in the New York Times. Gannett's recently-resigned CEO Craig Dubow oversaw the loss of 20,000 employees, and "strip-mined its newspapers in search of earnings"—yet he departed, because of health problems, not performance issues, with some $37 million in benefits. And Gannett’s hardly alone among media firms “where the consequences of bad decisions land on everyone except those who made them,” Carr notes. Some 4,000 people lost jobs at the Tribune Company, which is now exiting bankruptcy in a deal that pays tens of millions in bonuses. With newspapers struggling, “the people in the industry who are content to slide people out of the back of the truck until it runs out of gas not only don’t deserve tens of millions in bonuses, they don’t deserve jobs,” Carr writes. “Forget about occupying Wall Street; maybe it’s time to start occupying Main Street.” Click through for Carr’s full column.

White Pine, Tennessee (CNN) As a Tennessee community prepares to bury a girl allegedly killed by an 11-year-old boy over a puppy, more details emerged about the gun used in the shooting. The preteen faces first-degree murder charges in the death of MaKayla "BooBah" Dyer, 8. He fired at her from his house Saturday, killing the girl who was in her yard, Jefferson County Sheriff Bud McCoig told The Washington Post. Where did he get a gun? The boy used his father's 12-gauge shotgun, which he got from an unlocked closet, the sheriff told the paper. He is being held on a first-degree murder charge in a juvenile detention center. The center's superintendent, Richard Bean, said the boy is the youngest held there on a murder charge in his 44-year career. Bean described him as "very tiny," weighing about 55 pounds. He is in a regular "pod" that holds up to 16 other juveniles between ages 12 and 17. 'Most pitiful case' The incident started when the boy asked to see the girl's puppy, McCoig said. When she said no, the boy got a gun and shot her dead Saturday, according to the sheriff. The Jefferson County District Attorney's Office will determine whether the boy should be tried as an adult. He is being detained until a hearing on October 28, his public defender, Edward Miller, told CNN affiliate WATE . He declined to comment further. "It is the most pitiful case on both sides," Bean said. Heart melting moment of the day-McKayla's puppy waiting for her on the front porch of her home #WATE pic.twitter.com/6Oc3F5cuMl — Mona Nair (@monanair) October 5, 2015 'I want her back home' MaKayla died three weeks after her 8th birthday. Her mother, Latasha Dyer, choked back tears as she talked about her daughter. "I want her back home, I want her back in my arms," she said. "This is not fair." Her death has rattled the small town of White Pine, which is 40 miles east of Knoxville. "She was a lovable, little, adorable and typical 8-year old girl that enjoyed life and loved everybody," great-uncle Kenneth Norton told CNN. " She didn't know (any) strangers ... and anytime that you were doing anything ... she wanted to be a part of it." She will be buried Thursday at 2 p.m. in Luttrell, Tennessee. ||||| Sorry, your browser is unable to play this video.Please install Adobe Flash ™ and try again. Alternatively upgrade to a modern browser. A Tennessee mother has paid tribute to her eight-year-old daughter after she was shot dead, allegedly by her 11-year-old neighbor. “She was a precious little girl, she was a mommy’s girl, no matter how bad of a mood you were in she could always make you smile,” Makayla Dyer’s mother, Latasha Dyer, told local TV station WATE, speaking with difficulty through tears. “I want her back in my arms. This is not fair. Hold and kiss your babies every night – you’re never promised the next day with them,” Dyer said. “I hope the little boy learned his lesson because he took my baby’s life and I can’t get her back.” According to police in White Pine, a rural town in the American south, the two children were playing in the mobile home park where they lived when the boy asked to see puppies that belonged to the girl’s family. When the girl said no, the boy shot her in the chest with a 12-gauge shotgun from his mobile home window. “When we first moved to White Pine, the little boy was bullying Makayla,” Dyer told WATE. “He was making fun of her, calling her names, just being mean to her. I had to go the principal about him and he quit for a while and then all of a sudden yesterday he shot her.” The boy – who has not been named because of his age – has been charged with first-degree murder as a juvenile, and court proceedings are likely to be confidential because of his age. The boy’s family have not spoken to the media since the incident. Child welfare officials are now investigating the boy’s family. He lived with five other children, according to Sheriff GW “Bud” McCoig of Jefferson County. The shooting took place just after 7pm on Saturday, when the boy used his father’s shotgun to shoot the girl in the chest from his mobile home park window, officials said. “We was in the house watching the Tennessee [football] game and heard the bang,” Chasity Arwood, manager for the mobile home park, told Knoxville News Sentinel. “[We] came out, the family was running to our porch yelling ‘He shot my baby, he shot my baby’.” Arwood apparently had to hold Dyer back as she attempted to reach for her daughter after she was shot. White Pine, Tennessee “My husband had to guard the little girl until the rescue people got here,” Arwood told the Sentinel. “I was holding the family back trying to tell them ‘You can’t touch her, you can’t touch her’. “Having to keep a momma away from her baby, being a momma, is really hard. That is the most difficult thing I’ve ever done.” When the boy’s mother heard what happened, Arwood said, “she slammed the door, locked it, and we never seen her after that”. When the boy’s mother refused to come out, a distraught Latasha Dyer broke her neighbor’s window. Arwood said she gave Dyer a towel to soak up the blood on her hands, and a blanket to keep warm. The shooting shook the eastern Tennessee county of 52,000, nestled along the Cherokee national forest on the western edge of North Carolina. Sheriff McCoig, whose office is investigating the incident, could barely contain his grief at a press conference where he informed reporters of the shooting. “Well, by the grace of God,” McCoig said before he stopped, shook his head, looked up and started again. “There’s a loss [of] an eight-year-old child, and our department is hurting, and emergency personnel that responded is hurting, but we all have to pick up and be there for each other.” He said local chaplains and pastors had come to the mobile home park that evening, “and they help us bear the hardship of the loss of a little child”. White Pine elementary, the school of 850 that both children attended (the girl in third grade, the boy in fifth) pulled grief counselors in from neighboring schools to speak with mourning parents, students and staff. “We got together as a staff yesterday and had our emotional time with each other to try to prepare for today,” the school’s principal, Bill Walker, told reporters. “I don’t think you can prepare for when you walk in and see students that are hurting, and [the staff has] done a very good job with keeping those in check and watching over students.” At the mobile home park, an impromptu memorial for Makayla has grown up on the girl’s porch, with balloons, a candle wrapped with a picture of Jesus and a wreath of silk flowers, WATE reported. Neighbors have covered with hay a white, spray-painted patch of grass marking where Dyer died. Arwood is looking after the girl’s two puppies. “They’ve been running to the porch they know is their home,” she told WATE. Gun rights are a polarizing and seemingly intractable issue in the United States, where the right to bear arms is enshrined in the country’s constitution. Just two days before the eight-year-old was shot in Tennessee, 10 people were killed and seven injured in at a mass shooting 2,600 miles away in Umpqua community college in Roseburg, Oregon. The girl’s funeral is scheduled for Wednesday, local television station WBIR reported. ||||| An argument between two children over puppies turned tragic Saturday when an 11-year-old boy allegedly killed his 8-year-old neighbor with a shotgun, according to authorities in Jefferson County, Tenn. The 11-year-old has been charged with first-degree murder in the girl’s death, Jefferson County Sheriff Bud McCoig told The Washington Post. Authorities aren’t releasing the names of either child, but Latasha Dyer told ABC affiliate WATE that her daughter, MaKayla, was killed. “She was a precious little girl,” Dyer said through tears in an on-air interview with WATE. “She was a mommy’s girl. No matter how bad of a mood you were in, she could always make you smile.” Each of the children had a puppy, the sheriff said. The 11-year-old “wanted to see the 8-year-old’s, and she said no, and then he went and retrieved a gun,” McCoig said. The boy fired the 12-gauge shotgun from inside his house, striking the girl as she stood in her yard, the sheriff said. The gun, which was stored in a closet without locks, belongs to the boy’s father, McCoig said. When first responders and police arrived at the scene Saturday night, they found the girl “lying on the ground with a gunshot to the chest,” McCoig said. She was taken to an area hospital, where she died from her wounds. [Young people are far more likely to die by guns than in cars] On Monday, a judge ordered the boy to be held in a juvenile facility pending his next court hearing Oct. 28; the case could later be transferred to adult court, McCoig said. MaKayla will be interred Thursday at the Haun Cemetery in Luttrell, Tenn. Her family will be receiving guests at 5 p.m. Wednesday at the Cooke-Campbell Mortuary in Maynardville, and her funeral will be held at 7 p.m. The family has requested that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made toward funeral expenses. “Our precious daughter went to her Heavenly home Saturday, October 3, 2015,” reads her obituary. MaKayla leaves behind a brother, three sisters, her parents, numerous grandparents and great-grandparents. Saturday’s killing, which came just two days after a mass school shooting in rural Oregon, has rocked the small community of White Pine, Tenn. Both children attended White Pine School, which teaches students from kindergarten through eighth grade, Principal Bill Walker said. “We remember her smile and her beautiful face,” Walker told reporters Monday. “Our normal has changed.” [Where in America do gun owners live?] Chasity Arwood, manager of the White Pine mobile home park, where the shooting took place, told the Knoxville News Sentinel that MaKayla and another girl were by the boy’s window and the trio were “laughing and giggling.” “He asked the little girl to see her puppies,” Arwood told WBIR. “She said no and laughed and then turned around, looked at her friend and said, ‘Let’s go get the –‘ and never got ‘puppies’ out.” Arwood told the Sentinel that the boy threw the shotgun out of the window after firing it. Dyer said she had previously approached the school principal about the 11-year-old bullying her daughter, Knoxville’s WATE TV reported. “When we first moved to White Pine, the little boy was bullying MaKayla. He was making fun of her, calling her names, just being mean to her,” Dyer said Sunday. “I had to go to the principal about him, and then he quit for a while. And then all of a sudden yesterday, he shot her.” Walker declined to confirm to reporters Monday that Dyer talked to him about bullying, citing the ongoing investigation. [How often do children in the U.S. unintentionally shoot and kill people? We don’t know.] Counselors were at the school to support students and staff in the aftermath of the shooting. “Our thoughts and prayers are with those involved from both families,” Walker said, according to WATE. “It’s not just the school that’s hurting; it’s the whole community.” McCoig said the killing has taken a toll on his investigators. “We only get through it by the grace of God,” he said. [This article, originally published Oct. 5, has been updated.] READ MORE: In 30 states, a child can still legally own a rifle or shotgun Opinion: The access children have to guns is alarming

– An 11-year-old boy accused of fatally shooting his 8-year-old neighbor when she refused to show him her puppies got the 12-gauge shotgun used in the shooting from an unlocked closet in his mobile home in White Pine, Tenn., police say. Jefferson County Sheriff Bud McCoig tells the Washington Post the gun belonged to the boy's father. A neighbor tells WBIR that MaKayla Dyer, 8, was playing outside with neighbors around 7:30pm on Saturday when the pair began speaking through an open window of the boy's home. "He asked the little girl to see her puppies. She said no and laughed and then turned around, looked at her friend, and said, 'Let's go get the—' and never got 'puppies' out." McCoig says the boy "retrieved a gun" and shot MaKayla through the window, before throwing the gun outside. Emergency personnel found MaKayla, who lived nearby with her mother and older siblings, "lying on the ground with a gunshot to the chest," McCoig says. When the boy's mother was told what happened, "she slammed the door, locked it, and we never seen her after that," the neighbor adds, per the Guardian. MaKayla's mother, meanwhile, says the boy had a history of "just being mean to her. I had to go to the principal about him, and then he quit for a while." The superintendent of a juvenile detention center says the "very tiny" boy, who weighs about 55 pounds, is being kept in a regular "pod" with other juveniles aged 12 to 17 until a hearing Oct. 28, reports CNN. He's the youngest person to be held there on a murder charge during the superintendent's 44-year career. "It is the most pitiful case on both sides," he says. Meanwhile, a heart-wrenching photo on Twitter shows one of MaKayla's puppies on her porch, apparently waiting for her to come home.

A harrowing first-hand account of the moment the Titanic sank has been uncovered in a letter purportedly from a French maid who survived the disaster. The letter, written in French and dated 8 August 1955 – more than 43 years since the RMS Titanic sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on her maiden voyage – is from a French woman called Rose Amelie Icard. It describes scenes of "horror" and "sublime heroism" as passengers tried to escape the sinking vessel. Miss Icard is believed to have been a maid to a wealthy American passenger called Martha Stone, the widow of the president of Canadian telephone company Bell Cie. They boarded the Titanic as first class passengers in Southampton as they made their way back to the United States after a long period of travelling. The pair escaped the sinking passenger ship in a lifeboat and were rescued by the Carpathia before being taken to New York. It is thought she wrote the letter to the daughter of another woman whose mother also survived the disaster. The letter, written in blue ink, is addressed to a woman believed to be called Madame Ausein, although the name is slightly unclear and no one of that name appears in the list of survivors. The letter emerged after a user of the online community Reddit requested help in translating a set of letters written by Miss Icard that he bought at an auction around two years ago. Although it has yet to be authenticated, if real, it provides a vivid first hand account of the night the Titanic sunk. In the letter, Miss Icard tells how even 43 years after the tragedy on 15 April 1912, she still had nightmares about that night. She wrote: "Towards eleven o'clock Mrs. Stone and I went to bed. Three quarters of an hour later, as the liner was cruising at full speed, a terrifying shock threw us out of bed. "We were intending to find out what was happening, when a passing officer told us 'It is nothing, return to your cabin.' I answered 'Listen to that loud noise, it sounds like water is flowing into the ship.' "Upon our return to the cabin I saw that our [female] neighbour from across the passageway had gone back to bed. "Her daughter arrived in a panic, yelling 'Mama, quick quick, get up it's very serious.' "I helped Mrs. Stone to dress, she took her lifebelt and told me 'come quickly. I was trembling, and still in my dressing gown, I took a coat, my lifebelt, and followed her on deck." Miss Icard describes how she managed to get her travel blanket and fur coat which she had left on her lounge chair earlier in the day and how they helped protect her from the bitter arctic cold. She also tells how she narrowly escaped being trapped below deck after trying to go back to her cabin to retrieve her mistress's jewellery. She added: "We felt beneath our feet the deck lean towards the depths. I went back belowdecks to retrieve the jewels of Mrs. Stone [but] fortunately, I choose the wrong stairwell and returned to the deck halfway there. "Fortunately for me, for I would have never come back up again. "At this moment we witnessed unforgettable scenes where horror mixed with the most sublime heroism. Women, still in evening gowns, some just out of bed, barely clothed, dishevelled, distraught, scrambled for the boats. "Commander Smith yelled, "Women and children first". Firm and calm, in the throng, officers and sailors were taking the women and children by the arm and directing them towards the lifeboats." She also details heart-rending scenes on board as wives were put aboard lifeboats, leaving their husbands on board to die with the sinking vessel. Miss Icard wrote: "Near me were two handsome elderly [people], Mr. and Mrs. Straus, proprietors of the great store Macy's of New York. She refused to go into the boat after having helped in her maid. "She put her arms around the neck of her husband, telling him: 'We have been married 50 years, we have never left each other, I want to die with you.' "Semi-conscious, in a neighbouring boat was put the young wife of the millionaire J. Jacob Astor, returning from their honeymoon voyage she was 20 years old, him 50. She latches on to him, he was obliged to push her away with force." She added: "There had been sublime gestures, a stranger undid his safety belt to give it to an old woman who couldn’t find a spot in any boat, and told her 'You’ll pray for me'. "The millionaire Benjamin Guggenheim after having helped the rescue of women and children got dressed, a rose at his buttonhole, to die." At one point the crew sung a hymn to help lift the passengers spirits before the lifeboats were lowered. Those lucky enough to be in one of the lifeboats were then asked to row quickly to get clear of the sinking Titanic. Miss Icard also describes how she discovered a young man hiding in the bottom of the lifeboat where he had stowed away and the horror as the Titanic slipped beneath waves. She said: "I took the oars and rowed with so much energy that my hands were bleeding and my wrists were paralysed, because we had to hurry to escape the huge chasm that was going to be opened when the Titanic would sink. "It was at this moment that I noticed that someone was hidden underneath me. I didn’t have the strength to reveal his presence. I’ve never known who the man who saved his own life this way was. "Suddenly, there was darkness, whole and inscrutable, shouts, horrible yells, rose in the middle of the creaks of the boat, then that was it. Sometimes, 43 years after the tragedy, I still dream about it." Miss Icard was one of just 745 people who survived out of 2,229 passengers and crew who were on board the Titanic. She was eventually rescued by the Carpathia the next day, but perhaps the most vivid image is the serene calm she describes during sunrise the morning after the disaster. She said: "After that night of terror, at first light, before the arrival of the Carpathia which would collect us dazed, completely exhausted, our boat and some others went back to the scene of the tragedy. "The waters were calm and bare, and nothing could suggest that the sea giant was engulfed there. Alone, in front of us, two cathedrals of ice which were pinkening under the first sunlight offered a spectacle of rare beauty." It is thought that Miss Icard wrote this letter in 1955 from her home in Grenoble after being encouraged by her family to record her memories of the tragedy. She eventually died in July 1964 and was the longest living French survivor of the disaster. Her letters were sold at auction around two years ago and the Reddit user claims to have bought them before seeking help to have them translated. He said: "I've had them for close to 2 years now sitting in the same spot as I've procrastinated on getting them translated then framed along with her passport. "I actually bought them at an auction and this is the first time they were ever let go by the family. "Her family begged her to write the letters before she died or forgot much, reluctantly they put them up for auction and I won the bid." ||||| Newly Translated Letter Gives First-Hand Account of Titanic's Sinking Like us on Facebook for more stories like this! This might be the most riveting account of the Titanic's sinking since James Cameron's New – though unverified – letters that seem to be a first-person account of the sinking of the Titanic have surfaced. Written in French and dated 1955, the letters were recently translated after being posted to Reddit Penned by a French woman named Rose Amélie Icard, the letters (the full original text of which you can read here ) seem to have been written to the daughter of another woman, whose mother also survived the sinking.You can read Reddit user frenchlitgeek's full translation of the text here , but some of the most compelling sections are below."Towards eleven o'clock Mrs. Stone [Icard's employer] and I went to bed. Three quarters of an hour later, as the liner was cruising at full speed, a terrifying shock threw us out of bed."The letter continues, describing the scene on deck: "At this moment we witnessed unforgettable scenes where horror mixed with the most sublime heroism. Women, still in evening gowns, some just out of bed, barely clothed, disheveled, distraught, scrambled for the boats.""Near me were two handsome elderly [people], Mr. and Mrs. Straus, proprietors of the great store Macy's of New York. She refused to go into the boat after having helped in her maid.""She put her arms around the neck of her husband, telling him: 'We have been married 50 years, we have never left each other, I want to die with you.'""Sometimes, 43 years after the tragedy, I still dream about it." ||||| The seed for this crawl was a list of every host in the Wayback Machine This crawl was run at a level 1 (URLs including their embeds, plus the URLs of all outbound links including their embeds) The WARC files associated with this crawl are not currently available to the general public.

– An as-yet-unverified letter unveiled by a Reddit user could shed new light on the dark tale of the Titanic. The letter was apparently written by Rose Amelie Icard, the longest-living French survivor of the disaster, in 1955, the Telegraph reports. It offers her personal and harrowing account of the ship's sinking. Icard, thought to have been a maid to the wealthy American Martha Stone, rode first class on the ship; she and Stone were rescued from a lifeboat by the Carpathia, the Telegraph notes. The letter was purchased roughly two years ago at auction, and the Reddit user posted it alongside a request for translation help. Highlights: The owners of Macy's stayed together onboard after helping their maid escape. "Mrs. Straus … put her arms around the neck of her husband, telling him: 'We have been married 50 years, we have never left each other, I want to die with you.'" "A stranger undid his safety belt to give it to an old woman who couldn’t find a spot in any boat, and told her 'You’ll pray for me.'" "The billionaire Benjamin Guggenheim, after having helped the rescue of women and children, got dressed, a rose at his buttonhole, to die." Frantically rowing away from the ship, "I noticed that someone was hidden underneath me. I didn’t have the strength to reveal his presence. I’ve never known who the man who saved his own life this way was." "At first light, before the arrival of the Carpathia ... our boat and some others went back to the scene of the tragedy. The waters were calm and bare, and nothing could suggest that the sea giant was engulfed there. Alone, in front of us, two cathedrals of ice which were pinkening under the first sunlight offered a spectacle of rare beauty." A full translation at Reddit is here, via People; a photo of the letter, in French, is here. Or click to read about Titanic's "last mystery."

Jon Hamm Completes Rehab Stint for Alcohol Jon Hamm -- Completes Rehab Stint for Alcohol EXCLUSIVE Jon Hamm completed a 30-day rehab program for alcohol abuse, just days before the premiere of the last season of "Mad Men." We're told Hamm checked himself into Silver Hill Hospital in New Canaan, Connecticut at the end of February. It's a high-end facility. The final season is already in the can. Hamm's people tell TMZ, "With the support of his longtime partner Jennifer Westfeldt, Jon Hamm recently completed treatment for his struggle with alcohol addiction. They have asked for privacy and sensitivity going forward." ||||| Jon Hamm as Don Draper is a little like Superman in reverse: he puts on a suit and tie, slicks his hair back, and suddenly he's superhuman (if somewhat more fallible). When I visited the Mad Men set for my Time cover story on the shooting of the final season (which premieres Sunday, April 13 at 10 p.m. on AMC), I got a few minutes to speak to Hamm in Clark Kent mode--tie un-tied, hair un-slicked, taking a break between takes on the lot of the Los Angeles Center Studios downtown. (Earlier, I posted my lengthier interview with creator Matthew Weiner .) The transcript below is edited for length and clarity: That incredible Hershey pitch [in the season 6 finale] was a situation we’ve seen Don in so many times--he’s in a professional crisis, a personal crisis and yet he goes into a pitch meeting and reaches inside himself and saves the day. And here it was sort of the opposite; he did something that was personally important for him but it also ruined the pitch. What do you think caused him to get to that point? Hamm: You know, I recently got to see that scene again because it was shown at the AFI, and I hadn’t really seen it since it aired. A friend of mine was saying it’s funny because you look at that scene and you kind of think--because we’ve seen him in that situation before--are [the Hershey executives] gonna buy this? Because it is moving. It’s just inappropriate. And we’ve seen something like that with Don--the Carousel or even back to the pilot when he pulls "It’s toasted" out of his ass. So he was kind of thinking, "They might buy this. It’s unorthodox but it’s a way to go." And, of course they don’t, but he couldn’t go in there and fake it with that particular product because it meant so much to him personally, and it just sort of spilled out in a very raw and visceral way. We’ve seen Don repeat some self-destructive patterns in his life, and at the end of last season he seemed to be making some sort of decisive break with that. Do you feel he is capable of change? I think part of why the character is so interesting is that he is a person that has habits, and not all of them are good, but yet he has shown the ability to surprise you every now and again. And I think events leading up to the end of last season and Don’s confession [at the Hershey pitch] I think was a watershed moment in his life--and I do think that was a big step for Don. Now, there are repercussions that don’t have to do with just him. Being put on leave from the agency and having a tenuous situation at home are the fallout. So he’ll have to manage both of those. But I hope for for Don that he is able to find some measure of peace with not only who he is and who he was but who he wants to be. You know we’ve been asking that question for some time on this show – who is Don Draper? He’s a different person to Roger than he is to Peggy than he is to Betty than he is to Megan than he is to Pete than he is to so many other people. But I think what we’ve been waiting for is who is he to Don. Do you find anything admirable about him? There haven’t been a lot of examples in recent history. He’s taken two steps back for every one step forward. What I find admirable about him is that he’s a creative guy and he sticks to his guns creatively. In his own way he’s an artist and he wants to be taken that way, even though he works in a very commercial, no pun intended, medium. That’s probably the only thing I can come up with. We've seen Don for seven years telling stories about himself by telling stories about products. Is there something about the advertising business that made it an especially good vehicle to talk about American history? You know, we started the show in 1960 in the waning of the Eisenhower era and pretty much the maximum of America’s global influence. And these guys were at the center of it and driving it basically-- spreading the word about the American Dream. And the American Dream was basically the American Dream for white males. And so over the course of the decade we’ve seen that power slowly whittled away--you’re looking at the rise of feminism and women in the workplace, the rise of African Americans and civil rights and homosexuals, and all of this stuff kind of percolating underneath. And it's placed in this incredibly vital time and place – New York City was arguably the most important place in the world in the sixties. And by the seventies was a dump. You’re like, “What happened? We had it all wired. And then it just all stopped." But advertisers were still selling ads and still selling this dream that had shifted and changed, so they had to change how they pitch, and it became more ironic and it became more oblique. And we have guys like Ginsberg and Peggy and Stan coming up and pitching new ideas that the older guys just don’t get. The times have changed. Music has changed. We had the scene where Don puts on "Tomorrow Never Knows" and he’s like, “I don’t like this garbage.” We touched on that very early in the show. Season two, episode one was called "For Those Who Think Young" and it was about everything being pitched to young people. We’re still in that mode. Take a look at any movie – any movie that’s not released in December is basically for 14 year olds . Are you surprised how much a lot of fans like Don Draper? Well, people like Walter White, too, and the guy's a murderer. People like Tony Soprano, another murderer. There’s a vicarious thrill to seeing these people do bad things on television and mostly get away with it. People love Omar [the stickup man from The Wire ]. You like the bad guys sometimes if they’re not too bad or if you feel like there’s a heart of gold somehow. But I’m always surprised when people are like, “I want to be just like Don Draper.” I’m like, “You want to be a miserable drunk?” I don’t think you want to be anything like that guy. You want to be like the guy on a poster maybe but not the actual guy. The actual guy’s rotting from the inside out and has to pull it together. But, and again that’s one of the biggest themes on the show: the outside looks great, the inside is rotten. That’s New York City. That’s America in the sixties. That’s all that stuff. It all looks great and when you scratch the surface you’re like, “Oh, it’s hollow and it’s rotten.” It's advertising. Put some Vaseline on that food, make it shine and look good. Can’t eat it, but it looks good. ||||| Jon Hamm has completed a 30-day program in rehab for alcohol abuse, according to TMZ. The "Mad Men" star reportedly checked himself into Silver Hill Hospital in Connecticut at the end of February. "With the support of his longtime partner Jennifer Westfeldt, Jon Hamm recently completed treatment for his struggle with alcohol addiction. They have asked for privacy and sensitivity going forward," a rep for the actor told TMZ. The actor has never discussed drinking before but has spoken about how there's no reason to be jealous of his "Mad Men" character, Don Draper. "I’m always surprised when people are like, 'I want to be just like Don Draper,'" he said to Time. “I’m like, 'You want to be a miserable drunk?' I don’t think you want to be anything like that guy. "You want to be like the guy on a poster maybe but not the actual guy," he said. "The actual guy’s rotting from the inside out and has to pull it together." Although he hasn't spoken about addiction he did open up to The Guardian in 2010 about battling depression. “I struggled with chronic depression," he said. “I was in bad shape.” "I did do therapy and antidepressants for a brief period, which helped me,” he added. The final season of "Mad Men" premieres April 5. On a mobile device? Click here to watch the video.

– Jon Hamm, who stars as hard-drinking Don Draper in Mad Men, has taken steps to deal with issues of his own. He has completed a 30-day rehab program for alcohol addiction at what TMZ calls a "high-end facility" in Connecticut, just ahead of the April 5 debut of the show's seventh and final season. "With the support of his longtime partner Jennifer Westfeldt, Jon Hamm recently completed treatment for his struggle with alcohol addiction," a spokesperson says. "They have asked for privacy and sensitivity going forward." Hamm hasn't discussed alcohol addiction before, but in an interview with Time last year, he described Draper as a "miserable drunk" who is "rotting from the inside out," the New York Daily News notes. "That's one of the biggest themes on the show: The outside looks great, the inside is rotten," he said. "That's New York City. That's America in the 60s. That's all that stuff. It all looks great and when you scratch the surface you're like, 'Oh, it's hollow and it's rotten.' It's advertising. Put some Vaseline on that food, make it shine and look good. Can't eat it, but it looks good."

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (Reuters) - Hurricane Maria, the second major storm to ravage the Caribbean in a month, skirted past the Turks and Caicos Islands on Friday, leaving devastation in its wake that included fresh flooding on Puerto Rico two days after pummeling the U.S. island territory. Maria, which ranked as the most powerful hurricane to strike Puerto Rico in nearly a century, has killed at least six people there and claimed 19 lives on several other Caribbean islands, according to government officials and local news media accounts. But even as Puerto Ricans struggled without electricity to clean up and dig out from tangles of rubble, uprooted trees and fallen power lines, another potential disaster was unfolding in northwestern corner of the island, where a dam was on the verge of collapse. The U.S. National Weather Service warned in a series of bulletins that the dam on the rain-engorged Guajataca River, was failing, causing flash flooding in the area and prompting an evacuation of communities below the reservoir by way of buses. Roughly 70,000 people live in the area downstream from the earthen dam that was under evacuation, the island’s governor, Ricardo Rossello, said in a late-afternoon news conference. Christina Villalba, an official for the island’s emergency management agency, said there was little doubt the dam would give way. “It could be tonight, it could be tomorrow, it could be in the next few days, but it’s very likely it will be soon,” she said, adding that authorities were aiming to complete evacuations Friday night. Maria struck Puerto Rico as a Category 4 storm on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale and cut a path of destruction through the center of the island on Wednesday, ripping roofs from buildings and triggering widespread flooding. Torrential downpours from the storm sent several rivers to record levels. Officials in Puerto Rico, an island of 3.4 million inhabitants, confirmed six storm-related fatalities: three from landslides in Utuado, in the island’s mountainous center; two from drowning in Toa Baja, west of San Juan, and a person near San Juan who was struck by a piece of wind-blown lumber. Earlier news media reports had put the island’s death toll as high as 15. “We know of other potential fatalities through unofficial channels that we haven’t been able to confirm,” said Hector Pesquera, the government’s secretary of public safety. In and around San Juan, the capital, people worked to clear debris from the streets on Friday, some working with machetes, while others began to reopen businesses, though they wondered how long they could operate without power and limited inventory. “There’s no water, no power, nothing,” said Rogelio Jimenez, a 34-year-old pizzeria worker. Locals stand along a street affected by the overflow of the Soco River in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in El Seibo, Dominican Republic, September 22, 2017. REUTERS/Ricardo Rojas Motorists lined up for hours outside the few gasoline stations that were open. “I’ve been here for three and a bit hours,” said Angel Serra, sitting in a blocks-long line hoping to fill up his tank. Long lines also formed at the handful of automated teller machines that appeared to be working in the region. DAMAGE ESTIMATED AT $45 BLN Puerto Rico was already facing the largest municipal debt crisis in U.S. history. A team of judges overseeing its bankruptcy has advised involved parties to put legal proceedings on hold indefinitely as the island recovers, said a source familiar with the proceedings. The storm was expected to tally $45 billion in damage and lost economic activity across the Caribbean, with at least $30 billion of that in Puerto Rico, said Chuck Watson, a disaster modeler at Enki Research in Savannah, Georgia. Slideshow (20 Images) Elsewhere in the Caribbean, 14 deaths were reported on Dominica, an island nation of 71,000 inhabitants. Two people were killed in the French territory of Guadeloupe and one in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Two people died when the storm roared past the Dominican Republic on Thursday, according to local media outlet El Jaya. Maria churned past Turks and Caicos and was 295 miles (480 km) east of the Bahamas by 8 p.m. EDT (midnight GMT) on Friday, the NHC said. It was packing sustained winds of up to 125 miles per hour (205 km per hour), making it a Category 3 hurricane, but was expected to gradually weaken over the next two days as it turned more sharply to the north. Officials on Turks and Caicos, a British overseas territory, had ordered residents to remain indoors and businesses to close on Friday as the hurricane neared, bringing a storm surge of as much as 12 feet (3.7 meters) above normal tide levels. But hurricane warnings were later canceled as Maria passed. Storm swells driven by Maria were expected to reach the southeastern coast of the U.S mainland on Friday, the NHC said, adding that it was too soon to determine what, if any, other direct effects it would have. In the Dominican Republic, Maria damaged nearly 3,000 homes and sent more than 9,300 to shelters, local emergency response agencies reported. Maria passed close by the U.S. Virgin Island of St. Croix, home to about 55,000 people, early Wednesday, knocking out electricity and most mobile phone service. Maria hit about two weeks after Hurricane Irma pounded two other U.S. Virgin Islands: St. Thomas and St. John. The islands’ governor, Kenneth Mapp, said it was possible that St. Thomas and St. Croix might reopen to some cruise liner traffic in a month. Irma, one of the most powerful Atlantic storms on record, killed more than 80 people in the Caribbean and the United States. It followed Harvey, which also killed more than 80 people when it struck Texas in late August and caused flooding in Houston. More than two months remain in the Atlantic hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to Nov. 30, although the busiest period is generally from mid-August to mid-October. ||||| Breaking News Emails Get breaking news alerts and special reports. The news and stories that matter, delivered weekday mornings. / Updated By Yuliya Talmazan, Ema Jimenez, Daniel Arkin and Daniella Silva Millions of people across Puerto Rico woke up Thursday to a grim new reality. Hurricane Maria, the most powerful storm to hit the U.S. territory in almost a century, ravaged the island, demolishing homes and knocking out all electricity. It could take half a year to restore power to the nearly 3.5 million people who live there. The eye of the storm moved offshore overnight, but the danger remained Thursday: Intense flooding was reported, particularly in San Juan, where many residential streets looked like rushing rivers. The storm has been blamed for the deaths of 18 people, including two in Puerto Rico, but many fear that toll could climb as authorities were beginning to assess the extent of the damage and search for survivors. San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz said the devastation in the capital city was unlike any she had ever seen. "The San Juan that we knew yesterday is no longer there," Cruz told MSNBC. "We're looking at 4 to 6 months without electricity." Yennifer Álvarez Jaimes, Gov. Ricardo Rosselló's press secretary, said all power across the economically strained island had been knocked out. The National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning for the entire island shortly after 12:30 a.m. ET Thursday. Residents were urged to move to higher ground if possible. PHOTOS: Hurricane Maria Lashes Puerto Rico, Storm-Battered Caribbean The storm, with its fierce winds and heavy rain, toppled trees, shattered windows, and ripped roofs and doors off homes. Widespread flooding blocked many highways and streets across the island Thursday, creating a maze that forced drivers to go against traffic. A man wades through a flooded road in Fajardo, Puerto Rico, on Sept. 20. Ricardo Ardengo / AFP - Getty Images Gregorio Cortes 39, a doctor in Vistamar Marina, a community in Carolina, Puerto Rico, said several highways were impassible. "This morning I wasn’t able to get across several major highways here since there’s flooding everywhere and fallen trees," he said by phone Thursday evening. Cell phone communication was completely down from Thursday morning until around 4 p.m., he said, leaving Cortes unable to reach his parents and grandparents. "It’s a feeling of impotence that you have you want to do so much and you can do so little," he said. Cortes said he traveled to their houses, and thankfully found his relatives safe and sound. But while the trip usually took about ten or 15 minutes, this time the trip took between an hour and a half to an hour and 45 minutes, he said. Police cars make their way down darkened streets during a blackout in San Juan on Sept. 20. Alex Wroblewski / Getty Images Cortes added that the had lived through several previous hurricanes on the island, but had never experienced one like this. "I’ve been in Hugo, I’ve been in Georges and this was by far the worst," he said, referring to two previous major storms." "I’ve never been in a war zone, but what you see in movies — it’s like that," he added. San Juan resident Heidi Roque, 21, told NBC News her home was left with shattered windows, damaged fences and broken doors. She was worried about her grandmother, who lives alone in the town of Trujillo Alto, because she has no power or water. Roque's family hasn't heard from her since early Wednesday. "I fear Puerto Rico won't be the same when this is over. Not after this storm," Roque said choking back tears. "This is the first time our family was faced with something so monstrous, we didn't know how to react,” Roque said. Outside an apartment building in San Juan, 40-year-old tourism company operator Adrian Pacheco recounted how he spent eight hours in a stairwell huddled with 100 other residents when the hurricane ripped the storm shutters off his building. "Months and months and months and months are going to pass before we can recover from this," Felix Delgado, mayor of the northern coastal city of Catano, told The Associated Press. President Donald Trump has approved a federal disaster declaration for Puerto Rico, the White House announced. Hurricane Irma sideswiped Puerto Rico on Sept. 6, leaving more than 1 million people without power but causing no deaths or widespread damage like it did on nearby islands. Maria, however, blew out windows at some hospitals and police stations, turned some streets into roaring rivers and destroyed hundreds of homes across the island. A storm surge of more than 4 feet was also reported. Puerto Rico's electric grid was crumbling amid lack of maintenance and a dwindling staff even before Maria and Irma hit the island. The territory's infrastructure has gone neglected for years, and its power company defaulted on a debt-restructuring deal in July. Paths of recent hurricanes. NBC News Rosselló imposed a 6 p.m.-to-6 a.m. curfew, citing flood warnings and the importance of keeping streets clear for repair and rescue teams. Airports in San Juan, Aguadilla and Ponce were ordered closed until Friday at the earliest because of flooding and debris, authorities said. Maria, the strongest storm to hit Puerto Rico since 1928, had maximum sustained winds of 155 mph when it made landfall as a Category 4 storm near the town of Yabucoa just after 6 a.m. ET on Wednesday, the National Hurricane Center said. The storm weakened as it battered Puerto Rico, but strengthened to a Category 3 hurricane early Thursday. At 11 a.m. ET, it was moving past northeastern Dominican Republic on its way to the Turks and Caicos. With maximum sustained winds of near 115 mph, Maria was expected to move near the British overseas territory and the southeastern Bahamas Thursday night and into Friday. The center warned that Maria could regain some strength in the next day or so. Maria left a trail of "total destruction" in Dominica, where the prime minister said at least 15 people have died. Two more people lost their lives as the result of the storm, one in the French Caribbean territory of Guadeloupe and two in Puerto Rico. Forecasters said it remained too early to know how close Maria will move to the U.S. mainland. ||||| An overturned vehicle stands in a parking lot after the passing of Hurricane Maria, in Yabucoa, Puerto Rico, Thursday, September 21, 2017. As of Thursday evening, Maria was moving off the northern coast... (Associated Press) SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — They eye of Hurricane Maria was nearing the Turks and Caicos early Friday as Puerto Rico sought to recover from the storm's devastation. Two days after Maria ravaged Puerto Rico, flooding towns, crushing homes and killing at least two people, millions on the island faced the dispiriting prospect of weeks and perhaps months without electricity. The storm knocked out the entire grid across the U.S. territory of 3.4 million, leaving many without power. The loss of power left residents hunting for gas canisters for cooking, collecting rainwater or steeling themselves mentally for the hardships to come in the tropical heat. Some contemplated leaving the island. "You cannot live here without power," said Hector Llanos, a 78-year-old retired New York police officer who planned to leave Saturday for the U.S. mainland to live there temporarily. Like many Puerto Ricans, Llanos does not have a generator or gas stove. "The only thing I have is a flashlight," he said, shaking his head. "This is never going to return to normal." Maria's death toll across the Caribbean, meanwhile, climbed to at least 19, nearly all of them on the hard-hit island of Dominica. In Puerto Rico, the government said at least two were killed but media on the island were reporting additional deaths and the actual toll appeared unlikely to be known for days. As of Friday morning, Maria was moving toward the Turks and Caicos with winds of 125 mph (205 kph). The storm was expected to move near or just east of the Turks and Caicos and the southeastern Bahamas on Friday. From there, it is expected to veer into the open Atlantic, no threat to the U.S. mainland. In Puerto Rico, the grid was in sorry shape long before Maria — and Hurricane Irma two weeks ago — struck. The territory's $73 billion debt crisis has left agencies like the state power company broke. It abandoned most basic maintenance in recent years, leaving the island subject to regular blackouts. "We knew this was going to happen given the vulnerable infrastructure," Gov. Ricardo Rossello said. The Federal Emergency Management Agency said it would open an air bridge from the mainland on Friday, with three to four military planes flying to the island every day carrying water, food, generators and temporary shelters. "There's a humanitarian emergency here in Puerto Rico," Rossello said. "This is an event without precedent." He said his administration was trying to open ports soon to receive shipments of food, water, generators, cots and other supplies. The government has hired 56 small contractors to clear trees and put up new power lines and poles and will be sending tanker trucks to supply neighborhoods as they run out of water. The entire island has been declared a federal disaster zone. Mike Hyland, senior vice president of engineering services for the American Public Power Association, a utility industry group that is sending repair crews into the Caribbean, refused to speculate on how long it would take to restore power in Puerto Rico. "Let's see what the facts tell us by the end of the weekend," he said. But he acknowledged: "This is going to be a tall lift." Maribel Montilla already had two large barrels filled with water but worried about how long it would last for her, her daughter, her son-in-law and six grandchildren. "You know what I think? We're going to be without power for six months now," she said. Cellphone and internet service collapsed in much of Puerto Rico. The only radio station that remained on the air during the hurricane — WAPA 680 AM — was relaying messages to help connect friends and families. Other concerns were more prosaic. Across the street, someone yelled at a neighbor, "Listen, do you have Netflix?!" Jaime Rullan, a sports commentator, has a gas stove at home but tried not to think about the lack of air conditioning on an island where the heat index has surpassed 100 degrees (37 Celsius) in recent days. "We're used to the lights going out because of storms here in Puerto Rico, but this time, we're worried," he said. "We should prepare ourselves mentally to be at least a month without power." Deysi Rodriguez, a 46-year-old caretaker for elderly people, does not have a gas stove. And unlike others who have been lining up at the few fast-food restaurants that have reopened, Rodriguez is a diabetic and has to be more careful about what she eats. Rodriguez said she might temporarily move to New Jersey if the situation gets worse. Pedro Cartagena, a 57-year-old dock supervisor, said he planned to shower, eat and sleep at his company's office. He plans to buy food at the few restaurants that are open and operating on generators. "That's going to drain my bank account," he said, "but if I want to eat, that's my only option." In an upscale neighborhood in San Juan, 69-year-old retiree Annie Mattei's condominium has a generator. But she said maintenance will shut it off between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. to save fuel. "This has been devastating," she said as her eyes welled with tears. In the Dominican Republican, Maria knocked down trees and power lines. But Joel Santos, president of the country's hotel association, said the hurricane did not damage the tourism infrastructure, even though it passed close to Punta Cana, the major resort area on the eastern tip of the island. In Dominica, where Maria laid waste to hundreds of homes and was blamed for at least 15 deaths, Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit wept as he spoke to a reporter on the nearby island of Antigua. "It is a miracle there were not hundreds of deaths," he said. He added: "Dominica is going to need all the help the world has to offer."

– Hurricane Maria moved toward the Turks and Caicos islands early Friday as a weakened but still extremely dangerous Category 3 hurricane. The storm has left a trail of devastation behind it and caused at least 32 deaths on Caribbean islands, including Puerto Rico, where the entire electrical grid was knocked out; it could take up to six months to restore power to all of the island's 3.5 million people. In the capital of San Juan, Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz says she hasn't seen devastation like it before. "The San Juan that we knew yesterday is no longer there," Cruz tells NBC News. "We're looking at four to six months without electricity." Puerto Rico's state power company stopped carrying out basic maintenance in recent years amid the island's debt crisis, meaning the storm hit infrastructure that was already in terrible shape, the AP reports. Residents are also low on food and water. Many are considering moves to the US mainland. "There's a humanitarian emergency here in Puerto Rico," Gov. Ricardo Rossello says. FEMA says starting Friday, there will be three or four daily military flights to the island carrying generators, food, and other supplies. Reuters reports that according to local media, the hurricane killed at least 15 Puerto Ricans, including eight who drowned in the Toa Baja area, where thousands were rescued from floods.

Story highlights Two police officers also killed, military says Cafe worker says some employees jumped from the roof Attack comes as the holy month of Ramadan nears its end Dhaka, Bangladesh (CNN) All the attackers in the deadly assault on a cafe in Dhaka were Bangladeshi citizens, and five of them were militants that police had tried to arrest previously, Police Inspector General Shahidul Hoque told CNN Saturday. Authorities also released the nationalities of the 20 hostages who were found dead inside the Holey Artisan Bakery cafe after Bangladeshi troops stormed the cafe early Saturday morning, ending a nearly 11-hour siege. Nine of the victims were Italian, seven were Japanese, one was from India, two were Bangladeshi and one was a U.S. citizen of Bangladeshi origin, according to the country's Joint Force Command. Eleven of the victims were male and nine were female. JUST WATCHED Report: Commandos storm Dhaka restaurant Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Report: Commandos storm Dhaka restaurant 01:35 Two police officers had been killed in a gunfire exchange earlier in the standoff, authorities said. The attack in the affluent, diplomatic enclave was the deadliest and boldest act of terror in a country that has become increasingly numb to ever-escalating violence by Islamist militants. Read More The victims were among roughly three dozen people taken hostage when attackers stormed the cafe Friday evening with guns, explosives and sharp weapons, authorities said. Some guests and workers managed to escape, jumping from the bakery's roof. Others crouched under chairs and tables as the gunmen fired indiscriminately, witnesses said. Early Saturday morning, military commandos moved in. By the end, 13 people had been rescued and 20 were dead, officials said. Six terrorists were killed and one was captured alive, Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said Saturday. ISIS claims attack ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack through its media branch, Amaq. Initially, a U.S. official told CNN it was more likely that al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent conducted this attack because it had demonstrated a more capable presence in Dhaka through attacks over the past few months. But after photos purportedly showing the inside of the cafe and dead hostages were posted on an ISIS-affiliated website, U.S. officials said they are now focused on ISIS as the perpetrator. JUST WATCHED Bangladeshi army: 'Sharp weapons' used to kill hostages Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Bangladeshi army: 'Sharp weapons' used to kill hostages 01:55 The photos were posted on Amaq while the siege was ongoing, with a claim that the extremely graphic images were of foreigners killed by terrorists in the attack. The fact that the images were posted approximately 90 minutes before Bangladeshi forces stormed the restaurant suggest that several hostages had already been killed before the commandos moved in. While CNN can't verify the authenticity of the photos, the images show wall murals, glossy tables with carved legs, white chairs and other items very similar to those seen on the cafe website. These photos don't prove that ISIS had operational control of the attack, but the website also displayed the photos and noms de guerre of five individuals, claiming they carried it out. Majority of dead had ties to the United States,Japan and Italy Hasina declared two days of mourning for the victims of the massacre, a period that begins Sunday. Abinta Kabir One of the dead was an American citizen, authorities said, but it was unclear if that victim was one of three students from universities in the United States. Two of them attended Georgia's Emory University, including Abinta Kabir of Miami, who was a sophomore at Emory's campus in Oxford, Georgia. She was in Dhaka visiting family and friends, the school said. The other was Faraaz Hossain, of Dhaka, a junior who was to attend Emory's Goizueta Business School in Atlanta. "The Emory community mourns this tragic and senseless loss of two members of our university family. Our thoughts and prayers go out on behalf of Faraaz and Abinta and their families and friends for strength and peace at this unspeakably sad time," a statement from the university said. The third student was Indian citizen Tarishi Jain, 19, who was studying at the University of California at Berkeley, according to India's minister of external affairs, Sushma Swaraj. Italy's foreign ministry named the country's victims as Adele Puglisi, Marco Tondat, Claudia Maria D'Antona, Nadia Benedetti, Vincenzo D'Allestro, Maria Rivoli, Cristian Rossi, Claudio Cappelli and Simona Monti. Japan announced Saturday that seven of its nationals are confirmed dead. The victims were corporate employees having dinner with management consultant Tamaoki Watanabe, one of the survivors, said Japanese Chief cabinet secretary Yoshihide Suga. Watanabe and three other Almec VPI employees were on a project for Japan International Corporation Agency, a government-funded organization for international development and cooperation, according to an Almec statement. The company does not yet know the fate of the other three employees, according to the statement. The Japanese government, which is not disclosing names at this point, said it would arrange a government flight for the families of victims as early as Sunday. Japan has sent Vice Foreign Minister Seiji Kihara, along with a team of terrorism experts, to Dhaka. Two Sri Lankans were among the hostages rescued, officials said. Hasini said she would form anti-terrorism committees with the police and the public to help identify potential terrorists and plots. She urged the public -- and especially parents -- to combat religious extremism by teaching children and the misguided to do "the right thing." "For those vulnerable and young people who are being misguided, and those that are aiding them, I have one question," Hasini said. "What do you hope to achieve by killing innocent people? Islam is a religion of peace. End your killing in the name of Islam. Don't malign our holy religion." Workers jump from roof Witnesses described chaotic scenes when the gunmen burst into the cafe. Cafe worker Shumon Reza said he saw six to eight gunmen enter the bakery. He escaped as they came in. "The guests were all lying on the ground under the chairs and tables," Reza told Boishakhi TV. And we (the employees) escaped in whichever safe way we could. Some went to the roof, others went to other safe spots." Shortly after, Reza said, the attackers started throwing explosives , one after another. "We thought it wasn't safe anymore and jumped from the roof," he said. CNN Map Attack shocks nation Even in a country that has become increasingly numb to Islamist attacks, the Holey Artisan Bakery standoff was particularly jolting in its brazenness. It was not so much that the attack took place in a public place, in full view of a horrified public. Such public attacks have happened before -- American blogger Avijit Roy was hacked with machetes outside Bangladesh's largest book fair. It was the time and the location that revolted many everyday Bangladeshis. The gunmen went into the bakery on a Friday, the holiest day of the week in Islam, and at a time when the devout would be sitting down to break their fast in the holy month of Ramadan. And they targeted not a bar or a club -- the kinds of venues fundamentalist Muslims rail against -- but a bakery. Why did it happen at the bakery? It's more likely because of the bakery's location: Gulshan. Gulshan is one of Dhaka's most affluent neighborhoods. Perhaps more importantly for the attackers, it's a diplomatic enclave. Most of the embassies and high commissions have a presence in Gulshan. Residents in the neighborhood expressed shock because the upscale neighborhood was considered safe with buildings behind walls, gated driveways and security guard booths. Holey Artisan Bakery had become a popular destination for expats and diplomats, and attackers may have chosen it hoping for maximum global impact. "They wanted maximum exposure. They got it," said Sadrul Kabir, a Gulshan resident. Bangladesh a new ISIS hotspot? Bangladesh authorities have consistently denied an ISIS presence in the country despite previous ISIS claims for past attacks. Other attacks have also been claimed by local Islamist groups. "We don't want these terrorists in Bangladesh," the Prime Minister said. "This type of situation is a first in Bangladesh, until now they were committing individual murders. But now suddenly they created this type of situation. What they did here was a very heinous act." Experts said Bangladesh is a target for terrorists. "In the case of ISIS and its connection to international terrorism in Bangladesh, they have mentioned the country several times in Dabiq, their online journal," said Sajjan Gohel, the international security director at the Asia Pacific Foundation. "They talked about the fact that they were going to carry out more attacks, they were going to increase the tempo, and they were calling for volunteers from Bangladesh to join them." Home to almost 150 million Muslims, the country had, until recently, avoided the kind of radicalism plaguing others parts of the world. But in the last two years, a wave of murders across Bangladesh have killed secular writers, academics and religious minorities. The string of targeted murders has sparked debate about the involvement of ISIS In response to growing criticism, the Bangladeshi government launched an anti-militant drive last month, rounding up and arresting hundreds. But many of those detained are believed to be ordinary criminals and not Islamic extremists. ||||| DHAKA, Bangladesh — Twenty foreigners, including a U.S. citizen, were killed by six heavily armed militants at an upscale restaurant in the diplomatic quarter of Dhaka early Saturday. The hours-long siege was eventually ended by Bangladeshi forces, officials said. Sharp weapons were used to kill the victims, with local media reporting that some were beheaded. Among those killed were three students with ties to American colleges: Emory University in Georgia, and the University of California, Berkeley. People help an unidentified injured person after a group of gunmen attacked a restaurant popular with foreigners in a diplomatic zone of the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka, Bangladesh on July 1. AP Abinta Kabir, a rising sophomore at Emory University's campus in Oxford, Georgia, was killed in the attack, the school said in a statement. Kabir, who lived in Miami, was in Dhaka visiting family and friends. The State Department said Saturday that a U.S. citizen was "among those senselessly murdered in this attack," but did not identify the citizen. It was not immediately clear whether it was Kabir. A second Emory student also died, the school said. Faraaz Hossain, from Dhaka, graduated from Emory's Oxford College this year and was preparing to start at the university's business school in the fall. Photos: Security Forces Respond to Hostage Crisis in Bangladesh "The Emory community mourns this tragic and senseless loss of two members of our university family. Our thoughts and prayers go out on behalf of Faraaz and Abinta and their families and friends for strength and peace at this unspeakably sad time," said a post on Emory's Facebook page. Another student, 19-year-old Tarushi Jain of India, was also killed, according to tweets from Indian Exterior Minister Sushma Swaraj. Jain, who went to high school at the American International School of Dhaka, had been attending the University of California, Berkeley. "I have spoken to her father Shri Sanjeev Jain and conveyed our deepest condolences. The country is with them in this hour of grief," Swaraj tweeted. Jain had been in Dhaka for an internship with Eastern Bank Limited since last month, according to UC Berkeley. She planned on majoring in economics in college, the school said. Her father is a textile merchant based in Dhaka. I spoke to Tarishi's father and offered him all assistance. We have arranged Visa for family and they are flying tommw. /2 @siddraniwala — Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) July 2, 2016 Nine Italians were also killed in the attack, Italy's foreign minister said, and one Italian was missing. There were also seven Japanese citizens killed, Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said Saturday. The five men and two women were consultants with the non-governmental Japan International Cooperation Agency. “That innocent lives were taken away by this cruel and inhumane act of terrorism, we cannot but feel the strongest of indignation. Whatever the reason, terrorism cannot be forgiven and we firmly denounce it,” Suga said. Related: Gunmen Kill 4 Officers, Take Dozens Hostage in Bangladesh Thirteen other foreign captives were rescued by paramilitary forces, who killed all the attackers, Brigadier General Nayeem Ashfaq Chowdhury told reporters. Some police officers were also killed. Gunmen shouting "Allahu Akbar" stormed the popular Holey Artisan Bakery in the Gulshan district on Friday night during the Ramadan holy month. ISIS claimed responsibility for the atrocity, according to terror research firms Flashpoint Intelligence and Site Intelligence Group. The Amaq news agency, affiliated with ISIS, also posted photos purportedly showing hostages' bodies. NBC News has not verified the claim. The restaurant was popular with foreigners. AP The nine Italians killed were named by the Italian foreign ministry as Adele Puglisi; Marco Tondat; Claudia Maria D'Antona; Nadia Benedetti; Vincenzo D'Allestro; Maria Rivoli; Cristian Rossi; Claudio Cappelli; and Simona Monti. Gunfire was heard as troops moved to end the standoff more than 10 hours after the attack began. Journalists were not allowed near the scene. "We heard gunfire open, it continued for about 10 minutes — very loud, rapid gunfire, multiple explosions," Maimuna Ahmad, who lives near the restaurant, told MSNBC. The gunfire was then sporadic and stopped, she said. Other blasts were later heard, but it was unsure what caused them. ||||| Emory University Statement Emory University has learned that two Emory students, Abinta Kabir and Faraaz Hossain, were among those taken hostage and murdered by terrorists yesterday in the attack in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Abinta, who was from Miami, was a rising sophomore at Emory’s Oxford College. Faraaz, a junior from Dhaka, was a graduate of Oxford College and a student at the university’s Goizueta Business School. The Emory community mourns this tragic and senseless loss of two members of our university family. Our thoughts and prayers go out on behalf of Faraaz and Abinta and their families and friends for strength and peace at this unspeakably sad time. In the wake of this terrible loss, the university is offering support to members of our community through counseling services. ||||| Japan International Cooperation Agency President Shinichi Kitaoka listens to reporters questions during a press conference following the incident at a Bangladesh restaurant, in Tokyo, Saturday, July 2,... (Associated Press) Japan International Cooperation Agency President Shinichi Kitaoka listens to reporters questions during a press conference following the incident at a Bangladesh restaurant, in Tokyo, Saturday, July 2, 2016. Shinichi Kitaoka said one Japanese hostage has been hospitalized, and the fate of seven others... (Associated Press) DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — The Latest on the attack on a restaurant popular with foreigners in a diplomatic zone in the Bangladeshi capital (all times local): 9 p.m. Emory University says two of its students were among 20 victims of an extremist attack in Bangladesh. University president James Wagner said in emails to employees that Faraaz Hossain and Abinta Kabir were killed after militants took hostages at a restaurant in the South Asian nation's capital of Dhaka and engaged in a 10-hour standoff ending Saturday morning. Kabir was a student at the school's campus in Oxford. She was visiting family and friends in Bangladesh when she was taken hostage and killed. Hossain had completed his second year at Oxford and was headed to the business school in the fall. School spokeswoman Elaine Justice says Kabir was from Miami, Florida, and Hossain was from Dhaka. ___ 8:45 p.m. Italy's foreign minister says an Italian citizen is unaccounted for after the Dhaka restaurant attack. Minister Paolo Gentiloni says Saturday that the person isn't among the bodies identified in a military morgue in Dhaka and isn't among the 20 victims. Gentiloni says it is possible the person, whom he didn't identify by name or age, is among the injured or just can't be located. The others confirmed dead include nine Italians, seven Japanese and one Indian. ___ 8:45 p.m. A Japanese government spokesman says that seven Japanese are among those killed in the overnight siege of a restaurant in Bangladesh. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said Saturday night in Tokyo that five men and two women who were Japanese had died in the attack. They were among eight Japanese nationals eating at the restaurant. One man who had been shot was rescued, and being treated at a hospital. The Japanese were consultants working on a Japanese government aid project in Dhaka. ___ 8:15 p.m. South Korea's Foreign Ministry says it received confirmation from Bangladesh government officials that no South Koreans were among the 20 hostages killed during an attack at a Dhaka restaurant. The ministry also said there were no South Koreans among the injured. Italy has confirmed nine Italians died. An Indian government official previously said South Koreans were among the dead, as well as Japanese and one Indian woman. ___ 7:45 p.m. Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni says the bodies of nine Italians have been identified among the dead in the Dhaka restaurant attack. Gentiloni told reporters Saturday that there was another, unidentified body in the military morgue of Bangladesh but its nationality hasn't been determined. Italian news reports had said about 10 Italians were inside the restaurant when it was attacked by militants on Friday night. ___ 7:30 p.m. South Korea's Foreign Ministry says officials from the country's embassy in Bangladesh are in contact with local government authorities to confirm whether there were any South Koreans among the 20 hostages killed during an attack at a Dhaka restaurant. The ministry earlier said no South Koreans were among the injured. An Indian government official said Saturday evening that South Koreans were among the dead, as well as an Indian woman and other foreigners. The official was not authorized to discuss details of the crisis and spoke on condition of anonymity. ___ 7 p.m. The rescued Japanese hostage in Bangladesh has been identified as an employee for a Tokyo consulting firm that specializes in construction projects. Japanese broadcaster NHK, citing an unnamed government official, said Saturday that he is Tamaoki Watanabe and works for Almec Corp. He is among eight Japanese who were at the restaurant when it was attacked by militants on Friday night. The fates of the other seven have not been confirmed, but Japanese officials have called the situation "dire." NHK reported that Almec is part of a Japanese development agency project to develop an urban transportation system in Dhaka. 6:30 p.m. Italian media have identified one of the victims in the Dhaka restaurant attack as a 47-year-old manager from northeastern Italy. The Italian agency ANSA says the man, who was married and the father of 3-year-old twin girls, was in Bangladesh for work. ANSA said word spread Saturday in the town of Feletto Umberto, near Udine, that the man was among the 20 who died in the attack by extremists. Bangladesh authorities have said 20 hostages died in the 10-hour siege that paramilitary forces ended Saturday morning. Many were foreigners. Premier Matteo Renzi said earlier no details were being made public until families of the victims are officially notified. An Italian government plane was headed to Bangladesh, but Renzi didn't say if any victims' relatives might be aboard or if the aircraft was going to fly back bodies to Italy. ___ 6:30 p.m. Emory University says in an email to employees that one of the Dhaka restaurant attack victims was Abinta Kabir, a student at the school's campus in Oxford, Georgia. She was visiting family and friends in Bangladesh when she was taken hostage and killed. University president James Wagner said that Abinta's mother, with whom he had had contact, was in "unspeakable pain" upon receiving news of the death of her daughter. "Please, as you are inclined, direct your kindest thoughts and sincerest prayers in her behalf and that of her family," Wagner wrote. ___ 6:30 p.m. Pope Francis is condemning the Dhaka restaurant attack as an "offense against God and humanity." The Vatican said Saturday that Francis sent a condolence message, describing himself as "deeply saddened by the senseless violence perpetrated against innocent victims in Dhaka." Bangladeshi authorities say 20 hostages were killed by the extremists who began the attack Friday night. Paramilitary forces ended the standoff Saturday morning, killing six of the attackers. Francis prayed for the dead, and assured "the grieving families and the wounded." ___ 5:50 p.m. An Indian government source who was not authorized to discuss details of the crisis said on condition of anonymity that the 20 hostages killed during the attack in the Bangladeshi capital included Italians, Japanese, South Koreans, Bangladeshis and one Indian. The source said seven Bangladeshis and one Indian had been among the 13 rescued when commandos stormed the restaurant and killed six attackers. One attacker was taken alive and was being interrogated, the source said. Some were in a hospital being treated for injuries, including at least two Sri Lankans, a Japanese and an Italian. Two Bangladeshi police officers also died of wounds received Friday night when the hostage crisis began. ___ 4 p.m. Italy's premier says Italians are among the victims of the Dhaka attack, but won't say how many or give any other details until the victims' families have been notified. Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said a government plane was on its way to the Bangladeshi capital. He told reporters in Rome on Saturday that "we followed the events" in Dhaka "all night hoping for a different outcome." One Italian who managed to escape the attack was earlier quoted as saying there had been 10 or 11 Italians seated at two tables when the attack began on Friday night in the diplomatic quarter of Dhaka. "I was seated with my wife and a customer, at the other (there were) seven, eight persons," Gianni Boschetti told the Italian news agency ANSA, without giving any details about the fate of his wife or the others. Earlier, Italian radio reports said an Italian cook had escaped unharmed, but it was not immediately clear if Boschetti might be the cook. Renzi said the "Italians are hit, but not bent" by the "folly'" of radical extremism. ___ 4 p.m. The head of Japan's development agency has expressed his strong indignation toward the attackers in the Bangladesh restaurant attack, saying the Japanese taken hostage were working hard for the development of the South Asian country. One Japanese hostage has been hospitalized, and the fate of seven others is unknown. They were outside consultants working for Japan's development agency on an infrastructure project. Bangladesh authorities say 20 hostages were killed but have not identified them. Japan International Cooperation Agency President Shinichi Kitaoka said Saturday evening in Tokyo that that the restaurant was believed to be in a safe area, though it is also could have been a soft target for militants. He said his agency would strengthen security precautions while continuing to contribute to the development of Bangladesh. ___ 3:50 p.m. India's foreign minister says an Indian girl was among the 20 hostages killed in the attack on a restaurant in Dhaka. Sushma Swaraj said in a message from her Twitter account that she is "extremely pained to share that the terrorists have killed Tarushi, an Indian girl who was taken hostage in the terror attack in Dhaka." She said has spoken with the girl's father and "conveyed her deepest condolences." The army has said 20 hostages were killed in the attack, but it has not disclosed their nationalities. Bangladesh paramilitary troops mounted a rescue operation Saturday morning, about 10 hours after the hostage crisis began in the diplomatic quarter of the capital. ___ 1:15 p.m., Dhaka A top Bangladesh military official says 20 hostages were killed in the attack on a Dhaka restaurant where heavily armed militants held dozens of people hostage in a 10-hour standoff. Nayeem Ashfaq Chowdhury said six of the attackers were killed in the rescue operations early Saturday. Thirteen captives, including some foreigners, were rescued. Two police officers were killed when the attackers stormed the popular restaurant and opened fire Friday night. Chowdhury did not disclose the identities of the hostages. The paramilitary troops who mounted the rescue operations recovered explosive devices and sharp weapons from the scene, he said. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack on the Holey Artisan Bakery, according to the SITE Intelligence Group. ___ 12:45 p.m., Dhaka Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has condemned the Dhaka restaurant attack by militants who took dozens hostage and vows to fight what she calls terrorist attacks that have rattled Bangladesh. Hasina also said that security officials arrested one of the militants. Six others were killed, 13 hostage rescued while seven Japanese are unaccounted for. Hasina says: "Because of the effort of the joint force, the terrorists could not flee." She vowed to fight terrorist attacks in the country and urged people to come forward. She says: "Anyone who believes in religion cannot do such act. They do not have any religion, their only religion is terrorism." ___ 12 noon, Tokyo A Japanese government spokesman says a Japanese hostage has been rescued but seven others unaccounted for in the restaurant attack in Bangladesh. Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Koichi Hagiuda said Saturday that the eight were together at the restaurant during the attack. Hagiuda says the Japanese man who was rescued was shot and is still being treated. He declined to give specifics about the hostage's condition but said he is able to talk. He says the eight people were from different companies involved in the same project led by the Japan International Cooperation Agency. ___ 11:35 a.m., Bangkok The owner of the Bangladeshi restaurant at the center of the bloody hostage-taking says he wasn't able to communicate with his staff. Nasirul Alam Porag was in Bangkok in Saturday when news reached him that militants took dozens of hostages at the Holey Artisan Bakery in Dhaka's Gulshan area, a diplomatic zone. Ten hours later, security forces stormed the restaurant, killing at least six of the militants and rescuing 13 people. Two police were killed in an earlier gunbattle and 26 people wounded. Porag told The Associated Press: "Up until five minutes ago I didn't know anything. There is no one on the ground we can communicate with, not even the staff." He said the restaurant employs about 50 staff but 20 were present at the time of the attack. It opened two years ago, and he is one of three owners. They decided to open a new restaurant in Bangkok, which he is managing. ___ 10:35 a.m., Dhaka The commanding officer of Bangladeshi commandos says at least six of the militants have been killed and 13 hostages rescued after security forces cleared the main restaurant building at the end of the 10-hour standoff. Lt. Col. Tuhin Mohammad Masud told The Associated Press that some militants were captured. He says: "We have gunned down at least six terrorists and the main building is cleared but the operation is still going on." About 35 people were taken hostage, including about 20 foreigners, when gunmen stormed the Dhaka restaurant on Friday night. Masud says the rescued include a Japanese, who was injured, and two Sri Lankans. He says there are casualties among other hostages, but did not provide details. ___ 9:30 a.m., Dhaka and Tokyo The sound of two big explosions has been heard from inside the Dhaka restaurant where security forces battled militants holding dozens of hostages, and a police official says five bodies were seen lying in pools of blood. Security forces stormed the restaurant early Saturday to end the 10-hour standoff with militants. In Tokyo, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Koichi Hagiuda says 12 people were rescued in the raid, including two foreigners, but he couldn't say if they were Japanese. About 35 people were taken hostage, including about 20 foreigners. ___ 8:20 a.m., Dhaka Gunshots and explosions are heard as Bangladesh security forces are moving to end the 10-hour standoff with militants who stormed a Dhaka upscale restaurant and took dozens of people hostage. Local TV stations reported that the operation began at 7:40 a.m. Army personnel with automatic weapons have joined the operation. At least seven armored vehicles are being used while several ambulances are on standby. Local media reported that an Argentine and two Bangladeshis were rescued from the restaurant early Saturday, but details about their condition were not immediately available. Journalists are not allowed near the scene. ___ 7:20 a.m. A news agency affiliated with the Islamic Group has posted photos purportedly showing the bodies of hostages lying in pools of blood in the Dhaka restaurant where militants were holding about 35 people. The authenticity of the pictures, carried by the Amaq news agency and monitored by the SITE Intelligence Group, could not be independently confirmed. The same report says 24 people have been killed and 40 wounded, including foreigners. That figure could not be confirmed either. Police say two officers were killed and 26 people wounded in a gunbattle with the militants as the standoff continues into Saturday morning. ___ Japan says that Japanese citizens may be among the hostages being held in Bangladesh. The top government spokesman Yoshihide Suga said at a hastily called news conference Saturday morning in Tokyo that the government is trying to confirm the information. He says the Japanese Embassy in Dhaka set up a response center at 2:45 a.m. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told reporters that saving lives is the top priority. Heavily armed militants struck at the heart of Bangladesh's diplomatic zone on Friday night, taking at least 35 people — including about 20 foreigners — hostage in a restaurant. Two police were killed and at least 26 people wounded in a gunbattle. ___ 5:50 a.m. , Dhaka A member of Bangladeshi security forces say authorities are planning to launch a coordinated response at dawn Saturday to end the hostage-taking by militants inside a Dhaka restaurant popular with foreigners. According to internet service provider Aamr, authorities also ordered internet services to be blocked across the country. A member of the Rapid Action Battalion, identifying himself as Lt. Col. Masood, told Indian TV that he attackers "have not responded to authorities' calls for negotiation." He says a police cordon would prevent any of the attackers from escaping. ___ 3:00 a.m. The U.S. State Department says it has seen the claims of responsibility by the Islamic State group for the hostage-taking in Dhaka but cannot yet confirm it. A White House official said President Barack Obama was briefed on the attack by his chief counterterrorism adviser Lisa Monaco. The president asked to be kept informed as the situation develops, said the official, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the president's meetings. State Department spokesman John Kirby says the U.S. is in contact with the Bangladesh government and has offered its assistance to bring those responsible to justice. He said all official American personnel are accounted for with no injuries reported, and the department is working with local authorities to determine if any U.S. citizens and locally-employed staff were affected. ___ 1 a.m. Police say two officers have been killed by attackers who stormed a restaurant popular with foreigners in a diplomatic zone in the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka, taking dozens of hostages and exchanging gunfire with security forces. Hospital authorities said another 25 officers and one civilian were being treated for injuries, including 10 people listed in critical condition. The injuries include bullet wounds and broken bones, they said. The Islamic State's Amaq News Agency said the attack on the restaurant was carried out by "Islamic State commandos," according to the SITE Intelligence Group which monitors jihadist activity. Bangladesh authorities did not immediately respond to the claim. As many as nine gunmen attacked the Holey Artisan Bakery in Dhaka's Gulshan area on Friday night.

– Among the 20 hostages killed in the attack on a cafe in Bangladesh's capital of Dhaka were three students attending college in the US, CNN reports. Abinta Kabir of Miami was a sophomore at Georgia's Emory University. She was visiting friends and family in Dhaka. Faraaz Hossain is from Dhaka and was a junior at Emory University. According to the AP, he was going to start business school in the fall. "The Emory community mourns this tragic and senseless loss of two members of our university family," the university states. "Our thoughts and prayers go out on behalf of Faraaz and Abinta and their families and friends for strength and peace at this unspeakably sad time." Nineteen-year-old Tarushi Jain was also killed in the attack. She was an Indian citizen attending UC Berkeley and had gone to high school at the American International School of Dhaka, NBC News reports. ISIS is claiming responsibility for the incident in which six people stormed the Holey Artisan Bakery, killing 20 hostages during a 10-hour standoff that ended Saturday morning. Some of the victims were reportedly beheaded.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A judge has approved a settlement between Halle Berry and her ex-boyfriend over child support payments for their 6-year-old daughter. FILE - In this Feb. 22, 2009 file photo, actress Halle Berry, right, and Gabriel Aubry arrive at the Vanity Fair Oscar party in West Hollywood, Calif. A judge approved a partial child support settlement... (Associated Press) FILE - In this Feb. 22, 2009 file photo, actress Halle Berry, right, and Gabriel Aubry arrive at the Vanity Fair Oscar party in West Hollywood, Calif. A judge approved a partial child support settlement... (Associated Press) The agreement approved by Superior Court Judge Scott Gordon on May 30 calls for Berry to pay ex-boyfriend Gabriel Aubry $16,000 a month or nearly $200,000 a year to support their daughter. The Oscar-winning actress will also pay for their daughter's tuition, but the former couple will split health care expenses. The order also calls for Berry to pay her ex-boyfriend a retroactive payment of $115,000 and $300,000 to his attorneys to cover the costs of their custody dispute. Berry and Aubry, a model, were involved in a custody dispute in 2012, and a judge blocked her from moving their daughter to France. Gordon's order only affects child support payments. Berry has an 8-month-old son with her husband, Olivier Martinez. ||||| Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period.

– Halle Berry will be paying more per month in child support than you probably do to, well, live your entire life. A judge last month approved a partial settlement between the actress and her ex-boyfriend, Gabriel Aubry, ordering Berry to pay $16,000 per month to Aubry to support their 6-year-old daughter, Nahla, the AP reports. (We've helpfully done the math: That's $192,000 a year.) Berry will also be responsible for Nahla's tuition costs, a retroactive payment to Aubry of $115,000, and $300,000 to his attorneys to cover the cost of the couple's nasty 2012 custody dispute. They currently have equal custody, People notes.

The final two spellers Rohan Rajeev, 14, from Edmond, Okla., and Ananya Vinay, 12, from Fresno, Calif., right, applaud during the finals of the 90th Scripps National Spelling Bee, in Oxon Hill, Md., Thursday,... (Associated Press) OXON HILL, Md. (AP) — The Latest on the finals of the Scripps National Spelling Bee (all times local): 11:30 p.m. Twelve-year-old Ananya Vinay has won the 90th Scripps National Spelling Bee. The sixth-grader from Fresno, California, won by spelling "marocain," a French word for dress fabric made of ribbed crepe. She gets more than $40,000 in cash and prizes. Runner-up Rohan Rajeev missed the word "marram," a Scandinavian-derived word for beach grass. Ananya's victory was the first time since 2013 that the bee has declared a single champion. It ended in a tie for three consecutive years. The bee added a written tiebreaker test this year, but it didn't come into play. ___ 10:20 p.m. Four spellers remain in the Scripps National Spelling Bee nearly two hours after the primetime finals began. Veteran speller Tejas Muthusamy of Glen Allen, Virginia, made his third top-10 finish but missed his word with five spellers left. At stake is a trophy and more than $40,000 in cash and prizes. After three consecutive years of ties, the bee is trying to identify a sole champion this year by adding a tiebreaker test. ___ 3 p.m. Fifteen spellers have advanced to the primetime finals of the Scripps National Spelling Bee, where they'll test their knowledge of Webster's Unabridged dictionary. Scripps usually takes about 10 spellers to the final rounds, but the competition was paused with 15 kids left after more than four grueling hours on stage Thursday. At stake is a trophy and more than $40,000 in cash and prizes. After three consecutive years of ties, the bee is trying to identify a sole champion this year by adding a tiebreaker test. Among the finalists is Tejas Muthusamy of Glen Allen, Virginia, who had two previous top-10 finishes. Three other former top-10 spellers were eliminated. ||||| These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites.

– For Ananya Vinay, the road to victory ran through heiligenschein, Tchefuncte, zeaxanthin, and cecidomyia. The 12-year-old from Fresno, Calif., won the 90th annual Scripps National Spelling Bee Thursday night when she correctly spelled "marocain," a French-derived word for a dress fabric, after runner-up Rohan Rajeev stumbled on "marram," a Scandinavian word for a beach grass, the Guardian reports. After three years of ties, Ananya is the competition's first sole winner since 2013, the AP reports. A written tie-breaker question had been prepared to make sure there was a single winner this year, but judges didn't need to use it. (This year's bee featured the youngest-ever competitor.)

But for other mom-and-pops not in the snowplowing business, the recent stretch of winter has dragged down sales and productivity. On Sunday, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker called a statewide snow emergency, as schools were shut down for Monday and Tuesday. Baker urged business owners to close down and for non-essential employees to stay home from work. Anthony Mirogiann is the owner of Village Cafe in Newton, Massachusetts. On a typical Sunday, he'll have a line out the door for breakfast. This past weekend, though, only a handful of customers trickled into the restaurant in the morning as the storm approached. Mirogiann said he does what he can to stay open for business. "Unless there's a state of emergency, I will open up," he said. "It's frustrating. I will typically do about 20 percent to 30 percent of the week's business on a Sunday. " During the last blizzard a week ago, Mirogiann remained open in the morning and only made about 10 percent of what the café would typically earn on a normal day. "You deal with it, or try to deal with it," said the small business owner. "I have myself up to date with payments, and I try to have a bit saved in reserves in case something happens." A 2014 study from IHS Global Insight found that a major storm with "impassable" roads could have a significant economic impact with just a one-day shutdown. The research showed a single day's shutdown in New York costs about $700.17 million, while Massachusetts loses about $265.12 million. Read MoreWhat the botched storm forecasts may have cost And while storms can lower sales, other Boston area businesses have been hurt by a weather-related drop in productivity. Larry Nannis is CPA at Katz Nannis + Solomon, an accounting firm in Waltham, Massachusetts. He says the storm shutdowns have essentially slowed down the tax-filing process. For the bulk of his clientele, which are businesses, the filing deadline is March 15. "I can work from home, but if our clients are closed, they can't get us the information we need," Nannis said. "It's one less day we can work on a particular client. These things don't help when we are trying to make deadlines." Read MoreLower fuel prices lifting Main Street ||||| With a record-shattering six feet of snow covering Boston in just four weeks—and more coming Thursday—the city is scrambling to find places to stash its plowed snow. Should they keep hauling it off to the Skywalker-esque "snow farms" dotting the city? Revisit the Colonial past with a giant snow dump into the harbor? The city's desperate enough to have put out a call yesterday to academics, environmental leaders, and the general public for novel snow-disposal ideas. After all, neither the snow farms (the city's current solution) nor the harbor (an idea that's being floated) are perfect options. At the "farms"—vacant lots turned icy wonderlands—some snow stays frozen in piles up to 40 feet high, disappearing only with the spring melt. Other loads get fed into fearsome melting machines, which filter out the street-snow's nasty gunk (oil, gas, salt, and all manner of trash items) before spouting warm runoff into storm drains (and, eventually, Boston's harbor, rivers, and estuaries) at a rate of 400 tons per hour. The machines might be effective, but they're gas-guzzlers, and a drain on city resources. Snow-farm runoff is often treated at plants before getting deposited into the water. Soil and dirt can also act as a natural filter for all the gunk. How about dumping snow into the harbor? It's normally prohibited by state law, because of the environmental impacts of the snow's salt and contaminant content. (The practice was common until a massive cleanup of the infamously dirty harbor in the '90s led to tighter restrictions.) But Boston's public safety might soon override environmental concerns, as Mayor Martin J. Walsh told the press Monday, and the harbor might become a last-ditch receptacle. “We’re not at a public-safety concern yet,” Walsh said, “but we will be if we keep getting snow like this.” So what's a city to do? A number of local environmental agencies and organizations have stepped forward in support of dumping into the harbor if other options get snowed under. So have some oceanographers. Robert Chant, a professor of physical oceanography and estuarine dynamics at Rutgers University, told Popular Science that, by his calculation: ...the Boston Harbor contains about 10 million tons of salt. As of February 10, the city had dumped about 60,000 tons of the stuff onto roads, or less than 1 percent of what’s in the water. So even if all the snow from the streets entered the water at once, it still wouldn't significantly impact the harbor's salinity. So harbor dumping = no big deal, right? Not quite, according to Mi-Hyun Park, a professor of environmental engineering at a UMass Amherst who researches stormwater-runoff management. There's more to be concerned about than mere salinity levels. "It's not going to be good, because you're going to directly increase pollution into the harbor," she says. "Snow can pick up pollution from the air in addition to the oil and deicing agents it can pick up from the road." As the Northeast gets pounded with more extreme snowfall, year after year, cities can't just maintain status quo. Park loosely analogized the harbor plan with sending untreated wastewater into the ocean—a practice that, when added up, can have catastrophic results. Since there's much we don't know about the type and quantity of pollutants in Boston's street-snow, Park says it's probably best to keep using the snow farms, carbon-hungry as they are. Depending on location, snow-farm runoff is often treated before getting deposited into the water. Sometimes nearby soil and dirt can also act as a natural filter for all the gunk. Yet as the Northeast gets pounded with more extreme snowfall, year after year, cities can't just maintain status quo. More research is needed to understand the environmental impacts of snow and snow-melt—and to figure out new ways of dealing with it. "There is a great need to work on this kind of research," says Park. That way, maybe Boston won't have to scramble the next time it gets slammed.

– A record 6 feet of snow has dumped down on Boston in the past few weeks, and today looks to show that there's more where that came from. It's gotten so bad that the city has reached out to the general public and scientists alike for fresh ideas on what to do with all the piles of plowed snow—some of which reach 40 feet into the freezing sky, reports City Lab. "We’re not at a public-safety concern yet, but we will be if we keep getting snow like this," Boston Mayor Martin Walsh warned on Monday. These piles of snow in vacant lots, or "snow farms," can hang around until spring, while melting machines that filter out street debris and redirect the melt toward storm drains are costly, not to mention require lots of gas to run. A leading idea being debated is to go back to the days of yore and dump the snow straight into Boston Harbor. While some say all the salt shouldn't be poured into the water, local environmental agencies and even oceanographers tend to agree that there's not enough to seriously impact the water's salinity—less than 1% of what's already in the water has this year been dumped onto city streets, and the folks at Popular Science are all for this old-school alternative. And while CNBC reports that Boston area snow plowers are making a killing this year, all the snow is putting quite a dent in the local economy, especially hitting small-business owners who see considerably less foot traffic. One estimate suggests that a single-day shutdown costs the city $265 million, no matter where that snow ultimately goes. (Even the wind was gusting at up to 70mph in parts of Massachusetts.)

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Daniel Sandford looks back at the revulsion caused by Brady's crimes Moors Murderer Ian Brady, who tortured and killed five children with Myra Hindley in crimes that shocked the nation, has died. The 79-year-old died at Ashworth Hospital, a secure psychiatric unit in Merseyside where he had been detained since 1985. Brady, who was jailed in 1966, buried four of his victims in graves on Saddleworth Moor, Greater Manchester. One victim's brother said Brady's death would not end their "nightmare". A Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust spokesman said Brady had died at 18:03 BST on Monday. Brady, who was born in Glasgow but later moved to Manchester, was jailed at Chester Assizes 51 years ago for the murders of John Kilbride, aged 12, Lesley Ann Downey, 10, and Edward Evans, 17. In 1985 he also admitted to the murders of Pauline Reade, 16, and Keith Bennett, who was 12. Body never found The children had been abducted by Brady and his lover Hindley, who died in prison in 2002, between 1963 and 1965. Brady never revealed where Keith's remains were buried. The boy's mother Winnie Johnson, who died in 2012, had repeatedly pleaded for Brady to do so. Image copyright PA Image caption Brady never revealed where Keith Bennett's remains were buried Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Keith's mother Winnie Johnson, pictured here in 2009, never gave up on the search Brady and Hindley were caught when her brother-in-law David Smith, who was a petty criminal, phoned the police after seeing Brady abuse and strangle Edward Evans. The officers caught Brady and Hindley at home, retrieving Edward's body from the bedroom, along with Brady's library of volumes on perversion and sadism. 'Aware of imminent death' Martin Bottomley, the head of Greater Manchester Police's cold case unit, said the force would never give up the search for Keith and Brady's death did "not change that". He said: "Our aim, as it always has been, is to find where Keith is buried and give closure to his surviving family members so they can give Keith the proper burial they so desperately want. "Whilst we are not actively searching Saddleworth Moor, we will act on credible and actionable information that will help lead us to him." Image caption Lesley Ann Downey, Edward Evans, John Kilbride and Pauline Reade were among the victims Brady's lawyer Robin Makin told BBC Radio 4's Today programme he was with his client in hospital less than two hours before his death. "I got a call that he wanted to see me - he was obviously well aware that his death was imminent," he said. He described the encounter as "quite a moving sort of situation", where the pair discussed Brady's legal affairs and funeral arrangements. He said the whereabouts of the remains of Keith Bennett did not come up in conversation. "I would be very surprised if he really had information that was useful. "He did go to the Moors a long time ago and I suspect that if there had been information for him that he could have provided, he would have provided it then." Describing coverage of the search for Keith's body as a "frenzy", he said: "I would very much hope that the remains can be found, but unfortunately I haven't got any information that's going to assist." Keith's brother Alan runs a website, Searching for Keith, in an ongoing attempt to locate his body. John Kilbride's brother, Terry, told the Sun newspaper: "It's been years and years of anguish and pain for us and the families of the victims. "He's dead but we will have to still live with the nightmare that he left behind." Image copyright Duncan Staff Image caption Brady and Hindley murdered five children in the 1960s Speaking about the case of victim Lesley Ann Downey, former police officer Norman Brennan told of the "grief and torment" he had seen on the faces of her mother and father. Police found photographs of the naked 10-year-old, along with tape recordings of her final moments pleading for her life as she was brutally abused. Mr Brennan told BBC Two's Newsnight: "To know that your daughter was lost, alone and murdered and then actually her death was recorded, the grief can never ever be etched from your mind. "Those two individuals, Myra Hindley and Ian Brady, they didn't just destroy five young children's lives. "The... false hopes that they gave the families for over 50 years destroyed all of the families as well, even to this day." Image copyright Julia Quenzler Image caption Brady last appeared before a mental health tribunal in 2013 Brady had been on successive hunger strikes since 1999, arguing he should be allowed to die, but had been force-fed because he was considered mentally ill. He campaigned for several years to be moved from Ashworth to a Scottish prison where he would not be force-fed and would be allowed to die if he wished. The Mersey Care Trust was unable to confirm the cause of Brady's death, but said he had been given oxygen for a while. Brady was not found dead in his room, its spokesman said, but he was unable to confirm if anyone was with him when he died, adding: "Quite possibly. I don't know." Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Police searches of the moor began in the 1960s, including this area where the body of Lesley Downey was found ||||| Ian Brady, one of Britain’s most notorious serial killers, has died aged 79. Brady, who along with accomplice Myra Hindley, murdered five children in the 1960s, had been suffering from a lung and chest condition and died at the Ashworth High Security Hospital on Merseyside. But even in death, Brady continued to cause anguish, taking the secret of where he had buried the last of his victims, Keith Bennett, to the grave with him. ||||| TWISTED Ian Brady never revealed where he buried Keith Bennett - and used the torment of the 12-year-old’s family to entertain himself. Brady repeatedly claimed he knew where Keith’s grave was, but vowed never to tell despite the pleas of the lad’s brother Alan and his mum Winnie Johnson, who died in 2012. PA:Press Association 4 Keith Bennett was murdered by Ian Brady and Myra Hindley on June 16, 1964 and his body has never been found Youngster Keith was tragically murdered aged just 12 years old by Brady and Myra Hindley. Keith was on his way to his grandmother’s house on June 16, 1964, when he was snatched away. Hindley lured the 12-year-old boy into her van. She drove to a lay-by on the Moor and Brady took the boy while Hindley kept watch. Brady reappeared 30 minutes later having sexually assaulted and strangled Keith. Keith's family have wondered for years where their little lad was buried. Last year Ian Brady was urged to finally name the spot where he killed and buried Keith Bennett, on the 50th anniversary of his life sentence. Getty Images 4 Ian Brady admitted killing Keith while in prison but has never revealed what he did with the body The serial killer has remained silent about the 12 year-old's whereabouts since he was jailed and branded "wicked beyond belief" by a judge on 6 May, 1966. And it was hoped that in his final moments this week, as he lay on his death bed, that Brady would tell officers where Keith was buried. He refused, however, before dying at approximately 6pm today. Getty Images 4 Keith was enticed into a van by Brady's accomplice and lover Myra Hindley Keith’s brother Alan and family lawyer John Ainley have often walked the moors searching for clues as to his final resting place. Solicitor John asked Brady to show some compassion and finally pinpoint the grave. He said: “Now that half a century is nigh, it's time for you to end the hurt, misery and speculation and do the honourable by revealing Keith's final resting place. "He is the only one of your five victims still buried on the Moors so you should do the honourable thing by telling us the truth about his fate and last moments. MOST READ IN NEWS FRIGHT NIGHT The world’s scariest haunted house where NOBODY lasts more than six hours uk? no way! Brit lorry driver takes stowaway migrants hundreds of miles in wrong direction 'he's gone' Corrie McKeague family lay flowers at bin that was 'too heavy' when he vanished SHOP TIL YOU DROP You could be JAILED for breaking this new rule at 14 UK shopping centres ‘YOU’RE WORTH MORE’ Pizza restaurant’s note to homeless people eating from bins goes viral 'CAN'T LIVE' Family of sick boy 'so poor on Universal Credit they eat his hospital food' "By your own admission you are ill and don't have much time left to live, so surely it would be a humane gesture on your part to finally reveal the truth. "Please God, you won't take the secret to your own grave. You have spent 50 years in jails and psychiatric hospitals so what have you got too lose by being upfront with us?" John, 68, added: “At this late stage it would be good for you to give us fresh information about Keith's grave so that we, and Alan in particular, can have a degree of peace. Surely, it’s the least you owe us?” Brady and Hindley were convicted of killing Pauline Reade, 16, John Kilbride, 12, Lesley Ann Downey, 10, and 17-year-old Edward Evans. Men Syndication 4 Keith's mum Winnie died in 2012 While locked up he later admitted killing Keith, who he snatched off the street in June 1964, shortly after his 12th birthday. Keith’s mum, Winnie Johnson, died from cancer in 2012 having never learnt the truth. It was just hours before Brady died that Terry Kilbride, whose brother John, 12, was also killed by Brady, told The Sun: "I would beg him to do the right thing on his deathbed and tell us where Keith is. "Now is the time for him to stop playing tricks and come clean. "If he takes it to the grave, I will feel so sorry for Keith's family. There will only ever be another search if there's fresh evidence. That has to come from him."

– One of Britain’s most notorious killers died Monday, taking a secret that’s haunted the family of one of his victims with him to the grave. The Telegraph reports that Ian Brady, 79, died in a hospital of causes not yet released to the public. Along with Myra Hindley, who passed away in prison in 2002, Brady sexually tortured and murdered five children ages 10 through 17 in the mid-1960s. After burying four of the bodies in the Saddleworth Moor, the pair became known as the Moors Murderers. But Brady never revealed where 12-year-old victim Keith Bennett's body was buried, and the boy’s elderly mother passed away without ever knowing his final resting place. As his health began failing, Brady continued to deny requests to reveal the whereabouts of the body. "I would beg him to do the right thing on his deathbed and tell us where Keith is," Terry Kilbride, whose brother John was also murdered by Brady, told the Sun hours before Brady's death. The head of the local cold case unit tells the BBC Brady's death will "not change" the effort to find Keith's remains. Prior to his death, Brady was in poor health, with chest and lung problems. He recently made headlines for demanding his right to die. His multiple appeals to be removed from a hospital and placed in prison in his native Scotland, where he wouldn’t be force-fed through a feeding tube, were refused. (This serial killer's true toll may never be known.)

Russia's President Vladimir Putin (R) shakes hands with his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani at the welcoming ceremony during a summit of Caspian Sea regional leaders in the southern city of Astrakhan, September 29, 2014. MOSCOW Russia paved the way on Monday for missile system deliveries to Iran and started an oil-for-goods swap, signaling that Moscow may have a head-start in the race to benefit from an eventual lifting of sanctions on Tehran. The moves come after world powers, including Russia, reached an interim deal with Iran this month on curbing its nuclear program. The Kremlin said President Vladimir Putin signed a decree ending a self-imposed ban on delivering the S-300 anti-missile rocket system to Iran, removing a major irritant between the two after Moscow canceled a corresponding contract in 2010 under pressure from the West. A senior government official said separately that Russia has started supplying grain, equipment and construction materials to Iran in exchange for crude oil under a barter deal. Sources told Reuters more than a year ago that a deal worth up to $20 billion was being discussed and would involve Russia buying up to 500,000 barrels of Iranian oil a day. Officials from the two countries have issued contradictory statements since then on whether a deal has been signed, but Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Monday one was already being implemented. "I wanted to draw your attention to the rolling out of the oil-for-goods deal, which is on a very significant scale," Ryabkov told a briefing with members of the upper house of parliament on the talks with Iran. "In exchange for Iranian crude oil supplies, we are delivering certain products. This is not banned or limited under the current sanctions regime." He declined to give further details. Russia's Agriculture Ministry declined comment and the Energy Ministry did not respond to request for comment. There was no comment from Iran. Iran is the third largest buyer of Russian wheat, and Moscow and Tehran have been discussing the oil-for-goods barter deal for more than a year. Russia hopes to reap economic and trade benefits if a final deal is concluded to build on the framework agreement reached in the Swiss city of Lausanne between Iran and six world powers - Russia, the United States, France, Britain, Germany and China. They have until June 30 to work out a detailed technical agreement under which Iran would curb its nuclear program and allow international control in exchange for a lifting of economic sanctions. TWO TO TANGO Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the agreement in Lausanne wiped out the need for Moscow's ban on the delivery of S-300 and that the system was defensive, hence would pose no threat to Iran's foe, Israel. Russian S-300 anti-missile rocket system move along a central street during a rehearsal for a military parade in Moscow May 4, 2009. REUTERS/Alexander Natruskin "As a result of suspending the contract, we did not receive major sums that we were due. We see no need to continue doing this given progress in talks on Iran's nuclear program and the absolutely legitimate nature of the forthcoming deal," he said. The United States and Israel had lobbied Russia to block the missile sale before it did so in 2010, saying the S-300 system could be used to shield Iran's nuclear facilities from possible future air strikes. Leonid Ivashov, a retired Russian general who now heads the Moscow-based Centre for Geo-Political Analysis think-tank, said the move was part of a race for future contracts in Iran. "If we now delay and leave Iran waiting, then tomorrow, when sanctions are fully lifted, Washington and its allies will get Iran's large market," RIA news agency quoted him as saying. Ryabkov suggested Russia had high hopes that its steady support for Iran would pay off in energy cooperation once international sanctions against Tehran are lifted. "It takes two to tango. We are ready to provide our services and I am sure they will be pretty advantageous compared to other countries," he said. "We never gave up on Iran in a difficult situation... Both for oil and gas, I think the prospects for our cooperation should not be underestimated." He also reiterated Moscow's view that an arms embargo on Iran should be lifted once a final nuclear deal is sealed. Sanctions have cut Iran's oil exports to about 1.1 million barrels per day from 2.5 million bpd in 2012. Analysts say Iran is unlikely to see a major boost in exports before next year. One upper house lawmaker asked Ryabkov whether lifting sanctions on Tehran could undermine Russia's position on global energy markets, including as the main gas supplier to Europe. "I am not confident as yet that the Iranian side would be ready to carry out supplies of natural gas from its fields quickly and in large quantities to Europe. This requires infrastructure that is difficult to build," he said. (Additional reporting by Polina Devitt, Olesya Astakhova and Vladimir Soldatkin, Editing by Timothy Heritage and Angus MacSwan) Related: ||||| This nuke deal with Iran had better work. Because the Kremlin is lifting a ban on selling a powerful air defense system to Iran that would render an airstrike on Tehran’s nuclear weapons facilities nearly impossible. The delivery of the new weapon, called the Almaz-Antei S-300PMU-1—known as the SA-20 Gargoyle in NATO parlance—would effectively force the U.S. to rely on its small fleet of stealth aircraft to strike targets inside Iran in case the mullahs make a dash for the bomb. But even those aircraft might have a difficult time. “This would be a huge deal depending on where they [the S-300s] are based…The Persian Gulf would be an interesting place to fly,” said one senior defense official with experience on multiple stealth aircraft types. “These new [surface-to-air missiles] change the whole complexion…It’s a big move.” According to a report from Russian state media, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Monday that would allow the sale of the fearsome S-300 air defense system to Iran. “[The presidential] decree lifts the ban on transit through Russian territory, including airlift, and the export from the Russian Federation to the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also the transfer to the Islamic Republic of Iran outside the territory of the Russian Federation, both by sea and by air, of air defense missile systems S-300,” reads the Kremlin statement, according to RIA Novosti. The U.S. government has lobbied Russia hard for years to prevent the sale of the S-300 to Iran. In 2010, convincing Putin to suspend the sale of the S-300 to Iran was heralded as a major foreign policy coup by the Obama administration. In many ways, it was one of the central achievements of the so-called reset in relations with Moscow, said Heather Conley, a Russia expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. Since then, of course, relations with Russia have cooled to nearly Cold War levels of hostility. Making life difficult for American policymakers is once again a Kremlin priority. “Mr. Putin’s policies are not designed to assist the West or to make our jobs and ability to affect policy much more difficult,” Conley said. “It’s also a reminder to Washington and other Western capitals that they have some cards to play here.” Another factor that might be motivating Moscow is that with the Russian economy in shambles, Moscow needs all of the economic stimulus it can get. The missile deal with Iran would reportedly net Russia more than $800 million. Last year, analysts predicted that if the U.S. sanctions of the Russian economy grew too tight, the Kremlin would respond by selling S-300s to Tehran. “I could see as part of this deal [between Tehran and Moscow] that they would agree to transfer advanced missiles to Iran,” Mark Dubowitz, the executive director of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, told The Daily Beast at the time. “If Putin became angry enough over the West’s financial punishment of Russia, he could put in play the S-300 deal.” The Kremin’s decision now sends a signal to Tehran that the sanctions that brought Iran to the negotiating table are done—even before a final nuclear agreement is signed. “Clearly, this is the sanctions regime already starting to crack and fall apart in anticipation there will be an agreement [on nuclear issues with Iran] on June 30,” Conley said. “This is the first major signal that regime is coming to an end.” From a practical military standpoint, the sale of the S-300 would directly challenge the U.S. position that “all options are on the table” should Iran try to subvert the nuclear deal. The addition of the powerful missile defense system would make punitive airstrikes against Iran extremely difficult. Many U.S. defense officials from the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps agree that the Russian missile system effectively renders entire regions no-go zones for conventional jets like the F-16 or Navy F/A-18 Hornet. Currently, only high-end stealth aircraft like the $2.2 billion B-2 Spirit—of which the Air Force has exactly 20—and the high-performance F-22 Raptor can safely operate inside an area protected by the S-300 and its many variants. The Pentagon’s $400 billion F-35 Joint Strike Fighter will eventually be able to operate inside those zones, too. But according to multiple sources within the Pentagon and defense industry, no warplane now operating can remain inside those well-defended areas for long. A senior U.S. Marine Corps aviator said that if Russia delivers the S-300 missile to Iran, it would fundamentally change U.S. war plans. “A complete game changer for all fourth-gen aircraft [like the F-15, F-16 and F/A-18]. That thing is a beast and you don’t want to get near it,” he said. The sale of the S-300 also would neutralize any possibility that Israel could take unilateral action against Iran, one senior Air Force commander noted. The S-300 would effectively prevent the Israeli air force from attacking Iran until the F-35 is delivered to that nation. “I find it almost hilarious that the Russians are saying, ‘It’s an entirely defensive system and cannot attack anyone, including Israel,’” the senior officer said. “But it also essentially makes Iran attack-proof by Israel and almost any country without fifth-gen [stealth fighter] capabilities. In other words, Iran, with the S-300, can continue to do what they want once those systems are in place without fear of attack from anyone save the U.S. Brilliant chess move…” But even when Israel receives the F-35, the relatively short-range stealth fighter can only carry a pair of 2,000-pound bombs—which are not likely to be adequate for the most heavily fortified Iranian targets. Some of the Iranian facilities are likely to require the use of the massive 30,000-pound GBU-57A/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) that can only be carried by the American B-2 stealth bomber. An attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities was going to be a daunting task, even under the best of circumstances, another Air Force official with extensive experience flying stealth aircraft said. The targets are deeply buried—which makes them hard to crack open with bombs—and the facilities are scattered all over the place. The Air Force’s tiny fleet of B-2 stealth bombers would have to do most of the work because only those aircraft have the range and weapons needed to hit those targets properly. The introduction of any version of the S-300 would make that extremely difficult job much more challenging, the official said. But the exact number and exact location of where the S-300s are placed makes a big difference, the official said. That’s further compounded by the fact that the S-300 system is mobile—and can move at a moment’s notice. Get The Beast In Your Inbox! Daily Digest Start and finish your day with the top stories from The Daily Beast. Cheat Sheet A speedy, smart summary of all the news you need to know (and nothing you don't). By clicking “Subscribe,” you agree to have read the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy Subscribe Thank You! You are now subscribed to the Daily Digest and Cheat Sheet. We will not share your email with anyone for any reason. If there is a large number of those S-300 air defense systems in place, even pilots flying stealth jets like the B-2 and F-22 Raptor would find the mission to be extremely difficult. “If they’re all over every square inch of the country, then it doesn’t matter what you put out there—it’s going to be a challenge,” the Air Force official said. But it’s not just Iran. If Russia and China continue to sell advanced air defenses around the world, the overwhelming majority of current U.S. warplanes will be unable to fight in many parts of the globe. “We are very concerned with the proliferation of big [surface-to-air missiles]…now in Crimea, Kaliningrad, and Iran if this is true,” said one senior U.S. Air Force official. “We’re being denied access faster than we can appreciate, in my opinion.” That said, there are some ways in which older non-stealth jets can fight in areas protected by these new missiles, one senior Air Force official said. But it would be very risky. “It would be really classified to discuss specific SAM [surface-to-air missile] counter tactics, but you know that the ‘double digits SAMs’ [which is what Air Force pilots call the S-300 and its variants] give all of the fourth-gen jets great pause,” the official said. One way would be to use a combination of miniature air-launched drones carrying jammers to try to spoof the S-300’s radars by giving it false targets, another Air Force official said. Those drones would have to be combined with stealthy long-range missiles to eliminate the Russian-built air defenses. It would also be very helpful to have a jamming aircraft to try to suppress the S-300’s radar from a distance—which is where the Navy comes in. “[The Navy’s] EA-18Gs [carrier-based jamming aircraft] with their ALQ-218 [electronic sensor] will detect, fix, and track that weapons system,” said a former senior naval aviator. “Once you have it fixed, they can jam and you can employ weapons from range to destroy it.” But the problem is that the S-300 is a mobile system and thus moves every so often; U.S. pilots can never be sure where a weapon is at any given time. “Well, yes...you can kill it” with the right cruise missile, said Mark Gunzinger, an air power analyst with the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments in Washington. “This assumes, of course, that the S-300 launcher remains at a fixed location after a standoff cruise missile is launched at it.”

– The nuclear deal between Iran and Western powers is still only a "framework," but Vladimir Putin has decided to lift a ban on missile sales to Tehran—and make it a lot harder for the US to strike Iran if the deal goes bad. The Russian leader has approved the sale of an S-300 surface-to-air missile defense system to Iran in an $800 million deal that Russia's foreign minister says was made in a "spirit of goodwill in order to encourage progress in the talks," reports the New York Times. Sources tell Reuters that Russia has also started supplying Iran with grain and construction materials under an oil barter deal that could be worth up to $20 billion. Russia agreed in 2010 to suspend the sale of the missile system, which military experts say would make it very difficult for the US or Israel to strike Iranian nuclear facilities. A senior US Marine Corps aviator tells the Daily Beast that the S-300 would be a "game changer" for modern aircraft like the F-15. "That thing is a beast and you don't want to get near it," he says. The White House has objected to the sale, which analysts see as part of a pattern of Moscow renewing ties with regimes hostile to the US. For Russia, "it is always good to have some third world countries hostile to the West, hostile to America," an analyst at the Institute of World Economy and International Relations tells the Times.

It’s not like anyone expected the New England Patriots to provide Tom Brady’s medical records with a doctor there to explain them. On Friday, the Patriots offered nothing of any real value when it came to updating Brady’s hand injury, which kept him out of practice on Wednesday or Thursday. Brady was present at the start of practice Friday, just like Thursday (and, like Thursday, he had gloves on again), but quarterbacks didn’t throw in the period that was open to the media. New England Patriots quarterbacks Tom Brady (12) and Brian Hoyer (2) warm up before practice Friday. (AP) Basically, we don’t know a lot now and are unlikely to know much more before kickoff on Sunday. There was the theater of Brady conducting his news conference Friday with gloves on. Gloves still on both hands for Brady. Says he’s not talking about how his right hand is feeling or whether he threw passes today. How confident is he that he’ll play Sunday? “We’ll see.” pic.twitter.com/V4voXES7Lu — Phil Perry (@PhilAPerry) January 19, 2018 When Brady was asked about his injury, he said “I’m not talking about it.” The most humorous exercise of all might have been coach Bill Belichick avoiding answering any questions about Brady, which everyone knew was coming. Here are the Brady-related excerpts from Belichick’s press conference transcript: Q: Do you have an update on Tom Brady’s status for Sunday? BB: Yeah, we gave out the injury report yesterday. We’ll update it today. Q: When Brian Hoyer steps in at practice, as he did yesterday, how does that affect the team’s preparation for the execution that you’re looking for on game day? Do you feel like when he’s in there you’re getting the work that helps you meet that team execution? BB: Brian does a great job for us – works hard, practices hard. He does a good job. Story Continues [Stream the NFL Playoffs live on the Yahoo Sports mobile app] Q: Has not having Tom on the practice field limited your preparation at all for Jacksonville? BB: We’re going to continue to get ready for Jacksonville all the way through, up till game time. Q: Now that Brady is dealing with this injury, do you have any regrets about trading Jimmy Garoppolo? BB: We’re getting ready for Jacksonville. Q: Does it look like Brady’s playing status might be a game-time decision? BB: Today’s Friday. Q: Given Brady’s injury, did you consider bringing in a third quarterback just in case? BB: Yeah, we’re going to get ready for Jacksonville, do the best that we can, make the best decisions we can for the team to do that, so that’s what we’re going to do. Q: How much, if at all, does Brady’s status complicate the game planning process for you at this point? BB: I don’t know. Q: What is your level of concern that he’ll be able to perform the functions that he needs to at quarterback? BB: Yeah, I don’t know. We’ll see. Trying reading between those lines. You won’t find much. Brady’s injury (and it is an injury, if you believe Belichick is sitting him out of practice just to play around, you’ve been infected with Patriots paranoia) has obvious implications for Sunday. He could be just fine on Sunday, and the Patriots have been cautious with him. Maybe having an injury to his throwing hand affects him significantly against the Jaguars’ top-ranked pass defense. We just don’t know. “It’s Tom so regardless of any situation he’s put in, he’s going to make sure he’s out there game day,” Patriots running back Dion Lewis said, via Phil Perry of NBC Sports Boston. “Nobody’s really worried.” That might be the most definitive word we get before the AFC championship game kicks off. – – – – – – – Frank Schwab is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdown.corner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! ||||| These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites.

– Tom Brady hurt his hand during practice Wednesday, and while coach Bill Belichick is being—typically, hilariously—coy about the extent of his star quarterback's injury, oddsmakers aren't being shy about what a less-than-fully-operational Brady means for the New England Patriots when they face the Jacksonville Jaguars' league-best pass defense in Sunday's AFC Championship Game. Covers reports oddsmakers had the Patriots as 10-point favorites when betting opened last Sunday. The spread was down to 9 points most places Wednesday morning, according to CBS Sports. Then word got out that Brady hurt his throwing hand when he collided with a running back during practice Wednesday. Cue the chaos. Brady didn't practice Thursday and didn't make any throws during Friday's practice—at least not while media was present, Yahoo Sports reports. He was, however, seen wearing a glove on this throwing hand—something he stopped doing for performance reasons years ago, according to the Boston Herald. By Thursday evening, most sportsbooks had dropped the Patriots to 7.5-point favorites. One bookmaker even took the Patriots off the board for a time to allow "due diligence" around Brady's injury. If new backup quarterback Brian Hoyer is forced to replace Brady as the starter Sunday, oddsmakers say the Patriots would still be favored—but not by much. Patriots running back Dion Lewis, at least, says that won't happen. He tells Phil Perry of NBC Sports Boston that "nobody's really worried."

A man pleaded guilty in federal court Thursday to four charges of misconduct in national parks, including a now-infamous incident of aggressively provoking a bison. Raymond Reinke, 55, was arrested in early August after video surfaced of the incident where he waves his arms and runs toward a bison. The National Park Service says the Oregon man had several run-ins with law enforcement in Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks in the weeks leading up to his arrest, including open container and public intoxication. He was also cited for disturbing wildlife after the bison video surfaced online in late July. Reinke initially pleaded not guilty to the charges, but changed his plea during Thursday's hearing to guilty. He was originally charged with five misdemeanors, but had his charges reduced to four in exchange for his guilty plea. Judge Mark Carman sentenced Reinke to 60 days in jail on the charge of harassing wildlife for the bison incident, plus 60 days for interfering with law enforcement and 10 days for disorderly conduct, for 130 days total in jail, with credit for 21 days served. Reinke has also publicly described himself as an alcoholic. In court Thursday, Reinke apologized to the bison, saying - "I'm sorry to the buffalo. He didn't deserve what I did to him. I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to hurt that buffalo." Judge Carman said, "You chased and hounded the bison. You're lucky the bison didn't take care of it, and you're standing in front of me." Reinke has a criminal history dating to 1991, although no felony offenses. A federal prosecutor and Carman described Reinke's behavior as the most "egregious" case of animal harassment they'd seen in Yellowstone. Judge Carman also emphasized that the viral video of Reinke's actions did not affect the sentencing decisions. Reinke will also be required to serve five years of unsupervised probation, in which he cannot use drugs or alcohol. He's required to go through drug and alcohol treatment. He is also barred from Yellowstone, Glacier and Grand Teton parks during his probationary period. -reporting by Jackie Coffin ||||| FILE - In this Aug. 3, 2016 photo, a herd of bison grazes in the Lamar Valley of Yellowstone National Park. An Oregon man has been sentenced to 130 days in jail after pleading guilty to misconduct in... (Associated Press) FILE - In this Aug. 3, 2016 photo, a herd of bison grazes in the Lamar Valley of Yellowstone National Park. An Oregon man has been sentenced to 130 days in jail after pleading guilty to misconduct in two national parks, including harassing a bison that had stopped traffic in Yellowstone National Park.... (Associated Press) FILE - In this Aug. 3, 2016 photo, a herd of bison grazes in the Lamar Valley of Yellowstone National Park. An Oregon man has been sentenced to 130 days in jail after pleading guilty to misconduct in two national parks, including harassing a bison that had stopped traffic in Yellowstone National Park.... (Associated Press) FILE - In this Aug. 3, 2016 photo, a herd of bison grazes in the Lamar Valley of Yellowstone National Park. An Oregon man has been sentenced to 130 days in jail after pleading guilty to misconduct in... (Associated Press) BOZEMAN, Mont. (AP) — An Oregon man who said he and his buddy were on a "last hurrah" tour through national parks before he entered alcohol treatment was sentenced Thursday to 130 days in jail for his drunken behavior, including harassing a bison that had stopped traffic in Yellowstone National Park. Raymond Reinke's crimes drew national attention when at least one Yellowstone visitor caught his interaction with a bison on video . Reinke, of Pendleton, Oregon, pleaded guilty during a federal court appearance in Mammoth, Wyoming, where cases from Yellowstone park are heard. U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark Carman sentenced him to 60 days in jail for harassing wildlife, 60 days for interfering with law enforcement and 10 days for disorderly conduct. He was given credit for 21 days served. Reinke, 55, is banned from Grand Teton, Yellowstone and Glacier national parks for a five-year probationary period during which he is not allowed to drink alcohol. His planned chemical dependency treatment is now court-ordered. "I'm sorry to the buffalo. He didn't deserve what I did to him," Reinke said, ABC Fox Montana reported. U.S. Attorney Leo Pico described Reinke's behavior as the "most egregious" case of animal harassment he'd seen in Yellowstone. The judge told Reinke: "You're lucky the bison didn't take care of it, and you're standing in front of me." Reinke was first cited for public intoxication and interfering with law enforcement in Grand Teton National Park on July 28. He spent a night in jail before posting a $500 bond. A few days later in Yellowstone, Reinke got in trouble after getting out of the car to see if there was a way he could help clear a traffic jam. When he saw the bison on the road he decided to try to herd it off, the Bozeman Daily Chronicle reported. "I thought I was doing what was appropriate," Reinke said. "I just didn't think. That's my stupidity." In the viral video, Reinke is seen walking up to a bison waving his arms. The animal charges him a couple times, but he was not injured. Yellowstone National Park regulations require people to stay 25 yards (23 meters) away from bison. He was cited for intentionally disturbing wildlife and having an open container of alcohol, but rangers were unaware of the conditions of his bond, which required him to remain law-abiding and avoid alcohol. However, Reinke had mentioned his next stop was Glacier National Park. When officials put the whole story together a judge revoked Reinke's bond in the Grand Teton case and rangers arrested him in Glacier park on Aug. 3. Officials say he was causing a disturbance there, as well, but he was not cited.

– An Oregon man who said he and his buddy were on a "last hurrah" tour through national parks before he entered alcohol treatment was sentenced Thursday to 130 days in jail for his drunken behavior—including harassing a bison that had stopped traffic in Yellowstone National Park, per the AP. Raymond Reinke's crimes drew national attention when at least one Yellowstone visitor caught his interaction with a bison on video. Reinke, of Pendleton, Oregon, pleaded guilty during a federal court appearance in Mammoth, Wyoming, where cases from Yellowstone park are heard. US Magistrate Judge Mark Carman sentenced him to 60 days in jail for harassing wildlife, 60 days for interfering with law enforcement, and 10 days for disorderly conduct. He was given credit for 21 days served. Reinke, 55, is banned from Grand Teton, Yellowstone, and Glacier national parks for a five-year probationary period during which he is not allowed to drink alcohol. His planned chemical dependency treatment is now court-ordered. "I'm sorry to the buffalo. He didn't deserve what I did to him," Reinke said, per ABC Fox Montana.

Former commander Slobodan Praljak drank from bottle moments after judges upheld 20-year sentence in The Hague A former Bosnian Croat general has died after drinking a phial of poison while standing in the dock at a UN tribunal in The Hague, where his war crimes sentence of 20 years was upheld. Seconds after the judges had delivered their decision at the international criminal tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) on Wednesday, Slobodan Praljak shouted out angrily: “Praljak is not a criminal. I reject your verdict.” The 72-year-old then raised a small brown bottle to his lips, and drank it in full view of the cameras filming the hearing. “I just drank poison,” he said. “I am not a war criminal. I oppose this conviction.” The day I came face to face with General Slobodan Praljak in The Hague Read more As court officials surrounded the white-haired and bearded Praljak, the presiding judge, Carmel Agius, immediately ordered the proceedings to be suspended. The curtains screening the courtroom were abruptly closed to the public. Within minutes, an ambulance arrived outside the tribunal, while a helicopter hovered overhead. Praljak was taken to hospital but officially declared dead a few hours later. An investigation is likely to be launched into who supplied him with the poison and how he could have smuggled the bottle into court through what should have been strict security at the longest-running war crimes tribunal in The Hague. An official statement from the ICTY said: “Mr Slobodan Praljak, one of six defence appellants in the Prlić et al case, passed away today in HMC hospital in The Hague. “During the public pronouncement of the appeal judgment the appeals chamber confirmed his conviction and affirmed Mr Praljak’s sentence of 20 years of imprisonment. Immediately thereafter, Mr Praljak drank a liquid while in court, and quickly fell ill. “Mr Praljak was immediately assisted by the ICTY medical staff. Simultaneously an ambulance was summoned. Mr Praljak was transported to a nearby hospital to receive further medical assistance where he passed away. “In accordance with standard procedures, at the request of the ICTY, the Dutch authorities have initiated an independent investigation which is currently ongoing. The tribunal has extended its condolences to the next of kin.” The Croatian prime minister, Andrej Plenković, had earlier confirmed Praljak’s death after it was initially reported on Croatian state TV and offered his condolences to the family. Plenković said: “His act, which we regrettably saw today, mostly speaks about a deep moral injustice towards six Croats from Bosnia and the Croatian people ... We voice dissatisfaction and regret about the verdict.” Facebook Twitter Pinterest Slobodan Praljak, second from right, sings a Croatian hymn with former soldiers before his departure to the Hague tribunal in April 2004. Photograph: Antonio Bat/EPA Dutch police have declared the courtroom a crime scene. The unprecedented disruption came as judges were handing down their ruling in the appeals case of six former Bosnian Croat political and military leaders accused of war crimes during the bloody breakup of Yugoslavia in the 1990s. Praljak was charged with ordering the destruction of Mostar’s 16th-century bridge in November 1993, which judges in the first trial had said “caused disproportionate damage to the Muslim civilian population”. A symbol of Bosnia’s devastation in the war, the Ottoman-era bridge was later rebuilt. The city experienced some of the worst of the Croat-Muslim clashes, with nearly 80% of its eastern area destroyed in the fighting. In their ruling, the judges allowed part of Praljak’s appeal, saying the bridge had been a legitimate military target during the conflict. They also overturned some of his convictions but refused to reduce his overall sentence. The case has been keenly watched in Zagreb, and the appeal judges said that all six men, who had been found guilty of taking part in a scheme to remove Bosnian Muslims, “remained convicted of numerous and very serious crimes”. Praljak had already completed a significant proportion of his sentence. Before the Bosnian conflict, he had been a writer and film director. One lawyer who has defended suspects at the ICTY said it would be easy to bring poison into the court. Toma Fila, a Serbian lawyer who has frequently defended suspects at the UN war crimes court in the Netherlands, said that security for lawyers and other court staff was “just like at an airport”. He said: “They inspect metal objects, like belts, metal money, shoes, and take away mobile phones”. But, he said, “pills and small quantities of liquids” may not be picked up. Earlier in the proceedings, the judges had upheld a 25-year prison term against Jadranko Prlić, the former prime minister of a breakaway Bosnian Croat statelet, Herceg-Bosna, and a 20-year term for its former defence minister Bruno Stojić. The 1992-95 war in Bosnia, in which 100,000 people died and 2.2 million were displaced, mainly pitted Bosnian Muslims against Bosnian Serbs, but also saw brutal fighting between Bosnian Muslims and Bosnian Croats after an initial alliance fell apart. The proceedings on Wednesday came a week after the judges imposed a life sentence on the former Bosnian Serb commander Ratko Mladić, whose ruthlessness in the conflict earned him the title of “butcher of Bosnia”. Herceg-Bosna, backed by the government of the Croatian nationalist leader Franjo Tuđman, was formally dismantled in 1996 as part of the peace deal that ended the war. The “president” of Herceg-Bosna, Mate Boban, died in 1997 and Tuđman in 1999, leaving Prlić the highest-ranking Bosnian Croat official to face prosecution for the crimes. Commenting on Praljak’s actions, Tuđman’s son, Miroslav, said it was a “consequence of his moral position not to accept the verdict that has nothing to do with justice or reality”. Nick Kaufman, a former prosecutor at the ICTY, said: “When deprived of authority over the masses and the attention which formerly fuelled their ego and charisma, such defendants can often be extremely resourceful with the little power they retain.” The ICTY charged Praljak and his co-defendants in 2004. The six surrendered with Croatia under pressure to comply with the court in return for joining the EU. The ICTY closes its doors on 31 December, having indicted and dealt with 161 people. Praljak is not the first defendant to die in ICTY custody at The Hague. The former Croatian Serb leader Milan Babić killed himself at the nearby Scheveningen detention centre in 2006. Another Croatian Serb, Slavko Dokmanović, was found hanging from the door of his cell in 1998. Additional reporting by Max Opray. ||||| Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Slobodan Praljak drank a small vial of liquid after his prison sentence was upheld A Bosnian Croat war criminal has died after drinking poison during an appeal hearing in The Hague. Slobodan Praljak, 72, died in hospital, with the UN court announcing that the courtroom was now "a crime scene". On hearing that his 20-year jail term had been upheld, the ex-commander of Bosnian Croat forces said he was not a criminal and then drank from a bottle. In 2013, he was sentenced for crimes in the city of Mostar during the Bosnian war from 1992-95. Praljak was one of six former Bosnian Croat political and military leaders up before the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY). They were attending the final appeals judgment to be handed down by the court. Though allies against the Bosnian Serbs in the war, Bosnian Croats and Muslims also fought each other for a period of 11 months, with Mostar seeing some of the fiercest fighting. 'Don't take away the glass' After hearing the verdict, General Praljak stood and raised his hand to his mouth, tipped his head back and appeared to swallow a glass of liquid. "I have taken poison," he said. Presiding judge Carmel Agius immediately suspended the proceedings and an ambulance was called. "Okay," the judge said. "We suspend the... We suspend... Please, the curtains. Don't take away the glass that he used when he drank something." Image copyright AFP/Getty Images Image caption Emergency rescue workers were called into the court building to assist Slobodan Praljak An ambulance could later be seen arriving outside the tribunal while a helicopter hovered above the scene. Several emergency rescue workers also rushed into the building carrying equipment in backpacks. In a statement, the ICTY said Praljak "was immediately assisted by the ICTY medical staff". It said Praljak "was transported to a nearby hospital to receive further medical assistance where he passed". An independent investigation is now under way. Slobodan Praljak Image copyright EPA 1945: Born in Capljina, modern-day Bosnia-Herzegovina Born in Capljina, modern-day Bosnia-Herzegovina 1970-72: Graduates in Zagreb with diplomas in engineering, philosophy, sociology, and drama Graduates in Zagreb with diplomas in engineering, philosophy, sociology, and drama 1970s-80s: Teaches philosophy and sociology, works as theatre director, produces TV films and documentaries Teaches philosophy and sociology, works as theatre director, produces TV films and documentaries 1991: Joins Croatia's army as wars erupt in Yugoslavia, promoted to Maj Gen rank Joins Croatia's army as wars erupt in Yugoslavia, promoted to Maj Gen rank 1993: Becomes commander of the main staff of the Bosnian Croat defence forces (HVO) Becomes commander of the main staff of the Bosnian Croat defence forces (HVO) After wars: Goes into business Goes into business 2004: Turns himself to The Hague court, granted provisional release Turns himself to The Hague court, granted provisional release 2012: Ordered to return to detention unit in The Hague Ordered to return to detention unit in The Hague 2013: Sentenced to 20 years in prison Sentenced to 20 years in prison 29 Nov 2017: Dies by drinking poison in courtroom after his jail sentencing is upheld Meanwhile, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said he regretted the death of Slobodan Praljak. "His act, which we all unfortunately witnessed today, speaks most of a deep moral injustice towards six indicted Croats from Bosnia and the Croatian people. "The government expresses its condolences to all victims of all crimes committed in the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina. We voice dissatisfaction and regret about the verdict," Mr Plenkovic said. Image copyright Reuters Image caption In Mostar, Bosnian Croats lit candles and prayed for Slobodan Praljak at a makeshift memorial Natacha Gaveau Ivanovic, Praljak's lawyer, told the BBC that she did not believe the tribunal treated her client fairly. "I have no idea what happened and how it happened but for me what is very important, more important is why he did it," she said. The lawyer said she thought her client drank poison because he believed that he was an "innocent man". She said that he had the right to "consider that" because the tribunal "didn't limit itself to judge just personal responsibility, they took on them to judge [the] politics of people, of a state, the history". She added: "It's very hard from the people who are from this country to accept that, and actually they cannot accept it." Crimes against Muslims Praljak, the former commander of the main staff of the Bosnian Croat defence forces (HVO), was jailed for crimes against humanity. Informed that soldiers were rounding up Muslims in Prozor in the summer of 1993, he had failed to make any serious efforts to stop the action, the UN war crimes tribunal found. Praljak had also failed to act on information that murders were being planned, as well as attacks on members of international organisations and the destruction of the city's historic Old Bridge and mosques. Image copyright Reuters Image caption Mostar's Old Bridge has since been restored after being damaged during the war Those appearing with him included Jadranko Prlic, the former prime minister of the Bosnian Croats' breakaway statelet. Set up by mandate of the UN Security Council in 1993, the ICTY is due to close when its mandate expires at the end of the year. ||||| A UN court has suspended an appeals hearing after a Bosnian Croat wartime commander claimed to have drunk poison. A court spokesperson said Slobodan Praljak was still alive and is being treated. Praljak is one of six former Bosnian Croat political and military leaders who were appealing their sentences in The Hague. The 72-year-old tilted back his head and took a swing from a flask or glass as the judge read out that his 20-year prison sentence had been upheld. "Judges, I am not a war criminal, I reject the verdict with contempt," he said after drinking. The presiding judge called for a doctor and halted the proceedings. Praljak was originally sentenced in 2013 for his involvement in a campaign to drive Muslims out of a would-be Bosnian Croat mini-state in Bosnia in the early 1990s. Presiding Judge Carmel Agius had overturned some of Praljak's convictions but left his sentence unchanged. It could not immediately be confirmed whether Praljak had taken poison or the status of his health. Wednesday's hearing was the final case at the groundbreaking tribunal before it closes its doors next month. The tribunal, which last week convicted former Bosnian Serb military chief General Ratko Mladic of genocide and other crimes, was set up in 1993, while fighting still raged in the former Yugoslavia. Shape Created with Sketch. World news in pictures Show all 50 left Created with Sketch. right Created with Sketch. Shape Created with Sketch. World news in pictures 1/50 19 November 2018 A view of the Fuego volcano eruption at sunrise, seen from El Rodeo, Escuintla, Guatemala. 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The out-of-control truck crashed into a 31-car lineup and killed 15 people, with 44 injured AFP/Getty 17/50 3 November 2018 Simone Biles on the podium with her gold medal from the floor exercise at the gymnastics world championships. She became the most decorated female gymnast in world's history, as well as, becoming the first American to win a medal in every event at the competition AFP/Getty 18/50 2 November 2018 A Salvadorean migrant with a girl walks next to Guatemalan policemen as they approach the Guatemala-Mexico international border bridge in Ciudad Tecun Uman. Accoring to the Salvadorean General Migration Directorate, over 1,700 Salvadoreans left the country in two caravans and entered Guatemala Wednesday, in an attempt to reach the US AFP/Getty 19/50 1 November 2018 Google employees hold signs outside 14th street park after walking out as part of a global protest over claims of sexual harassment, gender inequality and systemic racism at the tech giant Reuters 20/50 31 October 2018 The "Statue of Unity" portraying Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, one of the founding fathers of India, during its inauguration in Kevadia, in the western state of Gujarat, India Reuters 21/50 30 October 2018 A scavenger collects recyclable materials along the breakwater amid strong waves as weather patterns from Typhoon Yutu affect Manila Bay. Fierce winds sheared off roofs and snapped trees in half, after thousands were evacuated ahead of the powerful storm's arrival AFP/Getty 22/50 29 October 2018 Rescue team members collecting the remains of the crashed plane at Tanjung Priok Harbour, Indonesia. A Lion Air flight JT-610 lost contact with air traffic controllers soon after takeoff then crashed into the sea. The flight was en route to Pangkal Pinang, and reportedly had 189 people onboard EPA 23/50 28 October 2018 A supporter of Workers' Party presidential candidate Fernando Haddad embraces a fellow weeping supporter, after learning that rival Jair Bolsonaro was declared the winner in the Brazil presidential runoff election. Addressing supporters in Sao Paulo, Haddad did not concede or even mention Bolsonaro by name. Instead, his speech was a promise to resist AP 24/50 27 October 2018 First responders surround the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, where a shooter opened fire, wounding three police officers and killing eleven AP 25/50 26 October 2018 Broward County Sheriff's office have released a photo of Cesar Sayoc, the suspect who was arrested in connection with the pipe bombs that have been sent to several high profile Democrats and critics of President Trump over the course of this week AP 26/50 25 October 2018 East Island in Hawaii has been swallowed by the sea following Hurricane Walaka US Fish and Wildlife Service 27/50 24 October 2018 Police officers stand outside the home of former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton after a "functional explosive device" was attemptedly delivered to the couple AP 28/50 23 October 2018 Turkey's President Erdogan today accused Saudi Arabia of plotting the 'savage' murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi AP 29/50 22 October 2018 Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison (C) delivers a national apology to child sex abuse victims in the House of Representatives in Parliament House in Canberra on October 22, 2018. - Morrison on October 22 issued an emotive apology to children who suffered sexual abuse, saying the state had failed to protect them from "evil dark" crimes committed over decades AFP/Getty 30/50 21 October 2018 A derailed train in Yian, eastern Taiwan. At least 17 people died after the derailment CNA/AFP/Getty 31/50 20 October 2018 US President Donald Trump waves as he boards Marine One after a "Make America Great" rally in Mesa, Arizona on October 19, 2018. - US President Donald Trump said Friday, October 19, 2018, that he found credible Saudi Arabia's assertion that dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi died as a result of a fight AFP/Getty 32/50 19 October 2018 A Palestinian youth runs past a rolling burning tire during clashes with Israeli forces following a demonstration after the weekly Friday prayers, in the centre of the occupied West Bank city of Hebron AFP/Getty 33/50 18 October 2018 Honduran migrants heading in a caravan to the United States, leave Guatemala City. US President Donald Trump threatened to send the military to close its southern border if Mexico fails to stem the "onslaught" of migrants from Central America, in a series of tweets that blamed Democrats ahead of the midterm elections AFP/Getty 34/50 17 October 2018 Smoke billows following an Israeli air strike around the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah. Israel launched raids against targets in the Gaza strip in response to rocket fire from the Palestinian territory that caused damage in a southern city, the Israeli army said AFP/Getty 35/50 16 October 2018 Ecuador has issued a list of rules to Julian Assange, the famous resident of the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. The list included cleaning the bathroom, not commenting on foreign political affairs online and taking better care of his cat (pictured). The document states that failure to comply with these rules “could lead to the termination of the diplomatic asylum granted by the Ecuadorian state” Reuters 36/50 15 October 2018 Israeli soldiers hurl tear gas grenades during clashes following Israeli order to shut down the al-Lubban/al-Sawiyeh school near the west bank city of Nablus, 15 October 2018. According to local sources, 20 Palestinians were wounded during clashes as dozens try to defiance the Israeli order to shut down the school EPA 37/50 14 October 2018 Serbia's Novak Djokovic kisses the trophy after winning his men's final singles match against Croatia's Borna Coric at the Shanghai Masters. Djokovic, who has now won four titles this season, will move up one ranking spot to No. 2, pushing Roger Federer back to No. 3 AFP/Getty 38/50 13 October 2018 Demonstrators raising red painted hands and a placard reading "we must change the system not the climate" referring to the need to stop climate change during a march in Bordeaux, southwestern France AFP/Getty 39/50 12 October 2018 Spanish Unionist demonstrators carry Spanish flags during a demonstration on Spain's National Day in Barcelona Reuters 40/50 11 October 2018 Russia has halted all crewed space flights following the failed launch of the Soyuz MS-10 rocket (pictured). Investigations in to the rocket's malfunction are ongoing Reuters 41/50 People look on at a damaged store after Hurricane Michael passed through Panama City, Florida. A Category 4 storm, with maximum sustained winds of 155 mph, was the most powerful storm ever to hit the Florida Panhandle Getty 42/50 9 October 2018 The Darul Muttaqien Mosque was the heart of the community for many in Palu. A lot of the victims were inside their homes or at the mosque when the quake struck. Magareb prayer for many, was their last. Paddy Dowling travelled with UK based charity Muslim Aid to the disaster areas of North Sulawesi to witness the scale of Indonesia’s earthquake & tsunami. They are the only British NGO delivering aid out in Palu through local partners Paddy Dowling 43/50 8 October 2018 People take part in a candle-light vigil in memory of Bulgarian TV journalist Viktoria Marinova in Ruse Reuters 44/50 7 October 2018 Supporters of Jair Bolsonaro, presidential candidate with the Social Liberal Party, celebrate in front of his house during the general elections in Rio. The far-right congressman, who waxes nostalgically about the dictatorship, won the vote but not an outright victory. The second-round-run-off will be between Bolsoanro and the leftist Workers' party Fernando Haddad AP 45/50 6 October 2018 Demonstrators hold a banner that reads "freedom of the press, not allowed to be trampled" and "shame on the governments vindictive move" past a symbolic 'political red line' during a protest after Hong Kong immigration authorities declined a visa renewal for senior Financial Times journalist Victor Mallet, outside the immigration department building in Hong Kong. Hong Kong's decision to effectively blacklist a senior Financial Times journalist required an "urgent explanation", the UK said AFP/Getty 46/50 5 October 2018 Congolese doctor Denis Mukwege and Yazidi campaigner Nadia Murad announced as the winners of the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize. The pair were awarded the honour “for their efforts to end the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war and armed conflict.” AFP/Getty/Reuters 47/50 4 October 2018 Dutch security services expel Russian spies over plot targeting chemical weapons watchdog. This picture shows the four GRU officers who entered the Netherlands at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport on April 10, travelling on official Russian passports. On April 13 they parked a car carrying specialist hacking equipment outside the headquarters of the OPCW in The Hague. At that point the Dutch counter-terrorism officers intervened to disrupt the operation and the four GRU officers were ordered to leave the country PA 48/50 3 October 2018 Quake survivors make their way past a washed out passenger ferry in Wani, Indonesia's Central Sulawesi, after an earthquake and tsunami hit the area on September 28. Nearly 1,400 people are now known to have died as UN officials warned the "needs remain vast" for both desperate survivors and rescue teams still searching for victims AFP/Getty 49/50 2 October 2018 US first lady Melania Trump holds a baby during a visit to a hospital in Accra, Ghana. The first lady is visiting Africa on her first big solo international trip, aiming to make child well-being the focus of a five-day, four-country tour Reuters 50/50 1 October 2018 Indian school children dressed like Mahatma Gandhi perform yoga during a event at a school in Chennai ahead of his birth anniversary. Indians all over the country celebrate Gandhi's birthday on October 2 AFP/Getty It indicted 161 suspects and convicted 90 of them. The appeals judges upheld a key finding that late Croat president Franjo Tudjman was a member of a plan to create a Croat mini-state in Bosnia. Two other suspects had also had their sentences upheld before the hearing was halted. ||||| Slobodan Praljak enters the Yugoslav War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands, Wednesday, Nov. 29, 2017, to hear the verdict in the appeals case. The hearing was suspended after Praljak claimed to... (Associated Press) THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The Latest on rulings at the U.N. war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (all times local): 12:25 p.m. Dutch emergency services, police, a fire truck and an ambulance have parked outside the U.N. war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, and what appeared to be firefighters, some of them wearing oxygen tanks, have entered the court after one of the defendants claimed to have drunk poison. The court building was not evacuated. A ramp that would allow a stretcher to be wheeled out was laid down the court steps. Slobodan Praljak claimed to have taken the poison just after his 20-year sentence was upheld by appeals judges. ___ 11:55 a.m. Three out of six suspects at the last case at the war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia have had their sentences confirmed, although some of their convictions were overturned by appeal judges. The hearing was suspended, however, after one of the three, Slobodan Praljak, claimed to have drunk poison and shouted that he was not a war criminal, after his 20-year sentence was upheld. The six Bosnian Croat political and military leaders had appealed against their convictions for involvement in crimes as Croat forces attempted to carve out a Croat ministate in Bosnia by driving Muslims from towns and villages during the 1992-95 war. ___ 11:35 a.m. United Nations judges have suspended an appeals hearing after one of the suspects drank from a small bottle in court and claimed to have taken poison. Slobodan Praljak, a former commander of Bosnian Croat forces in Bosnia's 1992-95 war, drank from a small bottle or glass and yelled "I am not a war criminal" moments after judges at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia had confirmed his 20-year sentence on appeal Wednesday. ___ 9:30 a.m. A United Nations war crimes tribunal is handing down its last judgment in an appeal by six Bosnian Croat political and military leaders who were convicted in 2013 of persecuting, expelling and murdering Muslims during Bosnia's war. Wednesday's hearing is the final case to be completed at the groundbreaking International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia before it closes its doors next month. The tribunal, which last week convicted former Bosnian Serb military chief Gen. Ratko Mladic of genocide and other crimes, was set up in 1993, while fighting still raged in the former Yugoslavia. It indicted 161 suspects and convicted 90 of them. The original conviction said that late-Croat President Franjo Tudjman was a key member of a plan to create a Croat mini-state in Bosnia. ||||| "Dear God, please spare me Serb heroism and Croatian culture," ("Sacuvaj me boze srpskog junastva i hrvatske kulture") was a famous quip of Miroslav Krleza (1893-1981), the greatest Yugoslav and Croatian writer of the 20th century. Krleza did not live long enough to witness the destruction of Yugoslavia and the wars of the 1990s, but he unerringly identified -- and mocked in his typically acerbic style -- the nationalist conceits that played no small part in the breakup of the country. A major element in Serb national identity has long been their supposed martial spirit, while the Croats have sought to distinguish themselves from their Balkan neighbors by claiming to possess a superior, more authentically Western culture. Both of these national myths were given the lie in the war. The Serbs showed little of their military prowess in the 1990s wars, contriving to lose ground in all the conflicts -- in Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, and Kosovo -- despite enjoying overwhelming superiority in weapons and personnel. On the other hand, some of the most notorious acts of destruction of cultural heritage -- aimed at removing all traces of the Muslim population from areas of Bosnia that the Croats considered to be "theirs" -- were masterminded or carried out by men who before the war had built a reputation as "promoters of culture." The case of Slobodan Praljak is typical, and one of the crimes for which he has been convicted in the first instance at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) is the destruction of the Old Bridge in Mostar. 'Prlic Five' Slobodan Praljak (72) is one of "the Prlic Five," a group of Croat political and military leaders tried along with Jadranko Prlic, the former president of the wartime statelet of "Herceg-Bosna." The six men were convicted in 2013 and given prison sentences of 16 to 25 years. They are awaiting judgments on appeal on November 29. While the Bosnian Serb Army was busy carving out the borders of what became Republika Srpska, in the southwest, Bosnian Croat forces -- with significant support from Croatia proper -- turned on the Bosnian Army and set out to establish their own ethnically homogenous space, using some of the same methods of ethnic cleansing employed by the Serbs. Before the war, Praljak had been a writer and film director. He had also been the director of various theaters, including in Mostar. With the outbreak of the war, the man of culture became a general and an adviser to Croatian President Franjo Tudjman. He was eventually accused of command responsibility for the destruction of the Old Bridge in Mostar, one of the most striking Ottoman monuments in the Balkans, and a jewel of Bosnia's Islamic heritage. The 16th-century bridge over the Neretva River was commissioned by Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent and built by the Ottoman architect Mimar Hayruddin. Its construction is wrapped in myth and legend, but it became the symbol of the city of Mostar, which got its name from it. According to the 17th-century Ottoman traveler Evliya Celebi, the name "Mostar" means "bridge-keeper." Celebi wrote that the bridge was "like a rainbow arch soaring up to the skies, extending from one cliff to the other.... I, a poor and miserable slave of Allah, have passed through 16 countries but I have never seen such a high bridge. It is thrown from rock to rock as high as the sky." The graceful arch stood for more than four centuries, surviving not only the fall of the Ottoman Empire, but two world wars -- including the Nazi occupation of Yugoslavia. But like so much of Bosnia's Ottoman heritage, it was not spared by the merciless onslaught of Serb and -- in this case -- Croat nationalists intent on erasing the country's Islamic past. Overwhelmed By Sorrow During the trial in The Hague, Praljak denied all charges, and his defense lawyers spun conspiracy theories backed by "experts" who asserted that the Old Bridge in Mostar was "most likely destroyed by explosives rigged on the bridge [by the Bosnian Army], not when it was hit by a shell fired from HVO [Bosnian Croat forces] tank." However it was not merely a stray shell, but over 60 projectiles that were fired at the bridge between November 8 and 9, 1993, from HVO positions before the Old Bridge collapsed. In a recent tweet, a resident of Mostar described the sorrow that overwhelmed him the moment the bridge collapsed. There was a belief among Bosnians that only someone without education or culture -- a barbarian -- could destroy an ancient monument that preserves the footprints of past centuries. But that was far from the case. The Croatian group of six held responsible for the act was extremely well-educated, and it's likely that Praljak has more academic diplomas than any other member of the Prlic Five. He initially studied engineering and graduated with distinction from Zagreb University, but this was followed by degrees in Philosophy and Sociology. A year after that, he graduated from the Film Academy. The day the Old Bridge was destroyed, the Sarajevo-based newspaper "Oslobodjenje" published an editorial with the headline: "They Have Killed The Oldest Resident Of Mostar." The Old Bridge was rebuilt after the war, in 2004, thanks to foreign funds as well as expertise and backing by UNESCO. 'Extended Cease-Fire' One of the traditions that became inextricably associated with the Old Bridge was the annual diving competition, organized every summer by the "Mostari" club. This year, they marked the anniversary of the destruction of the bridge on November 9 in a special manner. There was a gathering of students from Mostar schools, as well as residents and local politicians, but they were predominantly from one side of the Neretva, with Croat officials conspicuous by their absence. Air-raid sirens were sounded, flowers were cast into the river below, and a single diver jumped off the bridge followed by silence, without the usual applause. Mostar resident Zeljko Laketic was in the Bosnian military in 1993, and stood only a few dozen meters away from the Old Bridge when it was destroyed. "I saw that everyone was in tears, as if a member of their family had been killed. I saw hardened men, veterans of two years of war who had seen everything, crying like little children," Laketic told RFE/RL. Meanwhile, the Croat politicians only show up on the anniversary of the reopening of the bridge, preferring to ignore the circumstances of its destruction. Apart from its beauty, the Old Bridge in Mostar had over the centuries become a symbol of this multiethnic Bosnian city, uniting the two banks of the Neretva River. Its destruction was thus not only about erasing the Islamic past, but symbolically breaking the bonds between the city's various peoples. The bridge may have been rebuilt, but the fabric of Bosnia's -- and Mostar's -- multiethnic society has not been stitched back together. As a local RFE/RL correspondent recently lamented to me: "Here [in Mostar] we do not have peace, only an extended cease-fire." The views expressed in this blog post do not necessarily reflect those of RFE/RL

– Croatian state TV has reported that war criminal Slobodan Praljak, who stunned a UN war crimes tribunal Wednesday by drinking what he claimed was poison during proceedings, has died, per the AP. The BBC and Guardian had earlier reported that the 72-year-old Bosnian Croat—an ex-military commander convicted four years ago of persecuting and killing Muslims during the Bosnian war in the mid-'90s—disrupted his appeals hearing after he heard his 20-year sentence in prison would be upheld. "I am not a war criminal," he reportedly yelled upon hearing the news, just after he got up from his seat and appeared to drink something from a tiny glass or bottle. His attorney then cried out: "My client says he has taken poison." The BBC reports a "state of confusion" in the courtroom followed, as the judge immediately halted proceedings and medical help was called for; the AP notes cops, emergency services personnel, and what looked to be firefighters with oxygen tanks were all on the scene. The New York Times cites an anonymous tribunal official who said Praljak's body was taken off court premises after he was pronounced dead; Croatian state TV said he died at a hospital in the Hague, per un-IDed sources said to be close to Praljak. The UN tribunal is the same one that last week sentenced Ratko Mladic to life in prison for his own atrocities during the war. Praljak, one of six former Bosnian politicians or military bigwigs set to hear their appeal verdicts Wednesday, was accused of crimes that included destroying a centuries-old Ottoman bridge in Mostar, per the Independent. (Mladic had vowed to kill himself; here's why he didn't.)

Crimean ethnic Tatars protest on the roadside in the settlement of Kok-Asan with a banner reading “No war!” as Russian troops move toward Simferopol on Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula. March 8, 2014 Crimean ethnic Tatars protest on the roadside in the settlement of Kok-Asan with a banner reading “No war!” as Russian troops move toward Simferopol on Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula. Denis Sinyakov/European Pressphoto Agency Russian troops and pro-Russian militants take up positions around the Crimean Peninsula in Ukraine, surrounding government buildings and military installations. Russian troops and pro-Russian militants take up positions around the Crimean Peninsula in Ukraine, surrounding government buildings and military installations. Russian troops and pro-Russian militants take up positions around the Crimean Peninsula in Ukraine, surrounding government buildings and military installations. Russian President Vladimir Putin offered a vigorous defense of his country’s intervention in Ukraine, saying Tuesday that the pro-Russian former government in Kiev was illegally overthrown and that the man he regards as Ukraine’s legitimate president asked him for military help. But he asserted that the troops wearing unmarked uniforms in Ukraine’s Crimea region are members of local self-defense groups — not Russian forces, as observers on the scene have said. In his first public comments about the crisis since President Viktor Yanukovych was deposed Feb. 22, Putin described Ukraine as lawless and suggested that Ukrainians appeared unable to run their own country. He said masked militants were “roaming the streets of Kiev” — even though the Ukrainian capital has remained calm in recent days. After days of heightening tension, Putin’s remarks appeared to suggest that Russia could refrain from escalation — if Ukraine gets its house in order. Hours later, Russia proclaimed the successful test launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile in Asia, a move unrelated to the crisis but a demonstration to Ukraine and the West of Russia’s military prowess. Putin said that so far he has not found it necessary to send troops to Ukraine but that Russia had fortified security at its installations in Crimea, where its Black Sea Fleet is based. He did not mention the Russian troops and naval forces that have surrounded Ukrainian bases and ships in Crimea. President Obama and Secretary of State John F. Kerry rejected Putin’s assertions Tuesday, with Kerry charging during a visit to Kiev that “Russia has been working hard to create a pretext for being able to invade further.” They said that despite Putin’s claims, it was not true that Russia needs to send in troops to safeguard Russians or Russian speakers in Ukraine from violent reprisals. Dismissing Moscow’s purported concerns, Obama said Russia was “seeking through force to exert influence on a neighboring country.” Putin, however, accused the United States of engineering Ukraine’s troubles, suggesting that it was using Ukrainians as guinea pigs in some kind of misguided experiment. “They sit there across the pond as if in a lab running all kinds of experiments on the rats,” he told a small group of reporters in a nationally televised meeting at his country house outside Moscow. “Why would they do it? No one can explain it.” In Kiev, his remarks were greeted with less ferocity than might have been expected. The new government is under enormous pressure from the Russian intervention and from unrest in eastern cities, coupled with a financial crisis. It is treading carefully. As Crimea slipped further into Russian control Tuesday, Ukrainian military units there stood their ground but were careful not to provoke a conflict. In Ukraine’s parliament, there was talk of finding a way to give Crimea more autonomy if it agrees to remain a part of Ukraine. The region has scheduled a March 30 referendum on independence or accession to Russia, although Crimea’s new leader, Sergei Aksyonov, said Tuesday that he wants to hold the vote sooner. Kerry, echoing the views of many in Kiev, said Russia had installed Aksyonov in a hurried and rigged selection process last week. Oleh Tiahnybok, the head of the nationalist All-Ukrainian Union “Svoboda” party, said, “The Kremlin is attempting to use blackmail to solve its strategic plans. Ukraine should not succumb to it.” And Russia’s intervention, he declared, is a failure: “Ukrainians are not running with outstretched arms toward the occupiers.” A bloodless confrontation It has been, all around, an unusual confrontation. After a week of deadly fighting in the streets of Kiev led to Yanu­kovych’s overthrow, the Russian takeover of Crimea has been swift yet bloodless. The atmosphere in Kiev is hardly that of a capital dealing with an intervention by a powerful neighbor. Aksyonov said Tuesday that most of the Ukrainian military forces in Crimea have sworn allegiance to his new regional government. Officials in Kiev said that is not true. Young men in Ukrainian self-defense groups said Tuesday that they are ready to take on the Russians but do not need to join the national army to do so. In a stately hall that normally houses an association for architects, a militia had stashed construction hard hats and bicycle helmets atop a stairway, ready to be grabbed if things turn violent. The marble floors were lined with mattresses and sleeping bags. “I’m ready to fight the Russians,” said Vitaliy Vovk, 24, an event planner and the militia commander. “But I’m hoping there will be no war, that it’s just Putin flexing his muscles.” Putin’s defense Putin said the whole operation is a friendly one, designed to help out a fraternal nation. But he described Ukraine as deeply troubled, telling his interviewers that corruption and social stratification there are even worse than in Russia. “Out there, they are beyond anything we can imagine,” he said. “This revolutionary situation has been brewing for a long time.” So it’s understandable why the protesters on the Maidan, Kiev’s Independence Square, wanted an uprising, he said. But they went about it the wrong way, he said, and now Ukraine has swapped one “set of thieves” — Yanukovych’s — for another, a reference to the present government. Putin said that if he decides to send in the Russian military, he would have legal grounds to do so. Russia has displayed a letter from the ousted president asking for military help in suppressing the revolt. The current government is illegitimate, Russia contends, because Yanukovych was not properly removed from power in a formal impeachment. “What is our biggest concern?” Putin asked. “We see the rampage of reactionary forces, nationalist and anti-Semitic forces going on in certain parts of Ukraine, including Kiev.” “We understand what worries the citizens of Ukraine, both Russian and Ukrainian, and the Russian-­speaking population in the eastern and southern regions of Ukraine,” he said. “It is this uncontrolled crime that worries them. Therefore, if we see such uncontrolled crime spreading to the eastern regions of the country, and if the people ask us for help, while we already have the official request from the legitimate president, we retain the right to use all available means to protect those people. We believe this would be absolutely legitimate.” Yet, the Russian government and the interim Ukrainian government have been in contact. “I’d say that they are quite sluggish, but the first steps have been taken,” Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said. Consultations have been held on the ministerial level. “Ukraine is ready to build a new style of relations with the Russian Federation,” Yatsenyuk said, based on Russia’s respect for Ukraine’s right to determine its own policies. Englund reported from Kiev. Carol Morello in Kiev and William Booth in Simferopol, Crimea, contributed to this report. ||||| Presidents Obama and Putin talk about Ukraine The White House released a readout of the hour-long call between U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Here's some of what it said. "President Obama emphasized that Russia’s actions are in violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, which has led us to take several steps in response, in coordination with our European partners. "President Obama indicated that there is a way to resolve the situation diplomatically, which addresses the interests of Russia, the people of Ukraine, and the international community. "As a part of that resolution, the governments of Ukraine and Russia would hold direct talks, facilitated by the international community; international monitors could ensure that the rights of all Ukrainians are protected, including ethnic Russians; Russian forces would return to their bases; and the international community would work together to support the Ukrainian people as they prepare for elections in May." ||||| WASHINGTON – The Obama administration will ask Congress to approve $1 billion in loan guarantees and other assistance to help stabilize the new, pro-Western government in Ukraine, Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew said Tuesday. The loans will be part of a larger international aid package coordinated by the U.S. and European allies, and distributed largely through the International Monetary Fund. The money is needed to close a gaping budget hole left when the Ukraine opposition deposed President Viktor Yanukovich and rejected a loan package from Moscow. Experts say the new government needs roughly $20 billion to fill the gap in the current fiscal year. In a statement released Tuesday, Lew said the U.S. and its partners will work to “provide as much support as Ukraine needs to restore financial stability and return to economic growth, if the new government implements the necessary reforms.” Obama on Monday said a speedy approval of the deal would send a strong message to Russia, which the U.S. has accused of breaching international law by seizing control of Ukraine's Crimean peninsula in the wake of the coup. PHOTOS: Crisis in Ukraine The first phase of support will be $1 billion in a package of loan guarantees, which will go toward “protecting vulnerable Ukrainian households from the impact of the needed economic adjustment,” Lew said. Both Republicans and Democrats in Congress have expressed support for the loans, which would require only $200 million of initial investment, according to congressional sources. The proposed package will also include advice and consulting from other U.S. agencies to help the new government conduct elections, develop strong media and other civil institutions, fight corruption and recover stolen assets, the White House said in a fact sheet released Tuesday morning. The White House also said it hopes to build support for additional funding for the IMF, something Republicans in the House have opposed. Lew said that the backing would help the fund “lend additional resources to Ukraine, while also helping to preserve continued U.S. leadership within this important institution.” kathleen.hennessey@latimes.com Twitter: @khennessey

– The White House today promised to back up its support of the new Ukraine government with $1 billion in loan guarantees and aid, reports the Los Angeles Times. It would be part of a bigger package from the IMF, assuming Congress signs off. John Kerry was delivering the specifics in person himself on a visit to Kiev. "The United States will stand by the Ukrainian people," he said, after again belittling Moscow's rationale for moving into Crimea as a sham, reports the Washington Post. President Obama repeated his own criticism of Vladimir Putin while delivering his budget proposal, reports CNN. Moscow is clearly violating international law, Obama asserted. "President Putin seems to have a different set of lawyers making a different set of interpretations, but I don’t think that's fooling anybody." He and Kerry spoke after Putin said that while he wasn't planning military force against Ukraine, he would be justified in doing so.

Correction Appended HOUSTON, Sept. 14 - The secretary for the squadron commander purported to be the author of now-disputed memorandums questioning President Bush's service in the Texas Air National Guard said Tuesday that she never typed the documents and believed that they are fakes. But she also said they accurately reflect the thoughts of the commander, Lt. Col. Jerry B. Killian, and other memorandums she typed for him about Mr. Bush. "The information in them is correct," the woman, Marian Carr Knox, now 86, said in an interview at her home here. "But I doubt,'' she said, pausing, "it's not anything that I wrote because there are terms in there that are not used by Guards, the format wasn't the way we did it. It looks like someone may have read the originals and put that together." "We did discuss Bush's conduct and it was a problem Killian was concerned about," Mrs. Knox said. "I think he was writing the memos so there would be some record that he was aware of what was going on and what he had done." But, she said, words like "billets," which appear in the memorandums, were not standard Guard terms. Mrs. Knox, who was the secretary for the squadron at Ellington Air Force Base from 1957 to 1979, said she recalled Mr. Bush's case and the criticism of him because his record was so unusual. Mr. Killian had her type memorandums recording the problems, she said, and he kept them in a private file under lock and key. She said she had never voted for Mr. Bush because she disliked his record in office. Mr. Killian died in 1984; his widow and son have said that they did not find any memorandums among the private effects they cleared from his office after his death. Mr. Killian's son, Gary, who also served at the squadron and who initially thought that the signatures on the documents matched his father's, has come to believe they are fakes, and said he doubted Mrs. Knox's account, though he recalled her fondly. "She's a sweet old lady, but she's wrong and it didn't happen,'' he said. "I always thought well of her, and I know my dad would have also, but she's a sweet old lady.'' Mrs. Knox's comments add to the mystery around the four memorandums that were reported by CBS News last Wednesday, which indicated that Mr. Bush had been suspended from flying because he failed to meet standards and report for a physical examination and that Mr. Killian felt pressure to "sugarcoat" his rating because the young Lieutenant Bush, then the son of a congressman, was "talking to someone upstairs." Executives at CBS said Tuesday that they continued to stand by their statements that they believe the documents are authentic, despite the new questions, and concern from others inside the network, and a report on ABC News that two more experts whom CBS News had consulted to authenticate the documents for its report said they had expressed concerns about the documents' authenticity to the network's producers. When questions about the documents first arose last week, the anchor Dan Rather said at least four experts had helped convince the network of their authenticity. But the network has continually declined to provide the name of more than one of those experts. That one, Marcel B. Matley, said in interviews that he validated only that the signature on the documents was Colonel Killian's. But, he said, he did not vouch for the documents themselves and could not rule out that the signature had been cut and pasted onto the records. On Tuesday, two more experts came forward and said they had been consulted by CBS. One, a forensic document examiner from Texas, Linda James, said in a telephone interview with The New York Times that she noticed indications that the two documents she inspected were the product of a word processor and relayed that to the producers. "I had questioned the superscript on there," she said, referring to the raised letters that appear after the number 111 to indicate the name of the flight squadron, adding she also had some questions about what she believed were some inconsistencies in the documents' signatures. She said she was awaiting more documents and more type samples to draw a stronger conclusion but with time running out she referred the network to another expert, who officials at CBS identified as Mr. Matley. ||||| Ken Rogoff and Carmen Reinhart have become known for warning that debt-to-GDP ratios over 90 percent are linked to poor economic growth. But a new working paper from economists at the University of Massachusetts says Reinhart and Rogoff’s findings are created by bad methodology. They seem to have a point. Thomas Herndon, Michael Ash and Robert Pollin say that the Reinhart-Rogoff finding of sharply lower average growth in high-debt countries rests on three errors: a bad weighting method, inexplicable exclusion of data from certain countries and years, and an Excel coding error. After fixing those problems, they find that “average GDP growth at public debt/GDP ratios over 90 percent is not dramatically different than when debt/GDP ratios are lower.” Yesterday’s defenses from Reinhart and Rogoff are most notable for what they do not contain: a defense of the methodology that Herndon and his colleagues criticize. Instead, they make two main arguments. One is that a 2012 paper, which Reinhart and Rogoff wrote with Vincent Reinhart, supports their finding that high debt is associated with low growth, as do several papers from other researchers. Their other response is that the really important matter is median performance, not the mean performance statistic that the UMass researchers are critiquing. “We have generally emphasized the 1% differential median result in all our discussions and subsequent writing,” Rogoff told me in an e-mail. That is, in the graphic of means and medians below, from their 2010 American Economic Review paper (similar free version available here), the really important statistic is the median growth figure. That number is about 1 percentage point lower for the high-debt countries, not the average figure that falls off a cliff. In the same e-mail, Rogoff points out that 1 percent less GDP growth per year is a big deal. “Note that because the historical public debt overhang episodes last an average of over 20 years, the cumulative effects of small growth differences are potentially quite large. It is utterly misleading to speak of a 1% growth differential that lasts 10-25 years as small.” This isn't a very satisfying defense, for two reasons. One is the simple sloppiness of the apparent error that Reinhart and Rogoff made in calculating the average GDP growth for high-debt countries. Barry Ritholtz put it well: “Whenever you hear the phrase ‘the fundamental case is intact,’ you best run screaming from the room.” It’s reminiscent of the “fake but accurate” defense of the forged memos about President George W. Bush’s service in the Texas Air National Guard. Dean Baker has a good breakdown of what went wrong. What happened is that Reinhart and Rogoff included data from New Zealand in 1951, a year when debt/GDP exceeded 90 percent and GDP growth was -7.6 percent. But they excluded New Zealand data for the period 1946 to 1949, when debt also exceeded 90 percent and growth was often very strong. Include those years, and New Zealand’s average economic growth in high debt years is not -7.6 percent but +2.6 percent. Because there were only seven countries in the data set that Reinhart and Rogoff used to calculate average GDP growth under high debt conditions, and because they weighted each country’s average growth equally, getting New Zealand wrong by more than 10 percentage points was a very big deal, shaving 1.5 percentage points off their estimate of average growth. This error seems to negate the main reason that the Reinhart-Rogoff paper got so much attention in the first place, since observers tended to fixate on the growth cliff for high-debt countries, a cliff apparently created solely by this New Zealand-related oversight. Early this morning, Reinhart and Rogoff put out a more detailed response saying they excluded the pre-1950 New Zealand data because it was newly available at the time they published the paper in 2010 and they had “not yet vetted the comparability and quality” of those data. They take exception to the claim that the omission of the pre-1950 data was “selective.” Even if Reinhart and Rogoff had a plausible reason for leaving out these data, the huge effect of the exclusion demonstrates the fragility of their method: New Zealand is one of just a handful of rich countries that experienced a debt-to-GDP ratio over 90 percent since World War II, and leaving those years in or out materially changes the conclusion about the average growth rate of such countries. And what of Rogoff’s point that even Herndon et al. agree that higher debt is associated with slower growth? The most damaging response to this is a figure near the back of the UMass paper, plotting every observation of GDP growth and debt-to-GDP ratio from the advanced countries, from the 2010 Reinhart-Rogoff paper. This figure seems to show what Rogoff says it does: Even the UMass researchers’ take on the data show a negative relationship between government debt and GDP growth. Unfortunately for Reinhart and Rogoff, the most notable feature of this chart is not the trend. It is how weakly the data fit the trend. Is this a chart that suggests to you that countries seeking to improve real GDP growth should focus on constraining their ratios of public debt to GDP? Such policies pose significant economic risks and human costs, and yet what this chart tells you is that low debt and poor growth, and high debt and strong growth, are both reasonably common outcomes. Unlike the cliff chart that made the Reinhart-Rogoff paper so arresting, this way of looking at the data suggests that the historical performance of countries with varying debt-to-GDP ratios has little to tell us about what today’s fiscal policies should be. (Josh Barro is lead writer for the Ticker. Follow him on Twitter.) ||||| Carmen Reinhart and Kenneth Rogoff are two very, very well-respected Harvard economists. They are the authors of a very well-received account of the financial crisis and its antecedents. In 2010 they released a paper that is among the most influential economic papers of the modern era. The paper argued that countries with a debt-to-GDP ratio above 90 percent average negative GDP growth. (The paper also suggested that correlation is causation, in the direction neoliberal misers prefer.) In other words, this was, for many people, concrete proof -- with numbers and a chart -- that government debt is bad for the economy and should be reduced even in the midst of a recession and an employment crisis. The authors have briefed leaders and legislators around the world on their finding, and the paper has essentially been used to justify most debt hysteria around the world, since its publication.

– For years, conservatives have been crowing about a study from Harvard economists Carmen Reinhart and Kenneth Rogoff showing that countries with a debt-to-GDP ratio of more than 90% usually have negative GDP growth. It's been used to justify austerity pushes around the globe. But Reinhart and Rogoff have always refused to actually reveal their data, and now a new paper has found that they excluded years of inconvenient data and made various other errors and weird choices that, when corrected, show that average GDP actually comes out positive, writes Alex Pareene at Salon. "This is important—it should in fact be a Big Deal—because Reinhart and Rogoff have been the ultimate authorities" for austerity fans, he writes. "It is sort of shocking, to me, that respected economists can release a widely cited paper without just putting their damn Excel spreadsheet online." Reinhart and Rogoff have tried to defend themselves, but not very convincingly, writes Josh Barro at Bloomberg. "It is reminiscent of the 'fake but accurate' defense of the forged memos" questioning President Bush's National Guard service. Check out Barro's full column for an in-depth breakdown. Or click for Pareene's full post.

Police say Daniel Esteban Pinedo-Velapatino went on a one-man crime spree Tuesday. The 21-year-old Boca man got into a hit-and-run crash in a stolen car, ran off on foot, tried to break into a house before trying to escape in the Intracoastal Waterway, according to Delray Beach police. It started at 7:37 a.m. Tuesday when officers saw a silver Lexus sedan hit a beige Toyota sedan at the intersection outside Walgreens at Lindell Boulevard and Federal Highway. Police spokeswoman Detective Rachel Van Ness said the driver who caused the crash, identified as Pinedo-Velapatino, sped off, starting a brief chase southbound on Federal Highway. Van Ness said the driver in the car that was hit was hospitalized. The chase led police down to Boca Raton, where the car swerved onto Bailey Street. Once the driver realized it was a dead-end road, he stopped. Officers pulled out their guns and ordered the driver out of the car but said the driver rolled forward and crashed into a fire hydrant. He turned around and police said the driver intentionally rammed an officer's car twice as he tried to escape the blockade. His car instead got stuck in the mud of a house's front yard and that's when police said he jumped out of the car and jumped over two fences as an officer tried to use a Taser on him. He sprinted to the nearby Intracoastal Waterway. ||||| Candace Noonan was getting her son ready for school at their Boca Raton home when a complete stranger walked up and opened the back sliding door. “I said, ’Excuse me, can I help you?’” Noonan said. “He said, 'Oh, I’m so sorry. Next door, I’m mowing the lawn. Do you mind if I have a glass of water?'" MOBILE/TABLET USERS: Watch the story Thinking the man was a landscaper, Noonan obliged and went to get the man a bottle of water. Noonan was unaware that authorities said the man, who was identified as Daniel Pinedo Velapatino, 21, was running from police after leading officers from Delray Beach and Boca Raton on a wild chase, smashing into cars and a police cruiser. When Noonan came back with a bottle of water, she said Velapatino had entered the house and was lying on the living room floor, playing with her cats. “It was odd, very odd,” Noonan said. “He was stroking my cat. It almost looked like he either was on drugs or he was mentally handicapped.” Noonan’s husband started questioning Velapatino, and the stranger fled out the back door. ”We saw cop cars driving around the front of our house, and that’s when we sort of put two and two together,” Noonan said. Police gave chase, and Velapatino tried to get away by jumping in a canal, but a police boat captured him. Most Popular: Boynton Beach PD defends actions of officers in video Investigators said Velapatino had been up all night taking drugs at a friend’s place. He is accused of stealing thousands of dollars in cash from a friend’s wallet, crashing a Lexus into a number of cars, including a police cruiser and a fire hydrant before he fled on foot. Investigators said Velapatino told them he needed the money because he owed his mother $2,000. ||||| Just One More Thing... We have sent you a verification email. Please check your email and click on the link to activate your profile. If you do not receive the verification message within a few minutes of signing up, please check your Spam or Junk folder. Close

– Daniel Pinedo-Velapatino was apparently so stressed out during a police chase last week he stopped at a stranger's house to play with her cats. The saga began when the 21-year-old allegedly stole $15,000 from a friend in Florida, and police later saw him hit a car at an intersection—while driving a stolen Lexus. Police gave chase when he sped off and hit the highway to Boca Raton; he eventually ended up on a dead-end road, the Sun Sentinel reports. That's when police say he promptly crashed into a fire hydrant, hit an officer's car twice, then got stuck in mud. After breaking away from cops on foot, he ended up at Candace Noonan's back door, WPBF reports. Claiming to be a thirsty landscaper, Pinedo-Velapatino asked for water. And while Noonan obliged, he sprawled on her living room floor to play with her cats. "It was odd, very odd. He was stroking my cat. It almost looked like he either was on drugs or he was mentally handicapped," she tells the station. He eventually fled as cops closed in, ending up in a canal nearby, where police fished him out of the water. Pinedo-Velapatino now faces a slew of charges and claims he stole the money to pay his mom back, the Palm Beach Post reports. (Another police chase ended when this man fled into a police academy.)

A solid assortment of flavor for any look. - Shop Sneakers ||||| Article In the video above, you’ll see a madman take off on a sizeable wave in Tahiti on a highly-modified motorcycle. His name is Robbie Maddison, and he’s a surfer-slash-stunt-rider from Australia. “Maddo” seems to know no fear, as he’s backflipped the Tower Bridge in London, jumped the Corinth Canal in Greece, and acted as the stunt-double for Daniel Craig in James Bond films. But looking over the ledge in Tahiti, while holding onto two handlebars, is another level of madness. We caught up with Maddo to ask him, well, why? Well, let’s take it from the top. Where the hell did this idea come from? Well, I grew up surfing, and my wife is a big-time wakeboard champion, so every time we’re home in Australia we’re in boats, on the water, etc. I guess the idea originally came from—well I mean I’m obviously a motorcycle guy—but I was on the back of a boat and we were cruising along the river and I’m looking at the wake coming up the back, watching her wakeboard, and something clicked in my head. I fantasized putting skis on a bike and riding on water. It was a stupid vision at the time, but I kept toying with it, playing with designs and concepts, and eventually it became a reality. Like most people who surf in Tahiti, you don’t have a good trip unless you meet up with Raimana. We heard he was pretty crucial to pulling this off. Yeah, I’d never met him before, but he’s a nice guy, very hospitable and a great surfer. Before the stunt, the day before I got the big wave on my bike, a big swell came and Raimana towed me into the sickest waves I’ve ever experienced. I caught some wearing my full gear to get used to wearing it in the water, and he towed me into ‘em. Then right after, he towed into a couple waves and I watched him get some of the sickest barrels I’ve ever seen first-hand. I was up on the Jet Ski right in front of where the lip was hitting the water, parallel to the reef—it was just so epic. That scene will live with me forever. Having grown up in Australia on the beaches just south of Sydney, did understanding the physics of a wave and ocean dynamics help you at all? Did your past as a surfer influence how you were able to ride that bike in the surf? Yeah, 100 percent. I’ve surfed since I was 8 years old. I’ve been a surfer for like 26 years. If I wasn’t a surfer growing up there’s no way I would have ever even imagined this, not to mention have had the knowledge of how to read the wave. I was only comfortable in this scenario because I’ve spent the majority of my life dropping in on waves. Honestly, the whole way I imagined I needed to ride the wave on my bike was wrong, but after watching some footage, with my knowledge of surfing I realized I had to adjust to be up on the face of the wave—and I’m comfortable being there because I spent the majority of my life dropping in on the face of waves. If I hadn’t been a surfer at heart, I couldn’t have pulled it off. How does the perspective that we see in the photos and the video relate to what your perspective was of riding those waves in full gear on your bike? The thing that sticks with me the most after that whole experience was how physically demanding it was. Honestly, I really thought that getting the right wave would have been easier [Laughs]. I don’t think the photos or video show how physical it was. You can’t see that when the wave broke right behind me, I honestly thought that might be the end of my life. I’ve never felt like I was in the wrong place at the wrong time more than I did right there. It was a near-death experience. At the end of the day, the images and footage say something pretty awesome, but the ferocity and how gnarly that thing was can’t really be put into words.

– There's surfing waves, and then there's Australian daredevil Robbie Maddison surfing waves on his motorbike "and performing other God-like activities to slam home the fact that he is not a human," as Jenni Ryall at Mashable puts it. Incredible footage shows Maddison pulling stunts on a modified dirtbike with skis attached that allows the 34-year-old to not only ride on water, but actually surf Tahiti's famous waves. "It spanned two and a half years, testing and building and fitting, to do this thing," a designer reveals. "There's a lot of stuff that we were learning," he continues. "It's amazing. He amazes me." Maddison is an X Games champion, award-winning stuntman, and world record holder for the longest motorcycle jump. "He has backflipped the Tower Bridge in London, flown across the Corinth Canal in Greece, and scaled the Arc de Triomphe replica at the Paris Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas," writes Ryall, who calls the "Pipe Dream" stunt "the most hardcore he has performed." As impressive as the video is, Maddison insists there's nothing like the real thing. "The images and footage say something awesome," he tells Surfer Mag, "but the ferocity and how gnarly that thing was can't really be put into words."

Stephanie Zarriello, the publisher and editor-in-chief of the San Antonio Observer, said Saturday that the staff of the weekly tabloid “are looking into the future prospects of publicizing the names and the addresses of all San Antonio Police Department officers in order to protect our community.” She said Sunday that the Observer has no plans to follow through with the threat. SAN ANTONIO -- The San Antonio Observer said Sunday it has no plans to publish the names and addresses of every police officer in the city. The clarification followed an announcement a day earlier that drew criticism from across the country. Stephanie Zarriello, the publisher and editor-in-chief of the weekly tabloid, said Saturday that the staff of the Observer "are looking into the future prospects of publicizing the names and the addresses of all San Antonio Police Department officers in order to protect our community." She said another media organization's erroneous headline was picked up nationwide: "Texas newspaper plans to publish names, addresses of police officers." Her comment came at a news conference following the death of Antronie Scott, an unarmed man shot and killed by an SAPD officer Thursday night. Zarriello clarified Sunday that the Observer has no plans to follow through with the threat and that her intent was to "make an officer think twice before shooting so fast and killing an unarmed person." The Observer and its small staff were overwhelmed with phone calls and voicemails Sunday from California, Florida, New York and other states, Zarriello said. She said some people voiced death threats. Many on social media suggested publishing her address. One Twitter user said she was "effectively placing a target on all #lawenforcement in San Antonio." ||||| SAN ANTONIO - It's a story heard a lot these days: A cop mistook something a suspect was carrying for a gun and shot him dead. The difference with the Antroine Scott shooting in San Antonio last week is that a local tabloid newspaper wants to publicly expose every local cop over it. CBS affiliate KENS-TV reports the owners of the San Antonio Observer held a press conference and spoke on behalf of Scott's family while revealing their plans. The editor-in-chief, Stephanie Zarriello, said shootings of citizens by officers go unpunished because the officers remain anonymous. "Like Ku Klux Klansmen with hoods, (officers) do everything they can in order to protect their identities for fear of being brought to justice," said Zarriello. "Just as the names and addresses of sex offenders are publicized in order to protect the public from their wicked behavior, we feel that our community has the right to the exact same level of protection." San Antonio's police chief said Friday that Scott was holding a cellphone, not a gun as officers feared, when he was killed. The 36-year-old was fatally shot at a north San Antonio apartment complex by officers trying to serve two felony weapons and drug warrants for his arrest Thursday evening. At a news conference Friday, Police Chief William McManus said Officer John Lee approached the suspect as he stepped from a car and told Scott to raise his hands. McManus says Scott spun quickly with something in his hand. Lee, fearing for his life, shot him in the upper torso. Scott died where he fell. Lee, who's a 10-year veteran of the San Antonio Police Department, has been placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of a department investigation. ||||| Stephanie Zarriello, San Antonio Observer (Photo: KENS 5) A local tabloid said Saturday that it is "looking into the future prospects" of publicizing San Antonio Police officers' names and addresses in response to a deadly officer-involved shooting. KENS 5 attended a news conference where that announcement was made after being told the media would hear from a witness to the shooting of Antronie Scott. That didn't happen. Scott's family was also there but didn't speak either. The deadly shooting of a man at the hands of a San Antonio police officer is under investigation by the department. An investigation is standard any time a police officer is involved in a shooting. Scott, 36, was being followed by an undercover police officer Thursday night. Police said when Scott got into a car in a parking lot on Sahara Street, a uniformed officer was called in to arrest him. According to the department, the officer saw something in Scott's hands that he believed was a gun. He shot Scott once in the chest, killing him. The object in Scott's hand turned out to be a cell phone. No gun was found at the scene. The San Antonio Observer, a tabloid, called a news conference and spoke on behalf of Scott's family. The editor-in-chief, Stephanie Zarriello, said shootings of citizens by officers go unpunished because the officers remain anonymous. "Like Ku Klux Klansman with hoods, (officers) do everything they can in order to protect their identities for fear of being brought to justice," Zarriello said. "So, in light of these facts, we at the San Antonio Observer Newspaper Group are looking into the future prospects of publicizing the names and addresses of all San Antonio Police Department officers in order to protect our community," she said at the news conference. "Just as the names and addresses of sex offenders are publicized in order to protect the public from their wicked behavior, we feel that our community has the right to the exact same level of protection," Zarriello said. KENS 5 contacted the San Antonio Police Department for a comment about the Observer's plans. A spokesman didn't address that issue specifically but did say the department is committed to conducting an unbiased and transparent investigation. San Antonio Police Chief William McManus held a press conference Friday to address the shooting. Read or Share this story: http://on.kens5.com/1T5Pe8C ||||| Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period.

– Police in San Antonio, Texas, say that an officer shot and killed Antronie Scott last week after he mistook the 36-year-old black man's cellphone for a gun, the San Antonio Express-News reports. Now the case is generating national headlines after the editor of a local tabloid raised the idea of publishing the names and addresses of every city cop, reports KENS5. "Just as the names and addresses of sex offenders are publicized in order to protect the public from their wicked behavior, we feel that our community has the right to the exact same level of protection," said San Antonio Observer editor-in-chief Stephanie Zarriello on Saturday. She also likened officers to KKK members. The following day, after her office was swamped with angry phone calls and even death threats, Zarriello said the publication wouldn't actually publish the information, reports News4SA. The purpose of the threat was to "make an officer think twice before shooting so fast and killing an unarmed person," she added. A police department spokesman wouldn't comment on the Observer's threat, but did say the shooting was under investigation. Police Chief William McManus tells CBS News that officers were following Scott, who was wanted on felony drug and weapons warrants. Officer John Lee approached Scott as he was walking away from his car. Lee told Scott to raise his hands. Scott spun around, and Lee, fearing for his life, fatally shot him in the chest, says the chief. Lee is on paid administrative leave.

Book aimed at gay teens banned from N.J. public library after complaints from Glenn Beck supporter Simmons/News Complaints from a member of Glenn Beck's 9.12 Project have caused a New Jersey library to shelve a book aimed at gay teenagers. The book, called "Revolutionary Voices: A Multicultural Queer Youth Anthology," is a collection of first-person essays by gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender teens, sharing their stories of coming out of the closet. Calling it "pervasively vulgar, obscene, and inappropriate," Beverly Marinelli, a New Jersey mother, successfully lobbied to have the book removed from the library at Rancocas Valley Regional High School, the Talking Points Memo (TPM) website reports. According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, Marinelli's efforts were inspired by right-wing blogger Gateway Pundit's attacks on Kevin Jennings, President Obama's openly gay Assistant Deputy Secretary for Safe and Drug-Free schools. Marinelli and another member of Beck's 9.12 Project also lodged a similar complaint in another nearby school district. Librarians responded quickly to the complaints, ordering all copies of the book to be taken out of circulation. "We need to pull 'Revolutionary Voices' from our shelves," librarian Gail Sweet wrote in an email, obtained by TPM. "Copies need to totally disappear." Sweet called the book "child pornography" when asked to explain why the library had banned it. "We do not like to remove books," Sweet wrote in an email. "It was felt, however, that the book was not appropriate." "Revolutionary Voices" was named among the best adult books for high school students by the School Library Journal in 2001, and was in the school's library to help young people struggling with issues of sexuality. Though Marinelli has not read much of the book, according to the Inquirer, she did cite a specific illustration of Boy Scouts watching two men have sex, calling it "the worst." She says she isn't a "homophobe," just a "normal mother and grandmother" defending her conservative values. "We did it for the children," she told the Inquirer. According to its official website, Beck's 9.12 Project is aimed at Americans "looking for direction in taking back control of our country." Marinelli identifies herself as Burlington County member of the group and once posted on a 9.12 Project website that she is "disgusted w/ what this Administration is doing and what is happening to our country." In the fall, TPM reports, she took part in a protest against "indoctrination" at a local elememtary school, railing against a video of students singing Obama's praises. ||||| A public library in Burlington County, New Jersey has ordered all of the copies of "Revolutionary Voices: A Multicultural Queer Youth Anthology" removed from circulation, after a member of Glenn Beck's 9/12 Project complained about the book's content. The library cited "child pornography" as its reason for removing the book. The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) describes "Revolutionary Voices," edited by Amy Sonnie, as "the first creative resource by and for queer and questioning youth of every color, class, religion, gender and ability." It features first-hand coming-out accounts from gay students, and "reflections on identity," according to the School Library Journal. It was also named as one of the best adult books for high school students by the Journal in 2001. But, according to Beverly Marinelli, a member of the 9/12 Project in Burlington County, the content is much more sinister than that. In an interview with the Philadelphia Inquirer, Marinelli called it "pervasively vulgar, obscene, and inappropriate." Marinelli maintained she's "not a homophobe," but called a drawing of Boy Scouts watching two men have sex, "the worst." The ACLU-NJ obtained emails through a Freedom of Information Act request that reveal that Marinelli met with Gail Sweet, the library's director, in April. Following their meeting, Sweet arranged for the Library Commission to discuss the book's removal that month. The Commission ultimately supported the decision to remove "Revolutionary Voices" from circulation, though "no official challenge" was made, and "no actual vote by the commissioners" was taken, according to Sweet's emails. The reasoning was that the book constituted "child pornography." In an email to the library's circulation coordinator, Sweet asked: "How can we grab the books so that they never, ever get back into ccirculation [sic]. Copies need to totally disappear (as in not a good idea to send copies to the book sale)." Sweet responded to TPM's request for comment with a brief, "Thank you for your interest but I do not have any comments to make." In emails to Sweet, Marinelli linked to articles by conservative websites Big Government and Gateway Pundit, which quote some of the other content in "Revolutionary Voices" that they found objectionable. Take this excerpt, for example: I learned the truth about Santa Claus and masturbation in the same year. I was 9. I had a hunch about Santa, but I had no clue about masturbation. I mean, I had no clue there was anything wrong with it. As far as I know, I've been masturbating my whole life. But it wasn't until 9 that I realized it was an impulse that you had to turn off. Especially in class. Fourth grade craft time taught me shame. Notably, the Gateway Pundit post that Marinelli linked to is mostly targeting Kevin Jennings, who the right-wing accused of having a "pro-homosexual agenda" after President Obama nominated him as director of the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools. Around the same time the Burlington library took "Revolutionary Voices" out of circulation, it was also removed from the Rancocas Valley Regional High School library after complaints by Marinelli and others in the local chapter of the 9/12 Project. Marinelli did not immediately return TPM's request for comment. The e-mails can be read here in .pdf form.

– A book aimed at teenagers struggling with their sexuality has been pulled from libraries in a New Jersey county after pressure from members of Glenn Beck's 9/12 Project. Revolutionary Voices, an anthology of essays by young people about coming out of the closet, is "pervasively vulgar, obscene, and inappropriate," a member of the Beck group wrote in a successful effort to get a public library and a high school library to remove the book, the New York Daily News reports. "How can we grab the books so that they never, ever get back into circulation?" a library director wrote in an email obtained by TPM. "Copies need to totally disappear." The library cited "child pornography" as its reason for removing the book, which was named among the best adult books for high school students by the School Library Journal in 2001.

Mike Golic doesn't think that an athlete like Rory McIlroy pulling out of the Olympics will make a big difference because winning a gold medal isn't McIlroy's No. 1 priority. (1:45) Rory McIlroy has decided not to compete at this summer's Olympics in Rio because of fears about the Zika virus. The world No. 4, who had pledged his allegiance to Ireland for the Games, announced in a statement that he will not be available. McIlroy is one of a number of high-profile golfers to pull out, with Adam Scott, Louis Oosthuizen, Charl Schwartzel, Marc Leishman and Vijay Singh having already said they will not travel to Brazil, while world No. 6 Rickie Fowler has also cast doubt on his participation. "After much thought and deliberation, I have decided to withdraw my name from consideration for this summer's Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro," McIlroy said in a statement. "After speaking with those closest to me, I've come to realise that my health and my family's health comes before anything else. "Even though the risk of infection from the Zika virus is considered low, it is a risk nonetheless and a risk I am unwilling to take. I trust the Irish people will understand my decision. The unwavering support I receive every time I compete in a golf tournament at home or abroad means the world to me. I will continue to endeavour to make my fans and fans of golf proud with my play on the course and my actions off it." Rory McIlroy will sit out the Olympics, saying "Even though the risk of infection from the Zika virus is considered low, it is a risk nonetheless and a risk I am unwilling to take." Christian Petersen/Getty Images The situation is a blow for the sport as golf returns to the Olympics for the first time since 1904. World No. 1 Jason Day described McIlroy's decision to skip the Rio Olympics as "understandable" and added that he hasn't made a decision himself if he'll play for Australia this August. "I respect his decision because, obviously, it's a tough one going from trying to represent your country and trying to win a gold medal, but also understanding that it's a life decision that you have to make -- just in case there's a small percentage that (contracting the Zika virus will) happen," Day said Wednesday at Baltusrol Golf Club, where he will defend his PGA Championship title at the end of July. "But it's a decision that some people aren't willing to take. I haven't made a decision yet because obviously I just finished the U.S. Open. Then obviously this came out this morning, so I knew this was going to be a hot topic today. "I'll talk to Bud (Martin, my agent) and family members because family for me is priority No. 1, so I want to make sure that they're happy and then from there I'll make a decision." The Olympic Council of Ireland (OCI) said it was "extremely disappointed" that McIlroy would not be going to Rio, but "we respect his decision." The International Golf Federation also released a statement on Wednesday: "The IGF is disappointed with Rory's decision but recognises that some players will have to weigh personally a unique set of circumstances as they contemplate their participation in golf's historic return to the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, with the Zika virus foremost among them. "It is unfortunate that the Zika virus has led to Rory's decision to withdraw from the Olympic Games, knowing how much he was looking forward to taking part." Concerns about the Zika virus, which has been linked to birth defects, have cast a shadow over Rio 2016, but the International Olympic Committee, with guidance from the World Health Organisation, has resisted calls for the Games to be moved or postponed. "The OCI and our medical team have taken our lead from the IOC on the Zika situation, as we do in all matters," the OCI statement said. "They have provided us with every assurance and we have total confidence that the Games will be safe for all athletes. "We are now following the IOC's recommendations, as well as the recommendations of the Rio 2016 organisers, the World Health Organisation and national health authorities, to ensure that Team Ireland's athletes are kept fully updated with the latest and best advice and that they are equipped to take all necessary precautions. "The OCI is leaving no stone unturned in ensuring the welfare of Team Ireland's athletes at Rio 2016." The Press Association contributed to this report. ||||| Rory McIlroy said earlier this month that his fears over the virus had eased Rory McIlroy has pulled out of the Olympic Games in Rio because of concerns about the Zika virus. In a statement, McIlroy said that "my health and my family's health comes before everything else". "Even though the risk of infection from the Zika virus is considered low, it is a risk nonetheless and a risk I am unwilling to take," said McIlroy, 27. Vijay Singh and Australia's Marc Leishman have already pulled out of the Games because of the Zika issue. Earlier this month, four-time major winner McIlroy, who was set to represent Ireland in Rio, said that his concerns over the virus had eased. The mosquito-borne virus has been linked to brain defects in newborn babies. World number four McIlroy's decision is to a blow to a sport which will be making a return to the Olympics after a 112-year absence. A number of top golfing stars, including major winners Adam Scott and Louis Oosthuizen, have already pulled out for scheduling and family reasons. McIlroy added: "I trust the Irish people will understand my decision. "The unwavering support I receive every time I compete in a golf tournament at home or abroad means the world to me. "I will continue to endeavour to make my fans and fans of golf proud with my play on the course and my actions off it." Ireland's Olympic governing body said that it was "extremely disappointed not to be taking Rory with us to Rio" but added that it "respected his decision". The Olympic Council of Ireland (OCI) statement added that it had "total confidence that the Games will be safe for all athletes". It said the OCI has taken its lead from the International Olympic Committee on the Zika situation and was also following recommendations of the Rio 2016 organisers, the World Health Organisation and national health authorities. After deliberating over the issue, Northern Irishman McIlroy announced in May 2014 that he had decided to play for Ireland and not Great Britain at the Rio Games. The International Golf Federation also said it was "disappointed" by the decision, but added it accepted players each had to "weigh personally a unique set of circumstances". Analysis - BBC golf correspondent Iain Carter Rory McIlroy got engaged to PGA employee Erica Stoll in Paris in December 2015 "People were aware that Rory McIlroy did have concerns. He mentioned the Zika virus a couple of weeks ago. He is 27, engaged to Erica Stoll and has spoken about his desire to start a family in the very near future. "That said, only last week in a news conference at the US Open Rory said golf's return to the Olympics is something we should be getting excited about. "Jason Day has raised one or two concerns about the Zika virus, but he has also expressed a desire to represent his country in Rio. "Day is the world's number one player and people will be watching very closely to see what his reaction is now that McIlroy has taken this decision." Experts react to McIlroy's decision Pregnant women have been advised not to travel to areas where there are outbreaks of Zika, while women have also been advised to avoid falling pregnant in these areas. But the International Olympic Committee, following World Health Organisation advice, says it has "total confidence" the Games will be safe for athletes. Jonathan Ball, professor of molecular virology at the University of Nottingham, said McIlroy's decision struck him as being "extreme". "The chances of being infected by Zika virus is low, especially if you protect yourself from mosquito bites by covering up and using a good insect repellent. Most people infected don't even show any symptoms and serious illness, although reported, seems to be a very rare event," he added. Dr Derek Gatherer, lecturer in biomedical and life sciences at Lancaster University, said: "If Mr McIlroy is contemplating becoming a father within a year or so, then it is a perfectly reasonable precaution to stay away from regions of active Zika transmission. "On the other hand, if he is not going to become a father any time soon, he has little to worry about." Analysis BBC golf correspondent Iain Carter: While McIlroy's concerns over the risk to his and his family's health should be respected, his withdrawal provides worries for the credibility of golf's return to the Games. With Marc Leishman and Vijay Singh also steering clear because of Zika fears and Adam Scott, Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel staying away for scheduling reasons, the list of absentees is growing. There will now be close attention on world number one Jason Day and Masters champion Danny Willett. Both have expressed Zika concerns. If golf has a higher proportion of Rio absentees than other sports, questions over whether it should have been readmitted to the Games will grow louder.

– Golfer Rory McIlroy won't be participating in this year's Olympics in Rio de Janeiro over concerns about the Zika virus, the BBC reports. According to the New York Times, he's the "highest-profile athlete" to pull out because of Zika so far. McIlroy, who was going to compete for Ireland, has won four majors and is the fourth-ranked golfer in the world. “My health and my family's health comes before everything else,” ESPN quotes McIlroy as saying in a statement. "Even though the risk of infection from the Zika virus is considered low, it is a risk nonetheless and a risk I am unwilling to take." Both the Olympic Council of Ireland and the International Golf Federation say they are "disappointed" in McIlroy's decision. The Times states the loss of McIlroy is a "major blow" for the Olympics, which is bringing golf back as an Olympic sport for the first time since 1904. McIlroy was one of the few big-name golfers who had seemed like a lock to travel to Rio, even going so far as to get his vaccinations. Fiji's Vijay Singh and Australia's Marc Leishman have already said they won't be competing in the Olympics over Zika worries. The world's top golfer, Australia's Jason Day, is considering not going. Other famous golfers, such as Adam Scott and Louis Oosthuizen, say they aren't going for reasons other than Zika. (Meanwhile, some Olympic athletes and coaches are freezing their sperm as a precaution.)

Nov. 12 (Bloomberg) -- Senior lawmakers in both political parties predicted an end to a standoff on the U.S. fiscal cliff that threatens to yield $607 billion in tax increases and automatic spending cuts in January, while saying the details of a debt-cutting deal may come later. Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad, a North Dakota Democrat, said he thinks lawmakers can reach a “framework agreement” directing tax and spending panels in Congress to craft a broad deal next year that cuts soaring budget deficits. At the same time, he said, they could agree now to a smaller package of spending cuts and some tax-code changes before the year is over. If the legislative panels don’t act, all sides would have to agree to a fallback plan that would be more acceptable than the automatic approach that is sparking economic uncertainty, Conrad said yesterday on “Fox News Sunday.” “I absolutely believe there is room for agreement,” Conrad said. Senator Bob Corker, a Tennessee Republican, said he agrees there is little chance of the automatic policies occurring, and said Republicans are open to some tax increases if Democrats would be willing to embrace a broad reform of the Medicare to yield big cost savings. Short of a broad, long-term deal, he said lawmakers must at least move away from the approach of extending current policies by a few months and then revisiting the entire debate. “I hope we’ll at least go substantially down the road toward solving the problem,” said Corker, who also appeared on the “Fox News Sunday” show. “Fiscal Cliff” Without new legislation, the $607 billion in tax increases and spending cuts -- evenly divided between military and domestic spending -- will take effect starting in January. The tax increases stem from expiration of the tax cuts put in place under President George W. Bush, while the automatic spending cuts were included in legislation last year to try to force both sides to agree on an alternative approach to curbing outlays. With just weeks before the year’s end, it’s very unlikely Congress will be able to agree to the type of long-term “grand bargain” that has been elusive for well over a year, said Robert Bixby, executive director of the deficit-cutting Concord Coalition in Washington. At the same time, he said, it’s unlikely both sides will allow a post-election collapse of budget policy. “They can’t enact the detailed legislation they need on entitlement and tax reform in the next couple of weeks,” Bixby said. “The real meaning of it won’t come together until next year.” President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner both spoke after the Nov. 6 elections about the need to avert the policy shifts in January, each expressing a willingness to compromise while also reiterating their previous positions. Tax Cut Extension Obama, claiming a mandate from voters after his Nov. 6 re- election, called for an immediate tax-cut extension for people earning less than $250,000 and insisted that top earners pay more. Boehner cited public support for the re-elected House Republican majority and said tax rates must not go up. They will meet at the White House Nov. 16, along with other top congressional leaders in both parties. In his remarks last week, Boehner pointed to the possibility of closing tax loopholes to help generate more revenue and signaled his willingness to compromise to reach a resolution. Encouraging Comments David Axelrod, a senior adviser to Obama’s re-election bid, said yesterday that Boehner’s comments were “encouraging.” Boehner “said he wasn’t going to get into details about what he would or wouldn’t accept,” Axelrod said on the CBS “Face the Nation” program. “He didn’t want to foreclose discussions and that was a positive sign.” Axelrod added that the House speaker’s “rhetoric has been encouraging.” Asked whether the debt problem can be solved by simply closing loopholes, Axelrod said he wouldn’t “pre-judge” the negotiations. He also said exit polls taken the day of Obama’s re-election support the president’s position on taxes. Axelrod said eliminating loopholes could be a part of a debt deal. “I think that the Speaker’s comments have been encouraging and obviously there’s money to be gained by closing some of these loopholes and applying them to deficit reduction so I think there are a lot of ways to skin this cat so long as everybody comes with a positive, constructive attitude toward the task,” Axelrod said. Tax Increases Democratic Senator Patty Murray said Republicans should accept some tax increases, and that Obama has a mandate to make the tax-code changes he advocates. She also reiterated earlier threats to let the nation go off the fiscal cliff if Republicans won’t budge. “We just had an election where President Obama ran on that,” Murray, of Washington, said on ABC’s “This Week” program. “We increased our majority in the Senate with Democratic candidates who said that to solve this problem the wealthiest Americans have to pay their fair share, too. “So if the Republicans will not agree with that, we will reach a point at the end of this year where all the tax cuts expire and we’ll start over next year,” she said. Automatic Spending Cuts The automatic spending cuts, known as “sequestration,” total $1.2 trillion over 10 years from planned spending, including more than $500 billion from defense. They were part of the legislation last year that raised the federal debt ceiling, and were put in place in the event that a congressional “super committee” couldn’t agree on a specific debt-cutting plan. The efforts of that temporary panel collapsed late in 2011. Concern that the global recovery will be slowed by a political deadlock over the fiscal changes, and about Greece’s ability to meet debt payments, contributed to declines in stocks last week, though U.S. indexes rose on Nov. 9 on a stronger- than-forecast consumer sentiment reading. Last week, U.S. stocks had their biggest weekly decline since June as Obama’s re-election on Tuesday set up a budget showdown with the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. All 10 groups in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index dropped during the week. Utilities and phone companies fell the most amid concern the dividend tax may rise. Bank of America Corp. led financial shares down 3.1 percent and coal companies including Peabody Energy Corp. slid on bets Obama’s re-election will mean more regulation. Hospitals such as HCA Holdings Inc. rallied while insurers fell on speculation Obama will preserve the health-care overhaul he championed. The S&P 500 dropped 2.4 percent to 1,379.85 for the week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 277.77 points, or 2.1 percent, to 12,815.39. While both gauges capped their worst week since June 1, they’re still up 9.7 percent and 4.9 percent, respectively, for the year. --With assistance from Richard Rubin, Julianna Goldman and Carter Dougherty in Washington and Lu Wang in New York. Editors: Ann Hughey, Carlos Torres To contact the reporter on this story: Laura Litvan in Washington at llitvan@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Steven Komarow at skomarow1@bloomberg.net ||||| WASHINGTON — President Obama , emboldened by his decisive re-election and lessons learned over four years in office, is looking to the renewal of budget talks with Republicans this week as a second chance to take command of the nation’s policy debates and finally fulfill his promise to end gridlock in Washington, associates say. As he prepares to meet with Congressional leaders at the White House on Friday, aides say, Mr. Obama will not simply hunker down there for weeks of closed-door negotiations as he did in mid-2011, when partisan brinkmanship over raising the nation’s debt limit damaged the economy and his political standing. He will travel beyond the Beltway at times to rally public support for a deficit-cutting accord that mixes tax increases on the wealthy with spending cuts. On Wednesday, Mr. Obama will meet with corporate executives at the White House as he uses the nation’s fiscal problems to start rebuilding relations with business leaders. Though many of them backed Mitt Romney, scores have formed a coalition to push for a budget compromise similar to the one the president seeks. He hopes to enlist them to persuade Republicans in Congress to accept higher taxes on the assurance that he can deliver Democrats’ votes for future reductions in fast-growing entitlement programs like Medicare and Medicaid. “Every president learns lessons from their successes and failures, and President Obama is no different,” said Dan Pfeiffer, his communications director. “There is no question that lessons were learned in the summer of 2011 that will impact his approach to the presidency for the next four years.” And with the election campaign over, the campaign for the Obama legacy begins: Mr. Obama will keep his grass-roots organization in place to “have the president’s back,” as its members like to say, on the budget negotiations and other issues in the second term. Democrats concede that the network has not been a particularly effective legislative lobby to date. But they argue that when it was activated to pass payroll tax cuts and low-interest student loans, the pressure made a difference. Ultimately, however, success or failure will depend on Mr. Obama, starting with his attempts to steer negotiations during the lame-duck Congress, which starts Tuesday, to a successful two-part conclusion. First, that means averting the “fiscal cliff” created by the coincidental combination of expiring tax cuts and unemployment benefits with across-the-board cuts in military and domestic programs that are set to take effect after Jan. 1. Both parties seek agreement on alternative savings that would be less damaging to the economy than up to $700 billion in immediate tax increases and spending cuts. Second, for the long term, success means consensus on a framework to overhaul the tax code and benefit programs in 2013 to control the mounting federal debt. Whether Mr. Obama succeeds will reveal much about what kind of president he intends to be in his second term. Beyond the specifics of any accord, perhaps the bigger question hanging over the negotiations is whether Mr. Obama will go to his second inaugural in January with an achievement that starts to rewrite the unflattering leadership narrative that, fairly or not, came to define his first term for many people. That story line, stoked by Republicans but shared by some Democrats, holds that Mr. Obama is too passive and deferential to Congress, a legislative naïf who does little to nurture personal relationships with potential allies — in short, not a particularly strong leader. Even as voters re-elected Mr. Obama, those who said in surveys afterward that strong leadership was the most important quality for a president overwhelmingly chose Mr. Romney. George C. Edwards III, a leading scholar of the presidency at Texas A & M University who is currently teaching at Oxford University, dismissed such criticisms as shallow and generally wrong. Yet Mr. Edwards, whose book on Mr. Obama’s presidency is titled “Overreach,” said, “He didn’t understand the limits of what he could do.” “They thought they could continuously create opportunities and they would succeed, and then there would be more success and more success, and we’d build this advancing-tide theory of legislation,” Mr. Edwards said. “And that was very naïve, very silly. Well, they’ve learned a lot, I think.” “Effective leaders,” he added, “exploit opportunities rather than create them.” The budget showdown is an opportunity. But like many, it holds risks as well as potential rewards. “This election is the second chance to be what he promised in 2008, and that is to break the gridlock in Washington,” said Kenneth M. Duberstein, a Reagan White House chief of staff, who voted for Mr. Obama in 2008 and later expressed disappointment. “But it seems like this is a replay of 2009 and 2010, when he had huge majorities in the House and Senate, rather than recognizing that ‘we’ve got to figure out ways to work together and it’s not just what I want.’ ” ||||| President Barack Obama and congressional Republican leaders are finally prepared to open negotiations this week on the fiscal cliff — an all-important legislative riddle with no easy answers. Democrats want to increase tax rates; Republicans say no way. Republicans seek major changes to entitlement programs; Democrats are divided. Republicans want to nullify a package of automatic spending cuts; Democrats won’t go for it without major concessions. Text Size - + reset Murray on fiscal cliff scenario Obama on economy, taxes Boehner: Your move, Obama The policy differences are endless, but the scenarios for how it could play out are fairly limited. Here are five ways Congress may navigate the labyrinth: 1. Go over the cliff In gridlocked Washington, this outcome is not only possible, it’s the preference of some in both parties. Consider the reasons, from the practical to the political. There just isn’t a lot of time before Jan. 1. Congress returns this week but then leaves town for Thanksgiving. After returning from that break, lawmakers will have only four weeks to strike a compromise on issues that have confounded the parties for years. Congress usually delivers only when it’s up against a deadline, but if lawmakers do so now they could be viewed as jamming a complex bill into law without much scrutiny. House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) has said he doesn’t want retiring and defeated lawmakers to vote on major legislation during the lame-duck session. He would rather temporarily extend all of the tax rates to allow more time next year to overhaul the Tax Code. But Democrats don’t want to renew the rates for the top earners, even for a few months. Even if the two sides can come to an agreement on how to handle income tax rates, they’ll have to develop a framework for comprehensive tax reform — and there’s almost no agreement on what that should look like. While this debate is raging, Congress also has to deal with other items that aren’t getting a lot of attention but could cause big problems. The pricey alternative minimum tax, which will hit millions of upper-middle-class families, needs to be patched. House Republican leaders want to extend the nation’s farm policy. Corporate tax breaks are about to expire. There’s also the debt ceiling, which will need to be raised in early 2013. And don’t forget the automatic spending cuts to the Pentagon and domestic programs — known as the sequester — which both parties want to avoid but need to find a way to pay for. Top Democrats see a strategic advantage in letting the rates lapse. The logic is that, once taxes rise Jan. 1, lawmakers would then be able to say they voted to cut taxes. This could make it easier to attract Republicans who may otherwise feel locked into Grover Norquist’s no-tax-hike pledge. Another incentive for Senate Democrats is that they are expected to pick up two seats in the next Congress, giving them a slightly larger majority to negotiate a more favorable deal. The economy could drop into a recession by the end of next year if nothing is done. The impact would be significant in the short term — because taxes would rise on every single American — but not catastrophic, some analysts say, as long as Congress reaches agreement within a few weeks and reverses the damage.

– President Obama learned some hard lessons during last year's debt ceiling talks, and he's heading into the new round to avoid the fiscal cliff determined to take his case to the people. Rather than "hunkering down" with congressional leaders behind closed doors for weeks—a strategy that damaged him in 2011—aides tell the New York Times that Obama will travel outside of DC in an effort to ramp up public support for his plan, which combines spending cuts with higher taxes on the rich, with the ultimate goal of breaking through DC's partisan gridlock. (John Boehner seems like he might be agreeable to that.) Talks are scheduled to begin Friday, but Obama will meet with corporate executives on Wednesday in an effort to regain support in the business world, and will take his case to the public sometime after Thanksgiving. Many business leaders are looking for a budget compromise similar to what Obama favors, and the president thinks he can use them to convince congressional Republicans to see things his way. Both the Times and Bloomberg note that on yesterday's talk shows, Republican lawmakers voiced a newfound openness to working with Obama, even including the possibility of raising taxes without actually increasing tax rates for the wealthy. Indeed, Bloomberg reports, leaders from both parties see an end to the standoff on the horizon. (For more, Politico has five possible fiscal cliff scenarios.)

Local Target stores are selling a T-shirt called the “Boston Local Pride Hoods Tee,” undoubtedly hoping you’ll want to show off your city love in apparel covered in a map of Boston’s neighborhoods. There’s just one problem: The T-shirt is rife with errors. On the tee’s navy blue map, Jamaica Plain is spelled “Jamaca Plain,” and Southie is spelled “Southy.” There’s a new super-neighborhood called “Central,” made up of what used to be the Beacon Hill, Chinatown, Downtown, North End, and West End neighborhoods. (Or, alternatively, it could be “Charlestown Central”—note that there’s no dividing line.) And of the 23 official Boston neighborhoods listed on the City of Boston website, the shirt also omits Allston, Bay Village, and Mission Hill. A close-up of the T-shirt. —Alison Goldman/Boston.com Advertisement A Twitter user reported finding the T-shirt at Target’s newly opened Central Square location on Monday evening, and Boston.com found it for sale at Target’s Fenway location Tuesday morning and on the store’s website for $14.99. Jessica Carlson, a spokeswoman for Target, told Boston.com that the company would be discontinuing the shirt. “We will be pulling that T-shirt from our assortment,” Carlson said. “We apologize for any disappointment this may have caused.” This isn’t the first time a big-box store has made a Massachusetts apparel blunder: Last year, Walmart reportedly sold a shirt featuring the state of Maryland shaped a whole lot like the Bay State. ||||| Worcester, Haverhill, Gloucester — these Massachusetts cities are understandably difficult to pronounce and spell for people (see: interlopers) not familiar with the area. But when a major department store steps into the sales arena to offer clothing with a Boston-specific theme to its customers, the locals aren’t as forgiving about blatant misspellings of the city’s many neighborhoods. A Target representative on Wednesday apologized to residents on behalf of the company and said the chain would pull from its website and store shelves shirts that had obvious errors printed on them, like “Mission Hills” and “West Roxberry.” Advertisement “Certainly, localization is something Target is committed to, and we love to be able to carry products that are reflective of the local community, which is why you would see Boston T-shirts in our Boston stores,” said Target spokeswoman Jessica Carlson in a telephone interview. “We apologize for any disappointment that this may have caused.” People started noticing the flubs this week following the opening of a new Target store in Cambridge’s Central Square. A shopper pointed out on Twitter Monday that a T-shirt on sale at the location with a map of Boston neighborhoods had some whoppers: Southie was labeled “Southy.” Jamaica Plain was spelled “Jamaca Plain.” Chinatown, Allston, Bay Village, and the North End were nowhere to be found, and a mysterious neighborhood, called “Central,” was inserted just south of Charlestown. After a Globe reporter tweeted about the shirt, and Boston.com reached out to the Minneapolis-based company, Carlson said the item would be discontinued. As of Wednesday morning, it was no longer available online. But other shirts, with more blunders, remained on sale on Target’s website this week. Advertisement For example, a gray T-shirt that says “The Hub,” the words floating above the city skyline, misspelled Mission Hill as “Mission Hills,” and added Cambridge to the lineup of Boston neighborhoods. A second shirt featuring yet another map of Boston appeared to spell West Roxbury as “West Roxberry.” Those shirts, too, will go away, Target confirmed. “All the Boston T-shirts referenced . . . are being removed from our assortment, both in stores and on Target.com,” Carlson said in a follow-up e-mail. The shirt kerfuffle follows an earlier clothing flap in which Target was at the center. Advertisement In 2015, Sully’s Brand, a North Shore T-shirt company, published a full-page letter in the Boston Herald scolding Target for choosing a New York-based artist to design Boston-themed shirts. The clothing, created by Todd Snyder, was for sale in stores and online as part of a partnership with the company. “Outsourcing Boston Pride to NYC? The home of the Yankees? The Evil Empire?! Say it ain’t so, Target. Say it ain’t so,” the letter from Sully’s read. Target has since ended the partnership with Snyder, but as of Wednesday, a few of his shirts were still for sale at Target.com, including one that spells Neponset River as “Nepsonset River.” Sales of that shirt will also soon end. “We will remove the incorrect Boston items” from the collection,” Carlson said. Get Metro Headlines in your inbox: The 10 top local news stories from metro Boston and around New England delivered daily. Sign Up Thank you for signing up! Sign up for more newsletters here Steve Annear can be reached at steve.annear@globe.com . Follow him on Twitter @steveannear

– If a company plans to help customers showcase their "local pride," said company should probably have some basic local knowledge. That might not have been the case with Target, whose series of flawed, Boston-themed T-shirts came under attack this week. A Twitter user was among the first to draw attention to numerous misspellings (Jamaica Plain is Jamaca Plain, for instance) on one shirt displaying a map of Boston neighborhoods, but that was just the beginning. The shirt also omitted the Mission Hill neighborhood and replaced Chinatown, Downtown, and a few other neighborhoods with a single non-existent one dubbed "Central," reports Boston.com. Perhaps worst of all, it spelled Southie as Southy, notes Boston.com. Misspellings were also found on two other Boston neighborhood shirts in Target's "Local Pride" line. One even mentions Cambridge, which is its own city across the Charles River from Boston, reports the Boston Globe. A rep for Target says all of the "incorrect Boston items" will now be removed from Target stores and its website. "We apologize for any disappointment that this may have caused," the rep says, adding, "We love to be able to carry products that are reflective of the local community." This isn't Target's first misstep with Bostonians. In 2015, it drew flak for asking a New York artist to design Boston-themed shirts, per the Globe, which found that one of the shirts that came out of that partnership has, yes, a typo on it. (Under Armour yanked a shirt that drew on the famous Iwo Jima image.)

A Philadelphia man was arrested in Rhode Island this week after he was found with more than 300 pounds of marijuana packed into cardboard boxes in the back of his minivan, police said. When Jian Zhi Li, 44, was pulled over in Warwick, R.I., for a traffic violation around noon on Monday, a state trooper smelled marijuana coming from the inside of the vehicle, police said. After searching the white minivan, police said they seized 327 vacuum-sealed plastic packages of marijuana that had been loaded into 12 cardboard boxes. The pot found in the minivan weighed 317 pounds, police said. Li was arrested and later charged with possession of marijuana with intent to deliver, among other crimes, police said. A bail hearing has been scheduled for May 3. Court records did not show an attorney listed for Li. Erin O'Neill may be reached at eoneill@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @LedgerErin. Find NJ.com on Facebook. ||||| WARWICK, R.I. (WPRI) — A Philadelphia man was arrested Monday after 317 pounds of marijuana was found in his van during a traffic stop in Warwick. According to Rhode Island State Police, a trooper pulled over the minivan for laned roadway violations on I-95 North just before noon. During the stop, police said the trooper noticed the smell of marijuana coming from the vehicle. A search of the van led to the seizure of 327 vacuum-sealed bundles of marijuana packaged in a dozen cardboard boxes, which weighed in at a total of 317 pounds. The driver, identified as Jian Zhi Li, 44, was taken into custody and arraigned Tuesday on charges of possession of marijuana with intent to deliver and manufacturing/possessing/delivering marijuana over 5 kilograms. He was ordered held without bail until a hearing May 3. Police said anyone convicted of possession of more than 5 kilograms of marijuana with intent to deliver faces up to life in prison and a fine of up to $1,000,000.

– "National weed day" may not have been so blissful for those relying on a shipment of pot traveling through Rhode Island on Monday. State police say they pulled over a white minivan in Warwick around noon and smelled marijuana, reports NJ.com. They soon discovered why: Authorities say the van was stuffed with 317 pounds of pot in vacuum-sealed packages hidden in cardboard boxes, per WPRI. Jian Zhi Li, 44, of Philadelphia was charged with possession of marijuana with intent to deliver and possession of more than 5 kilograms. He faces up to life in prison if convicted.

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption "Researchers hope they'll soon find evidence of mind-bending new theories", reports Pallab Ghosh The Large Hadron Collider has restarted, with protons circling the machine's 27km tunnel for the first time in more than two years. Particle beams have now travelled in both directions, inside parallel pipes, at a whisker below the speed of light. Actual collisions will not begin for at least another month, but they will take place with nearly double the energy the LHC reached during its first run. Scientists hope to glimpse a "new physics" beyond the Standard Model. Rolf Heuer, the director-general of Cern, which operates the LHC, told engineers and scientists at the lab: "Congratulations. Thank you very much everyone… now the hard work starts". Cern's director for accelerators and technology, Frédérick Bordry, said: "After two years of effort, the LHC is in great shape. "But the most important step is still to come when we increase the energy of the beams to new record levels." The beams have arrived a week or so later than originally scheduled, due to a now-resolved electrical fault. I am delighted and so is everyone in the control centre Rolf Heuer, Director General, Cern The protons are injected at a relatively low energy to begin with. But over the coming months, engineers hope to gradually increase the beams' energy to 13 trillion electronvolts: double what it was during the LHC's first operating run. After 08:30 GMT, engineers began threading the proton beam through each section of the enormous circle, one-by-one, before completing multiple full turns. It was later joined by the second beam, in parallel. The experiment teams have already detected "splashes" of particles, which occur when stray protons hit one of the shutters used to keep the beam on-track. If this happens in part of the pipe near one of the experiments, the detectors can pick up some of the debris. Image copyright CMS Experiment/CERN Image caption "Splashes" occur when protons hit a collimator and produce a shower of particles Image copyright Cern Image caption Prof Rolf Heuer (foreground, left) thanked staff and said that hard work lay ahead "It's fantastic to see it going so well after two years and such a major overhaul of the LHC," said Prof Heuer. "I am delighted and so is everyone in the Cern control centre - as are, I'm sure, colleagues across the high-energy physics community." Big unknowns Physicists are frustrated by the existing Standard Model of particle physics. It describes 17 subatomic particles, including 12 building blocks of matter and 5 "force carriers" - the last of which, the Higgs boson, was finally detected by the LHC in 2012. Image copyright CERN Image caption Teams are also watching the cross-section of the proton beam Prof Tara Shears, from the University of Liverpool, works on one of the LHC's four big experiments that will soon recommence their work, slamming protons together and quantifying the fallout. "Of course in every particle physics experiment we've ever done, we've been wanting to make a big, unknown discovery," Prof Shears told BBC News. "But now it's become particularly pressing, because with Run One and the discovery of the Higgs, we've discovered everything that our existing theory predicts." In order to explain several baffling properties of the universe, things beyond the Standard Model have been proposed - but never directly detected. These include dark energy, the all-pervading force suggested to account for the universe expanding faster and faster. And dark matter - the "web" that holds all visible matter in place, and would explain why galaxies spin much faster than they should, based on what we can see. Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption David Shukman visits the Large Hadron Collider to see the final preparations and what it may reveal next A theory called supersymmetry proposes additional particles, as yet unseen, that might fill in some of these gaps. But no experiment, including the LHC, has yet found evidence for anything "supersymmetrical". Even the familiar and crucial force of gravity is nowhere in the Standard Model. Waiting game By taking matter to states we have never observed before - the LHC's collisions create temperatures not seen since moments after the Big Bang - physicists hope to find something unexpected that addresses some of these questions. Debris from the tiny but history-making smash-ups might contain new particles, or tell-tale gaps betraying the presence of dark matter or even hidden dimensions. But first we need collisions - due in May at the earliest - and then a steady torrent of data will make its way to physicists around the world, so that the massive analysis effort can begin. Image copyright Getty Images Image caption The LHC's four big experiments will not start colliding particles until at least May Even when the results start to flow, we shouldn't hold our breath anticipating a breakthrough, according to Steven Goldfarb who works on the Atlas experiment. Dr Goldfarb remembers working on Cern's previous atom smasher, the LEP collider, which commenced operations in 1989. Then, just like today, there was much excitement about staging higher-energy collisions than ever before. "We thought at that time, perhaps we'd find the Higgs, perhaps we'd find supersymmetry. Many of the things we're looking for now, we looked for then," he told the BBC. "In the end, we just measured the Standard Model more and more precisely. We put a lot of really good constraints on it, which taught us where to look for the Higgs - but there were no Eureka discoveries. "And that could really be the case for the next several years." Follow Jonathan on Twitter ||||| BERLIN (AP) — The world's biggest particle accelerator is back in action after a two-year shutdown and upgrade, embarking on a new mission that scientists hope could give them a look into the unseen dark universe. FILE In this Aug. 7, 2010 file picture a photographer takes a picture in the assembly room of the elements of the LHC (large hadron collider) at the European Particle Physics laboratory CERN in Geneva,... (Associated Press) FILE - In this May 20, 2011 file photo, a wall painting by artist Josef Kristofoletti is seen at the Atlas experiment site at the European Center for Nuclear Research, CERN, outside Geneva, Switzerland.... (Associated Press) FILE - In this March 30, 2010 file picture the globe of the European Organization for Nuclear Research, CERN, is illuminated outside Geneva, Switzerland. The world's biggest particle accelerator is about... (Associated Press) Scientists at the European Organization for Nuclear Research, or CERN, on Sunday shot two particle beams through the Large Hadron Collider's 27-kilometer (16.8-mile) tunnel, beneath the Swiss-French border near Geneva. CERN wrote on its website that "the startup is complete!" The collider was instrumental in the discovery of the Higgs boson, a subatomic particle that had long been theorized but never confirmed until 2013. Scientists are promising nearly twice the energy and more violent particle crashes this time around, starting as early as June. They hope for a first ever glimpse of dark matter, one of the chief focuses of the experiment. Dark matter — and its cousin, dark energy — make up most of the universe, but scientists haven't been able to see them yet, so researchers are looking for them in high-energy crashes, in orbit in a special experiment on the international space station, and in a deep underground mine. CERN spent about $150 million on the upgrade, opening the massive machine every 20 meters (66 feet), checking magnets and improving connections.

– For the first time since 2013, protons are swirling around the Large Hadron Collider's 16.8-mile loop, as CERN brings its baby back online after a two-year, $150 million rebuild. With the "God particle" now under its belt, CERN is hoping for bigger and better things out of LHC 2.0, reports the BBC—including about twice the operating energy achieved during its first time around and more violent collisions."It's fantastic to see it going so well after two years and such a major overhaul of the LHC," says CERN director Rolf Heuer. The collider is set to hit its stride in June, and scientists are hoping this time for a peek at dark matter, notes the AP.

Sen. John McCain got his wish when his op-ed against Russian President Vladimir Putin was published in Russia news outlet Pravda. The only problem — it may have been the wrong Pravda. The Arizona Republican published his anti-Putin piece on Pravda.ru on Thursday, an English and Russian news website that was founded in 1999. Text Size - + reset McCain: 'Skeptical' of Russia plan But McCain said he was hoping to publish in the Communist newspaper Pravda, meaning “truth” in Russian, which was founded in 1912. That publication, after being banned when the Soviet Union collapsed, was rekindled and is still circulated by today’s Russian Communist Party. Pravda.ru and the paper are unrelated media outlets, except for the name. (Also on POLITICO: In Pravda, McCain slams Putin) On Thursday, a spokesman for McCain said the senator submitted the op-ed to both publications and hoped both would run it. He denied Pravda.ru is the “wrong” Pravda. On Sunday, McCain told reporters that the Communist one was the Pravda he hoped would publish his piece, but that publication’s editor wrote in a statement that the publication would not accept McCain’s op-ed unless it aligned with their position supporting the Syrian regime, according to CNN. McCain’s critical op-ed on Pravda.ru, titled “Russians deserve better than Putin,” was a response to Putin’s own piece in The New York Times last week criticizing American exceptionalism and arguing against action in Syria. McCain is a longtime critic of Putin and an active supporter of U.S. intervention on behalf of the Syrian opposition. (PHOTOS: John McCain visits Syria) For its part, the chairman of Pravda.ru’s board of directors wrote a column on Monday defending Pravda.ru as one of two legitimate successors of the original Pravda, saying his site is “the absolute leader among Russian English-language media, with the exception of Russia Today.” The chairman said they were happy to publish McCain’s piece, even if it goes against the publication’s position on Syria, to promote discussion of the complicated issue, and that they agreed to do so after being approached by Foreign Policy with McCain’s public statement that he wanted to write in Pravda. ||||| When Pravda.ru editor, Dmitry Sudakov, offered to publish my commentary, he referred to me as "an active anti-Russian politician for many years." I'm sure that isn't the first time Russians have heard me characterized as their antagonist. Since my purpose here is to dispel falsehoods used by Russia's rulers to perpetuate their power and excuse their corruption, let me begin with that untruth. I am not anti-Russian. I am pro-Russian, more pro-Russian than the regime that misrules you today. I make that claim because I respect your dignity and your right to self-determination. I believe you should live according to the dictates of your conscience, not your government. I believe you deserve the opportunity to improve your lives in an economy that is built to last and benefits the many, not just the powerful few. You should be governed by a rule of law that is clear, consistently and impartially enforced and just. I make that claim because I believe the Russian people, no less than Americans, are endowed by our Creator with inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. A Russian citizen could not publish a testament like the one I just offered. President Putin and his associates do not believe in these values. They don't respect your dignity or accept your authority over them. They punish dissent and imprison opponents. They rig your elections. They control your media. They harass, threaten, and banish organizations that defend your right to self-governance. To perpetuate their power they foster rampant corruption in your courts and your economy and terrorize and even assassinate journalists who try to expose their corruption. They write laws to codify bigotry against people whose sexual orientation they condemn. They throw the members of a punk rock band in jail for the crime of being provocative and vulgar and for having the audacity to protest President Putin's rule. Sergei Magnistky wasn't a human rights activist. He was an accountant at a Moscow law firm. He was an ordinary Russian who did an extraordinary thing. He exposed one of the largest state thefts of private assets in Russian history. He cared about the rule of law and believed no one should be above it. For his beliefs and his courage, he was held in Butyrka prison without trial, where he was beaten, became ill and died. After his death, he was given a show trial reminiscent of the Stalin-era and was, of course, found guilty. That wasn't only a crime against Sergei Magnitsky. It was a crime against the Russian people and your right to an honest government - a government worthy of Sergei Magnistky and of you. President Putin claims his purpose is to restore Russia to greatness at home and among the nations of the world. But by what measure has he restored your greatness? He has given you an economy that is based almost entirely on a few natural resources that will rise and fall with those commodities. Its riches will not last. And, while they do, they will be mostly in the possession of the corrupt and powerful few. Capital is fleeing Russia, which - lacking rule of law and a broad-based economy - is considered too risky for investment and entrepreneurism. He has given you a political system that is sustained by corruption and repression and isn't strong enough to tolerate dissent. How has he strengthened Russia's international stature? By allying Russia with some of the world's most offensive and threatening tyrannies. By supporting a Syrian regime that is murdering tens of thousands of its own people to remain in power and by blocking the United Nations from even condemning its atrocities. By refusing to consider the massacre of innocents, the plight of millions of refugees, the growing prospect of a conflagration that engulfs other countries in its flames an appropriate subject for the world's attention. He is not enhancing Russia's global reputation. He is destroying it. He has made her a friend to tyrants and an enemy to the oppressed, and untrusted by nations that seek to build a safer, more peaceful and prosperous world. President Putin doesn't believe in these values because he doesn't believe in you. He doesn't believe that human nature at liberty can rise above its weaknesses and build just, peaceful, prosperous societies. Or, at least, he doesn't believe Russians can. So he rules by using those weaknesses, by corruption, repression and violence. He rules for himself, not you. I do believe in you. I believe in your capacity for self-government and your desire for justice and opportunity. I believe in the greatness of the Russian people, who suffered enormously and fought bravely against terrible adversity to save your nation. I believe in your right to make a civilization worthy of your dreams and sacrifices. When I criticize your government, it is not because I am anti-Russian. It is because I believe you deserve a government that believes in you and answers to you. And, I long for the day when you have it. Read also: Сенатор Джон Маккейн: "Россияне заслуживают лучшего, чем Путин" There is no Pravda. There is Pravda.Ru ||||| 4 years ago Updated 9 a.m. ET 9/19/2013 Washington (CNN) - Senator John McCain has a message for the Russian people: “I am pro-Russian, more pro-Russian than the regime that misrules you today.” In an opinion piece titled “Russians Deserve Better Than Putin,” published by the Russian news website Pravda.ru, McCain took aim at the current Russian leadership, including President Vladimir Putin. Watch: McCain will be on CNN's "The Lead with Jake Tapper" Thursday starting at 4 p.m. ET “They punish dissent and imprison opponents. They rig your elections. They control your media,” the Arizona Republican said in his piece. (Read the full op-ed below.) The piece by McCain comes one week after Vladimir Putin made headlines by publishing his own opinion piece, “A Plea for Caution from Russia” in the New York Times, on the eve of U.S. – Russia negotiations over Syrian chemical weapons. Read: Op-ed for Op-ed: McCain to strike back in 'Pravda' The senator, who does not support same-sex marriage in the U.S., also criticized Russia’s recently passed anti-gay legislation, saying Russian lawmakers “codify bigotry against people whose sexual orientation they condemn.” A ban on the promotion of "gay propaganda" among minors became law in June, as Putin began his third term as president. The article was published Thursday, after some initial confusion over which “Pravda” McCain would actually be writing for. Read: Pravda vs. Pravda: Which one is McCain writing for? The Pravda McCain had publicly said he wanted to be published in is one of the oldest Russian newspapers, founded in 1912. Pravda, which means “the truth” in Russian, became the biggest newspaper during the Soviet period of Russian history. It was the official mouthpiece of the Central Committee of the Russian Communist Party. The newspaper was closed down after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, then reopened in 1997 as the official paper of the Russian Communist Party. The current Pravda has a considerably smaller circulation compared to its Soviet glory days. Pravda.ru, the news outlet that actually published McCain’s piece, is an electronic news website founded in 1999. Even though the website also bears the name Pravda, it is not connected to Pravda newspaper. The website has English and Russian editions and covers everything from politics to fashion and celebrities. While editors at the communist Pravda publication said last week they were not going to accept an op-ed by McCain, a spokesman for the senator said McCain submitted one anyway, in addition to Pravda.ru, since there was confusion over the two different Pravdas. As expected, it was not published by the newspaper. Putin said Thursday in a press conference he was not aware of McCain’s opinion piece about Russia. Read: Poll: Americans sour on Russia, Putin In his piece, McCain also cited Putin’s support of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as well as Russia’s recent actions in the United Nations as an example of failed foreign policies, saying, “He is not enhancing Russia's global reputation. He is destroying it.” The senator has been a strong advocate for military action against Syria, especially in light of the August 21 chemical weapons attack, and has been highly critical of the renewed diplomatic efforts between Russia and the U.S. This week, he told the Council of Foreign Relations, “I wish I could see the recent agreement between Russia and the United States to rid the Assad regime of its chemical weapons as a major breakthrough. Unfortunately, I cannot.” In the article, McCain focused his message on their day-to-day circumstances, arguing that Putin “has given you an economy that is based almost entirely on a few natural resources that will rise and fall with those commodities. Its riches will not last. And, while they do, they will be mostly in the possession of the corrupt and powerful few.” Reiterating that his message was written out of concern and compassion for the Russian public, McCain held firm. “When I criticize your government, it is not because I am anti-Russian,” he said. “It is because I believe you deserve a government that believes in you and answers to you. And I long for the day when you have it.” - CNN’s Ashley Killough, Jill Dougherty, NuNu Japaridze, and Laura Koran contributed to this report. Senator John McCain: Russians deserve better than Putin When Pravda.ru editor, Dmitry Sudakov, offered to publish my commentary, he referred to me as "an active anti-Russian politician for many years." I'm sure that isn't the first time Russians have heard me characterized as their antagonist. Since my purpose here is to dispel falsehoods used by Russia's rulers to perpetuate their power and excuse their corruption, let me begin with that untruth. I am not anti-Russian. I am pro-Russian, more pro-Russian than the regime that misrules you today. I make that claim because I respect your dignity and your right to self-determination. I believe you should live according to the dictates of your conscience, not your government. I believe you deserve the opportunity to improve your lives in an economy that is built to last and benefits the many, not just the powerful few. You should be governed by a rule of law that is clear, consistently and impartially enforced and just. I make that claim because I believe the Russian people, no less than Americans, are endowed by our Creator with inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. A Russian citizen could not publish a testament like the one I just offered. President Putin and his associates do not believe in these values. They don't respect your dignity or accept your authority over them. They punish dissent and imprison opponents. They rig your elections. They control your media. They harass, threaten, and banish organizations that defend your right to self-governance. To perpetuate their power they foster rampant corruption in your courts and your economy and terrorize and even assassinate journalists who try to expose their corruption. They write laws to codify bigotry against people whose sexual orientation they condemn. They throw the members of a punk rock band in jail for the crime of being provocative and vulgar and for having the audacity to protest President Putin's rule. Sergei Magnistky wasn't a human rights activist. He was an accountant at a Moscow law firm. He was an ordinary Russian who did an extraordinary thing. He exposed one of the largest state thefts of private assets in Russian history. He cared about the rule of law and believed no one should be above it. For his beliefs and his courage, he was held in Butyrka prison without trial, where he was beaten, became ill and died. After his death, he was given a show trial reminiscent of the Stalin-era and was, of course, found guilty. That wasn't only a crime against Sergei Magnitsky. It was a crime against the Russian people and your right to an honest government – a government worthy of Sergei Magnistky and of you. President Putin claims his purpose is to restore Russia to greatness at home and among the nations of the world. But by what measure has he restored your greatness? He has given you an economy that is based almost entirely on a few natural resources that will rise and fall with those commodities. Its riches will not last. And, while they do, they will be mostly in the possession of the corrupt and powerful few. Capital is fleeing Russia, which – lacking rule of law and a broad-based economy – is considered too risky for investment and entrepreneurism. He has given you a political system that is sustained by corruption and repression and isn't strong enough to tolerate dissent. How has he strengthened Russia's international stature? By allying Russia with some of the world's most offensive and threatening tyrannies. By supporting a Syrian regime that is murdering tens of thousands of its own people to remain in power and by blocking the United Nations from even condemning its atrocities. By refusing to consider the massacre of innocents, the plight of millions of refugees, the growing prospect of a conflagration that engulfs other countries in its flames an appropriate subject for the world's attention. He is not enhancing Russia's global reputation. He is destroying it. He has made her a friend to tyrants and an enemy to the oppressed, and untrusted by nations that seek to build a safer, more peaceful and prosperous world. President Putin doesn't believe in these values because he doesn't believe in you. He doesn't believe that human nature at liberty can rise above its weaknesses and build just, peaceful, prosperous societies. Or, at least, he doesn't believe Russians can. So he rules by using those weaknesses, by corruption, repression and violence. He rules for himself, not you. I do believe in you. I believe in your capacity for self-government and your desire for justice and opportunity. I believe in the greatness of the Russian people, who suffered enormously and fought bravely against terrible adversity to save your nation. I believe in your right to make a civilization worthy of your dreams and sacrifices. When I criticize your government, it is not because I am anti-Russian. It is because I believe you deserve a government that believes in you and answers to you. And, I long for the day when you have it.

– As promised, John McCain responded to Vladimir Putin's New York Times op-ed with a piece in the Russian press today. But—as was pointed out before McCain's piece even appeared—the website McCain wrote for isn't exactly the Russian equivalent of the NYT. McCain originally said he wanted to be published in Pravda, a big-deal newspaper founded in 1912, which was an official Communist Party mouthpiece during the Soviet era, CNN reports. It was shut down when the Soviet Union collapsed; the new incarnation is not nearly as big a deal ... and it also has nothing to do with the website McCain wrote for, Pravda.ru, which is actually more like a tabloid. Amusingly, McCain's rep tells Politico the senator submitted his piece to both Pravdas and was hoping both would run it. Alas, that was not to be. But on to the column itself, headlined "Russians deserve better than Putin." In it, McCain argues that he is actually "more pro-Russian than the regime that misrules you today" because he respects Russians' "dignity" and "right to self-determination." He takes issue with the Russian government's hard line on dissenting opinions: "They punish dissent and imprison opponents. They rig your elections. They control your media." He's also not happy with the country's anti-gay laws or the Pussy Riot debacle. Putin says he wants to "restore Russia to greatness," McCain writes, but has he actually done that? The economy is shaky and the government is allied with tyrants. "When I criticize your government, it is not because I am anti-Russian," McCain concludes. "It is because I believe you deserve a government that believes in you and answers to you." Click for his full piece.

At least eight elderly people died in a sweltering South Florida nursing home after it apparently lost its air conditioning amid ongoing, widespread power outages related to Hurricane Irma. The deaths, which prompted a criminal investigation Wednesday, were what many feared might happen after Irma knocked out power for millions of people in Florida, a state known for its omnipresent heat. Without the respite of air conditioning, the heat poses a particular threat to Florida’s large population of elderly residents, who are more susceptible to heat-related illnesses. In Hollywood, Fla., where temperatures are forecast to reach the 90s through the end of the week, authorities were called early Wednesday to the Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills, a nursing home not far from Fort Lauderdale with a troubled history. What they found was gruesome: Three people inside already were dead, while other patients were in “varying degrees of medical distress,” city officials said. At least five were pronounced dead later, while dozens of the home’s residents were spirited from the stifling building to local hospitals, including Memorial Regional Hospital just down the street. [ After Irma, Florida prepares for days — and maybe weeks — without power ] Those who died — five women and three men — were between the ages of 71 and 99. “We believe at this time it may be related to the loss of power in the storm,” Tomas Sanchez, the Hollywood police chief, said at a news briefing Wednesday. “It’s a sad event.” Police later said they are working to determine what caused the tragedy, but early indications pointed at the air conditioning in the facility. “The initial investigation has determined that the facility’s air conditioning system was not fully functional,” Hollywood city officials said in a statement Wednesday evening. “Portable [air-conditioning] units were being used in the facility, but the facility was excessively hot.” The first call came in to firefighters at 3 a.m. Wednesday, about a patient believed to be in cardiac arrest, officials said. Firefighters returned to the facility an hour later for a patient with breathing problems, and they then called a state agency with concerns about the facility. When a third call for help came in, more Hollywood Fire Rescue crews were dispatched, and they were joined by Memorial Regional Hospital staff. “There was no air conditioning,” said Randy Katz, chairman of the department of emergency medicine at Memorial. “The temperatures, particularly on the second floor, were extremely hot.” Ellie Pina, whose 96-year-old mother Mirelle is a resident at the center, said the facility had been running on generators since the power went out on Sunday while Hurricane Irma swept through Florida. Pina said she and others repeatedly called Florida Power and Light about the lack of electricity and were ignored. “I told Florida Power and Light the generators were going to give up soon. And it happened,” said Pina, reciting her ticket number, which recorded her seeking help. “I told my husband people were going to die in there. And it happened.” Florida Power and Light, which said Wednesday it serviced part of the facility, said it extended its sympathies to those who lost loved ones and was limited in what it could say because of the investigation. Robert Gould, chief communications officer for Florida Power and Light, the state’s largest utility, said during a briefing Wednesday that Broward County did not list the Hollywood facility as critical infrastructure in a hurricane planning meeting earlier this year. Such locations are prioritized for power restoration after a storm because of the services they provide to vulnerable people. [ Heat illness is the next big threat for millions without power in Florida ] Broward County said in a statement Wednesday that it selected critical infrastructure based on a Florida Power and Light guidance document. Going by this document, the county said, nursing homes were deemed “non-critical.” On Tuesday, the county said, the nursing home contacted Broward officials to say it had lost power, information the county said it reported to the power company. The nursing home reported later Tuesday that a tree was on a transformer, Broward said, information that was also relayed to the utility. “Hollywood Hills, when asked if they had any medical needs or emergencies, did not request assistance or indicate any medical emergency existed,” Broward County Mayor Barbara Sharief said in the statement. Pina said the nursing home’s staff set up portable air conditioners and put patients, clothed in as little as possible, in the hallways close to the cooling units. She was there Monday and Tuesday around noon and said it was extremely hot. “They were trying to help the people,” she said of the staff, which she said kept calling the utility for help. Pina said she and others also called 911 and received no response. A spokeswoman for the Hollywood police declined to comment beyond a statement the city had released outlining what had happened at the nursing home. On Wednesday morning, Pina said, she was told by a staffer that “the generators gave up.” Pina said her mother is hospitalized but doing well. She is among the more than 150 patients taken from the facility to one of the hospitals in Memorial’s system. Katz said they were treated mainly for dehydration, respiratory issues including respiratory failure, heat exhaustion and high fevers. “There’s no reason patients that age with chronic medical issues should be in a facility without air conditioning,” Katz said. Federal requirements state that nursing homes must have written, detailed plans and procedures for emergencies and disasters such as severe weather. Kristen Knapp, spokeswoman for the Florida Health Care Association, said hundreds of facilities for the elderly have relied upon backup systems since Irma passed over the state Sunday. “Throughout this whole process, we haven’t heard of any affected nursing homes operating without a generator,” Knapp wrote in an email. [ After Irma, a once-lush gem in the U.S. Virgin Islands reduced to battered wasteland ] While Hurricane Irma did not fulfill the most dire forecasts, the storm still managed to wreak enduring havoc across all of Florida. After lashing the state and parts of the Southeast with rain and wind, power outages remained as the chief concerns. Power companies had restored power to millions, but about 3.5 million power company customer accounts in Florida — or one in 3 statewide — still lacked electricity on Wednesday. Utilities have warned it could be days or weeks before the lights come back on in some places. This presents a particular risk in Florida, where about 1 in 5 residents are 65 or older. People in that age range are more prone to heat-related health problems because they do not adjust as well as younger people to sudden shifts in temperature, are more likely to have chronic medical conditions and often take medications that impact the body’s ability to regulate its temperature, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “The elderly and the young are more susceptible to getting dehydration from the heat,” said David Gifford, senior vice president of the American Health Care Association. “Keeping them well hydrated is important and keeping them as cool as possible.” The Florida association, which represents more than 4 in 5 nursing homes in the state — it does not represent the Hollywood facility — said about 150 out of nearly 700 facilities in the state did not have full power services restored as of Wednesday. “As with millions of other Floridians, our centers are coping with the loss of power and infrastructure in the communities that were most affected by the devastation,” the association said in a statement. Florida Gov. Rick Scott (R), a former hospital chief executive, called the situation at the Hollywood nursing home “unfathomable.” “I am going to aggressively demand answers on how this tragic event took place,” Scott said in a statement. “Every facility that is charged with caring for patients must take every action and precaution to keep their patients safe — especially patients that are in poor health.” Scott said he directed two state agencies — the Department of Children and Families and the Agency for Health Care Administration — to work with local authorities on the investigation, and he warned that “if they find that anyone wasn’t acting in the best interests of their patients, we will hold them accountable to the fullest extent of the law.” According to Scott’s office, the facility had reported as recently as Tuesday afternoon that they had power and access to fans and spot coolers. The facility’s administrator, Jorge Carballo, said in a statement sent to media outlets that the center had evacuated “due to a prolonged power failure to the transformer which powered the facility’s air conditioning system as a result of the hurricane.” Carballo did not respond to The Washington Post’s requests for comment. The facility has a history of citations, and it is rated “below average” on the Medicare website. Federal records, court documents and state inspection reports show the facility’s owners and managers had lurched from one problem to another during the past decade, including a federal bankruptcy, allegations of fraud, complaints from residents and repeated documentation of poor care and unsafe conditions. Brian Baker cuts up a fallen oak tree after Hurricane Irma passed through the area in Valrico, Fla. (Chris O’Meara/AP) State inspectors last year found patients who had been left in their night gowns, facing televisions that had been turned off. Others were unshaven and had untrimmed nails, including a man with blackened, jagged nails who had scratched himself raw. “The facility failed to ensure residents were treated with dignity with respect for their individuality and preferences,” the report found, saying inspectors observed a “failure to address residents in a respectful manner.” State reports show violations were recorded on 23 visits to the facility since 2010, with the violations in several reports describing systemic mistreatment. Safety also was a repeated concern. Smoke alarms, emergency exits and the nursing home’s emergency generator were cited for deficiencies. In February 2016, an inspector wrote that the facility failed to maintain its emergency generator to manufacturer and code requirements — and that it wasn’t the first time. More recently, in May, another state official who visited the facility wrote that he found no problems. “All previously cited Fire & Life Safety deficiencies were corrected” and no new deficiencies were found, he wrote. Those who died at the nursing home in South Florida were part of a death toll that, while relatively low compared to other massive storms, has slowly climbed in recent days. In Monroe County, which includes the Florida Keys, authorities have begun letting residents trickle in, though that region — where Irma made landfall early Sunday morning — was still assessing the storm’s toll. “Contrary to reports, no comprehensive assessments have been done to accurately determine percentage of damage or dollar figures,” Monroe County said in a statement Wednesday. Scott Unger in Key West, Fla., Leonard Shapiro in Fort Lauderdale, Lori Rozsa in Gainesville, Fla. and Wesley Lowery, Julie Tate and Alice Crites in Washington contributed to this report, which has been updated throughout the day. 1 of 71 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad × The Aftermath: Residents assess damage in the wake of Hurricane Irma View Photos The full extent of the damage caused by Irma, which destroyed homes and cut off power for many, is being determined. Caption The full extent of the damage caused by Irma, which destroyed homes and cut off power for many, is being determined. Spencer Platt Buy Photo Wait 1 second to continue. Further reading: As Florida recovers from Irma, Jacksonville has historic flooding — and might get more Why the storm surge forecast for Irma wasn’t so bad, just incomplete A Marriott rescue ship left stranded tourists behind because they weren’t guests of the hotel ||||| HOLLYWOOD, Fla. - Gov. Rick Scott directed the Agency for Health Care Administration to issue an emergency moratorium Wednesday for the Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills, where eight people died after an air-conditioning issue that forced evacuations from the nursing home. All patients have been removed from the rehabilitation center, and the moratorium immediately prevents the facility from admitting any patients until the order is lifted. The shutdown is necessary to protect the lives and the safety of frail elders, according to a news release from the AHCA. Earlier in the day, Scott made it clear that he is demanding answers on the facility. He previously ordered the AHCA and the Department of Children and Families to investigate the facility. It was shortly after 4 a.m. Wednesday when paramedics and fire-rescue crews were called to the Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills. "The Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills has evacuated this morning due to a prolonged power failure to the transformer which powered the facility's air conditioning system as a result of the hurricane," nursing home administrator Jorge Carballo said in a statement. Hollywood police Chief Tomas Sanchez confirmed that eight people had died and 115 patients were evacuated from the center. "We're conducting a criminal investigation into the deaths that occurred here," Sanchez said. Several residents from the center could be seen sitting on wheelchairs outside the nursing home, next to the hospital. An adjacent building, Larkin Community Hospital, was also evacuated. Eighteen patients there were relocated as a result of the investigation. The victims who died have been identified as Bobby Owens, 84; Manuel Mario Medieta, 96; Miguel Antonio Franco, 92; Estella Hendricks, 71; Gail Nova, 71; Carolyn Eatherly, 78; Betty Hibbard, 84; and Albertina Vega, 99. The causes of death have yet to be determined. Carballo said three of the eight patients died at the facility and the others died at the hospital they were taken to. "Facility administration is cooperating fully with relevant authorities to investigate the circumstances that led to this unfortunate and tragic outcome. Our hearts go out to the families and friends of those who were affected," Carballo said. Local 10 News reporter Jenise Fernandez spoke to the man who has been trying to repair the AC. Airstron employee Dave Long said that a fuse needed to cool the AC unit popped out during Hurricane Irma and needs to be repaired. He said he's been calling Florida Power & Light for days to get it fixed. "There's nothing we can do," Airstron employee Dave Long told Local 10 News. "We've been calling and calling." "There's nothing we can do," Long said. "We've been calling and calling. ... It just doesn't seem to be going anywhere, and I can't do anything until we get that fuse popped back in." Long described the ordeal as "frustrating." He said it would only take about 30 minutes once the fuse is fixed for the AC to be restored. "Well, I came here after the storm on Monday and we saw the fuse was out, but we called at that time and now it's, what, Wednesday, and the fuse is still out and I can't do anything," Long said. All the patients were taken to area hospitals, including Memorial Regional Hospital. "We don't have specific numbers on the conditions of each of the patients involved," city spokeswoman Raelin Storey said. Dr. Randy Katz, the medical director at Memorial Regional Hospital, said his staff "quickly identified some issues inside of the facility." "Most of the patients have been treated for respiratory distress, dehydration and heat-related issues," Katz said. Katz said at least a dozen other patients were in emergency care. He said the death toll could rise. Family members rushed to the hospitals after finding out where their loved ones were taken. One woman who spoke to reporters said she had been calling FPL and the facility for days on behalf of her mother to find out when the AC would be restored. "I kept calling," the woman said. "And I said, 'This is life-threatening.'" The woman said helping restore nursing homes to their standard conditions should be a top priority after a hurricane. Rob Gould, vice president and chief communications officer for FPL, said the utility company met with Broward County officials in March to identify "top-tier critical infrastructure" facilities in the event of a massive power outage. He said the nursing home was not identified as such. Rob Gould, vice president and chief communications officer for FPL, says the Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills was not listed as one of Broward County's top-tier critical infrastructure facilities. "We do know that facilities such as Memorial Regional Hospital across the street, which was with power, is listed as a top-tier critical infrastructure facility," Gould said. Gould said parts of the facility were energized by FPL. He said the tragedy points to the need to have a plan in place when it comes to emergency preparation. "I am going to aggressively demand answers on how this tragic event took place," Scott said in a statement earlier Wednesday. "Although the details of these reported deaths are still under investigation, this situation is unfathomable." Scott said if the investigation uncovers "that anyone wasn't acting in the best interests of their patients, we will hold them accountable to the fullest extent of the law." Numerous assisted living facilities were evaluated throughout South Florida after the incident, including the Bayview Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in North Miami Beach, where more than 100 patients were evaluated. The facility also did not have working AC, and the residents were all moved to other locations via buses and trolleys. A city spokeswoman said in a news release that Hollywood police officers conducted welfare checks on 42 nursing homes, assisted living and critical care facilities throughout the day. Memorial Healthcare Systems has established a hotline for families of the patients who were taken to its facilities for care. The number is 954-265-1074. Copyright 2017 by WPLG Local10.com - All rights reserved. ||||| Eight Hollywood nursing home residents died Wednesday morning in a building left without air conditioning after Irma roared through South Florida, according to Hollywood police and the city. The home is directly across from a hospital. Hollywood police have begun a criminal investigation into the deaths at the Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills, 1200 N. 35th Ave. while the Agency for Health Care Administration and Department of Children & Families have begun their own investigations. Hollywood Police Chief Tom Sanchez said precautionary checks would be done on Hollywood’s 42 other nursing homes. The owner of the nursing home also is an officer of Larkin Community Hospital, a medical center with a troubled history. Never miss a local story. Sign up today for a free 30 day free trial of unlimited digital access. SUBSCRIBE NOW The Broward Medical Examiner’s office list of those who died while stating the cause of death has not been officially determined: Carolyn Eatherly, 78; Miguel Antonio Franco, 92; Estella Hendricks, 71; Betty Hibbard, 84; Manuel Mario Medieta, 96; Gail Nova, 71; Bobby Owens, 84; and Albertina Vega, 99. Florida Gov. Rick Scott declared in a statement, “I’m going to aggressively demand answers on how this tragic event took place. Although the details of these reported deaths are still under investigation, this situation is unfathomable.” Gov. Rick Scott: I Am Demanding Answers pic.twitter.com/EgxW9SrtjZ — Rick Scott (@FLGovScott) September 13, 2017 Another part of the release from Scott’s office stated: “The Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills is responsible for the safety of their patients. Department of Health officials have been in contact with Larkin Community Hospital Behavioral Health Services management and the Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills over the past three days. Hospital administrators were advised to call 911 if they had any reason to believe that the health or safety of patients was at risk. Tuesday afternoon, the center reported to AHCA that it had power and access to fans and spot coolers provided by Memorial Healthcare.” Like many places in South Florida, the nursing home has been without power since being whipped by tropical storm-force winds with hurricane gusts on the edge of Hurricane Irma. The Florida Health Care Association said Wednesday 150 of 700 nusring home facilities around the state didn’t have full power. Miami’s Mike Carvelli, whose mother is at The Rehabilitation Center, said his brother was there earlier this week and found it “a little warm, but not uncomfortable” and there were portable air conditioning units in use. Kitchen worker Jean Lindor said the center had power from a generator to cook meals, but no air conditioning. With the assistance of Memorial Healthcare — Memorial Regional Hospital sits across the street — officers and firefighters evacuated 115 people from the center. Concerned family members can call 954-265-3000 to check on their relatives. Flora Mitchell, a 61-year-old Hollywood resident, came down to the center to find her sister around noon Wednesday. Sweat dripping from her forehead, she said she’d been trying to get information from first responders to no avail. She said her 58-year-old sister, who can’t talk or walk, has been there 10 years. “I don’t know if my sister is living,” Mitchell said. “Nobody’s telling us nothing.” Carvelli found staff members proactive after they evacuated his mother. Carvelli said the staff got him and his brother on a conference call to go over the medications and care for her Alzeimer’s. “This is an inexcusable tragedy that frail patients would die of heat exhaustion without it being recognized and taking them to the hospital next door,” read a statement from U.S. Senator Bill Nelson. “I have spoken with the Secretary of Health and Human Services to get to the bottom of this. We need to make sure we’re doing everything we can to keep our seniors safe during this difficult time.” Three of Wednesday’s eight deaths occurred at the nursing home. Hollywood Fire Rescue responded at 3 a.m. to a call about someone having a heart attack at 3 a.m.. They were back at 4 a.m. to transport a patient with breathing problems, the city of Hollywood stated in a Wednesday evening release. “After the second call was completed, the Fire Lieutenant notified a Battalion Chief and called the Department of Children and Families to report concerns about the facility,” the release stated. “Shortly thereafter, a third call for patient transport came in. Additional Fire Rescue crews were dispatched and began going through the facility. Memorial clinical staff also responded to the facility. A total of three patients were found deceased on the second floor of the facility and several other patients in varying degrees of medical distress were transported.” Sanchez said, “It’s extremely hot on the second floor of the facility.” The National Weather Service’s tracking in Hollywood put the temperature at 80 to 82 degrees overnight with a heat index of 85 to 90 after a Tuesday afternoon high temperature of 90 and a peak heat index of 99. The center and its owners have been cited previously for substandard or fraudulent operations. At least one lawsuit alleging negligence by the Rehabilitation Center is pending. The 2016 suit alleges “the staff and employees failed to develop a proper care plan and properly monitor and supervise the care and treatment provided to Lillian Fuller in order to prevent her from suffering the development and deterioration of infections and sepsis and suffering the development and deterioration of dehydration.” Fuller, 71, no longer lives at the center. The state corporate registration for the Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills, LLC lists South Miami Dr. Jack Michel — the president, director and agent of Larkin Community Hospital — as the company’s manager. While a nursing home has been at that location nearly 50 years, the Rehabilitation Center’s name and registration are only two years old. Larkin bought what was then called Hollywood Hills Nursing Home and Hollywood Pavilion Hospital in a 2015 bankruptcy auction after fallout from Medicare fraud convictions sunk both facilities. This article will be updated as more information is available.

– The death toll has risen, and may continue to rise, at a Florida nursing home that lost air conditioning as a result of Hurricane Irma. Two more patients died in hospitals following the evacuation of the Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills on Wednesday, bringing the total number of dead to eight. Three patients died at the facility earlier Wednesday, while three others died in hospitals. The deceased ranged in age from 71 to 99 and their causes of death are not yet clear. But the medical director at a hospital across the street from the facility, where evacuees were taken, says most were treated for "respiratory distress, dehydration, and heat-related issues," per Local 10. He adds at least 12 other patients are in emergency care. The Rehabilitation Center has been barred from admitting patients as agencies investigate. Hollywood police are also conducting a criminal investigation. The facility has previously faced issues regarding care and safety and a pending lawsuit claims employees "failed to properly monitor and supervise the care and treatment" of a patient who suffered infections, sepsis, and dehydration, report the Washington Post and Miami Herald. A man who'd been trying to fix the facility's AC unit, however, says Florida Power & Light could be at fault. Despite repeated calls to the company to repair a fuse, no one showed up, he tells Local 10. Florida Power & Light counters that the Rehabilitation Center wasn't on Broward County's list of critical infrastructure.

Country music performer Billy Ray Cyrus, second from left, talks with members of the military before an NFL football game between the Tennessee Titans and the Minnesota Vikings Sunday, Sept. 11, 2016,... (Associated Press) Country music performer Billy Ray Cyrus, second from left, talks with members of the military before an NFL football game between the Tennessee Titans and the Minnesota Vikings Sunday, Sept. 11, 2016, in Nashville, Tenn. Cyrus is scheduled to perform the national anthem before the game. (AP Photo/Mark... (Associated Press) The Latest on Week 1 of the NFL season (all times Eastern): 12:25 p.m. Left behind by the team bus, two members of the Buffalo Bills opted to take Uber to the stadium for the opener against the Ravens. Linebacker Jerry Hughes posted a video on Instagram showing him and linebacker Zach Brown in a car, supposedly en route to M&T Bank Stadium. A Bills official said the two players could have waited for a second team bus leaving from the hotel. — David Ginsburg in Baltimore. ___ 12:20 p.m. With Jimmy Garoppolo starting for the Patriots, Carson Wentz behind center for the Eagles and Shaun Hill or Sam Bradford — who really knows? — throwing passes for Minnesota, the first week of the NFL season will play out Sunday with plenty of uncertainty about what to expect. Other players expected to be absent in Week 1 include Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski and Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles, while some are returning from injury, including Green Bay wideout Jordy Nelson and Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco. The early games include: Tampa Bay at Atlanta, Minnesota at Tennessee, Cleveland at Philadelphia, Cincinnati at New York Jets, Oakland at New Orleans, San Diego at Kansas City, Buffalo at Baltimore, Chicago at Houston and Green Bay at Jacksonville. Games expected to start after 4 p.m. Eastern include: Miami at Seattle, New York Giants at Dallas and Detroit at Indianapolis, with New England playing Arizona on Sunday night. ___ 12:10 p.m. Tampa Bay made three late additions to its roster count. Wide receiver Cecil Shorts, running back Peyton Barber and linebacker Josh Keyes, all added this week, are on the active roster for Sunday's opener against the Atlanta Falcons. Shorts, who also played for new Buccaneers coach Dirk Koetter in Jacksonville, was signed following his release last week from the Texans. Shorts' experience was attractive to Tampa Bay, which lacked proven backups to starters Vincent Jackson and Mike Evans. — Charles Odum in Atlanta. ___ AP NFL websites: http://pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP_NFL ||||| A video posted by Jerry Hughes (@iam_jerryhughes) on Sep 11, 2016 at 7:01am PDT Baltimore — The Buffalo Bills left two of their defensive starters behind on the bus ride from the team hotel to M&T; Bank Stadium for their Week 1 game against the Baltimore Ravens. Starting linebackers Jerry Hughes and Zach Brown ended up taking an Uber to the stadium after they missed the first team bus. There was a later bus to the stadium for players, but the two wanted to get to the game quicker. Hughes documented the ride on his Instagram page. The Bills won't complain as long as Hughes and Brown are in uniform when they kick off against the Ravens on Sunday. Buffalo is short-handed to begin with on defense and couldn't afford to lose two more starters. Preview, odds, prediction for Bills' game vs. Ravens

– What to do when your team bus leaves without you? For two members of the Buffalo Bills, Uber provided the answer on Sunday, reports the AP. Linebacker Jerry Hughes posted a video on Instagram showing him and linebacker Zach Brown in a car, supposedly en route to M&T Bank Stadium for the season opener against the Baltimore Ravens. A Bills official said the two players could have waited for a second team bus leaving from the hotel, but NYup.com notes that the Bills were already short-handed and couldn't lose two starters.

Story highlights Kurdish security forces allow families into region, with significant restrictions A combatant tells CNN that ISIS remains in control of Tikrit Iraqi military official says Iraqi jets are targeting ISIS locations in city of Mosul Reports continue to emerge of atrocities committed by both sides Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish region has put tight restrictions on the border crossings used by Iraqis fleeing extremist militants and airstrikes in the northern city of Mosul on Saturday, raising fears of a humanitarian crisis as some desperate families may be left with nowhere to go. The Kurdish regional government's decision to first close the border crossings and then reopen them with restrictions came on the same day Iraq's security forces went on the offensive, carrying out airstrikes in Mosul and fighting to take back Tikrit from Islamic State of Iraq and Syria fighters, known as ISIS. The offensive appeared to mark a turn for Iraqi security forces, who were routed by ISIS fighters this month during a lighting advance that saw the al Qaeda offshoot seize large swaths of northern and western Iraq. State media and a local tribal leader reported that Iraqi forces had retaken the city of Tikrit, Saddam Hussein's hometown. Sheikh Khamis al-Joubouri, a key tribal leader in Tikrit, told CNN that the Iraqi security forces entered the city supported by special forces and fighters from among the local tribes, and had gained control. JUST WATCHED Pentagon: US 'very prepared' to take ISIS Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Pentagon: US 'very prepared' to take ISIS 06:38 JUST WATCHED Armed U.S. drones fly over Baghdad Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Armed U.S. drones fly over Baghdad 02:17 He said ISIS fighters retreated in the direction of Kirkuk and Nineveh provinces. However, amid claim and counter-claim, a combatant told a CNN freelance reporter that ISIS fighters remained in control of Tikrit, but that there are fierce clashes in an area about 20 kilometers from the city center, toward Samarra. State-run Iraqiya TV reported that the Iraqi army and volunteer militia groups had cleared ISIS fighters from the city, having advanced on the city from four directions. Sabah Numan, a Counter Terrorism Unit spokesman, told the station that 120 militants had been killed and 20 vehicles destroyed in a large-scale operation that began Saturday morning. He did not provide any evidence of the claim, and CNN cannot independently confirm the reports. Sunni tribes wade into fight Al-Joubouri said that the tribes were not aligned with the government or with ISIS and had stayed out of the fight until now. But, he said, when ISIS fighters who arrived in Tikrit robbed banks and carried out executions, as well as bringing the local economy to a standstill, the tribal leaders offered their help to the Iraqi security forces poised outside the city. The tribal leaders shared their knowledge of the city, including routes and known ISIS positions, he said. On Friday, Human Rights Watch reported that two mass graves believed to contain the bodies of Iraqi soldiers, police and civilians killed by ISIS and their militant allies had been discovered in Tikrit. JUST WATCHED The fight for Iraq Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH The fight for Iraq 02:27 Iraq's military spokesman, Maj. Gen. Qassim Atta, told a news briefing Saturday that Iraq's forces had regained the upper hand against ISIS and were now being supported by the tribes. "We are advancing in all our fights," he said. As part of that fight, Iraqi security forces broke up a terror cell in the predominantly Sunni neighborhood of al-Amiriya in eastern Baghdad, the Ministry of Defense said. Nine people were arrested following a raid Friday on a Sunni mosque where the ministry claims security forces uncovered cache of weapons and bombs. After being interrogated, those detained admitted they planned to carry out attacks during the holy month of Ramadan, which begins Sunday, the ministry said. Additionally, Iraqi airstrikes targeted ISIS fighters building an earthen dam along the Euphrates River in Anbar province. Families flee Iraq's air force carried out a series of airstrikes on Mosul, according to a senior Iraqi military official. The airstrikes targeted four locations inside Iraq's second-largest city, including ISIS headquarters, said Mazen al-Safaar, a traffic director in Mosul. But a doctor says the airstrikes also hit Mosul's administration building and the Old City's shopping district. At least seven civilians were killed and two were wounded in the airstrikes, according to Dr. Salaheldin al-Naimi, the director of the health administration. Hundreds of thousands fled when Mosul fell to ISIS two and a half weeks ago. Many headed for Kurdish-controlled areas. Renewed conflict in the city, located about 420 kilometers (260 miles) north of the capital, Baghdad, forced many more to flee -- but it is unclear what options they have left. They were initially barred Saturday by the Kurdish fighting force -- known as the Peshmerga -- from entering the region through checkpoints. But that was lifted later in the day. The Peshmerga allowed families from Mosul to enter the Kurdish region, but only after undergoing security and background checks, two Kurdish security officials told CNN. They also must have a sponsor who lives in the region, they said. This move comes two days after a suicide car bomb struck a checkpoint manned by Kurdish forces in Kolchali, northeast of Mosul, according to Kurdish security forces in Irbil. At least one Kurdish security officer was killed and 15 other people were wounded in that incident, security forces said. Mass graves, executions In addition to the alleged executions in Tikrit, reports continue to emerge of atrocities committed by both sides. Human Rights Watch, citing displaced residents and local activists and journalists, said Saturday that ISIS fighters kidnapped at least 40 Shiite Turkmen, dynamited four Shia places of worship, and ransacked homes and farms in two Shia villages just outside Mosul. The few Sunni villagers who remained in Guba and Shireekhan told those who fled that at least some of the kidnapped Turkmen had been killed, the rights group said. However, they had not seen bodies and could not give more information. ISIS destroyed seven Shia places of worship in the predominantly Shia Turkmen city of Tal Afar, about 30 miles west of Mosul, earlier in the week, Human Rights Watch added, citing local sources. "The ISIS rampage is part of a long pattern of attack by armed Sunni extremists on Turkmen and other minorities," said Letta Tayler, senior terrorism and counterterrorism researcher at Human Rights Watch. "The killing, bombing, and pillaging threatens to displace entire communities, possibly forever." On Friday, Amnesty International said it had gathered evidence pointing to a pattern of "extrajudicial executions" of Sunni detainees by government forces and Shiite militias in Tal Afar, Mosul and Baquba. "Reports of multiple incidents where Sunni detainees have been killed in cold blood while in the custody of Iraqi forces are deeply alarming," said Donatella Rovera, Amnesty International's senior crisis response adviser, who is in northern Iraq. "The killings suggest a worrying pattern of reprisal attacks against Sunnis in retaliation for ISIS." ||||| Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Recapturing Tikrit will be a tantalising prospect for Iraq, as the BBC's Paul Adams reports Iraq's army has routed Sunni militants in a major offensive on the northern city of Tikrit, state media say. State television said the governor's HQ had been recaptured and 60 fighters from the Isis militant group killed. A spokesman for the rebels confirmed heavy fighting but implied the attack had failed, saying they were pursuing what was left of the army offensive. The rebels control large swathes of the north and west after lightning raids that captured the second city, Mosul. 'Flee or be killed' On Saturday, thousands of Iraqi troops backed by tanks and air power attacked Tikrit from four directions, state TV said. It said there had been complete success in clearing Isis from the city, with some militant commanders among the 60 killed. It said the other insurgents there had fled. Image copyright AFP Image caption Iraqi Shia fighters secure an area to the west of the city of Najaf Tikrit fell on 11 June to rebels of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Isis). The BBC's Jim Muir, who is in northern Iraq, says that since then, the government has been threatening a counter-offensive from the next town down the Tigris river - Samarra - where the insurgents were finally checked. State TV said preparations were now being made to move north towards Mosul. The Iraqi soldiers are being supported in the offensive by allied Sunni tribesmen and Shia militias. The attack on Tikrit included air strikes that targeted insurgents at a university campus to the north of the city. Soldiers had captured part of the campus in a helicopter operation on Friday. Army spokesman Lt-Gen Sabah Fatlawi had warned Isis fighters they "now have two choices - flee or be killed". Image copyright AP Image caption Several air strikes were also reported on the rebel-held second city of Mosul One Tikrit resident, Yousef, told the BBC there was still fighting in the city, in both northern and southern districts. He said: "Most residents have already left Tikrit. Most have left for Kirkuk or Mosul. They are scared of being stuck in the middle of all the fighting. Only five families in my street have stayed." Iraqi military sources said the offensive on Tikrit - the mainly Sunni hometown of former leader Saddam Hussein - was being co-ordinated with American military advisers. However, although the US has confirmed it is flying armed drones in Iraq to protect US personnel on the ground, US officials say American troops are not directly involved in the hostilities. Some 300 US military advisers have been deployed to Iraq. Also on Saturday, fighting to the south of the capital Baghdad left at least 20 Iraqi troops dead. Police officials told AP dozens of insurgents were also killed. Another army spokesman told Agence France-Presse that Iraqi forces were also now in control of a key road from Baghdad to Samarra. Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Reda El Mawy reports on the Christians fleeing Qaraqosh Separately, Iraq's most influential Shia cleric called for a prime minister to be appointed by Tuesday to try to defuse the country's political crisis. Grand Ayatollah Sistani said key positions should be agreed before the new parliament meets then. Pressure has been building for a national unity government. Prime Minister Nouri Maliki wants a third term, though correspondents say he is seen by many as having precipitated the crisis through sectarian policies that have pushed Iraq's Sunni minority into the hands of Isis extremists. Meanwhile, the Archbishop of Irbil, in northern Iraq, told the BBC that more than 40,000 Christians had fled villages near Mosul in recent days after insurgents attacked the two large Christian settlements of Karakosh and Karamlaish. The displaced have sought refuge in the Kurdistan region of Iraq.

– Iraqi troops backed by helicopter gunships launched an operation today aimed at dislodging Sunni militants from the northern city of Tikrit, Saddam Hussein's hometown and one of two major urban centers militants seized in recent weeks in a dramatic blitz across the country. State media reports said the government had retaken the city, CNN notes, but reports conflict, the BBC reports. After watching much of Iraq slip out of government hands, military officials sought to portray the push that began before dawn as a significant step that puts the army back on the offensive. Tikrit residents reported clashes on the outskirts of the city and to the south, but the extent of the fighting was unclear. Helicopter gunships conducted airstrikes before dawn on insurgents who were attacking troops at a university campus on Tikrit's northern outskirts, an Iraqi military spokesman said. There was no immediate word on casualties. The military has also launched airstrikes on the northern city of Mosul. The semi-autonomous Kurdish region of Iraq has shut its borders to those trying to escape the city; CNN cites concerns over a possible humanitarian crisis.

National security adviser H.R. McMaster and lawmakers of both parties on April 16 reacted after a North Korean missile launch failed. (Bastien Inzaurralde/The Washington Post) President Trump’s national security adviser, H.R. McMaster, said Sunday that the United States is exploring “a range of options” to respond to an increasingly provocative North Korea but that the administration would like “to take action short of armed conflict, so we can avoid the worst.” McMaster’s comments came on a weekend during which North Korea staged a huge parade in Pyongyang to showcase its military prowess and later launched a ballistic missile that exploded within seconds. North Korea's show of force fell flat when a ballistic missile launch failed shortly after liftoff on Sunday, April 16. The missile "blew up almost immediately" off the Korean peninsula's east coast, according to U.S. Pacific Command. (Reuters) Appearing on “This Week” on ABC News, McMaster called the failed test part of “a pattern of provocative and destabilizing and threatening behavior on the part of the North Korean regime.” [N. Korea didn’t test a nuclear weapon, but it did try to launch another missile] “The president has made clear that he will not accept the United States and its allies and partners in the region being under threat from this hostile regime with nuclear weapons,” he said, adding that Trump ultimately “will take action that is in the best interest of the American people.” Both McMaster and other Trump administration officials on Sunday stressed that China could play a stepped-up role in denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula. McMaster said the United States is working with allies in the region, as well as China, to “undertake all actions we can, short of a military option, to try to resolve this peacefully.” [Trump breaks silence on North Korea, defends reversal on China] During an appearance on “Fox News Sunday,” deputy national security adviser K.T. McFarland said Trump and President Xi Jinping had spent hours talking about options involving North Korea during the Chinese leader's recent visit to Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla. McFarland urged patience to allow Xi to use trade measures and other tools to pressure North Korea. About 80 percent of North Korea's trade is with neighboring China. “It’s like your kids in the back of the car on a long trip saying, ‘When are we going to get there?' ” McFarland said. “Well, in this case, I think we should give the Chinese president some opportunities and some time, as well as pursuing the economic and diplomatic pressures that we have and that our allies have that we can bring to bear on North Korea.” McFarland, speaking from Palm Beach, said she had briefed Trump on North Korea's actions on Saturday night, including what she characterized as a “fizzle” of a missile launch. “It’s not a surprise,” she said. “Even in the last year, President Kim of North Korea has launched over 30 missiles. Most of them have failed. So it didn’t come as a surprise to us. We were expecting something surrounding the birthday of his grandfather.” Saturday was the anniversary of the 1912 birth of Kim Il Sung, North Korea’s founder and the current leader’s grandfather. Asked by host Chris Wallace about speculation that the United States had somehow sabotaged the missile launch, McFarland declined to comment. ||||| H.R. McMaster said "Chinese leadership" would be essential to confronting North Korea, particularly since so much of North Korea's economy is dependent on trade with China. | AP Photo McMaster: Missile test part of pattern of 'destabilizing' behavior National security adviser H.R. McMaster said a failed early-morning missile test by North Korea "fits into a pattern of provocative and destabilizing and threatening behavior on the part of the North Korean regime." McMaster, appearing Sunday on ABC's "This Week," said the United States is building an international coalition to pressure the North Koreans. Story Continued Below "And I think there’s an international consensus now, including — including the Chinese and the Chinese leadership — that this is a situation that just can’t continue," McMaster said. "And the president has made clear that he will not accept the United States and its allies and partners in the region being under threat from this hostile regime with nuclear weapons." It's unclear whether the United States played any role in the failure of the missile launch, which "This Week" host Martha Raddatz said was a medium-range ballistic missile. Under President Barack Obama's administration, the United States began launching cyberattacks aimed at North Korea's missile program, leading to a high failure rate, The New York Times reported last month. Appearing on "Fox News Sunday," deputy national security adviser K.T. McFarland said she couldn't reveal whether the United States played any role in potentially sabotaging the missile but said the failure "didn't come as any surprise to us" because North Korean launches often misfire or fail. McMaster also said that "Chinese leadership" would be essential to confronting North Korea, particularly since so much of North Korea's economy is dependent on trade with China. "In the coming weeks, months," McMaster told Raddatz, "I think there’s a great opportunity for all of us — all of us who are really [under] the threat now of this unpredictable regime — to take action short of armed conflict, so we can avoid the worst." Authors:

– Citing Pyongyang's failed missile launch as part of "a pattern of provocative and destabilizing and threatening behavior on the part of the North Korean regime," National Security Adviser HR McMaster said Sunday that the United States is developing a "range of options" to counter Kim Jong Un's posturing. "The president has made clear that he will not accept the United States and its allies and partners in the region being under threat from this hostile regime with nuclear weapons," he told ABC News' This Week, per the Washington Post. McMaster said he's also looking to "Chinese leadership" to help put North Korea in check, reports Politico. "I think there’s a great opportunity for all of us—all of us who are really [under] the threat now of this unpredictable regime—to take action short of armed conflict, so we can avoid the worst." Deputy National Security Adviser KT McFarland, appearing on Fox News Sunday, refused to confirm any American meddling in the failure of the missile, but said that it "didn't come as any surprise to us," given that the North's missile launches have a high rate of failure.

Rescuers prepare dive gear at the entrance of a cave complex where 12 boys and their soccer coach are trapped inside in Mae Sai, Chiang Rai province, in northern Thailand, Wednesday, July 4, 2018. The... (Associated Press) Rescuers prepare dive gear at the entrance of a cave complex where 12 boys and their soccer coach are trapped inside in Mae Sai, Chiang Rai province, in northern Thailand, Wednesday, July 4, 2018. The Thai soccer teammates stranded more than a week in a partly flooded cave said they were healthy on... (Associated Press) MAE SAI, Thailand (AP) — With more rain coming, Thai rescuers are racing against time to pump out water from a flooded cave before they can extract 12 boys and their soccer coach with minimum risk, officials said Thursday. A firefighter who has been working on draining the water said that levels in parts of a passage leading to a chamber where the boys and the coach were found on Monday after missing for 10 days was still flooded all the way to the ceiling, making diving the only way out. "What we worry most is the weather," Chiang Rai provincial Gov. Narongsak Osatanakorn told reporters. "We can't risk having the flood back into the cave." He said he asked Thai navy SEALs in charge of extraction plans to estimate what sort of a risk would be involved to take them out and "what kind of readiness we can have today and decide if we can take that chance." He said that not all 13 may be extracted at the same time depending on their condition. He said earlier that the boys have been practicing wearing diving masks and breathing, but he doesn't believe they have attempted any practice dives. "This morning, I have asked for 13 sets of (diving) equipment to be prepared and checked the equipment lists and place them inside (the cave) in case we have to bring them out in this condition with less than 100 percent readiness," he said. Officials have said they prefer to get the boys out as soon as possible because heavy rain is expected to start by Saturday, which almost surely will raise water levels again in the cave, making passage in some areas even more difficult if not impossible. They are hoping that an upgraded draining effort can lower the water level in an area where it is still at the ceiling or just about. The idea is to get some headroom so the boys would not be reliant on scuba apparatus for a long stretch and could keep their heads above water. The boys, aged 11-16, and their 25-year-old coach disappeared after they went exploring in the Tham Luang Nang Non cave in the northern province after a soccer game June 23. Authorities said the boys, who appeared skinny but in good health in several videos released by the Thai navy, were being looked after by seven members of the Thai SEALs, including medics, who were staying with them inside the cave. They were mostly in stable condition and have received high-protein drinks. In all of the videos, the boys appeared in good spirits. In the most recent video, a navy SEAL is shown treating minor cuts on the feet and legs of the boys with antibiotic ointment. Several of the boys are seen smiling as they interact with the navy SEAL, who cracks jokes. Seeing the boys has boosted the mood of their family members, and officials are working to install an internet cable to the cave so that parents can talk to their children. Kian Kamluang, whose 16-year-old son, Pornchai, is in the cave, said she had thought there was a 50 percent chance that her son would be found. "It's like he has been given a new life," she said, adding that she'll never let her son go into a cave or near water again. While efforts to pump out floodwaters are continuing, some Thai officials have indicated that heavy rains forecast for this weekend could force them to decide the boys should swim and dive out using the same complicated route of narrow passageways through which their rescuers entered. Authorities said they were still exploring other options, such as scouring the mountainside for other ways into the cave and finding faster ways to pump water from the cave. Cave rescue experts have said it could be safest to simply supply the boys where they are for now, and wait for the water to go down. That could take months, however, given that Thailand's rainy season typically lasts through October. Experienced divers are wary of taking out the boys through the dark and dangerous waters still in the cave, especially since they are untrained. "We are talking kilometers of transport under the water with zero visibility," said Claus Rasmusen, a certified cave diving instructor based in Thailand who has been helping Thai SEAL team with logistics. "It's difficult." He said it was awkward, but possible, to teach them minimal skills. "Nobody will teach anyone a full cave course, but trying to get them comfortable with masks, with the breathing, (is) completely different," he said. "Creating an environment that can make them safely get away, that's feasible." ||||| Image copyright Reuters Image caption Rescue workers are concerned about what might happen when monsoon rains hit Rescuers are racing against the rains to free 12 boys and their football coach, who are trapped in a flooded cave in northern Thailand. A deluge is expected to hit in a matter of days that could force the water level up, threatening to flood the pocket where the group took refuge. The teenage boys and their 25-year-old coach have been trapped for 12 days. They were found on Monday night by rescue divers, on a rock shelf about 4km (2.5 miles) from the cave mouth. The boys have now received food, foil blankets, and medical attention, and rescuers are trying to run cables through the cave tunnel so they can speak to their families. When are the rains coming? The region of Chiang Rai where the boys are trapped has for the past few days experienced a dry spell, and rescuers have taken advantage of this to pump water out of the cave complex. About 128 million litres of water had been pumped out by Thursday, with the water levels coming down at an average rate of 1.5cm per hour. Rescue workers are now able to walk through a 1.5km (0.9 mile) stretch from the entrance to what's being called the third chamber. Image copyright Reuters Image caption Water is being pumped out of the cave complex around the clock But heavy monsoon rains are forecast for Sunday. Chiang Rai Governor Narongsak Osotthanakorn said they were "racing against water". "We are calculating how much time we have it if rains, how many hours and days," he said. The Tham Luang cave complex is regularly flooded during the rainy season until September or October, raising fears that a delay could leave the boys trapped in the cave for months. What is being done to rescue the boys? There is hope that enough water can be pumped out of the cave tunnels for the boys to be able to wade - or be floated - out. But rescuers are also planning for other eventualities. A team are exploring the forested mountain land above the cave complex to see if they can find a chimney down to the cavern sheltering the boys. They have enlisted the help of bird-watchers, who are specialists in finding hidden holes, the AFP news agency reports. Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Bill Whitehouse from the British Cave Rescue Council explains how the boys and their coach might be rescued Thai Navy Seal divers are also teaching the boys the basics of diving, with a view to guiding them out through flooded waters if necessary. But such a rescue would be fraught with risk, say experts. Many of the boys cannot swim or dive, and there is a high risk they might panic in the dark, murky, narrow waterways. The journey for the group to travel up to the cave entrance would take around five hours, rescue divers say. The Thai military has previously said that if the boys can't dive out, the group may have to wait for up to four months for flooding to recede before they can leave. Food and other supplies are being put in place for that eventuality. 'The boys are my brothers' Helier Cheung, BBC News, Tham Luang cave Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Teams of volunteers are each playing their part in the rescue effort Rescue teams are working in extremely difficult conditions. The heat has been sweltering and unrelenting, at over 30C, while much of the site is submerged in squelchy mud that is several inches thick in places and extremely slippery. But the work has continued at an unrelenting pace. Everyone is aware that once the monsoon rains start, rescue efforts will be much more difficult. Meanwhile, hundreds of workers are helping to keep the site in order, with road engineers laying gravel to try and secure the mud, workers for the Thai royal kitchen providing hot food for everyone, and volunteers handing out water bottles and ice lollies to those on site. One local civil servant, who had volunteered to help hand out supplies, said he did not know the boys personally but had decided to help because "I consider the boys in the caves as my brothers". How are the boys coping? Video from Thai Navy special forces on Monday showed the boys looking emaciated but smiling and at times laughing. The arrival of food, foil blankets and the prospect of speaking to their loved ones will have buoyed their spirits. But concern is mounting for both their physical and mental health after 12 days below ground - and it is not clear how they would be helped to survive months more in the cave. Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Chilean miner sends message to Thai boys The boys and their coach had gone on their bikes up to the caves on Saturday 23 June after football practice. It was one boy's 16th birthday, and the team had taken a picnic. They knew the caves, and some reports suggest they had wanted to explore deeper than on previous occasions. They entered the cave when it was dry but sudden heavy rains quickly flooded the exit and rushed through the narrow passages, clogging them with mud and debris. ||||| Hundreds of pumps clearing water along 4km path in hope of avoiding need for scuba gear Thai rescuers say 12 boys trapped deep inside a cave complex may be able to walk out, provided the route can be drained before the monsoon showers predicted for the weekend. A military operation in the Tham Luang Nang Non cave complex is employing hundreds of industrial pumps to drain the water along the 2.5-mile (4km) path from the entrance to the area where the children and their football coach have been sheltering for 12 days. Poonsak Woongsatngiem, a rescue official with Thailand’s interior ministry, told the Guardian the water had been reduced by 40% in the past few days, clearing a 1.5km stretch of dark, jagged and muddy cave channels that the boys would need to traverse. The focus of Thursday’s operations is a third major basin along the route, Woongsatngiem said. The boys, who are not strong swimmers, are being trained in how to dive using scuba equipment. But forcing them to exit through the water is considered very risky. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Soldiers and rescue workers walk past water pumped out of the cave complex. Photograph: Soe Zeya Tun/Reuters “We [are] target[ing] the water in the third chamber to reduce to the point that no diving equipment is needed, like to the waistline, so one can wear just life jackets and walk out,” Woongsatngiem said on Thursday. Clearing the third basin would leave another 2.5km of path to the boys, whose ages range from 11 to 16. A Chinese diver at the site, Wang Ying Jie, said about half that remaining path would be walkable in the right conditions; the maximum water depth they would need to cross is about six metres. It is unclear how long the remaining area would take to drain, but monsoon rains are predicted for Saturday and would quickly refill the cave complex, potentially cutting the boys off for months. Rain was the biggest worry, said Narongsak Osatanakorn, the governor of Chiang Rai province, who is coordinating the rescue efforts. “We were racing against time before we found them,” he said. “Now we’re racing against water. It keeps seeping through the cave.” A fibre-optic cable was being laid inside the cave and would reach the boys soon, he added, so the children would be able to speak to and possibly see their parents on video. Wang said most of the boys remained in good health but three had intestinal issues and were in some pain. Divers were positioned at the third basin waiting to ferry medicine to the children. With wet weather looming, authorities are also calculating how long they are willing to allow rescuers to remain in the cave before they order an evacuation. Updates on the condition of the boys and the water levels were being slowed by the length of the journey to reach the children. “It’s about 11 hours – six on the way from the entrance to where the kids are and five on the way back,” he said. Play Video 1:00 Chilean miner has message of hope for trapped Thai boys – video He said the boys and their 25-year-old coach had started practising diving but did not confirm whether they would try to bring any out on Thursday. Those considered strong enough to go could do so first, he said. “They don’t need to be brought out as a team,” Osatanakorn said. “Whosoever is ready can come out first.” Thailand cave rescue: where were the boys found and how can they be rescued? Read more Officials were also scouring the jungle above the complex to find new openings that could be drilled to extract the boys more easily. The children were breathing, he said, so there was very likely a shaft somewhere to the top. “We have around 20 to 30 teams surveying on top to find the closest and most precise spot,” he said. One Thai navy Seal member who spent time with the boys said they “were always asking about the World Cup. I told them that all the big teams had gone home.” Additional reporting by Veena Thoopkrajae in Mae Sai and the Associated Press

– The weekend weather forecast has provided an ominous deadline for rescuers scrambling to get 12 young soccer players and their coach out of a flooded cave in northern Thailand. The area has been dry for days but heavy rains are expected to hit soon, potentially driving water levels up, thwarting rescue efforts, or even flooding the dry spot the boys fled to after heavy rains cut them off from the cave system's exit on June 23, the BBC reports. "We are racing against time before we found them," Chiang Rai Governor Narongsak Osotthanakorn said early Thursday. "Now we are racing against water." Experts believe waiting for the waters to recede could be the safest option, but that could take months. The boys are getting diving lessons and unless efforts to find a shaft in the jungle above the cave succeed, rescuers are expected to try to get the boys out within days, starting with those best able to make the difficult journey through narrow tunnels. The military has been running hundreds of pumps in an effort to lower the water level enough for the boys to simply walk out, though one major chamber remains flooded to the ceiling, the Guardian reports. Rescuers are also trying to install an Internet cable so the boys can communicate with their parents. "It's like he has been given a new life," the mother of a 16-year-old in the cave tells the AP. She says if he makes it out, she will never let him go near a cave again.

House Speaker John Boehner said Tuesday that when Congress raises the nation's borrowing cap he will again insist on spending cuts and budget reforms to offset the increase. House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio speaks at the Peter G. Peterson Foundation's 2012 Fiscal Summit, Tuesday, May 15, 2012 in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) (Associated Press) House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio, speaks at the Peter G. Peterson Foundation's 2012 Fiscal Summit, Tuesday, May 15, 2012, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) (Associated Press) In remarks Tuesday afternoon at a budget conference in Washington, the Ohio Republican said he welcomes another wrenching debate on increasing the so-called debt limit because it forces a Congress and White House plagued by gridlock to make difficult decisions. Boehner also said that the GOP-controlled House will vote to extend Bush-era tax cuts due to expire at the end of the year and that the House will act next year on "broad-based tax reform that lowers rates for individuals and businesses while closing deductions, credits and special carveouts." According to Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, the government will hit its borrowing cap later this year, but Treasury can use accounting maneuvers to buy time for the newly elected Congress to deal with the issue early next year. About a year ago, Boehner made a similar promise demanding spending cuts spread over a decade exceed the amount of increase in the debt limit, which at the time was discounted by some in official Washington. "When the time comes, I will again insist on my simple principle of cuts and reforms greater than the debt limit increase," Boehner said at a "budget summit" sponsored by the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, a nonpartisan group that advocates tackling the nation's debt problem. "This is the only avenue I see right now to force the elected leadership of this country to solve our structural fiscal imbalance." Asked whether President Barack Obama agreed that any increase in the debt ceiling should be offset by spending cuts, White House spokesman Jay Carney said that scenario would present an ugly repeat of last year when Republicans held the U.S. government credit "hostage," as Carney put it. "It can't possibly be the case that the right prescription for what we need to do right now is to engage in the kind of political brinksmanship that, unfortunately, congressional Republicans engaged in last year," Carney said. "So we're not going to do that." Yet it was unclear how the White House could prevent it if the Republican-led Congress again insists on commensurate cuts. Carney said Obama would again demand balancing spending cuts with an increase in tax revenue, which Republicans have rejected. Boehner said it may take one or more stopgap debt increases to buy time for a larger bargain. Last year, Congress and Obama _ with Boehner playing a lead role _ agreed on a 10-year, $2 trillion-plus package of spending cuts the coming decade. The measure paired caps on domestic agency operating budgets with the promise of $1.2 trillion in further deficit cuts though a so-called deficit supercommittee. But the supercommittee's failure to reach a deal has forced a scheduled painful round of automatic spending cuts at the Pentagon and other Cabinet agencies next year, along with a 2 percent cut to Medicare providers. Lawmakers are already trying to unwind those cuts, which take effect in January. Boehner seemed to warn that he won't permit such a scheme this time around. "Just so we're clear, I'm talking about real cuts and reforms _ not these tricks and gimmicks that have given Washington a pass on grappling with its spending," he said. Geithner warned against a replay of last summer's debt crisis, which led to a downgrade in the U.S. government's credit rating. "This commitment to meet the obligations of the nation, this commitment to protect the creditworthiness of the country is a fundamental commitment you can never call into question or violate because it's the foundation for any market economy," Geithner said Tuesday morning at the same event. "This allows us to govern, to fight wars, to deal with crises, recessions, to adjust to a changing world." ||||| Article Excerpt WASHINGTON — House Speaker John Boehner said Tuesday that any increase in the government's borrowing limit must be accompanied by spending cuts and other budget savings of greater value, and he rejected tax increases as part of any deal to reduce the federal deficit. Those positions signaled to the White House that congressional Republicans are prepared for fiscal brinkmanship at the end of the year, when Bush-era tax cuts are scheduled to expire, large automatic spending cuts are set to begin and the government reaches its $16.394 trillion borrowing limit. "It is a line in the sand because Washington has ... ||||| John Boehner lays out fiscal plan, knocks Obama for lack of courage By Molly K. Hooper - Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) on Tuesday vowed to only raise the debt ceiling if President Obama and Democrats agree to an greater amount of spending cuts and entitlement reforms. Boehner also promised that no tax hikes would be a part of the package, and laid out plans for a fast-track process to guarantee tax reform would take place in 2013. “This will give Congress time to work on broad-based tax reform that lowers rates for individuals and businesses while closing deductions, credits, and special carve-outs,” Boehner said. Boehner made the remarks in a politically charged address at the Peterson Institute in Washington on a day where the debate over the nation’s fiscal health dominated D.C. The speech included several shots at Obama, whom Boehner said lacked the “courage” to lead on fiscal issues. Democrats and officials in the Obama administration fired back, with Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner warning that Boehner should not play games with the debt ceiling. “We hope they do it without the drama and the pain and the damage they caused the country last July,” he said of Congress's role in the upcoming negotiations on raising the debt ceiling. Treasury has said the ceiling will likely be hit this year, but that the department has the tools to buy time so that a hike to the ceiling could be put off until next year. The Bush tax rates are set to expire at the end of 2012, and automatic spending cuts from last year’s debt-ceiling deal are scheduled to be implemented in January 2013. This has been described by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke as a “fiscal cliff” that threatens the economy. Boehner previously has promised that the House would vote to stop all of the Bush tax rates from expiring at the end of the year. On Tuesday, he said this legislation would also “establish an expedited process by which Congress would enact real tax reform in 2013.” He said the Ways and Means Committee is busy working out the details of the plan. "The bottom line is, if we do this right, this will be the last time we ever have to confront the uncertainty of expiring tax rates. We’ll have replaced the broken status quo with a tax code that maintains progressivity, taxes income once and creates a fairer, simpler code," Boehner said. The Speaker said Washington had no choice but to act, and highlighted his own business background to make the argument. “Having run a business, I know that failing to plan is planning to fail,” Boehner said. “The real pain comes from doing nothing … ‘austerity’ is what will become necessary if we do nothing now. We’ll wake up one day without a choice in the matter.” Boehner and Obama held personal talks last year on a grand bargain deficit-cutting plan that unnerved members of both parties. Boehner on Tuesday put the blame on their failure solely on Obama. “I believe President Obama cares about this country and knows what the right thing to do is. But knowing what’s right and doing what’s right are different things,” Boehner said. “The difference between knowing what’s right and doing what’s right is courage, and the president, I’m sorry to say, lost his.” Boehner said the two were on the verge of a deal that would have reduced deficits by trillions last summer by “strengthening entitlement programs and reforming the tax code with permanently lower rates for all.” But he said Obama lost his nerve because of Senate Democrats, whom Boehner said wanted to push for tax hikes. “When the president saw his former colleagues in the Senate getting ready to press for tax hikes, he lost his nerve,” Boehner said. “The political temptation was too great. He moved the goalposts, changed his stance, and demanded tax hikes.” Boehner promised that Republicans in Congress would act on the debt ceiling and expiring Bush-era tax cuts before the election in November. “Sometime after the election, the federal government will near the statutory debt limit. This end-of-the-year pileup, commonly called the ‘fiscal cliff,’ is a chance for us to bid farewell — permanently — to the era of so-called ‘timely, temporary and targeted’ short-term government intervention,” Boehner said. “Previous Congresses have encountered lesser precipices with lower stakes, and made a beeline for the closest lame-duck escape hatch. Let me put your mind at ease. This Congress will not follow that path — not if I have anything to do with it,” he continued. Boehner insisted he’s ready to take up the challenge of dealing with difficult issues, even in the midst of a highly charged election year. ‘If we have leaders with the courage to make tough choices and the vision to pursue a future paved with growth, then we can heal our economy and again be the example for all to follow. “I’m ready, and I’ve been ready. I’m not angling for higher office. This is the last position in government I will hold. I haven’t come this far to walk away,” Boehner said. —This story was updated at 4:30 p.m.

– Remember the nasty fight in DC last summer over the national debt ceiling? Get ready for round two this fall. John Boehner launched the first volley today, demanding at a fiscal summit that any increase in the ceiling be offset by spending cuts, reports the Hill. "When the time comes, I will again insist on my simple principle of cuts and reforms greater than the debt limit increase," said Boehner. "This is the only avenue I see right now to force the elected leadership of this country to solve our structural fiscal imbalance." The White House had a different take, notes AP: "It can't possibly be the case that the right prescription for what we need to do right now is to engage in the kind of political brinksmanship that, unfortunately, congressional Republicans engaged in last year," said spokesman Jay Carney. "So we're not going to do that." In his speech, Boehner also laid out his plans to keep the Bush tax cuts from expiring, reports the Wall Street Journal. He said the House, "in order to stop the largest tax increase in American history," would vote to extend them before the end of the year, then enact "broad-based tax reform" in 2013.

With rape allegations against Bill Cosby mounting, supermodel Janice Dickinson tells ET in a new interview that the comedian sexually assaulted her in 1982. Dickinson, now 59, says Cosby, now 77, reached out to her during a trip to Bali, following her stint in rehab. Dickinson claims Cosby had her travel to Lake Tahoe, because he was performing there and wanted to meet with her about the possibility of a job offer, as well as help her with a singing career. Dickinson says they had dinner in Lake Tahoe, and claims that he gave her a glass of red wine and a pill, which she asked for because she was menstruating and had stomach pains. VIDEO: Alleged Bill Cosby Rape Victim Joan Tarshis Speaks to ET And that's when she tells ET that things took a disturbing turn. "The next morning I woke up, and I wasn't wearing my pajamas, and I remember before I passed out that I had been sexually assaulted by this man," she tells ET. "... Before I woke up in the morning, the last thing I remember was Bill Cosby in a patchwork robe, dropping his robe and getting on top of me. And I remember a lot of pain. The next morning I remember waking up with my pajamas off and there was semen in between my legs." Dickinson also says she tried to write about the assault in her 2002 autobiography No Lifeguard on Duty: The Accidental Life of the World's First Supermodel, but claims that when she submitted a draft with her full story to HarperCollins, Cosby and his lawyers pressured her and the publisher to remove the details. "I'm doing this because it's the right thing to do, and it happened to me, and this is the true story," she says about coming out with her story now. "I believe all the other women." Dickinson says that keeping the alleged sexual assault a secret for 32 years drove her to a life of hurting herself. "Stuffing feelings of rape and my unresolved issues with this incident has drove me into a life of trying to hurt myself because I didn't have counsel and I was afraid," she says. "I was afraid of the consequences. I was afraid of being labeled a whore or a slut and trying to sleep my way to the top of a career that never took place." But now Dickinson, who says she never confronted Cosby after the alleged incident, doesn't mince words when it comes to what she would say to him now. "How dare you," she says. "Go f*ck yourself. How dare you take advantage of me. And I hope you rot." Dickinson is the third woman to come forward with a sexual assault accusation against Cosby, after a renewed interest in the allegations began when comedian Hannibal Buress called Cosby a "rapist" during an October comedy show in Philadelphia. On Monday, ET spoke to former publicist Joan Tarshis who says that the legendary comedian assaulted her on two occasions in 1969. She also echoed Dickinson's statements about why she stayed silent for so long. "I want to talk about this now and I want to really support the other women who have gone through this," she told ET. "Now with people coming out..., it's being handled differently." Tarshis is referring to another of Cosby's accusers, Barbara Bowman, who wrote an op-ed piece in the Washington Post earlier this month detailing the alleged assault she says she fell victim to in 1985 when she was a 17-year-old aspiring actress. "In one case, I blacked out after having dinner and one glass of wine at his New York City brownstone, where he had offered to mentor me and discuss the entertainment industry," she wrote. "When I came to, I was in my panties and a man's t-shirt, and Cosby was looming over me. I’m certain now that he drugged and raped me. But as a teenager, I tried to convince myself I had imagined it." Bowman said that she was one of the alleged victims asked to testify when a woman named Andrea Constand filed a suit against Cosby in 2004. The case was eventually settled out of court. VIDEO: Bill Cosby's Joke About Drugging Women in 1969 Resurfaces Cosby's lawyer, Marty Singer, issued this statement on Tuesday following Janice's accusations: "Janice Dickinson's story accusing Bill Cosby of rape is a lie. There is a glaring contradiction between what she is claiming now for the first time and what she wrote in her own book and what she told the media back in 2002. Ms. Dickinson did an interview with the New York Observer in September 2002 entitled "Interview With a Vamp" completely contradicting her new story about Mr. Cosby. That interview a dozen years ago said "she didn’t want to go to bed with him and he blew her off." Her publisher Harper Collins can confirm that no attorney representing Mr. Cosby tried to kill the alleged rape story (since there was no such story) or tried to prevent her from saying whatever she wanted about Bill Cosby in her book. The only story she gave 12 years ago to the media and in her autobiography was that she refused to sleep with Mr. Cosby and he blew her off. Documentary proof and Ms. Dickinson's own words show that her new story about something she now claims happened back in 1982 is a fabricated lie." ||||| Bloomberg News Comedian Bill Cosby performs at the Treasure Island Hotel & Casino on Sept. 26, 2014 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Cosby has canceled appearances since allegations resurfaced that he drugged and raped women more than a decade ago. Photographer: Ethan Miller/Getty Images Netflix Inc. (NFLX:US) is sticking with plans to release a Bill Cosby special, according to people with knowledge of the situation, following new rape allegations against the comedian and actor. Netflix executives have debated how to proceed with “Bill Cosby 77,” a stand-up performance by the 77-year-old comedian, said one of the people, who asked not to be identified discussing a programming decision. The video is scheduled to go live Nov. 28 on Netflix, the world’s largest subscription streaming service, the day after the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday. An NBC sitcom with Cosby is still in development, according to a person familiar with the situation. Cosby, who broke racial barriers with TV’s “I Spy” in the 1960s and “The Bill Cosby Show” in the 1980s, has canceled appearances since allegations resurfaced that he drugged and raped women more than a decade ago. The latest to come forward is Hollywood publicist Joan Tarshis, who wrote on Nov. 16 about an alleged 1969 incident. Comedian Hannibal Buress last month called Cosby a rapist onstage, and Barbara Bowman published a Washington Post op-ed last week reiterating past accusations Cosby raped her when she was a 17-year-old aspiring actress. “Over the last several weeks, decade-old, discredited allegations against Mr. Cosby have resurfaced,” his lawyer, John P. Schmitt, said in a Nov. 16 statement. “The fact that they are being repeated does not make them true. Mr. Cosby does not intend to dignify these allegations with any comment.” A new statement was posted yesterday to clarify that the lawyer’s comments didn’t refer to another Cosby accuser, Andrea Constand, whose 2005 civil lawsuit against Cosby was settled. She claimed to have located at least 10 other alleged victims of sexual assault by Cosby, who has never faced criminal charges. In a court filing at the time, Constand named one other witness to prior alleged sexual assaults, and nine so-called Jane Does, whose names were confidential. New Statement “The statement released by Mr. Cosby’s attorney over the weekend was not intended to refer in any way to Andrea Constand,” said the joint statement, from Cosby and Constand’s lawyers. “As previously reported, differences between Mr. Cosby and Ms. Constand were resolved to the mutual satisfaction of Mr. Cosby and Ms. Constand years ago. Neither Mr. Cosby nor Ms. Constand intends to comment further on the matter.” David Brokaw, a spokesman for Cosby, declined further comment to Bloomberg News. Cosby declined to comment when asked about the allegations in an interview with National Public Radio that aired on Nov. 15. He canceled a guest appearance on CBS Corp. (CBS:US)’s “Late Show with David Letterman,” and a guest spot on “The Queen Latifah Show” was postponed at the comedian’s request, NBC News reported. NBC Sitcom Tarshis, a publicist and journalist, went public on Nov. 16, offering her account in a post on the entertainment blog Hollywood Elsewhere. In 1969, Tarshis alleged, Cosby befriended and then drugged and raped her. Subscribers to Los Gatos, California-based Netflix are accustomed to controversial topics, a factor in the company’s deliberations about how to handle the Cosby allegations, said one of the people. Executives are monitoring public reaction, the person said. NBC has made no change to its plans to develop a sitcom starring Cosby, said the person with knowledge of the situation. The show still lacks a script, the person said. Plans for the NBC show were reported by Bloomberg and others in January. To contact the reporter on this story: Lucas Shaw in Los Angeles at lshaw31@bloomberg.net To contact the editors responsible for this story: Anthony Palazzo at apalazzo@bloomberg.net Rob Golum

– Former supermodel Janice Dickinson has a message for Bill Cosby: "Go f--k yourself. How dare you take advantage of me. And I hope you rot." The America's Next Top Model judge has become the third woman in the last month to accuse Cosby of sexually assaulting her. She tells Entertainment Tonight that when she met Cosby in 1982 to discuss a job offer, things went wrong after he gave her a glass of wine and a pill. "I remember before I passed out that I had been sexually assaulted by this man," she says. "The next morning I remember waking up with my pajamas off and there was semen in between my legs." Dickinson says keeping the alleged attack a secret for 32 years has been highly damaging to herself, and she is speaking out now "because it's the right thing to do, and it happened to me, and this is the true story. I believe all the other women." She says she tried to write about the incident in her 2002 autobiography, but Cosby's lawyers managed to hush it up. Another accuser came forward on Monday. The 77-year-old star—whose stand-up routine once included a bit about drugging women's drinks—has refused to comment on the accusations. Despite the snowballing allegations, NBC is still planning to develop a new Cosby sitcom, insiders tell Bloomberg, but Netflix announced last night that it has decided to shelve a Cosby special it had planned to air the day after Thanksgiving, Deadline reports.

LILLE — Three weeks ago, left-wing firebrand Jean-Luc Mélenchon was an entertaining sideshow in France’s presidential race — fun to watch on TV thanks to his cutthroat speaking style but ultimately no threat to the frontrunners. Nobody is laughing now. Less than two weeks before the first round of the presidential election, the anti-EU, pro-Moscow Mélenchon is busting open what was already an unpredictable race and threatening to sink the campaign’s only viable pro-EU candidates. Benefitting from the collapse in support for socialist candidate Benoît Hamon, Mélenchon enjoys the support of 18.5 percent of votes. That’s on a par with conservative former prime minister François Fillon and only 3.5 percentage points behind centrist frontrunner Emmanuel Macron, according to a daily poll of first-round voting intentions by Ifop. Mélenchon is still no shoo-in for the presidency. But his increasing popularity is becoming a problem for the two frontrunners, because a large swathe of his backers — 42 percent of them, according to Ifop — say they won’t vote in the second-round run-off between the top two candidates if Mélenchon is no longer in the picture. Far-right leader Marine Le Pen, who is almost certain to make the second round, can rejoice. “Abstention among Mélenchon voters can turn into a determining factor,” Ifop’s Jérome Fourquet said. “Many people in this group are going to find it impossible to vote for ‘Macron the banker’ — how many exactly it’s hard to say. What’s clear is that the tactical voting we saw in 2002 that kept Jean-Marie Le Pen out of power is not going to work as well this time.” ‘Operation Abstain’ On Wednesday night, at a massive rally in the northern city of Lille, Mélenchon offered a glimpse of his appeal for millions of French people. Dressed in his signature Mao-style jacket, the candidate put on a freewheeling performance that alternated between mocking commentary of news articles, snippets of stump speeches and diatribes against rivals. Hands-free thanks to the kind of microphone Madonna would wear, he moved around the small stage to make sure he addressed everyone. Outside, thousands who were unable to get in stood in the cold watching him on a giant screen for more than two hours. The candidate’s voice, amplified by powerful speakers, could be heard half a kilometer away. Mélenchon explained the thrust of his speech as seeking to show “two visions of the world that oppose one another.” But the substance was devoted to his rivals, namely Macron, whom he repeatedly referred to as a “banker.” If either Macron or Fillon were elected, Mélenchon bellowed at one point, then they would make ordinary men and women “spit blood” from overwork. “In 2008 we both had a membership card for the Socialist Party,” he went on, referring to Macron. “I turned my card in to defend my ideas. He turned his card in to join the Rothschild bank. That’s about as much as you need to know.” The crowd was vocal. Every time Macron’s name was mentioned, they booed long and loud. Mélenchon let them do so, saying at one point: “Doesn’t it feel good to shout?” But when they hissed at the mention of the Communist Party, which has not thrown its support behind Mélenchon, he cut them short. “None of that,” he snapped. “They are our friends.” The anti-Macron message was being heard loud and clear. Eight out of 10 supporters questioned by POLITICO said if Mélenchon did not make it into the election’s final round, they would abstain — even if that meant the head of the National Front, whom most otherwise opposed, became France’s next president. ‘The Trojan Horse of finance’ “Macron represents capitalism, which along with financial lobbies is shaping Europe,” said a 60-year-old art teacher who only wanted to be identified as Mathilde. “He is the Trojan horse of finance.” She added: “If in the second round Mélenchon is not there, so be it, I will not vote. We’ll have the far-right. I don’t care. I can promise you that there are many, many people in my situation. We are just completely fed up.” Lucas, an 18-year-old preparing to vote in his first presidential election, was on the same page. “If it’s Macron against Le Pen in the second round, I am not voting.” Ditto Lydie and Fabrice from Lille. “What I will do is take two pieces of paper with Mélenchon’s name on them and slip them in the ballot box at both rounds,” said Lydie, a retired postal worker. “I could not bring myself to vote for [Macron],” echoed Fabrice. Mélenchon offers such a similar vision of world affairs to the National Front chief. A massive refusal of Mélenchon backers to switch to Macron in the election’s second round would seriously harm his chances. While polls show Macron prevailing in the final round, he will need supporters of rivals on the left and right to help him over the finish line. Much of his second-round support is implied as part of a tactical voting scheme known as the “Republican Front.” However, conversations with several Mélenchon backers suggested they had little interest in forming a Republican Front. A reporter from a local newspaper who had voted against Le Pen in a regional election in 2015 said she would be unable to do so this time around against Macron. Others shrugged when asked if they would be able to accept a Le Pen presidency. One said he would vote for Le Pen against Macron in the final round. Two hinted that a President Le Pen was preferable to a President Macron, because she represented a “real change” whereas the former economy minister was “the same old recipes.” If some Mélenchon backers are ready to accept a Le Pen presidency, it may be partly because the candidate offers such a similar vision of world affairs to the National Front chief. Both advocate a confrontation with the EU, and a referendum if they don’t get what they want; both are skeptical of the United States, friendly toward Russia and want to redefine France’s relationship with NATO. ||||| Backstage at a rally in southern France in the early days of the presidential race, Marine Le Pen took a puff on the electronic cigarette that has replaced her two-packets-a-day tobacco habit. “I’m going to run a joyful campaign,�? she smiled. French elections: all you need to know Read more Le Pen wanted to soften her harsh image and “soothe�? voters – she had posed for pictures hugging horses and pet kittens – but also to offer a hardline programme she believed would “reassure�? a French population despairing of decades of mass unemployment and a persistent terrorist threat. The aim, as always for the far-right Front National founded by her father, Jean-Marie Le Pen, in 1972, was keeping France for the French. There would be a referendum to change the constitution so that “national priority�? would be given to French people over non-nationals in jobs, housing and welfare. There would be another referendum to leave the European Union. Le Pen promised an immigration clampdown and a ban on religious symbols, including the Muslim headscarf, from all public places in France. Marine Le Pen, 48, is the closest she has ever been to the French presidency – with a chance of making it to the final runoff in an election that is impossible to predict. In the six years since she took over the party from her father, she has steadily increased her party’s vote in every local and European election. If her ex-paratrooper, Holocaust-denying, provocateur father was content to be a protest vote, Marine Le Pen wants power and political office. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Marine Le Pen visits a horse show in Villepinte, Paris, in December. Photograph: Jacky Naegelen/Reuters Le Pen, controlled and image-conscious, has always a walked a tight line between denouncing the system and trying to be part of it. Her life has played out in the public eye ever since, aged six, she was photographed being tucked into her bed in a bedroom incongruously wallpapered with Front National election posters about fighting the “Marxist cancer�?. The Le Pen family dynasty was always something of a national soap opera, with the blond clan living together – including the three Le Pen daughters well into their 30s – in a 19th-century manor house perched on a hill outside Paris, watched over by dobermans. But the troubled father-daughter bond – and the brutal public breaking of it – has hung over her presidential campaign. Marine Le Pen’s election strategy has been to broaden her voter base by sanitising the party’s image, moving it away from the racist, jackbooted and antisemitic imagery of the past. The problem was that Papa Le Pen felt left out. In 2015, he deliberately wrecked her plans by repeating the Holocaust denials that had landed him a series of convictions for hate speech and contesting crimes against humanity. After a bitter public feud, she expelled him from the party. He publicly disowned her and they haven’t spoken since. But the ghosts of the second world war persist in French politics. Marine Le Pen was asked on a radio programme this week about a major wartime roundup of Jews in Paris. She said France as a nation was not responsible, only “those who were in power at the time�?, sparking fury from Jewish organisations. Le Pen argued that modern France should not be locked in permanent repentance and that the “real�? France was Gen de Gaulle’s resistance, not the “illegal�? Nazi-collaborationist Vichy regime. “If you’re trying to say Marine Le Pen is a Nazi, come out and say it but that will make everyone laugh to the rafters because it’s simply not credible,�? her chief strategist, Florian Philippot, angrily told a chatshow host. Le Pen slammed what she called a pointless controversy. Marion Anne Perrene Le Pen – swiftly nicknamed Marine – was born west of Paris in 1968, the youngest of three daughters. Her father showed off his children in the press. But their home life was more disjointed than it seemed. In the Le Pens’ first Paris apartment building, the children lived separately from their parents, in a flat upstairs with a nanny. Jean-Marie Le Pen and his wife, Pierrette Lalanne, would go off on holiday or long sailing trips around the world on their own, sometimes missing Christmas. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Marine Le Pen attending a wreath-laying ceremony in 2010 with her father Jean-Marie at the statue of Joan of Arc in Paris. Photograph: Jacques Brinon/AP It was only when the eight-year-old Marine woke up in her nightdress amid shards of glass and a blown-away bedroom wall, after a bomb attack aimed at killing her father, that she realised his political role and the extent of hatred towards him. “As an eight-year-old girl, I was suddenly made aware of death,�? she told me when she took over the Front National leadership. “But maybe that gave me a distance, a kind of armour, that’s useful when you’re aiming for positions of responsibility.�? The family surname was a burden – she recalled teachers at school referring to her sisters as “daughters of a fascist�? – but she constantly stood up for her father. When, in 1985, the paper Libération revealed that Le Pen Sr had engaged in torture during the Algerian war, he denied it and advised the teenaged Marine Le Pen to take the day off school. She refused and went in defending him. In the 1980s, as he gained political prominence, Le Pen Sr commissioned a biography from a journalist who spent time at the family’s manor house. One day, Marine , then 16, was surprised to find one of her older sisters waiting outside school. “Mum’s gone,�? she said. Without telling anyone, Lalanne had taken all her possessions and left with Le Pen’s biographer to set up a new life. She didn’t see or speak to her daughters for more than 15 years. Marine , the youngest and most attached to her mother, was left alone with her distant and distracted father. She said she waited every day for some kind contact from her mother, but none came. “Marine Le Pen grew up in a very odd atmosphere, a family that appeared close but was actually very distant,�? said David Doucet, who co-authored a biography of her early years, La Politique Malgré Elle. “She lived almost 20 years without her mother. Her father hardly knew her. She was brought up by nannies and governesses, left to her own devices.�? Facebook Twitter Pinterest Jean-Marie Le Pen with his wife Jany and daughters Marine and Yann in 2002. Photograph: Prestige/Getty Images A vicious, public divorce battle followed. Jean-Marie Le Pen rebuffed Lalanne’s maintenance claims, saying she should work as a cleaner. As revenge, Lalanne posed naked in French Playboy scrubbing kitchen floors. Marine Le Pen occasionally accompanied her father out campaigning as a teenager as a way to spend time with him and win a little attention. But she didn’t initially set herself up for a political career. She told me once: “My father says I’m like Obelix. I fell into the magic potion of politics when I was young.�? In fact, she had tried to escape the party by studying law. To make extra income beyond her law firm jobs, she worked for six years as a state-appointed duty lawyer, defending illegal immigrants facing deportation. “They are human beings who have rights,�? she said recently in a TV interview. “We don’t blame immigration policies on them. It’s not their fault.�? At 30, she won her first role as regional councillor for the Front National in Henin-Beaumont, a depressed, former coal-mining town in the north, which she later made her political laboratory, a place to reinvent herself as a “defender of the people�?. She recognised that France’s northern industrial belt, which had traditionally voted left, could turn to the Front National if the party stood not just against immigration, which remained its chief selling point, but for the victims of deindustrialisation and the financial crisis. “It used to be called her laboratory, but now it’s the place she still has an apartment, the region I think she feels most at ease in,�? said Sébastien Chenu, who ran her northern campaign in the last regional elections. “She’s easy to approach. That’s why it works for her in the north. She likes the contact.�? Le Pen keeps her old friends close. “If anyone tried to betray her, they couldn’t stick around,�? Chenu said. The Front National party-funding corruption cases currently under investigation – including allegations of misusing European public funds to pay French party workers, and false-accounting in election funding – have seen some of Le Pen’s closest childhood friends placed under formal investigation. They and the party deny all charges. But the cases showed how she had placed people she met at college in positions of trust. Le Pen protects her children from the public exposure she had a child. Twice married and divorced from men who were active in the Front National, she had three children in the space of one year – a daughter immediately followed by twins. Her current partner is the party deputy, Louis Aliot. She once described her feud with her father as “the hardest time of my life except childbirth�? but hinted she expected him to call her if she won the presidency. Le Pen Sr’s idea of parenting was always about toughening up his daughter. When Marine Le Pen was 20, he took her to the morgue to see the corpse of a party figure killed in a car crash. When she asked why, he said: “I don’t want the first dead person you see to be me.�? Facebook Twitter Pinterest Marine Le Pen during a campaign meeting earlier this week. Photograph: Chamussy/Sipa/Rex/Shutterstock Marine Le Pen Potted profile Born: 5 August 1968 Career: She was legal officer for her father’s far-right Front National party before winning different councillor posts in Henin-Beaumont in the north and in Paris. Currently regional councillor for the northern region, Hauts-de-France. Member of the European parliament since 2004, where she co-heads the anti-EU grouping, Europe of Nations and Freedom – a bloc of rightwing nationalist parties. High point: Taking over the leadership of the Front National from her father in 2011. Low point: Failing to win control of any French regions in 2015 elections, despite topping the first round and massively increasing her party’s score. The left and right grouped together to oppose her. What she says: “We’re thrilled that the British have seized this extraordinary opportunity to escape their servitude�? – on Britain’s vote to leave the EU. What they say: “A danger for France and a danger for Europe,�? – European commissioner and former Socialist French economy minister, Pierre Moscovici. ||||| French television recently broadcast video from the 1990s of Mr. Loustau visiting an aging prominent former SS member, Léon Degrelle, a decorated warrior for Hitler and the founder of the Belgian Rex party, a prewar fascist movement. Advertisement Continue reading the main story Other video showed Mr. Chatillon speaking warmly of his own visit with Mr. Degrelle, who was a patron saint of Europe’s far-right youths until his death in 1994. Some in the National Front flatly deny Mr. Chatillon and Mr. Loustau are either anti-Semitic or nostalgic for the Third Reich, while others make no secret of avoiding them, precisely because of their taint. Advertisement Continue reading the main story But their lingering presence in Ms. Le Pen’s inner circle has called into question the sincerity of her strategy to “un-demonize” her party and renounce its heritage of deep-rooted anti-Semitism since she took over from her father, Jean-Marie, in 2011. Advertisement Continue reading the main story “By the evidence,” said the historian Nicolas Lebourg, a leading National Front specialist at the University of Montpellier, “she considers it’s not something very important.” Advertisement Continue reading the main story The two trusted men continue to work closely with the party’s top leadership, including Ms. Le Pen. They have been charged by French prosecutors in an elaborate campaign-finance scheme that has been crucial to keeping the National Front afloat for years. The financial scandals have not dented Ms. Le Pen in the polls before the first round of voting on April 23. Potentially more damaging may be the recent revelations about the people she has surrounded herself with, in particular Mr. Chatillon and Mr. Loustau. “They have remained National Socialist,” said Aymeric Chauprade, once Ms. Le Pen’s principal adviser on foreign affairs until a falling out, partly over his pro-Israel stance. “They are anti-Semites, nostalgic for the Third Reich, violently anticapitalist, with a hatred for democracy,” he added in an interview. “People think they’re marginal. But in fact, I discovered, she protects them. She supports them. They are at the heart of everything.” Advertisement Continue reading the main story Mr. Chauprade recalled a dinner with Mr. Chatillon and others in the spring of 2014 that was “full of anti-Semitic jokes.” But he added: “They are not joking. They are real Nazis.” In court documents and in interviews, the two men are depicted as unreformed Nazi sympathizers. And a new book, “Marine Knows Everything,” by two investigative journalists, Marine Turchi and Mathias Destal, includes a photo of Mr. Chatillon, fist raised, at a 1994 rally for a far-right student movement called G.U.D., or Groupe Union Défense. Photo Separately, an affidavit filed in a 2014 defamation lawsuit (later dropped) offers a fuller portrait of Mr. Chatillon’s extremist views from that era. Advertisement Continue reading the main story In the affidavit, Denis Le Moal, once a member of G.U.D., described Mr. Chatillon’s nostalgia for the Third Reich and his closeness to Holocaust deniers. Advertisement Continue reading the main story Mr. Le Moal told of a 1993 rally Mr. Chatillon organized for the student group in Paris that resounded with “Sieg Heils” and Nazi salutes. “During that period, every year, Frédéric Chatillon organized a dinner on the birthday of the ‘fuhrer,’ April 20, to pay homage to ‘this great man,’” the affidavit states. Advertisement Continue reading the main story It goes on to describe a gathering in a Paris restaurant when Mr. Chatillon brought a painted portrait of Hitler — “a portrait Chatillon showed us during the dinner, saying, ‘My beloved fuhrer, he is magnificent,’ and kissing the picture.” It says he also organized “striped-pajama” parties as a student, an allusion to the clothing Jews wore in death camps and concentration camps. Advertisement Continue reading the main story “The only debatable point, in the use of the term ‘neo-Nazi,’ is the wrongful qualifier ‘neo,’” the affidavit states. Advertisement Continue reading the main story Requests to arrange interviews with Mr. Chatillon and Mr. Loustau through associates of theirs were unsuccessful. The men have made no secret of their disdain for journalists. Advertisement Continue reading the main story “To hell with Hitler and the Third Reich!” Mr. Chatillon wrote in a recent Facebook posting. “But to hell also with these ‘journalists’ who write whatever the hell they want.” On Twitter, Mr. Loustau denounced “these activists hiding behind a press card, benefiting from all the means of state television to try to destroy us.” Advertisement Continue reading the main story The National Front’s treasurer, Wallerand de Saint-Just, defended the men. “In no sense are they nostalgic for the Third Reich,” he said. “They were turbulent boys, but they have become true professionals,” Mr. Saint-Just said. “They work closely with us and we have confidence in them, in the conception, printing and delivery of campaign materials.”

– For the first time since her father founded the party in 1972, Marine Le Pen has an actual shot at delivering the French presidency to the National Front, the Guardian reports in a profile of the far-right candidate. The profile touches on Le Pen expelling her Holocaust-denying father from the party, her political awakening at a young age, and the manor house above Paris where her family lives "watched over by dobermans." The Guardian says Le Pen is the "closest she has ever been to the French presidency," thanks in part to her efforts to move the party past its racist and anti-Semetic past. But those efforts may be just for show, the New York Times reports. Court documents and interviews with close associates of Le Pen accuse two of her closest friends and members of her inner circle of anti-Semitism and "Hitler nostalgia." Le Pen's former top foreign adviser says the men "are real Nazis" and "are at the heart of everything" for her campaign. Meanwhile, France's far-left candidate, Jean-Luc Melenchon, may help the far-right candidate secure the presidency. According to Politico, 42% of Melenchon's supporters say they won't vote in the second round of the presidential election if Melenchon doesn't make it. That would be a huge boost to Le Pen. France's presidential election starts in less than two weeks.

Ted Cruz's campaign has pulled its most recent ad, "Conservatives Anonymous," after learning one of the actors in the spot is also a softcore porn star. The ad, which was set at a group therapy session of conservative voters who feel betrayed by Marco Rubio on immigration, featured actor Amy Lindsay, who played a woman telling another group member, "Maybe you should vote for more than just a pretty face next time." Lindsay has appeared in several softcore porn films, including Erotic Confessions, Carnal Wishes, Secrets of a Chambermaid, and Insatiable Desires. BuzzFeed News, after learning of Lindsay's prior filmography, requested comment from the Cruz campaign. Cruz spokesman Rick Tyler told BuzzFeed News in a statement that the campaign is taking the ad down and replacing it with a different one. "The actress responded to an open casting call. She passed her audition and got the job. Unfortunately, she was not vetted by the production company. Had the campaign known of her full filmography, we obviously would not have let her appear in the ad," Tyler said. Prior to the Cruz campaign pulling the ad, Lindsay told BuzzFeed News in a phone interview on Thursday that she's a Christian conservative and a Republican. While she emphasized that she did not do hardcore porn and that she also appeared in non-erotic films, Lindsay said she thinks it is "cool" that an actor who has appeared in softcore porn could also appear in Cruz's ad. "In a cool way, then hey, then it's not just some old, white Christian bigot that people want to say, 'It could be, maybe, a cool kind of open-minded woman like me,'" she said of people supporting Cruz. Though Lindsay initially told BuzzFeed News that the person at the campaign who hired her "absolutely knew everything that I had done," she later called back to say that she realized that was not the case. "I have clearly talked to the filmmakers and stuff and just to be clear, I assumed that they knew, but none of the filmmakers or the casting director knew about my complete filmography in the past that you're talking about, so I was wrong in that statement," Lindsay said, saying that she had assumed that an old friend of hers from an acting class who was present when she was hired was aware of her film history. Lindsay said she is currently deciding whether to support Cruz or Donald Trump. Hours after the story was posted, Lindsay tweeted that she was "disappointed" the Cruz campaign removed the video: ||||| Are there unresolved issues in your life because of politicians lying to you? Have you given up on being hopeful about America? Do you need to get some things off your chest about the 2016 election? You are not alone. ||||| Archive-It Partner 1067: The Political TV Ad Archive, a project of the Internet Archive, collects political TV ads and social media sites in key 2016 primary election states, unlocking the metadata underneath and highlighting quality journalism to provide journalists, civic organizations, academics, and the general public with reliable information on who is trying to influence them & how. ||||| poster="http://v.politico.com/images/1155968404/201602/2111/1155968404_4752449633001_4752379446001-vs.jpg?pubId=1155968404" true Ted Cruz's campaign did not respond for comment. Cruz campaign pulls ad featuring softcore porn actress Ted Cruz's campaign pulled a recent ad after it was discovered that one of the actresses featured in it has also appeared in softcore porn films. The 30-second ad, titled "Conservatives Anonymous," which launched Thursday, is set during a group therapy session in which conservative voters talk about being double-crossed by Marco Rubio. The video was pulled from YouTube on Thursday evening. Story Continued Below "Maybe you should vote for more than just a pretty face next time," the woman played by Amy Lindsay tells another group member. Lindsay's filmography includes titles such as "Animal Lust," "Co-Ed Confidential" and "Carnal Wishes." The companion website for the ad is still live as of 9 p.m. Thursday, though the YouTube video embed does not work. "The actress responded to an open casting call," Cruz communications director Rick Tyler told POLITICO in a statement. "She passed her audition and got the job. Unfortunately, she was not vetted by the casting company. Had the campaign known of her full filmography, we obviously would not have let her appear in the ad. The campaign is taking the ad down and will replace it with a different commercial." For the record, Lindsay told BuzzFeed News that she is deciding whether to support Cruz or Donald Trump. She later tweeted that she was upset by the Cruz campaign's decision to pull the ad: Extremely disappointed the #TedCruz campaign pulled the national television spot I had a role in... #moretocome #myvotecounts — Amy Lindsay (@amylindsayLA) February 12, 2016

– Marco Rubio may have cracked a tooth on a Twix bar, but Ted Cruz shouldn't laugh too hard: He just had to yank an ad because it featured a softcore-porn actress. As BuzzFeed reports, the Cruz campaign pulled a spot called "Conservatives Anonymous" because it included the actress Amy Lindsay uttering the line, "Maybe you should vote for more than just a pretty face next time." The ad, Politico notes, was designed to appeal to conservatives who feel betrayed by Rubio, and even though the official video no longer loads (it is live here for now), the spot is generating attention because Lindsay's resume includes films such as Carnal Wishes, Secrets of a Chambermaid, and ... you get the picture. “The actress responded to an open casting call," explains a Cruz spokesman. "She passed her audition and got the job. Unfortunately, she was not vetted by the production company. Had the campaign known of her full filmography, we obviously would not have let her appear in the ad." BuzzFeed, for the record, tracks down Lindsay to add the final footnote: The Republican remains on the fence about whether to support Cruz or Trump.

The day after unveiling their new bill to replace Obamacare, the Republican authors of the Affordable Health Care Act find themselves in a bind. Even if the new bill has the votes in the House, it will also have to pass the Senate. Because this legislation is moving forward through the budget reconciliation process, which only requires 51 votes, the 52 Republicans in the Senate can only afford two defections and still pass the bill (assuming Vice President Mike Pence would break a tie in their favor). A third defection would doom the Obamacare replacement package. And, already, four Senate Republicans have already criticized Speaker Paul Ryan’s first proposal, saying it doesn’t do enough to protect Medicaid beneficiaries. That group consists of Rob Portman (R-OH), Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Sen. Cory Gardner (R-CO) and Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK). Assuming Democrats stick together in opposition, that moderate bloc of Republicans could torpedo the bill on their own. But appeasing moderates could carry risk for Republican leadership as well: Conservative senators could defect in protest of a bill they think is too far to the left. The most conservative senators are already blasting the first draft as not doing nearly enough to slow entitlement spending, with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), and Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) echoing the arch-conservatives in the House Freedom Caucus who say that the bill amounts to “Obamacare-lite” and leaves too much of Obama’s law intact, including the expansion to Medicaid in place until 2020 and the “Cadillac tax” on health care plans for those with high incomes. National Review’s John Fund points out the difficult spot that Republican leadership is in on Twitter: Biggest obstacle to House health bill: 7 GOP senators on fence - 4 who said didn’t adequately protect Medicaid, 3 who say bill too generous — John Fund (@johnfund) March 7, 2017 If anything, Fund’s tweet undersells the challenge leading Republicans face in building the coalition to get to the 51 votes they’ll need at a minimum to get Trumpcare through reconciliation. It’s not just the fight over Medicaid. Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), for instance, has said that the bill has to cover the same number of people as Obamacare. Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN) wants it to be neutral, meaning it doesn’t add to the deficit. "I'm going to be very anxious to hear how we'll get to 51 votes and [how] the House gets to 218," said Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO). The Congressional Budget Office hasn’t yet estimated how many people the bill will cover or how much it will cost, key to Cassidy and Corker’s support. But the challenge is obvious from a mile away. Meanwhile, Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Sen. Murkowski say the House health bill should be stripped of its provisions to defund Planned Parenthood. “If you go too far and have too many drastic cuts, you lose the moderate four,” says Josh Huder, a congressional scholar at the Government Affairs Institute at Georgetown University, citing Portman, Caputo, Gardner, and Murkowski. “And if you don’t go far enough, you lose the conservatives.” Republicans need both to get to 51 votes. It’s perfectly possible either or both factions of Republicans are bluffing, simply hoping to pull the negotiations as far to their side as possible. “There's a high probability of that,” Huder says. That’s what happened during the debate over Obamacare. In 2010, it looked like then-Majority Leader Harry Reid didn’t have the votes for the Affordable Care Act. Two versions of the bill were shot down after passing separate committees, Democrats like Joe Lieberman threatened to withhold support, and the future of health care reform seemed to be in danger. Then the bill was reworked — and Reid had the votes. “All of a sudden, Harry Reid dropped a bill on the Senate floor that found the right mixture of people, and then the House swallowed the pill,” Huder says. “It looked like Obamacare was dead in the water — and then all of a sudden it sprang back to life.” But even if some Republicans are bluffing because they hope to influence what the final bill looks like, the balancing act between conservatives and moderates is a real challenge. “It’s going to be really, really hard for them to do this,” Huder says. “It’s the key question: Can they find a way to thread the needle here between the moderates and the conservatives in the Senate? There’s no way forward if not.” Tara Golshan contributed reporting. ||||| White House press secretary Sean Spicer said that what the House GOP released last night is the Obamacare repeal that everyone’s been waiting for. And while Vice President Mike Pence said today that the White House is “open to improvements,” it’s already getting an icy reception from many on the right. The bill has received criticism from Heritage Action and National Review, and several Republican legislators — including Mike Lee and Rand Paul — have already voiced their concerns. Ann Coulter isn’t too happy about it either, saying the following on Twitter today: Page 3 of the Obamacare repeal makes ABSOLUTELY CLEAR no abortionists get funding. We’re dying under O-care! You got to give it a rest, GOP. — Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) March 7, 2017 Millions of ppl are stuck with Uganda-educated doctors or being impoverished by Obamacare and the GOP has to show off on abortion. — Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) March 7, 2017 The “free market” part of Obamacare repeal sends all control back to the most corrupt entities in the U.S.: State Insurance Commissions. — Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) March 7, 2017 Can anybody find the part of the Obamacare repeal where we can buy insurance across state lines? That’s the Holy Grail of health reform. — Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) March 7, 2017 Hey @RepDaveBrat! You were an economics professor. Can you explain the devilishly complicated idea of the free market to your colleagues? — Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) March 7, 2017 I think we should keep Obamacare but just for members of Congress (who exempted themselves!) — Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) March 7, 2017 And the 500k uninsured were mostly immigrants. https://t.co/8Fo1LcJ6yA — Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) March 7, 2017 Who wrote this piece of crap Obamacare replacement bill? Please be specific. — Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) March 7, 2017 I have to give full identifying info as each health ins co goes bankrupt. What are names of the brain trust that wrote this piece of crap? — Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) March 7, 2017 Also, I would like every person involved in the writing of this Obamacare replacement POS to take a ten-minute IQ test. Transparency! — Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) March 7, 2017 [image via screengrab] —— Follow Josh Feldman on Twitter: @feldmaniac Have a tip we should know? tips@mediaite.com ||||| CLOSE Over the strong objections of key conservatives and Democrats, House Republican leaders are forging ahead with a health care plan that scraps major parts of the Obama-era overhaul. (March 7) AP Do we stay with Obamacare and the unsustainable status quo, or do we repeal it and replace it with something better? House Speaker Paul Ryan (Photo: J. Scott Applewhite, AP) When I took the speaker’s gavel, I told my colleagues that it’s no longer good enough to just say what we’re against. We had to show what we’re for. That’s why last year we released a complete policy agenda — tracking closely with ideas from our presidential nominee, Donald Trump — to tackle all of the big challenges facing this country. The truth is, we have solutions to all of the many problems that Barack Obama left behind. And there is no more urgent problem than Obamacare. The collapsing law is driving up health care costs and driving out choices for American families. This year alone, premiums have gone up by double digits in 31 states. Choices have dwindled to the point that one out of every three counties in America has just one insurer to choose from. Not too long ago, Bill Clinton called Obamacare “the craziest thing in the world.” He is on to something there. That’s why we must end this law — repealing it once and for all. But rather than going back to the way things were, we must move to a better system that embraces competition and choice and actually lowers costs for patients and taxpayers. Introduced this week, the American Health Care Act keeps our promise to repeal and replace Obamacare. I hope you will read the bill online at readthebill.gop. Our goal is to give every American access to quality, affordable health care. For families, that means lower costs, more choices and greater control. Let me walk you through how our plan will help get us there. For starters, our bill repeals Obamacare. We cannot rebuild the American health care system on such a flawed foundation, and that’s why we eliminate Obamacare’s taxes, mandates and spending. Next, and this is important, our plan ensures there will be a stable transition. As we move from a Washington-driven system to a more vibrant market, we will make sure no one has the rug pulled out from under them. This also means we will ensure vital protections for patients with pre-existing conditions and allow young adults to stay on their parents’ plan. We will also give states more funding and flexibility to support high-risk pools and reinsurance programs. Where Obamacare was built on mandates and coercion that make coverage more expensive, our plan takes care of those in need without driving up costs for everyone else. Next, while Obamacare just added people to a broken Medicaid system, we will strengthen Medicaid so that states have the tools they need to take care of their poor and most vulnerable populations at a lower cost. Our plan represents the most significant entitlement reform in more than 50 years. Republicans have long said that we have to empower patients as consumers to spur competition and bring down costs. That’s why we will also nearly double the amount of money you can contribute to health savings accounts to pay for out-of-pocket expenses. This will end Obamacare’s limits on how you save and spend your health care dollars. POLICING THE USA: A look at race, justice, media Ultimately, we need a real marketplace for health insurance. Currently, the tax code discriminates against those who don't get coverage through their employer. To level the playing field, our plan offers an advanceable, refundable tax credit to those who don’t get insurance from work or a government program. Instead of mandates forcing you to buy what the government wants, you will have real choices. Available to those under a certain income level, this tax credit will be age-based and portable so that you can take it with you from job to job. And to help more people buy the kind of plan that fits their needs, we will get rid of costly insurance mandates and regulations. In the weeks ahead, the House will consider this plan through an open and transparent process, including legislation to allow people to purchase health care across state lines. As we do, I encourage you to read the bill so you can see the changes we are proposing. Here is the choice we face: Do we stay with Obamacare and the unsustainable status quo, or do we repeal it and replace it with something better? The American Health Care Act offers a better way. It keeps our promise, begins to clean up the mess Obamacare has made, and builds a better system for all Americans. Now we must deliver. Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., is speaker of the House of Representatives. You can read diverse opinions from our Board of Contributors and other writers on the Opinion front page, on Twitter @USATOpinion and in our daily Opinion newsletter. To submit a letter, comment or column, check our submission guidelines. Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/2nbKQrx ||||| poster="http://v.politico.com/images/1155968404/201703/1220/1155968404_5351163412001_5351156359001-vs.jpg?pubId=1155968404" true Ryan disappoints his friends with Obamacare replacement bill Close allies in conservative policies circles found little to love with the GOP's health care proposal. House Speaker Paul Ryan has long been the darling of conservative policy wonks. But on one of the biggest days of his political career, when House Republicans released their much-anticipated Obamacare replacement, many of Ryan's closest friends in the conservative intelligentsia expressed disappointment — if not outright dismay — with the legislation bearing the speaker's imprimatur. Indeed, virtually every prominent conservative health care expert — precisely the sort of ideological allies who have backed Ryan in the past — panned this legislation. Story Continued Below The Cato Institute’s Michael Cannon called it “a train wreck waiting to happen.” The American Enterprise Institute’s Jim Capretta told POLITICO the GOP’s decision to do away with a cap on tax credits for employer-based health insurance reflected a reluctance to “deal with reality.” Forbes’ Avik Roy, widely considered one of the pre-eminent health care policy experts on the right, predicted the legislation would make insurance unaffordable for millions of the nation’s poor and offered an analysis with subsections titled, “The Good,” “The Bad” and “The Terrible.” The Wall Street Journal editorial board was the lone dissenter, calling the bill "the most consequential GOP social-policy reform since the welfare overhaul of 1996." “It is remarkable that they’ve produced a bill that is so out of touch with ACA opponents,” Cannon said. “The first rule in these situations is you want to dance with the gal that brung ya. You don’t want to walk away from your base.” Paul Ryan's spokesperson, AshLee Strong, took issue with that characterization. "The bill is a compilation of reforms conservatives have fought for over many years including Medicaid block grants, HSA expansion, equalized tax treatment for health benefits, and repeal of Obamacare to the full extent reconciliation allows," she said. Conservatives have never seen eye to eye on just how to go about repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act, and, over time, right-leaning Obamacare critics have fallen into two camps: those who favor scrapping Obamacare without providing alternative coverage for its beneficiaries and those who favor replacing Obamacare’s subsidies with a tax credit, either flat or adjusted for the wealth and income of beneficiaries. The origins of the current debate stretch back to June 2016, when Ryan rolled out his own health care plan as part of a broader policy vision he dubbed “A Better Way.” The plan itself was the result of dozens of conversations with conservative think tankers over the years, and in it, Ryan planted his stake firmly in the camp of those who support replacing the current subsidies with a flat tax credit. But the Republican-controlled House never voted on the plan and the tensions and disagreements that would normally have surrounded it receded into the background in the midst of the election season. “There was never a vote or a poll taken on it,” Roy said. In Congress, “people just kind of kept their mouths shut, they didn’t complain about it and didn’t endorse it, they just kind of left it alone.” Though Ryan's plan sprang from conservative circles — and served as a framework for the current bill — the legislation unveiled on Monday night includes many compromises Ryan's blueprint did not. As a result, the current GOP bill has managed to rile all three major conservative camps. And a debate that as recently as a year ago was taking place in think tank board rooms and congressional offices is now unfolding on the national stage. House and Senate leaders seemed tacitly to acknowledge the precarious position they’re in, vowing to push forward as quickly as possible, without a debate in Congress and despite the fact that the Congressional Budget Office hasn't given the bill an official price tag. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Tuesday promised a vote on a health care bill by the end of April. Though few conservative policy wonks harbored the illusion that an Obamacare replacement would not reflect some painful bargaining, they are by and large surprised to see the initial volley riddled with so many compromises, leaving one prominent conservative to lament: “This bill has no friends.” Perhaps the biggest flash point in the legislation is the 30 percent surcharge on those who allow their insurance coverage to lapse, which has led experts to warn the bill will entrench and exacerbate problems introduced by Obamacare. Roy speculated that origins of the provision lie in reports from several insurance companies, on earnings calls and elsewhere, that those who enroll in Obamacare exchanges outside the regular enrollment period are on average 30 percent costlier to ensure. POLITICO Pulse newsletter Get the latest on the health care fight, every weekday morning — in your inbox. Email Sign Up By signing up you agree to receive email newsletters or alerts from POLITICO. You can unsubscribe at any time. “Once you create that rule, you create a different incentive structure — people who are healthy have an incentive to stay uninsured, and people who are very sick have an incentive to pay the 30 percent penalty,” said Roy, who called it a “recipe for adverse selection death spirals.” It’s that prospect that has onetime Ryan allies warning that what should be a high point for the Republican majority could cost them at the ballot box if they continue down the same path. Cannon predicted Republican House members would be “hammered” by their constituents who see their health care deteriorate. “I think if they actually enacted the House bill, they would create a mess in 2017, 2018 and 2019,” Capretta said. He demurred, though, when asked about the chances that the legislation would make it to the president’s desk. “Normally, leaders of Congress don’t proceed unless they think they have a pretty good chance of success,” he said. “It looks daunting to me but, you know …” ||||| Myth #1: This Amendment does not cover pre-existing conditions. FACT: The MacArthur Amendment explicitly maintains protections for pre-existing conditions. NO STATE, under ANY circumstances, may ever obtain a waiver for guaranteed issue of coverage, guaranteed renewability of coverage, or the prohibition on denying coverage due to pre-existing conditions. The amendment specifically clarifies that its provisions cannot be construed as allowing insurers to limit coverage for those with pre-existing conditions. All of these protections will remain the law. Myth #2: This Amendment will price those with pre-existing conditions out of the market, making health care unaffordable for them. FACT: The amendment’s limited waiver for health rating requires states to set up a program for high-risk individuals or premium stabilization, or to participate in the federal invisible risk sharing program. No state may obtain a waiver for health status unless it has taken these efforts to protect those who might be affected. In states with a waiver, individuals who maintain continuous coverage could not be rated based on health status. Myth #3: High-risk pools have traditionally been underfunded by states and the federal government, resulting in poor coverage and high costs for those who need insurance the most. FACT: The AHCA sets aside $100 billion over ten years to help states with high-risk pools and other innovations. It sets aside an additional $15 billion specifically for maternity care, mental health care, and substance abuse treatment. And it sets aside an ADDITIONAL $15 billion for a federal invisible risk-sharing program -- another innovative way to help people access affordable coverage. Myth #4: Under this amendment, States do not have to cover essential health benefits. FACT: This amendment ensures essential health benefits are the federal law of the land and maintains other important protections. States have the option to obtain a waiver regarding federal essential health benefits, but the state must publicly attest its purpose for doing so (to reduce the cost of health care coverage, increase the number of people with health care coverage, etc.) and it must specify the benefits it will require instead of the federal standard. NO STATE, under ANY circumstances, may ever obtain a waiver for pre-existing condition protection, prohibition on gender discrimination, for guaranteed issue and renewability, or for the right of dependents to stay on a family plan up to age 26. Myth #5: 129 Million Americans have pre-existing conditions and could be denied coverage. FACT: This legislation addresses the 7% of Americans on the individual market, and those in the small group market. Anyone with employer-provided coverage or government coverage (Medicare, Medicaid, Tricare, VA benefits, etc.) would not be affected. Again, this amendment would not allow any state to deny coverage to those with pre-existing conditions, and would require the extensive protections described above for those with riskier health profiles. It is also worth noting that many states required insurers to offer coverage to those with pre-existing conditions before Obamacare was implemented. ||||| Washington (CNN) President Donald Trump warned House Republicans Tuesday if they can't pass health care legislation after seven years of promises it could be a "bloodbath" in the 2018 midterm election, according to one member present in the meeting. Trump vowed to throw his full support behind the effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act during a meeting with House GOP leadership, saying he is "proud" to support a GOP-authored plan to replace Obamacare and told members behind closed doors that he would support it "100%," according to sources in the room. But he warned lawmakers of the high-stakes nature of the effort, citing a potential electoral "bloodbath," a member present said. "He said he hopes members understand that," the source said. Despite early opposition from conservative groups and some members of Congress, there was a lot of optimism among the House leadership members charged with passing the legislation that members would come around. Trump promised House Republicans in the meeting he would use the power of the bully pulpit -- calling and meeting with members -- to get conservatives and moderates in line and pass the bill. "I'm proud to support the replacement plan released by the House of Representatives and encouraged by members of both parties," Trump said during brief remarks captured by the press pool. Republicans first unveiled their legislation, which would eliminate the individual mandate to obtain health insurance contained in Obamacare and include tax incentives meant to encourage Americans to purchase coverage, Monday night. The gathered lawmakers told the President they faced obstacles ahead without any expectation of Democratic support for their plan, nor any idea of where some conservatives might land. The House GOP vote-counters told Trump they planned to move forward with a whip count later this week "We don't have it today, but I think we'll get it," a source in the room told CNN. Trump's remarks during the roughly 30-minute meeting with members in the East Room of the White House reflected the most explicit administration endorsement yet of the replacement health care plan. "I cannot comment on the discussions in closed door meetings," said Lindsay Walters, a White House spokeswoman, when asked about Trump's comments about the political pitfalls of failing to pass a replacement plan. Trump had not yet weighed in overtly on the Republican plan until Tuesday afternoon. Earlier, he tweeted support for the bill but also suggested there were elements of the measure that could be changed. JUST WATCHED Spicer compares healthcare bills by size Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Spicer compares healthcare bills by size 01:23 "Our wonderful new Healthcare Bill is now out for review and negotiation," he wrote Tuesday morning. Sources in the room told CNN that Trump did not explicitly call out any member or group opposed to the bill, but did emphasize the importance of getting the job done and working together to do it. "We cannot toss this out and start all over. We are too far down the road for that," the source said. The whip strategy going forward appears to be to remind members again and again that voting against the House's bill is the same as voting against their President, and handing a victory to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi. The strategy is to remind members there is no second chance to get this right. Vice President Mike Pence also joined the meeting and was feeling hopeful about the legislation's prospects in the Senate, sources said, despite the fact that two senators have already come out with deep concerns about the House legislation. While Trump said he was committed to the bill, he did indicate he was open to making changes. Sources in the room, however, said that the changes would have to win broad support and be passed through the amendment process, making it difficult to amend the contours of the legislation in any meaningful way. "This is a guy who knows how to close a deal, and he thinks we are at the point were we need to close," the source said. Trump took to Twitter Tuesday evening to reach out to one of the bill's most vocal conservative opponents. "I feel sure that my friend @RandPaul will come along with the new and great health care program because he knows Obamacare is a disaster!" Trump tweeted, just as an interview with Sen. Rand Paul was about to air on CNN's Erin Burnett "OutFront." I feel sure that my friend @RandPaul will come along with the new and great health care program because he knows Obamacare is a disaster! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 8, 2017 In that interview taped prior to Trump's tweet, the Kentucky Senator said he met with Trump and didn't believe the two were "that far off" from each other on how to proceed. Paul said they both want to repeal Obamacare, and the disagreement came over how exactly to replace it -- and whether or not that replacement should be combined with the repeal in one bill. "I did express with the President that I think separating repeal from replacement will get it done, and I think that's maybe the only vehicle for getting that done," Paul said. ||||| Photo: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images Following the unveiling of the House Republican plan to shrink Obamacare dramatically, two surprising things happened. The first is that the conservative-movement apparatus has lined up rapidly against the bill. The major right-wing pressure groups — Freedom­Works, the Club for Growth, Americans for Prosperity, and Heritage Action for America — all announced opposition, and were quickly echoed by the most right-wing members of Congress, like House Freedom Caucus chair Jim Jordan and Senator Rand Paul. The second surprising thing is that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced his intention to jam the House bill through the Senate quickly. Rather than develop its own bills through committees and the normal debate process, McConnell declared he plans to bring it directly to the Senate floor. Neither of these decisions makes a great deal of sense on their own, and they make even less sense in conjunction with each other. The grounds for the right’s opposition is that the House bill would replace Obamacare with a “new entitlement,” albeit one funded almost entirely through cuts to an old entitlement (Medicaid) and which would provide such meager benefits as to be useless to large numbers of its purported beneficiaries. What makes this revolt so confounding to the party leadership is that the House bill, while too liberal for the party’s right flank, is also almost certainly too conservative to pass the Senate. Senators Lisa Murkowski, Cory Gardner, Rob Portman, and Shelly Moore Capito signed a letter yesterday opposing the bill’s repeal of the Medicaid expansion. A fifth, Dean Heller, has raised concerns about protecting Medicaid. Susan Collins and Bill Cassidy have proposed a much more moderate replacement bill, which has also been co-sponsored by Capito and Johnny Isakson. Additionally, Lamar Alexander, Jeff Flake, and Lindsey Graham have urged caution and deliberation — all of which run counter to the leadership’s strategy of ramming a bill through as quickly as possible in order to enable the passage of a big tax cut later in the year. That makes 11 Republican senators who have, in some form or fashion, expressed reservations about the party leadership’s preferred health care strategy. Even assuming the three senators who object to the law from the right — Ted Cruz, Rand Paul, and Mike Lee — can be corralled, Trumpcare seems to be very far from corralling the necessary 50 Senate votes. And this is before the Congressional Budget Office produces its score, which will probably show millions and millions of people losing coverage, and may possibly also show the deficit blowing up. While McConnell’s plan might be necessary in order to keep the party’s legislative strategy on track, it is highly and even delusionally optimistic, given the state of his vote count. It also runs counter to the Senate’s institutional culture. Senators cherish their power to shape and control legislation. A strategy of photocopying the House bill and ramming it through seems almost designed to violate the Senatorial ego. This raises a question: Is it designed to violate the Senatorial ego? And thus to fail? Neither the conservative revolt nor McConnell’s plan make a lot of sense if you view them as strategies designed to yield the most right-wing health-care policy that is attainable. They do make sense as a strategy designed to insulate Republicans from failure. Republicans have made two promises that can’t be reconciled. They promised to repeal Obamacare, and to replace it with a terrific law that would take care of everybody. As the House Republican ad put it, they promised, “more choices and better care, at lower costs. … peace of mind to people with preexisting conditions … without disrupting existing coverage.” Those things cannot be reconciled. If Republicans repeal Obamacare, they will put in place something that not only fails to provide the better, cheaper care they have promised the country, but does not meet even the minimal threshold of access to basic care for people who currently receive it. From that standpoint, the winning play for the GOP might be to try to repeal and replace Obamacare but fail. If they are seen trying and failing to repeal the law, it might upset the base, but most Republican lawmakers will have their opposition to Obamacare on the record. And if it is to fail, it should fail quickly, so they can move on to cutting taxes. This may all be wrong. It is never safe to assume rational thought on the part of public actors, especially in the reality-distortion field of Trump’s Washington. Maybe ultra-conservatives think they are using their leverage to push the bill to the right. Or maybe McConnell believes he can whip his caucus into line. Whatever the explanation, the strategy behind the bill is almost as incompetent as the bill itself.

– House Republicans have laid out their alternative for ObamaCare, and it continues to take heat from both moderates and conservatives. A look at the latest coverage: How many might lose coverage under the new plan? The Congressional Budget Office has not weighed in yet, but Standard & Poor's estimates up to 10 million people. Of those, 2 million to 4 million would drop from the ObamaCare individual markets, while the rest are currently covered by Medicaid, per CNBC. People in their 50s and 60s are particularly vulnerable because the age-related tax credits aren't as generous for them as the subsidies they'd replace, explains the New York Times. President Trump said he is "proud to support the replacement plan," and he warned GOP lawmakers behind closed doors that they face an electoral "bloodbath" if they fail to come through, reports CNN. Vox thinks this tweet is telling: "Biggest obstacle to House health bill: 7 GOP senators on fence—4 who said didn’t adequately protect Medicaid, 3 who say bill too generous." Its assessment of the criticism from both sides is here. Paul Ryan makes his case in a USA Today op-ed that this is the smartest approach. He cites rising premiums under the "collapsing" current law. Ryan's problem, though, is that virtually all conservative health care experts hate the plan. Politico has details. (Another prominent voice on the right, Ann Coulter, wants to know who wrote this "piece of crap," per Mediaite.) Bustle lays out the next steps for the legislation here, while Jonathan Chait at New York can't understand why Mitch McConnell is rushing a bill "everybody hates." Here is the plan itself.

As befits a singer whose fans greet him with religious fervour, whose songs often contain references to faith – and many of whose female characters are called Mary – Bruce Springsteen has become the subject of a theology course at Rutgers University in his home state of New Jersey. Professor Azzan Yadin-Israel, who teaches courses in early rabbinic literature in the department of Jewish studies, is to host a one-semester course on the theological underpinnings of Springsteen's lyrics, looking at how he has interpreted biblical texts in his work. "Interestingly, Springsteen refers more often to the stories of the Hebrew Bible (the Old Testament) than the New Testament," Yaddin-Israel told Rutgers Today. "On a literary level, Springsteen often recasts biblical figures and stories into the American landscape. The narrator of Adam Raised a Cain describes his strained relationship with his father through the prism of the biblical story of the first father and son; Apocalyptic storms accompany a boy's tortured transition into manhood in The Promised Land, and the first responders of 9/11 rise up to "someplace higher" in the flames, much as Elijah the prophet ascended in a chariot of fire (Into the Fire). "Theologically, I would say the most dominant motifs are redemption – crossing the desert and entering the Promised Land – and the sanctity of the everyday. Springsteen tries to drag the power of religious symbols that are usually relegated to some transcendent reality into our lived world. In his later albums he also writes very openly about faith." As Consequence of Sound notes, it not the first time Springsteen has popped up on a college syllabus. Princeton offered a course on Sociology from E Street: Bruce Springsteen's America, and other institutions have also given students the chance to study The Boss. Degrees that offer elements of pop music have become increasingly common in recent years, from courses analysing lyrics to the study of music business practices. In 2012, the University of Central Lancashire announced a course in music industry management that was to focus on the mismanagement of the Haçienda, the Manchester club established by Factory records and New Order, with student mentors including New Order's Peter Hook. Belle and Sebastian's debut album Tigermilk was originally released by the label set up by Stow College in Glasgow as part of its music business course. ||||| Heidi Gutman / AP Bruce Springsteen performs during "Hurricane Sandy: Coming Together," Friday, Nov. 2, 2012, in New York. College students devoted to Bruce Springsteen, rock star and New Jersey native, can now take a theology class on “The Boss” at Rutgers University — a legitimate way to listen to music all day and still graduate on time. The semester-long, freshman seminar covers his first album Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J. (released 40 years ago this year) through Wrecking Ball (2012), the professor, Azzan Yadin-Israel, a Jewish studies and classics specialist, said in a news release: Interestingly, Springsteen refers more often to the stories of the Hebrew Bible (the Old Testament) than the New Testament. On a literary level, Springsteen often recasts biblical figures and stories into the American landscape. The narrator of “Adam Raised a Cain” describes his strained relationship with his father through the prism of the biblical story of the first father and son; Apocalyptic storms accompany a boy’s tortured transition into manhood in “The Promised Land,” and the first responders of 9/11 rise up to “someplace higher” in the flames, much as Elijah the prophet ascended in a chariot of fire (“Into the Fire”). Theologically, I would say the most dominant motifs are redemption — crossing the desert and entering the Promised Land — and the sanctity of the everyday. Rutgers is not the first N.J. college to offer a class on the musician’s “glory days”: Princeton University has offered a sociology course on “Bruce Springsteen’s America”, while Monmouth University in West Long Branch, N.J. has hosted at least three symposiums on the rock star’s legacy. And when the University of Rochester in Rochester, N.Y., offered a history course on the musician, it loaded its syllabus with portraits. No word on whether the Rutgers seminar will feature guest lectures from The Boss himself or his super fan Chris Christie. MORE: Chris Christie’s Springsteen-Filled Spotify Playlist MORE: Bruce Springsteen Rocks 12-12-12 Concert ||||| Bruce Springsteen, theologian? The pop icon lovingly known as The Boss is best known for writing about women, sports, cars and factory whistles. Now a Rutgers professor is leading a Byrne Seminar exploring the theological underpinnings of Springsteen’s lyrics, and the song writer’s reinterpretation of biblical stories. Admirers reach out to Bruce Springsteen at a concert. Azzan Yadin-Israel, an associate professor of Jewish studies and classics, usually teaches courses in early rabbinic literature, the Dead Sea Scrolls, Jewish mysticism and Plato. The one-semester course on Springsteen gives him a welcome opportunity to branch out a bit, he says, and to share the appreciation for the singer-songwriter he’s had since middle school. Byrne Seminars, open to first-year students at Rutgers, are one-credit courses, with correspondingly lighter workloads, that offer an introduction to research in classes of no more than 20 students. This year marks four decades since Springsteen released his first album, “Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J.” Rolling Stone rated it one of the 500 greatest albums of all time, and the Garden State responded by embracing the rock star as its beloved native son. Rutgers Today spoke with Yadin-Israel about how he mines the Springsteen canon for biblical references, and what message he hopes seminar participants will take away with them. Rutgers Today: You’ve noted that Springsteen interweaves elements of the secular and the sacred in his lyrics. Can you give some examples of where and how he’s done this in his works over the years? Courtesy of Azzan Yadin-Israel Azzan Yadin-Israel says the singer-songwriter interweaves elements of the sacred and the secular in his lyrics. The seminar includes lyrics of songs from “Greetings from Asbury Park, New Jersey,” Springsteen’s first album, all the way through “Wrecking Ball,” so this is clearly a broad phenomenon. In some songs, Springsteen engages biblical motifs explicitly, as the titles indicate. For example, “Adam Raised a Cain,” “Jesus was an Only Son,” “In the Belly of the Whale” (referring to Jonah). But concepts with biblical resonance appear throughout his works (the Promised Land, redemption, faith), and it’s just a matter of taking the theological overtones seriously. Rutgers Today: Is there one dominant theological philosophy running through the Springsteen lyrics you’ve analyzed? Which biblical stories does he link to? Azzan Yadin-Israel: Interestingly, Springsteen refers more often to the stories of the Hebrew Bible (the Old Testament) than the New Testament. On a literary level, Springsteen often recasts biblical figures and stories into the American landscape. The narrator of “Adam Raised a Cain” describes his strained relationship with his father through the prism of the biblical story of the first father and son; Apocalyptic storms accompany a boy’s tortured transition into manhood in “The Promised Land,” and the first responders of 9/11 rise up to “someplace higher” in the flames, much as Elijah the prophet ascended in a chariot of fire (“Into the Fire”). Theologically, I would say the most dominant motifs are redemption -- crossing the desert and entering the Promised Land -- and the sanctity of the everyday. Springsteen tries to drag the power of religious symbols that are usually relegated to some transcendent reality into our lived world. In his later albums he also writes very openly about faith. Rutgers Today: Overall, what role do you think Springsteen’s Roman Catholic upbringing plays in his song-writing? Azzan Yadin-Israel: There is no question that it plays a significant role. Springsteen has said as much in many interviews. Rutgers Today: What do you hope the students take away from the course? Azzan Yadin-Israel: The Byrne Seminars offer a relatively relaxed classroom setting, so there’s no expectation that anyone will become a Springsteen scholar. I do hope the students gain an appreciation for a particular way of thinking about texts, an attentive engagement of an author’s work, and an understanding of the broader contexts --political, literary, theological, etc.-- that inform a work.

– Here's a college class that actually exists: a theology course studying ... the songs of Bruce Springsteen. Rutgers University will offer the class, the Guardian reports. It seems the Boss' lyrics often include religious references, mostly from the Hebrew Bible (the Old Testament to Christians), though he was raised Catholic. Redemption is a common theme and "Mary" a common name for women who appear in his songs. "On a literary level, Springsteen often recasts biblical figures and stories into the American landscape," the professor of the course tells Rutgers Today. He offers some examples: "The narrator of 'Adam Raised a Cain' describes his strained relationship with his father through the prism of the biblical story of the first father and son." "Apocalyptic storms accompany a boy's tortured transition into manhood in 'The Promised Land.'" "The first responders of 9/11 rise up to 'someplace higher' in the flames, much as Elijah the prophet ascended in a chariot of fire ("Into the Fire")." There are also "Jesus Was an Only Son" and "In the Belly of the Whale," a reference to the Jonah story. Princeton also once offered a Springsteen-focused sociology course, Time reports.

A Malaysia Airlines plane carrying 283 passengers and 15 crew crashed Thursday in the battle-torn east Ukraine region of Donetsk, where U.S. intelligence agencies say it was struck by a ground-to-air missile. The U.S. agencies are divided over whether the missile was launched by the Russian military or by pro-Russia separatist rebels, who officials say lack the expertise on their own to bring down a commercial airline in midflight.... ||||| WILMINGTON Del. (Reuters) - U.S. Vice President Joe Biden spoke to Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko on Thursday and offered U.S. assistance to help determine what happened to a crashed Malaysian plane on the Ukraine border, the White House said. ||||| HRABOVO, Ukraine (AP) — A Malaysia Airlines passenger plane carrying 295 people was shot down over eastern Ukraine on Thursday, Ukrainian officials said, and both the government and the pro-Russia separatists fighting in the region denied any responsibility for downing the aircraft. Smoke rises up at a crash site of a passenger plane, near the village of Grabovo, Ukraine, Thursday, July 17, 2014. A Ukrainian official said a passenger plane carrying 295 people was shot down Thursday... (Associated Press) Malaysia Airlines planes are parked at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang, Malaysia, Thursday, July 18, 2013. A Malaysia Airlines flight with nearly 300 people aboard crashed over eastern Ukraine... (Associated Press) People inspect the crash site of a passenger plane near the village of Grabovo, Ukraine, Thursday, July 17, 2014. Ukraine said a passenger plane carrying 295 people was shot down Thursday as it flew over... (Associated Press) Passenger wait at the departure hall at Kuala Lumpur International Airport, in Sepang, Malaysia, Friday, July 18, 2014. Malaysia Airlines said it lost contact with Flight MH17 over Ukrainian airspace... (Associated Press) In this Nov. 15, 2012 photo, the Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777-200 with tail number 9M-MRD _ the same aircraft that was shot down near the Ukraine Russia border on Thursday, July 17, 2014 _ takes off from... (Associated Press) In this photo taken with a mobile phone provided by Andrei Kashtanov, smoke rises from where a Malaysia Airlines commercial plane crashed in eastern Ukraine, Thursday, July 17, 2014. Malaysia Airlines... (Associated Press) Airport security personnel look at the flight information board in the departure hall, at Kuala Lumpur International Airport, in Sepang, Malaysia, Friday, July 18, 2014. Malaysia Airlines said it lost... (Associated Press) Airport police stand guard at the arrival hall at Kuala Lumpur International Airport, in Sepang, Malaysia, Friday, July 18, 2014. Malaysia Airlines said it lost contact with Flight MH17 over Ukrainian... (Associated Press) Passengers wait in line at the departure hall at Kuala Lumpur International Airport, in Sepang, Malaysia, Friday, July 18, 2014. Malaysia Airlines said it lost contact with Flight MH17 over Ukrainian... (Associated Press) A man gestures at a crash site of a passenger plane near the village of Grabovo, Ukraine, Thursday, July 17, 2014. Ukraine said a passenger plane carrying 295 people was shot down Thursday as it flew... (Associated Press) As plumes of black smoke rose up near a rebel-held village of Hrabovo, an Associated Press journalist counted at least 22 bodies at the wreckage site 40 kilometers (25 miles) from the Russian border. The Boeing 777-200ER plane, traveling from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, appeared to have broken up before impact and the burning wreckage — which included body parts and the belongings of passengers — was scattered over a wide area. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko called the downing an act of terrorism and called for an international investigation into the crash. He insisted that his forces did not shoot down the plane. President Barack Obama called the crash a "terrible tragedy" and talked about it on the phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The village of Grabovo is currently under the control of pro-Russia separatists and the area has seen severe fighting between the two sides in recent days. Aviation authorities in several countries, including the FAA in the United States, had issued warnings not to fly over parts of Ukraine prior to Thursday's crash. Within hours, several airlines, including Lufthansa and KLM, released statements Thursday saying they were avoiding parts of Ukrainian airspace. Malaysia Airlines said Ukrainian aviation authorities told the company they had lost contact with Flight MH17 at 1415 GMT (10 a.m. EDT) about 30 kilometers (20 miles) from Tamak waypoint, which is 50 kilometers (30 miles) from the Russia-Ukraine border. It said the plane was carrying 280 passengers and 15 crew members. It had left Amsterdam at 12:15 p.m. and was due to arrive at Kuala Lumpur International Airport at 6:10 a.m. Friday. Anton Gerashenko, an adviser to Ukraine's interior minister, said on his Facebook page the plane was flying at an altitude of 10,000 meters (33,000 feet) when it was hit by a missile from a Buk launcher, which can fire up to an altitude of 22,000 meters (72,000 feet). Igor Sutyagin, a research fellow in Russian studies at the Royal United Services Institute, said both Ukrainian and Russian forces have SA-17 missile systems — also known as Buk ground-to-air launcher systems. He said Russia had supplied separatist rebels with military hardware, but he had seen no evidence "of the transfer of that type of system from Russia." The weapons that the rebels are known to have do not have the capacity to reach beyond 4,500 meters. (14,750 feet) A launcher similar to the Buk missile system was seen by Associated Press journalists earlier Thursday near the eastern Ukrainian town of Snizhne, which is held by the rebels. The Malaysia Airlines plane was delivered to the company on July 30, 1997, according to Flightglobal's Ascend Online Fleets. It has more than 43,000 hours of flight time and 6,950 takeoffs and landings. Poroshenko said his country's armed forces didn't shoot at any airborne targets. "We do not exclude that this plane was shot down, and we stress that the Armed Forces of Ukraine did not take action against any airborne targets," he said. "We are sure that those who are guilty in this tragedy will be held responsible." The Kremlin said Putin "informed the U.S. president of the report from air traffic controllers that the Malaysian plane had crashed on Ukrainian territory" without giving further details about their call. The White House confirmed the call. Separatist leader Andrei Purgin told The Associated Press that he was certain that Ukrainian troops had shot the plane down, but gave no explanation or proof for his statement. Purgin said he did not know whether rebel forces owned Buk missile launchers, but said even if they did, they had no fighters capable of operating it. Around the time the plane crashed, Russian media quoted witnesses as saying they saw a plane being hit by what they thought was a rocket. It was the second time that a Malaysia Airlines plane was lost in less than six months. Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 disappeared in March while en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. It has not been found, but the search has been concentrated in the Indian Ocean far west of Australia. Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, who had been attending a European Union summit in Brussels, headed back to the Netherlands to deal with fallout from the crash. There have been several disputes over planes being shot down over eastern Ukraine in recent days. On Wednesday evening, a Ukrainian fighter jet was shot down by an air-to-air missile from a Russian plane, Ukrainian authorities said Thursday, adding to what Kiev says is mounting evidence that Moscow is directly supporting the separatist insurgents. Ukraine Security Council spokesman Andrei Lysenko said the pilot of the Sukhoi-25 jet hit by the air-to-air missile was forced to bail after his jet was shot down. Russia's U.N. Ambassador Vitaly Churkin told reporters at U.N. headquarters in New York on Thursday that Russia did not shoot down the Ukrainian fighter jet on Wednesday. "We didn't do it," Churkin said. Pro-Russia rebels, meanwhile, claimed responsibility for strikes Wednesday on two Ukrainian Sukhoi-25 jets. The Ukrainian Defense Ministry said the second jet was hit by a portable surface-to-air missile, but added the pilot was unscathed and managed to land his plane safely Moscow denies Western charges that is supporting the separatists or sowing unrest in its neighbor. Earlier this week, Ukraine said a military transport plane was shot down Monday over eastern Ukraine by a missile fired from Russian territory. Many airlines had continued to use the route despite warnings not to because of the fighting, said Norman Shanks, former head of group security at airports group BAA and professor of aviation security at Coventry University in England. "It is a busy aviation route and there have been suggestions that a notice was given to aviators telling airlines to avoid that particular area," Shanks said. "But Malaysia Airlines, like a number of other carriers, have been continuing to use it because it is a shorter route, which means less fuel and therefore less money." Flights that were airborne when the Malaysia Airlines jet crashed have been re-routed, transportation officials said. Other passenger planes have been shot down before including: — April 20, 1978: Korean Airlines Flight 902, which diverted from its planned course on a flight from Paris to Seoul and strayed over the Soviet Union. After being fired upon by an interceptor aircraft, the crew made a forced landing at night on the surface of a frozen lake. Two of the 97 passengers were killed by the hostile fire. — Sept. 1, 1983: Korean Air Lines Flight 007 shot down by at least one Soviet air-to-air missile after the 747 had strayed into Soviet airspace. All 240 passengers and 29 crew were killed. — July 3, 1988: Iran Air Flight 655 Aircraft was shot down by a surface to air missile from the American naval vessel U.S.S. Vincennes. All 16 crew and 274 passengers were killed. ___ Peter Leonard reported from Kiev. Contributing to this report were AP Airlines Writer Scott Mayerowitz in New York; Jill Lawless and Matthew Knight in London; Laura Mills and Jim Heintz in Moscow; Darlene Superville in Washington; Mike Corder in The Hague, Netherlands, and Eileen Ng and Satish Cheney in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. ||||| GRABOVO, Ukraine — A Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 with 298 people aboard exploded, crashed and burned on a flowered wheat field Thursday in a part of eastern Ukraine controlled by pro-Russia separatists, blown out of the sky at 33,000 feet by what Ukrainian and American officials described as a Russian-made antiaircraft missile. Ukraine accused the separatists of carrying out what it called a terrorist attack. American intelligence and military officials said the plane had been destroyed by a Russian SA-series missile, based on surveillance satellite data that showed the final trajectory and impact of the missile but not its point of origin. There were strong indications that those responsible may have errantly downed what they had thought was a military aircraft only to discover, to their shock, that they had struck a civilian airliner. Everyone aboard was killed, their corpses littered among wreckage that smoldered late into the summer night. Russia’s president, Vladimir V. Putin, blamed Ukraine’s government for creating what he called conditions for insurgency in eastern Ukraine, where separatists have bragged about shooting down at least three Ukrainian military aircraft. But Mr. Putin did not specifically deny that a Russian-made weapon had felled the Malaysian jetliner.

– US intelligence officials say that a surface-to-air missile did indeed bring down a passenger jet over Ukraine today, but they can't say who fired it or even which side of the border it came from, reports the Wall Street Journal. Both the Ukraine government and pro-Russian separatists have denied responsibility. A Ukraine official asserts that a missile system known as a Buk launcher brought down the plane, and he alleges that Russia supplied it to separatists. The AP reports seeing something similar to a Buk system this week in separatist-held territory, but that's not exactly damning proof—a weapons expert points out that Ukraine forces also have Buk systems. It will take a while for investigators to make an official determination, though CNBC cites unconfirmed reports that the plane's black-box data recorder has been found, which should speed things up. Meanwhile, Joe Biden, who said the plane was "blown out of the sky," spoke to Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko and offered US help with the investigation, reports Reuters. Poroshenko is calling the plane crash a "terrorist act," notes the New York Times, though President Obama used the phrase "terrible tragedy" to describe it in his initial comments. No word yet on whether any Americans were among the 298 people aboard. All are feared dead.

Breaking News Emails Get breaking news alerts and special reports. The news and stories that matter, delivered weekday mornings. / Updated By Elizabeth Chuck He may have once been the leader of the free world but, on Wednesday, George W. Bush did what any ordinary citizen does when called upon: He reported for jury duty. The former president spent a few hours fulfilling his civic duty and taking photos with a group of surprised potential jurors in Dallas, many of whom tweeted their pictures. Bush didn't get picked to sit on the jury. "President Bush received his jury summons and reported for service this morning at the George Allen Courts Building in Dallas," Freddy Ford, Bush's communications director, said in a statement. "He sat through the jury selection panel for a case in Judge Eric Moye's court on the 14th civil district but — surprise! — was not picked to serve as a juror." Desiree' Bryant, a website developer, tweeted a photo of herself standing next to a smiling Bush, who was clad in gray trousers and a short-sleeved plaid shirt. "Look who I just met doing Jury Duty! #POTUS," she wrote. Judge Staci Williams tweeted a photo of her intern side by side with Bush. "At least my interns have fun! Pres. George Bush Jr. was at the courthouse today. Jury duty is required of all!" she said. Dallas resident Sheri Coleman told the Dallas Morning News that Bush's visit was "awesome." “He was very personable, very friendly, just 'Hey, I’m here to serve.’ He asked questions and was very nice,” she said. “I loved it.” Related: Who to Watch at the GOP Debate? Try Jeb Bush Secret Service agents were present outside the judge's court, the paper said. Bush has been largely out of the spotlight recently. His brother, former Florida governor and presidential contender Jeb Bush, will participate in the first GOP debate in the 2016 presidential race on Thursday. ||||| Being summoned for jury duty at the George L Allen Sr Courts Building in downtown Dallas was anything but dull for Sheri Coleman. In fact, Coleman and other jurors were in for quite the surprise Wednesday morning when former President George W. Bush also showed up for jury duty at Judge Eric Moye’s court on the 14th civil district. “They made it seem like it was an anonymous juror that never showed up and then they brought him in,” she said. Coleman, of Dallas, said Bush spent time talking to the other jurors and took photos and spoke with everyone. She said the president’s visit was “awesome” and “surprising.” “He was very personable, very friendly, just ‘hey I’m here to serve,’ he asked questions and was very nice,” she said. “I loved it.” Bush’s spokesman Freddy Ford confirmed the president was summoned for jury duty and said Bush was at the courthouse in the 600 block of Commerce Street from about 8:50 a.m. until just before noon. Secret service could be seen outside Moye’s court on the 5th floor of the courthouse. Moye said he found out this morning that the former president had been assigned to his courtroom and said having Bush in his courtroom was “quite an experience.” “It would be great if everyone took their jury service the same way [Bush] did,” he said. “He understood it was important, he took it in good nature and he was engaged and talked to the lawyers.” Moye said the reason Bush wasn’t selected as a juror wasn’t because of his high-profile nature, but simply because the positions had already been filled. “He was number 27 of a 35 member panel and we only got through number 23,” he said. Moye said he hopes future potential jurors will follow Bush’s lead of showing up for jury duty. “One of the remarks I made to jury was all of you have some reason why you have to do something else,” he said. “But take a look over and see you have the former president who has given his time to be here, so think how good your excuses for getting out of here really are.” Moye said Bush was “incredibly gracious” to all of the court staff and took photos with bailiffs, clerks and even the summer interns. “He made sure it was a wonderful experience,” he said. Joel Ehambe, another potential juror, said he sat just in front of the former president. “I turned around and he was seated right behind me and I said, “I think I know that guy,” he said. “Then the judge introduced him and said it was an honor to have the former president of the United States in the court.” Ehambe said he was nervous at first to be in the same room as the former president, but Bush helped put everyone at ease. “He was laughing and talking and it helped ease the tension,” he said. Ehambe said he took photos with the former president and spoke with him for a few minutes. “I said it was an honor to meet him and I thanked him for being there,” he said. “He thanked me as well.”

– Potential jurors in downtown Dallas today got a surprise today when George W. Bush showed up at court after being summoned for jury duty along with them. “He was very personable, very friendly, just, 'Hey I’m here to serve,’" another potential juror, Sheri Coleman, tells the Dallas Morning News. As it turns out, Bush didn't get picked. “He was number 27 of a 35-member panel, and we only got through number 23,” says Judge Eric Moye of the 14th civil district. But everyone got lots of photo ops to tweet before Bush and his Secret Service detail went home, notes NBC News.

It’s the photo we’ve been waiting for … and waiting for. More than two months after her June 15 birth, Kanye West gave the public a first glimpse of his daughter with Kim Kardashian, North. The rapper showed off a photo of his adorable child appearing on the season finale of her grandmother Kris Jenner‘s talk show Kris, after months of speculation as to how the media-savvy Kardashian clan would market the sought-after pic. PHOTOS: Kanye West Appears On Season Finale Of Kris Jenner’s Talk Show He told Kris that her daughter, Kim, “is my joy and she brought my new joy into the world,” and that his “only goal is to protect [his] daughter.” As we previously reported, the super-couple passed on a $4 million payday from an Australian media outlet for rights to the first pics in hopes of giving Kris a boost following a summer of poor reviews for her self-titled talk show. The couple may still arrange an elaborate photoshoot of the baby in a monthly magazine such as W or Vogue. ||||| Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period.

– A sentimental Kanye West sat down with his not-quite-mother-in-law Kris Jenner on her new talk show for an interview that aired today ... and he finally showed the world a picture of daughter North. (Click here to see it.) West also talked about his love for Kim Kardashian and their baby, saying that they gave him something to live for. "After I lost my mother, there was times I felt like, you know, I would put my life at risk. I felt like sometimes I didn't have something to live for," he said. "And now I have two really special people to live for, a whole family to live for, a whole world to live for." He also gushed that Kim is his "joy," but that he didn't want to "start jumping up and down on the couch or anything." And yes, Taylor Swift was referenced. Check out clips in the gallery.

Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period. ||||| Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period. ||||| Swimsuit-clad model Kate Upton dives and floats, not in water, but through the air for a new spread in Sports Illustrated. Upton flew on a Zero Gravity Corporation flight to model new bikini and one-piece fashions in weightlessness for Sports Illustrated's 2014 Swimsuit Issue, which hit newsstands today (Feb. 18). Upton's weightless experience shows what it might be like to model while in outer space, according to ZERO-G officials. "The ZERO-G experience was really exhilarating for everyone involved," MJ Day, editor of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue, said in a statement. "We have been almost everywhere in the past 50 years with SI Swimsuit, but we have never done anything like this. It was certainly the most out-of-the-box shoot. Once again, Kate surprised us all with how she handled modeling in weightlessness." [Fun in Zero Gravity: A Weightless Photo Gallery] In a video taken during the shoot on March 18, 2013, Upton can be seen floating through the air as photographers and the crew work to capture the model posing gracefully on the other side of the aircraft. The magazine unveiled the photos online and announced them via Twitter @SI_Swimsuit. "One small step for swimsuit, one giant leap for mankind," someone adapting astronaut Neil Armstrong's famous words as he stepped on the surface of the moon for the first time, said at the end of the Sports Illustrated video. ZERO-G passengers experience weightlessness as pilots flying the company's modified Boeing 727 fly in parabolic arcs while thousands of feet above Earth's surface. As the plane tilts its nose and flies on the downslope of the parabola, passengers experience about 30 seconds of weightlessness at a time. For Upton's shoot, the company flew a series of 13 weightless parabolas and four parabolas imitating lunar gravity, according to ZERO-G. Upton floated through the plane in gold and white two-pieces and a gold lamé zip-up one piece. She also posed in droplets of weightless water while floating upside down in the plane for the magazine's 50th swimsuit issue. The weightless shoot was four years in the making, according to a passenger heard speaking in the Sports Illustrated video. Model Kate Upton floats in weightlessness during a photo shoot for Sports Illustrated's 2014 swimsuit issue. Image uploaded Feb. 18, 2014. Credit: Sports Illustrated "So yeah, this happened," Sports Illustrated representatives posted on Twitter from the @SI_Swimsuit profile today. Upton isn't the only celebrity to fly in ZERO-G's unique brand of weightlessness. Sir Richard Branson, the billionaire founder of commercial spaceflight company Virgin Galactic, took a ZERO-G flight with his family recently. Branson flew with ZERO-G in order to get a taste of weightlessness before Virgin Galactic's suborbital vehicle SpaceShipTwo makes its expected debut later in 2014. You can see more photos and videos of Upton's weightless shoot on the Sports Illustrated website here. Follow Miriam Kramer @mirikramer and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.

– Kate Upton's breasts are even perkier than usual in the photos taken for Sports Illustrated's 2014 Swimsuit Issue—because she modeled while flying in zero gravity. Upton went on a Zero Gravity Corporation flight in March 2013, where she experienced weightlessness and was photographed while floating through the air, LiveScience reports. The company's modified Boeing 727 flies thousands of feet in the air, doing parabolic arcs that allow passengers to be weightless for 30 seconds at a time. The issue went on sale yesterday; you can see plenty of photos here.

Friends of jailed democracy activist and Nobel laureate say they are losing hope that he will be allowed to seek cancer treatment overseas Friends of China’s most famous political prisoner, the Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo, said they feared he was entering his final hours on Thursday, as the White House renewed its call for the dissident’s release. “Liu Xiaobo is on his deathbed,” said the writer and activist Wen Kejian, who is among those who have been blocked by authorities from visiting their dying friend. “Although we know the patient and his family are suffering, we are praying that Xiaobo can hold on for a few more days,” he added. The hospital where Liu is being treated in north-east China issued a bleak, though contested, update on the condition of the 61-year-old dissident on Wednesday afternoon. Devotion amid despair: the great contemporary love story of Liu Xia and Liu Xiaobo Read more In a statement, it said Liu, who was serving an 11-year prison sentence when he was diagnosed with terminal liver cancer in May, was “close to death”. His kidneys and liver were shutting down and he was suffering from respiratory failure, the hospital claimed. Liu, who is reportedly being held under guard, has asked to be flown out of China for treatment in either Germany or the United States. However, Beijing has so far refused to allow his exit from China, with critics accusing it of being afraid that he will use his final days to launch a last attack on its one-party system. Some supporters question the accuracy of official reports about Liu’s health, suspecting they may be designed to bolster Beijing’s claim that Liu is unfit to leave China. “We simply don’t know to what extent this is professional medical reports and to what extent this is politically-manipulated information,” Maya Wang, a Hong Kong-based activist for Human Rights Watch, told AFP. Diplomatic voices told the Guardian they suspected Beijing was deliberately stalling attempts to transfer Liu overseas until it was no longer safe for medics to move him. After visiting Liu last weekend, two foreign doctors announced – contrary to Chinese claims – that he was well enough to be taken overseas but it needed to happen as quickly as possible. “There still is a window of opportunity [to move Liu] but it is rapidly closing,” the diplomatic sources said. “It seems the leadership … has decided to ride it out, irrespective of the considerable reputational damage.” World leaders including the US president, Donald Trump, and the British prime minister, Theresa May, have yet to publicly raise Liu’s plight themselves, although their governments have issued statements on his case. On Wednesday a White House spokeswoman said the US remained concerned that Liu and his family were not free to seek the medical treatment of his choosing and were being prevented from communicating with the outside world. “We continue to call on the Chinese authorities to grant him full parole and to release his wife from house arrest and provide them the protections and freedoms, such as freedom of movement and access to appropriate medical care consistent with Chinese constitution, legal system, and international commitments,” spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters. A spokesman for China’s foreign ministry, Geng Shuang, again rejected foreign calls for Liu’s release on Thursday, repeating verbatim previously rebuttals. “We hope relevant countries can respect China’s judicial sovereignty and refrain from interfering in China’s internal affairs under the pretext of an individual case.” Wen Kejian said he felt anger and sadness at his friend’s plight and feared the campaign to free him had failed. “I no longer have any hope that Liu will be able to go abroad,” he said. “I’m not giving up. I’m just looking at the harsh reality.” Additional reporting by Wang Zhen ||||| In this image taken from June 3, 2008, video footage by AP Video, Liu Xiaobo speaks during an interview before his detention in Beijing, China. The judicial bureau in the northeastern Chinese city of... (Associated Press) SHENYANG, China (AP) — Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo, China's most prominent political prisoner, died Thursday at a hospital in the country's northeast, officials said. He was 61. Liu had been transferred to the hospital after being diagnosed with advanced liver cancer in prison in May but remained under police custody. In an online announcement, the judicial bureau of the city of Shenyang said he died of multiple organ failure. Liu was only the second Nobel Peace Prize winner to die in prison, a fact pointed to by human rights groups as an indication of the Chinese Communist Party's increasingly hard line against its critics. The first, Carl von Ossietzky, died from tuberculosis in Germany in 1938 while serving a sentence for opposing Adolf Hitler's Nazi regime. "Hitler was wild and strong and thought he was right — but history proved he was wrong in imprisoning a Nobel Peace Prize winner," said Mo Shaoping, an old friend and Liu's former lawyer, adding that he was heartbroken by Liu's death. "The authorities consider Liu Xiaobo guilty, but history will prove he is not." Liu's supporters and foreign governments had urged China to allow him to receive treatment abroad, but Chinese authorities insisted he was receiving the best care possible for a disease that had spread throughout his body. News of Liu's death triggered an outpouring of dismay among his friends and supporters. "There are only two words to describe how we feel right now: grief and fury," family friend and activist Wu Yangwei, better known by his penname Ye Du, said by phone. "The only way we can grieve for Xiaobo and bring his soul some comfort is to work even harder to try to keep his influence alive." Liu was imprisoned for the first time in connection with the 1989 Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in 2010 while serving his fourth and final prison sentence, for inciting subversion by advocating sweeping political reforms and greater human rights in China. "What I demanded of myself was this: whether as a person or as a writer, I would lead a life of honesty, responsibility, and dignity," Liu wrote in "I Have No Enemies: My Final Statement," which he had hoped to read out in court when being sentenced in 2009. He was not permitted to do so and received an 11-year prison sentence. He came to prominence following the 1989 pro-democracy protests centered in Beijing's Tiananmen Square, which he called the "major turning point" in his life. Liu had been a visiting scholar at Columbia University in New York but returned early to China in May 1989 to join the movement that was sweeping the country and which the Communist Party regarded as a grave challenge to its authority. When the Chinese government sent troops and tanks into Beijing to quash the protests on the night of June 3-4, Liu persuaded some students to leave the square rather than face down the army. The military crackdown killed hundreds, possibly thousands, of people and heralded a more repressive era. Liu became one of hundreds of Chinese imprisoned for crimes linked to the demonstrations. It was only the first of four stays in prisons owing to his ideology. His final prison sentence was for co-authoring "Charter 08," a document circulated in 2008 that called for more freedom of expression, human rights and an independent judiciary in China. Although Liu wasn't the initiator, he was a prominent force behind it and already well known to the authorities. The sentence only increased Liu's prominence outside of his country. In 2010, while Liu was serving his sentence in a prison in a small city in China's northeast, he was awarded the Nobel Prize, with the Norwegian-based committee citing Liu's "long and non-violent struggle for fundamental human rights in China." The award enraged China's government, which condemned it as a political farce. Within days, Liu's wife, artist and poet Liu Xia, was put under house arrest, despite not being convicted of any crime. China also punished Norway, even though its government has no say over the independent Nobel panel's decisions. China suspended a bilateral trade deal and restricted imports of Norwegian salmon, and relations only resumed in 2017. Dozens of Liu's supporters were prevented from leaving the country to accept the award on his behalf. Instead, Liu's absence at the prize-giving ceremony in Oslo, Norway, was marked by an empty chair. Another empty chair was for Liu Xia. Liu was born on Dec. 28, 1955, in the northeastern city of Changchun, the son of a language and literature professor who was a committed party member. The middle child in a family of five boys, he was among the first students to attend Jilin University when college entrance examinations resumed following the chaotic 1966-76 Cultural Revolution. Liu studied Chinese literature there and later moved to the capital, first as a graduate student and then as a lecturer at Beijing Normal University. After spending nearly two years in detention following the Tiananmen crackdown, Liu was detained for the second time in 1995 after drafting a plea for political reform. Later that year, he was detained a third time after co-drafting "Opinion on Some Major Issues Concerning our Country Today." That resulted in a three-year sentence to a labor camp, during which time he married Liu Xia. He is survived by his wife and by his son from his first marriage. Released in 1999, he joined the international literary and human rights organization PEN and continued advocating for human rights and democracy. Liu Xia's brother was convicted on fraud charges and sentenced to 11 years' imprisonment over a real estate dispute which supporters said was designed to further persecute Liu Xiaobo's family over his actions. Two years after Liu's Nobel prize, a Chinese writer won the Nobel Prize for Literature, to the delight of Chinese authorities. Mo Yan is not a critic of the Communist Party, and after initially evading questions from reporters, he eventually said he wished for Liu Xiaobo's freedom. Other Nobel laureates were more outspoken. In 2012, an appeal by 134 Nobel laureates, including South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, called the detentions of both Lius a violation of international law and urged their immediate release. Fellow PEN members such as Margaret Atwood and Salman Rushdie appealed for his release in a letter on June 29 after he was transferred from prison to the hospital. Their appeal fell on deaf ears. ___ Bodeen reported from Beijing. Associated Press writer Gillian Wong and researcher Fu Ting contributed to this report from Beijing. ___ Online: Liu Xiaobo's "I have no enemies" speech: https://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/2010/xiaobo-lecture.html ||||| In this image taken from June 3, 2008, video footage by AP Video, Liu Xiaobo speaks during an interview before his detention in Beijing, China. The judicial bureau in the northeastern Chinese city of... (Associated Press) SHENYANG, China (AP) — The Latest on the death of imprisoned Chinese Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo, who passed away Thursday night in the northeastern city of Shenyang following a battle with liver cancer (all times local): 10:30 p.m. Human rights advocates and pro-democracy activists have expressed deep sorrow over the death of imprisoned Chinese Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo and called for his wife, Liu Xia, to be permitted to leave the country. Wang Dan, a prominent leader of the 1989 pro-democracy protest movement on Beijing's Tiananmen Square, tweeted that governments and people worldwide must press for Liu Xia to be allowed to leave China, where she has been held under extralegal house arrest. Wang wrote, "Xiaobo, my beloved teacher, my dear brother, you accepted too much hardship, rest easy." In Hong Kong, prominent democracy activist Joshua Wong tweeted, "We will strive to carry forward his legacy to fight for democracy in HK and China." Internationally acclaimed artist and activist Ai Weiwei tweeted: "Rest in peace. We are here, Xiaobo is here with us." Fellow Beijing activist Hu Jia tweeted regrets that "we were not able to obtain your freedom during your life." "The world grieves for you. Your unfulfilled wish is our mission," Hu wrote. John Kamm, founder of the Dui Hua Foundation in San Francisco who has advised U.S. administrations on Chinese human rights issues, wrote that Liu's demise "is a waystation on the road to freedom of the Chinese people."

– Chinese dissident and Nobel Peace Prize winner Liu Xiaobo has died at age 61, the AP reports. Liu, the country's most prominent political prisoner, was first put behind bars in 1989 in connection with the Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests. His fourth and last prison sentence, for inciting subversion thanks to his work advocating for more human rights and political reforms in China, began in 2008, BuzzFeed reports. He was awarded the Nobel in 2010. Liu, who had been hospitalized for advanced liver cancer that was diagnosed in May, died of multiple organ failure. China had said he was receiving the best care in the country and that he wasn't medically cleared to travel abroad for treatment, but doctors had recently disagreed. The White House had renewed calls for Liu's release this week, the Guardian reports. He died in a hospital in China, still under police custody, making him the second Nobel Peace Prize winner to die while in custody. Friends, supporters, and fellow activists are expressing their grief over his death, with some calling for Liu's wife, Liu Xia, to be allowed to leave China, the AP reports. She was put under house arrest after Liu won the Nobel, despite having been convicted of no crime; China was angered by the prize being awarded to Liu. Liu was a visiting scholar at New York's Columbia University when he returned to China in May 1989 to join the movement challenging the Communist Party; his first prison sentence lasted almost two years. He was detained again in 1995 after writing a plea for political reform, then again later that year for co-authoring another paper regarding problems in China. That sentence lasted three years.

FILE - This April 30, 2017, file photo, provided by the Warren County Emergency Management Agency shows what looks like a tornado that approached Vicksburg, Miss. A new study finds that tornado activity... (Associated Press) WASHINGTON (AP) — Over the past few decades tornadoes have been shifting — decreasing in Oklahoma, Texas and Kansas but spinning up more in states along the Mississippi River and farther east, a new study shows. Scientists aren't quite certain why. Tornado activity is increasing most in Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee, Louisiana, Alabama, Kentucky, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Iowa and parts of Ohio and Michigan, according to a study in Wednesday's journal Climate and Atmospheric Science. There has been a slight decrease in the Great Plains, with the biggest drop in central and eastern Texas. Even with the decline, Texas still gets the most tornadoes of any state. The shift could be deadly because the area with increasing tornado activity is bigger and home to more people, said study lead author Victor Gensini, a professor of atmospheric sciences at Northern Illinois University. Also more people live in vulnerable mobile homes and tornadoes are more likely to happen at night in those places, he said. Even though Texas, Kansas and Oklahoma get many more tornadoes, the four deadliest states for tornadoes are Alabama, Missouri, Tennessee and Arkansas, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. "More folks are generally at risk because of that eastward shift," Gensini said. Because tornadoes sometimes go undercounted, especially in the past and in less populous areas, scientists don't like to study trends by using counts of tornadoes. Gensini and tornado scientist Harold Brooks of the National Severe Storms Lab looked at "significant tornado parameters," a measurement of the key ingredients of tornado conditions. It looks at differences between wind speed and direction at different altitudes, how unstable the air is and humidity. The more of those three ingredients, the more likely tornadoes will form. The increases in this measurement mirrored slightly smaller increases found in number of twisters. The study looked at changes since 1979. Everywhere east of the Mississippi, except the west coast of Florida, is seeing some increase in tornado activity. The biggest increase occurred in states bordering the Mississippi River. Overall there is a slight increase in tornado activity, but it's not too much and not nearly like what's happening in the east, Gensini said. Why is this happening? "We don't know," Gensini said. "This is super consistent with climate change." As the Great Plains dry out, there's less moisture to have the type of storms that spawn tornadoes, Gensini said. Tornadoes form along the "dry line" where there are more thunderstorms because there's dry air to the west and moist air from the Gulf of Mexico to the east. That dry line is moving east. "This is what you would expect in a climate change scenario, we just have no way of confirming it at the moment," Gensini said. Gensini said unless there are specific detailed studies, he and others cannot say this is caused by global warming, just that it looks like what is expected. Pennsylvania State University meteorology professor Paul Markowski, who wasn't part of the research, praised the study as careful and well done. ___ Follow Seth Borenstein on Twitter: @borenbears . ___ The Associated Press Health & Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content. ||||| Despite the aforementioned environmental caveats, annual accumulated diurnal max STP is a statistically significant covariate to annual United States tornado reports (Fig. 1). This degree of explanatory power (44% of the variance in annual tornado counts is explained by accumulated diurnal maximum STP) suggests that STP may be used as a climatological proxy for annual tornado report counts. At the monthly scale, accumulated STP exhibits a seasonal trend in explanatory power. Monthly standardized anomalies of accumulated diurnal maximum STP for January, February, March, May, and December all explain roughly half of the variance associated with the standardized anomaly of monthly United States tornado counts (Fig. 2). August displays a minimum in variance explanation (9%), and it is speculated this is a function of the mesoscale nature of late boreal summer tornado environments and larger contributions to the monthly count climatologies from tropical storms and hurricanes. Standardized anomaly regression slopes reveal that monthly accumulated STP is a conservative estimator of monthly tornado counts, and this bias is greatest in the boreal summer (Fig. 2). The null hypothesis of, “Monthly accumulated STP does not explain statistically significant amounts of variance in monthly tornado counts” was rejected at the 0.01 significance level for all months except August. Thus, the STP covariate can be applied at the monthly scale, but caution should be used due to the seasonal changes in the coefficient of determination and level of statistical significance. Fig. 1 Scatter plot of United States annual tornado counts vs. United States annual accumulated significant tornado parameter (1979–2017) from NARR Full size image Fig. 2 1979–2017 Unites States monthly tornado reports and accumulated diurnal maximum STP (expressed here as a standardized anomaly by month) from NARR. Regression r2 and p values are listed next to their respective months Full size image Examining annual tornado report counts and accumulated annual STP through time confirm this explanatory relationship and give further confidence in the use of STP as a climatological tornado report proxy (Fig. 3). Both tornado counts and STP indicate a slight positive trend through time over the analysis period, which starts at the beginning of the modern Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) era. Consistent tornado reporting data exists back to the early 1950s, but there are currently no datasets that allow for the space and time scales necessary to adequately retroactively compute STP back to 1950, and hence, we are limited here to the analysis period 1979–2017. Most of the increase in tornado reporting is observed from the late 1980s to the early 2000s, with a steady or even declining trend thereafter which is consistent with previous research.3 Fig. 3 Interannual variability of United States tornado reports (blue; axis left) and the United States annual sum of daily max significant tornado parameter (red; axis right) from NARR Full size image Of greatest interest here is the potential for shifts in the spatial location of tornado frequency. Research has identified evidence of a “Dixie Alley,” which represents an eastward extension of the traditional "Tornado Alley" in the central Great Plains.26 However, this could be due to the techniques used to smooth reports in space and time.27 An eastward shift in tornado frequency was also suggested, but results were limited to two arbitrary regions, coarse spatial environmental covariates, and lacked a robust environmental tornado report proxy such as STP.12,13 Using Theil-Sen slope analysis—a robust linear trend estimator which is insensitive to outliers—and Kendall’s τ test for statistical significance, we show a robust downward trend in the annual accumulation of STP across the central and southern Great Plains. Meanwhile, a robust upward trend is found in portions of the Southeast, Midwest, and Northeast (Fig. 4). No significant increase (decrease) in tornado environments is observed west (east) of the 95th meridian. We believe these trends in tornado environments are significant and have not been documented with this level of detail by previous research. Fig. 4 Theil-Sen slope analysis of 1979–2017 annual grid-point sum of daily max STP from NARR. p values are hatched at values ≤ 0.05 significance using Kendall’s τ statistic. Slope units are sum of daily max STP per year Full size image Given these environmental tendencies, one would also suspect to find such evidence of trends in tornado reports given the explanatory power of the STP covariate. Indeed, significant trends in the spatial frequency of annual tornado reports are found over the analysis period (Fig. 5). Both tornado reports and environments indicate significant decreasing trends in frequency over portions of Texas, Oklahoma, and northeast Colorado. Agreement in the sign of the Theil-Sen slope is also noted for significant increasing trends in portions of Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Tennessee, and Kentucky. We are most confident about the trends in these areas, where both tornado reports and environments share the same significant sign of Theil-Sen’s slope. Confidence in the trends of tornado frequency are reduced in areas where the sign of Theil-Sen’s slope is opposite or do not share statistical significance. For example, significant increases in tornado reporting trends are found across Kansas, but environments indicate a neutral or downward trend. Additionally, tornado environments indicate a robust increasing trend in portions of Arkansas and Louisiana that are not supported by tornado reporting trends. We cannot offer a physical reason for these discrepancies at the current time, but they may be a function of non-continuous regional/seasonal efficiencies of the STP covariate (e.g., biases shown in Fig. 2) and biases in the tornado report database. We speculate the non-continuous regional/seasonal efficiencies of STP are a function of convective initiation and forcing for ascent. In addition, STP was designed with the intention of evaluating environments favorable for right-moving supercells in the Great Plains of the U.S. and not necessarily non-mesocyclone tornadoes.15,28 However, results associated with reports herein are generally consistent with an increasing trend found in the Southeast United States due to a greater propensity for tornado outbreaks east of the Mississippi River.29,30 Fig. 5 Theil-Sen slope analysis of 1979–2017 annual gridded tornado reports. p values are hatched at values ≤ 0.05 significance using Kendall’s τ statistic. Slope units are reports per year * 10−1 Full size image Further examination reveals that spatial trends in tornado environment frequency are modulated by seasons (Fig. 6). Positive trends in tornado environment frequency are shown to progress northward through the annual cycle. Most of the decreasing trends across Texas are due to the months of March, April, and May (Fig. 6b), and most of the Great Plains has shown a decreasing trend in tornado environments during June, July, and August (Fig. 6c). It should be noted that our results do not indicate that maximum United States tornado environment and report frequency is no longer in the Great Plains. Rather, we demonstrate there has been a robust downward trend of tornado environments and reports in portions of the Great Plains concurrent with a simultaneous robust increasing trend in areas surrounding the Mississippi River Valley and the Midwest.

– Over the past few decades, tornadoes have been shifting—decreasing in Oklahoma, Texas, and Kansas, but spinning up more in states along the Mississippi River and farther east, a new study shows. Scientists aren't quite certain why, the AP notes. The study, which looked at changes since 1979, found everywhere east of the Mississippi, except the west coast of Florida, is seeing some increase in tornado activity. Tornado activity is increasing most in Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee, Louisiana, Alabama, Kentucky, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Iowa, and parts of Ohio and Michigan, per a study in the Climate and Atmospheric Science journal. The four deadliest states for tornadoes are Alabama, Missouri, Tennessee, and Arkansas, per the NOAA. There's been a slight dip in the Great Plains, with the biggest drop in eastern and Central Texas. Even with the decline, Texas still gets the most tornadoes. The shift may be deadly, as the area with increasing tornado activity is bigger and home to more people, per study lead author Victor Gensini. He adds that in those places, more people live in vulnerable mobile homes, and tornadoes happen more at night. Gensini and tornado scientist Harold Brooks examined "significant tornado parameters," a measurement of the key ingredients of tornado conditions that looks at differences between wind speed and direction at different altitudes, how unstable the air is, and humidity. The more of those three ingredients, the more likely tornadoes will form. Overall, there's a slight increase in tornado activity, but it's not nearly like what's happening in the east, Gensini says. Why is this happening? "We don't know," he says, though "this is super-consistent with climate change." (How RV parks are affected.)

Look, up in the air! The year's best meteor shower returns for its August shooting star show, courtesy of a cloud of comet dust smacking into the Earth. A bright Perseid meteor streaked down Saturday night (Aug. 7, 2010) over buildings at the Stellafane amateur astronomy convention in Springfield, Vermont. (Photo: Dennis di Cicco Sky & Telescope) Story Highlights Sunday and Monday nights are the best times to see the annual meteor shower The fireballs will streak across the sky at nearly 134,000 miles per hour You will have to stay up late; the best viewing comes from midnight to dawn Put out the lawn chair, set the alarm and maybe bring something to wet your whistle while you gaze into the nighttime sky — the year's best shooting star show has started. August's annual Perseids meteor shower peaks Sunday and Monday, promising perhaps 70 meteors an hour those evenings. "The Perseids are the good ones," says meteorite expert Bill Cooke of NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. The Perseids take their name from their apparent origin in the constellation Perseus, the hero of ancient Greek myth born from a shower of heavenly gold. Known for producing fireballs that might streak across a third of the sky, they owe their brilliance to the speed — nearly 134,000 mph — with which they smack into the upper atmosphere. "It's also because of the size of the meteors," Cooke says. The dust grains are about one-fifth of an inch across and burn nicely as they zip overhead. Those dust grains come courtesy of Comet Swift-Tuttle, which circles the sun once every 133 years and leaves behind a debris trail. (Comets are basically dirty snowballs that develop tails when they approach the sun and start to melt. Different ones are responsible for other regular meteor showers, such as April's Lyrids, brought by Comet C/1861 G1 Thatcher, and November's Leonids brought by Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle.) You will have to stay up late to see the Perseids at their peak; the best viewing comes from midnight to dawn, particularly after the half-full moon sets at 1 a.m. on Monday, says Astronomy magazine's Michael Bakich. But they should appear at night during the week before and after the peak as well. "Get out of the city and the lights to give yourself a chance to see them," Bakich says. The rule of thumb is that you should be able to see all the stars of the Big Dipper — seven stars if you are counting — to give yourself enough darkness to catch the shooting stars. And give your eyes an hour to adjust. "There will be a dozen 'ooh' moments in that hour," Bakich says. "Ones when everyone will say, 'Did you see that?'" Astronaut Ron Garan looks down on a Perseid meteor from the International Space Station. (Photo: Ron Garan / NASA) Although the shooting stars seem to come from the constellation Perseus, don't look there to see them, Bakich advises. Instead, look about one-third of the sky down and away from the constellation to spot meteors streaking across the sky. "That makes them easier to pick out," he says. While you are enjoying the sky show, satellite operators are buttoning up spacecraft to protect them from the onslaught of comet dust, says Cooke, who prepares meteor shower forecasts each year for space businesses. While the 2013 Perseid shower won't affect the Hubble Space Telescope, according to Janet Anderson of NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., at other times it might point the opening to its mirrors away from the direction of an outburst of meteors. Other satellites might turn vulnerable antennas away from them as well. Clouds permitting, Cooke advises skywatchers this year to take their time and enjoy the nighttime show. "All you need is to lie flat on your back, and the reward is meteors." Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1ev828w ||||| One of the year's best astronomical events will light up the sky for the next five nights. Best of all, it's really easy to observe. You don't need telescopes or cameras, just a deckchair, blankets and a hot thermos to keep you company. Wait until late at night. If the sky is clear, find the darkest site you can with a clear eastern horizon. Plonk yourself down in the chair facing east, cover up with the blanket and wait. The Perseid meteor shower is expected to peak in the pre-dawn skies on both 12 and 13 August. The Perseids were once part of comet Swift-Tuttle. At 27 kilometres across, this is one of the largest. It orbits the sun every 133 years and last passed by in 1992. Whenever it approaches, the heat of the sun disintegrates its ice, creating a dusty tail and replenishing the Perseid stream. The Earth passes through this stream every August, sparking the meteor shower. Each one of the meteors, sometimes called shooting stars, that you see is a tiny speck of dust as old as the formation of Earth and the other planets, 4.6bn years ago. It burns with incandescent glory because it has hit our atmosphere at a speed of 160,000 kilometres per hour (100,000 miles per hour). This creates a shockwave that compresses a pocket of air in front of the dust grain and raises it to a temperature of a few thousand degrees. This is enough to burn up the dust and create a bright meteor. Swift Tuttle is the largest object to regularly pass Earth. Its orbit is known well enough for astronomers to believe it does not pose a collision hazard for at least the next 2,000 years. A Perseid meteor over the Roman castle of Bukelon, near Matochina in Bulgaria, on 13 August 2010. Photograph: Vassil Donev/EPA The Perseids are generally considered the most active and reliable of the 64 meteor showers that Earth passes through every year. A recent Nasa study found that it offers the best chance out of all the meteor showers of seeing an ultra-bright meteor called a fireball. Even if you don't see a fireball, you are guaranteed that there will be dozens of ordinary meteors every hour – providing the sky is clear and you can stay awake. Stuart Clark is the author of The Day Without Yesterday (Polygon). Follow him on Twitter @DrStuClark ||||| Where to See the Perseids: Annual Shower Peaks Monday By Jillian MacMath, AccuWeather.com Staff Writer August 12, 2013; 5:54 PM ET Share | See larger image below. Stargazers are in for a show again on Monday night as the peak of the Perseid meteor shower once again illuminates the night sky. Perseid meteors are particles from the debris trail on the comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle and hit the Earth's atmosphere moving at 132,000 mph. Unfortunately, clouds and showers threaten to obscure the show across a large swath of the country on Monday night. Most places from the East Coast through the Tennessee Valley and the central Plains will have to find breaks in the clouds to enjoy the show. The best places to view the Perseid's will be across much of Florida, Texas and the Great Lakes, where the sky should be mostly clear for much of the night. Much of the West will also have good viewing conditions. The nation's midsection will not catch much of the shower as a front slowly sags southward, posing a threat for violent and drenching thunderstorms. RELATED: Latest U.S. Satellite AccuWeather.com Astronomy Blog Share Your Pictures of the Meteor Shower Much of the Northeast will also miss the display thanks to a front moving in from the west. During the peak, the moon will be in a crescent phase, and will set in the sky by midnight in most locations. The dark sky will aid in the spectacle, allowing even fainter meteors to be seen. "Any time you have a darker sky, that helps," AccuWeather.com Meteorologist Mark Paquette said. The shower, nicknamed the "Fireball Champion," produces more meteors than any other annual shower and is typically bright enough at its peak to be seen in areas that suffer some light pollution. "Most people consider this the best meteor shower of all to see shooting stars," Paquette said. If the weather or other plans prevented you from viewing the meteor shower on Sunday night, the show should be just as brilliant on Monday night--weather dependent.

– The annual Perseid meteor shower is upon us, and if you don't know much about astronomy, a NASA rep simplifies it for you: "The Perseids are the good ones." Visible to the naked eye, the August shower will peak tonight and tomorrow, with optimal viewing time between midnight and dawn, reports USA Today. What does "optimal viewing" mean? As many as 70 meteors an hour. The Northeast is the country's prime viewing location, with the mid-Atlantic on the edge; clouds may dim the view on the West Coast and in the South, according to AccuWeather.com. Some tips? "Get out of the city and the lights to give yourself a chance to see them," Astronomy's Michael Bakich says. Make sure it's dark enough to see the Big Dipper's seven stars, then give your eyes an hour to adjust. "There will be a dozen 'ooh' moments in that hour." If the sky is clear, you'll almost certainly see dozens of meteors in that time, the Guardian reports. Check this map to see your viewing conditions.

Baba Booey! Baba Booey! Howard Stern Renews Contract with Sirius/XM For Five More Years Email This The news broke this morning during Stern's daily radio show. "If we're going to stay in radio, we should stay here," Stern said on the air. "We're in an incredible position and suddenly there's real growth. It's a real business." Stern wasn't talking numbers, but had ranted against Sirius CFO David Frear earlier this week who had hinted that Stern would have to take a pay cut. Possibly knowing a deal was imminent, Stern had apologized to Frear on and CEO Mel Karmazin, a long-time Stern colleage, on the air Wednesday. Howard had not shied away from discussing his situation on the air and there had been rumors that he was even looking to do a deal with an Internet service including Howard Stern fans will be rejoicing to the news that the "King of All Media" will be staying right where he's been for the past five years -- on Sirius/XM satellite radio -- for the next five years.The news broke this morning during Stern's daily radio show. "If we're going to stay in radio, we should stay here," Stern said on the air. "We're in an incredible position and suddenly there's real growth. It's a real business."Stern wasn't talking numbers, but had ranted against Sirius CFO David Frear earlier this week who had hinted that Stern would have to take a pay cut. Possibly knowing a deal was imminent, Stern had apologized to Frear on and CEO Mel Karmazin, a long-time Stern colleage, on the air Wednesday.Contract negotiations had been down to the wire, with Stern and his team having under 10 new shows left before the Christmas break and facing an uncertain future.Howard had not shied away from discussing his situation on the air and there had been rumors that he was even looking to do a deal with an Internet service including a rumored $600 million deal with Apple , which had appeared unlikely because Steve Jobs' careful monitoring of the types of content that appear in iTunes seemed to clash with Stern's tendency to blurt out the f-word whenever possible. Howard Makes His Big Announcement: Explicit Language CNN Money reports that Sirius stock surged as much as 14% in pre-market trading with the news. "Howard is a great talent and we are thrilled that he will continue to provoke, engage and entertain on Sirius XM," Karmazin told The Hollywood Reporter. "Our agreement is good news on all fronts - it is good for Sirius XM subscribers and good for Sirius XM stockholders. Howard forever changed radio and was instrumental in putting Sirius on the map when he first launched on satellite radio. He is one of the few 'one-name' entertainers in the country and our 20 million subscribers are lucky to have him. Filed under: Music News The cast and crew of the show had said they were in the dark during the contract negotiations. Stern's longtime producer Gary Dell'Abate had told PopEater weeks ago that he didn't know where Stern was headed. "I think that he wants to continue to work," Dell'Abate aka Baba Booey, told us. "He's made that very evident on the radio and where that is, is I think the question."The question has now been answered and his staff is certainly breathing a sigh of relief knowing that they are returning to work after the holidays.During his rants on the air, Stern discussed the grind of getting up four days a week for a five-hour radio show. He hinted that he would want to cut back his days on air -- Stern and his crew already get close to 10 weeks off a year and work four-day weeks -- and he also wondered whether he would be happy shifting towards an afternoon drive. The deal with iTunes fed into that idea that his show might thrive on-demand, similar to the way his Howard TV offering does now.Financial details are still to follow but Sirius/XM wasted no time proclaiming the news that puts them in a secure position, facing a possible defection of millions of subscribers if Stern was to leave. This was what was posted on Howard and Sirius's site this AM: ||||| Do you hear what we hear? That's the sound of millions of loyal Howard Stern fans saying: Just tell us where to find him in the new year, already!The shock jock has been in negotiations for a new contract with Sirius XM Radio (his multi-year, $500 million deal expires at year's end), but there still isn't news from the company about renewing the partnership. The silence on a new contract means the network is missing the chance to snap up new subscriptions this holiday season, and many believe it's a surefire signal that Sirius is seriously in trouble, i.e., about to lose their biggest star.In the meantime, a rumor that Apple could snag the self-proclaimed "King of All Media" in a new $600 million deal has suddenly gained major traction.But would a raunchy radio star like Stern, famous for his NSFW banter and porn star interviews, be a successful fit within Steve Jobs' clean, conservative corporation? On the iPad (which "Apple wants to keep family friendly," according to The Wrap.com ), strict policies already govern how content is presented. How will things change at Apple with Stern on board?And how many Sirius XM subscribers would jump ship to follow their hero -- currently heard four days a week on the satellite network -- over to a new format of iTunes streams?

– After weeks of tense contract negotiations, Howard Stern has inked a deal to stay on Sirius/XM for another five years. Earlier this week, Stern ranted against the Sirius CFO for hinting that the shock jock may need to take a pay cut, PopEater reports, but he apologized on-air yesterday. There was also a rumor he would be leaving to sign a $600 million deal with Apple, but Stern announced on his show today that he will stay on satellite radio, where he's been for the past five years. Click for more on Stern's contract negotiations.

French President Sarkozy's 'joy' at daughter's birth Continue reading the main story Related Stories French President Nicolas Sarkozy has described the birth of his daughter as a "profound joy" but a "private" one. His daughter with wife Carla Bruni-Sarkozy was born on Wednesday night at a Paris clinic. Mr Sarkozy arrived at the La Muette clinic several hours after the birth. He had visited the clinic earlier in the day, but left to travel to Germany for talks on the eurozone debt crisis. Mr Sarkozy already has three sons from two previous marriages. Mr Sarkozy, who was on a scheduled visit to a waste-processing plant in western France when he made his comments, said the birth was a "very profound joy, a joy all the deeper because it is private". He added both mother and baby were "doing very well". He added the baby's name would be revealed by his wife. The first couple has decided not to officially announce the birth, but Mr Sarkozy reacted warmly when plant workers gave him gifts during the visit. He was given a bib, a dieting book for his wife and a small oak tree to plant, Agence France-Presse news agency reports. Mr Sarkozy married Italian-born Carla Bruni in 2008, becoming the first French leader to divorce and remarry while in office. She has become the only serving French first lady to have given birth. ||||| Enlarge Carla Bruni chose the baby name Giulia, she announced on her official website on October 20, 2011. Bruni, seen here while still pregnant, gave birth to her first child with French President Nicolas Sarkozy on October 19, 2011 at the Muette clinic in Paris. (Sean Gallup/Getty Images) What do you think? Carla Bruni has announced the baby name for her first child with husband Nicolas Sarkozy, president of France. "Giulia" is the baby's name, Bruni said on her official website. Bruni, who was born in Turin, Italy, said she was "very touched" by all the congratulatory messages received since the birth of Giulia on Wednesday at a Paris clinic. "I am deeply touched by the many messages of congratulations that I have received since the birth of our daughter Giulia," Bruni said. "On this happy occasion, my husband joins me in warmly thanking all those of you who sent us these tokens of your kindness." A middle name for the baby has not been announced. Giulia is the Italian version of the girl's name "Julia." Actress Debi Mazar also has a daughter named Giulia. Sarkozy earlier Thursday responded to media questions by saying his wife would reveal the name of their baby girl, who was born Wednesday evening at a Paris clinic. Sarkozy commented on his wife and baby girl for the first time Thursday morning. "They are doing very well," Sarkozy said, according to French newspaper Le Figaro. He told reporters that Bruni would reveal their daughter's name, and described the birth as a "very profound joy, a joy all the deeper because it is private," BBC News reports. Rumors abounded throughout the day about possible names for the baby, with "Julia," "Dalia" and 'Dahlia" among the guesses. More from GlobalPost: Carla Bruni gives birth to baby girl (PHOTOS) Reuters reports that Bruni gave birth on Wednesday at around 8 p.m. local time, at La Muette clinic in Paris. Sarkozy stopped in to visit his wife and new daughter at the maternity clinic on Thursday, Agence France-Presse says. He was also at the clinic on Wednesday but left after 20 minutes in order to travel to Frankfurt for eurozone debt talks, according to BBC News. He returned to his wife a few hours after the birth. More from GlobalPost: Sarkozy flies to Frankfurt for eurozone talks Security is tight at the clinic in western Paris, which is surrounded by photographers under huge pressure to get the first shot of Baby Bruni-Sarkozy, the Guardian reports. Crowds of well-wishers have gathered outside the clinic, and a security cordon had to be set up, according to the BBC. Bruni, 43, has a son named Aurelien from a previous relationship, while Sarkozy, 56, has three sons from earlier marriages. More from GlobalPost: French Socialists choose "Monsieur Normal" Francois Hollande to challenge Sarkozy http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/europe/france/111020/carla-bruni-baby-name-dahlia-sarkozy-meaning ||||| Carla Bruni and Nicolas Sarkozy have baby girl Carla Bruni has kept a low public profile during her pregnancy Continue reading the main story Related Stories Carla Bruni, wife of French President Nicolas Sarkozy, has given birth to a girl at a Paris clinic where crowds had gathered, local media say. Witnesses said Mr Sarkozy arrived at the La Muette clinic several hours after the birth. He had visited the clinic earlier in the day, but left to travel to Germany for talks on the eurozone debt crisis. The Elysee Palace has said it will not make any announcement because the pregnancy is a private family matter. Mrs Bruni-Sarkozy has a son from a previous relationship, and Mr Sarkozy has three sons from earlier marriages. French media outlet Europe 1 said the girl was born at 20:00 (18:00 GMT) but gave no more details. French news agency AFP said a member of the first lady's inner circle confirmed the birth, but added that no name had been made public. 'Adult choice' Italian-born Mrs Bruni-Sarkozy, the only serving French first lady to have given birth, has maintained a low profile while pregnant, appearing only rarely in public. She told Le Parisien newspaper earlier that she would never make photographs of the child public because "exposure to public life is an adult choice". Journalists have staked out the La Muette clinic in Paris since early October She also insisted that the French public had little interest in the pregnancy, and that she was "in a hurry to get it over with". Witnesses outside the clinic said a security cordon had been set up, with crowds and journalists moved 100m away from the entrance. There were reports that people visiting other women giving birth had been searched by police before being allowed to enter. Mr Sarkozy arrived at the clinic on Wednesday afternoon but left shortly afterwards. The Elysee Palace said he was travelling to Frankfurt for talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, IMF director Christine Lagarde, outgoing European Central Bank chief Jean-Claude Trichet and other key officials. The leaders were due to hold "informal talks" on the eurozone debt crisis ahead of an EU summit in Brussels on Sunday. Mr Sarkozy married Carla Bruni in 2008, becoming the first French leader to divorce and remarry while in office.

– A child has been born to a serving president for the first time in modern French history. Carla Bruni gave birth to a baby girl at a clinic in Paris last night, the BBC reports. The 43-year-old mom—who told interviewers recently that she was bored with being pregnant and looking forward to having a drink and a cigarette—has a son from a previous relationship. Nicolas Sarkozy, who left debt talks in Germany to return to Paris, has three sons from previous marriages. With the election seven months away, the unpopular Sarkozy needs a boost in popularity, but analysts believe the newborn isn't going to help. Sarkozy says his wife will reveal the baby's name (rumored to be Dalia or Dahlia), and called his joy "profound" but "private." He made the comments while visiting a waste-processing plant in France today. Best detail, via the BBC: Plant workers gave him congratulatory gifts, which included a bib and ... a dieting book for Carla. Bruni, who kept a low profile during her pregnancy, says the media won't be getting any photos of the baby.

Thank you for your contribution to the restoration of the Cathedral. The Friends of Notre-Dame is a 501c3 public charity; all gifts are tax deductible in the United States. ||||| On an average summer day in Paris, about 50,000 tourists pass through Notre Dame cathedral, one of the finest buildings of the medieval era still standing. Visitors from dozens of countries gaze up at the spectacular stained-glass windows, tiptoe through its vast choir and nave and whisper in awe at the centuries-old sculptures and paintings that line the walls. Notre Dame, which looms over the capital from an island in the center of the city, is a constant reminder of Paris’ history. It has seen more than its share of epic dramas, including the French Revolution and two world wars. But now there is another challenge. Some 854 years after construction began, one of Europe’s most visited sites, with about 12 million tourists a year, is in dire need of repairs. Centuries of weather have worn away at the stone. The fumes from decades of gridlock have only worsened the damage. “Pollution is the biggest culprit,” says Philippe Villeneuve, architect in chief of historic monuments in France. “We need to replace the ruined stones. We need to replace the joints with traditional materials. This is going to be extensive.” It will be expensive too, and it’s not at all clear who is prepared to foot the bill. Under France’s strict secular laws, the government owns the cathedral, and the Catholic archdiocese of Paris uses it permanently for free. The priests for years believed the government should pay for repairs, since it owned the building. But under the terms of the government’s agreement, the archdiocese is responsible for Notre Dame’s upkeep, with the Ministry of Culture giving it about €2 million ($2.28 million) a year for that purpose. Staff say that money covers only basic repairs, far short of what is needed. Without a serious injection of cash, some believe, the building will not be safe for visitors in the future. Now the archdiocese is seeking help to save Notre Dame from yielding to the ravages of time. Many of Notre Dame's gargoyles, which act as rain spouts, have corroded and been replaced with PVC tubes, July 2017. Vincent Fournier for TIME The architects of Notre Dame knew all too well about lengthy building work; it took more than a century to build the cathedral, beginning in 1163. It was periodically vandalized over the turbulent centuries that followed. Rioting Huguenots damaged parts of the building they believed to be idolatrous in the mid–16th century. During the French Revolution, mobs of people carted off or smashed some of its paintings and statues. The hated royalty suffered the brunt of the carnage, with crowds destroying 28 statues of monarchs from the building’s Gallery of Kings. After that, Notre Dame languished in neglect. Then in 1831 came Victor Hugo’s book The Hunchback of Notre Dame, whose hero was the disfigured bell ringer Quasimodo. In it, France’s beloved writer raised alarm about the building’s decay, describing “mutilations, amputations, dislocations of the joints.” “Beside each wrinkle on the face of this old queen of our cathedrals,” he wrote, “you will find a scar.” But for Notre Dame, Hugo’s book sparked fresh problems. The best seller inspired a restoration in 1844, which used low-quality stone and even cement, since France at the time could not produce the quantities of high-grade material that the job required. Stonework has fallen from Notre Dame cathedral in Paris. Low-quality stone and cement were used in a restoration in 1844. Nearly 200 years on, that 19th century work is crumbling (though some of the painstaking medieval construction is in better shape). Vincent Fournier for TIME Nearly 200 years on, that 19th century work is crumbling (though the medieval construction is mostly in better shape). One blazing hot day in early July, a staff member unlocked an old door off the choir and led TIME up a stone spiral staircase and out onto the roof, high above the crowds. Here, the site seemed not spiritually uplifting but distressing. Chunks of limestone lay on the ground, having fallen from the upper part of the chevet, or the eastern end of the Gothic church. One small piece had a clean slice down one side, showing how recently it had fallen. Two sections of a wall were missing, propped up with wood. And the features of Notre Dame’s famous gargoyles looked as worn away as the face of Voldemort. “They are like ice cream in the sun, melting,” says Michel Picaud, head of the nonprofit Friends of Notre Dame de Paris, looking up at them. What is more, some fear the problem is getting worse. “The damage can only accelerate,” says Andrew Tallon, an associate professor of art at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., and an expert on Gothic architecture. Having carefully studied the damage, he says the restoration work is urgent. If the cathedral is left alone, its structural integrity could be at risk. “The flying buttresses, if they are not in place, the choir could come down,” he says. “The more you wait, the more you need to take down and replace.” The church was not fully aware of the extent of the problem, say those at Notre Dame. Until a few years ago, the government effectively made the private areas off-limits. “There used to be about 200 old keys, so it was very, very difficult,” says André Finot, a spokesman for Notre Dame. Eventually, the government standardized the keys and allowed its tenants to climb the hidden stone staircases and access the upper levels. “We were shocked when we got up there,” Finot says. Some 854 years after construction began, Europe's most visited site, with about 12 million tourists a year, is in dire need of repairs. Centuries of weathering have worn away at the stone with pollution being the biggest culprit, July 2017. Vincent Fournier for TIME The government hasn’t completely ignored the cathedral’s plight. In 2012, its bells were replaced to mark its 850th birthday. This year, authorities budgeted an extra €6 million ($6.84 million) to restore the spire. Water damage to the spire’s covering is threatening the wood-timber roof, which the medieval craftsmen built using 5,000 oak trees. The restoration will begin in the fall. But a Ministry of Culture official says Notre Dame should not expect regular help of this kind. To the government, the cathedral is just one of many old buildings in need of care. “France has thousands of monuments,” says the official, who was not authorized to speak to the media. Among them, Notre Dame is not necessarily the most pressing case. “It will not fall down,” she says. Still, there is plenty of alarm in the church. Finally accepting that the government would not pay to restore the cathedral, the archdiocese launched Friends of Notre Dame in October to appeal for help. It hopes to raise €100 million ($114 million) in the next five to 10 years. “There is no part of the building untouched by the irreparable loss of sculptural and decorative elements, let alone the alarming deterioration of structural elements,” the organization says on its website. The cathedral, it says, “is in desperate need of attention.” Picaud, a retired software executive who heads the fundraising effort, says he is planning a marketing drive in Paris in November. But he believes the bulk of the money will come not from the French but from Americans, millions of whom know Notre Dame and who are less hesitant than the French about giving money to the church. “People don’t want to give money because of laïcité,” says Finot, referring to the strict secularism that infuses French law. “So our message is, This is not about religion. It is about our heritage. Notre Dame is open to Muslims, and everyone.” Finot and Picaud expect to raise most of the funds through large donations and are discussing with government officials whether to acknowledge that generosity with a plaque at Notre Dame. In April, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service granted Friends of Notre Dame tax-free status, and the organization is planning to hold a five-city American road show in spring 2018 in an all-out push to raise the money. By the time serious renovation work begins–perhaps sometime before the end of this decade–the damage could be worse than it is today. But at Notre Dame, history is counted not in years but in centuries. “We hope it will last forever,” Picaud says. “But it cannot last forever without this renovation.” This appears in the August 07, 2017 issue of TIME. ||||| An integral and defining part of the Paris landscape, the world famous Gothic cathedral has weathered a revolution, two world wars and a topless feminist stunt ...and she's showing signs of the strain. Vital repair work needs to be carried out to fix, among other things, a toppling gargoyle, cracks on the facade and the support structure for the church's famed stained glass windows. The list goes on...and on. While an appeal for donations has already been launched in France, a foundation set up by the Archbishop of Paris last year -- Friends of Notre-Dame de Paris -- is now specifically targeting American donors. After the foundation received charity status at beginning of May from the American tax authorities, it can now receive untaxed donations and so the project is well and truly underway. The cathedral is looking for a total of around €150 million for repairs while the government currently donates €2 million a year. Senior Advisor Fundraising for Friends of Notre-Dame, Michel Picaud told The Local that turning to Americans for financial help was an obvious move given the amount of interest in the cathedral from across the pond. "It was put it to us that Notre-Dame is a world monument and we could look to raise money for its repair from outside of France," Picaud said. "We receive many requests from Americans wanting to know if there is a channel they can use to donate," he said. "The cathedral is a big part of Paris' history but also a big part of American history in the city." Friends of Notre-Dame will hold fundraising events in Paris as well as go on a US trip next spring, when it will visit Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles and Washington, DC in an attempt to raise funds. When Paris was liberated from occupying forces by French and American troops, the celebrations took place in front of Notre Dame, and today it is a stone's throw from legendary English bookshop Shakespeare and Company. The good news for Notre-Dame is that Americans have a history of stepping in to save historic churches in France. In 2013, THe Local reported on the story of a Texas oilman donated $100,000 to fix the roof of a 13th-century church in the southwestern French town of Aurignac. To donate to the renovations and find out more about Friends of Notre-Dame, you can visit their website here. ||||| Fundraising campaign launched to restore Paris landmark amid fears that parts of its exterior could fall The archbishop of Paris is on a €100m fundraising drive to save the crumbling gargoyles and gothic arches of Notre Dame cathedral. Each year up to 14 million people visit the 12th-century Paris landmark on an island in the Seine river. Building began about 850 years ago, but pollution and the passing of time have chipped off large chunks of stone. “If we don’t do these restoration works, we’ll risk seeing parts of the exterior structure begin to fall. This is a very serious risk,” said Michel Picaud, president of the Friends of Notre Dame charity set up by the archbishop. Church officials, who have created what they are calling a “stone cemetery” from fallen masonry, say the cathedral remains safe to visit. Entry is free and the French state, which owns the building, devotes €2m (£1.9m) a year to repairs. But that is not enough to embark on major restoration works, the last of which were carried out during the 1800s, officials at the cathedral and charity said. Notre Dame has long drawn tourists from around the world. It is most famous in popular culture as the setting for 19th-century author Victor Hugo’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and films of the same name including the 1939 classic with Charles Laughton and the 1996 Disney musical animation. The latter in particular raised the cathedral’s profile for modern-day tourists from across the world. “It’s the movie for me, I just think of the Hunchback of Notre Dame, and the book as well. After reading that book I actually really wanted to come see it,” said American Claire Huber as she visited the cathedral. Church authorities hope the cathedral’s worldwide fame will attract donors, particularly from the US. “Gargoyles are what people want to see when they come to Paris. If there are no more gargoyles, what will they see?” said Andre Finot, Notre Dame’s communications chief. ||||| These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites.

– Attention, Americans: Notre Dame needs your help. A $120 million fundraising drive is underway to save the Gothic cathedral's famous façade and sneering gargoyles. The target audience: the 14 million visitors who flock to the 850-year-old landmark each year, a huge chunk of them from the US. "The cathedral is a big part of Paris' history but also a big part of American history in the city," Michel Picard, the head of the Friends of Notre Dame foundation, told the Local in June. The foundation, created last year by the archbishop of Paris, gained tax-exempt status in the US in May, and the charity is planning a fundraising trip next spring to several US cities, including Boston, Chicago, and LA. The French government contributes about $2.4 million annually for the upkeep of the double-towered edifice, an amount that can't fund the major restoration needed. A "stone cemetery" of toppled masonry is a testament to the "serious risk" the cathedral is facing if repairs don't happen soon to the worn and degraded exterior, Picard tells Reuters. Otherwise, "we’ll risk seeing parts of the exterior structure begin to fall," he says. Time looks at two reasons for the deterioration: Traffic-related "pollution is the biggest culprit," per the architect in chief of historic monuments in France. The other is a bit counter-intuitive: Victor Hugo's The Hunchback of Notre Dame drew attention to the building's then-deteriorating condition and spurred an 1844 restoration—but low-quality materials were used that haven't withstood the test of time. You can donate here.

NAYPYIDAW, Myanmar (AP) — Myanmar hopes its first-ever hosting of a summit of Southeast Asian leaders on Sunday will help showcase progress made since the country emerged from a half-century of military rule. Here are some of the topics up for discussion, the significance of the gathering and the players. — HOT TOPICS: China's growing assertiveness in the South China Sea is expected to top the agenda, with a standoff between Chinese and Vietnamese ships near the Paracel Islands putting a fresh spotlight on long-standing, bitter maritime disputes. There are conflicting territorial claims over the waters, which hold tremendous strategic importance as one of the world's biggest shipping lanes. They are also rich with fish, and huge oil and gas reserves are believed to lie beneath the seabed. Though the stakes are high, foreign ministers who gathered Saturday ahead of the summit went no further than issuing a statement expressing concern and urging restraint by all parties. Tensions on the Korean Peninsula and Thailand's political crisis also expected to be on the table. — THE HOST: This is the first time Myanmar is hosting a summit of Southeast Asian heads of state since it joined the 10-member bloc in 1997. Previously, it was passed over for the chairmanship because of its poor human rights record. Though much work needs to be done, it has implemented sweeping political and economic reforms since ruling generals handed over power to a quasi-civilian government in 2011. Discussions about China — one of the few countries to stand by Myanmar when it was under military rule — will put the host in a sensitive spot when talks touch on heated maritime disputes. — WHO'S ATTENDING: The Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, comprises 10 nations. The summit, being held in Myanmar's capital, Naypyidaw, will bring together heads of state from Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. ||||| BEIJING — It is the pride of China’s state-run oil industry and the nation’s first deepwater drilling rig, a vessel as big as a football field and as tall as a 40-story building, with a $1 billion price tag. Last week, it crawled through the South China Sea, pulled by heavy-duty tugs, and parked in one of the most sensitive spots possible, about 17 miles off a speck of an island claimed by both China and Vietnam. The Vietnamese, at times embraced in brotherly Communist Party fealty by China, were taken by surprise. Hanoi assumed the rig, known as HD-981, was just passing through, people close to the government said. At least twice in recent years, China has sought to explore these waters and backed down after protests by Vietnam. Just six months ago, during a visit of the Chinese prime minister to Hanoi, the two sides announced that they would try to find ways to jointly develop oil and gas fields. That good will evaporated this week when Beijing made clear the drilling rig was staying put. It set off four days of confrontation, with dozens of Chinese and Vietnamese naval vessels ramming one another and China using water cannons in a standoff that threatens to push a region known for its economic development toward military conflict. China has not been shy in recent years about making broad claims to control much of the South China Sea. But by installing an expensive drilling rig in disputed waters, it now appears more willing to act first and invite diplomacy later. It is in effect creating “facts” in the water that its regional rivals, and ultimately the United States, must either accept or fight. China signaled it would take unilateral steps last year, when it declared an air defense zone over parts of the East China Sea that includes islands at the center of a long-smoldering dispute with Japan. In the battle of wills with Vietnam, China has unleashed a new and potentially powerful tool in its battle for territory: its oil industry and the rigs a state oil-company official once called “our mobile national territory.” Continue reading the main story TAIWAN CHINA Hong Kong Hanoi Gulf of Tonkin South China Sea PHILIPPINES Paracel Islands + LAOS Scarborough Shoal Chinese oil drilling rig Manila CAMBODIA Spratly Islands VIETNAM Palawan Island 300 Miles The deployment of the rig is a possible game changer in China’s determination to dominate the South China Sea, as oil exploration requires substantial investment and often protection, which in China’s case would be provided by its ships, including its navy. “China has been taking incremental steps, escalating and increasing its presence in the South China Sea, but this is crossing a threshold,” said Holly Morrow, a fellow in the Geopolitics of Energy program at Harvard who served on the National Security Council in the George W. Bush administration. It is unclear if China’s gambit will end up the way its leaders hope. Two years ago, China was able to nudge aside the Philippines from a disputed reef, without a fight, by simply refusing to abide by an American-brokered agreement. The Philippines retreated, as promised. The Chinese did not, and have controlled the reef, the Scarborough Shoal, and its rich fishery ever since. Vietnam has proved to be a tougher adversary, sending out its own ships to meet the Chinese flotilla and, according to Chinese government reports, using them to ram Chinese ships as many as 171 times in four days. A prominent Vietnamese political analyst, Nguyen Quang A, summarized the standoff this way: “Invasion is in their blood, and resistance is in our blood.” Continue reading the main story Advertisement The timing of the move was perceived by some in the region as a test not only of the ability of Southeast Asian nations to stand up to their far more powerful northern neighbor, but also of President Obama’s resolve less than a month after he promised to support American allies in Asia as they deal with a stronger China. China’s action was almost certainly a long-term plan — the deployment of a deep water drilling rig takes months of preparation. But a senior Asian diplomat with deep ties in the region said some officials were left with the impression after Mr. Obama’s visit that the United States was eager to avoid direct confrontation with China over its claims in the South China Sea. At a news conference in Manila, Mr. Obama sidestepped a question about whether Washington would defend the Philippines if a territorial dispute with China became an armed conflict, instead saying “we don’t think that coercion and intimidation is the way to manage these disputes.” A few days earlier he had made a stronger statement of support for Japan in its maritime disputes with China. On Friday, Benjamin J. Rhodes, a deputy national security adviser, said the United States had been clear that it opposed unilateral steps or the threat of force by the Chinese and that it was strengthening military ties with its allies, including the Philippines. The United States does not have a defense treaty with Vietnam. “We have reaffirmed our support for our mutual defense treaties with allies in the region, and have supported the efforts of the Philippines to pursue international arbitration to resolve maritime disputes,” Mr. Rhodes said. Few believe that energy discoveries were the primary reason for the arrival of rig HD-981, which is owned by China National Offshore Oil Corporation, or Cnooc, the state-run energy giant. For decades, geologists and major energy companies have debated whether the seabed of the South China Sea holds commercially viable deposits of oil and gas. Many are skeptical, especially regarding the area around the Paracel Islands, which the rig expects to explore and which a 2013 assessment by the United States Energy Information Administration deemed to be especially unlikely to hold much oil or gas. “Cnooc is a business but also a political actor,” said Ms. Morrow of Harvard. “It’s never about energy completely, it’s about sovereignty.” Still, the company’s enthusiasm for drilling in the area may have been bolstered by three-dimensional seismic tests conducted last May and June, according to a report in the state run news agency, Xinhua. Previously, only two-dimensional seismic surveys, which are less reliable, had been conducted, said Peter Dutton, professor and director of the China Maritime Studies Institute at the United States Naval War College in Rhode Island. Another incentive for drilling is that the site is close to two exploratory areas where Exxon Mobil discovered substantial oil and gas reserves in 2011 and 2012, energy lawyers in Hong Kong said. “China’s location of the drilling rig in this block cannot be attributed solely to provocation,” Mr. Dutton said. In Vietnam, the Chinese move is challenging the government’s delicate balancing act between strong anti-China sentiment and not wanting to get too close to the United States. Hanoi maintains a military hotline with the People’s Liberation Army, while resisting Washington’s invitations to participate in joint military exercises and overtures for access to Cam Ranh Bay, a deepwater base on the South China Sea. Still, Vietnam can ill afford to alienate China; it is increasingly economically dependent on China for cheap parts that are used in its growing manufacturing sector, and for hosting poor agrarian workers in southern China. The Cnooc oil rig and other acts of Chinese assertiveness in the South China Sea over the past few months will now take center stage, according to Ernest Z. Bower and Gregory B. Poling of the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, who posted an article on its website. “There is no telling who will blink first,” they wrote. ||||| Long before China towed a huge oil platform into disputed waters east of Vietnam this week, the Vietnamese government started making preparations for just this situation. Its response to the increased assertiveness of its powerful neighbor to the north, leaders decided, should be to invest heavily in advanced military capabilities—especially naval systems—that would make Beijing think twice before threatening Vietnamese interests....

– China is in yet another territorial dispute with a neighbor, and this time things are already getting a little physical. After Beijing plunked down its first-ever deepwater drilling rig in disputed waters off Vietnam this week, the Vietnamese navy made clear its displeasure. China says Vietnam's vessels rammed its ships 171 times over the course of four days, reports the New York Times. The newspaper quotes a Vietnamese political analyst who sums things up thusly: “Invasion is in their blood, and resistance is in our blood.” While all that boat-ramming hasn't changed the fact that the oil platform is still in place, the Wall Street Journal reports that Beijing would be making a mistake if it thinks Vietnam will let the issue quietly go away. Hanoi has been building up its navy of late for just this sort of confrontation as China has gotten more aggressive in the South China Sea. And while its naval power will still be no match for China's, Vietnam wants to show it can at least give China a "bloody nose," says an analyst at a Singapore think tank. The new tensions are sure to be a big topic at this weekend's meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, reports AP.

Video (02:18) : Protesters said at least two gunmen opened fire just outside of the Plymouth Ave. encampment. Five protesters were shot late Monday night near the Black Lives Matter encampment at the Fourth Precinct police station in north Minneapolis, according to police. Those who were shot sustained non-life-threatening injuries, said police spokesman John Elder in a statement. Miski Noor, a media contact for Black Lives Matter, said “a group of white supremacists showed up at the protest, as they have done most nights.” One of the three men wore a mask, said Dana Jaehnert, who had been at the protest site since early evening. When about a dozen protesters attempted to herd the group away from the area, Noor said, they “opened fire on about six protesters,” hitting five of them. Jaehnert said she heard four gunshots. The shootings occurred at 10:45 p.m. on Morgan Avenue N. about a block north of the precinct station. Gallery: Photos: Protesters press for answers after fatal police shooting in Minneapolis Gallery: Photos: Protesters press for answers after fatal police shooting in Minneapolis The attackers fled. No arrests had been made by midnight Monday. Police said via their Twitter feed that they are searching for three white male suspects. The gunshot victims were taken to North Memorial Medical Center and Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC), deputy police chief Medaria Arradondo said at the scene. A person at the scene said one of the victims had been shot in the stomach, and was undergoing surgery overnight at HCMC. Jie Wronski-Riley said angry protesters moved the men away from the encampment at the police station. Wronski-Riley heard what sounded like firecrackers and thought, “surely they’re not shooting human beings.” Two young black men on either side of him were hit, one in the back and leg, the other in the arm. At least two of the three men who had been taunting protesters were firing guns, said Wronski-Riley, who described the incident as “really chaotic, really fast.” “I am obviously appalled that white supremacists would open fire on nonviolent, peaceful protesters,” said Nekima Levy-Pounds, president of the Minneapolis chapter of the NAACP, who returned to the site after the shootings. The protesters, angry over the fatal police shooting of 24-year-old Jamar Clark on Nov. 15, have maintained a presence outside the police station ever since. Eddie Sutton, Jamar’s brother, issued this statement early Tuesday morning in response to the shootings: “Thank you to the community for the incredible support you have shown for our family in this difficult time. We appreciate Black Lives Matter for holding it down and keeping the protests peaceful. But in light of tonight’s shootings, the family feels out of imminent concern for the safety of the occupiers, we must get the occupation of the 4th precinct ended and onto the next step.” MARY LYNN SMITH and CLAUDE PECK ||||| Crawl of outlinks from wikipedia.org started March, 2016. These files are currently not publicly accessible. Properties of this collection. It has been several years since the last time we did this. For this collection, several things were done: 1. Turned off duplicate detection. This collection will be complete, as there is a good chance we will share the data, and sharing data with pointers to random other collections, is a complex problem. 2. For the first time, did all the different wikis. The original runs were just against the enwiki. This one, the seed list was built from all 865 collections. ||||| MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Five people were shot late Monday night near the site of an ongoing protest over the fatal shooting of a black man by a police officer, Minneapolis police said. None of the five suffered life-threatening injuries. File- This Nov. 20, 2015, file photo shows Minneapolis NAACP leader Nekima Levy-Pounds speaking at a prayer vigil n Minneapolis. Five people have been shot near the site of an ongoing protest over the... (Associated Press) The shootings occurred late Monday night about a block from the police department's 4th Precinct, where protesters have been demonstrating since the shooting of 24-year-old Jamar Clark on Nov. 15. Police Department Spokesman John Elder said in a news release that officers responded to the sound of gunshots around 10:40 p.m. and 911 calls shortly after reported five people had been shot. Dozens of officers assisted victims and secure the scene, the statement said. Elder said three victims were taken to a hospital in a private vehicle, and two were transported by ambulance. All had injuries that were not life-threatening. Mica Grimm, an organizer with Black Lives Matter who said she arrived on the scene soon after the shooting, said two of the wounded were hit in the leg, another in the arm and a fourth in the stomach. It wasn't immediately clear what prompted the shooting or how many suspects police were searching for. No one was in custody, and police are interviewing witnesses and ask that anyone with information come forward, the statement said. Oluchi Omeoga, who has been participating in protests since last Monday, witnessed the incident. Protesters saw three people wearing masks who "weren't supposed to be there," Omeoga said. Eventually, the three people left the crowd and began walking down the street, and a few protesters followed. When they reached a corner, the three people pulled out weapons and gunshots rang out, Omeoga said. The scene early Tuesday was quiet, with about 200 people milling around and talking. Campfires were lit for warmth amid freezing temperatures. One man with a bullhorn led protesters in chants of "Jamar Clark!" Clark's family, in a statement attributed to his brother Eddie Sutton and issued through U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison's office, thanked protesters for "the incredible support" they have shown the family. "But in light of tonight's shootings, the family feels out of imminent concern for the safety of the occupiers, we must get the occupation of the 4th precinct ended and onto the next step," the statement said. Black Lives Matter had previously planned to announce "next steps" on Tuesday morning following a weekend meeting with community members about strategy. Authorities have said Clark was shot during a struggle with police after he interfered with paramedics who were trying to assist an assault victim. But some people who said they saw the shooting allege Clark was handcuffed. Protesters and Clark's family have been calling for investigators to release video of the shooting. The state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension said it has video from the ambulance, a mobile police camera and other sources, but none of it shows the event in its entirety. The agency, which is conducting a state investigation, said releasing the footage now would taint its investigation. A federal criminal civil rights investigation is also underway to determine whether police intentionally violated Clark's civil rights through excessive force. ___ Associated Press writer Sarah Rankin in Chicago contributed to this report.

– Minneapolis cops are seeking three white male suspects after a Monday night shooting that injured five near a "Black Lives Matter" protest outside the Fourth Precinct police station, reports the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Per Black Lives Matter rep Miski Noor, "a group of white supremacists showed up at the protest, as they have done most nights." The New York Times cites witness reports that the suspects—some say two white men and one Asian man—were masked; bystanders claim the trio was wearing bulletproof vests, and Noor says one man was "shouting the n-word," per the New York Daily News. She notes the group "opened fire on about six protesters" after they tried to move the group away. The suspects fled, and a police rep says the five victims were taken to local hospitals for non-life-threatening injuries. "I am obviously appalled that white supremacists would open fire on nonviolent, peaceful protesters," the Minneapolis NAACP president tells the Star Tribune. The protesters have camped out in front of the police station since the fatal shooting of 24-year-old Jamar Clark earlier this month, the Star Tribune notes. But while the interloping group reportedly made previous appearances, a community activist describes the scene as becoming "really chaotic, really fast" and notes that when he heard what sounded like firecrackers, he thought, "Surely they're not shooting human beings." The Minneapolis chapter of Black Lives Matter has renounced the shootings as "white supremacist terrorism," per the Daily News. Meanwhile, in a statement issued through Rep. Keith Ellison's office, Clark's brother thanked those who've supported his family, but notes that "in light of [the] shootings, the family feels out of imminent concern for the safety of the occupiers, we must get the occupation of the 4th precinct ended and onto the next step," the AP reports. (A BLM activist was roughed up at a Donald Trump rally.)

My first boss at ABC told me I wasn’t promotable, so I’d have to put him in the category of “bad boss.” Clearly he had poor judgment. Q. How did you react to that? A. Well, when you’re 23 years old and you’re told you’re not promotable, there’s something kind of surprising to you about that, particularly when you’ve just embarked on a career and you have hopes for yourself — not necessarily high hopes, but I had hopes. I’d say it was just shocking. I don’t remember even being able to react, but I found another job very quickly, fortunately, within the company. It’s obviously a profound moment in your career. And the moment remains pretty vivid in my mind. Q. Did you change anything about the way you presented yourself? A. Well, it’s a long time ago. Of course, at 23 you think you know everything about yourself. But looking back, now that I’m 58, I don’t know whether it was conscious or not, but I must have believed in myself enough so that I didn’t really let it get to me. And I was so lucky to have had another opportunity presented to me right away. Had that not been the case, I might have reacted very differently. But I rose above it very quickly, and there was a lesson in that. I think it toughened me up a little bit more. It made me a little bit more cautious, maybe a little bit more, just generally, wary about people. I talked earlier about the need to be an optimist. It challenges your optimism a little bit, particularly when you’re just starting out in your career. Q. Do you recall an insight that put your career on a different trajectory? A. Well, as you’d expect in a 35-year career, there are twists and turns along the way. I started off wanting very much to be a newscaster. I began as a weatherman and I learned very quickly I wasn’t very good at it. I’d say the first lesson I learned is, if you’re not good at one thing, try something else. Don’t stick with something you’re not good at unless you think you could turn yourself into someone who’s good at that. Q. What career advice do you give to people? A. When you navigate the sometimes tricky waters of a big corporation, there’s a need to be really patient. When it comes to managing a career, patience is extremely important because people set goals for themselves that often are unrealistic. It’s great to do that because you want to be ambitious, but you don’t have control of a lot of circumstances. Photo And when you set these goals and they’re not met, the reasons are beyond your control, it creates impatience and you then make career decisions out of impatience. That’s a big mistake. One of my bosses once said that just when you think nothing’s going to change, everything changes. And you reach a point where you’re not sure any opportunity is going to present itself, and the next day you come in and you’re — boom — smacked in the face with some huge new opportunity you didn’t even predict was going to occur. That happened to me a number of times. Advertisement Continue reading the main story Q. When you talk to your managers about leadership, what do you tell them? A. Most of it is by example. But when I get a chance to preach a bit, which I do to some extent, I talk about the importance of patience. I talk about the need to be direct with your people. I talk frequently about the need to be accessible — very important for a leader. You’ve got to get out there, and I exhort everyone who works for me to do just that. Newsletter Sign Up Continue reading the main story Please verify you're not a robot by clicking the box. Invalid email address. Please re-enter. You must select a newsletter to subscribe to. Sign Up You agree to receive occasional updates and special offers for The New York Times's products and services. Thank you for subscribing. An error has occurred. Please try again later. View all New York Times newsletters. Q. How do you stay in touch with people throughout the company? A. It takes a lot of getting around. You have to see people, and not get too involved in too many extracurricular activities and all the other gravitational pulls that exist in the business world. When you meet people face to face, you’ve got to project an accessibility — that you can get on an elevator and actually have a conversation with someone or go to an employee cafeteria and talk with people, or stroll a floor of a building and connect with people. I make it part of my schedule to do that. I was in Orlando recently, where we have over 60,000 people. I couldn’t touch every one of them, but many of them knew I was there, because I was out seeing people and getting around, and that’s a good thing. One, you show you care. Two, it gives you an ability to hear people. But I wouldn’t hear them if I stayed at Burbank in my office all the time. Q. Let’s talk about hiring. How do you do it? A. Carefully. I try to get to know someone, and I obviously use references as an important guide as well. Warren Buffett, who was the largest shareholder of Capital Cities/ABC and someone I am fortunate to have both known and learned from, is fond of saying, “When you hire someone, you look for brains, energy and integrity, and if they don’t have the third, integrity, you better watch out, because the first two will kill you.” And so you obviously want to hire someone who’s smart and you want to hire someone who has energy, because that’s required in many of these jobs. But integrity is the most important factor. So getting to know them, getting under their skin to the extent possible, becomes important. And I also look for qualities in people beyond that. I love curiosity, particularly in our business — being curious about the world, but also being curious about your business, new business models, new technology. Q. Give me some examples of questions that you would ask to get to know somebody? A. I don’t have any tricks. I try to learn more about a person, what he does outside of work, his family, what their interests are — someone with too many interests is usually faking it. But you can quickly determine whether they’ve got a couple of interests, or one in particular that they’re really passionate about. Passion suggests some level of curiosity, by the way, too. I try to determine whether someone is interested in new technology, because technology is changing our businesses right before our eyes, particularly consumer behavior. And if you’re not curious about technology and its potential impact on your life, then you’ll have no clue what its impact might be on someone else’s life. I don’t discount nervousness, because everyone should be a little nervous when they’re interviewed, particularly if a job is important. But I like someone who’s got an ability to look me in the eye and communicate effectively, even if they don’t know me. Q. What are some things you do to manage your time effectively? A. Well, I get up very early and I get to work early. I get up at 4:30 every morning. I like the quiet time. It’s a time I can recharge my batteries a bit. I exercise and I clear my head and I catch up on the world. I read papers. I look at e-mail. I surf the Web. I watch a little TV, all at the same time. I call it my quiet time but I’m already multitasking. I love listening to music, so I’ll do that in the morning, too, when I’m exercising and watching the news. Advertisement Continue reading the main story I also have to be focused throughout the day. The comedian Dennis Miller once talked about men using remote-controlled devices, and he called them ferrets on double espressos. I try not to be a ferret on a double espresso. You need to look someone in the eye and listen to what they’re talking about and focus on the subject at hand. I admit that I fray a little bit around the edges. It’s just a balance. Q. Are you a gadget person? A. Have been all my life. I love gadgets. I’m an iPhone guy. I know that Steve Jobs is our largest shareholder, but I was an iPod and iTunes user before that. I also don’t like too many things in my pockets. I don’t like carrying things around, and the three-in-one — I have my music, I have my telephone and I have my e-mail all in one gadget that fits in my pocket. That’s sheer beauty, and that’s perfection for me. Q. Your favorite app when you want to decompress? A. I play Scrabble. I like word games. ||||| Do you enjoy sleeping in? Well we researched and found out that 85% of fortune 500 CEO’s wake up before 6 am. Is that a coincidence? If you want to maximize your success while achieving the best possible balance in your life, you may want to take a fresh look at what time you wake up and what you do with your time before getting to the office. Here is a list of what these individuals do when they wake up. STEVE REINEMUND – (CEO of PepsiCo) Is up at 5:30am down stairs with his organized papers. He reads the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times, and the Dallas Morning News. RYAN SEACREST – (American Idol Host) He wakes up at 5:30 am to go running. “I don’t stay out until 2am which everyone might think. I’m not 21 anymore I have goals I am trying to accomplish. A line in a William Blake poem inspired me to think differently about my day: ‘Think in the morning, act in the noon, read in the evening, and sleep at night.”” GERRY LAYBOURNE – (CEO of the Oxygen Channel) – She is awake by 6am and out the door by 6:30am. However, she adds a unique twist to her schedule: “Once or twice a week, I go for a walk in Central Park with a young person seeking my advice. This is my way of helping bring along the next generation. And if someone is up early in the morning then they are serious about life. I can’t take time at the office to do this, but doing it in the morning allows me to get exercise and stay connected with young people at the same time.” HAIM SABAN – (chairman and CEO of Saban Capital Group) He starts email right after his first cup of coffee at ‘6:02 a.m.’ and works it for about an hour before his 75 minute morning exercise regimen. PADMASREE WARRIOR – (Chief Technology Officer for Motorola) She rises at 4:30 a.m., spends an hour on email, reads most of the news online, and then does an hour of either cardio or resistance training each morning. This allows her to get her son read for school and drop him off, and still get to work by 8 or 8:30 in the morning. STEPHEN KING – (author) – I wake up between 6am and 7am and begin writing not a minute later than 8am. “I have my vitamin pill and my music, sit in the same seat, and the papers are all arranged in the same places.” MATT OUIMET, (president Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide) He rises at 5:30 a.m. and leaves the house at 6 a.m. to get to the office very early — “I’ve always been anxious to get to work: game time.” C.S. LEWIS – (author) He awakes by 6:30am to go on a walk either alone or by himself. “I would choose always to breakfast at exactly eight and to be at my desk by nine, there to read or write till one.” FRED ROGERS – (Mr. Rogers Neighborhood) Mr. Rogers is awake by 5am but will sometimes think in bed until 5:30am. Nearly every morning of his life, Mister Rogers would go swimming. (Excerpts taken from finance.yahoo.com/expert/article/leadership/23188 and http://www.ceoread.com) ||||| He inherited the most valuable company in the world from one of the greatest innovators in history. In 2012 he made Apple his own Marco Grob for TIME Tim Cook has the decidedly nontrivial distinction of being the first CEO of Apple since the very first to come to power without blood on his hands. For most of its history, Apple has had a succession problem: it had no internal mechanism for transferring power from one CEO to the next without descending into civil war in between. “Each time,” Cook says, “the way that the CEO was named was when somebody got fired and a new one came in.” This clearly bothered Steve Jobs, because he spoke to Cook about it shortly before he died. “Steve wanted the CEO transition to be professional,” Cook says. “That was his top thing when he decided to become chairman. I had every reason to believe, and I think he thought, that that was going to be in a long time.” As we now know, it wasn’t. (Interactive Timeline: Tim Cook and the Rise of Apple) As long as he was handpicking his successor, you’d think Jobs would have chosen someone in his own image, but he and Cook, who was Jobs’ COO at Apple, are in a lot of ways diametrical opposites. Jobs was loud, brash, unpredictable, uninhibited and very often unshaven. Cook isn’t. He doesn’t look like the CEO of Apple, he looks more like an Apple product: quiet, tidy, carefully curated, meticulously tooled and at the same time strangely warm and inviting. He doesn’t look like Jobs, he looks like something Jobs would have made. Cook’s flawless cap of white hair could have been designed by Jony Ive and fabricated in China out of brushed aluminum. And like an Apple product, Cook runs smooth and fast. When Jobs died on Oct. 5, 2011, of pancreatic cancer, there were questions about whether Cook could lead Apple. Some, myself included, wondered whether Apple was even a viable company without Jobs. Since then Cook has gone about his business apparently unintimidated by his role as successor to one of the greatest innovators in history. Cook’s record hasn’t been flawless, but he has presided in a masterly way over both a thorough, systematic upgrading of each of the company’s major product lines and a run-up in the company’s financial fortunes that can only be described as historic. Cover Photograph by Marco Grob for TIME On the day Jobs died, Apple was valued at $351 billion; at press time its market cap stood at $488 billion, more than that of Google and Microsoft. That’s and as in plus: Apple is now worth significantly more than those companies combined. Apple’s cash hoard alone comes to more than $120 billion. It was news in 2011 when Apple passed Exxon Mobil to become the world’s most valuable company. Now Exxon Mobil can barely see Apple’s taillights in the distance, across an $83 billion lead. And Cook has done it his way. Jobs was famously over the top: he came at you from across the room, flashing his lightning-bolt eyebrows, and he browbeat you till you either agreed with him or pretended to, just to make him for God’s sake stop. That’s not how Cook operates. He’s a seducer, a Southern drawler, slow and soft-spoken. He has been observed winking. He doesn’t come at you; he waits for you to come to him. And sooner or later you do, not because you have to but because, dang it, you want to. Cook himself is reluctant to lean too hard on the contrast. “I think there’s some obvious differences,” he says. (He allows himself a chuckle at the understatement.) “The way we conduct ourselves is very different. I decided from negative time zero — a long time before he talked to me about his decision to pass the CEO title — that I was going to be my own self. That’s the only person that I could do a good job with being.” (LIST: 10 Key Moments in Apple’s History) That’s what Jobs wanted. He didn’t want Cook to be a Jobs knockoff. He wanted Cook to be Cook. “He said, ‘From this day forward, never ask what I would do. Just do what’s right.’ I brought up a couple of examples: ‘Suppose A — do you really want me to make the call?’ Yes. Yes! He talked about Disney and what he saw had happened to Disney [after Walt Disney died], and he didn’t want it to happen to Apple.” Cook does have a few things in common with Jobs. He’s a workaholic, and not of the recovering kind. He wakes up at 3:45 every morning (“Yes, every morning”), does e-mail for an hour, stealing a march on those lazy East Coasters three time zones ahead of him, then goes to the gym, then Starbucks (for more e-mail), then work. “The thing about it is, when you love what you do, you don’t really think of it as work. It’s what you do. And that’s the good fortune of where I find myself.” (Special Report: The Cult of Apple in China) ||||| Tim Cook wakes up incredibly early, and he's happy about it. Reuters/Lucy Nicholson They say the early bird catches the worm, and research suggests there might be some truth to the old adage. Waking up with (or before) the sun allows executives like AOL's Tim Armstrong and Pepsi's Indra Nooyi to get a head start on the day, knocking out tasks before the rest of the world has rolled out of bed. Those "extra" hours also give them a chance to do some creative thinking, fit in a workout, and spend time with family. Ahead, 24 early risers who may convince you never to hit snooze again. Max Nisen and Aaron Taube contributed to earlier versions of this article.

– Owls, hang your heads in shame. And larks—well, you may not be as lark-like as you think you are. Business Insider has compiled a list of 24 uber-successful luminaries who laugh in the face of the snooze button and rise before the sun to cross a bunch of items off their to-do lists before they even start their morning commute. Here, five early risers and their oh-dark-thirty routines: Tim Cook, 3:45am: The Apple CEO goes through email, hits the gym, takes care of more email at Starbucks, then goes to work. "The thing about it is, when you love what you do, you don't really think of it as work," he tells Time. Bob Iger, 4:30am: The Disney CEO thinks of the early hours as a "quiet time" before work, for exercising, listening to tunes, reading the paper, checking email, and watching TV—all at the same time. "It's a time I can recharge my batteries a bit," he told the New York Times. Brett Yormark, 3:30am: The Brooklyn Nets CEO told SellingPower.com that he's in the office by 4:30am so he can send motivational email to his staff (part of a "who can get up the earliest" competition with his brother, Michael, the ex-CEO of the Florida Panthers). He doesn't roll into work until 7am on weekends. Sallie Krawcheck, 4am: The former Citigroup CFO makes stumbling out of bed sound so relaxing. "I brew a cup of coffee, I keep the lights pretty low, I sometimes light a fire in the fireplace," she said in a LinkedIn post, noting that's the time when she's most creative. She admits she's "out of gas by about 8pm." Geraldine Laybourne, 6am: The ex-Oxygen Media CEO is out the door by 6:30, sometimes looking for young people to give advice to during her weekly walks in Central Park. "If someone is up early in the morning, then they are serious about life," she has said. Read the full list at Business Insider.

Orlando Health and Florida Hospital will not bill survivors of the Pulse nightclub massacre for out-of-pocket medical expenses, officials announced Wednesday. Instead, the hospitals will write off an estimated $5.5 million or more in care. "The pulse shooting was a horrendous tragedy for the victims, their families and our entire community," Orlando Health President and CEO David Strong said. "During this very trying time, many organizations, individuals and charities have reached out to Orlando Health to show their support. This is simply our way of paying that kindness forward." Its main hospital — Orlando Regional Medical Center — treated 44 of the more than 50 victims who needed immediate medical attention from the June 12 attack that killed 49 people. The nightclub is only a couple of blocks from the Level 1 trauma center. Nine of the Pulse patients died shortly after arriving at ORMC, and their families also will not be charged, hospital officials said. One victim remains hospitalized there. At Orlando Health, bills will be sent to health insurers for patients who had coverage, but whatever those policies don't cover will be absorbed by the hospital chain, said spokeswoman Kena Lewis. At Florida Hospital, which treated a dozen of the clubgoers, officials said they would not even bill the victims' insurance for the treatment, nor will they bill for follow-up surgeries the survivors may need. "It was incredible to see how our community came together in the wake of the senseless Pulse shooting," said Daryl Tol, Florida Hospital's president and CEO. "We hope this gesture can add to the heart and goodwill that defines Orlando." Survivors welcomed the news. "I was so worried because I can't afford any of that," said Mario Lopez, 34, who was visiting from Miami when he went to the club after a friend's housewarming party. (Naseem S. Miller) "I just went out for a fun night with friends. No one expected this to happen. My life was turned upside down, and then I had to worry about how I was going to pay back the hospital." Lopez, who is uninsured, was grazed by a bullet and had fragments explode into his left side. After he was hit, he fell and split his elbow on a shard of glass. His seven-hour hospital visit left him with a new nightmare: a potential $20,000-bill. "It's a huge relief" to know he won't have to pay, he said. At Orlando Health, Lewis said the hospital would work with victims who will need future surgeries as a result of the shootings. "We can't predict the future needs of these patients, their financial situations or what the state or federal governments may require us to do for charity policies," she said. "While we can't assume the answer is free care forever, we will use our very generous charity and financial assistance policies to assess the best way" to help. As it is, the hospital chain is expecting to shoulder at least $5 million in unreimbursed care for the Pulse victims, many of whom had extensive injuries, Lewis said. Florida Hospital officials said the bills there totaled more than $525,000. As for Lopez, his physical wounds are healing, he said, but the emotional trauma still feels raw at times. "It's tough," he said. "Each day, I have my moments." ksantich@orlandosentinel.com, @katesantich, 407-420-5503 chayes@orlandosentinel.com, @Journo_Christal, 407-420-5493 ||||| The Costs Of The Pulse Nightclub Shooting Enlarge this image toggle caption John Raoux/AP John Raoux/AP Mario Perez lives in Miami, but he was in Orlando for a housewarming party Saturday, June 11. After the party, the 34-year-old went to the Pulse nightclub for Latin night. At 2 a.m., he heard gunshots. Loud. He knew it was real. "And the minute he started shooting, I got hit from the side, I got grazed by a bullet," Perez says. "My first instinct was to fall to the floor, that's what you're taught to do." He heard gunshot after gunshot after gunshot — too many to count. But then there was a brief break in the firing, and Perez ran out the back of the club. He hid inside the kitchen of a nearby 7-Eleven until police and paramedics showed up. He was taken to Orlando Regional Medical Center, and was at the emergency room from 3 a.m. until 8 a.m. The gunshot wound on his side is purple and swollen, and he has nerve damage from the bullet fragment. He cut his elbow from glass on the floor of the nightclub and needed six stitches. Perez doesn't know how much bills coming from specialists, X-rays and tests might cost him. But his bill from Orlando Regional Medical Center's emergency department is $20,000. "$20,000," Perez said. "That's the quote, that's what they told me." Perez has no health insurance. He's working for a temp agency right now and doesn't have the money to be seen by a doctor for follow-up care in Miami. So just how much will the Pulse nightclub shooting cost all of the victims? It's a difficult, if not impossible question to answer right now. At last check, 56 people had been brought to the hospital, including three patients who spent two weeks in the intensive care unit, and one patient who is still in the hospital in critical condition. Embry Howell, a senior fellow at the Urban Institute, a think tank in Washington, D.C., studied the average cost of a gunshot victim in 2010. Using that benchmark, she estimates the hospital costs from the Pulse shooting will be about $1 million. "And I would imagine that would be an underestimate," Howell said. Howell said many of the victims may be in the same boat as Mario Perez: uninsured. "They're young, primarily Latino and living in Florida," she says, a state that has not expanded Medicaid to its population. "My guess would be you have a high rate of uninsured," she concludes. Ted Miller, a researcher with the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation, has been studying the cost of firearm injuries for more than two decades. He used the 2011 shooting of former U.S. Rep. Gabby Giffords and 18 others in Arizona to make what he calls a conservative estimate: $4 to $7 million in medical costs and mental health costs for victims and survivors of people who died. That's lifetime medical costs for the survivors, the costs of surgery and rehab — but it doesn't count long-term costs for those who are severely injured. "They said some time ago that there were six people in ICU who would have longtime, serious consequences," Miller said. "And my guess is most of those folks will have traumatic brain injuries that will have continuing lifetime care." Miller also makes a broader estimate beyond just the medical costs. That includes the cost of the police response, the cost to employers — and the dollar value of those 49 lost lives. "I estimate that the total cost of the Orlando shooting is around $385 to $390 million," Miller says. "To put that in context, on that same day, the cost of other gunshot wounds in the U.S. was probably about $600 million. So about 1 1/2 times the cost of the Orlando incident. That tells you that there are a lot of people killed and injured by firearms every day in this country," he says. And, he explains, "Suicide deaths account for the largest share of gun violence costs." Miller's $385 million estimate doesn't include the cost of mental health counseling for people who were in the club but not physically shot — and friends and family of those there. And then there's the cost of fear: people being afraid to go out to a dance club, or maybe skipping a visit to the theme parks. Orlando Regional received 44 of the shooting victims. A hospital spokeswoman says some patients have insurance coverage, some don't. The hospital is going to look for payment sources from the community or the state, such as victim funds that are raising money across the country. But she says the hospital expects unreimbursed costs of more than $5 million. Pulse shooting victim Mario Perez is calculating his personal costs. He's worried he's going to lose his job. He's anxious knowing millions of dollars have been raised to help victims, but his bills are arriving now. He started his own GoFundMe campaign, but it's only raised about $600. "As long as it gets covered, I'm going to be fine," Perez said. "If they don't cover it, I'm stuck in a hole. I don't know what I'm going to be able to do if they don't assist me." This story is part of a reporting partnership with NPR, Health News Florida and Kaiser Health News.

– They were fortunate enough to survive a gunman’s rampage that killed 49 others at an Orlando nightclub. But in the weeks following the June 12 massacre at Pulse, many survivors who needed medical treatment found themselves living another nightmare. Besides haunting memories, they suffered debilitating injuries that required painful surgeries and ongoing care. Some were uninsured. Now, Orlando hospitals are offering relief. Orlando Health and Florida Hospital announced Wednesday they will forgive an estimated $5.5 million in unpaid medical bills, the Orlando Sentinel reports. "We hope this gesture can add to the heart and goodwill that defines Orlando," says Florida Hospital CEO Daryl Tol. NPR reported last month that when long-term care is factored in, medical bills of Pulse survivors could reach $390 million. Blocks away from the nightclub, Orlando Regional Medical Center treated 44 shooting victims. One survivor remains hospitalized there. The hospital, run by Orlando Health, will bill insurance companies but cover any remaining costs, a spokeswoman said. The families of nine people who died there will not be sent a bill. Florida Hospital said it won’t bill the insurance companies of the dozen club-goers treated there, and all future care will be covered as well. Survivors welcomed the news. "I was so worried because I can't afford any of that," Mario Lopez tells the Sentinel. Lopez, 34, was hit with bullet fragments on the left side and has no insurance to cover a $20,000 ER bill. "It’s a huge relief."

Speaking in Aston, Pa., Sept. 13, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump rolled out his child-care policy as his daughter Ivanka stood by his side. (The Washington Post) Donald Trump released Tuesday a paid maternity leave plan — the first from a Republican presidential nominee. The measure, a pillar of the real estate mogul’s child-care proposal, bears close resemblance to an idea floated by Bill Clinton in 1999. Trump’s plan would guarantee six weeks of paid maternity leave to women; currently, federal policy provides only 12 weeks of unpaid time off. He would fund the change by tweaking the unemployment insurance employers must provide under federal law, according to the campaign. The country’s Federal-State Unemployment Insurance supplies benefits to workers who lose their job through no fault of their own. What that means varies by state, but the state-run program generally covers workers who are laid off. Trump’s proposal would open the aid to new mothers, who often miss wages as life’s expenses surge. Employers would not absorb the burden, Trump aides said, because reductions in the existing program would offset the cost. Advocates for working families in the late 1990s called a version of this concept baby unemployment insurance, or “Baby UI.” The first iteration emerged in Vermont, where policymakers saw the legislation as a way to boost working mothers, the breadwinners in a growing number of American households. It never passed, but Vermont legislators sought the federal Labor Department's approval in hopes the model would spread nationwide. At the time, Clinton told former Labor Secretary Alexis Herman to draft regulations allowing states to grant unemployment insurance benefits to new parents. The Labor Department’s resulting Baby UI plan, released in 2000, allowed states to fund both maternity and paternity leave for 12 weeks. By 2003, however, the movement chilled. The Bush administration rescinded the policy, insisting it would hurt employers, stifle business and put women at risk of employment discrimination. Trump’s spin on Baby UI would be cheaper than the design Clinton backed. Mothers would be eligible for the new safety-net if their workplace lacked the benefit. Fathers, however, would not qualify. The program would cover half the time Democrats fought for 17 years ago — six weeks instead of 12. Trump said he would eliminate fraud within the program to keep the cost down, the Post's Robert Costa reported, though the Trump campaign did not specify how that would work. On Tuesday, Trump aides addressed the long-held conservative concerns about using unemployment insurance to fund maternity leave. In a campaign memo shared with The Post, they said women who intend to have children would not become “less desirable” to employers. The program reductions would pay for the change without raising taxes, staffers said, so hiring a potential mother would not add to a business’s costs. Economist Heidi Hartmann, president of the nonpartisan Institute for Women’s Policy Research, said the plan would still single out women by extending guaranteed paid leave to only one gender. But she welcomes the conversation, which she said was previously silent on the right. “It’s great that a Republican candidate for president is indicating support for paid maternity leave,” Hartman said. “It’s also interesting that Trump is proposing half of Bill Clinton’s idea from the year 2000.” Michael Tanner, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute, a right-leaning think tank in Washington, D.C., said Trump’s plan isn’t free — it’s a government program expansion, dressed up to look fiscally conservative. “Someone’s going to pay that cost,” he said. “Arguably it’s the employer. The reality is the costs are always passed on to the employee in one way or another. Ultimately, you'll have men or women who don't have children paying for women who do.” That could mean lost vacation time, Tanner said, or lower wages. Hillary Clinton has proposed 12 weeks of paid family leave funded through tax increases on the wealthy. Trump first mentioned the plight of working families last month in a Detroit speech on the economy, pledging to make childcare tax-free. Both his eldest daughter, 34-year-old Ivanka Trump, and campaign manager, veteran Republican strategist Kellyanne Conway, have urged him to roll out policy ideas that support working mothers. Advocates generally applaud Trump’s focus on working family issues — with caveats. “It's great to see candidates addressing the need for paid leave, given that the U.S. is at the very bottom of the world's nations when it comes to affordable time to care,” Ellen Bravo, executive director of Family Values @ Work, said in a statement. “But we need to remember that it's not just pregnant women who welcome new children. Fathers and adoptive parents need time as well.” More on Wonkblog: Inside Donald Trump's strategy to win over women Ivanka Trump's clothing designer does not offer paid maternity leave What Donald Trump doesn't understand about calling women beautiful ||||| Trump Campaign Sketches Out Family Care Plans; Questions Linger Over Funding Enlarge this image toggle caption John Moore/Getty Images John Moore/Getty Images Donald Trump is once again taking the fight to Democrats and Hillary Clinton. During a week in which the Republican presidential nominee has been attacking Clinton for disparaging half of his supporters as "deplorables," Trump plans to roll out a new proposal that treads deep into the core issues that Clinton and other Democrats regularly campaign on: making child care more accessible and affordable. In a speech Tuesday evening in suburban Philadelphia, Trump is expected, according to campaign aides, to go into more detail on a proposal he originally laid out last month in a wide-ranging economic speech — allowing parents to deduct the average cost of child care from their taxes. How the plan works Trump's expanded plan would allow parents to deduct the average cost of child care from their taxes. The campaign says this is focused on "working and middle-class families," though its income caps — $250,000 for individuals and $500,000 for couples — far exceed most people's definition of working class. After his economic speech last month, Trump was criticized for a plan that didn't do anything for those who don't earn enough to pay federal income taxes. They wouldn't be able to take advantage of the deductions, and because child care costs what it costs, it has an outsize impact on the poor. To address this, Trump's campaign unveiled child care rebates — up to $1,200, staffers say — to provide benefits to people who currently don't earn enough to pay federal income taxes. The Trump campaign says that stay-at-home parents would also be eligible for the same tax deductions working parents currently receive. As CNBC found in its analysis when Trump's plan was unveiled last month, Trump's plan "would create a substantial tax break for working parents, but further widen the deficit." That's because: "On average, households with a woman working outside her home and taking care of a child under 15 paid an average $127 a week on child care, according to a Census Bureau analysis of 2010 data. That works out to about $6,600 a year. With some 24 million households in that category, the child-care tax break would cost the government $158 billion a year. "For families paying for child care, the current tax break offers little relief. Only 3.5 million tax returns claimed the existing child-care tax credit for the 2010 tax year, according to IRS data, saving those households $1.9 billion. (Nearly 10 million returns claimed a separate tax credit for all parents, whether or not the family had child-care expenses, for another $14 billion in tax savings.) "So total out-of-pocket child-care costs amounted to about $142 billion, which a Trump administration would either have to make up with higher taxes or add to the budget deficit." Along with all this, the campaign is now promising to "guarantee" six weeks of paid maternity leave. (Paternity leave is not mentioned.) Clinton's proposal would be open to fathers as well. She also wants to institute a hard cap on families' child care costs, at 10 percent of their overall income. Tax-free savings accounts Trump would also create a Dependent Care Savings Account, which would allow "tax-deductible contributions and tax-free appreciation year-to-year," according to a campaign-provided fact sheet. What's more, the government would match half of the first $1,000 deposited per year. That could come at a whopping cost. There are some 124 million households in the U.S., about 43 percent of which include children. That's more than 50 million households. If all of those families put in $1,000 per year, it would cost the government $25 billion annually. Even if half of all families contributed to it, that's still a big price tag, and the Trump campaign outlines no way to pay for it. Not to mention that that kind of benefit doesn't help the families who can't afford to put that much in per year. Trump campaign policy adviser Stephen Miller told NPR's Sarah McCammon that a Trump administration would focus on fraud to finance the family leave portion. Miller's estimate was $5.3 billion in unemployment insurance fraud, which the campaign believes it can recoup half of. Republicans wary of increasing government spending frequently suggest funding new proposals by saying they will eliminate fraud. "We estimate we can easily recover $2.5 [billion] for paid leave," Miller said. That still would leave a sizable gap in how to pay for the overall plan. Miller added, "The rest is paid for through comprehensive tax and economic reform." And the campaign believes it would be "deficit-neutral." But if that's based on "growth," that can always be a murky calculation. Trump has already overhauled his tax plan once during this election campaign. One outside analysis of his initial tax plan estimated a 10-year cost to taxpayers of $9.5 trillion. An economic adviser to Trump estimated in August his updated plan would cost $3 trillion over a decade. The Trump campaign says Trump's daughter Ivanka was deeply involved in coming up with this proposal. It echoes a notable line from her speech at the Republican National Convention in July, when she told Republicans that Trump would "focus on making quality child care affordable and accessible for all." Democrats have long pushed for guaranteed paid family leave, but many Republicans in Congress have been resistant because of the cost to employers. ||||| Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump proposed new subsidies for child care in Philadelphia on Tuesday evening, hoping to reach out to women and suburban swing voters. Photo: Getty Images ASTON, Pa.—Donald Trump proposed new federal subsidies for child care, including tax deductions, rebates for lower-income households and tax-preferred savings accounts, as well as a promise of paid maternity leave for workers who don’t have it. The proposal, unveiled at a speech outside Philadelphia on Tuesday evening, is the latest move by the Republican presidential nominee to build up a policy agenda that has been short on detail. The child-care proposal could help Mr. Trump appeal to blocs of voters who have resisted him,...

– Donald Trump says he has gone where no GOP presidential nominee has gone before with promises of paid maternity leave and federal subsidies for child care. Accompanied by his daughter, Ivanka, Trump unveiled his plan in a speech outside Philadelphia on Tuesday evening, the Wall Street Journal reports. His campaign says the estimated $2.5 billion cost of providing six weeks of paid maternity leave through unemployment benefits will be covered by reducing waste elsewhere in the program. He promised to make child care tax-deductible for couples making less than $500,000, and give "spending rebates" of up to $1,200 to lower-income families. A roundup of coverage: NPR takes a close look at the plan—which also includes special savings accounts for caring for children and elderly relatives—and at how the Trump campaign says it will pay for it. The funding plan involves "comprehensive tax and economic reform," according to a campaign spokesman. The Washington Post notes that Trump's paid maternity leave looks a lot like the "Baby UI" plan that Bill Clinton supported in 1999, which the Bush administration rolled back in 2003. Fiscal conservatives aren't happy about what they see as an expansion of government spending, though the New York Times reports that social conservatives are pleased that Trump's plan includes tax credits for stay-at-home moms. "My opponent has no child care plan," Trump said. Politico, however, notes that Hillary Clinton's plan includes 12 weeks of paid maternity leave, to be paid for by raising taxes on the rich.

Published on Feb 4, 2018 Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Nick Foles splits out wide and makes the touchdown snag against the New England Patriots during Super Bowl LII. Watch full games with NFL Game Pass: https://www.nfl.com/gamepass?campaign... Sign up for Fantasy Football! http://www.nfl.com/fantasyfootball Subscribe to NFL: http://j.mp/1L0bVBu The NFL YouTube channel is your home for immediate in-game highlights from your favorite teams and players, full NFL games, behind the scenes access and more! Check out our other channels: NFL Network http://www.youtube.com/nflnetwork NFL Films http://www.youtube.com/nflfilms For all things NFL, visit the league's official website at http://www.nfl.com/ Watch NFL Now: https://www.nfl.com/now Listen to NFL podcasts: http://www.nfl.com/podcasts Watch the NFL network: http://nflnonline.nfl.com/ Download the NFL mobile app: https://www.nfl.com/apps 2017 NFL Schedule: http://www.nfl.com/schedules Buy tickets to watch your favorite team: http://www.nfl.com/tickets Shop NFL: http://www.nflshop.com/source/bm-nflc... Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NFL Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NFL Follow us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/nfl/ Find us on Snapchat ||||| Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Nick Foles catches a pass for a touchdown against the New England Patriots during the first half of the NFL Super Bowl 52 football game Sunday, Feb. 4, 2018, in Minneapolis.... (Associated Press) Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Nick Foles catches a pass for a touchdown against the New England Patriots during the first half of the NFL Super Bowl 52 football game Sunday, Feb. 4, 2018, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Eric Gay) (Associated Press) MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Latest from the Super Bowl (all times local): 7:15 p.m. Nick Foles caught a 1-yard touchdown pass from tight end Trey Burton on a fourth-down trick play, and the Philadelphia Eagles have a 22-12 halftime lead over the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl. The Foles score came after Tom Brady dropped an over-the-shoulder catch on a trick play for New England on an earlier drive that ended in a failed fourth-down play. With 34 seconds left in the half, Foles lined up at quarterback before shifting behind the right side of the offensive line as Corey Clement took the snap. Foles paused at the line of scrimmage before running to the end zone as Burton took a reverse pitch from Clement. Burton was recruited as a quarterback at Florida. Foles and Tennessee's Marcus Mariota are the only quarterbacks to throw and catch a touchdown in the playoffs since at least 1950. The Eagles answered a 26-yard scoring run by James White that pulled the Patriots within three. Stephen Gostowski missed the PAT kick. Earlier, the Eagles' Jake Elliott missed and the Eagles failed on a 2-point conversion. White, who had three touchdowns and a 2-point conversion in last year's Super Bowl win over Atlanta, has 26 career points in the Super Bowl. That's fourth all time behind Jerry Rice (48), Adam Vinatieri (34) and Emmitt Smith (30). ___ 6:45 p.m. New England Patriots wide receiver Brandin Cooks is out for the rest of the Super Bowl with a concussion. Cooks was wide open early in the second quarter underneath the Philadelphia zone, when he caught Tom Brady's pass, pivoted and danced back and forth to try to extend the play. He didn't see Eagles safety Michael Jenkins coming, though, and was knocked to the turf with a legal-but-jarring hit by Jenkins. Cooks was barely moving for several seconds, before sitting up and slowly walking off the field. The Patriots soon announced he was out for the remainder of the game with a head injury. This leaves Brady without one of his most important targets. Cooks was second on the team during the regular season with 1,082 yards and seven touchdowns, a critical contribution amid the absence of wide receiver Julian Edelman. The first Super Bowl of Cooks' career was a short but rough one. He took a jet-sweep handoff in the first quarter and tried to hurdle Eagles safety Rodney McLeod hit him in the groin area and slammed him backward to the turf at the 8-yard line after only a 1-yard gain on third-and-2. Then Patriots kicker Stephen Gronkowski had a 26-yard field goal try bounce off the left upright after a mishandled snap. —:— 6:35 p.m. Turns out Tom Brady's not quite as good on the other end of a pass, and Philadelphia's lead is growing. Brady botched an attempted over-the-shoulder catch on a throw from receiver Danny Amendola on a trick play. The Patriots went for it on fourth-and-5 after that play, and Brady's throw to Rob Gronkowski was knocked away by Philadelphia's Jalen Mills. Six plays later, LeGarrette Blount scored on a 21-yard run. The 2-point conversion pass attempt by Nick Foles fell incomplete, leaving the Eagles' lead at 15-3. Earlier in New England's drive, Brandin Cooks stayed motionless on the field for about a minute after a hard blindside hit to the head from Malcolm Jenkins at the end of a 23-yard catch. It was announced that Cooks wouldn't return. ___ 6:08 p.m. Nick Foles isn't having any trouble moving the Philadelphia offense against the defending champion New England Patriots. Foles threw a 34-yard touchdown pass to a leaping Alshon Jeffery in the back of the end zone to give the Eagles a 9-3 lead in the first quarter. Jake Elliott missed his fifth PAT kick of the season, going wide right. Foles was 8 of 11 for 102 yards on the first two Philadelphia possessions. The Patriots matched the Eagles' field goal on the opening drive. It was the first time in eight Super Bowls with Tom Brady and Bill Belichick that New England scored in the first quarter. ___ 6 p.m. Tom Brady and the New England Patriots have finally scored points in the first quarter of a Super Bowl. The Patriots answered an opening field goal by the Philadelphia Eagles with Stephen Gostkowski's 26-yarder for a 3-3 tie on New England's first possession. It's the first time in eight Super Bowl appearances that the Patriots have scored in the first quarter with Brady and coach Bill Belichick. The key plays were Brady's completions of 28 yards to Chris Hogan and 15 yards to running back James White. Both teams drove 67 yards to their first points. ___ 5:45 p.m. A Metro Transit spokesman says 17 people were taken away after they blocked a light-rail line carrying Super Bowl ticketholders to the stadium. Howie Padilla says no one was hurt in the protest, which blocked trains for about two hours ahead of Sunday's kickoff. Metro Transit had buses standing by to get ticketholders to the stadium in time. The activists said they were protesting police brutality, as well as the light-rail trains being taken over by Super Bowl spectators rather than being available to ordinary citizens. Padilla says Metro Transit doesn't expect the 17 activists to face charges. He says Metro Transit respects people's right to free speech and demonstration. ___ 5:44 p.m. The Philadelphia Eagles have settled for Jake Elliott's 25-yard field goal and a 3-0 lead over the New England Patriots on the opening drive of the Super Bowl. The Eagles had a first down at the 5 after Corey Clement's 16-yard gain on a catch and run. But a penalty and two incomplete passes forced Philadelphia to settle for the field goal. The Patriots will take over looking for their first points in the first quarter in eight Super Bowl appearances with quarterback Tom Brady. Quarterback Nick Foles had completions of 17 yards to Alshon Jeffery and 15 yards to Torrey Smith the play after Smith had a drop on second down. ___ 5:27 p.m. The New England Patriots have won the opening coin toss for the Super Bowl and have deferred to the second half. The Philadelphia Eagles will start the game with the ball and hope to be the first team to score on the opening possession of the Super Bowl since Devin Hester returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown for Chicago against Indianapolis in the 2007 game. ___ 5:25 p.m. No players from New England and Philadelphia were kneeling or sitting during the national anthem before the Super Bowl. Nearly all the Patriots stood in line with their right hands over their hearts during Pink's singing of the Star-Spangled Banner. ___ 5 p.m. Police in Minneapolis have removed protesters who locked themselves across a light-rail line near U.S. Bank Stadium, temporarily halting trains carrying fans to the Super Bowl. Live footage from the scene Sunday showed police working to unlock or cut locks the protesters had used at the stop near the University of Minnesota's West Bank station. That's about a half-mile from the stadium. The footage showed protesters in zip ties waiting to board a bus to be carried from the scene. Protesters blocked the line shortly after 2 p.m., saying they were protesting police brutality as well as the light-rail line being turned over to Super Bowl fans for the day. Metro Transit was busing fans the rest of the way to the game. ___ 4:45 p.m. Carson Wentz is throwing passes in warm-ups for the Philadelphia Eagles. The injured quarterback was walking gingerly and not stepping into the throws as he worked alongside starter Nick Foles. Wentz tore a ligament in his left knee against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 14. Foles led playoff wins against Atlanta and Minnesota. Foles is trying to join Bob Griese, Doug Williams and Jeff Hostetler as backups to win Super Bowls after starting no more than five games during the regular season. The Eagles are playing the New England Patriots, who are trying to win their sixth Super Bowl with quarterback Tom Brady. ___ 4:29 p.m. President Donald Trump is expressing appreciation for U.S. service members, who he says make occasions like Super Bowl Sunday possible. Trump said that, while many service members can't be home to enjoy the American tradition with family and friends, "they are always in our thoughts and prayers." He said they're owed the "greatest respect for defending our liberty and our American way of life" and their sacrifice is "stitched into each star and every stripe of our Star-Spangled Banner." Trump also said: "We hold them in our hearts and thank them for our freedom as we proudly stand for the National Anthem." The president has been critical of NFL players who kneel during the national anthem to protest unfair police treatment of minorities, calling it disrespectful to service members. — Darlene Superville reporting from West Palm Beach, Florida ___ 4:20 p.m. Winning the NFL MVP award might not be a great omen for Tom Brady. The last eight winners of the AP MVP award to reach the Super Bowl have lost the game, including Brady in the 2007 season against the New York Giants. The other MVPs to lose the big game since Kurt Warner did the regular season-Super Bowl MVP double in the 1999 season for the Rams are: Warner (2001), Rich Gannon (2002), Shaun Alexander (2005), Peyton Manning (2009 and 2013), Cam Newton (2015) and Matt Ryan (2016). Brady would rather join Warner, Steve Young (1994), Emmitt Smith (1993), Joe Montana (1989), Terry Bradshaw (1978) and Bart Starr (1966) as the players to win the regular season and Super Bowl MVPs in the same season. — Josh Dubow ___ 3:55 p.m. Conspiracy theorists had a field day when New England was penalized just once in the AFC championship game against Jacksonville. But there hasn't been a huge discrepancy in playoff penalties in Patriots games during Bill Belichick's time as coach. The Patriots have been penalized an average of 4.7 times per game in the playoffs since 2001 for 37.5 yards, only slightly lower than the opponents' 5.1 penalties for 41.9 yards. New England has thrived when it avoids penalties in the playoffs, winning 15 of 17 games when called for fewer penalties than the opposition. That compares to 3-1 when the total penalties are even and 9-6 when the Patriots have more penalties. The Patriots are going for their sixth Super Bowl title against Philadelphia. — Josh Dubow ___ 3:40 p.m. A small group of activists protesting police brutality have shut down a light-rail line carrying fans to the Super Bowl in Minneapolis. About 30 activists walked onto the city's Green Line at the Stadium Village stop shortly after 2 p.m. Sunday, stopping trains in both directions. The line runs from downtown St. Paul to the heart of Minneapolis, and is a main way some fans are getting to the game between the New England Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles. Chinyere Tutashinda, a spokeswoman for the activists, says some chained themselves along the track. Metro Transit spokesman Howie Padilla says the agency has contingency plans to get riders the rest of the way to U.S. Bank Stadium. He says he's confident they'll be there for kickoff. ___ 3 p.m. CT The coldest Super Bowl Sunday won't be felt inside cozy U.S. Bank Stadium. The overnight temperature in Minneapolis reached minus-6 degrees and was up to 2 degrees around four hours before kickoff between the New England Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles. The coldest previous range was the Detroit Super Bowl in 1982, with a low of 5 degrees and a high of 16 when it was played at the Silverdome. There was a chance for the Minneapolis high to reach 5 on Sunday. When the Super Bowl was in Minnesota at the Metrodome in 1992, the outside temperature at kickoff was 26 degrees. That's the average high here for Feb. 4. The coldest outdoor game in Super Bowl history was in New Orleans at Tulane Stadium in 1972, when the kickoff temperature was 39 degrees. ___ For more AP NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP_NFL

– The Eagles went into the half with a 22-12 Super Bowl lead thanks to a brave play call. Quarterback Nick Foles caught a 1-yard touchdown pass from tight end Trey Burton on fourth down late in the second quarter. Watch it here. The odd TD came after Tom Brady dropped an over-the-shoulder catch on a trick play for New England on an earlier drive that ended in a failed fourth-down play, per the AP. With 34 seconds left in the half, Foles lined up at quarterback before shifting behind the right side of the offensive line as Corey Clement took the snap. Foles paused at the line of scrimmage before running to the end zone as Burton took a reverse pitch from Clement.

Mormon supporters of Mitt Romney are promoting a day of mass fasting and prayer to seek divine help for the Republican candidate in the debates. The plan — which is not endorsed by the politically neutral Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — is laid out in an email inviting like-minded Mormons to fast on September 30th with the purpose of bringing God’s blessings to Romney as he heads into the presidential debates. The name of the original author of the e-mail was redacted in both versions sent to BuzzFeed, but sources who have received it said it has reached Latter-day Saints in Utah, California, Nevada, and Colorado at least. “I am asking you to join me and my family on Sunday Sept. 30 by fasting and praying for Mitt Romney,” the author writes. “That he will be blessed in the debates, which will be held starting Oct. 3rd. I know that seems like such a small thing, but I believe ‘from small things, great things can come about.’” In Mormonism, believers often participate in fasts — which consist of 24 hours without food or water — to show gratitude, and ask God for special blessings, though they generally aren’t political. The Church also encourages congregants to donate the money they would have spent on food during their fasts to a fund for the needy. Some of the people forwarding the e-mail have done so politely, with a recognition that not everyone in their faith supports Romney. For example, one wrote, “As I said, this is just an idea. You can do this or not and you can send this to others or not.” But others were more forceful. One Mormon wrote, “This is from one of our Sister Service Missionaries in our ward. I have been concerned that Obama, with his fast talking and lies, will appear to be better in the debates. It is true, his only redeeming quality seems to be his ability to confound those who would speak the truth.” The e-mail is both a reflection of Romney’s wide and intense support within the Mormon faith, and an illustration of the church’s challenge in demonstrating its partisan neutrality to the public. While church officials in Salt Lake City have gone to great lengths this year to show they’re not meddling in the presidential race, many individual Mormons are excited by the prospect of seeing one of their own in the White House — and disappointed that he’s currently trailing in the polls. But if there’s one virtue Mormons hold tightly to, it’s faith. As one person who forwarded the e-mail wrote: “May we have the faith to fast and pray for the help we so desperately need throughout this great nation at this time.” Here’s the full e-mail: ||||| President Barack Obama is pitching a broad economic argument to voters ahead of next week's debate with Republican opponent Mitt Romney, buying TV time in seven battleground states to promote what he calls a "new economic patriotism." In a two-minute ad, Obama looks into the camera as he promotes an economic plan he says will create 1 million manufacturing jobs, cut oil imports and hire thousands of new teachers. The ad set to air in New Hampshire, Virginia, Florida, Ohio, Iowa, Nevada and Colorado comes as Obama and Republican Mitt Romney shadow each while looking for votes in a closely contested race. On Thursday, the two candidates are scheduled to campaign in the same state for the third straight day, this time in Virginia, a critical battleground in the Nov. 6 election. The president is not chosen by popular vote but in state-by-state contests. That makes these battleground states _ which are neither reliably Republican nor Democratic _ especially important in a tight election like this one. Romney is to appear in suburban Washington for a veterans event, while Obama speaks to a farm bureau in Virginia Beach. The simultaneous visits follow an all-day duel Wednesday in Ohio, where Romney declared he can do more than Obama to improve the lives of average people. Obama scoffed that a challenger who calls half the nation "victims" was unlikely to be of much help. Meanwhile, new Republican-leaning independent groups have entered the presidential advertising fray as polling suggests Romney's campaign may be losing ground against Obama in key states such as Ohio and Florida. The commercials, aimed at voters who supported Obama in 2008 but are now undecided, join those from the campaigns and outside groups swamping a narrow and possibly shrinking map of competitive states in the fast-moving presidential contest. Americans for Job Security launched an $8.7 million ad buy in six battleground states, while the Ending Spending Action Fund, a new conservative group bankrolled by billionaire Joe Ricketts, was set to debut a $10 million, four-state ad campaign on Thursday. Polls show Obama widening his lead in several key states amid backlash from a leaked video in which Romney disparages the 47 percent of Americans who don't pay federal income tax as government-dependent Obama supporters who see themselves as victims and won't take responsibility for their own lives. Obama's campaign was reveling in the latest public polling but trying to crush any sense of overconfidence. "If we need to pass out horse blinders to all of our staff, we will do that," campaign spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Wednesday. Romney went after working-class voters at three stops in Ohio, while Obama rallied college crowds at Bowling Green and Kent State. Early voting in Ohio begins next week. "If President Obama were to be re-elected, what you'd see is four more years like the last four years, and we can't afford another four more years like the last four years," Romney told a boisterous crowd in Toledo at the day's final stop. Romney said the country had lost more than half a million manufacturing jobs in the past four years. "This is not the path we want for America," he said. Romney's campaign has been reeling from his caught-on-video comments at a Florida fundraiser last May. New opinion polls, conducted after the video became public last week, show Obama opening up apparent leads over Romney in battleground states, including Ohio and Virginia. Romney told ABC News that the race was in a statistical tie in some national polls. Obama was not about to let the video comments fade away. He said Wednesday that "America is not about what can be done for us. It's about what can be done by us together, as one nation, as one people." And he added: "You can't make it happen if you write off half the nation before you take office." ||||| In an interview with POLITICO's Jonathan Martin this morning, Newt Gingrich gave Mitt Romney some advice for the upcoming presidential debates: be assertive and don't be afraid to hit back. "If Romney is decisively effective -- as my wife put it to me the other day, if he is as assertive and direct with Obama as he was with me in the two Florida debates, he’ll be fine," Gingrich said. "He's got to go in there, not be hostile but be assertive, clear and direct and not back off." (Also on POLITICO: Gingrich appears on POLITICO LIVE) He said Romney needs to offer specifics about his own vision for the country, and can't back down when Obama launches a counter-attack. "Gov. Romney has the challenge in the very first debate to communicate precisely what he's going to do," Gingrich said. "I think he's got to draw a sharp contrast between a Romney recovery and Obama stagnation -- he's got to say, with all due respect, Mr. President, this is the worst recovery since the Great Depression. ... He's got to say it in a way that's direct and clear, and when the president counter-attacks he can't flinch." Gingrich added that he's looking forward to watching the debate, saying it will be "fascinating" to see "how the two personalities interact." (PHOTOS:10 great debate moments) Read more about: Newt Gingrich ||||| Dow Jones Reprints: This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. To order presentation-ready copies for distribution to your colleagues, clients or customers, use the Order Reprints tool at the bottom of any article or visit www.djreprints.com WESTERVILLE, Ohio—Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, seeking to emphasize his deficit-cutting ambitions, is warning Americans that his tax-cut plan might not decrease their tax bills as much as they expect. Amid a push by the campaign to remind voters of big deficits, Mr. Romney on Wednesday told an Ohio crowd that while he would work to lower tax rates on businesses and individuals, they shouldn't "be expecting a huge cut in taxes because I'm also going to lower deductions and exemptions." The campaign is still exploring options to broaden the taxable-income base, which would mean limiting or cutting deductions and ...

– With the first presidential debate just days away, Mitt Romney is taking aim at the deficit, an issue even more important than job creation to independent voters, according to a Wall Street Journal poll. He told voters at a rally in Ohio yesterday that despite his tax-cutting plans, they shouldn't "be expecting a huge cut in taxes because I'm also going to lower deductions and exemptions." Romney plans to cut all income tax rates by 20% and lower the corporate tax rate to to 25% from 35%, but his staffers describe the plan as a tax reform, not a tax cut, and argue that it will not significantly increase the deficit. President Obama, meanwhile, is pushing "economic patriotism" ahead of the debate, the AP reports. In a new ad airing in seven battleground states, the president outlines an economic plan he says will create a million new manufacturing jobs. Some conservative Mormons are doing their own debate preparation, according to an email obtained by BuzzFeed. The email—not officially sanctioned by the church—is circulating in at least four states and urges Mormons to fast and pray for Romney for 24 hours to ensure he will be blessed in the debates, which start Wednesday. In the debates, Romney needs to be assertive and "draw a sharp contrast between a Romney recovery and Obama stagnation," Newt Gingrich tells Politico. "If he is as assertive and direct with Obama as he was with me in the two Florida debates, he’ll be fine," Gingrich says. "He's got to go in there, not be hostile but be assertive, clear, and direct, and not back off."

A new type of synthetic alcohol has been discovered which could allow people to enjoy the sociable effects of a few pints, but skip the hangover that usually follows. The new drink, known as 'alcosynth', is designed to mimic the positive effects of alcohol but doesn’t cause a dry mouth, nausea and a throbbing head, according to its creator Professor David Nutt. The Imperial College Professor and former government drugs advisor told The Independent he has patented around 90 different alcosynth compounds. Join Independent Minds For exclusive articles, events and an advertising-free read for just £5.99 €6.99 $9.99 a month Get the best of The Independent With an Independent Minds subscription for just £5.99 €6.99 $9.99 a month Get the best of The Independent Without the ads – for just £5.99 €6.99 $9.99 a month Two of them are now being rigorously tested for widespread use, he said – and by 2050, he hopes alcosynth could completely replace normal alcohol. “It will be there alongside the scotch and the gin, they'll dispense the alcosynth into your cocktail and then you'll have the pleasure without damaging your liver and your heart,” he said. “They go very nicely into mojitos. They even go into something as clear as a Tom Collins. One is pretty tasteless, the other has a bitter taste." By researching substances that work on the brain in a similar way to alcohol, Professor Nutt and his team have been able to design a drug which they say is non-toxic and replicates the positive effects of alcohol. “We know a lot about the brain science of alcohol; it's become very well understood in the last 30 years,” said Professor Nutt. “So we know where the good effects of alcohol are mediated in the brain, and can mimic them. And by not touching the bad areas, we don't have the bad effects.” Advocates of alcosynth believe it could revolutionise public health by relieving the burden of alcohol on the health service. According to Alcohol Concern, drinking is the third biggest risk factor for disease and death in the UK, after smoking and obesity. "People want healthier drinks," said Professor Nutt. “The drinks industry knows that by 2050 alcohol will be gone." Shape Created with Sketch. The top 10 countries that drink the most alcohol Show all 10 left Created with Sketch. right Created with Sketch. Shape Created with Sketch. The top 10 countries that drink the most alcohol 1/10 10. Poland 2/10 9. Germany 3/10 8. Luxembourg 4/10 7. France 5/10 6. Hungary 6/10 5. Russia 7/10 4. Czech Republic 8/10 3. Estonia 9/10 2. Austria 10/10 1. Lithuania 1/10 10. Poland 2/10 9. Germany 3/10 8. Luxembourg 4/10 7. France 5/10 6. Hungary 6/10 5. Russia 7/10 4. Czech Republic 8/10 3. Estonia 9/10 2. Austria 10/10 1. Lithuania "They know that and have been planning for this for at least 10 years. But they don't want to rush into it, because they're making so much money from conventional alcohol.” Early experiments into alcosynth, such as those reported on by BBC’s Horizon in 2011, used a derivative of benzodiazepine – the same class of drugs as Valium. Mr Nutt said his new drinks did not contain benzodiazepine, and their formulas would remain a closely guarded, patented secret. However, the huge cost of funding research into the drug and regulatory concerns mean it could be a long time before people can order an alcosynth cocktail at their local pub. Professor Nutt, who was sacked from his position as the government drugs tsar in 2009 after he claimed taking ecstasy was less dangerous than riding a horse, said he was unsure if the use of synthetic alcohol would be restricted by the new Psychoactive Substances Act, which came into force in May. “It’s an interesting idea, but too much in its infancy at the moment for us to comment on,” a Department of Health spokesperson told The Independent. “I don’t think we’d give money to it until it was a little further along,” said the spokesperson. "If [Professor Nutt] were to apply for funding, it would go through the process of everything else and would be judged on its merits.” “It would be great for producing better workforce efficiency if no one was hungover,” they added. According to Professor Nutt, the effects of alcosynth last around a couple of hours – the same as traditional alcohol. He said he and his team have also managed to limit the effects of drinking a lot of alcosynth, so in theory it would be impossible to ever feel too 'drunk'. “We think the effects round out at about four or five 'drinks', then the effect would max out,” he said. “We haven't tested it to destruction yet, but it's safer than drinking too much alcohol. With clever pharmacology, you can limit and put a ceiling on the effects, so you can't ever get as ill or kill yourself, unlike with drinking a lot of vodka.” Researcher Guy Bentley worked with Professor Nutt on a new report by the liberal think tank the Adam Smith Institute into alcosynth regulation. Mr Bentley told The Independent he hoped to persuade the government to accept the drug as a way of reducing the harm caused by alcohol. “[The report] is trying to spark what happened with e-cigarettes and tobacco, but with alcohol," he said. "Professor Nutt has been experimenting on this for a long time, but I thought to myself - �?where is it?’ I wanted my hangover-free booze.” However, not everyone was as keen on the new discovery. Neil Williams, from the British Beer and Pub Association, said alcosynth was not necessary, as “there are other ways of avoiding a hangover”. “There are plenty of low-strength drinks, particularly beers,” he told The Independent. “We should all drink in moderation so we shouldn’t need to have a hangover anyway.” “I’d want to know more about it before I tried it myself,” he said. ||||| A new hangover-free synthetic alcohol which gets you tipsy but not drunk could have "seismic effects on public health", according to a report. The drink has been developed as an alternative to alcohol, removing the risks of hangovers, liver damage and loss of control. But the product is being blocked by "morality police" using heavy-handed EU and government regulations, says the Adam Smith Institute. 'Alcosynth' has been developed by Professor David Nutt, who was sacked as the UK drug tsar for his comments about the drug ecstasy. The drink is a derivative of benzodiazepine - commonly used to treat anxiety disorder - but does not cause withdrawal symptoms. Image: Prof Nutt has developed the new synthetic alcohol It can be formulated to limit its potency, leaving drinkers only mildly intoxicated, rather than drunk. Experts believe it could eventually completely replace alcohol and potentially save thousands of lives. Although much research has been conducted, it could still be several years before it reaches bars in the UK. Sam Bowman, executive director of the Adam Smith Institute, said over-regulation was preventing such products from entering the market. Image: The new drink will spare you the dreaded hangover, says Prof Nutt In a new report - Sinnovation: How markets can solve public health problems - the Institute calls for "innovation", not regulation. "It's innovation not regulation that got us e-cigarettes," he said. "They emerged and prospered in spite of regulation, proving to be the best way to get people to quit quickly that we know of. "Other products like synthetic alcohol and reduced-risk tobacco products promise to repeat the success of e-cigs for new people, but only if we let them." Public health officials are mindlessly pursuing abstinence campaigns, while ignoring life-saving risk reduction products, the institute says. Mr Bowman continued: "It is crucial that the government does not stand in the way of hangover-free alcohol. "Regulation must be flexible and encouraging of new products that are safer than the vices they're competing with. "Britain can be a world leader in safe alternatives to alcohol and cigarettes, but we need regulation that foster those things instead of stamping them out." ||||| A British researcher says he has discovered a synthetic alcohol which allows drinkers to enjoy the sensation of being drunk without the negative side effects that usually follow. David Nutt, a professor at Imperial College in London and former drugs advisor to the British government, says the non-toxic 'alcosynth' could completely replace normal alcohol by 2050, the U.K.'s Independent reports. Alcosynth affects the brain in a similar way to alcohol, Nutt says, but doesn't cause mouth dryness, nausea, headaches or other long lasting health issues. "We know where the good effects of alcohol are mediated in the brain, and can mimic them. And by not touching the bad areas, we don't have the bad effects," Mr Nutt, who is currently testing two versions of the drink for widespread use, told the newspaper. If alcosynth does what Nutt says it does, it could relieve public health services from the burden of alcohol-related issues. The cost of excessive alcohol consumption in the U.S. was as high as $223.5 billion in 2006, according to CDC figures , which researchers estimated worked out as $746 for every individual U.S. citizen that same year. [ Independent ]

– A hangover-free future is once again being promised, this time courtesy of a controversial former drug czar. The Independent reports David Nutt—who was fired by the British government after claiming horse riding was more dangerous than ecstasy—developed about 90 compounds of something he's calling "alcosynth" and is testing out two for wide-scale alcohol replacement, which he says will happen by 2050. "They'll dispense the alcosynth into your cocktail and then you'll have the pleasure without damaging your liver and your heart,” Nutt says. He says the two alcosynth compounds being tested—one is bitter, the other mostly flavorless—work well in everything from a mojito to a Tom Collins. Alcosynth will get you buzzed—though Nutt says they've capped how drunk you can get on it—without the side effects of nausea, headache, or dry mouth. "We know where the good effects of alcohol are mediated in the brain, and can mimic them," he says. "And by not touching the bad areas, we don't have the bad effects.” A nontoxic alcohol that doesn't let drinkers get blotto could save a lot of money, Time reports. The CDC estimated that over-consumption of alcohol cost US taxpayers up to $223.5 billion in 2006. But it could be years before alcosynth is available for your next party, according to the Adam Smith Institute. The libertarian think tank tells Sky News over-regulation will slow the release of what is essentially a new drug. (This study finds there is one proven way to prevent a hangover.)

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Trump on Kim meeting: 'North Korea would be very rich' President Donald Trump has said the US is not pursuing the "Libya model" for the denuclearisation of North Korea. Mr Trump said Kim Jong-un would stay in power if he made a deal, and hinted he could be deposed if he refused. Libya's Muammar Gaddafi agreed to give up nuclear weapons in 2003. He was later killed by Western-backed rebels. Most analysts say North Korea was angered by the prospect of a Libya scenario precisely because of what happened to Gaddafi. The comparison was made by Mr Trump's National Security Adviser John Bolton. It led the North to threaten to pull out of the summit with Mr Trump in Singapore on 12 June. What did President Trump say? As Mr Bolton looked on, the US president said: "The Libyan model isn't a model that we have at all when we're thinking of North Korea. "The model, if you look at that model with Gaddafi, that was a total decimation. We went in there to beat him. Now that model would take place if we don't make a deal, most likely. But if we make a deal, I think Kim Jong-un is going to be very, very happy," Mr Trump said. "He'd be there, he'd be in his country, he'd be running his country, his country would be very rich." On the planned summit, Mr Trump said: "Nothing has changed on North Korea that we know of. We have not been told anything. "And if it does that's fine and if it doesn't I think we'll probably have a very successful meeting." Image copyright Getty Images Image caption John Bolton looked on as President Trump made his feelings clear Why does Libya haunt Kim? North Korea's suggestion that it might pull out of the US summit pointed the finger squarely at Mr Bolton. "We do not hide our feeling of repugnance towards him," said Wednesday's statement, which was written by Vice-Foreign Minister Kim Kye-gwan. North Korea was apparently referencing an interview Mr Bolton gave comparing it to "the Libya model" of denuclearisation. In 2003, Libya's Colonel Muammar Gaddafi agreed to give up his country's programmes of weapons of mass destruction in an announcement that surprised the world. Most US sanctions on Libya were lifted within a few months and diplomatic ties between the countries restored. The North African country came in from the cold. But in 2011 the authoritarian leader was toppled by rebels and militiamen backed by Nato. He was later captured and killed by rebel forces. Why has North Korea changed its tone? Also on Thursday, North Korea said it would not resume talks with the South until issues between the two are resolved. Pyongyang has been angered by continuing US-South Korea joint military exercises which it sees as a rehearsal for invasion. It cancelled planned high-level talks with South Korea earlier this week. Please upgrade your browser to view this content. Timeline hide How Trump and Kim have changed their tone What happened next? Show all Was this timeline useful? Yes No Thank you for your feedback. Share this timeline In a statement, chief negotiator Ri Son-gwon reverted to the angry language the North has used before, describing South Korean authorities as incompetent and senseless in comments reported by state news agency KCNA. He also criticised South Korea for allowing "human scum" (a reference to a North Korean defector) to speak at the Seoul National Assembly. Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Why North Korea is angry at this man Thursday's criticism of South Korea marks yet another shift in tone from Pyongyang just weeks before the planned US summit, the BBC's Laura Bicker in Seoul says. Pyongyang appears to be putting pressure on both the US and South Korea and refusing to talk until some concessions are made, she adds. What does this mean for the nuclear issue? At the summit between the leaders of North and South Korea on 27 April both sides agreed to work to rid the Korean peninsula of nuclear weapons. But Pyongyang's professed commitment to "denuclearisation" is likely to differ from Washington's demand for "comprehensive, verifiable and irreversible" nuclear disarmament. South Korea's Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha told MPs on Thursday there was a gap between North Korea and the US on "how to pull off denuclearisation", according to South Korea's Yonhap news agency. North Korea said last week it would begin dismantling its nuclear test site at Punggye-ri between 23-25 May, but there was no mention of allowing foreign experts access to the site. On a recent visit to North Korea, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stressed that any claim of denuclearisation by the North would require a "robust verification" programme by the US and other nations. ||||| Asked about ‘Libya model’, Trump says: ‘That model … was total decimation. That model would take place if we don’t make a deal’ Donald Trump has threatened Kim Jong-un with the same fate as Muammar Gaddafi if the North Korean leader “doesn’t make a deal” on his nuclear weapons programme. The US president issued the threat at the White House when he was asked about the recent suggestion by his national security adviser, John Bolton, that the “Libyan model” be a template for dealing with North Korea at a summit between Trump and Kim planned for 12 June in Singapore. The model Bolton was referring to was Gaddafi’s agreement in December 2003 to surrender his embryonic nuclear weapons programme, which included allowing his uranium centrifuges to be shipped out to the US. Sign up to receive the top US stories every morning But Trump appeared to be unaware of that agreement, and interpreted the “Libyan model” to mean the 2011 Nato intervention in Libya in support of an insurrection, which ultimately led to Gaddafi’s murder at the hands of rebels in Tripoli. “The model, if you look at that model with Gaddafi, that was a total decimation. We went in there to beat him. Now that model would take place if we don’t make a deal, most likely. But if we make a deal, I think Kim Jong-un is going to be very, very happy,” Trump said, suggesting that the regime’s survival could be assured if Kim agreed to disarm. “This with Kim Jong-un would be something where he would be there. He would be running his country. His country would be very rich,” the president said. “We’re willing to do a lot, and he’s willing … to do a lot also, and I think we’ll actually have a good relationship, assuming we have the meeting and assuming something comes of it. And he’ll get protections that will be very strong.” Asked whether his comments meant that he disagreed with his national security adviser, the third of his administration, the president said: “I think when John Bolton made that statement, he was talking about if we are going to be having a problem, because we cannot let that country have nukes. We just can’t do it.” Joel Wit, a former US negotiator who is now a senior fellow at the US-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins University, said: “This is probably the wrong time to be making threats, three weeks before the summit.” The inflammatory comments come at a time when the June meeting is in doubt. The regime in Pyongyang reacted strongly against statements by Bolton over the weekend, who insisted North Korea would have to dismantle its nuclear arsenal completely and immediately. A senior official said on Wednesday that Kim would not take part in a summit with such “one-sided” goals. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Trump in a White House meeting with Mike Pompeo (middle), John Bolton, (far right) and the Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg (far left). Photograph: Pool/Getty Images Pyongyang has also complained about joint military exercises being conducted by US and South Korean forces. The regime’s mission to the United Nations issued a statement on Thursday claiming that nuclear-capable B-52 bombers and F-22 fighter planes were taking part in the exercises. He described it as “an extremely provocative and ill-boding act”. However, Trump said that despite Pyongyang’s threats to call off the summit, “they’ve been negotiating like nothing happened”. The state department spokeswoman, Heather Nauert, said: “We are continuing to push ahead and plan our preparations. Those continue at this time for a meeting between the president and Kim Jong-un in June.” Trump: 'We'll see' if North Korea summit is on after Kim's threat to cancel Read more At a meeting in Tokyo on Tuesday, a senior state department official suggested that a substantial but partial disarmament by North Korea might be acceptable as the first stage of a deal with North Korea. Speaking to a meeting of business executives in Tokyo organised by the Wall Street Journal, Susan Thornton, the acting assistant secretary of state for East Asia and Pacific Affairs, said that in Kim’s conversations with South Korean officials, he had said “there will be a big downpayment, a big up-front demonstration of his intention” to dismantle the North Korean nuclear weapons programme completely. “The question is: what could be front-loaded in a process that’s inevitably going to go on for some time? And then what would be acceptable to the North Korean side in return for that front-loading?” Thornton said. It was unclear whether Thornton’s remarks had been coordinated with Bolton, who has suggested that North Korea would have to dismantle its nuclear weapons completely before receiving any benefits. Suzanne DiMaggio, a senior fellow at the New America thinktank who has played a lead role in back-channel talks with North Korea, said: “Given the high degree of distrust between Pyongyang and Washington, anything short of a phased approach with confidence measures built in along the way is pure fantasy.” ||||| President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in the Oval Office of the White House, Thursday, May 17, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) (Associated Press) WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump laid out a stark choice for North Korea's Kim Jong Un ahead of their planned summit next month: Abandon nuclear weapons and be rewarded with "protections," or risk being overthrown and possible death if the arsenal remains. Trump maintained the scheduled June 12 meeting in Singapore is on track, despite the North's threat Wednesday to cancel over concerns about the U.S. push to see the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. The North has argued it needs its nuclear weapons to preserve its security, and has expressed concerns about giving up its nuclear program. The North cites the example of former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, who died at the hands of rebel forces amid a popular uprising in October 2011; he had given up his nuclear program in the 2000s. National Security Adviser John Bolton explicitly cited "the Libya model of 2003-2004" as a basis for the North Korea talks last month, which drew personal rebuke from the North Korean government Wednesday. Trying to address the North Korean concerns, the president said if Kim were to agree to denuclearize, "he'll get protections that would be very strong." But Trump warned that failure to make a deal could have grave consequences for Kim. Mentioning what happened in Libya, Trump said, "That model would take place if we don't make a deal." "The Libyan model isn't the model we have at all. In Libya we decimated that country." Trump added. "There was no deal to keep Gadhafi." Trump said he is "willing to do a lot" to provide security guarantees to Kim. "The best thing he could do is make a deal." Trump also suggested China was influencing North Korea's thinking regarding the summit, pointing to Kim's visit to China immediately before Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Pyongyang last week to finalize the summit date and location. Trump said Thursday that nothing has changed with respect to North Korea after the warning from Pyongyang. He said North Korean officials are discussing logistical details about the meeting with the U.S. "as if nothing happened." In addition to threatening to pull out of the meeting with Trump, the North abruptly canceled a planned meeting with South Korean officials over joint U.S.-South Korean military exercises. Pentagon spokeswoman Dana White said Thursday that the schedule of military exercises hasn't changed. She added the annual exercises are long-planned, defensive in nature and meant to ensure the readiness of U.S. and South Korean forces. Exercise Max Thunder began Monday and concludes May 25. It includes aircraft from across the U.S. military services. Last year's exercise included roughly 1,200 U.S. personnel and about 640 South Koreans. This year's drill is similar. Speaking at an Oval Office meeting with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, Trump also said he will not discuss U.S. troop levels in South Korea during his meeting with Kim. The North has said it won't return to talks with Seoul due to the exercises. ___ Associated Press writer Ken Thomas contributed to this report.

– President Trump and national security adviser John Bolton are apparently not on the same page when it comes to the "Libya model"—and the confusion led to what was seen as a stern threat to North Korea Thursday. When asked about Bolton's suggestion that the 2003 Libya model of nuclear disarmament be a template for talks with North Korea, Trump appeared to think he was being asked about the 2011 NATO intervention that led to leader Moammar Gadhafi's death at the hands of rebels, the Guardian reports. "The Libyan model is not a model that we have at all when we are thinking of North Korea. In Libya, we decimated that country," Trump said, adding that the model "could take place if we don't make a deal." Trump said the deal he was hoping to reach with Kim Jong Un would give him strong protections in return for denuclearization and would be "something where he'd be there, he'd be in his country, he'd be running his country, his country would be very rich," the BBC reports. The president said it would "really be a South Korean model in terms of their industry." Pyongyang, angered by Bolton's remarks on the Libya model for denuclearization, threatened Wednesday to pull out of the planned June 12 Kim-Trump summit if the US kept up its "one-sided" demand for it to give up nuclear weapons. Trump said Thursday that the meeting is still on track, the AP reports. He said that despite the threat to withdraw, officials from both sides are still working on details "as if nothing happened."

****Update, Jan. 5, 2010: The reports and unconfirmed rumors in the post below have since been updated in this confirmed, updated report on Beyoncé’s performance. Earlier reports which suggested that Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, one of the sons of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, had hosted the event were incorrect — according to the New York Post, this year’s party was hosted by his brother Hannibal Gaddafi. As noted below, Saif Gaddafi was in New Zealand over New Year’s. Reports cited below saying he hosted last year’s party, where Mariah Carey performed, were also incorrect; New York Daily News columnists Rush & Molloy subsequently reported that Saif Gaddafi was in Asia at the time of the event, and that the party was actually hosted by his brother, Moatessem-Billah Khadafy, which is not the brother who hosted this year’s event. The full, confirmed, updated version of this story may be found here; the rest of this post (below) has been left as it was published on Jan. 3, 2010 to keep the record intact. Did Beyoncé perform on New Year’s Eve for the family of Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi? The mega-star and her mega-star husband, Jay-Z, are confirmed to have spent their New Year’s holiday in St. Barth thanks to numerous sightings, tweets/twitpics and paparazzi photographs over the last few days of 2009. The UK’s Daily Mail ran pictures of Beyoncé, including the one above, performing at the exclusive Nikki Beach club, as well as after in a group that included her husband Jay-Z, Usher, and Jon Bon Jovi (Usher did the countdown to New Year’s). Confirmations of a show-stopping New Year’s Eve performance came via Twitter as well, from Asylum Records CEO Todd Moscowitz and Swedish supermodel Victoria Silvstedt, who also snapped a picture. So where do the Gaddafis come in? Well, last year they made waves with a similar party: Mariah Carey was reportedly paid $1 million to sing just four songs at the Nikki Beach Club for a party reportedly thrown by the family of the Libyan leader. Jay-Z and Timbaland also reportedly performed. (NB: Those reports were widespread, but not confirmed anywhere that I found.) Saif Gaddafi, who acts diplomatically on behalf of Libya and runs with playboys and powerbrokers, was in the news earlier this year regarding the release of Libyan Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi, better known as the Lockerbie bomber, who had been convicted of placing the bomb that brought down Pan Am 103 in December 1988. Gaddafi fils facilitated the release and flew the bomber home to Libya on his father’s private jet, and caused a stir after with comments that the deal may have been linked to trade talks (he pulled back from those comments in a NYT op-ed, in which he also pushed back against reports that Megrahi had received a “hero’s welcome” in Libya; this photo of him with Megrahi with their hands held high as they emerged from the plane indicates otherwise. It’s from the album, “Another success for Libya“). Saif Gaddafi has hosted a swank New Year’s Eve party on Nikki Beach for the past few years, according to sources familiar with the St. Barth’s social scene, including last year’s event headlined by Carey, where Jay-Z also performed and Beyoncé was also in attendance. Though there were reports that he himself was in New Zealand through the New Year, the party seemed to go on as scheduled, according to this tweet from DJ Sam Young: (The other big New Year’s Eve party on St. Barth was thrown by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich.) So was Gaddafi there? An article by Brazilian celebrity/gossip columnist Vivi Mascaro, in Portuguese, reported on the event, mentioning “Kadafi” and noting that Lindsay Lohan and George Michael. (Moscowitz also noted Lohan “melting down and dropping numerous f** bombs on the promoter.”) According to Mascaro, 300 people were at the party, drinking magnums of Champagne and seated at tables that each cost a cool $12,000. (According to a source who was there, reservations were required in advance and it was pay-your-own-way, but the question remains about who paid for Beyonce. An email to Nikki Beach asking for clarification has not been returned). Beyoncé, for her part, reportedly sang the five songs mandated by her contract, previously reported by Mascaro — and, according to iPhone translator, “leaving the audience vip blown away with her curves and booty nearly albums.” (Audience video here and here.) Reports are now emerging — unconfirmed — that Beyoncé doubled Carey’s last-year take with a cool $2 million for the performance. Influential urban blogger Necole Bitchie wrote “I am hearing they were at a party for Libyan dictator Moammar Khadafy’s son and Beyonce was reportedly paid 2 million to perform.” UK celebrity and entertainment columnist Dean Piper wrote in the Daily Mirror about the Abramovitch party, noting “[m]eanwhile at ­another party at nearby Nikki Beach, Beyonce ­Knowles (watched by husband Jay-Z) was being paid a rumoured six-figure sum by none other than the family of Libyan dictator Col Gaddafi!” Emails and a phone call to Beyonce’s publicist have not been returned. So: Why does this matter? Well, as respectable as Saif Gaddafi is with his charitable endeavors, pedigreed friends and PhD studies, his father is not exactly Mr. Popular — especially after his super-crazy speech at the U.N. in September. Gaddafi’s Libya has long been seen as a foe by the U.S., particularly in the 80s when Gaddafi was held to have been a major sponsor of international terrorism, and directly responsible for ordering the 1986 bombing of a Berlin nightclub which killed two U.S. marines — for which President Ronald Reagan ordered airstrikes on military targets in Tripoli, including the Gaddafi compound, where Gaddafi’s baby adopted daughter Hannah was killed. Gaddafi was also thought to have been a sponsor of Black September, which perpetrated the ‘Munich Massacre’ at the 1972 Olympics — and, of course, there was Pan Am 103. The shorthand for the flight is Lockerbie, from the town in Scotland where the it fell, but the flight was en route from Heathrow to JFK. Of the 243 passengers and 16 crew members killed in that bombing — plus 11 people on the ground — 190 were Americans, including many students returning home from studying abroad. Don’t read the “Victims” section of the Pan Am 103 Wikipedia page if you don’t want to choke up. It’s tough reading. Performing for Gaddafi may not have seemed a big deal for Carey and Jay-Z last year — 20 days later, Carey was in Washington serenading newly-inaugurated President Barack Obama — but this year, the wounds of Pan Am 103 have been ripped open anew with the release of Megrahi, and Gaddafi’s first visit to the U.S., both of which angered the victims’ families greatly and catalyzed a wave of backlash against Libya’s role in the bombing 21 years later. And while President Obama made history this summer by becoming the first U.S. president to shake hands with the Libyan dictator — after all, Libya renounced WMDs and is trying to re-enter the international community, and the U.S. finally dropped its sanctions against the country — Gaddafi was not invited to Obama’s September reception for world leaders attending the U.N. Assembly because of the Megrahi release and that so-called “hero’s welcome.” So: should Beyoncé care about any of this? Shouldn’t she be entitled to play a fun show in a glamorous locale with her husband and friends? The U.S. no longer has sanctions against Gaddafi, after all. Should it fall to Beyoncé to uphold a higher standard? Or, in the wake of the Pan Am bomber release — and the scary terrorism near-miss of Northwest 253 on Christmas — is the timing just a little off? (And more bad timing: Gaddafi’s brother, Moutassim Bilal Gaddafi, known as Hannibal, was reportedly involved in a violent domestic dispute with his wife in London last week.) It’s early yet — as I said this story is still unconfirmed, and just starting to trickle out — but there are signs of backlash on Twitter (@DarlingJadey: “Beyonce performed for Gaddafi’s son. She needs help ASAP.” @LolaCheri: “no but seriously tho why is bey performing for a Libyan dictator neway? &last yr they booked mariah? how U doin Moatessem al-Gaddafi? baha!” @MomVsWild “WTF!Is this true,was Beyonce per4ming 4 the Gaddafi Family last night?Did she 4get about the Lockerbie Bombing & 200+ ppl died?”) This may be unfairly singling out Beyoncé for something that Carey and her own husband did just last year, within a rarefied group of high-powered people for whom it’s clearly not an issue. But still — she’s an all-American superstar with multiple endorsement deals across the board, who just recorded a version of “Proud To Be An American” — and the Gaddafis are a family with a pretty chequered history. A $2 million payday is pretty sweet, but depending on who paid it, it may leave a bitter aftertaste. ****** Translation of Portuguese article by Vivi Mascaro above, translated by Maisa Fonseca: New Year’s eve in St. Barths: Beyoncé’s show and Lindsay Lohan in the audience in a party at Nikki Beach Beyoncé and Usher’s performances. Only three hundred people, like the Libyan Kadafi and Linday Lohan. Magnum Champagne. In short, that was the New Year’s eve party at Nikki Beach, in St. Barths, one of the most exclusive parties in the planet. Who attended the party had to pay the minimum amount of US$ 12 thousand each table, which didn’t scare away names like George Michael, Nizan Guanaes and Paul Allen, one of Microsoft’s founders. As the blog said before, Beyoncé fulfilled her contract: sang only five songs, leaving the audience speechless with her curves and her near-Brazilian sway. The Brazilian stylist Márcio Vicentini got excited and went to the stage to dance with the singers. Her husband Jay-Z was also there. (Translation notes: Mascaro used the expression ‘rebolado quase tupiniquim’ to describe part of Beyonce’s performance. ‘Rebolado’ is the hip/butt circular/side to side movements that compose a lot of dances, including Samba. ‘Tupiniquim’ is an adjective we use to describe native Brazilian things. The journalist was saying her moves could be almost considered Brazilian-like.) Update: Mascaro’s initial report that Microsoft Founder Paul Allen was at the party was incorrect. According to a source with direct knowledge of the situation, Allen was in the area (as evidenced by Russell Simmons’ photo of his yacht) but was not at the Beyoncé-Gaddafi event. Video from the audience at Nikki Beach (warning, TERRIBLE audio. Combined from here and here): (NB: For those of you watching NBC’s New Year’s Eve special hosted by Carson Daly — the part with Jay-Z and Rihanna was pre-taped.) ||||| Tonight we received an urgent email from the PR firm representing shithead Libyan Dictator Muammar al-Gaddafi's son, Saif al-Islam: We incorrectly reported Beyonce performed for him this New Year's! She actually performed for Col. Gaddafi's other shithead son, Hannibal. This weekend, Foster wrote an admirably sprawling analysis of speculation by Mediaite's Rachel Sklar that Saif al-Islam paid Beyonce to perform at his New Year's Eve party in St. Barth last week. Turns out it wasn't him. And Ethan Wagner, of the PR firm Brown Lloyd and James, sent us an email letting us know that... I wasn't pleased to read the accusations in your piece. I'm quite familiar with Gawker's style of journalism and you are entitled to print your opinions about Saif, however inflammatory they may be; in using the obscene language that you do to describe him, I am assuming you're not familiar with the direct, personal role he has played in securing the release of western hostages, distributing aid among Africa's poor, and fighting for human rights in the region; rather, you've opted to smear him with profanities because of your perceptions of his father and his country. Pretty much spot on, except for one quibble: Foster smeared Saif al-Islam not because of his "perceptions" of Col. Gadaffi, but because Col. Gadaffi is in fact a ranting, terrorist-backing shithead of truly staggering proportions. It is as if God literally took a pile of shit, fashioned it into the shape of a head, placed it gingerly on the neck of Muammar al-Gaddafi, then let him run a good-sized country using only the worm-addled brain contained therein. Not a "perception": A cold, hard, metaphorical fact. But the main point of Wagner's email was that Saif al-Islam was not serenaded by the hottest woman on the planet this past New Year's. He was in fact being a shithead in New Zealand, on the opposite side of the globe, when we placed him in the audience of a the banging St. Barth Beyonce blowout. Wagner included a few helpful links proving it and demanded that: you print a correction, on the same page where your original story ran, clarifying that your original story about Saif al-Islam Gaddafi was incorrect; I see that you've done something similar already for Paul Allen, and while you may have a higher opinion of Allen than you do my client, responsible journalism and objective fairness demand that you at least take similar action to clarify that Saif al-Islam Gaddafi was not involved in any way. So, consider it corrected: Saif al-Islam Gadaffi was not the shithead who threw the infamous Beyonce bash. It was his younger brother, Hannibal! And if you thought Saif was a shithead, just check out the amazing amount of shitheaded things 33 year-old Hannibal (nee Moutassim) Gadaffi has done in his short, useless life: 2009: Involved in domestic disturbance incident with his wife Christmas day that looks suspiciously like he punched her in the face. A witness claims he saw his wife "bleeding heavily from her nose and face. Her nose was clearly broken and it looked like she would need surgery." When police arrive at his hotel room, Hannibal runs the Libyan embassy to demand diplomatic immunity. Involved in domestic disturbance incident with his wife Christmas day that looks suspiciously like he punched her in the face. A witness claims he saw his wife "bleeding heavily from her nose and face. Her nose was clearly broken and it looked like she would need surgery." When police arrive at his hotel room, Hannibal runs the Libyan embassy to demand diplomatic immunity. 2008: Arrested by Swiss police for allegedly beating his servants with a belt and clothes hanger. Arrested by Swiss police for allegedly beating his servants with a belt and clothes hanger. 2005: Arrested for allegedly punching his wife, model Aline Skaf, in a Paris hotel while she was 8 months pregnant and brandishing a 9mm handgun at her. Arrested for allegedly punching his wife, model Aline Skaf, in a Paris hotel while she was 8 months pregnant and brandishing a 9mm handgun at her. 2004: Leads police on a chase down Paris' Champs Elysees in his Porsche. Avoids charges after Libyan diplomats apologize. Leads police on a chase down Paris' Champs Elysees in his Porsche. Avoids charges after Libyan diplomats apologize. 2003: Involved in a brawl in Rome that leaves six photographers hospitalized Involved in a brawl in Rome that leaves six photographers hospitalized 2001: Attacks three Italian policemen with a fire extinguisher, then demands dilomatic immunity. So, hopefully that's all cleared up now.

– Beyoncé spent her New Year’s Eve performing for Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi's son—although Seif al-Islam's PR firm will have you know it wasn't him, as originally reported. “She actually performed for Col. Gadhafi’s other shithead son, Hannibal,” writes Adrian Chen on Gawker, before running down a list of Hannibal's, er, achievements. Chen "corrects" Gawker's original story after an indignant email from aforementioned PR firm insisting that al-Islam was in New Zealand and not Beyoncé's show in St. Barts. The rep also accused original writer Foster Kamer of “smearing” al-Islam simply because of incorrect “perceptions,” which Chen is quick to refute: “Foster smeared Seif al-Islam not because of his ‘perceptions’ of Col. Gadhafi, but because Col. Gadhafi is in fact a ranting, terrorist-backing shithead of truly staggering proportions. Not a ‘perception’: A cold, hard, metaphorical fact.” For more on the Beyoncé concert, see Mediaite and the New York Post.

By Mary Elizabeth Dallas, HealthDay Reporter (HealthDay) WEDNESDAY, June 24, 2015 (HealthDay News) -- Mistakes made on memory and thinking tests may be early warning signs of Alzheimer's disease, researchers report. Low scores on such tests could serve as a "red flag" for the progressive brain disease up to 18 years before it can be diagnosed, the study authors added. "The changes in thinking and memory that precede obvious symptoms of Alzheimer's disease begin decades before," study author Kumar Rajan, of Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, said in a news release from the American Academy of Neurology. "While we cannot currently detect such changes in individuals at risk, we were able to observe them among a group of individuals who eventually developed dementia due to Alzheimer's," Rajan said. The study involved more than 2,000 black and white people from Chicago. The participants were an average age of 73. None were diagnosed with Alzheimer's at the start of the study, and each completed tests of memory and thinking skills every three years over nearly two decades. During the study period, 23 percent of the black people and 17 percent of the white people developed Alzheimer's. Those who had the lowest test scores were at greater risk for the disease. After the first year, those with lower test scores were about 10 times more likely to develop Alzheimer's than those with the best scores. These odds increased as the scores dropped below average, the study published online June 24 in the journal Neurology found. "A general current concept is that in development of Alzheimer's disease, certain physical and biologic changes precede memory and thinking impairment," Rajan said. "If this is so, then these underlying processes may have a very long duration. Efforts to successfully prevent the disease may well require a better understanding of these processes near middle age." More information The U.S. National Institute on Aging has more about Alzheimer's disease. ||||| Objective: To examine the relation of performance on brief cognitive tests to development of clinically diagnosed Alzheimer disease (AD) dementia over the following 18 years in a sample of African Americans and European Americans. Methods: A composite cognitive test score based on tests of episodic memory, executive function, and global cognition was constructed in a prospective population-based sample of 2,125 participants (55% African American and 61% female) aged 65 years and older residing in 4 Chicago neighborhoods. Time before AD dementia diagnosis was categorized into 6 groups corresponding to data collection periods: 0.1–0.9, 1.0–3.9, 4.0–6.9, 7.0–9.9, 10.0–12.9, and 13.0–17.9 years. Results: Of 2,125 participants without clinical AD dementia, 442 (21%) developed clinical AD dementia over 18 years of follow-up. Lower composite cognitive test scores were associated with the development of AD dementia over the duration of the study. The magnitude of association between composite cognitive test score and development of AD dementia increased from an odds ratio of 3.39 (95% confidence interval 1.72, 6.67; p < 0.001) at 13.0–17.9 years to 9.84 (95% confidence interval 7.41, 13.06; p < 0.001) at 0.1–0.9 years, per SD increment. These associations were consistently larger among European Americans than among African Americans. Performance on individual cognitive tests of episodic memory, executive function, and global cognition also significantly predicted the development of AD dementia, with associations exhibiting a similar trend over 18 years. ||||| The latest breakthroughs in Alzheimer’s research focus on the time well before patients even know they might have the neurodegenerative condition. Studies so far have found evidence that the biological processes that cause the mental decline may begin 10 to 12 years before people first notice signs of cognitive decline. But in the most recent report published Wednesday in the journal Neurology, experts say that the disease may actually begin even earlier — 18 years earlier, in fact — than they expected. MORE: Mental and Social Activity Delays the Symptoms of Alzheimer’s For 18 years, Kumar Rajan, associate professor of internal medicine at Rush University Medical Center, and his colleagues followed 2,125 elderly people with an average age of 73 and who did not dementia. Every three years, the researchers gave the volunteers mental skills tests, and then compared these results over time. When the looked at the group that went on to receive an Alzheimer’s diagnosis, they found that these people showed lower scores on their tests throughout the study period. In fact, their scores steadily declined with each test. For each unit that the scores dropped on the cognitive tests, the risk of future Alzheimer’s increased by 85%. MORE: Many Doctors Don’t Tell Patients They Have Alzheimer’s Rajan stresses that the results only link cognitive testing scores on broad, group-level risk, and can’t be used to predict an individual’s risk of developing the disease. For one, more research will be needed to find the range of decline that signals potential Alzheimer’s dementia. But the findings do set the stage for studying whether such a non-invasive, easily administered test can, or should be, part of a regular assessment of people’s risk beginning in middle-age. That way, he says, people may have a longer time period in which to hopefully intervene to slow down the disease process. Rajan plans to study whether brain-stimulating activities like crossword puzzles or learning a new language and social interactions can improve the test scores, and in turn slow the time to diagnosis of Alzheimer’s. At the very least, he says, the current data shows that there is a longer window of time in which people might be able to intervene in these ways and potentially delay Alzheimer’s most debilitating effects.

– A new study suggests a relatively easy way to gauge whether people are more likely to wind up with an Alzheimer's diagnosis as far as 18 years down the road: memory and thinking tests. A study out of the Rush University Medical Center in Chicago tracked more than 2,000 people with an average age of 73 who did not have an Alzheimer's diagnosis when the study began, explains HealthDay News. They took mental skills tests every three years over a nearly two-decade span, and it turns out that those who scored low on the tests had a greater chance of being diagnosed with Alzheimer's. At the time they took the tests, though, they showed no obvious symptoms of looming trouble, save for those low test scores. What's more, the eventual Alzheimer's patients showed progressively worse results in the testing. "The changes in thinking and memory that precede obvious symptoms of Alzheimer's disease begin decades before," says Kumar Rajan, author of the study in Neurology. He says the findings should be interpreted generally—that low test scores shouldn't be used to predict an individual's risk. But such tests might someday become a routine part of health maintenance for those in middle age, notes Time. For those who fare poorly, it might be wise to try to take preventative efforts. Rajan plans to next study what some of those efforts might be, perhaps even simple things such as crossword puzzles or increased social interaction. (In the meantime, those who snore might be at greater risk, too.)

TV monitors show the J-Alert (warning siren) at an office of Kyodo News in Tokyo Friday, Sept. 15, 2017. South Korea's military said North Korea fired an unidentified missile Friday from its capital Pyongyang... (Associated Press) UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. Security Council strongly condemned North Korea's "highly provocative" ballistic missile test on Friday and demanded that Pyongyang immediately halt its "outrageous actions" and demonstrate its commitment to denuclearizing the Korean peninsula. The U.N.'s most powerful body accused North Korea of undermining regional peace and security by launching its latest missile over Japan and said its nuclear and missile tests "have caused grave security concerns around the world" and threaten all 193 U.N. member states. North Korea's longest-ever test flight of a ballistic missile early Friday from Sunan, the location of Pyongyang's international airport, signaled both defiance of North Korea's rivals and a big technological advance. After hurtling over Japan, it landed in the northern Pacific Ocean. Since U.S. President Donald Trump threatened North Korea with "fire and fury" in August, the North has conducted its most powerful nuclear test, threatened to send missiles into the waters around the U.S. Pacific island territory of Guam and launched two missiles of increasing range over Japan. July saw the country's first tests of intercontinental ballistic missiles that could strike deep into the U.S. mainland when perfected. The intermediate-range missile test came four days after the Security Council imposed tough new sanctions on the North for its Sept. 3 missile test including a ban on textile exports and natural gas imports — and caps on its import of oil and petroleum products. The U.S. said the latest sanctions, combined with previous measures, would ban over 90 percent of North Korea's exports reported in 2016, its main source of hard currency used to finance its nuclear and missile programs. North Korea's Foreign Ministry denounced the sanctions and said the North would "redouble its efforts to increase its strength to safeguard the country's sovereignty and right to existence." The Security Council stressed in Friday's press statement after a closed-door emergency meeting that all countries must "fully, comprehensively and immediately" implement all U.N. sanctions. Japan's U.N. Ambassador Koro Bessho called the launch an "outrageous act" that is not only a threat to Japan's security but a threat to the world as a whole." Bessho and the British, French and Swedish ambassadors demanded that all sanctions be implemented. Calling the latest launch a "terrible, egregious, illegal, provocative reckless act," Britain's U.N. Ambassador Matthew Rycroft said North Korea's largest trading partners and closest links — a clear reference to China — must "demonstrate that they are doing everything in their power to implement the sanctions of the Security Council and to encourage the North Korean regime to change course." France's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the country is ready to work on tougher U.N. and EU measures to convince Pyongyang that there is no interest in an escalation, and to bring it to the negotiating table. It said North Korea will also be discussed during next week's annual gathering of world leaders at the General Assembly. The Security Council also emphasized the importance of North Korea working to reduce tension in the Korean Peninsula — and it reiterated the importance of maintaining peace and stability on the territory divided between authoritarian North Korea and democratic South Korea. The council welcomed efforts by its members and other countries "to facilitate a peaceful and comprehensive solution" to the North Korean nuclear issue through dialogue. Russia's U.N. Ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, strongly backed the need for dialogue saying the United States needs to start talks with North Korea, which the Trump administration has ruled out. Nebenzia told reporters after the meeting that Russia called on the U.S. and others to implement the "political and diplomatic solutions" called for in the latest sanctions resolution. "Without implementing this, we also will consider it as a non-compliance with the resolution," Nebenzia said, adding that it also may be time for the council to "think out of the box" on how to deal with North Korea. The growing frequency, power and confidence displayed by Pyongyang's nuclear and missile tests seem to confirm what governments and outside experts have long feared: North Korea is closer than ever to its goal of building a military arsenal that can viably target U.S. troops both in Asia and in the U.S. homeland. This, in turn, is meant to allow North Korea greater military freedom in the region by raising doubts in Seoul and Tokyo that Washington would risk the annihilation of a U.S. city to protect its Asian allies. South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the latest missile traveled about 3,700 kilometers (2,300 miles) and reached a maximum height of 770 kilometers (478 miles). Guam, which is the home of important U.S. military assets, is 3,400 kilometers (2,112 miles) away from North Korea. Despite its impressive range, the missile probably still is not accurate enough to destroy Guam's Andersen Air Force Base, said David Wright, a U.S. missile expert with the Union of Concerned Scientists. South Korean President Moon Jae-in, a liberal who initially pushed for talks with North Korea, said its tests currently make dialogue "impossible." "If North Korea provokes us or our allies, we have the strength to smash the attempt at an early stage and inflict a level of damage it would be impossible to recover from," he said. North Korea has repeatedly vowed to continue its weapons tests amid what it calls U.S. hostility — by which it means the presence of nearly 80,000 U.S. troops stationed in Japan and South Korea. Robust international diplomacy on the issue has been stalled for years, and there's so far little sign that senior officials from North Korea and the U.S. might sit down to discuss ways to slow the North's determined march toward inclusion among the world's nuclear weapons powers. South Korea detected North Korean launch preparations Thursday, and President Moon ordered a live-fire ballistic missile drill if the launch happened. This allowed Seoul to fire missiles only six minutes after the North's launch Friday. One of the two missiles hit a sea target about 250 kilometers (155 miles) away, which was approximately the distance to Pyongyang's Sunan, but the other failed in flight shortly after launch. ___ Kim reported from Seoul. Associated Press writers Foster Klug in Seoul and Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo contributed to this report. ||||| In this undated photo distributed on Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017, by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center, celebrates what was said to be the test launch of an intermediate... (Associated Press) SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea leader Kim Jong Un said his country is nearing its goal of "equilibrium" in military force with the United States, as the United Nations Security Council strongly condemned the North's "highly provocative" ballistic missile launch over Japan on Friday. The North's official Korean Central News Agency carried Kim's comments on Saturday — a day after U.S. and South Korean militaries detected the missile launch from the North Korean capital of Pyongyang. It traveled 3,700 kilometers (2,300 miles) as it passed over the Japanese island of Hokkaido before landing in the northern Pacific Ocean. It was the country's longest-ever test flight of a ballistic missile. The North has confirmed the missile as an intermediate range Hwasong-12, the same model launched over Japan on Aug. 29. Under Kim's watch, North Korea has maintained a torrid pace in weapons tests, including its most powerful nuclear test to date on Sept. 3 and two July flight tests of intercontinental ballistic missiles that could strike deep into the U.S. mainland when perfected. The increasingly frequent and aggressive tests have added to outside fears that the North is closer than ever to building a military arsenal that could viably target the U.S. and its allies in Asia. The tests, which could potentially make launches over Japan an accepted norm, are also seen as North Korea's attempt to win greater military freedom in the region and raise doubts in Seoul and Tokyo that Washington would risk the annihilation of a U.S. city to protect them. The KCNA said Kim expressed great satisfaction over the launch, which he said verified the "combat efficiency and reliability" of the missile and the success of efforts to increase its power. While the English version of the report was less straightforward, the Korean version quoted Kim as declaring the missile as operationally ready. He vowed to complete his nuclear weapons program in the face of strengthening international sanctions, the agency said. Photos published by North Korea's state media showed the missile being launched from a truck-mounted launcher and a smiling Kim clapping and raising his fist while celebrating from an observation point. The U.N. Security Council accused North Korea of undermining regional peace and security by launching its latest missile over Japan and said its nuclear and missile tests "have caused grave security concerns around the world" and threaten all 193 U.N. member states. Kim also said the country, despite "limitless" international sanctions, has nearly completed the building of its nuclear weapons force and called for "all-state efforts" to reach the goal and obtain a "capacity for nuclear counterattack the U.S. cannot cope with." "As recognized by the whole world, we have made all these achievements despite the U.N. sanctions that have lasted for decades," the agency quoted Kim as saying. Kim said the country's final goal "is to establish the equilibrium of real force with the U.S. and make the U.S. rulers dare not talk about military option for the DPRK," referring to North Korea's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. He indicated that more missile tests would be forthcoming, saying that all future drills should be "meaningful and practical ones for increasing the combat power of the nuclear force" to establish an order in the deployment of nuclear warheads for "actual war." Prior to the launches over Japan, North Korean had threatened to fire a salvo of Hwasong-12s toward Guam, the U.S. Pacific island territory and military hub the North has called an "advanced base of invasion." The Security Council stressed in a statement after a closed-door emergency meeting that all countries must "fully, comprehensively and immediately" implement all U.N. sanctions. Japan's U.N. Ambassador Koro Bessho called the missile launch an "outrageous act" that is not only a threat to Japan's security but a threat to the whole world. Bessho and the British, French and Swedish ambassadors demanded that all sanctions be implemented. Calling the latest launch a "terrible, egregious, illegal, provocative reckless act," Britain's U.N. Ambassador Matthew Rycroft said North Korea's largest trading partners and closest links — a clear reference to China — must "demonstrate that they are doing everything in their power to implement the sanctions of the Security Council and to encourage the North Korean regime to change course." France's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the country is ready to work on tougher U.N. and EU measures to convince Pyongyang that there is no interest in an escalation, and to bring it to the negotiating table. Friday's launch followed North Korea's sixth nuclear test on Sept. 3 in what it described as a detonation of a thermonuclear weapon built for its developmental ICBMs. The Hwasong-12 and the Hwasong-14 were initially fired at highly lofted angles to reduce their range and avoid neighboring countries. The two Hwasong-12 launches over Japan indicate North Korea is moving toward using angles close to operational to evaluate whether its warheads can survive the harsh conditions of atmospheric re-entry and detonate properly. While some experts believe North Korea would need to conduct more tests to confirm Hwasong-12's accuracy and reliability, Kim Jong Un's latest comments indicate the country would soon move toward mass producing the missiles for operational deployment, said Kim Dong-yub, an analyst at Seoul's Institute for Far Eastern Studies. He also said that the North is likely planning similar test launches of its Hwasong-14 ICBM. South Korean President Moon Jae-in, a liberal who initially pushed for talks with North Korea, said its tests currently make dialogue "impossible." "If North Korea provokes us or our allies, we have the strength to smash the attempt at an early stage and inflict a level of damage it would be impossible to recover from," said Moon, who ordered his military to conduct a live-fire ballistic missile drill in response to the North Korean launch. ___ Lederer reported from the United Nations.

– North Korea leader Kim Jong Un said his country is nearing its goal of "equilibrium" in military force with the United States, as the United Nations Security Council strongly condemned the North's "highly provocative" ballistic missile launch over Japan on Friday, the AP reports. The North's official Korean Central News Agency carried Kim's comments on Saturday—a day after US and South Korean militaries detected the missile launch from the North Korean capital of Pyongyang. It traveled 2,300 miles as it passed over the Japanese island of Hokkaido before landing in the northern Pacific Ocean. It was the country's longest-ever test flight of a ballistic missile. The North has confirmed the missile as an intermediate range Hwasong-12, the same model launched over Japan on Aug. 29. The KCNA said Kim expressed great satisfaction over the launch, which he said verified the "combat efficiency and reliability" of the missile and the success of efforts to increase its power. While the English version of the report was less straightforward, the Korean version quoted Kim as declaring the missile as operationally ready. He vowed to complete his nuclear weapons program in the face of strengthening international sanctions, the agency said. Photos published by North Korea's state media showed the missile being launched from a truck-mounted launcher and a smiling Kim clapping and raising his fist while celebrating from an observation point. The UN Security Council, after a closed-door emergency meeting, accused North Korea of undermining regional peace and security by launching its latest missile over Japan and said its nuclear and missile tests "have caused grave security concerns around the world" and threaten all 193 UN member states.

Investigation launched after men photographed interfering with crocodile trap at Port Douglas Posted A group of men seen interfering with a crocodile trap in far north Queensland has been condemned by Queensland's environment department "in the strongest possible terms". Photos posted to Facebook show the men climbing on top of and even inside a baited crocodile trap at the Port Douglas marina. The trap is not far from where 79-year-old Anne Cameron was taken by a crocodile earlier this month. The Department of Environment and Heritage Protection (EHP) has launched an investigation into the "stupid and reckless interference". "These traps are specifically designed to attract crocodiles and they are deployed in places where a problem crocodile is known to be present," a department spokesperson said in a statement. "It is extremely dangerous to interfere with a crocodile trap, regardless of whether or not there is a crocodile within. "It is not an exaggeration to say that interfering with crocodile traps can be potentially life-threatening for the person concerned." Stiff penalties introduced The Queensland Government recently introduced penalties of more than $15,000 for people who deliberately interfere with a crocodile trap. The penalties were introduced in response to a previous incident of people caught playing on a crocodile trap in the far north. Environment Minister Steven Miles said anyone with information on the matter should contact the department. "I've seen some pretty ridiculous things in my time as Environment Minister, particularly when it comes to crocodiles, but this one takes the cake," Mr Miles said. "You've got grown men swimming in a crocodile trap, exactly where we put the bait for the crocodiles. "The reason the trap is there is because we suspect there are crocodiles in the area. "The trap is dangerous in and of itself, and of course if the crocodile were to appear that would be even more dangerous." Topics: crocodile, animal-attacks, animals, port-douglas-4871 ||||| Group shown swimming into a baited trap at the scene of a recent fatal attack in Queensland have been criticised A group of men photographed swimming into a baited croc trap near the scene of a fatal attack in Queensland appear to be vying for the “idiots of the century award”, a local mayor has said. Photos of the men swimming around and even climbing into the trap at the Port Douglas Marina have surfaced online, leaving the mayor of Douglas Shire, Julia Leu, stunned. Remains found in crocodile believed to be missing Queensland woman Read more “I was absolutely gobsmacked, this is incredibly stupid and dangerous behaviour. I’m wondering if these fellows are vying for the idiots of the year award or the idiots of the century award,” she told ABC radio. The pictures show the men frolicking in the water and sitting in the mouth of the trap at the marina, not far from where a 4.3m croc took a 79-year-old woman with dementia, Anne Cameron. The croc that took her less than two weeks ago was trapped in the Mowbray River, south of Port Douglas. Leu said the area around the marina was a well known croc habitat. Steven Miles (@StevenJMiles) Srsly? The meat we put in these traps is bait. For crocodiles. Don’t swim in them! It’s stupid, and illegal. @qldpol @7NewsCairns pic.twitter.com/nQsUZwI3Wc Death of Queensland's largest crocodile in 30 years could spark violent power grab Read more Queensland’s environment minister, Steven Miles, also expressed disbelief, tweeting the image with the message: “Srsly? The meat we put in these traps is bait. For crocodiles. Don’t swim in them! It’s stupid and illegal.” Miles later said the men were pictured swimming around the trap, climbing onto it and also venturing inside, where they posed for pictures wearing broad smiles. “It appears they’ve ... swum under a sign that says it’s illegal to tamper with this trap and put themselves literally where we put the bait,” he told reporters. “I’ve seen some pretty ridiculous things in my time as environment minister, particularly when it comes to crocodiles, but this one takes the cake.” Miles said it was dumb but not illegal to swim around croc traps. “You can’t make everything that’s stupid illegal,” he said. But any attempt to interfere or tamper with traps would expose offenders to hefty fines.

– Authorities in Australia say they're "gobsmacked" by the sheer stupidity of a group of men seen swimming to a crocodile trap in Queensland—and getting inside with the bait. The men were spotted getting into the mouth of the trap at the Port Douglas marina, close to where a crocodile is suspected of killing an elderly dementia patient earlier this month, reports the Guardian. "This is incredibly stupid and dangerous behavior," says Julia Leu, a local mayor. "I'm wondering if these fellows are vying for the idiots of the year award or the idiots of the century award." "Srsly? The meat we put in these traps is bait. For crocodiles. Don't swim in them! It's stupid, and illegal," tweeted Queensland Environment Minister Steven Miles. "I've seen some pretty ridiculous things in my time as environment minister, particularly when it comes to crocodiles, but this one takes the cake," he told reporters. He warned that the traps are dangerous even without the crocodiles they're designed to attract. The Queensland government recently introduced a $15,000 fine for interfering with the traps after a similar incident, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reports. (This guy was mauled by a crocodile after jumping in a river to prove a point.)

Wild climate swings -- persisting tens of millions of years -- were too much for the dinos, University of Utah paleontologist and colleagues discover SALT LAKE CITY, June ­15, 2015 ­- For more than 30 million years after dinosaurs first appeared, they remained inexplicably rare near the equator, where only a few small-bodied meat-eating dinosaurs eked out a living. The age-long absence of big plant-eaters at low latitudes is one of the great, unanswered questions about the rise of the dinosaurs. And now the mystery has a solution, according to an international team of scientists who pieced together a remarkably detailed picture of the climate and ecology more than 200 million years ago at Ghost Ranch in northern New Mexico, a site rich with fossils from the Late Triassic Period. The new findings show that the tropical climate swung wildly with extremes of drought and intense heat. Wildfires swept the landscape during arid regimes and continually reshaped the vegetation available for plant-eating animals. "Our data suggest it was not a fun place," says study co-author Randall Irmis, curator of paleontology at the Natural History Museum of Utah and assistant professor at the University of Utah. "It was a time of climate extremes that went back and forth unpredictably and large, warm-blooded dinosaurian herbivores weren't able to exist nearer to the equator - there was not enough dependable plant food." The study, led by geochemist Jessica Whiteside, lecturer at the University of Southampton, is the first to provide a detailed look at the climate and ecology during the emergence of the dinosaurs. The results are important, also, for understanding human-caused climate change. Atmospheric carbon dioxide levels during the Late Triassic were four to six times current levels. "If we continue along our present course, similar conditions in a high-CO2 world may develop, and suppress low-latitude ecosystems," Irmis says. The other authors are Sofie Lindström, Ian Glasspool, Morgan Schaller, Maria Dunlavey, Sterling Nesbitt, Nathan Smith and Alan Turner. They reported the findings in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Reconstructing the deep past The earliest known dinosaur fossils, found in Argentina, date from around 230 million years ago. Within 15 million years, multitudes of species with different diets and body sizes had evolved and were abundant beyond the tropical latitudes. In the tropics, the only dinosaurs present were small carnivores. This pattern persisted for 30 million years after the first dinosaurs appeared. In the new study, the authors focused on Chinle Formation rocks, which were deposited by rivers and streams between 205 and 215 million years ago at Ghost Ranch (better known to many outside of paleontology as the place where artist Georgia O'Keeffe lived and painted for much of her career). The multi-colored rocks of the Chinle Formation are a common sight on the Colorado Plateau at places such as the Painted Desert at Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona. During the Late Triassic, North America and other land masses of the world were bound together in the supercontinent Pangea. The Ghost Ranch site stood close to the equator at roughly the same latitude as present-day southern India. The researchers reconstructed the deep past by analyzing several kinds of data: fossils, charcoal left by ancient wildfires, and stable isotopes from organic matter and carbonate nodules that formed in ancient soils. "Each dataset complements the others, and they all point towards similar conditions," Whiteside says. "I think this is one of the major strengths of our study." Fossilized bones, pollen grains and fern spores revealed the types of animals and plants living at different times, marked by layers of sediment. Dinosaurs remained rare among the fossils, accounting for less than 15 percent of vertebrate animal remains. They were outnumbered in diversity, abundance and body size by the reptiles known as Pseudosuchian archosaurs, the lineage that gave rise to crocodiles and alligators. The sparse dinosaurs consisted mostly of small, carnivorous theropods. Big, long-necked dinosaurs, or sauropodomorphs - already the dominant plant-eaters at higher latitudes - did not exist at the study site or any other low-latitude site in Triassic Pangaea, as far as the fossil record shows. Abrupt changes in climate left a record in the shifting abundance of different types of pollen and fern spores between sediment layers. Fossilized organic matter from decaying plants provided another window on climate shifts. Changes in the ratio of stable isotopes of carbon in the organic matter bookmarked times when plant productivity declined during extended droughts. Drought and fire Wildfire burn temperatures varied drastically, the researchers found, consistent with a fluctuating environment in which the amount of combustible plant matter rose and fell over time. The researchers estimated the intensity of wildfires using bits of charcoal recovered in the sediment layers. The amount of light reflected from the fossil charcoal under a light microscope relates directly to the burn temperature of the wood. The overall picture, the authors say, is that of a climate punctuated by extreme shifts in precipitation in which plant die-offs fueled hotter fires, which in turn killed more plants, damaged soils and increased erosion. Atmospheric carbon dioxide levels, calculated from stable isotope analyses of soil carbonate and preserved organic matter, rose from about 1,200 parts per million at the base of the section, to about 2,400 parts per million near the top. At these high CO2 concentrations, climate models predict more frequent and more extreme weather fluctuations consistent with the fossil and charcoal evidence. Continuing shifts between extremes of dry and wet likely prevented the establishment of dinosaur-dominated communities found in the fossil record at higher-latitudes across South America, Europe and southern Africa, where aridity and temperatures were less extreme and humidity was consistently higher. Resource-limited conditions could not support a diverse community of fast-growing, warm-blooded, large dinosaurs, which require a productive and stable environment to thrive. "The conditions would have been something similar to the arid western United States today, although there would have been trees and smaller plants near streams and rivers and forests during humid times," says Whiteside. "The fluctuating and harsh climate with widespread wild fires meant that only small two-legged carnivorous dinosaurs, such as Coelophysis, could survive." ### The research was funded by grants from the National Science Foundation (EAR 0801138, 1349650, 1349554, 1349667, and 1349654). Other funding was provided by Richard Salomon Foundation, National Geographic Society Committee for Research & Exploration, University of California Museum of Paleontology, University of Utah, Grainger Foundation, Dyson Foundation (MFS), and Field Museum Women's Board - Geocenter Denmark (grant nr 6-2013). Fieldwork was conducted with the permission and support of the Ghost Ranch Conference Center. ||||| One of the missing links in our understanding of the Triassic Period – between 252 and 201m years ago – is why there were so few dinosaurs in the tropics. Our research suggests that volatile, hot dry weather and high carbon dioxide levels are to blame. The research can even tell us something about the challenges we humans face from climate change. The first dinosaurs emerged just over 230m years ago, during the Late Triassic Period. This was one of the most dynamic intervals in the Earth’s history, with large-scale climatic changes. The planet was also coping with the recovery from one mass extinction and the onset of another. At the same time, many of the animal groups that dominate today’s terrestrial ecosystems – including frogs, salamanders, turtles, lizards, and mammals – were emerging. One of the major unresolved questions of dinosaurs’ rise to dominance is why large-bodied herbivorous dinosaurs were missing from the tropics, despite the fact that they lived in higher latitudes. Small, carnivorous dinosaurs, however, populated the entire planet – including in the tropics. Of crushing importance To tackle the issue, our international team investigated sedimentary rocks from a number of places around the Upper Triassic Chinle Formation in New Mexico, including the fabled “Ghost Ranch”, whose multicoloured cliffs inspired artist Georgia O'Keeffe’s landscapes. However, they also preserved North America’s most extensive fossil evidence of the rise of dinosaurs and their competitors. At the time that these sediments were deposited by rivers and streams, the areas were very close to the equator at about 12°N latitude (northern New Mexico is at 36°N today). This is the same as the current latitude of the southernmost tip of India. By excavating unweathered rock in the field and then crushing samples in the lab we could separate the isotopes of carbon from fossilised organic matter in rocks using mass spectrometry. The isotopic ratios suggest that major rapid changes in ecosystem productivity and atmospheric CO 2 levels took place during the Triassic Period. These rocks also preserve abundant fossil charcoal. Based on the amount of light reflected from fossil charcoal under a microscope, we could see that wildfires must have swept the landscape at the time. These would have continually changed the vegetation available for large plant-eating dinosaurs. By extracting fossil pollen and spores from the sediments and by excavating and identifying vertebrate body fossils, we could also identify the plants and animals living in the area. Our data show that plant groups varied in abundance in connection with climate swings, and that the only dinosaurs present were rare, meat-eating theropods. As such, we conclude that large plant-eating dinosaurs were absent because there were not enough predictable food and water resources for them to thrive. Our study suggests that the climatic effects of elevated CO 2 , which were four to six times that of modern levels, drastically reshaped the environment and had profound consequences on the composition of ecosystems on land. The discovery is not only important for understanding our past. Rapid climate swings and extremes of drought and intense heat driven by increasing atmospheric CO 2 levels have as much ability to alter the vegetation supporting modern human populations as they did for the large plant-eating dinosaurs in the Triassic. ||||| Early carnivorous dinosaurs (background) were small and rare, while other reptiles like long-snouted phytosaurs and armored aetosaurs (foreground) were common, 212 million years ago in what is now northern New Mexico. Giant dinosaurs steered clear of the tropics for tens of millions of years because wild climate swings there were too much for them to handle, researchers say. This finding could shed light on troubles that climate change might bring in the next few centuries, scientists added. Dinosaurs emerged about 230 million years ago in the late Triassic period. They came to dominate life on land for 135 million years during the subsequent Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, until a cosmic impact brought a cataclysmic end to the Age of Reptiles about 65 million years ago. Within 15 million years after dinosaurs first appeared, multitudes of dinosaur species had evolved. Inexplicably, the giant long-necked, long-tailed, vegetarian dinosaurs known as sauropods — the largest creatures to ever walk the Earth — were rare in the low latitudes around the equator for up to 30 million years after their origin, even though they dominated high latitudes before then. [Images: One of the World's Biggest Dinosaurs Discovered] "For several decades, researchers have noticed a curious case — large plant-eating dinosaurs seemed to be much more common at high latitudes during the Triassic," study lead author Jessica Whiteside, a geochemist at the University of Southampton in England, told Live Science. "However, it has only been in the past decade that we've realized they're completely missing from the tropics, where only a few small carnivorous dinosaurs dwelled." Reconstructing dino-scapes To help solve this mystery, Whiteside and her colleagues analyzed rocks from a location known as Ghost Ranch in New Mexico (which inspired famed artist Georgia O'Keeffe's landscape paintings). The researchers focused on the multicolored cliffs of the Chinle Formation, which are a common sight at places such as the Painted Desert at Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona. For nine years, the investigators studied the rocks deposited by rivers and streams between 205 million and 215 million years ago, during the late Triassic, when the Americas and other land masses of the world were bound together in the supercontinent Pangea. Back then, the Ghost Ranch site resided near the equator at about the same latitude as the southernmost tip of India does today. The site is rich with fossils from the late Triassic. The scientists reconstructed the first detailed look at the climate and ecology during the emergence of the dinosaurs by looking at a variety of types of data from the rocks. Fossil charcoal helped the scientists deduce wildfire temperatures; fossil bones, pollen and spores helped them figure out the kinds of animals and plants living in the region; isotopes of carbon and oxygen from fossil organic matter helped researchers estimate levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide and how much vegetation existed there at the time. "Each dataset complements the others, and they all point towards similar conditions," Whiteside said in a statement. "I think this is one of the major strengths of our study." Dinosaurs were rare among the fossils at Ghost Ranch, accounting for less than 15 percent of vertebrates, or animals with backbones. The dinosaurs were outnumbered in diversity, abundance and body size by the reptiles known as pseudosuchians, the lineage that gave rise to crocodiles and alligators. The few dinosaurs at the site were mostly small carnivores. [In Images: Ancient Monsters of the Sea] Plant fossils helped fill in the picture. Different groups of plants at Ghost Ranch often alternated from common to rare, as suggested by shifting abundances of different types of pollen and spores. This hinted at repeated sudden changes in climate. In addition, the way that levels of carbon isotopes went up and down over time suggested that levels of vegetation could rise and fall depending on strong fluctuations in rainfall. Fossil charcoal suggested that raging wildfires every few dozen years could reach temperatures of up to about 1,100 degrees Fahrenheit (600 degrees Celsius). These may have been due to abrupt shifts in climate that drove massive plant die-offs and fueled hotter fires. Climate swings The new findings suggest that the tropics in the late Triassic possessed a highly unpredictable hot climate that could swing between wet seasons in some years and extreme droughts in others. "The conditions would have been something similar to the arid Western United States today, although there would have been trees and smaller plants near streams and rivers and forests during humid times," Whiteside said in the statement. This harsh, fluctuating climate and its repeated wildfires would have made it difficult for abundant vegetation to grow and survive, preventing giant herbivores from invading the region. "Only small two-legged carnivorous dinosaurs such as Coelophysis could survive," Whiteside said in the statement. This highly unpredictable hot and dry climate was linked with high atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide that were "four to six times that of modern levels, but similar to levels predicted for 100 to 200 years in the future," Whiteside said. "These data therefore suggest there are potentially profound challenges to human sustainability in the future if we experience the high carbon dioxide conditions predicted to develop in the coming 100 to 200 years." In the future, scientists could look at other tropical, late Triassic sites, Whiteside said. She and her colleagues detailed their findings online June 15 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Follow Live Science @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Originally published on Live Science.

– Scientists have long been baffled by a lack of Triassic period fossils from large, herbivorous dinosaurs known as sauropods near the equator. A new study offers some illumination: It suggests a hot, unpredictable climate and high carbon dioxide levels kept some of the world's first dinosaurs away—and may shed light on our own issues with climate change. Researchers first analyzed ancient sedimentary rocks in New Mexico, which would have been much closer to the equator as part of the supercontinent Pangea some 215 million years ago, reports LiveScience. In separating carbon isotopes from fossilized organic matter, they identified significant and rapid changes to the ecosystem and atmospheric CO2 levels—which were four to six times those of today. Pollen and spores suggested available plants varied in quantity based on the frequent changes, while fossil charcoal showed evidence of wildfires every few dozen years that wreaked havoc on vegetation. The combined factors suggest an environment too unstable for sauropods until about 30 million years later, though small, carnivorous dinosaurs did populate the area. "The conditions would have been something similar to the arid Western United States today, although there would have been trees and smaller plants near streams and rivers and forests during humid times," study author Jessica Whiteside explains in a press release. Eerily, she writes at the Conversation that "rapid climate swings and extremes of drought and intense heat driven by increasing atmospheric CO2 levels have as much ability to alter the vegetation supporting modern human populations as they did for the large plant-eating dinosaurs in the Triassic." Whiteside adds we can expect "profound challenges to human sustainability in the future if we experience the high CO2 conditions predicted to develop in the coming 100 to 200 years." (Scientists made an incredible discovery inside "crap" dino fossils.)

Andrew Cooper / Summit Entertainment The world’s most insipid young lovers, Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) and Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart), finally consummate their love in Breaking Dawn—Part 1, the fourth installment in the Twilight series. This is cause for celebration only because it means our death march through the movie adaptations of Stephenie Meyer’s twisted but steadily puritanical saga is finally nearing its end. I wish I could report it was worth the wait, but the paparazzi pictures of Pattinson and Stewart nuzzling are sexier than this. After Edward and Bella mutter their vows to each other in the woodsy garden of the Cullen mansion, the duo departs for a honeymoon on a Brazilian island. There is an ongoing debate over exactly how they’ll fare in the all-white marital bed. Bella’s discarded swain, Jacob (Taylor Lautner) the gentle werewolf, voices his concerns about their having sex before Bella has been turned into a vampire. “You’ll kill her!” he says to Edward, as if a vampire penis were a 300-horse-powered drill. But Bella demurs; the conversion process from human to vamp is agonizing. “I don’t want to spend my honeymoon writhing in pain.” Ahem. She does end up bruised after giving up her maidenhood, and no wonder — Edward clutches the bedstead in pleasure and it crunches like Styrofoam (or a cheesy set) beneath his fingers. But everything we see is tame, firmly in the territory of artfully tangled sheets. Director Bill Condon (Dreamgirls, Gods and Monsters) delivers soap-opera-style sex — the kisses are dry, the caresses sweat-free, yet still, he cuts away discreetly like a blushing schoolgirl. (LIST: The Top 10 Sweatiest Movies) Bella is game for more. “I think we did amazing,” she says in the morning. Fussy Edward valiantly vows not to put out again until Bella has been turned. They play chess instead, moving red and white pieces around the board instead of enjoying a piece of each other. He resolutely ignores how cute she looks in lingerie. In one hilarious bit, he eyes her lacy rump, then pulls the covers over it. Young people of the world: Sex is nothing like this! The die is cast, though; their unplanned demon child is already growing within her, gestating at a rate so speedy, it might make a cat jealous. There are many things about Meyer’s fantasy universe that drive me crazy, but her constant sidestepping of accepted vampire lore comes close to topping the list. The most flagrant violation of standard vampire behavior is the revelation that they can impregnate a human (in Joss Whedon’s television series Angel, one vampire gets another vampire pregnant, another stretch, but at least it was supernatural all the way around). See, this is what happens when you don’t practice safe sex; even the undead can knock you up. This is Meyer’s worst offense — her disturbingly Victorian attitudes about sex and love, which this movie falls modestly in lockstep with, even though it concludes years of cinematic foreplay. Twilight came out in 2008, but it feels like we’ve been waiting a decade for these two to get past first base. I know it’s too late in the game to get all hot and bothered about the basic premise. But there are so many scenes of people standing around doing nothing and posing ridiculously, like models in a commercial for high-end jeans, that I had time to reflect on both the petty (like how peculiar Bella’s gown is, ill-fitting spandex in the bodice, Priscilla of Boston lace panels in the back) and the perverse. This is the stuff of gothic novels, the heroine swayed by the terrible, beastly maleness of her lover, a sexual act that hovers on rape in its sense of terror. Bella relinquishes control, sexual pupil to Edward’s century-old rake, while he wakes up in the morning full of mopey self-loathing (“How badly are you hurt?”). Maybe Meyer never got over her own teenage Georgette Heyer phase. There is also something extraordinarily deflating about realizing that you are sitting among a throng of blissful fans content with such a static enterprise. If it weren’t for the gifted Anna Kendrick as Bella’s best human friend (“I just thought it would bigger,” she says of the cake) and Bella’s dad Charlie (Billy Burke), the movies would feature nothing but unintentional humor. As Bella’s belly grows, the Cullen clan gathers around, plying her with cashmere throws and cups full of O Negative (this fetus has no interest in ice cream or pickles). But they’re helpless. What’s in there? “It’s just a little baby,” one of the indistinguishable girl Cullens says. “Possibly,” hisses one of the boy Cullens. Even doctor “dad” Carlisle (Peter Facinelli) doesn’t know what to do. The superhuman baby is sucking his mother dry — the already skinny Stewart looks like death’s head here. Let’s hope her skeletal frame owes something to CGI. Edward is in favor of a late-term abortion in order to save his lady love, but as usual she’s stubborn. No matter that a war is brewing between the Quileute “dogs” and the vamps over the undead unborn. She loves the baby. And as the birth approaches, in a bit of remarkable vampire technology, Edward is able to communicate with the fetus Cullen and learn this wonderful tidbit: “He loves you, Bella.” There has been much speculation over how the birth sequence would be handled. Even die-hard Meyer fans admit to being freaked out by how bloody and weird it is on the page, with fangs replacing surgical instruments. On the screen, it is a rapidly cut sequence of ketchup and interior views of veins, less horrifying than bizarre, and like the sex, oddly anticlimactic. In the final installment, due next November, Bella will be a mother and a vampire, but since the Twilight movies are the most remote tale of love, sex and reproduction ever put to film, the chances that Breaking Dawn—Part 2 will be anything worth sinking your teeth into are as slim as Bella Swan. LIST: The All-TIME 100 Movies LIST: The Top 10 Movies Based on Kids’ Books ||||| It breaks my heart to tell you that "Breaking Dawn" is broken.The movie that's carved out of the first half of the last book of Stephenie Meyer 's vampires -in-love series, starring Kristen Stewart Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner , is weighted down by more than its title, to say nothing of the expectations. For the record, it's called "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 1," as if 5 billion insanely attentive Twihards wouldn't be able to find it.Maybe the studio suits have begun to believe the franchise, like the classy Cullen clan, is immortal, that almost nothing can kill it. They'd better hope that last bit is true, because "Breaking Dawn" kinda sucks, in the metaphoric rather than the vampiric sense. The film doesn't have nearly the bite — ferocious or delicious — that any self-respecting vampire movie really should. It's as if all the life has drained away.Yes, there is the wedding of the century, and no, it wasn't Kim and what's-his-name's. With high school behind her, Bella (Stewart) can marry her stone cold hottie, Edward (Pattinson), finally putting an end to Jacob's (Lautner) werewolf dreams of winning her heart. The wedding is one of the best things about this installment — a slow tease building up to the big reveal — and not easy to do with any drama because, let's face it, anyone who has even a passing interest in "Twilight" or walks by a magazine rack, knows it's all about the wedding. (Again, not Kim's.)With Bill Condon directing and Bella's sister-in-law-to-be Alice ( Ashley Greene ) doing all the wedding planning, it is an exquisite, elegant, exceedingly tasteful affair. What is it about vampires that they always have such high-end style? Something in the blood? I ask, because if so, the Red Cross should siphon some of its stash, run ads in Architectural Digest and develop another revenue stream.But I digress. So the wedding is superb in its execution, the filmmakers allowing plenty of time to savor it. Still I'd really hoped for more that just a well-polished look from Condon. With his "Dreamgirls" and "Gods and Monsters" background, he seemed a perfect fit for the final chapters of the tale of this dream girl and her godless monster. Such a pity.The couple say their "I do's," a little till-death-do-us-part irony. And right about now is when the film'smeta-story starts kicking in in ways that are a little distracting, a little weird. If you've kept up with the glossy celebrity magazines since the first "Twilight" movie in 2008, you know that Stewart and Pattinson have been a couple on and off almost from the beginning. And if you believe the tabloids and if photos don't lie, and I surely do and they surely don't, Pattinson is the more smitten of the pair.So watching Edward watch Bella walk down that aisle, the adoration in his eyes, the relief when she says "yes," the kiss that seals their union — quite honestly it doesn't seem like acting per se (if it is, then it's one of his best performances). And I won't even go into the whole honeymoon night sequence, or the way the actors' on-screen "chemistry" is being marketed, or the mixed-messages it sends to girls about their first sexual experience.But that's not the film's real problem. What Meyer did so brilliantly in the book (or at least really, really well), and what Melissa Rosenberg's script fails to do, is to mine all the dramatic potential of the symbolic implications of immortality.The book gives over quite a few of its 756 pages to Bella's struggle with the high price of dying to live forever, especially for her parents, and Edward's guilt about it. And there is barely a mention of the provocative abortion debate — should the vampire-human hybrid created during the honeymoon be "removed" before it kills Bella?For conflict, we're left with Bella in a few moments of contemplation and consternation — which requires very little from Stewart, an actress capable of so much more. The rest of the tension building is left up to Jacob and his werewolf issues. He goes postal when the wedding invitation arrives, hackles raised, lots of growling, disappearing for days, so that's a real nail-biter…For those keeping score, "Breaking Dawn" is missing the interesting indie edge that director Catherine Hardwicke brought to the first film. It does not flat line as badly as the second, "New Moon," which would have died without the werewolves' bite. It loses the brief emotional uptick of No. 3, "Eclipse," which saw the cast blossom into actual actors. So in the "Twilight" pantheon, " Breaking Dawn Part 1 " is at best a draw. Hopefully they'll fix what's wrong before next year's finale, because I really can't take another broken heart. ||||| Dawn isn’t the only thing that gets broken in “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part I,” the latest and best of the movies about a girl, her vampire and their impossible, ridiculously appealing — yes, I surrendered — love story. Marked by a canny mix of violence and chastity, the franchise has always had plenty of broken heads to go along with its pure thoughts, but here it also features a marital bed reduced to kindling after a rough night. If that doesn’t sound like the series that has kept millions of prepubescent viewers virtuously rapt, you’re right. But little Bella is all grown up now, and while Edward is still more zomboid than juicily predatory, this time not everything else on screen is dead too. With only four books in Stephenie Meyer’s chart-busting series (as opposed to the seven Harry Potters), the people behind the “Twilight” movies can be forgiven for stretching out the screen experience for as long as possible. (“Breaking Dawn” 2 hits next November.) And, after all, so much does happen in this movie, which takes the arc of human experience — birth and death and everything in between — and works it up into a rich, sudsy lather. In the past, Bella (played with increasing confidence by Kristen Stewart) has been almost eclipsed by Edward (Robert Pattinson), his bloodsucking brood and their battles. Here, though, she returns as the emotional and psychological cornerstone in a series in which the center of gravity has shifted from frenzied action and reaction to love. The movie opens shortly before Bella and Edward’s wedding at his family digs — a luxe affair decked in white and foreshadowed by a nightmare steeped in red — which reunites many of the principals, with the exception of Jacob (Taylor Lautner), who’s off sulking, having lost his claim on Bella. Poor wolf never stood a chance; vampires aren’t just hot (and sometimes scorching, as on the HBO show “True Blood”), they have, in recent years, also become the favorite go-to romantic male lead, the last, possibly sole defense against the nice-guy tide embodied by the Apatowesque freaks and geeks and their bromantic brethren. The vampire, in other words, is the only man (other than George Clooney) who can still sweep a woman off her feet — so what if he’s actually dead? Being dead, in truth, gives the male vampire a great romantic advantage, because it allows him to engage in the kind of old-fashioned dash and derring-do — with one arm around the girl and the other smacking away foes — that might be laughed or scolded off the screen. (The age of the chivalrous superhero ended when Christopher Reeve hung up his Superman cape in 1987.) One of the complex pleasures of the “Twilight” movies is the absolute sincerity with which they’ve revived the unironic romantic male lead, an ideal that works (when the movies do, anyway) because it’s Bella who actively, even desperately, desires Edward. He’s her choice, not that of her parents or anyone else. First came kissing, now comes marriage, a surprisingly rollicking honeymoon and, almost immediately, a horrendous pregnancy that the director Bill Condon makes so palpably disturbing that it might cause David Cronenberg, the master of body horror, to wince. Mr. Condon handles the little bit of action in “Breaking Dawn” capably, but it’s his work with (and sometimes around) the actors and his ability to translate ideas visually that lifts this movie above the rest. When Bella first appears, she enters wobbling in uncharacteristic towering heels, an image that instantly suggests her unsteadiness before her wedding, and, as she moves toward the altar, Mr. Condon further telegraphs her unease by filling the screen with red rose petals that turn into a sanguineous hallucination. Crucially and as important, Mr. Condon, whose earlier films include “Dreamgirls” and “Gods and Monsters,” can also offer up, and without a suggestion of filmmaker embarrassment, the sight of Mr. Lautner ripping off his shirt. As Jacob, Edward’s long-suffering, oft-rejected rival for Bella’s affection, Mr. Lautner has plenty of reasons to strip angry: he can turn into a wolf, for starters, and Jacob’s musculature has long been one of the most special of the movies’ effects. That’s reason enough for Mr. Condon to get the character’s shirt off, as is the unavoidable truth that Mr. Lautner, whose pumped physique and flat affect bring to mind one of those friendly pizza delivery boys in a pornographic movie, remains a dish best served with as few words and clothes as possible. Though he smolders well enough (if no longer sparkles), Mr. Pattinson is scarcely any better than his brother in beefcake. If that doesn’t matter, it’s because Mr. Pattinson’s heaviest lifting is over. His character is already well sketched in, and now all that remains is for the actor to play the part of the passionate, potentially dangerous vampire husband, which he — or, rather, his smart director — conveys with the startling image of Edward’s hands clenching the honeymoon bed until it explodes under his powerful touch. This image of sexual rough play is further capped the next morning by bruises now tattooing Bella’s body, branding that — along with her smiles (a private reverie reminiscent of Diane Lane’s postcoital raptures in “Unfaithful”) — shifts the story into another world. Mr. Condon works in that world fluidly, gilding it with a necessary sense of humor — Bella and Edward’s white honeymoon bed glows as portentously as an altar for a sacrificial virgin — and imbuing it with a love and a gift for melodrama. He slathers on the music (“melodrama” comes from song or music drama), lets Ms. Stewart rock and the emotions roil. He resurrects the awkward teenage yearning that enlivened the first “Twilight” movie, but also transforms that initial, crude hunger into something deeper. Mostly, he brings Bella toward her happily-ever-after by giving this movie over to her, her dreams and her desires, as in a cosmic montage sequence worthy of “The Tree of Life,” but, you know, shorter. Edward may finally change Bella, but it’s Mr. Condon who resurrects her. “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 1” is rated PG-13 (Parents strongly cautioned). Vampire and werewolf violence and strong intimations of rough sex. THE TWILIGHT SAGA Breaking Dawn — Part 1 Opens on Friday nationwide. Directed by Bill Condon; written by Melissa Rosenberg, based on the novel “Breaking Dawn,” by Stephenie Meyer; director of photography, Guillermo Navarro; edited by Virginia Katz; music by Carter Burwell; production design by Richard Sherman; costumes by Michael Wilkinson; visual effects by John Bruno; produced by Wyck Godfrey, Karen Rosenfelt and Ms. Meyer; released by Summit Entertainment. Running time: 1 hour 57 minutes. WITH: Kristen Stewart (Bella Swan), Robert Pattinson (Edward Cullen), Taylor Lautner (Jacob Black), Billy Burke (Charlie Swan), Peter Facinelli (Dr. Carlisle Cullen), Elizabeth Reaser (Esme Cullen), Kellan Lutz (Emmett Cullen), Nikki Reed (Rosalie Hale), Jackson Rathbone (Jasper Hale), Ashley Greene (Alice Cullen), Michael Sheen (Aro), Anna Kendrick (Jessica), Sarah Clarke (Renee), Christian Camargo (Eleazar Denali), Gil Birmingham (Billy), Julia Jones (Leah), Booboo Stewart (Seth), Mia Maestro (Carmen Denali), Casey Labow (Kate Denali), Maggie Grace (Irina Denali) and Myanna Buring (Tanya Denali).

– The latest Twilight installment is, predictably, highly popular with fans; critics are less enthusiastic as Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson continue their vampire romance. “Enough with Bella's depressed, ragdoll posture and her eternal gloom,” writes Lisa Schwarzbaum in Entertainment Weekly. “A pox on Breaking Dawn ... for its contented complicity with Stephenie Meyer's ultimately awful message to millions of readers”—a message that life is “all pain” and “no pleasure.” “Breaking Dawn kinda sucks, in the metaphoric rather than the vampiric sense,” notes Betsy Sharkey in the Los Angeles Times. “The film doesn't have nearly the bite—ferocious or delicious—that any self-respecting vampire movie really should." In Time, Mary Pols bemoans the film’s “disturbingly Victorian attitudes about sex and love.” There’s “something extraordinarily deflating about realizing that you are sitting among a throng of blissful fans content with such a static enterprise.” The only thing to celebrate here is the fact that "our death march through the movie adaptations of Stephenie Meyer’s twisted but steadily puritanical saga is finally nearing its end." But in a surprisingly positive review, Manohla Dargis is on the fans' side, calling this installment the best in Edward and Bella's “ridiculously appealing” love story. The movie, she writes in the New York Times, “takes the arc of human experience—birth and death and everything in between—and works it up into a rich, sudsy lather.”

Think the fiscal cliff caused an awful lot of uncertainty and held back the economy? How about three more cliff-like deadlines over the next three months? That's what's in store. The bill approved by the House late Tuesday doesn't address the debt ceiling and temporarily puts off most of the automatic spending cuts otherwise scheduled to take effect Wednesday. Here is what's still ahead: 1. Debt Ceiling: Congress has to raise the debt ceiling soon. Real soon. On Monday, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner made it official: Federal borrowing has reached the $16.394 trillion debt ceiling. The Treasury Department, which runs the government's debt-issuance operation, can create about $200 billion of headroom by employing what it calls "extraordinary measures." That normally could cover about two months' worth of borrowing, although continuing uncertainty about tax rates and spending make it hard to determine precisely how long the extraordinary measures will last. Deadline: Late February or early March. What's at stake: Last year, political brinksmanship over the debt limit led to the downgrade of the country's credit rating, roiled stock markets and raised questions about the country's willingness to pay all of its bills on time. It also wasted $1.3 billion because of the uncertainty it wrought on the complex task of federal borrowing. 2. Sequester: The so-called sequester is a series of automatic cuts in federal spending that will reduce the budgets of most agencies and programs by 8% to 10%. The cuts were born of the epic 2011 fight over the debt ceiling. The idea was to create a "trigger" so onerous and indiscriminate that both parties would have an incentive to devise a smarter way to reduce deficits. Instead, 17 months later, Congress is considering a deal that would set up yet another deadline. Deadline: Bill will postpone many of the Jan. 2 cuts by two months. What's at stake: The spending cuts as laid out in 2011 would ripple out across thousands of federal programs and projects and, the White House budget office said in September, "would have a devastating impact on important defense and nondefense programs." 3. Continuing Budget Resolution: The federal government works on a fiscal year that starts every Oct. 1. Problem is it has been years since it actually enacted a real budget on time. There's a process for enacting a budget: Congressional committees are supposed to hold hearings. Experts and interested parties testify about proposals. Lawmakers deliberate over the right spending levels for each federal agency and then roll it all up into a budget. But Congress rarely ends up following that process. Instead, it usually passes short-term "continuing resolutions," which is fancy way of saying "Band Aid solution." Deadline: The current continuing resolution expires on March 27. What's at stake: Congress will have to pass yet another continuing resolution to avoid a temporary shutdown of some government functions, worker furloughs and a pullback in programs. ||||| (Updated 7.00am ET, Jan. 2) Despite waves of last-minute drama and discord, the fiscal cliff bill has now been approved by both the US Senate and the House of Representatives, and awaits the president’s signature to be signed into law. The final agreement on the deal should minimize any impact of the fiscal cliff—the drastic package of austerity measures and tax hikes triggered as of Jan. 1. Measures that kicked in immediately—such as the suspension of extended unemployment benefits—can be retroactively revoked. And investors showed appreciation for the deal, with markets across Europe rallying early on the news with big gains across major indexes. Notable equity advances included the mining industry led by Rio Tinto Group, automotive stocks including Porsche, Volkwagen, BMW and Daimler, and banks such as Commerzbank and Deutsche Bank. In any case, the deal is by no means a solution to the longer-term goal (paywall) of reducing the deficit by $3-$4 trillion over 10 years. It’s not even really a solution to the fiscal cliff itself. It merely puts off some decisions. Virtually nobody likes the current deal, which comes after the US technically went over the fiscal cliff. Liberals think it grants too many concessions to the wealthy (paywall) and leaves the government still hostage to talks over the debt ceiling in the coming weeks. Conservatives, still bristling at an aggressive speech from President Barack Obama on New Year’s Eve, are angry at having to allow any tax hikes at all. (The House vote was 257-167, with Democrats overwhelmingly backing the bill but only one-third of Republicans in favor. Politico has a detailed reconstruction of the legislative sausage-making.) It’s in the context of this broad discontent that things got messy over the past two days. Now that it’s speeding its way into law, what does it mean? What has been agreed The main outlines of the bill (see also a summary at our sister publication National Journal): Income tax rates will rise on couples filing jointly with taxable household income over $450,000 (the Democrats had earlier wanted a $250,000 threshold), or approximately the top 1%. Capital gains and dividend taxes rise somewhat, estate taxes increase slightly (Republicans had wanted no change), and various tax credits are extended The payroll tax cut expires Unemployment benefits for the long-term jobless last another year All but the highest earners are exempted from the alternative minimum tax A 27% cut in Medicare payments to doctors is waived What’s been kicked down the road (and how far)

– If you think you'll be done hearing about the fiscal cliff or anything like it should the House pass the Senate's cliff deal, CNNMoney has bad news for you: "three more cliff-like deadlines" loom in the first quarter. That's because the bill doesn't touch the debt ceiling and kicks the sequester can down the road. What you'll need to brace yourself for: The debt ceiling: Another crisis isn't too far off—late February or early March. That's when the government, which hit the $16.394 trillion debt ceiling yesterday, will have finished eating through the roughly $200 billion of extra borrowing the Treasury Department has readied via "extraordinary measures." CNNMoney reminds us what happened last time around: S&P downgraded our credit rating, the stock market shuddered, and we wasted $1.3 billion in taxpayer dollars. Sequester: The bill that's now in the House's hands would kick the can down the road on $110 billion in automatic cuts to the budgets of the Pentagon and many domestic agencies. Next deadline? Two months. The budget: The government is supposed to enact a new budget when the fiscal year begins, on Oct. 1. But it's been years since that timeline has been met, with Congress instead relying on "continuing resolutions," described by CNNMoney as a "fancy way of saying 'Band-Aid solution.'" The expiration date of the current "Band-Aid" is March 27. And if we make it through those, we're still not done: Quartz writes that two more issues will pop up a year from now, per the new bill. The so-called "doctor cliff," the 27% cut in Medicare payments to doctors, has been delayed a year. Jobless benefits for the long-term unemployed were extended for a year, and Quartz expects "America will still have a large cohort of long-term unemployed when the current extension expires."

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– Investigators have concluded that a 14-year-old female freshman who shot and wounded a fellow student at a West Texas high school before killing herself had planned to shoot her 14-year-old stepbrother before shooting herself. In a statement issued Tuesday, Chief Russell Scown of the Alpine Police Department says the girl's plan was foiled when a 17-year-old junior walked into the girls restroom at Alpine High School where the freshman girl was arming herself Thursday, the AP reports. The shooter, whom police haven't identified, aimed her gun at the older girl, who ducked and began running when she was shot in the lower body. The freshman girl then shot and killed herself. Officials said that day that the wound the older girl received was not life-threatening. Police say no others at the school were targeted. "As this incident unfolded, the leadership, guidance, service, professionalism, and protection given by the principal, school counselor, office staff, and teachers was amazing," Scown said in a statement, per the Star-Telegram. "One of the strongest and [most] courageous of all is the young lady wounded that day. The actions of this young lady, although unintentional, thwarted a much deeper tragedy."

Prosecutors say they are still to identify who felt flush enough to literally pour money down the drain. Investigators told the Tribune de Genève newspaper they suspect it may have belonged "to Spanish women who placed it in a safe-deposit box several years ago". Police have not disclosed the women’s identities and are unsure why they would have wanted to dispose of it. Detectives are attempting to determine whether it was the proceeds of crime or stolen. A lawyer acting for the women went to police headquarters last month, where he was questioned but provided little information. He handed over money to pay for repairs to the toilets of the bank and the restaurants, which had to spend thousands of euros getting them unclogged. But he offered no explanation about why money belonging to his clients, who were seen on CCTV footage at the bank a few months ago, might have ended up in the toilet. ||||| If someone tells you they flushed more than a hundred grand down the toilet, chances are they're referring figuratively to a bad investment, or an outrageous extravagance. But in Switzerland, prosecutors have opened an investigation into why two people literally tried to cram about 100,000 euros ($120,000) in 500 euro notes down toilets in three Geneva restaurants and an office of banking giant UBS. The notes "had probably been cut with scissors", Geneva prosecution spokesman Vincent Derouand told AFP, confirming the May incident first reported by the Tribune de Geneve. Derouand said the investigation would first focus on whether the cash was connected to any illegal activity because destroying -- or attempting to flush -- bank notes is not a crime in Switzerland. Police were alerted to the case after the restaurants complained that their toilets had been clogged, the spokesman said. Later, "a lawyer representing the people who flushed the notes came by and compensated them" for the cost of plumbing repairs, Derouand said. The UBS branch involved is in central Geneva and hosts a wealth management office of Switzerland's largest bank, Geneva prosecutors said. Notes were discovered in toilets near the area where the bank has vaults, Derouand said. UBS declined to comment on the story. Derouand did not discuss the identity of the suspects, but the paper said they were two Spanish women who had stashed the money in a safe.

– Some $120,000 has gone down the drain in Switzerland—literally. Prosecutors say 500-euro bank notes were found stuffed in a toilet serving a vault containing safe deposit boxes at Geneva's USB bank back in May, per Bloomberg. A few days later, per Reuters, 500-euro notes, which "had probably been cut with scissors," were found clogging toilets at three nearby restaurants, Vincent Derouand of the prosecutor's office tells AFP, via the Local. "We couldn't stop laughing," says an employee at a pizzeria where a bathroom flooded as a result of bills being stuffed in a toilet and sink, per the Telegraph. "Tax evasion is the most likely theory," adds the manager of a nearby cafe. Derouand says a lawyer representing the two people apparently responsible—local media describe them as two Spanish women—compensated the restaurants for thousands of dollars in plumbing repairs, prompting the withdrawal of a complaint. Unlike in the US, there is no law against destroying bank notes in Switzerland, but police are trying to trace the money anyway. "We're trying to find out where the notes came from and whether a crime has been committed," Derouand tells the BBC. "Clearly it's very surprising." Adds a second rep for the prosecutor's office, per Bloomberg: "There must be something behind this story." (A student allegedly burned money in front of a homeless man.)

Donald Trump Donald TrumpMessage to Trump: Poor people have the answers to solving poverty Report: Trump considers shutting down Council on Women and Girls 'Morning Joe' hosts: Trump fears women MORE swept all five states up for grabs in Tuesday's GOP primaries, giving his hopes for winnin the party's presidential nomination a huge boost. The big victories for Trump, who topped 60 percent in several states, make it much less likely that rivals Ted Cruz Ted CruzThe party of Lincoln has no soul — the GOP and its toxic healthcare bill Overnight Healthcare: Conservatives seek changes to Senate bill | GOP may keep ObamaCare tax in health bill | Trump taps new surgeon general Conservatives seek changes to Senate healthcare bill MORE and John Kasich will force the race to a contested convention this summer in Cleveland. Trump called on both of his rivals to drop out of the race and pivoted to the general election, where he said Hillary Clinton Hillary Rodham ClintonThe party of Lincoln has no soul — the GOP and its toxic healthcare bill EMILY's List sees female candidate boom in Trump era GOP investigation sought connection between Clinton’s emails and Russia: report MORE would be an easier opponent to defeat than the more than a dozen Republicans he has topped in the GOP race so far. “I consider myself the presumptive nominee, absolutely," he said at a press conference at his New York hotel. "Sen. Cruz and Gov. Kasich should really get out of the race, they have no path to victory and honestly they should get out of the race, we should heal the Republican party, bring the Republican Party back together. “As far as I’m concerned, it’s over. These two guys can’t win, there’s no path," he continued. "So why would I change? If you have a football team and you are winning and you get to a super bowl, you don’t change your quarterback." “As far as I’m concerned, it’s over. These two guys can’t win, there’s no path," he continued. "So why would I change? If you have a football team and you are winning and you get to a super bowl, you don’t change your quarterback." Cruz, who came to the cameras from Indiana before any of the polls closed, promised to fight on, and said the race would now move to territory more favorable to his campaign. “Tonight, Donald Trump is expected to have a good night. He’s likely to win some states and the media is going to have heart palpitations this evening,” Cruz said. “And the media is going to say the race is over. The media is going to say Donald Trump is the Republican nominee. “Everyone of them are ready for Hillary,” he continued before arguing that he is the only candidate who can beat Hillary Clinton, the Democratic frontrunner, in a general election. There were 118 bound delegates at stake in contests in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Connecticut, Delaware and Rhode Island, and Trump is poised to take a strong majority of these by virtue of winning the popular vote in each state. ADVERTISEMENT Trump will get all 17 bound delegates in Pennsylvania, as well as the 16 up for grabs in winner-take-all Delaware.Trump's victories in Maryland and Connecticut make it likely he’ll take a majority of the 66 delegates for those two states, as the bulk are allocated in winner-take-all contests at the congressional district level. Trump’s haul will be limited in Rhode Island, which awards its delegates on a strictly proportional basis. But the GOP front-runner will still take more delegates than Cruz or Kasich. Trump entered Tuesday with 845 delegates, needing to win about 58 percent of the remaining 674 still up for grabs to get to 1,237 delegates, the threshold for clinching the nomination. The sweep means Trump is likely to lower the percentage of delegates he needs to win the rest of the way to get to 1,237. GOP candidates now go to Indiana, which is viewed as the latest hurdle to Trump by his rivals. If Trump wins the state, he’s almost certain to become the nominee. To try to hold him off, Cruz and Kasich entered into an alliance in Indiana, with Kasich agreeing to pull his resources from the state to allow for a one-on-one contest between Trump and Cruz. Polls show Trump with a narrow lead over the Texas senator one week before voters head to the polls. Cruz and Kasich both hope that if Trump doesn’t get 1,237 delegates, a GOP convention could settle on a different nominee. Cruz believes he can win enough support on a second ballot to become the GOP nominee. The Trump campaign has thus far struggled with the inside game of getting supporters elected as delegates. Cruz has routed Trump time and again on that front, even in states Trump handily won in the popular vote. The latest test for Trump will come in Pennsylvania, where 54 of the state’s delegates are elected directly by voters and unbound to any candidate. Many of those candidates have already said they'll support whoever wins their district, at least on the first ballot at the convention, but Cruz has been working hard to ensure his supporters are selected as delegates. That could help him on subsequent ballots at a contested convention. The Trump campaign had two House members — Pennsylvania Reps. Tom Marino and Lou Barletta Lou BarlettaCongress poised to prohibit airlines from forcibly removing customers GOP congressman: Cut back on town halls in wake of shooting Overnight Finance: Fed raises rates for second time in 2017 | GOP weighs keeping ObamaCare taxes | Tax reform becomes Wall Street obsession MORE — working on the ground to get Trump's operations up to speed. The Trump campaign passed around a delegate slate card at polling stations across the state, urging voters to select candidates that have already pledged their support to the GOP front-runner. ||||| Donald Trump declared himself the “presumptive nominee” of the Republican Party after he won five Northeastern states in a self-described “massive landslide” that dealt a serious setback to the anti-Trump forces pushing for a contested convention. Trump romped across Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, Rhode Island and Connecticut. His smallest margin of victory was roughly 30 percentage points; he led in two states by about 40 points. As of late Tuesday, Trump led in every single county across all five states. And most crucially, he swept at least 105 of the 118 bound delegates available. Story Continued Below "I consider myself the presumptive nominee, absolutely," the real estate mogul said in his victory speech at Trump Tower in New York. “As far as I am concerned, it’s over,” he declared. It’s not, at least mathematically. While Trump has more than 75 percent of the 1,237 delegates he needs to clinch the nomination, he must still beat Ted Cruz and John Kasich in the upcoming primaries, most crucially Indiana and California. But Trump declared himself on an unstoppable path — past his opponents, who he chided as spoilers and sore losers, and through a political system he’s repeatedly decried as rigged. “The best way to beat the system is to have evenings like this," Trump said. Trump’s speech also previewed the bare-knuckled brawl that a Trump vs. Hillary Clinton general election would be, ending his 35-minute address and press conference by declaring, "The only card she’s got going is the woman’s card.” “If Hillary Clinton were a man, I don’t think she’d get 5 percent of the vote,” Trump said. Trump had entered the night with 845 of the 1,237 delegates needed to secure the nomination. He ended with at least 950. Cruz, who began the evening trailing far behind, with 559 delegates, ended the night mathematically eliminated from winning on the first ballot at the national convention. Kasich, with only 148 delegates, was eliminated long ago. Trump’s dominance Tuesday was thorough. In Maryland, Trump won “very conservative” voters — the group that has been the mainstay of Cruz’s support — 52 percent to 36 percent, according to exit polls. He carried 50 percent of “very conservative” voters in Connecticut, to Cruz’s 32 percent. And in Pennsylvania, Trump crushed Cruz among evangelical voters, 57 percent to 30 percent. He won every bound delegate available in Connecticut, Maryland, Delaware and Pennsylvania. And in Pennsylvania, where 54 unbound delegates were elected directly at the ballot box, Trump looked to pad his lead, with Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute counting 27 Trump supporters among the leaders. Many delegate candidates have informally pledged themselves to the winner of their districts, which was Trump across the state. With his wins, he called on the GOP to unite around him. “We should heal the Republican Party,” Trump said. But his opponents showed no signs of giving up. Anticipating Trump’s big night Tuesday, Kasich and Cruz struck a surprise deal over the weekend in which Kasich promised not to campaign in Indiana, which votes next week, and Cruz vowed not to compete in Oregon and New Mexico. While Kasich suffered another miserable primary night, his campaign pledged that he would trudge onward. “Never wavering from his commitment to a campaign focused on optimism and strength, John Kasich will continue making his supporters proud,” his team tweeted. Cruz has already been in Indiana for days. “Tonight this campaign moves back to Indiana,” Cruz said at a rally as the polls closed and before the depth of his losses was apparent. He finished third in four of the five states. Trump’s string of wins came at a tumultuous time for his campaign, which has been riven with internal strife since Paul Manafort was hired as his convention manager and quickly seized power and control from Corey Lewandowski, Trump’s original campaign manager. Manafort has tried to professionalize an operation that had been losing to Cruz in the battle for individual delegates even while winning states. Manafort hired Rick Wiley, Scott Walker’s former campaign manager, as political director, and Trump’s old national field director, Stuart Jolly, resigned amid the shake-up. But Lewandowski, who guided Trump from longshot to frontrunner, has pushed backed against the idea that the campaign needed fixing. “Donald Trump will never change,” Lewandowski said Tuesday afternoon on CNN before the polls closed. “The motto of the campaign has been and continues to be: Let Mr. Trump be Mr. Trump.” That was apparent in Trump’s election night speech in which he jabbed at Clinton, Cruz and Kasich and wandered far off script, just as he has throughout the campaign. It’s not clear what Trump’s sweep will mean for Indiana, where polls show the race is tighter. Momentum has proved elusive in the Republican contest so far, ever since Trump came roaring back in New Hampshire following Cruz’s Iowa victory. Three weeks ago, Cruz hailed his win over Trump in Wisconsin as a “turning point” — but it only marked a turn back in Trump’s direction as the real estate mogul walloped Kasich and Cruz in his home state. Trump spoke Tuesday like a man who had taken back control of his own political destiny. "I’m not looking to go second, third, fourth, fifth,” he said, dismissing talk of an open convention and multiple ballots. He’s looking to win.

– "It's over," Donald Trump proclaimed Tuesday night after sweeping all five primaries by huge margins. "I consider myself the presumptive nominee, absolutely," he said in a speech at Trump Tower in New York, per the Washington Post. "Honestly, Sen. Cruz and Gov. Kasich should really get out of the race. They have no path to victory at all. We should heal the Republican Party, bring the Republican Party together. And I'm a unifier." He described the wins as a "massive landslide," and it wasn't hyperbole: He scored more than 60% of the vote in Rhode Island and Delaware and at least 55% in Maryland, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania. Politico notes that his dominance extended to evangelicals, who chose him over Ted Cruz 57% to 30% in Pennsylvania. With 118 bound delegates at stake, Trump won at least 105—putting him around three-quarters of the way to the necessary 1,237—with five going to John Kasich and one to Ted Cruz. His haul includes all 17 bound delegates in Pennsylvania, though the state's 54 unbound delegates could complicate his path to the nomination, the Hill reports. In his victory speech, Trump attacked Hillary Clinton instead of his GOP rivals, calling her "crooked" and saying the "only card she has is the woman's card." "If Hillary Clinton were a man, I don't think she'd get 5% of the vote," he said. (Cruz, meanwhile, was in Indiana, where he made an embarrassing gaffe in the gym where Hoosiers was filmed.)

FILE ART - Texting FILE ART - Texting - Taxing your texting – the California Public Utilities Commission is proposing a plan to charge a fee for text messaging on cell phones The surcharge rate is less than seven percent currently for telephone services. So for every $10 of text revenues – it would cost about 70 cents. The Mercury News reports a charge like that could bring in $44 million a year from wireless users. The CPUC wants to clarify rules on whether texting revenues are surchargeable or not – the pending draft proposal commissioners are going to vote on in January concludes it is OK to tax. In the 1990s, the federal government and states created “public purpose programs,” charging people a fee for telecommunication services - like talking on a landline phone. That money helps fund programs to make phone services more accessible for those who are low income. This new proposal would extend that existing tax to cover text messages. The CPUC says if more surcharge revenue comes from texting – less will come from voice services. And if texting surcharges aren’t collected to fund programs - more would come from voice services. The CTIA which represents the US wireless communications industry argues texting is not a telecommunications service that can be regulated by the commission but rather an information service like email. The California Chamber of Commerce, the Bay Area Council, TechNet and the California Taxpayers Association, all called the proposal unnecessary in a letter to the CPUC: “This [proposal] will result in the state unnecessarily relying on a legally dubious funding source when there are legally sound mechanisms available to ensure the continued viability of these programs.” The critics added that the proposal could actually hurt low income wireless users by potentially making them pay the new tax. On Wednesday, however, some people in Walnut Creek seemed to think the idea might be a good one. “You get taxed on every other utility,” said Samuel Schussler. “As long as it was equitable and spread to business and personal perhaps leaning towards business, I’d be OK with it.” "If it’s really used for what they say the purpose is, that’s a good idea, " said Jan Coconis. "People are using it a lot, abusing it. Maybe if they tax it it could be advantageous in that way." The FCC is expected to meet Wednesday on the issue. ||||| Texting your sweetheart that you’re on your way home? California may soon charge you for that. This is no LOL matter, critics say. State regulators have been ginning up a scheme to charge a fee for text messaging on mobile phones to help support programs that make phone service accessible to the poor. The wireless industry and business groups have been working to defeat the proposal, now scheduled for a vote next month by the California Public Utilities Commission. “It’s a dumb idea,” said Jim Wunderman, president of the Bay Area Council business-sponsored advocacy group. “This is how conversations take place in this day and age, and it’s almost like saying there should be a tax on the conversations we have.” Federal Communications Commission decision deals blow to California text-tax plan – read the article It’s unclear how much individual consumers would be asked to pay their wireless carrier for texting services under the proposal. But it likely would be billed as a flat surcharge per customer — one of those irksome fees at the bottom of your wireless bill — not a fee per text. Business groups, including the Bay Area Council, California Chamber of Commerce and Silicon Valley Leadership Group and others opposing the idea, calculated the new charges for wireless consumers could total about $44.5 million a year. Related Articles FCC decision deals blow to California text-tax plan Opinion: California PUC may approve tax on text messages – srsly Will new tech taxes be contagious? But they add that under the regulators’ proposal the charge could be applied retroactively for five years — which they call “an alarming precedent” — and could amount to a bill of more than $220 million for California consumers. A dense California Public Utilities Commission report laying out the case for the texting surcharge says the Public Purpose Program budget has climbed from $670 million in 2011 to $998 million last year. But the telecommunications industry revenues that fund the program have fallen from $16.5 billion in 2011 to $11.3 billion in 2017, it said. “This is unsustainable over time,” the report says, arguing that adding surcharges on text messaging will increase the revenue base that funds programs that help low-income Californians afford phone service. “From a consumer’s point of view, surcharges may be a wash, because if more surcharge revenues come from texting services, less would be needed from voice services,” said CPUC spokeswoman Constance Gordon in a statement. “Generally, those consumers who create greater texting revenues may pay a bit more, whereas consumers using more voice services may pay less.” Wunderman said he’s unaware of any other local, state or federal program that taxes texting. And the wireless industry has argued the state commission even lacks legal grounds for doing so. The CTIA, which represents the U.S. wireless communications industry including AT&T Mobility, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon, said in legal filings to the commission that texting is an information service like email, not a telecommunications service subject to the commission’s authority. The Federal Communications Commission is expected to affirm that Wednesday at a meeting, the CTIA said, which would confirm that the state utilities commission “has no authority to impose surcharges on text messaging.” Beyond that, the wireless industry argues a surcharge on texting would put carriers at a disadvantage with competing messaging services that wouldn’t be hit with the new fees, such as Facebook’s Messenger and WhatsApp, Apple’s iMessage and Microsoft’s Skype. Those kinds of services account for “almost triple the volume” of wireless carriers’ share of the more than 3 trillion text messages sent in 2018 alone, according to the CTIA. “Subjecting wireless carriers’ text messaging traffic to surcharges that cannot be applied to the lion’s share of messaging traffic and messaging providers is illogical, anticompetitive, and harmful to consumers,” the CTIA said in its filings. In a letter to commissioners urging them to drop the plan, business groups and other critics added that wireless customers already pay a surcharge for the Public Purpose Programs, which they said “are healthy and well-funded, with nearly $1 billion in the budget.” But the commission in a proposed decision by an administrative law judge concluded “in principle that the commission should assess Public Purpose Program surcharges and user fees on all text messaging services revenue” and that it has the necessary authority to do so. Asked about the idea after he checked his text messages in downtown San Jose, Juan Gutierrez, 25, who works for a delivery service, said it sounded “absurd.” “California just doesn’t stop trying to get money out of you,” Gutierrez lamented. “What’s next?” ||||| CLOSE The state hopes to raise over $40 million annually by adding a surcharge for texts. Time The new proposal is partially due to landline era legislation coupled with the fact the people are shifting their usage patterns away from voice calls in favor of texting. California's Public Utilities Commission is considering a plan that would charge mobile phone users a fee for sending text messages, according to recent public law filings. The proposal is partially due to landline-era legislation coupled with the fact the people are shifting patterns away from voice calls in favor of texting. California is determining whether surcharges and user fees on text messaging comply with Public Purpose Programs, which use tax revenue to make telecommunications services accessible to low-income residents. The programs, which date to the 1930s, were given a face-lift in the late 1990s, allowing individual states to impose requirements to preserve what's referred to as a "universal service." During the rise of the internet, the telecommunications industry was able to elude these taxes by offering "information services" like email and web browsing. However, as mobile phone users shifted their behavior away from making phone calls, voice call revenue for these state programs has dropped by about a third, from $16.5 billion in 2011 to $11.3 billion in 2017, according to law filings. Meanwhile, the budget for subsidizing poorer users has risen by almost half, from $670 million in 2011 to $998 million in 2017, the filings said. The wireless industry argues added fees would put carriers at a higher disadvantage since messaging services like Apple's iMessage, WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger would not be charged under the proposed legislation. More: California texting tax: What we know about the proposal More: The car brands that will cost you the least to repair More: Feel like there's a food recall every day? That shouldn't stop you from eating The Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association, a trade organization that represents the U.S. wireless communications industry, said in legal filings to the California commission that it has "repeatedly" demonstrated that text messaging is, in fact, an information service. "Subjecting wireless carriers’ text messaging traffic to surcharges that cannot be applied to the lion’s share of messaging traffic and messaging providers is illogical, anticompetitive and harmful to consumers," CTIA said in the filings. While state regulators aren't scheduled to vote on the proposal until next month, wireless customers have taken to social media to express their concerns about the bill. More: Tax refund fraud falls as IRS, states and tax preparation companies stiffen defenses More: Chicago mayor wants to legalize marijuana, open casino to deal with city's pension crisis Twitter user @Myblueheavenn writes, "Of course California wants to tax your text messages. They would tax your toilet use if they could." Of course California wants to tax your text messages. They would tax your toilet use if they could. https://t.co/PIUuiwe2X6 — chris larson (@myblueheavenn) December 12, 2018 Twitter user @Kmoliverio1 writes: OMG! Now a California proposal wants to tax text-messaging, retroactive for 5 years. OMG! Now a California proposal wants to tax text-messaging, retroactive for 5 years. — Kirk M. Oliver (@Kmoliverio1) December 12, 2018 Follow Dalvin Brown on Twitter: @Dalvin_Brown Read or Share this story: https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2018/12/12/california-text-tax-state-considers-plan-charge-messages/2288600002/

– What are people saying about California’s plan to tax text messaging? “It’s a dumb idea,” Jim Wunderman, president of a business advocacy group, tells the Mercury News. A 25-year-old delivery man in Silicon Valley tells the paper the proposal is “absurd.” And a Twitter user laments that the Golden State would “tax your toilet use if they could.” But not all of the feedback about the California Public Utilities Commission’s scheme to scare up more revenue for the Public Purpose Program—which subsidizes phone service for the poor, per USA Today—is negative. “As long as it’s equitable … I’d be OK with it,” a Walnut Creek resident tells KTVU. Another person tells the station, “If it’s really used for what they say the purpose is, that’s a good idea.” According to a CPUC report, the Public Purpose Program budget is growing while revenue for the program from telecommunications companies is shrinking as the trend of people favoring text messages over voice calls continues, a situation that is “unsustainable over time.” Opponents, however, say that wireless users already pay a surcharge for the program, per the Mercury News, and argue that texting is more like email than phone calls, and so the commission doesn’t have the authority to tax it. The proposal would reportedly raise about $44 million a year (as a flat surcharge, rather than a per-text fee), and it would be retroactive for five years. A CPUC vote on the proposal is set for next month. (California recently passed rules requiring solar power for new residences.)

As a teenager growing up in South Florida, Sean Petrozzino made headlines with his upbeat attitude after bacterial meningitis and more than a dozen surgeries ravaged his body. Bacteria destroyed his hands, feet and parts of his limbs. The sophomore clarinetist — a multiple amputee at 16 — touched many with his positive outlook, prompting donations of a voice-command laptop, wheelchair ramps and a specially equipped van. On Wednesday, Petrozzino, now 30, made headlines again — this time being called a dangerous, gun-toting "person of interest" in the fatal shootings of his parents in their east Orange County home. The bodies of Nancy Petrozzino, 64, and Michael Petrozzino, 63, were found Tuesday, prompting a search for their son and his father's missing vehicle, a red Toyota Camry with Florida license plate 112VZY. Orange Co. couple murdered: Son named person of interest The bodies of Nancy Petrozzino, 64, and Michael Petrozzino, 63, were found Tuesday, prompting a search for their son and his father's missing vehicle, a red Toyota Camry with Florida license plate 112VZY. The bodies of Nancy Petrozzino, 64, and Michael Petrozzino, 63, were found Tuesday, prompting a search for their son and his father's missing vehicle, a red Toyota Camry with Florida license plate 112VZY. See more videos He is only a person of interest and not a suspect, sheriff's spokeswoman Jane Watrel said at a news conference Wednesday. "We want him to get in here and talk to us so we can find out what happened, since he was apparently living with his parents," Watrel said. Deputies think Petrozzino may be heading to Jupiter or Coral Springs in South Florida. He's wearing prosthetic legs and lost both of his hands during his battle with meningitis. Homicide detectives Wednesday released a surveillance photo of Petrozzino taken near a Wells Fargo ATM at an undisclosed location in Orlando on Tuesday. "Please note for identification purposes, the physical characteristics of his hands," Watrel said in a statement, adding that no other details about the picture would be released. Watrel said he had a gun. Jerry L. Saunders, chief executive officer of ABC Prosthetics and Orthotics in Orlando, said handless people have the ability to fire weapons without special devices. As authorities looked for Petrozzino, his mother-in-law, Cathleen Horne, said he recently separated from his wife in Georgia and moved in with his parents. His mother was a longtime Orange teacher, and his father was a Walt Disney World cast member. Grief counselors have been dispatched to Nancy Petrozzino's school, Andover Elementary, less than a mile south of her home on Heming Way in the Andover Cay subdivision. Horne said Sean Petrozzino has always seemed a calm and peaceful person. "I've known Sean since he was 16 years old," Horne told the Sentinel. "This just seems bizarre. It seems like a bad dream." Deputies were called to the family's home at 10:55 a.m. Tuesday after Nancy Petrozzino's school noted her absence and asked authorities to check on her. The couple, married for 41 years, were found dead inside the home. Nancy Petrozzino had been a second-grade teacher since 2007 at Andover Elementary School on Curry Ford Road. She was a teacher for about 40 years, Horne said. According to the Andover Elementary Parent Teacher Association's Facebook page, the school district provided extra security on campus. Parents were urged to talk to their children about the incident. "Principal [Angela] Zambaux and staff are trying to keep the day as normal as possible, to help everyone cope with the sudden loss of one who is loved and admired by all," the Facebook page said. "The wonderful memories of Mrs. Petrozzino will live on forever!!" Records show Sean Petrozzino and his wife lived in east Orange before they moved to Georgia about a year ago. A foreclosure notice was filed on their former residence, near Valencia College, in August. The house is unoccupied, and signs of neglect included an insect hive by the front door, old shopping circulars strewn about and an overgrown lawn. Primitivo Vasquez, who has lived in the house next door for 25 years, said Sean and his wife kept to themselves except when Sean took his dog out and they made small talk. "I never had a reason to worry about him," added Vasquez. "I cannot imagine him doing something like this; I don't think he would be able to." The house has been empty since Sean Petrozzino left last year, and Vasquez said no one has visited the house since. Petrozzino's struggles were chronicled in a South Florida Sun Sentinel article in 2000, which described him as "perky, silly, polite and philosophical beyond his 16 years." "Lots of important things in life just happen by chance," Petrozzino said in that interview 14 years ago this month. "You know someone and get a job that makes you millions of dollars. Or you get a disease. There doesn't seem to be any reason some things happen. "I don't want anyone to feel sorry for me," he says. "As much as I feel bad about what happened, I feel good that my family and all my friends stood by me." That optimism appears to have endured into adulthood. On Petrozzino's Google Plus page, an entry under "bragging rights" reads: "First quad amputee to climb Kilimanjaro. Circa 2024..." Anyone with information about Petrozzino's whereabouts or what happened at Heming Way is asked to call Crimeline at 800-423-8477. Staff writer Melanie Dostis contributed to this report. twalden@tribune.com or 407-420-5620 ||||| Investigators said they're searching for 30-year-old Sean Petrozzino, a quadruple amputee whose parents were found dead in an east Orange County home Tuesday. The bodies of Nancy Petrozzino, 64, and Michael Petrozzino, 63, were found after deputies went to the house on Heming Way in the Andover Cay subdivision, south of Curry Ford Road, to do a well-being check when Nancy Petrozzino didn't show up for work, authorities said. Their deaths have been ruled homicide s and their son, Sean Petrozzino, has been named a person of interest in the case. "We do believe he has a firearm. He's considered dangerous and they believe he is in the south Florida area," said Jane Watrel, w ith the Orange County Sheriff's Office. Sean Petrozzino lost his legs and hands due to meningitis. He has two prosthetic legs, according to investigators. Investigators said he was last seen in a 2012 red Toyota Camry with Florida tag 112VZY. They said he could be in the Jupiter or Coral Springs area. Michael Petrozzino worked at Disney World and his wife was a second-grade teacher at Andover Lakes Elementary School . Parents and student at the school were grieving Wednesday. "It's just unbelievable, something you can't comprehend," said Richard Reeder, a grandparent who was at the school Wednesday. Andover Lakes Elementary School Principal Angela Zambaux sent a message to parents that said, "I am very sad to report that we have lost second-grade teacher Mrs. Nancy Petrozzino today. She died in her home today." "I was shocked when I found out it was her. Literally, my kids cried for hours yesterday," said neighbor Jennifer Satmaria. "My one daughter didn't even go to school today . She woke up with a migraine because she cried so much yesterday. She was just an awesome lady." Neighbors told WFTV Sean Petrozzino had recently moved back to his parents' home with his Great Dane. Richard Ellwood said he met Sean Petrozzino when he and the dog moved into the house, about a week and a half ago. "You don’t want it to be anybody. You don’t want that event to have occurred," said Ellwood. "Suddenly you open your door and there’s police tape at both ends of the street." Former neighbor Michael Vitale spoke highly of Sean Petrozzino and was surprised by the investigation. "There was nothing to have me doubt his integrity or honesty or anything that he might be a threat to anybody's family here," said Vitale. On Wednesday, investigators released a photograph of Sean Petrozzino taken at an ATM at a Wells Fargo Bank in Orlando on Tuesday morning. Investigators said they wanted people to look at the physical characteristics of his hands so that someone might be able to identify him. Sean Petrozzino's high school principal described him as a nice kid who went through a very tough time as a high school kid, after he contracted bacterial meningitis. Neighbors said he never talked about the rare form of bacterial meningitis that ate away at his limbs. Doctors were forced to amputate both his arms and legs when he was in high school. His south Florida high school raised money to help pay medical bills for 13 surgeries. It was his rehab that brought his family to Orlando. Sean Petrozzino bought his own home in 2006. Court records show the bank foreclosed on the home in 2012 because he stopped paying the $1,300 monthly mortgage. When Channel 9 went to the house, we found a maintenance worker paid by a bank to clean up. "It just seemed like he packed up one day and left," said Taylor. Bank records show Sean Petrozzino owed $200,000 on t he east Orange County home, where the mortgage was $1,300 a month. Anyone with information about his whereabouts is asked to call Crimeline.

– "I cannot imagine him doing something like this—I don't think he would be able to." That was the reaction of one of Sean Petrozzino's neighbors to the Orlando Sentinel upon hearing that the 30-year-old South Florida man—a quadruple amputee after a bout with bacterial meningitis as a teen—was being sought by police for questioning in the fatal shooting of his parents. "We do believe he has a firearm," a spokeswoman for the Orange County Sheriff's Office tells WFTV. "He's considered dangerous, and they believe he is in the South Florida area." The spokeswoman notes that Petrozzino is a "person of interest," not a suspect, in his parents' murders. Nancy, a second-grade teacher, and Michael, a Disney World cast member, were found dead in their Orange County home Tuesday. People who know Petrozzino are baffled by the possibility of the once-inspiring teen being a murderer: After he contracted meningitis at 16, he touched people with his "upbeat attitude" and "positive outlook," notes the Sentinel. Interviews and records indicate he had recently separated from his wife, had his home foreclosed on, and moved back in with his parents. Investigators have released a picture of Petrozzino at a local ATM, asking the public to take special note of the appearance of his hands in the hopes of ID'ing him; the head of a prosthetics company tells the Sentinel that people without hands are able to fire guns without requiring any special devices. Petrozzino is believed to be driving a red Toyota Camry with the Florida license plate 112VZY. (More crime news: In Delaware, an ex-NFL cheerleader is accused of raping a teen.)

You measure your success in five-year increments. Your doctors let you know if your blood counts are high or low. You bite your lip, not sure if you want to know if you're stage 1, 2, 3 or 4. Cancer -- it's a numbers game. So when I went to Sloan-Kettering last week to discuss a drug that's effective in 30 percent of patients for my melanoma that has a roughly 10-20 percent survival rate , it didn't come as much of a surprise when my doctor said, noting proudly that I've lasted almost 14 months already, "The odds have been against you from the start." It's clear right from the title that the poignant, funny and profane "50/50" understands the woozy terror of a life or death crisis. Why then is it being peddled as "the comedy from the guys who brought you 'Superbad'?" What's so funny about cancer? Believe it or not, quite a lot. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is Adam, a tightly wound NPR drone who rhapsodies about Swiffers and refuses to jaywalk even when there isn't a car in sight. His best friend Kyle, played by Seth Rogen, is a guy whose interests include getting high and talking about blow jobs in the latte line. So what happens to these two kooky fellas when 27-year-old Adam discovers he has a rare form of spinal cancer and just a 50 percent chance at survival? What ensues is "Beaches" meets "Pineapple Express." Which, I've got to tell you, is pretty much what living with cancer is like. The movie has good reason to resonate so truthfully -- it was written by television producer Will Reiser, who himself endured cancer in his mid-20s. Rogen was there for it all. No wonder the movie has such a brutal, honest sting. Thrust into a world of procedures, treatments, WebMDing, and doctors who say everything much too fast -- all while his friends are blithely bar-hopping -- Adam must quickly adjust to his strange and frightening new status. Co-workers give unsolicited advice and tearful hugs, his mother (a steely Anjelica Huston) flies into drama queen mode, and his girlfriend suddenly keeps him at arm's length. Kyle, meanwhile, angles the situation into opportunities to smoke dope and get laid. Gordon-Levitt, combining his "(500) Days of Summer" angst with "Inception" efficiency, does a terrific job of capturing the emotional gamut that is illness. Adam, a control freak in an out-of-control situation, pings between panic and wry amusement at the absurdity of his situation, the humbling awfulness of it all. But the movie's biggest surprise is the usually one-note Rogen, who manages to be both glib and genuinely vulnerable. Where "50/50"breaks ground, however, is its understanding that neither illness nor friendship is some pink-ribboned chick thing. This is a film self-aware enough to crack a "Terms of Endearment" joke, to compare its chemo-bald leading man to both Lord Voldemort and Michael Stipe, and to understand that surgical wound care is an awful lot like one of the "Saw" flicks. In other words, dudes, you don't even have to have cancer to appreciate its vulgar, vulgar heart. Unsurprisingly, Rogen and company, like true students of the Judd Apatow school of filmmaking, never quite get a grip on their female characters. Anna Kendrick is Adam's much too young and inexperienced therapist -- a girl who serves more as crush object than a real character. And Bryce Dallas Howard, rapidly on her way to becoming Hollywood's go-to ice bitch, plays Adam's artist girlfriend Rachel as a hateful little bundle of narcissism. Rachel does provide one of the film's most insightful moments. As Adam heads into the hospital for his first chemo session, she opts to sit in the car, explaining that she can't go into "that world." Cancer is indeed a different world. And what "50/50" shows, with great and bittersweet clarity, is that not everyone will be able or willing to go into that world with you. Rachel's refusal to mix "the negative with the positive" is at once a stone cold dis and a perfectly logical reaction. Who, after all, would choose to spend time in a cancer ward? Who would consider sickness anything but a negative? But what "50/50" gets -- that poor Rachel doesn't -- is that moments of the greatest joy and connection and unadulterated freedom coexist with the horror and fear and pain. That love and silliness can get you through just about everything. As a woman whose friends have showered her with cakes festooned in expletives and T-shirts bearing the image of Monty Python's indomitable Black Knight, I can testify that the real Big C -- just like "50/50" -- is both a three-hanky weeper and a total farce. And that although every day of life is a gamble, every day is also, amazingly, a gift. ||||| Loosely inspired by the real-life cancer battle of screenwriter Will Reiser, "50/50" is 50 percent affecting medical drama and 50 percent first-rate character study. It's also a comedy that sometimes makes you feel uneasy about laughing. Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays Adam, a 27-year-old Seattle radio reporter stunned to learn that his back pain doesn't stem from jogging but malignant spinal cancer. His odds of survival are even money, and the film details the turmoil that this half-death-sentence unleashes in Adam's relationships. Adam, a mild, stable, tidy sort, has just slammed into the Mount Everest of messes. Best friend Kyle (Seth Rogen) reacts to Adam's news with candid alarm, then declares that they'll beat the big C together, as if you can tag-team osteosarcoma. Since Kyle is a blowhard with the emotional grace of a bull in a china shop, he's not the ideal companion for what may be Adam's final days. His idea of being supportive is urging Adam to shave his head and look more cancer-y so they can score some sympathy sex at the pickup bar. "He still has his sense of humor!" Kyle barks. "It's inspirational!" But Adam has to fight this battle with the recruits he's got, and he's got Kyle. He also has an overprotective mother (Anjelica Huston), who finds ways to make her son's calamity all about herself, announcing that she's moving in with Adam, a smothering move that is as concerned as it is insensitive. Add to the mix Adam's self-absorbed girlfriend (Bryce Dallas Howard, perjury in every wide-eyed smile) and his novice therapist (Anna Kendrick, painfully sincere and overwhelmed), and you have a formula for emotional havoc. Director Jonathan Levine has the ideal approach to the material, which is to stand aside, frame each scene honestly and let the actors drive the story. Gordon-Levitt is impressive as a regular Joe sideswiped by all the world's cruelty and injustice. He gives us the sense of a man groping for something to keep him afloat while trying not to panic. He's abject, stoic, antic, wistful but always proud even as his capacities diminish, never stooping to make poor-me claims on our sympathy. Rogen's performance is not of the sort to entirely please his admirers, and hooray for that. His man-child excesses are exasperating until they're revealed as the only morale-boosting strategy that this boisterous lummox can imagine. The script follows the zigzag of messy life, not the three-act pattern of screenplay manuals. Drawing from his own experience, Reiser avoids artificial humor, synthetic situations and tidy epiphanies. He stubbornly, consistently plays every moment for matter-of-fact realism. Nothing feels preordained, least of all the ever-shifting mood. The reason "50/50" works is it's not trying to force us into any particular emotion. It fits in the emerging category of sad-man comedies such as "Up in the Air" and "Crazy, Stupid Love," telling its downbeat tale with tenderness, sincerity and warmth. "50/50" isn't a cancer buddy comedy or a male weepie but a message movie. The message is that you can tackle pretty much any subject matter and tell a story any way you want to onscreen as long as it's absorbing. ||||| As its title unintentionally indicates, "50/50" walks a very tricky line. As a comedy about a young man with cancer , it needs to be serious enough to be real as well as light enough to be funny. Though it falls off the wagon at times, it maintains its balance remarkably well.Several factors contribute to that success, including artful direction by Jonathan Levine and an expertly assembled cast, top lined by Joseph Gordon-Levitt Anna Kendrick and Bryce Dallas Howard (rapidly becoming today's preeminent Queen of Mean).But the key element in "50/50" is the screenplay by Will Reiser, a young writer who, as has been widely reported, was inspired by his own experience as a twentysomething diagnosed with a rare type of cancer.Reiser discourages viewing the result as autobiographical (unlike character Adam Lerner, the writer did not undergo chemotherapy before his complex surgery), but the texture of his experience ensures that the film will have as much reality as the genre can handle.Though he was a last-minute replacement for a departing James McAvoy , Gordon-Levitt could not be a better choice to play protagonist Adam. Known for roles in films as diverse as "Inception" and "(500) Days of Summer," the actor can play sensitive without drifting into needy, has an easy way with humor and is expert at getting audiences to identify with his predicament.When the 27-year-old Adam, a nervous type who works for public radio in Seattle, finds out that the mysterious pains in his back come from a malignant tumor growing by his spinal column, he is understandably disbelieving. When he's told his chances of surviving are 50-50, he is aghast, but best friend and co-worker Kyle sees things differently. "If you were a casino game," he insists, "you'd have the best odds."Kyle is played by Rogen (a real-life friend of screenwriter Reiser) and, in typical profane Rogen fashion, his character is always going to be brasher, louder and more out of control than polite society would like. Who else, for instance, would think of using his friend's cancer as a way to pick up women? Yet there is finally a guilelessness about Kyle, a kind of crackpot innocence, that makes us happy he is around.The actresses playing the key women in Adam's life (casting was done by Francine Maisler, who did "Moneyball" ) also hit the right notes.Met first is Rachael, an ambitious artist who is Adam's girlfriend. Beautifully portrayed by Howard (who similarly devoured the part of the evil Hilly Holbrook in "The Help" ), Rachael does not seem the "through sickness and health" type, but she insists she is, and even presents Adam with a canine companion (a greyhound named Skeletor who looks like death warmed over) as a sign that she has his best interests at heart.Also on Adam's team, though he doesn't always think so, is Katherine (Kendrick), his hospital-assigned supportive care therapist. So newly minted at the job that Adam is but her third client, Katherine wants to do the right thing, but her inexperience is not her friend. Kendrick, Oscar-nominated for "Up in the Air," brings a combination of precise intelligence and sweet-natured screwball wackiness to a part that benefits from all of her abilities.Because it is a comedy, "50/50" isn't intent on showing all the bad sides of a serious illness: Hospital personnel are invariably pleasant here and no one has to wait too long in an uncomfortable waiting room.But, unusual for a comedy, "50/50" doesn't allow the humor to stray too far from the pain. We see the damage that fear, rage and chemotherapy do to Adam's life, and we are not allowed to forget that cancer is not just the disease-of-the-week but something that actually kills people.Not everything in "50/50" is as successful as its best moments. Anjelica Huston overdoes it as Adam's mother, and making his father an Alzheimer's sufferer seems excessive as well. But though its mixing of tones and intentions may sound cloying on paper, having all members of the creative team on the same page about what they were after and how they were going to get it has helped enormously."50/50" may be an unlikely hybrid, but it grows on you. ||||| In Hollywood where actors mostly come in two flavors, rocky-road action heros who say little and sourball fast talkers who profane much, Joseph Gordon-Levitt is quietly carving a caramel chameleon niche of his own. Whether as the audacious dream-invader in Inception, the rueful hustler with a black hole where his heart should be in Mysterious Skin, or a spurned swain in [500] Days of Summer, JG-L uses his burnt-sugar eyes to invite and resist viewer sympathy. In 50/50, Levitt waves you off and pulls you in as Adam, a mild-mannered 27-year-old diagnosed with a rare form of cancer. The title refers to his chances of survival. In Las Vegas, those are good odds, muses Kyle (Seth Rogen), Adam's wild-mannered buddy. At the hospital, not so much. Loosely based on the experiences of screenwriter Will Reiser and produced by Rogen (his writing buddy on Da Ali G Show), 50/50 mines absurdist humor from the veins of mortality. Levitt, the definition of nuance, is touching, funny, and fierce - an unusual combination of moods, but deeply affecting. In the film directed by Jonathan Levine (The Wackness), Adam is a draw-inside-the-lines kind of guy - the kind who, when out jogging at 5 a.m., stops for traffic lights although there's no traffic at that hour. Adam is so busy comforting friends and family that he can't take the time to process it himself, a source of the film's most comically moving moments. He props up his mother (Angelica Huston, heartbreakingly funny), he props up Kyle, he tries to put the best possible face on his diagnosis to his girlfriend, Rachel (Bryce Dallas Howard). When the hospital assigns Adam a psychologist, Katherine (Anna Kendrick), turns out that she is a trainee and he only her third patient. He props her up, too. That is, until she finds her professional footing. In a move that would be considered unprofessional, she speaks to him as a friend rather than a therapist. And she gets through. Admittedly, the film has its sitcom moments, as when Kyle coaches Adam to use his diagnosis as a way of picking up girls. But Levitt drills deeper than sitcom shale, and the result is beautifully modulated, desperately funny terror. His performance creates the impression of one gracefully dancing through a minefield. In the film's third act, Adam faces a risky experimental procedure as he navigates his relationship (is it professional? is it personal?) with Katherine. Playing a novice professional who thinks she has the answers even though she's reading from a cheat sheet, Kendrick is doing a variation on her character from Up in the Air. Yet her performance and timing are utterly original. In more than one way is the film 50/50: It's half hilarious, half serious; all poignant. Contact movie critic Carrie Rickey at 215-854-5402 or crickey@phillynews.com. Read her blog, Flickgrrl, at http://www.philly.com/ flickgrrl.

– With a current 92% rating at Rotten Tomatoes, 50/50 gets praise for its blend of comedy and drama about a young man diagnosed with cancer. In Salon, Mary Elizabeth Williams calls the movie “poignant, funny and profane”: It “understands the woozy terror of a life or death crisis,” she notes—though “unsurprisingly,” Seth Rogen et al., “like true students of the Judd Apatow school of filmmaking, never quite get a grip on their female characters.” The movie “needs to be serious enough to be real as well as light enough to be funny,” observes Kenneth Turan in the Los Angeles Times. “Though it falls off the wagon at times, it maintains its balance remarkably well.” Colin Covert, writing in the Minneapolis Star Tribune, calls the film “50% affecting medical drama and 50% first-rate character study.” And in the Philadelphia Inquirer, Carrie Rickey says lead actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt is “the definition of nuance, is touching, funny, and fierce—an unusual combination of moods, but deeply affecting.”

Human remains of a significant number of babies and infants up to three years of age have been found on the site of the former mother and baby home in Tuam, Co Galway, it has been confirmed. This follows work by the Commission on Mother and Baby Homes which carried out planned excavations there. Local research records 796 infants and children recorded as having died in the Tuam home run by the Bon Secours Sisters between 1925 and 1961. There is not as yet any indication of exactly how many bodies have been discovered at the site. In a statement on Friday, the commission said it was “shocked” by the discovery of remains in an underground chamber and was continuing its investigations. “The stratigraphic survey which was conducted in October 2015 identified a particular area of interest and identified a number of sub surface anomalies that were considered worthy of further investigation,” the commission said. “These were further investigated by a test excavation in November/December 2016 and in January/February 2017. “Test trenches were dug revealing two large structures. One structure appears to be a large sewage containment system or septic tank that had been decommissioned and filled with rubble and debris and then covered with top soil. The second structure is a long structure which is divided into 20 chambers.” The commission said it had not yet determined what the purpose of this structure was but it appeared to be a sewage tank. The commission had also not yet determined if it was ever used for this purpose. “In this second structure, significant quantities of human remains have been discovered in at least 17 of the 20 underground chambers which were examined,” it said. “A small number of remains were recovered for the purpose of analysis. These remains involved a number of individuals with age-at-death ranges from approximately 35 foetal weeks to two to three years. “Radiocarbon dating of the samples recovered suggest that the remains date from the timeframe relevant to the operation of the Mother and Baby Home (the Mother and Baby Home operated from 1925 to 1961; a number of the samples are likely to date from the 1950s). Further scientific tests are being conducted.” The commission said it was “shocked by this discovery and is continuing its investigation into who was responsible for the disposal of human remains in this way”. “Meanwhile, the commission has asked that the relevant State authorities take responsibility for the appropriate treatment of the remains. The coroner has been informed.” In a statement, the Bon Secours sisters said they were “fully committed to the work of the commission regarding the mother and baby home in Tuam”. “On the closing of the home in 1961, all the records for the home were returned to Galway County Council, who are the owners and occupiers of the lands of the home. “We can therefore make no comment on today’s announcement, other than to confirm our continued cooperation with and support for the work of the commission in seeking the truth about the home.” ‘Very sad’ Minister for Children Katherine Zappone said Friday’s announcement was “very sad and disturbing news”. “It was not unexpected as there were claims about human remains on the site over the last number of years. “Up to now we had rumours. Now we have confirmation that the remains are there, and that they date back to the time of the Mother and Baby Home, which operated in Tuam from 1925 to 1961.” Ms Zappone said: “We must respond sensitively and respectfully to the situation.” Her department had brought together all of the key departments and agencies to set out a way forward, she added. The commission would continue its work under its terms of reference, including such matters as postmortem practices and procedures, reporting and burial arrangements for residents of mother and baby homes. Galway County Council would also engage with the commission in relation to the immediate next steps on the site. “Today is about remembering and respecting the dignity of the children who lived their short lives in this home. We will honour their memory and make sure that we take the right actions now to treat their remains appropriately,” Ms Zappone said. The commission, which was established in February 2015, is tasked with investigating allegations of abuse at 14 institutions and four county homes between 1922 and 1998. It has cost over €3.73 million to date. Those seeking factual information may contact the information line at 01-6473118/01-6473232 which runs from Monday to Friday at 9.30am-5pm and Saturday and Sunday from 12pm-5pm. Anyone affected may also contact the HSE helpline on 1850 241850. ||||| SEARCH THIS SITE CONTACT DETAILS Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes and certain related matters 73 Lower Baggot Street, Dublin 2, D02 N773. or PO Box 12626, Dublin 2 Email: info@mbhcoi.ie Confidential Freephone: (ROI only) 1800 80-66-88 Outside ROI:+353-1-6445088 Opening Hours: 10am-1pm and 2pm to 4.30pm Mon-Fri (Excl Bank Holidays) Main Tel:+353-1-6445000 Fax: +353-1-6445002 ||||| FORMER RESIDENTS FROM the Mother and Baby Home at Tuam have described the experience of being taken away from their mothers following today’s revelation about the mass grave at the site. Earlier today, it was announced that the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes discovered a significant number of human remains in what appears to be a decommissioned sewage chamber in Tuam. The Commission has completed two test excavations of the Galway site and today confirmed that “significant quantities of human remains have been discovered” in a structure which appears to be “related to the treatment/containment of sewerage and/or wastewater”. The structure where the remains were found is long and divided into 20 chambers. The Commission is not yet clear if it was ever used for sewerage or wastewater. The excavation area has now been sealed off Source: Christina Finn/TheJournal.ie Speaking on RTÉ’s Liveline with Joe Duffy, former residents who were born in the home, and remained there during the early years of their life, and people who helped to unearth the case spoke of their experience. Historian Catherine Corless, whose work was pivotal in making the case public in 2014, said that the septic tank had stopped being used for its intended use in the late-1930s, and said there could be remains from as many as almost 800 children in the mass grave. “I have 798 names of children who died in the home,” she said. “We know they’re not buried with their own families – I checked that out. And now we have that answer… and as I said it was former septic tanks that belonged to the workhouse.” She added that Bon Secours need to apologise for a statement made on their behalf by the Communications Clinic in 2014, which rejected the idea that a mass grave would be found there. One former resident, PJ Haverty, was born there in 1951, and spent six years at the Tuam home. “The women did all the work, while the nuns prayed,” he said. “I don’t know what God they were praying to.” He said his mother had to leave when he was a year old, as the people who ran the home did not want a bond to develop between mother and son. She got work in Tuam, and every time she would head off to work she would come down and knock on that door and plead with the nuns to let her see her son. They always said “no, go away”. He was later fostered out, but found his mother again years later in Brixton, south London. “I was one of the lucky ones – I got into a good foster home and got to meet my mother again after many, many years,” he said. He said he had never seen any indication of what was going on, in terms of mass graves at the home, but said that he and other children had been locked up and had been exposed to so little of the outside world that he didn’t even know what Christmas was. “We had no toys at Christmas there. There was no love, and there was no care,” he said. I don’t call it a home. It was a prison. You look out the window and all you saw was high walls all the way round. Other survivors, Thomas Ward, and a man called Christopher said that were born in the home and the latter did remember seeing the septic tank at the site. Christopher described how his mother was also not let see her son, but would cycle 22 miles to and from Tuam every weekend from Galway city to try to be let in. All callers were unanimous in their praise for Corless in raising awareness of the case which helped lead to today’s announcement. ||||| Amnesty International has called on the Government to ensure that the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes fully investigates alleged human rights abuses, following the discovery of “significant” quantities of human remains in Tuam, Co Galway. The commission confirmed on Friday remains had been found in what appeared to be a septic tank, although it could not confirm whether the structure had ever been used for sewage. “Today’s distressing revelations underline the need to ensure that this commission of investigation is a meaningful opportunity to finally and fully ensure truth and accountability for what happened to women and children in these institutions,” said Colm O’Gorman, executive director of Amnesty International Ireland. “Our thoughts are very much with those most affected by today’s reports, the women who were former residents of the home and their loved ones.” Mr O’Gorman said the commission “must not repeat the mistakes of other processes, in particular the Government’s response to reports of abuse of women and children in the Magdalene laundries”. Amnesty also noted the longstanding concerns about how children and women were reportedly treated in such institutions, including apparently high child mortality rates, alleged illegal adoption practices, vaccine trials conducted on children without consent, and denial of medical care to some women. The commission is due to release its final report next year. Researcher and historian Catherine Corless said Friday’s announcement had vindicated her work, which revealed death certificates for 796 children at the Bon Secours-run Tuam home with no indication of where they were buried. “This is only the start. The truth has been revealed,” she told RTÉ’s News at One. Ms Corless called on the commission and the State to contact the families of the survivors of the homes. “The survivors should be contacted and consulted about the fact of their loved ones being discarded. They deserve an apology from the Bon Secours order. “My one hope is that the truth would come out and that they will find a resting place,” Ms Corless said. She pointed out that brothers and sisters of the babies who died had not been contacted by the commission or the State and had found it very difficult to get answers. “They gave their accounts to the commission when invited, but they didn’t get any answers to where their loved ones were buried.” Ms Corless said all the evidence pointed to the site at Tuam being a mass grave. “It is a total relief for me. This could have gone either way. It could have been covered up,” she said. She alleged the local county council, gardaí and religious order knew that there were remains there but had covered over it. “I was told to leave it, that it was something that happened years ago.” She went on to call for further investigation of a green area and a playground which she believed covered over shallow graves. “It all needs to be investigated.” Distressed On Friday, 60 women who were sent to mother-and-baby homes in the State said they were distressed at the “regrettably uncertain” confirmation of what appeared to be mass graves of babies discovered at the site of the former home in Tuam. Irish First Mothers questioned whether 2014 media reports that there were 800 bodies on the site were “substantially correct”. “We call on the commission and Minister for Children’s Affairs Katherine Zappone to immediately quantify the scale of the remains found and end distressing uncertainty. A description of �?significant remains’ is unclear,” the group said in a statement on Friday. The group said so-called “unmarried mothers’’ homes were in operation until the early 1990s and that its members were “very much alive and range in age from late 70s to early 40s”. “These mothers are currently testifying in secret to the commission and the process is making them feel like they are being put on trial for giving life.” Separately, the Justice for Magdalenes Research (JFMR) group called on members of the public to this weekend visit the graves of women who had been in Magdalene laundries. On Sunday, March 5th, the sixth annual Flowers for Magdalenes events will take place in all cities and towns where there were Magdalene laundries. At least 1,663 former Magdalene women are buried in cemeteries in Ireland, many of whom are in unmarked graves. ||||| Excavations at site of home for unmarried mothers and their children, where it is alleged up to 800 children died, uncover human remains A mass grave containing the remains of babies and children has been discovered at a former Catholic care home in Ireland where it has been alleged up to 800 died, government-appointed investigators said on Friday. Excavations at the site of the former Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home in Tuam, County Galway, have uncovered an underground structure divided into 20 chambers containing “significant quantities of human remains”, the judge-led mother and baby homes commission said. The commission said analysis of selected remains revealed ages of the deceased ranged from 35 weeks to three years old. It found that the dead had been mostly buried in the 1950s, when the facility was one of more than a dozen in Ireland offering shelter to orphans, unmarried mothers and their children. The Tuam home closed in 1961. Tell us the truth about the children in Galway's mass graves | Emer O'Toole Read more The home, run by the Bon Secours Sisters, a Catholic religious order of nuns, received unmarried pregnant women to give birth. The women were separated from their children, who remained elsewhere in the home, raised by nuns, until they could be adopted. Facebook Twitter Pinterest The shrine erected in memory of the up to 800 children allegedly buried at the site of the former home. Photograph: Paul Faith/AFP/Getty Images The discovery confirms decades of suspicions that the vast majority of children who died at the home were interred on the site in unmarked graves, a common practice at such Catholic-run facilities amid high child mortality rates in early 20th-century Ireland. The Irish government in 2014 formed the commission following the work of a local Tuam historian, Catherine Corless, who found death certificates for nearly 800 children who were residents at the facility but burial records for only two. “Everything pointed to this area being a mass grave,” Corless previously told the Guardian. She recalled how boys playing in the field had reported seeing a pile of bones in a hidden underground chamber there in the mid-1970s. The government’s commissioner for children, Katherine Zappone, said the findings were “sad and disturbing” and promised that the children’s families would be consulted on providing proper burials and other memorials. “We will honour their memory and make sure that we take the right actions now to treat their remains appropriately,” Zappone said. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Catherine Corless. Photograph: Patrick Bolger/Patrick Bolger Photogrraphy Under the Freedom of Information Act, Corless requested Galway county council’s records on the home from 1925 to 1961. She was refused. But she was given documents from the 1970s, including an official map of the present-day estate the council built on the site. “They obviously didn’t see the importance,” said Corless. “There is an area across the map marked ‘burial ground’,” she says. “First, the houses were built, around that area. Finally a playground was built on part of the burial ground itself.” The mystery of the missing remains of the Tuam babies Read more Minutes from a Tuam council meeting call for “due care and sensitivity” when building the playground because of the “children’s burial ground and adjoining burial ground”, Corless said. “The playground is unnaturally big, it’s as big as the town playground.”

– Excavations have begun at the site of a former Catholic orphanage where, it was revealed in 2014, nearly 800 babies and children allegedly died between 1925 and 1961. It was initially alleged that their bodies were dumped in a septic tank, and authorities have now found a mass grave. The underground structure has 20 chambers and contains "significant quantities of human remains," authorities say. They describe the structure as appearing "to be related to the treatment/containment of sewage and/or waste water" and say DNA analysis done on selected remains found in it revealed that they ranged in age from 35 weeks fetal gestation to three years old. A government official says the families of the children whose remains are found will be notified and their remains treated "appropriately." The Bon Secours Mother and Baby Home in Tuam, County Galway, was run by Catholic nuns and provided shelter to unwed pregnant women, orphans, and unwed mothers and their children. It was previously reported that the children died from a variety of maladies including "malnutrition, measles, convulsions, tuberculosis, gastroenteritis, and pneumonia." The Guardian reports that the practice of burying children in unmarked graves was common at such homes at the time, a period where child mortality rates were high. Per the Irish Times, authorities say they will continue investigating who was responsible for handling the bodies; Amnesty International is pushing for a full investigation into possible human rights abuses. The Bon Secours sisters say in a statement that they are cooperating with the investigation. The Journal has testimony from former residents of the home, one of whom says it was a "prison."

President Obama (Photo: Susan Walsh, AP) President Obama asked Congress Thursday for $500 million to train and arm members of opposition forces in Syria, part of an effort to stem insurgent violence that has spilled over into neighboring Iraq. The proposed assistance can "help defend the Syrian people, stabilize areas under opposition control and facilitate the provision of essential services, counter terrorist threats, and promote conditions for a negotiated settlement," the administration said in its budget request to Congress. Potential recipients of the money — opponents of the Syrian government headed by Bashar al-Assad — will be vetted, officials said. Lawmakers have expressed concern that weapons and money sent to Syrian rebels might wind up with enemies of the United States. "This funding request would build on the administration's longstanding efforts to empower the moderate Syrian opposition, both civilian and armed, and will enable the Department of Defense to increase our support to vetted elements of the armed opposition," said Caitlin Hayden, a spokesperson for the National Security Council. The administration's budget request includes $1.5 billion for a "Regional Stabilization Initiative" that involves the Syrian opposition as well as neighboring countries Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and Iraq. Details of the assistance have not been determined by the Pentagon, but it will involve training outside Syria, possibly Jordan, said a senior defense official who spoke on condition of anonymity because the details were not authorized to be released publicly. The military could train a small cadre of fighters who would then return to Syria to share their knowledge or it could mean training entire units of rebels, the official said. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel "has directed his staff to begin developing more detailed plans to carry out the train-and-equip mission, if approved by Congress," Rear Adm. John Kerry, the Pentagon press secretary, said in a statement. The initiative would be part of the "Counter-Terrorism Partnerships Fund" that Obama proposed during a foreign policy address last month at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. Hayden said the United States continues to believe that "there is no military solution to this crisis," and the United States "should not put American troops into combat in Syria." Jeff White of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, and former Defense Intelligence Agency official, said the $500 million proposal is "a pretty good chunk of change," and "would buy some substantial assistance." The United States has already been operating covert programs to supply rebels with weapons, and is providing non-lethal aid to opposition groups, White pointed out. The rebels have also been supplied with U.S. TOW anti-tank missiles, though it is not clear if they are coming from the United States or another country. Those programs have allowed the administration to establish links with moderate groups, he said, and "sort of the set the groundwork for a larger lethal aid program." The United States is also looking to assist resistance to the Sunni extremist group known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), which has taken land on both sides of the Syria-Iraq border. Hayden said the assistance request "marks another step toward helping the Syrian people defend themselves against regime attacks, push back against the growing number of extremists like ISIL who find safe-haven in the chaos, and take their future into their own hands by enhancing security and stability at local levels." The Syria proposals are part of an overall $65.8 billion budget request for overseas contingency operations that include a variety of Pentagon and State Department programs. The overall budget plan includes a previously announced $1 billion in defense assistance to Central and Eastern European nations, a response to Russian annexation of land from Ukraine. The total $65.8 billion overseas package is about $21 billion less than first projected, officials said, reflecting U.S. plans to withdraw U.S. combat troops from Afghanistan. The counter-terrorism fund also includes money for stabilizing Syria's neighbors, including Iraq, where Sunni extremists have seized towns and battled Iraqi security forces, posing a threat to Baghdad. On Thursday, prominent Shiite leaders called for the removal of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, the Associated Press reported, as parliament prepared to start work next week on putting together a new government. The United States has put pressure on Maliki and his government to form a more inclusive government, though they have stopped short of calling for his removal. Signs of sectarian violence are surfacing in Baghdad where 12 people were killed in a Shiite neighborhood of the capital and police found the bodies of eight Sunnis south of the capital, the Associated Press reported. Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1vaAQeL ||||| WASHINGTON President Barack Obama, under pressure from some lawmakers to provide more help to Syria's opposition, asked the U.S. Congress on Thursday to approve $500 million to train and equip moderate Syrian rebels seeking to oust President Bashar al-Assad. It was the administration's most tangible move yet to help beleaguered Assad opponents who have been frustrated at a lack of U.S. assistance after Obama stepped back from launching air strikes on Syria nearly a year ago. Senior Obama administration officials have long debated how best to help rebels in Syria's three-year-old civil war, which is showing signs of spilling over into neighboring Iraq. A White House statement said Syrian rebels would be "appropriately vetted" before being given assistance, in what amounts to an effort to assuage concerns that some equipment provided to the Syrian opposition might ultimately fall into the hands of U.S. enemies. Obama has been under strong pressure from some lawmakers, such as Republican Senator John McCain Of Arizona, to increase assistance to the Syrian rebels. Some members of Congress have accused Obama of being passive and indecisive, allowing Assad to repulse the threat to his government. Obama's request for $500 million followed through on a promise he made in late May in a foreign policy speech that he would "ramp up support for those in the Syrian opposition who offer the best alternative to terrorists and brutal dictators." The White House said the money would help defend the Syrian people, stabilize areas under opposition control, facilitate the provision of essential services, counter terrorist threats, and promote conditions for a negotiated settlement. "This funding request would build on the administration’s longstanding efforts to empower the moderate Syrian opposition, both civilian and armed, and will enable the Department of Defense to increase our support to vetted elements of the armed opposition," the White House said. Democrats in Congress said they were pleased Obama was taking a step to back the Syrian rebels. "It is not too late to help the moderate opposition. It is not too late to help Syrians build the future they deserve," said U.S. Representative Eliot Engel, the top Democrat on the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee. Republican Senator Marco Rubio of Florida criticized Obama's "rudderless" foreign policy. “The consequences of the Obama Administration’s inaction and inability to articulate and implement a coherent Syria strategy is now painfully evident across the Middle East, especially in Iraq, and now threatens U.S. partners such as Jordan," Rubio said in a statement. Syrian rebels fighting Assad are a disparate array of groups including the radical Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, which seized parts of northern and western Iraq in an offensive this month; Nusra Front, which is affiliated to al Qaeda; and moderate, non-ideological factions such as the Supreme Military Command. (Reporting by Steve Holland and Mark Felsenthal; Editing by Sandra Maler and Mohammad Zargham)

– President Obama promised back in May to help the Syrian opposition in its fight against Bashar al-Assad, and today he made that promise a lot more tangible. The White House asked Congress for $500 million to train and equip the opposition forces, reports USA Today. With the conflict spilling over into Iraq, the White House had been under increasing pressure from critics such as John McCain to take action, notes Reuters. Recipients will be"appropriately vetted" to make sure the money doesn't go to terrorists, the White House says. The money would be the biggest step taken so far by the US in the Syrian conflict, notes the New York Times, and it would be part of a broader $5 billion counterterrorism initiative for the Middle East. “While we continue to believe that there is no military solution to this crisis and that the United States should not put American troops into combat in Syria, this request marks another step toward helping the Syrian people defend themselves against regime attacks, push back against the growing number of extremists like ISIL who find safe haven in the chaos, and take their future into their own hands," says a national security spokesperson. ISIL, also seen as ISIS, refers to the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, the group now overrunning Iraq.

A 76-year-old second hand car dealer and his 50-year-old son are among nine men arrested on suspicion of involvement in the Hatton Garden heist. Brian Reader, and his son also Brian, but known as Paul, were arrested in a raid on their detached home in Dartford, Kent, by officers from Scotland Yard’s Flying Squad at around 10.30am. They were arrested in one of 12 coordinated raids across London and Kent, by detectives investigating the audacious raid on the Hatton Garden Safe Deposit Company, which took place over the Easter weekend. Seven other men aged between 43 and 74 have also been arrested and were being questioned at a police station in London. The Readers and five others were detained during raids in Dartford, Enfield and east London, with two further arrests being made in the afternoon in north London. Police said a “significant amount of high value” property had been recovered in the raids, but urged victims to be patient while the items were carefully examined by specialist officers. Mr Reader and his son are understood to run a second hand car dealership, called Pentire Cars, from their home in Dartford. On the company’s website it states: “We are a second hand car dealer based in Dartford, Kent. We offer quality used cars at very affordable prices. “If you are after fantastic savings on your first car or looking to upgrade, you can be sure that you will find competitive prices and the best service from Pentire Cars in Dartford.” There was no answer on the phone number listed on the website. • Hatton Garden heist: First images from inside vault • The inside story of Britain's greatest jewellery raid • Detectives hunt Sudan-based directors amid fears of insider job Kevin Watson, 56, whose house overlooks the police cordon, witnessed the arrests. He said: “It was just after 10 o'clock this morning. About three vans full of police turned up. There were maybe 20 or more officers. “They surrounded the property, entered and shouted 'police, police'. It was quite orderly and peaceful. “There was no fight. Then about half-an-hour the brought the younger man out handcuffed, mid-50s and put him in one of the vans. "Fifteen minutes later they brought out the older guy who seemed to be struggling a bit health-wise. He was holding his chest. “They took the younger one back in momentarily which was to get medication presumably, he came out with a bag. “I would say 20 to 25. There were a lot, that's what was so shocking about it. They were here about an hour. The forensics came at about 11.30am. They've been here all day.” • In pictures: Dramatic images of the heist A neighbour, who declined to give her name, said the family had been carrying out building work on the property recently. She said: “I didn't know him socially. He has been living here for a while. We haven't seen him for several weeks, since Easter. He keeps a very low profile.” The arrests mark a major breakthrough in the investigation which has caused embarrassment for Scotland Yard after detectives were forced to admit that they had failed to respond to an intruder alarm during the raid. Giving details of the arrests, in a highly defensive statement, Commander Peter Spindler said: “At times we've been portrayed as if we have acted like Keystone Cops, but I want to reassure you that in the finest traditions of Scotland Yard, these detectives have done their utmost to bring justice to the victims of this callous crime. “They've worked tirelessly and relentlessly, they've put their lives on hold over the last six or seven weeks to make sure that justice is served. They've exemplified the finest attributes of Scotland Yard detectives.” The audacious raid took place at the Hatton Garden Safe Deposit Company over the Easter weekend when a gang of thieves lowered themselves down an internal lift shaft before using an industrial diamond tipped drill to bore a hole through the reinforced concrete vault wall. The thieves managed to open 72 of the 600 boxes in the vault getting away with millions of pounds worth of gems, jewellery and cash. But delays in identifying which owners had been affected led to criticism from the victims, who accused the police of incompetence. A police spokesman said a number of large bags containing “significant amounts of high value property” had been recovered from one of the addresses raided. Police have also appealed for help to trace a white Transit van that was seen in the area at the time of the heist. The van, with the registration DU53 VNG, has still not been recovered. How did they do it? ||||| Scotland Yard say they have found highly valuable property stolen during the Hatton Garden heist stashed in bags, following a series of coordinated police raids by more than 200 officers which have led to the arrest of nine suspects. Three pensioners, the oldest aged 76, were among those detained during the raids in London and Kent after Scotland Yard detectives used covert tactics to identify suspects. One of the addresses being searched was an £800,000 property in Dartford, Kent. Two arrests were made at the property, of males aged 50 and 76. According to official documents, two males called Paul and Brian Reader were registered as living at the address. A second-hand car dealership was linked to the property, as was a planning application that neighbours said had proved controversial in the area. The burglary in Hatton Garden over the Easter weekend is believed to have seen millions of pounds worth of jewels, cash and other valuables stolen by a gang who bored through a thick concrete wall to break into a vault containing safety deposit boxes, in the heart of London’s diamond district. The first set of arrests were made at 10.30am on Tuesday, with a total of 12 addresses raided. As well as the arrests in Dartford, another four men – aged 48, 58, 67 and 74 – were arrested in Enfield, north London, while a seventh man, aged 59, was arrested in east London. Two further arrests were made later in north London, of men aged 43 and 58. All nine were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to burgle. Police said all those arrested were white British males, putting paid to early speculation that an east European gang may have been behind the robbery. In a sign of the confidence of detectives, Scotland Yard said high-value property found at one address matched that stolen from Hatton Garden. “A number of large bags containing significant amounts of high-value property have been recovered from one address. Officers are confident these are items stolen during the burglary,” the Metropolitan police said. During the heist the gang rifled through 72 secure boxes believed to contain millions of pounds’ worth of cash, jewels and other valuables. Police have denied being “keystone cops” after they failed to respond to an alarm from the building housing the vault which went off while the gang were trying to break into the strong room. Some inside the police questioned whether detectives would be able to gain much intelligence to arrest suspects, given the decline over the past decades in such “old school” crimes and cuts to flying squad staff numbers. However, Scotland Yard will be buoyed by the squad’s role in the arrests and the apparent recovery of stolen property. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Police car is seen outside the house in Dartford where two Hatton Garden raid suspects were arrested. Photograph: Jamie Grierson for the Guardian The gang left behind tools, including drills, crowbars and angle-grinders used to force the boxes open. Officers have been trying to find out why only 72 of 999 boxes were opened. In announcing the arrests, police apologised for failing to respond to the alarm. Cdr Peter Spindler said: “At times we have been portrayed as if we’ve acted like ‘Keystone Cops’. But I want to reassure you that in the finest traditions of Scotland Yard these detectives have done their utmost to bring justice for the victims of this callous crime. “They have worked tirelessly and relentlessly. They have put their lives on hold over the last six or seven weeks to make sure that justice is served and they have exemplified the finest attributes of Scotland Yard detectives.” Spindler said the Met’s call-handling procedures were not followed when the alarm went off. “Our normal procedures would have resulted in police attending the scene and we apologise that this did not happen. In this case, the owners had been notified by the alarm company and a security guard attended the building but saw nothing more than our officers would have done had they been deployed.” Det Supt Craig Turner, head of the flying squad, asked for patience from victims of the heist eager to get their property back. “Police officers will be in contact with them in order that we can restore this property back to their rightful owners. Please be patient in relation to this,” he said. Forensic experts were given priority at the crime scene, which was left strewn with dust, rubble, and equipment used by the gang. Material they were able to recover, such as DNA and fingerprints, may be crucial to enabling prosecutions. ||||| LONDON (AP) — With meticulous planning and remarkable good fortune, the thieves who broke into a safe deposit in London's diamond district seemed to have pulled off the perfect jewel heist. But their luck ran out Tuesday when more than 200 Scotland Yard officers closed in on them. FILE - In this Tuesday, April 7, 2015 file photo, Police forensics officer enter the Hatton Garden Safe Deposit company in London. More than 200 British police swooped down on suspected jewel thieves... (Associated Press) The nine arrests were a triumph for embattled detectives whose early work had been criticized because of an embarrassing failure to respond to a midnight alarm at the start of a holiday weekend. That gave the thieves more than 48 hours to carefully remove the contents of the safe used by jewelers in the Hatton Garden district. The suspects, all British men between ages 43 and 76, were questioned in a London police station after coordinated morning raids in northern London and the southeastern district of Kent, Scotland Yard said. It said bags containing a significant amount of high-value property were recovered at one of the addresses but did not assign a value to the heist. The audacious robbery over the Easter weekend fascinated Britain. Dressed in fluorescent vests and hard hats, the thieves entered the high-security vault area in the London diamond district, carrying bags and wheeled garbage bins for carrying off the booty. To gain entry, they climbed down an elevator shaft and drilled through concrete walls that were 2 meters (6 feet) thick, later making off with the contents of 72 safety deposit boxes. Commander Peter Spindler on Tuesday defended the police performance in the face of the earlier criticism. "At times we've been portrayed as if we have acted like Keystone Cops but I want to reassure you that in the finest traditions of Scotland Yard, these detectives have done their utmost to bring justice to the victims of this callous crime," he said. Nonetheless, police took the unusual step of apologizing for mishandling the alarm. "Our call-handling system and procedures for working with the alarm-monitoring companies were not followed," they said. "Our normal procedures would have resulted in police attending the scene, and we apologize that this did not happen." They asked victims to be patient while police sort out the recovered valuables in order to return them to their owners. They said the investigation is still expanding and appealed to the public for information. Apparently no one took notice of the group as it went about its business in the diamond district that was nearly deserted over the holiday weekend. Security footage showed the men, wearing dust masks, entering and leaving the building repeatedly after their arrival late on Thursday, April 2. They worked throughout the night and left Friday morning, returning on Saturday night and leaving again on Easter Sunday morning. They had picked their spots carefully — local jewelers routinely store valuable gems in the Hatton Garden Safe Deposit facility overnight and on weekends. The facility's intruder alarm sounded shortly after midnight on April 3, but police did not respond — although they asserted Tuesday that a private security guard did check the outside of the premises and found nothing amiss. The crime was not discovered until the jewelry district sprang back to life Tuesday morning.

– When a huge amount of cash and gems was stolen from a secure vault in London over Easter weekend, the daring theft was described as an "old-school heist"—and just how old school is now apparent. A 76-year-old man and his 50-year-old son were among nine people arrested in 12 raids involving hundreds of police officers yesterday, the Telegraph reports. The other suspects range in age from 43 to 74, and police say a "number of large bags containing significant amounts of high-value property" believed to have come from the Hatton Garden Safe Deposit heist were seized from one address, the Guardian reports. After the heist, police were heavily criticized for failing to respond to an alarm, giving the gang more than 48 hours to empty scores of safety deposit boxes in the heart of London's diamond district, the AP reports. "At times we've been portrayed as if we have acted like Keystone Cops, but I want to reassure you that in the finest traditions of Scotland Yard, these detectives have done their utmost to bring justice to the victims of this callous crime," a police spokesman said after the arrest. It was initially suspected that an Eastern European gang like the Pink Panthers was behind the theft, but police say all the suspects are British, the Guardian notes. (Thieves in Paris grabbed a handbag containing $5.4 million in jewelry from a woman stuck in traffic last month.)

After months of legal wrangling, Edmonton's MacEwan University has recovered nearly all of the $11.8 million lost to an online phishing scam. In a statement Wednesday, MacEwan said it was able to recover $10.92 million before concluding legal proceedings. "MacEwan's administration credits the recovery of such a large percentage of the funds — just over 92 per cent — to the swift response and diligent efforts of an internal team at the university, legal counsel in several jurisdictions, fraud units at the banks involved in the transactions and law enforcement agencies," the statement said. The total amount not recovered was $880,000. To get back the $10.92 million, the university spent $250,000 in legal and banking fees, MacEwan spokesperson David Beharry said. After it was discovered last August, the fraud prompted Advanced Education Minister Marlin Schmidt to instruct all university board chairs in the province to review their financial controls. Wednesday's statement from MacEwan said it now has stronger financial controls including mandatory IT security training for staff and improved vendor verification protocols. Schmidt said he's glad to see the university has improved its safeguards. "I'm very pleased that MacEwan has made significant progress on recovering the money, as well as the improvements that they have made in their financial processes and control," Schmidt told reporters at the legislature. "We raised some significant concerns last summer when this issue came to light and we're very pleased with the progress that they're making." The university was defrauded last summer when staff failed to verify as legitimate emails requesting a change in banking information for one of its vendors. Three payments were made to a fraudulent account: one on Aug. 10 for $1.9 million; another on Aug. 17 for $22,000 and a third on Aug. 19 for $9.9 million. MacEwan discovered the fraud after the legitimate vendor, a construction company, called to ask why it hadn't been paid. At the time, Beharry said most of the missing money — $11.4 million — was traced to a bank account in Montreal and to two accounts in Hong Kong. He said $6.3 million was seized from the Montreal account and action was taken to freeze the two Hong Kong accounts. We knew we were at fault, and that's why I'm here to tell you that it was our fault and we accept that. - David Beharry, MacEwan spokesperson He also said three employees involved were not high-level staffers and the university did not believe there was any collusion. He did not say if the three had been suspended or reprimanded. On Wednesday, Beharry said auditors determined human error made the scam possible. "We didn't have the proper controls in place," Beharry said. "Since then we have changed that, the reporting structure. The reporting structure has to go through a manager or a director, so there's multiple levels of checks and balances now. "The university looked at all its processes after this and we knew we were at fault, and that's why I'm here to tell you that it was our fault and we accept that." The Edmonton Police Service and other police agencies are still investigating the fraud. No charges have been laid in the case, police said. ||||| EDMONTON—The email started with an innocent “Hiya,” but the words that followed set off a chain of events that would tarnish a university’s reputation and send investigators on a months-long chase across the ocean and back. It’s been just over a year since MacEwan University was blindsided by an $11.8-million fraud. While the ruse itself was simple, the case that followed was anything but. Police had to navigate a complex money-laundering scheme that funnelled some of the stolen public funds through various accounts in two continents before reinvesting it in a real-estate deal in Richmond, B.C. The fraud began in the summer of 2017, when MacEwan was in the midst of constructing the $180-million Allard Hall: a state-of-the-art building boasting music studios and dance halls with room for 1,800 students. ( Codie McLachlan / For StarMetro Edmonton ) By scouring court documents from cities across the country that tracked investigations in Edmonton, Vancouver, the United Kingdom and Hong Kong, StarMetro has pieced together the most comprehensive picture of the case ever published and uncovered new details about how the money was stolen and where it went. It began in the summer of 2017, when MacEwan was in the midst of constructing the $180-million Allard Hall: a state-of-the-art building boasting music studios and dance halls with room for 1,800 students. Emails detailing transactions worth millions of dollars were pinging back and forth between school staff and vendors. As a result, one particular email, sent June 27, didn’t set off any alarms. Sent by a James Ellis of Clark Builders, a construction company working on the project, the email opened with the affable “Hiya” before asking the school’s accounts receivable department to reroute payments to a new National Bank of Canada account. Article Continued Below A supporting letter attached to the email appeared to have been signed by Marc Timberman, the company’s chief financial officer. Read more: Edmonton’s MacEwan University recovers more than $10 million lost to phishing attack Alberta’s MacEwan University loses $11.8M after being fooled by email phishing scam Udeni Jayasinghe, an accounting technician with the university, changed the banking information on file. Exactly a month later, MacEwan wired $1.9 million into the new National Bank of Canada account. Oddly, the payment bounced back. The university’s bank confirmed the transfer didn’t go through because the account didn’t exist. Concerned, Jayasinghe replied to the email asking for updated banking co-ordinates. A response four days later provided new banking information, this time to an account with TD Bank. The email was accompanied by a revised letter that once again appeared to have been signed by Timberman. Article Continued Below In just over a week, the university made three payments into the TD Bank account totalling more than $11.8 million. It would be almost two months before the university would learn the awful truth: Clark Builders never received these payments, no James Ellis had worked for the company for at least eight years and the real Timberman had no knowledge of the letters using his name. The email was a fraud. Over the course of a month, MacEwan University lost the equivalent of $622 for every part-time and full-time student enrolled. That’s enough to cover a year of tuition for more than 2,600 students pursuing bachelor’s degrees, or more than one-eighth of the total amount the university took in through tuition and fees during the 2016-2017 academic year. MacEwan had been fooled by what Const. William Lewadniuk, with the Red Deer RCMP financial crimes unit, called a “spear phishing scheme.” “It’s targeted to a specific individual,” said Lewadniuk. “Generally with a spear phishing scheme you would spoof the email address and try to get them to send you money, so you would pretend to be a contractor or a person’s boss.” The fraud was only discovered when Serge L’Abbe, senior project manager with Clark Builders, contacted the university on Aug. 23, 2017 to inquire about the missing money. StarMetro follows the money stolen from MacEwan University funneled through international accounts and reinvested in Vancouver real estate. The university immediately started investigating, according to a sworn statement filed in court in Montreal by Stuart McLean, associate vice-president of facilities with Grant MacEwan’s board of governors. They quickly discovered that while the email appeared to have been sent by “accounts.receiveable@clarkbuilders.com” the email address had been “spoofed.” The display name of the email was different than the actual originating account. The university’s first break came on Aug. 25, 2017 when a Montreal Superior Court justice issued a seizure order and took back $6.3 million from the TD account, recovering more than half of the missing funds. The account had been opened under the name of Mono Shoes Inc., a company registered to a fifth-floor apartment near downtown Montreal. Before MacEwan’s millions of dollars poured in, according to documents filed in court, the account had a balance of less than $70. But this was just the beginning of the trail, not the end. In another plot twist, the man identified by a corporate registry search as president, sole director and shareholder of Mono Shoes — Jehad Albatniji — claimed he, too, had been a victim of fraud. In September, while he was in Jordan, Albatniji exchanged emails with one of MacEwan’s lawyers. He alleged a man in Montreal introduced him to another man in Toronto — the “main culprit,” Albatniji said, who had access to an account in Hong Kong. Here the story enters its second major theatre: East Asia. From the Mono Shoes TD account, investigators were able to track a trail of transactions to accounts based in Hong Kong. Lewadniuk — who has worked with the RCMP’s financial crimes unit in Red Deer for three years, with expertise in money laundering involving the proceeds of crime — said the money stolen in these types of schemes typically doesn’t stick around. “More and more, the money doesn’t stay in Canada,” he said. “They’ll try to get it sent out to a country outside of Canada because it is harder for us to recover the funds or follow up.” In cases like this, Lewadniuk said, finding out exactly who is responsible and building a case strong enough to lay criminal charges is rare. Criminals often create shell companies with corporate accounts, sometimes using stolen identities, to shuffle money around while concealing the identity of the people controlling the accounts. Const. William Lewadniuk, with the Red Deer RCMP financial crimes unit, has expertise handling major complex frauds and money laundering involving the proceeds of crime. Lewadniuk said the money stolen in these types of schemes typically doesn't stick around. ( Trevor Howell / StarMetro Calgary ) “They want to make it as hard as possible for people to be able to trace where the money goes, so you go from account to account to account through so many countries,” said Lewadniuk. Just one day after MacEwan wired $1.9 million to the Mono Shoes account, $1.4 million of the stolen funds was sent from the Mono Shoes account to an account supposedly operated by a company called Kinglong Commerce Development Ltd., based in Hong Kong. So began a series of transactions that would see the money moved from account to account before it was reinvested in a legitimate real-estate deal back on Canadian soil. Around the same time the fraud was unfolding in Edmonton, Vancouver-based company Hoi Fu Enterprises Ltd., owned by mother Jin Lan Feng and son John Yuan, was in the process of acquiring land in Richmond, B.C. The property at 4008 Stolberg St. was valued at over $25 million, but Hoi Fu Enterprises did not have the funds to purchase it outright. According to documents filed with the Supreme Court of British Columbia, the seller offered them a short-term mortgage to finance part of the purchase. The sale was completed on July 12, 2017, with Hoi Fu Enterprises Ltd. acquiring the property through a holding company. To pay back the mortgage, Hoi Fu Enterprises borrowed money from Yangjiang City Jixie Zhulu Engineering Ltd. in China. The registered legal representative and shareholder of that company is Yuan’s uncle. However, to lend Hoi Fu Enterprises the money, Yangjiang City Jixie Zhulu Engineering had to find a way to convert the funds from Chinese currency and send the money to Hoi Fu in Canada. This is how the stolen funds get involved. Yangjiang City Jixie Zhulu Engineering was then “introduced” to two individuals, Shao Xiong Ma and Shao Yun Ma, who claimed they could help purchase Canadian funds and move them from China to Canada, according to a statement filed on behalf of Hoi Fu Enterprises. Yangjiang City Jixie Zhulu Engineering agreed to lend the Mas the money in the form of Chinese renminbi on the condition that they repay their loan in Canadian dollars to Hoi Fu Enterprises in Canada. Between June and July of 2017, Yangjiang City Jixie Zhulu Engineering made four payments to the Mas totalling ¥6.7 million, which would have been worth approximately $1.2 million. In August, Hoi Fu Enterprises received three wire transfers totalling $1 million. What Hoi Fu Enterprises said it didn’t know was that the Mas had made a side deal with Kinglong Commerce Development. The Mas would make payments totalling ¥5.3 million — approximately $1 million — to four individuals and one company in China. In exchange, the Kinglong Commerce Development account, which had previously received $1.4 million in funds stolen during the MacEwan fraud, would transfer $1 million to Hoi Fu Enterprises. Kibben Jackson, a Vancouver-based lawyer who represented Hoi Fu Enterprises during MacEwan’s investigation and subsequent civil suits, said the owners contend they never knew the money they would eventually use to repay their mortgage on the property deal in Richmond was stolen from MacEwan University. Jackson said that after MacEwan threatened to seize $1 million from Hoi Fu Enterprises, the company settled the lawsuit in March 2018. He could not disclose how much money Hoi Fu Enterprises offered to MacEwan. While the case may have been complex, it was certainly not unique, according to experts in the field. Garry Clement is a financial crime prevention expert and advocate, having once served as the national director for the RCMP's Proceeds of Crime Program and worked as an undercover operator investigating some of the highest levels of organized crime in Canada. Clement, who did not work on the case, said criminal networks between Canada and Asia have been well established over decades. ( Supplied ) Financial crimes specialist Garry Clement, who did not work on the case, said criminal networks between Canada and Asia have been well established over decades. Clement previously worked with police for 34 years, going undercover to chase some of the highest levels of organized crime in Canada. He was also formerly the national director for the RCMP’s Proceeds of Crime Program. Clement said that, prior to 1997, there wasn’t a specific charge under the Criminal Code of Canada for being a member of an organized crime group, as there is under Hong Kong law. Without an equivalent on the books, immigrants with that kind of criminal history wouldn’t be automatically precluded from entering Canada. “As a result, we did end up with our fair share of known organized-crime figures in Canada,” said Clement. This allowed criminals to set up networks between the two countries that have persisted to this day. “You’ve created a network, and that network enables you to do a lot of things through various company formations,” said Clement. “That is essentially what you are seeing in China: Money is flowing that has been defrauded.” Clement said it is not uncommon for the proceeds of crime to end up in legitimate investments as criminals look to keep their money safe and out of reach of authorities. An investment of choice, said Clement, is real estate, given its relative stability and the large sums of money involved. “Nobody asks the genesis of the money,” Clement said. Through legal action in Hong Kong, the university was able to recover nearly $3.8 million from another individual — not named in court documents available in Vancouver or Montreal — who had also been transferred stolen MacEwan funds from the Mono Shoes TD Bank account. In all, MacEwan University announced on April 4, 2018 that it had successfully recovered $10.9 million of the $11.8 million lost to the scam. More than $960,000 remains missing — a stinging loss that has prompted change at the university and beyond. “Taxpayers rightly expect that the money we give to universities is spent on educating our students and isn’t lost because of poor financial controls that are in place,” Advanced Education Minister Marlin Schmidt told StarMetro in a recent interview. “We all have a fiduciary responsibility to make sure that the money is spent properly.” After finding out it had been defrauded, the university waited a week before alerting the public to the loss. A press release assured students that the university’s IT systems were secure and that it had already begun tracking the majority of the stolen funds with the help of legal counsel in Montreal, London and Hong Kong. MacEwan University president Deborah Saucier was not made available for comment. When the administration credited the “swift response and diligent efforts” of staff, legal counsel, investigators and the banks for seeing the return of 92 per cent of the lost funds, it revealed few details about where the money went or how it was recovered. The money-laundering loop. How stolen money in Edmonton masqueraded as legitimate capital in Vancouver. ( Andres Plana/StarMetro ) That was by design. A presentation to the 2018 Canadian Association of University Business Officers Conference reveals university officials feared “significant political fallout” and loss of reputation in the wake of the scam. University executives, according to the document, refused to provide media with access to Saucier and employed a “disciplined” communications strategy, despite public promises of transparency. In a statement posted online in October 2017, Saucier said “the fraud did shine spotlights on two glaring gaps in our organization.” An internal audit revealed there were inadequate controls in place for changing payment information. There was no requirement for a manager or supervisor to review changes to payment information on file. It also found employees didn’t bother to contact the vendor in any way to confirm the request was valid. The press release sent out in April outlined some of the measures administration took to ensure they wouldn’t be fooled again. Employees are now required to verify all changes to vendor files by phone and a followup email, and all financial changes must first be reviewed by a supervisor, manager or director. A supplied audit report system was also implemented, tracking every change made to vendor files. The university has made employee training in social engineering attacks, phishing and other online scams mandatory. Minister Schmidt praised MacEwan for making changes to its financial department, “including some staff changes at the highest levels, which was a good first step.” Brent Quinton, who was the university’s vice-president of finance and administration at the time of the fraud, resigned from his position three weeks after the fraud was discovered, walking away with a $540,000 severance payout. No staff members were fired, though some were placed in different positions. Harry Oosteroff, executive director of the MacEwan Staff Association, said “our members were treated appropriately.” The provincial government is taking steps to prevent such costly, embarrassing mistakes in the future. The Ministry of Advanced Education’s senior financial officer is now leading a team tasked with “identifying ways that we can help build capacity at institutions to improve their financial controls” so public dollars allocated for the benefit of post-secondary students don’t end up in the wrong hands. “There are always improvements that can be made, and our department is working with institutions to continually improve the financial systems that are used to protect the taxpayers’ dollars,” Schmidt said. After all, this isn’t the first time a post-secondary institution in Alberta has been fooled. An investigation into a similar fraud at the University of Lethbridge found that while the university had such controls in place, staff weren’t following them. The University of Lethbridge sent $368,000 to scammers over a two-month period in 2016, “when payments owing to an external vendor of the university were sent through a process of misdirection to an alternative, nonauthentic bank account,” said Mike Mahon, president and vice-chancellor, in a statement in December 2016. Sent by a James Ellis of Clark Builders, a construction company working on the project, the email opened with an affable “Hiya” before asking the school’s accounts receivable department to reroute payments to a new bank account. Const. Lewadniuk said low-tech solutions, such as having two people sign off on financial transactions or following up on emails with a phone call to the person or company in question, can be key in avoiding high-tech fraud. There are institutional changes on the horizon as well. Clement, the financial crimes specialist, is eager to see stronger regulations around identifying beneficial ownership of property, corporations and bank accounts. Beneficial ownership is an arrangement in which the person who enjoys the benefits of the property or bank accounts, such as profits, isn’t necessarily the person listed on the title. Clement said that, until recently, numbered companies would have one or two directors listed, “but there was not that requirement to drill down to see who is actually the beneficial owners of that money.” Finance ministers across Canada entered an agreement to strengthen such regulations and bring them into force by July 1, 2019. The regulations seek to curb the misuse of corporations and other legal entities being exploited for tax evasion, money laundering, corruption and financing terrorism. But until those regulations are brought into force and investigators are given the resources they need to chase down these types of crime, Clement fears such financial crime will continue “unabated.” “If you stem the flow of money and stem their ability to make that profit, you can curb a lot of activity,” said Clement. “But as long as there’s that profit to be made, people are going to gamble.” Claire Theobald is an Edmonton-based reporter who covers crime and the courts. Follow her on Twitter: @clairetheobald With files from Michael Mui Read more about:

– How do you get millions from a Canadian university? Just ask, apparently. A fraudster emailed MacEwan University in 2017 seeking roughly $9 million (USD) and the school sent it right off, the Toronto Star reports. To be fair, the Edmonton school was busy constructing a $137 million building featuring dance halls and music studios, so the request from Clark Builders, a company on the project, made sense. Only after sending the money did MacEwan learn that Clark Builders never received it and the email's purported author hadn't worked there in years. The funds really went to a Montreal bank account that previously held under $60. From there, over $1 million of it went to East Asia and back to appear legitimate—an international route that made it harder for the RCMP to trace. But trace it they did. According to court documents, most of the money returned to Canada as a loan to Vancouver-based Hoi Fu Enterprises Ltd. The loan came from a Chinese company that, via intermediaries, bought Canadian dollars from a supposed Hong Kong company that had received the Montreal money. And presto, Hoi Fu received about $764,000 in loans to help pay a big new mortgage. Luckily, MacEwan recovered over 92% of lost funds, in part by suing Hoi Fu and seizing money from the bank. The school also set up anti-phishing measures to avoid getting fooled again. "We knew we were at fault ... and we accept that," a school rep tells the CBC. No arrests have been reported in the case. (In another story, the so-called "affluenza" mom has been charged with money laundering.)

Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. ||||| It’s been little more than two weeks since David McMahon and Sydnie Uemoto were rescued after ditching their small plane in the ocean about 30 miles short of Kona. In the days immediately after the crash and rescue, Rick McMahon, David’s father, said the ordeal they survived was something right out of a Hollywood movie. Now on Monday, for the first time since their harrowing experience that included nearly 20 hours at sea, KHON2 spoke with the two leading characters of the real-life drama, who said they never lost hope and counted on one another to get through the difficult hours. Life has returned somewhat to normal for McMahon and Uemoto. On July 15, they were forced to ditch their rented twin-engine in the ocean after both engines died. Seconds before impact, McMahon told Uemoto to take over the controls, while he grabbed life vests and opened the door, which was on his side. “I was like what? Okay, I was like, I don’t really know what I’m doing because we don’t actually do ditchings,” Uemoto said. Despite a hard and bruising impact, the two say they managed to get out as water immediately started rushing in. “The cabin was under basically by the time we jumped in the water and it was just the tail sticking up, and that went down within five minutes. It was quick. It just sank,” McMahon said. The two were adrift with nothing more than their life jackets, and McMahon’s failed to properly inflate. Despite several flyovers, including some directly overhead, the rescuers failed to spot them in the choppy surf. “The water was pretty rough and at that point, the sun was pretty low so the glare factor is high and every time they flew over us was just… heartbreaking,” Uemoto recalled. “You’re a Big Island girl. When you’re looking at that island, it’s home and right there, and yet so far away,” KHON2 said. “Yes, I have never experienced something so far, yet so close, and yet so far,” she replied. Eventually darkness fell. The two were were cold, exhausted and fearful. “I kind of took the lead in the first half and overnight is when she had the strength and helped me through the hours, because up to that point, I had no vest and I’ve been swimming for eight to 10 hours,” McMahon said. “I remember turning to Sydnie and saying, ‘We have to swim toward land, because we’re not going to drift in the open ocean.” “He said, ‘Let’s just take it slow toward land. We don’t want to overexert ourselves and use up all our energy, because at that point, we don’t know how long going to be in the water,” Uemoto said. By sunrise, the two had been in the water for nearly 15 hours. Search aircraft remained overhead, but again failed to spot them. Now, there were new concerns. The painful stings of Portuguese man o’ war and jellyfish. “This one, it happened in the night time, so we couldn’t see it. I was trying to grab it off, but it was like a spider web,” Uemoto said. That’s not all. “I just kept telling her not to look down because she was worried about sharks previously,” McMahon said. “(David) saw the first sighting and I could see it in his face he did see something but he didn’t want to frighten me so I asked him, ‘Did you see something? Did you see a shark?’ And he said yes,” Uemoto said. Finally, after nearly 19 hours at sea, their prayers were answered. “What is that moment like the two of you?” KHON2 asked. “It’s very emotional. I referred to the ‘Captain Phillips’ movie, where he gets saved. It just breaks down when he’s getting help,” Uemoto said. “I told her this is our ride and sure enough, he came up to the circle right over us and that’s when we broke down,” McMahon said. Both pilots say they look forward to returning to Mokulele Airlines and continuing their careers as pilots. ||||| Thirty minutes after the plane crashed in the wide stretch of ocean between the Hawaiian islands, David McMahon’s life vest started to deflate. Over the next 20 hours, the ocean sent him and his injured co-pilot swimming through jellyfish, a shark and rolling waves that hid them – wave by wave – from the helicopters circling above. They kept swimming. McMahon, 26, and Sydnie Uemoto, 23, were both pilots at Mokulele Airlines but barely knew each other before they took off together in a two-engine plane on 13 July, en route from Oahu to the Big Island, where Uemoto hoped to celebrate her father’s birthday. Neither pilot was an amateur, and when one of the engines failed, they knew what to do. When the second failed, they could only send distress signals as the plane fell thousands of feet toward deep water, 25 miles from the shore. “I remember hitting the water and that noise and seeing the water come up over the windshield,” Uemoto told Mileka Lincoln of Hawaii News Now in a lengthy interview. “I was kind of in a daze for a little while seeing the water come over the cockpit and I just kind of had to register what happened and David was on the wing saying, ‘Come on, we got to get out’.” The first hours Uemoto’s head was injured when she hit the dashboard, and she feared the blood would start to attract sharks. But the plane was sinking fast, so they grabbed life vests and were in the water. Within minutes the wreck had sunk. “I wasn’t too afraid yet,” McMahon said, confident that rescue crews had heard their distress call. “We just survived a plane crash, that’s the worst of it. We’ll just wait for coast guard to come.” But half an hour after McMahon pulled the CO 2 cartridge to inflate his life vest, the tab broke and left a hole. He had to swim and tread water. After a while, he kept the life vest’s inflating tube in his mouth: “every time I would exhale I would just exhale into the life vest, just to keep it filled.” Right in front of me, probably six to 10 feet down, was just a big black shadow. Immediately I knew it was a shark David McMahon, plane crash survivor After a few hours, they saw helicopters and planes – but the waves and glare ofthe afternoon sun hid them. “Every time they flew over I waved my vest over my head,” McMahon told Hawaii News Now, which is part of the islands’ TV network. “I was treading water and just trying to get their attention, but also at that point we were in white caps.” Uemoto described it as “kind of heartbreaking” to see it happen again and again as they rolled in the waves. “You get hopeful, and then you see them go. And you see them not turn around and it just – as quickly as you came up, it just goes right back down.” The mountains of the Big Island were visible, if hazy, in the distance. After eight hours of holding his own with a faulty life vest, McMahon was on the verge of collapse. Night fell, and the cold Pacific sank into their muscles. “I remember just asking Sydnie, ‘Sydnie, I need to stop. I’m freezing. I’m exhausted. I can’t kick any more,’” he said. “She would stop every once in a while, just shortly but she was like, ‘We can’t stop. We got to keep going’. I may have been the one strong in the beginning, but overnight I wouldn’t have made it without her.” Making it through the night Eventually they discovered a system. “I was able to rest my neck on her ankles. I had her ankles like this around my neck and I was just on my back and I kicked and she was swimming,” McMahon said, crediting Uemoto with his survival. Jellyfish rose to the surface through the night, stinging Uemoto’s arms as she helped keep herself and McMahon moving in the direction of the island. Uemoto said that she’d heard the swarms can ward off large predators, though box jellyfish alone kill dozens more people than sharks a year. But in what light they had, McMahon saw schools of “cute little black fish following us – and then all of a sudden, they were gone”. Jellyfish rose to the surface through the night, stinging Uemoto’s arms as she helped keep herself and McMahon moving What followed the fish, he said, was “right in front of me, probably six to 10 feet down. It was just a big black shadow – like six to seven feet, and immediately I knew it was a shark.” “I didn’t say anything right away but she could tell from my eyes,” said McMahon. The shark circled for a tense 10 to 15 minutes, they remembered, during which the pair planned for the worst. Uemoto asked McMahon what he would do if it came close. “He’s like, ‘I’m going to look it in the eye,’” she recalled, adding that she thought: “OK, David, you look him in the eye. I’m going to keep swimming.” Finally rescued When nature puts on a happy face: Hawaiian volcano erupts into smile Read more But the shark left the pilots to their fate in the ocean, and they continued struggling toward the shore. They were making plans – “hit the beach by noon” for lunch and family phone calls, “make it by dinner, you know? We’re not staying the night in the ocean” – until the morning light brought another round of helicopters and search planes. Twenty-one hours after the crash, one of the searchers finally saw them. “We waved and we waved and waved,” Uemoto said, “and we watched it and it just made its circle and we knew they saw us.” At 11.35am, only a mile and a half from the shore and after more than 20 miles of swimming and floating in the open ocean, they were pulled from the sea. Uemoto and McMahon broke down into tears. “We both knew we weren’t – it wasn’t our time,” McMahon said. “I think that was the biggest role. We just both knew we were going to go back and just be a family.” ||||| Relief and happiness. That’s how loved ones feel after two missing pilots were found alive off the Kona coast Friday morning. On Saturday, they were discharged from the Kona Community Hospital after suffering only minor injuries. David McMahon and Sydnie Uemoto were found nine miles north of Kona International Airport, about 1.5 miles from the shoreline. “Debris had been found by a tour helicopter, and so our sister helicopter that was in the area went to look for the debris field and they found two survivors at the time,” said Petty Officer 1st Class Kevin Cleary, aviation survival technician. “They weren’t able to hoist (the survivors) so they vectored our aircraft into position, and we were able to find them and safely hoist them aboard our helicopter. “Their condition when I got to them was pretty good,” Cleary continued. “The male gave me a high-five and they were definitely relieved, as was I to see them. Other than some minor lacerations at the time, and cuts and bruises, they seem to be okay and in good spirits for being in the ocean for almost 24 hours.” The two were clinging to a life vest when crews found them. “They basically just told me that as they were going, they knew they were going to go down into the water, so he had told the lady she needs to land the plane,” Cleary said. “He was going to open the door on his side, so he was going to open it. She took controls. She landed it in the water and grabbed the life vests on the way out the door, and that was big. They were able to get the life vests. They had been swimming all night. They didn’t really explain to me how they were feeling throughout the night or anything like that.” McMahon and Uemoto were airlifted to Kona International Airport and treated by paramedics for minor injuries shortly before noon. KHON2 spoke with McMahon’s parents, Rick and Nancy McMahon, before they left to catch a flight to Hawaii Island. They say the last 24 hours have been numbing and tormenting. “I don’t think I’ve ever experienced such an ever-growing anxiety, not knowing not knowing if my son was going to live through the night,” Rick McMahon said. “It was just unbelievable. I’ve been ping-ponging back and forth between happy and sad, and now he’s home. He’s alive. He’s here.” For McMahon’s mother, news of his rescue came as the ultimate gift. Today is her birthday, and she says “it’s been the best birthday ever.” Rick McMahon says his son’s life vest wouldn’t inflate, so he had to blow it up manually and use a finger to keep air from coming out. He also said in the hours before their rescue, McMahon and Uemoto were being circled by sharks. The two are being treated for hypothermia and dehydration. The McMahons hope to bring their son home on Saturday. Mokulele Airlines president Rob McKinney confirms both are pilots for the airline. “They are very, very valued employees, as is everyone here in our small little ohana,” McKinney said. “They are very, very special to us.” Crews searched through the night after their plane went missing roughly 25 miles northwest of Kona. At 3:15 p.m. Thursday, watchstanders at the Coast Guard Joint Rescue Coordination Center in Honolulu received notification from Honolulu control facility personnel that the pilot of a dual-engine aircraft radioed in to report an in-flight emergency. The plane was traveling from Oahu to Kona (not from Maui, as previously reported by the Coast Guard). The tower then lost contact with the pilot and the plane no longer appeared on the radar. Watchstanders immediately issued an urgent marine information broadcast advising mariners in the area to keep a sharp lookout and report any sightings to JRCC. Involved in the search were a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew, the USCGC Galveston Island, a Navy MH-60R helicopter off the USS Chung Hoon, and a Royal New Zealand Air Force P3K2 Orion airplane. The Chung Hoon, Royal New Zealand Air Force and U.S. Air Force HC-130 are participating in RIMPAC 2016. The search area had been extended out to 45 miles offshore at one point. Late Thursday night, KHON2 spoke with Rick McMahon, who said his son and Uemoto are both pilots trying to get flight hours. “I’m dying inside,” Rick McMahon previously said. “I can’t imagine losing another son. I lost a son years ago. This feels brutal. I’m just helpless in this situation. He’s a strong swimmer. If he was able to glide this plane and land it, I believe he will survive.” We’ve reached out to the Federal Aviation Administration, but have yet to hear back. Coast Guard rescues pilots in Kona View as list View as gallery Open Gallery Sydnie Uemoto's mother checks on her daughter following a rescue nine miles off Kona, Hawaii, July 15, 2016. Uemoto and David McMahon were both rescued by a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew following an expansive joint search by Navy, Royal New Zealand air force, U.S. Air Force and Coast Guard crews. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Cooper/Released) Coast Guard crews safely deliver David McMahon and Sydnie Uemoto to emergency medical personnel in Kona, Hawaii, July 15, 2016, following their rescue nine miles off Kona. They were both rescued by a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew following an expansive joint search by Navy, Royal New Zealand air force, U.S. Air Force and Coast Guard crews. They reportedly sustained only minor injures in the crash. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Cooper/Released) Coast Guard crews safely deliver David McMahon and Sydnie Uemoto to emergency medical personnel in Kona, Hawaii, July 15, 2016, following their rescue nine miles off Kona. They were both rescued by a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew following an expansive joint search by Navy, Royal New Zealand air force, U.S. Air Force and Coast Guard crews. They reportedly sustained only minor injures in the crash. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Cooper/Released) The mother of Sydnie Uemoto hugs Coast Guard crews following her daughter's rescue nine miles off Kona, Hawaii, July 15, 2016. Uemoto and David McMahon were both rescued by a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew following an expansive joint search by Navy, Royal New Zealand air force, U.S. Air Force and Coast Guard crews. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Cooper/Released) A Coast Guard rescue swimmer involved in the rescue stands with the mother of Sydnie Uemoto following her daughter's rescue nine miles off Kona, Hawaii, July 15, 2016. Uemoto and David McMahon were both rescued by a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew following an expansive joint search by Navy, Royal New Zealand air force, U.S. Air Force and Coast Guard crews. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Cooper/Released) Coast Guard and Hawaii Fire Department personnel stand with the mother of Sydnie Uemoto following her daughter's rescue nine miles off Kona, Hawaii, July 15, 2016. Uemoto and David McMahon were both rescued by a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew following an expansive joint search by Navy, Royal New Zealand air force, U.S. Air Force and Coast Guard crews. (U.S. Coast Guard photo/Released) Coast Guard rescues pilots in Kona x Thumbnails Gallery Sydnie Uemoto's mother checks on her daughter following a rescue nine miles off Kona, Hawaii, July 15, 2016. Uemoto and David McMahon were both rescued by a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew following an expansive joint search by Navy, Royal New Zealand air force, U.S. Air Force and Coast Guard crews. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Cooper/Released) Coast Guard crews safely deliver David McMahon and Sydnie Uemoto to emergency medical personnel in Kona, Hawaii, July 15, 2016, following their rescue nine miles off Kona. They were both rescued by a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew following an expansive joint search by Navy, Royal New Zealand air force, U.S. Air Force and Coast Guard crews. They reportedly sustained only minor injures in the crash. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Cooper/Released) Coast Guard crews safely deliver David McMahon and Sydnie Uemoto to emergency medical personnel in Kona, Hawaii, July 15, 2016, following their rescue nine miles off Kona. They were both rescued by a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew following an expansive joint search by Navy, Royal New Zealand air force, U.S. Air Force and Coast Guard crews. They reportedly sustained only minor injures in the crash. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Cooper/Released) The mother of Sydnie Uemoto hugs Coast Guard crews following her daughter's rescue nine miles off Kona, Hawaii, July 15, 2016. Uemoto and David McMahon were both rescued by a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew following an expansive joint search by Navy, Royal New Zealand air force, U.S. Air Force and Coast Guard crews. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Cooper/Released) A Coast Guard rescue swimmer involved in the rescue stands with the mother of Sydnie Uemoto following her daughter's rescue nine miles off Kona, Hawaii, July 15, 2016. Uemoto and David McMahon were both rescued by a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew following an expansive joint search by Navy, Royal New Zealand air force, U.S. Air Force and Coast Guard crews. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Cooper/Released) Coast Guard and Hawaii Fire Department personnel stand with the mother of Sydnie Uemoto following her daughter's rescue nine miles off Kona, Hawaii, July 15, 2016. Uemoto and David McMahon were both rescued by a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew following an expansive joint search by Navy, Royal New Zealand air force, U.S. Air Force and Coast Guard crews. (U.S. Coast Guard photo/Released) Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Google+ (Opens in new window) Share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Sydnie Uemoto's mother checks on her daughter following a rescue nine miles off Kona, Hawaii, July 15, 2016. Uemoto and David McMahon were both rescued by a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew following an expansive joint search by Navy, Royal New Zealand air force, U.S. Air Force and Coast Guard crews. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Cooper/Released) Coast Guard crews safely deliver David McMahon and Sydnie Uemoto to emergency medical personnel in Kona, Hawaii, July 15, 2016, following their rescue nine miles off Kona. They were both rescued by a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew following an expansive joint search by Navy, Royal New Zealand air force, U.S. Air Force and Coast Guard crews. They reportedly sustained only minor injures in the crash. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Cooper/Released) Coast Guard crews safely deliver David McMahon and Sydnie Uemoto to emergency medical personnel in Kona, Hawaii, July 15, 2016, following their rescue nine miles off Kona. They were both rescued by a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew following an expansive joint search by Navy, Royal New Zealand air force, U.S. Air Force and Coast Guard crews. They reportedly sustained only minor injures in the crash. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Cooper/Released) The mother of Sydnie Uemoto hugs Coast Guard crews following her daughter's rescue nine miles off Kona, Hawaii, July 15, 2016. Uemoto and David McMahon were both rescued by a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew following an expansive joint search by Navy, Royal New Zealand air force, U.S. Air Force and Coast Guard crews. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Cooper/Released) A Coast Guard rescue swimmer involved in the rescue stands with the mother of Sydnie Uemoto following her daughter's rescue nine miles off Kona, Hawaii, July 15, 2016. Uemoto and David McMahon were both rescued by a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew following an expansive joint search by Navy, Royal New Zealand air force, U.S. Air Force and Coast Guard crews. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Cooper/Released) Coast Guard and Hawaii Fire Department personnel stand with the mother of Sydnie Uemoto following her daughter's rescue nine miles off Kona, Hawaii, July 15, 2016. Uemoto and David McMahon were both rescued by a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew following an expansive joint search by Navy, Royal New Zealand air force, U.S. Air Force and Coast Guard crews. (U.S. Coast Guard photo/Released) ||||| For the first time, the young co-pilots whose plane crash landed in the water 25 miles off of Hawai'i Island are sharing their story in their own words. 23-year-old Sydnie Uemoto and 26-year-old David McMahon say they could have never survived without one another's help and they only made it through a dark, cold night in the open ocean because they knew it wasn't their time to go. "All the support and prayers and thoughts and positive vibes that we got from everybody it was just -- it was mindblowing. It was amazing,” said Sydnie Uemoto. "We felt all that energy from the prayers and thoughts because we'd randomly get these waves of energy. It just had to be from everybody thinking about us and sending good vibes and prayers,” added David McMahon. The pair’s determination to make it back to their families and friends is what fueled them through their 21-hour ordeal, which many are now calling a “miracle at sea”. Keeping one another awake and moving was their only focus when they realized search crews couldn't see them and they would have to start swimming to shore if they wanted to survive. “For me, I'm amazed at how much we overcame and did out there,” said Uemoto. “I definitely feel that we're extremely blessed to go through that -- and it is if you look back on it, like a miracle -- and it's due to everybody giving their prayers and thanks. We're just extremely blessed to be here today,” said McMahon. “Yes. I definitely see it as a blessing,” Uemoto added. McMahon and Uemoto work together at Mokulele Airlines, but had only seen each other in passing. Uemoto was flying home to Hawai’i Island for her father’s birthday and planned to earn some multi-engine hours with another pilot along the way -- but when he couldn't make it, David joined her instead. “I had no idea who David was,” Uemoto said. “The first time we actually spoke was in the car on the way to the airport,” said McMahon. McMahon and Uemoto say it was a clear beautiful day when the departed Kalealoa for Kona. Three thousand feet above the deep blue sea and 25 miles from the Kona coast, their first engine failed – and then, a second. “We knew how to react to when the first engine went and we did appropriately, but in training you don't kill the second engine,” said McMahon as Uemoto chuckled next to him. “When he asked me to land it I was like -- I was thinking in my head, ‘Oh my gosh, I don't know how to ditch a plane’. But he said, ‘Just do your best and I kind of just imagined landing on the runway,” explained Uemoto. “I remember hitting the water and that noise and seeing the water come up over the windshield. I was kind of in a daze for a little while seeing the water come over the cockpit and I just kind of had to register what happened and David was on the wing saying, ‘Come on, we got to get out’,” said Uemoto. “Everything was like slow motion, but fast at the same time. Everything was quiet and it was almost like a shade of white and immediately after hitting -- we both went forward. I think I remember Sydnie hitting the dash and then water was just rushing in,” said McMahon. “When I stood up, I realized I was bleeding and I told him, ‘I can't go in the water’. And he said, ‘Why?’ And I was like, ‘I'm bleeding and there's sharks’. And he said, ‘You can't think about that right now’,” said Uemoto. “She grabbed the vests and the plane was going down pretty fast and I was standing on the wing and she was right outside the door and we just put the life vests on and jumped in the water. Within a couple minutes the plane was under the water,” recalled McMahon. Uemoto and McMahon made several distress calls before crashing. ? “I knew they were coming, so I wasn't too afraid yet. I was just like, ‘Okay, we're just going to float here’. We just kept talking to keep our nerves down, you know? I was like, ‘They're going to come find us, you know? We just survived a plane crash, that's the worst of it. We’ll just wait for Coast Guard to come’. And then it took longer than expected,” explained McMahon. The pair stayed by the wreckage -- sticking close to the site where they went down. Within two hours, they spotted the first of several planes and helicopters. “They were flying and they were circling and they flew over us -- and I'm not lying -- over ten times directly above us. And every time they flew over I waived my vest over my head and I was treading water and just trying to get their attention, but also at that point we were in white caps. The sun was -- it was around 5 PM -- the sun was low and the glare on the water,” said McMahon. “It's definitely a little heartbreaking. I would see David trying so hard to get their attention and I would just wave my hands and you would see them fly right over you and then you kind of follow them thinking, ‘Oh if they did see us, they'll turn. that's the indication that they did see us’. But then you see them still go straight towards Maui and it's just like -- they didn't see us. And it was definitely disappointing. Kind of heartbreaking. And to just do it over and over. You see it coming, you get excited, you get hopeful and then you see them go and you see them not turn around and it just -- as quickly as you came up. It just goes right back down,” explained Uemoto. “It was pretty hard for them to see anything. All we had was our heads above the water. Every time they flew over us, it was like, ‘Come on! Why don't you see us?’ And at a certain point I turned to Sydnie and said, ‘We can't just float here anymore, we got to swim’,” said McMahon. Surviving the plane crash was just the beginning. For McMahon and Uemoto, the real challenge still lied ahead. The pair could see the outline of the mountains of Hawai'i Island, but no distinct land features. We were super far out in the channel and we went down 25 miles northwest of Kona so we were deep, deep water,” described McMahon. The pilots were no longer strangers, but survivors together in the open ocean. “He did a really good job keeping me calm in the water. I was definitely scared and he was talking to me -- just like small talk like how we did in the plane. He was asking me questions about my family and then I would try to ask him back. It was definitely scary for me, but he did a wonderful job keeping me calm and keeping my head above water also,” said Uemoto. McMahon was a little more comfortable in the water. He had been on the swim team and was also a surfer – but he was at a disadvantage, just 30 minutes after crashed his life vest was no longer staying inflated. He says the tab to pull the CO2 cartridge fell off and left a hole. For the first eight hours they were at sea, McMahon was swimming without a floatation device. They kept moving. They weren’t talking a lot – so as not to exhaust themselves or get too much salt water in their mouth – but they routinely checked in. “After a while all the air in your life vests starts to go out and you have to re-blow it, so I just kept the tube in my mouth and every time I would exhale I would just exhale into the life vest -- just to keep it filled,” described Uemoto. After eight hours of backstrokes, breast strokes, free-style and floating, McMahon was starting to fatigue. “I knew if we didn’t figure something out, I was going to drown,” McMahon said. Uemoto managed to help him inflate one side of the vest that was still working. “It was the relief I needed. I was able to rest my neck on her ankles. I had her ankles like this around my neck and I was just on my back and I kicked and she was swimming,” described McMahon. But as the sun set and night fell, McMahon started to freeze. “I remember just asking Sydnie, ‘Sydnie, I need to stop. I'm freezing. I'm exhausted. I can't kick anymore’. And so she would stop every once in a while, just shortly but she was like, ‘We can't stop. We got to keep going’. I may have been the one strong in the beginning, but overnight I wouldn't have made it without her. There was a point where I was getting abdominal cramps and I couldn't kick anymore and I didn't have my hands and I was telling her that and she was just like, ‘Just hang on to my ankles’ and so that's what I did. And I tried to kick as much as I could. Probably wasn't doing much, but she tugged me for a good hour, hour and a half and I just laid there. Rested. Couldn't sleep. But just gathered my energy and it was enough of a break to where after that two hours, I had enough energy again to where I could help her kick and then we just kept going,” recalled McMahon. “I was just thinking, ‘Okay, if we do stop all this progress we've made is just going to push us back’. We were fighting the current the whole time and I just thought, ‘Okay, that's two steps forward and four steps back kind of deal’ and I just didn't want that. I was like, ‘No, we're going to keep going’,” described Uemoto. But Uemoto’s strength was tested as well. Overnight, she was attacked by jelly fish – stings that still scar her arms weeks later. “What I've heard from some people after all of this is that jelly fish protect you from other predators. And they were like, ‘Yeah, the jelly fish probably kept the sharks and other things away’. So I was like, ‘Okay, I'll take a jelly fish sting over a shark bite’,” said Uemoto laughing. Turns out a shark wasn’t too far off. As the pair slowly and steadily made their way to shore, they realized they weren’t alone. “There was these little black fish that followed us in for awhile and so I was just watching it. Cute little black fish following us. And then all of a sudden, they were gone and I didn't even look for it -- but it just caught my eye. Right in front of me, probably 6 to 10 feet down. It was just a big black shadow -- like six to seven feet and immediately I knew it was a shark,” said McMahon as Uemoto chuckled next to him “I didn't say anything right away but she could tell from my eyes,” said McMahon. “My heart starting beating again and I was freaking out. I was like, ‘Should I swim faster? What should we do?’ And we're so far from land,” said Uemoto. “Yeah, we're a good ways out. I was telling her, ‘Just stay calm, you know? Don't splash. Try to keep your heart rate down. Just keep swimming like it's not there’, and so that's what we did,” explained McMahon. “It never got real close to us, but it was circling us for a good 10 to 15 minutes. We're on his radar. He's looking for us. He's either going to wait for us to get real weak or he's just – I don't know what he's doing. As he would go behind us I would turn and then I would have my feet ready if he came close,” said McMahon. “I asked him -- I said, ‘So what are you going to do if it does?’ And he's like, ‘I'm going to look it in the eye’, and that's all he said. And I was thinking in my head, ‘Okay, I don't know what that does, but whatever. Okay David, you look him in the eye. I'm going to keep swimming’,” said Uemoto laughing hard. The shark eventually left the pair alone, and they kept swimming. The sun set and rose as they made their way toward shore. “We were making all these plans, you know? We were like, ‘Okay, David. We're going to hit that beach by noon. We're going to go get lunch. Have some water. Call our families’. And then when we thought it was like 11 -- we were like, ‘Okay, we'll make it by dinner, you know? We're not staying the night in the ocean. We're not doing that again’,” said Uemoto. Several planes and helicopters passed over them that morning searching for the pair, but none seemed to see them – even after the pilots took their life vests off and started floating on them like boogie boards instead in hopes that their bodies above water would look like bigger targets. Uemoto and McMahon say they were convinced they’d have to rescue themselves and just kept swimming – refusing to give up. 21 hours after they crashed, a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter finally spotted them. “He turned to look at it and he said, ‘This is it, Syd. This is the one God sent for us,’ and I looked and it was a black dot and this is what amazes me because it was a black dot – I don't know how he knows this and I said, ‘Okay, David. Well, I'm going to just keep swimming’, It's that high and low again. And I could hear it coming closer and I would look and I could see it was orange and I could tell -- oh my God, it's coming right for us. And at that point we stopped and we waved and we waved and waved and waved and we watched it and it just made its circle and we knew they saw us,” said Uemoto. “All the other times they flew over us I didn't say anything like that. I was just trying to get its attention, but before this one was even close I just knew -- that's our ride home. And it was. I don't know how I knew it. I can't explain it. It was just that feeling,” said McMahon. “I cried and he hugged me and I said, ‘Thank you, David. Thank you so much’,” said Uemoto. “I broke down at first and then I was just so happy to see them -- just knowing that we're going to get rescued,” said McMahon. “The rescue diver came down and said, ‘You don't know how happy I am to see you guys. I saw you in the paper this morning’ -- pointing at me. And I said, ‘You don't know how happy we are to see you!’” explained McMahon and Uemoto together. Uemoto and McMahon say they had no idea how many people were looking for them until they were rescued. “It was just heartwarming how many people put in their time and effort to come look for David and I. I was just thinking, ‘We're just two civilian pilots. We just went to go have fun’. And all the support and prayers and thoughts – it was amazing,” said Uemoto. “It was my will to live. I just knew that that was not my time. I was too young. We survived the plane crash. We survived the night in the ocean. We can not go down before we get rescued here -- even if we had to save ourselves,” said Uemoto. “We both knew we weren't -- it wasn't our time. I think that was the biggest role. We just both knew we were going to go back and just be a family,” explained McMahon. “People go, 'You didn't get tired during the night?' And I said, 'No' I truly believe it. It was everybody praying that just kept us going. And you know, they're that comfort -- that sense of comfort I had at night with not being as scared as I thought would be. I definitely thought it was the prayers and thoughts,” said Uemoto. “Yeah, you’d think you'd be the most scared at night, but we actually were -- I felt my most comfort at night. It was calm and comforting at night and it just had to be from everybody thinking about us,” said McMahon. Copyright 2016 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.

– David McMahon says he wasn't terribly afraid in the first minutes after the two-engine plane he had been flying crashed in Hawaiian waters en route from Oahu to the Big Island. After all, the 26-year-old tells Hawaii News Now of the July 13 accident, he and the plane's co-pilot, 23-year-old Sydnie Uemoto, had survived the crash and had called for assistance before they bailed out of the plane. Help would soon arrive, he thought. But what the pair ended up going through in the ocean soon brought his fears to the forefront, notes the Guardian, with a 21-hour ordeal that included McMahon's life vest getting punctured (meaning he had to tread water and swim), jellyfish stings, and being circled by a shark as rescue choppers and search planes passed them by, unable to see them due to the waves and sun glare even though they flew over the two at least 10 times. And it was a long, cold night in the water for the pair, who barely knew each other before their flight. They each credit the other with their survival—Uemoto says McMahon kept her calm, while McMahon says it was Uemoto who encouraged him to keep going when, in the middle of the night, he was freezing, plagued by cramps, and ready to give up. "Just hang on to my ankles," she told him, which he did while she kept them both afloat for more than an hour. The next morning, a new round of rescuers flew overhead, and this time a US Coast Guard helicopter spotted them. "It wasn't our time," McMahon now says. "We just both knew we were going to go back and just be a family." Both tell KHON2—which notes they were treated for minor injuries, as well as hypothermia and dehydration—that they plan to keep piloting for Mokulele Airlines.

'Hasa Diga Eebowai" is the hit number in Broadway's hit musical "The Book of Mormon," which won nine Tony awards last year. What does the phrase mean? I can't tell you, because it's unprintable in a family newspaper. On the other hand, if you can afford to shell out several hundred bucks for a seat, then you can watch a Mormon missionary get his holy book stuffed—well, I can't tell you about that, either. Let's just say it has New York City audiences roaring with laughter. Related Video Why is it OK to mock one religion but not another? Columnist Bret Stephens joins Opinion Journal. The "Book of Mormon"—a performance of which Hillary Clinton attended last year, without registering a complaint—comes to mind as the administration falls over itself denouncing "Innocence of Muslims." This is a film that may or may not exist; whose makers are likely not who they say they are; whose actors claim to have known neither the plot nor purpose of the film; and which has never been seen by any member of the public except as a video clip on the Internet. No matter. The film, the administration says, is "hateful and offensive" (Susan Rice), "reprehensible and disgusting" (Jay Carney) and, in a twist, "disgusting and reprehensible" (Hillary Clinton). Mr. Carney, the White House spokesman, also lays sole blame on the film for inciting the riots that have swept the Muslim world and claimed the lives of Ambassador Chris Stevens and three of his staff in Libya. So let's get this straight: In the consensus view of modern American liberalism, it is hilarious to mock Mormons and Mormonism but outrageous to mock Muslims and Islam. Why? Maybe it's because nobody has ever been harmed, much less killed, making fun of Mormons. Here's what else we learned this week about the emerging liberal consensus: That it's okay to denounce a movie you haven't seen, which is like trashing a book you haven't read. That it's okay to give perp-walk treatment to the alleged—and no doubt terrified—maker of the film on legally flimsy and politically motivated grounds of parole violation. That it's okay for the federal government publicly to call on Google to pull the video clip from YouTube in an attempt to mollify rampaging Islamists. That it's okay to concede the fundamentalist premise that religious belief ought to be entitled to the highest possible degree of social deference—except when Mormons and sundry Christian rubes are concerned. Enlarge Image Close Associated Press/Boneau/Bryan-Brown 'The Book of Mormon' performed at New York's Eugene O'Neill Theatre And, finally, this: That the most "progressive" administration in recent U.S. history will make no principled defense of free speech to a Muslim world that could stand hearing such a defense. After the debut of "The Book of Mormon" musical, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints responded with this statement: "The production may attempt to entertain audiences for an evening but the Book of Mormon as a volume of scripture will change people's lives forever by bringing them closer to Christ." That was it. The People's Front for the Liberation of Provo will not be gunning for a theater near you. Is it asking too much of religious and political leaders in Muslim communities to adopt a similar attitude? It needn't be. A principled defense of free speech could start by quoting the Quran: "And it has already come down to you in the Book that when you hear the verses of Allah [recited], they are denied [by them] and ridiculed; so do not sit with them until they enter into another conversation." In this light, the true test of religious conviction is indifference, not susceptibility, to mockery. The defense could add that a great religion surely cannot be goaded into frenetic mob violence on the slimmest provocation. Yet to watch the images coming out of Benghazi, Cairo, Tunis and Sana'a is to witness some significant portion of a civilization being transformed into Travis Bickle, the character Robert De Niro made unforgettable in Taxi Driver. "You talkin' to me?" A defense would also point out that an Islamic world that insists on a measure of religious respect needs also to offer that respect in turn. When Sheikh Yusuf Qaradawi—the closest thing Sunni Islam has to a pope—praises Hitler for exacting "divine punishment" on the Jews, that respect isn't exactly apparent. Nor has it been especially apparent in the waves of Islamist-instigated pogroms that have swept Egypt's Coptic community in recent years. Finally, it need be said that the whole purpose of free speech is to protect unpopular, heretical, vulgar and stupid views. So far, the Obama administration's approach to free speech is that it's fine so long as it's cheap and exacts no political price. This is free speech as pizza. President Obama came to office promising that he would start a new conversation with the Muslim world, one that lectured less and listened more. After nearly four years of listening, we can now hear more clearly where the U.S. stands in the estimation of that world: equally despised but considerably less feared. Just imagine what four more years of instinctive deference will do. On the bright side, dear liberals, you'll still be able to mock Mormons. They tend not to punch back, which is part of what makes so many of them so successful in life. Write to bstephens@wsj.com A version of this article appeared September 18, 2012, on page A15 in the U.S. edition of The Wall Street Journal, with the headline: Muslims, Mormons and Liberals. ||||| 'Hasa Diga Eebowai" is the hit number in Broadway's hit musical "The Book of Mormon," which won nine Tony awards last year. What does the phrase mean? I can't tell you, because it's unprintable in a family newspaper. On the other hand, if you can afford to shell out several hundred bucks for a seat, then you can watch a Mormon missionary get his holy book stuffed—well, I can't tell you about that, either. Let's just say it has New York City audiences roaring with laughter. Related Video Why is it OK to mock one religion but not another? Columnist Bret Stephens joins Opinion Journal. The "Book of Mormon"—a performance of which Hillary Clinton attended last year, without registering a complaint—comes to mind as the administration falls over itself denouncing "Innocence of Muslims." This is a film that may or may not exist; whose makers are likely not who they say they are; whose actors claim to have known neither the plot nor purpose of the film; and which has never been seen by any member of the public except as a video clip on the Internet. No matter. The film, the administration says, is "hateful and offensive" (Susan Rice), "reprehensible and disgusting" (Jay Carney) and, in a twist, "disgusting and reprehensible" (Hillary Clinton). Mr. Carney, the White House spokesman, also lays sole blame on the film for inciting the riots that have swept the Muslim world and claimed the lives of Ambassador Chris Stevens and three of his staff in Libya. So let's get this straight: In the consensus view of modern American liberalism, it is hilarious to mock Mormons and Mormonism but outrageous to mock Muslims and Islam. Why? Maybe it's because nobody has ever been harmed, much less killed, making fun of Mormons. Here's what else we learned this week about the emerging liberal consensus: That it's okay to denounce a movie you haven't seen, which is like trashing a book you haven't read. That it's okay to give perp-walk treatment to the alleged—and no doubt terrified—maker of the film on legally flimsy and politically motivated grounds of parole violation. That it's okay for the federal government publicly to call on Google to pull the video clip from YouTube in an attempt to mollify rampaging Islamists. That it's okay to concede the fundamentalist premise that religious belief ought to be entitled to the highest possible degree of social deference—except when Mormons and sundry Christian rubes are concerned. Enlarge Image Close Associated Press/Boneau/Bryan-Brown 'The Book of Mormon' performed at New York's Eugene O'Neill Theatre And, finally, this: That the most "progressive" administration in recent U.S. history will make no principled defense of free speech to a Muslim world that could stand hearing such a defense. After the debut of "The Book of Mormon" musical, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints responded with this statement: "The production may attempt to entertain audiences for an evening but the Book of Mormon as a volume of scripture will change people's lives forever by bringing them closer to Christ." That was it. The People's Front for the Liberation of Provo will not be gunning for a theater near you. Is it asking too much of religious and political leaders in Muslim communities to adopt a similar attitude? It needn't be. A principled defense of free speech could start by quoting the Quran: "And it has already come down to you in the Book that when you hear the verses of Allah [recited], they are denied [by them] and ridiculed; so do not sit with them until they enter into another conversation." In this light, the true test of religious conviction is indifference, not susceptibility, to mockery. The defense could add that a great religion surely cannot be goaded into frenetic mob violence on the slimmest provocation. Yet to watch the images coming out of Benghazi, Cairo, Tunis and Sana'a is to witness some significant portion of a civilization being transformed into Travis Bickle, the character Robert De Niro made unforgettable in Taxi Driver. "You talkin' to me?" A defense would also point out that an Islamic world that insists on a measure of religious respect needs also to offer that respect in turn. When Sheikh Yusuf Qaradawi—the closest thing Sunni Islam has to a pope—praises Hitler for exacting "divine punishment" on the Jews, that respect isn't exactly apparent. Nor has it been especially apparent in the waves of Islamist-instigated pogroms that have swept Egypt's Coptic community in recent years. Finally, it need be said that the whole purpose of free speech is to protect unpopular, heretical, vulgar and stupid views. So far, the Obama administration's approach to free speech is that it's fine so long as it's cheap and exacts no political price. This is free speech as pizza. President Obama came to office promising that he would start a new conversation with the Muslim world, one that lectured less and listened more. After nearly four years of listening, we can now hear more clearly where the U.S. stands in the estimation of that world: equally despised but considerably less feared. Just imagine what four more years of instinctive deference will do. On the bright side, dear liberals, you'll still be able to mock Mormons. They tend not to punch back, which is part of what makes so many of them so successful in life. Write to bstephens@wsj.com

– Just last year, Hillary Clinton attended a performance of the Book of Mormon in New York, and said not one peep in protest. But now she and the Obama administration are bending over backward to denounce Innocence of Muslims, which Clinton herself deemed "disgusting and reprehensible." "So let's get this straight," writes Bret Stephens of the Wall Street Journal. "In the consensus view of modern American liberalism it is hilarious to mock Mormons … but outrageous to mock Muslims." "Why? Maybe it's because nobody has ever been harmed, much less killed, making fun of Mormons," Stephens muses. Liberals also seem comfortable bashing a movie they haven't seen, and won't say a word in defense of freedom of speech. Which is a shame, because "a principled defense of free speech could start by quoting the Quran: 'When you hear the verses of Allah, and they are denied and ridiculed; so do not sit with them until they enter into another conversation.'" Click for Stephens' full column.

Comments are filtered for language and registration is required. The Times makes no guarantee of comments' factual accuracy. Readers may report inappropriate comments by clicking the Report Abuse link next to a comment. Here are the full legal terms you agree to by using this comment form. ||||| Sen. Ben Nelson, D-Neb., says he wouldn't serve on the debt "super committee" if asked. (Credit: CBS) Updated at 4:10 p.m ET Now that Congress has passed a bill to raise the debt limit and address the deficit, leaders have two weeks to choose delegates to a new "super committee" that will recommend further deficit and debt reduction ideas. At least one lawmaker has taken himself out of the running for the 12-member committee, while other congressmen mull over who'd be a good fit for the "super" group. Congressional leaders will choose three House Democrats, three Senate Democrats, three House Republicans and three Senate Republicans. They'll have to consider which members could survive the political liability that comes with making hard decisions ahead of the 2012 elections. They'll also have to decide whether to choose members that are typically loyal to party ideology or are more interested in compromise. Once the group is selected, they have until Thanksgiving to draft a plan to create $1.2 trillion in savings. Seven of the 12 members would have to approve the plan to send it to Congress. The full Congress can then either approve the plan or allow across-the-board cuts to security and entitlement programs to kick in. CBSNews.com special report: America's debt battle Sen. Ben Nelson, D-Neb., one of the senators who voted against the debt limit package Tuesday, said this morning he wouldn't serve on the super committee if asked, the Hill reports. "They're not going to [ask], and if I voted for it and they asked me to, I still wouldn't serve on it," Nelson said on the Nebraska radio show KLIN News Talk. The senator predicted the committee will get hung up in partisan gridlock and suggested that creating such a committee was the wrong approach to policy making. "I don't think we can take politics out of every difficult decision," he said. "I don't like to cede away or give away my responsibility, and certainly I don't like to authorize a group of my colleagues to do what I was sent to Washington to do." Two other senators, Republican Sen. Saxby Chambliss of Georgia and Democratic Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, expressed their skepticism about the new super committee on Tuesday to CBS Evening News anchor and managing editor Scott Pelley. "I think it's going to be very difficult for this select committee to come up with any resolution, any meaningful resolution," Chambliss said. Added Warner, "I'm not sure the committee is going to get the job done." (embed the video of the interview) Both Chambliss and Warner were part of a group of six bipartisan senators who earlier this year put forward their own ideas for deficit reduction. So far, congressional leaders have indicated there may be at least some partisan politics at play when it comes to picking the super committee. House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi said Tuesday that the House Democratic representation in the super committee will protect entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare. "I know that whoever's at that table will be someone who will fight to protect those benefits," she said. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, meanwhile, reassured conservatives on Tuesday that there'd be no litmus test for appointees to the committee. McConnell clarified that after the conservative magazine the Weekly Standard reported that McConnell would not appoint members who voted against the debt deal on Tuesday. "There is no vote position requirement to serve on the committee," a McConnell spokesman responded, adding that the Republican leader "will have serious discussions with all those who are interested in serving prior to making any appointments." For what it's worth, politicians and pundits without any say in the final decision are suggesting candidates for the super committee. Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona said on Fox News Tuesday that Republican Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio would be a good candidate. Additionally, Washington Post columnist Ruth Marcus says that Rep. Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona, who is recovering from being shot in the head, would make a good honorary chair of the group, to remind lawmakers the importance of transcending partisan bickering. In spite of the skepticism of some members, both McConnell and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid have expressed optimism that the super committee will succeed. Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner also expressed optimism in a Washington Post op-ed published Wednesday morning. The threat of across-the-board cuts should Congress fail to pass the committee's plan "creates a strong incentive to compromise," Geithner wrote. He added, "Beneath all the bluster, the prospects for compromise on broader and deeper reforms are better than they have been in years." Regardless of who sits on the committee, they are sure to feel intense pressure from lobbyists, Politico reports. Several lobbyists told Politico they expect to see a full-court press of Congress as it weighs spending cuts and revenue increases. Update: In an interview with the Wall Street Journal Wednesday, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor said there's been quite a bit of interest in the committee. "The speaker is the one who makes the selection, and I have gotten a lot of calls and emails from members who want to serve and want to participate in solving the problem," he said. History Offers Hope to Bulls Now That Debt Ceiling Mess Is Over What the Debt Deal Means for Jobs and the Economy

– Legislators aren't exactly jumping to volunteer for the 12-man "super committee" created by the debt ceiling deal, which promises to be a thankless and heavily lobbied job, the LA Times reports. “I'm not that much of a glutton for punishment,” says Jon Kyl. “This is going to take an odd kind of person.” Ben Nelson tells CBS he's not interested either, and Susan Collins says she’s “not a fan of creating a new committee”—not that the compromise-prone Collins would even be asked. “It’s going to be junkyard types,” says one budget expert, adding that “They’ll want people who understand they’re not free agents,” ruling out the likes of Tom Coburn or Rand Paul. Lawmakers facing reelection in 2012 are also off the hook. Whoever’s picked will, however, benefit from unprecedented pressure (read: campaign donations) from lobbyists. “The power of the entire Congress is being placed in the hand of just 12 members,” says one media consultant. “You’re going to see checks and requests for meetings flying furiously.”

WASHINGTON — The Senate easily passed legislation Thursday that would impose additional sanctions against Russia and limit the president's power to lift them in the future. The Senate passed the bill, which also includes additional sanctions on Iran, by an overwhelming 98-2 vote with Sens. Rand Paul, R-Ky. and Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. voting against it. The measure will now go to the House of Representatives where the path forward is not clear. "The speaker was a vocal proponent of the last round of sanctions and believes we must do more to hold Russia accountable," said AshLee Strong, a spokesperson for House Speaker Paul Ryan. "The Foreign Affairs Committee is reviewing the details in this latest sanctions package being voted on in the Senate, and after that we will determine a path ahead in the House." If it passes the House, President Donald Trump would have to either sign or veto a bill that the White House has had little response to so far. White House Principle Deputy Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the administration remains "committed" to the existing sanctions against Russia, calling them the "best tool" for compelling Russia to honor its commitments to resolve the conflict in Ukraine. Asked if they felt handcuffed by the Senate actions, Sanders demurred, saying that because the process was still ongoing, there was no final product to weigh in on. The sanctions are in response to a trio of Russian actions, including their interference in the 2016 election, engagement in Syria and invasion of Crimea. Trump has been reluctant to address Russian’s involvement and has repeatedly praised the country and President Vladimir Putin. The addition of Russian sanctions to the bill was a rebuke to the president because it would prohibit the president from being able to lift them without Congressional approval. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson had encouraged the Senate to hold off on more sanctions, saying that he’d like more time to try and work diplomacy with Russia. “I would hope to allow the diplomatic efforts to attempt to make some progress,” Tillerson said earlier this week. “If we cannot make some progress, and I have told others in the Senate, I have had conversations with them, I may very well be coming to you and saying the time has come now to do this in order to motivate some movement on their part.” But the Senate moved forward anyway. Related: Senate Strikes Deal on Russia Sanctions Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and co-author of the bill, said he’s been updating the State Department. “We’ve been interacting with the state department and, again, we’ll see what happens,” he told reporters. The sanctions would codify existing economic restrictions and place new ones in an effort to economically harm specific individuals and Russia's economy. Sanctions would be placed on Russians who violate human rights, supply weapons to the Bashar al-Asad regime in Syria or who are involved in the Russian defense and intelligence industry. It also places additional sanctions on specific industries, including the country's mining, shipping and railway industry. Sanders said he voted against the larger bill because he said sanctioning Iran could harm the Iranian nuclear deal. "I am strongly supportive of the sanctions on Russia included in this bill," Sanders said in a statement. "But I believe that these new sanctions could endanger the very important nuclear agreement that was signed between the United States, its partners and Iran in 2015." In another challenge to Trump’s foreign policy, the measure also “reaffirm the strategic importance” of NATO. While Trump recently said he, too, supports NATO, he failed to do so at a NATO meeting in Brussels, worrying the alliance’s supporters and members. ||||| Story highlights The Senate overwhelmingly approved the bill 98-2 The bill hits Russia with new sanctions as punishment for its interference in US elections (CNN) The Senate was nearly unanimous on Thursday passing a bill that would slap Russia with new sanctions and give Congress the power to review any White House attempts to roll them back. The Senate approved the bill 98-2, with Republican Rand Paul of Kentucky and Independent Bernie Sanders of Vermont voting against the measure. The bill, which includes both Russian and Iranian sanctions, now heads to the House, which still needs to pass it before it goes to President Donald Trump's desk. The measure is widely seen as a rebuke to Trump, as it hits Russia with new sanctions to punish Moscow for its interference in US elections, as well as over Moscow's aggression in Ukraine and Syria. The bill establishes a review process for Congress to have a say whether the White House eases Russia sanctions. It also establishes new sanctions against those conducting cyberattacks on behalf of the Russian government as well as supplying arms to Syrian President Bashar Assad, and it allows for sanctions to hit Russia's mining, metals, shipping and railways sectors. "We moved to make the Congress, not the President, the final arbiter of sanctions relief when necessary," Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said. "Any idea of the President that he can lift sanctions on his own for whatever reason are dashed by this legislation." Read More ||||| The Senate on Thursday overwhelmingly passed legislation imposing new sanctions on Russia and giving Congress the ability to block President Trump from lifting current penalties. Senators voted 98-2 on the bill, which also includes new sanctions targeting Iran’s ballistic missile development, support for terrorism, transfer of weapons and human rights violations. Sens. Rand Paul Randal (Rand) Howard PaulRNC spokeswoman: ObamaCare repeal possible if GOP keeps House The Hill's Morning Report — Sponsored by Better Medicare Alliance — Trump seeks `home run’ candidate to succeed Justice Kennedy Paul says police arrested man who threatened to kill him and his family MORE (R-Ky.) and Bernie Sanders Bernard (Bernie) SandersOvernight Energy: Pruitt out as EPA chief | Former aides describe culture of fear | GOP lawmakers relieved by Pruitt's exit Election Countdown: Calls to abolish ICE test Dem candidates | First round of House GOP 'Young Guns' | How Tester is handling Trump's Montana visit | Dem candidate won't back Schumer as leader | Super PACs ramp up Missouri ad buys Bernie Sanders: Pruitt was 'the worst EPA administrator in the history of the agency' MORE (I-Vt.) voted against the measure. The legislation marks the Senate’s most significant check on the Trump administration’s foreign policy, which has flirted with lifting sanctions in an bid to entice Moscow into an agreement. The bill now heads to the House, where it faces an uncertain future amid signs of pushback from the administration. ADVERTISEMENT Secretary of State Rex Tillerson appeared to use a House Foreign Affairs hearing this week to telegraph concerns about the bill, warning lawmakers against undercutting “constructive dialogue” with Russia. "I would urge Congress to ensure any legislation allows the president to have the flexibility to adjust sanctions," he told lawmakers. Those comments appeared to have little impact in the Senate, where the legislation was expected to get wide bipartisan support after GOP Sens. Mike Lee Michael (Mike) Shumway LeePence met with several Supreme Court hopefuls: report The Hill's Morning Report — Sponsored by Better Medicare Alliance — Trump seeks `home run’ candidate to succeed Justice Kennedy Matt Schlapp: With Brett Kavanaugh, America will have a bold, brilliant Supreme Court justice MORE (Utah) and Rand Paul (Ky.) were the only lawmakers to oppose including the Russia sanctions deal in the legislation. The overwhelming support for new Russia sanctions comes as four congressional committees are investigating Russia’s election interference, including potential ties between the Trump campaign and Moscow. Special counsel Robert Mueller, who oversees the FBI’s probe, is also looking into whether Trump tried to obstruct justice, according to The Washington Post. Republicans for months held off on backing tougher Russia penalties giving the administration space to try to improve relations with the Kremlin despite bipartisan skepticism in Congress. But GOP senators pointed to lingering frustration over election interference and few signs of progress in Syria, where Moscow supports President Bashar Assad, as factors in their push to pass new penalties. “The United States needs to send a strong message to Vladimir Putin and any other aggressor that we will not tolerate attacks on our democracy. There’s no greater threat to our freedoms than attacks on our ability to choose our own leaders free from foreign interference,” said Sen. John McCain John Sidney McCainTrump bashes 'liberal Democrat Jon Tester' in Montana: He says one thing and does another GOP Senate candidate’s husband spreads conspiracy theories online: report RNC spokeswoman: ObamaCare repeal possible if GOP keeps House MORE (R-Ariz.). The Russia legislation would impose new sanctions on any individuals tied to "malicious cyber activity," supply weapons to Assad's government or are tied to Russia's intelligence and defense sectors. It would also give Congress 30 days — or 60 days around the August recess — to review and potentially block Trump from lifting or relaxing Russia sanctions, codify the sanctions on Russia imposed by executive order by the Obama administration, and allow the Trump administration to impose new sanctions on sectors of the Russian economy. Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) added that the restrictions on lifting sanctions are more closely tied to lawmakers reasserting their authority on sanctions that Congress implements than in imposing a check on Trump. “This is not a hostile amendment. This is an amendment saying we've learned our lesson as a body. We should actually apply this. This is not a partisan issue. Whether it is a Republican or Democrat president is irrelevant in this issue. If Congress creates sanctions, Congress should not release the authority to make decisions on and off,” he said from the Senate floor. Speaker Paul Ryan Paul Davis RyanFourth Ohio State wrestler claims Jordan knew about sexual abuse Election Countdown: Calls to abolish ICE test Dem candidates | First round of House GOP 'Young Guns' | How Tester is handling Trump's Montana visit | Dem candidate won't back Schumer as leader | Super PACs ramp up Missouri ad buys Ohio State sex scandal complicates Jordan’s possible Speaker bid MORE (R-Wis.) hasn’t publicly commented on the bill, but has previously voiced support for stronger sanctions and warned Trump earlier this year against lifting penalties against Moscow. Sen. Bob Corker Robert (Bob) Phillips CorkerAmerica stands to lose as China places bets on developing world The Hill's Morning Report — Sponsored by Better Medicare Alliance — Trump girds for battle as Supreme Court announcement nears Overnight Defense: Pompeo to visit Pyongyang July 5 | White House says US, Russia 'agree to disagree' on Crimea | Pentagon denies Germany troop audit tied to Trump MORE (R-Tenn.), the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, also argued this week that the House has shown an appetite for passing new Russia sanctions bill. The lower chamber passed legislation late last year that would have targeted Russia and Iran for their backing of Assad. Thursday’s vote capped off roughly a week and a half of negotiations over attaching new Russia penalties to the Iran sanctions bill, which already had brought bipartisan support. A swath of lawmakers—including leadership, Corker, Sen. Mike Crapo Michael (Mike) Dean CrapoGOP senators introduce bill to prevent family separations at border All the times Horowitz contradicted Wray — but nobody seemed to notice Senate Dems want watchdog to probe if SEC official tried to pressure bank on gun policies MORE (R-Idaho), top Democrats on the Senate Banking and Foreign Relations committees and Sens. Lindsey Graham Lindsey Olin GrahamOvernight Energy: Pruitt out as EPA chief | Former aides describe culture of fear | GOP lawmakers relieved by Pruitt's exit Trump: 'No final straw' on Pruitt GOP lawmakers relieved with Pruitt’s departure MORE (R-S.C.), John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Jeanne Shaheen Cynthia (Jeanne) Jeanne ShaheenFemale lawmakers, candidates must be the voice for women worldwide GOP lawmakers plan official visit to Russia later this week Dem senator: If Nielsen doesn't reunite families, 'she should resign' MORE (D-N.H.)—were locked in negotiations for roughly a week trying to hash out an agreement. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer Charles (Chuck) Ellis SchumerPelosi slams Trump's 'despicable attacks' on Waters at rally Trump bashes 'liberal Democrat Jon Tester' in Montana: He says one thing and does another Election Countdown: Calls to abolish ICE test Dem candidates | First round of House GOP 'Young Guns' | How Tester is handling Trump's Montana visit | Dem candidate won't back Schumer as leader | Super PACs ramp up Missouri ad buys MORE (D-N.Y.) praised the legislation ahead of the vote, noting it would send a signal to Russian President Vladimir Putin and show lawmakers can still work together. “The final result is a very good one for our country, because… the U.S. Senate said to Mr. Putin in no uncertain terms, that when he violates the international norms and interferes with our election, he will not escape reproach,” Schumer said. In addition to passing new Russia penalties, the Senate also voted to include a bipartisan amendment on Thursday morning that stressed the Senate’s support for NATO and the Article Five requirement that member states defend each other if one of them is attacked. The Trump administration's warmer tone toward Moscow and skepticism of NATO has sparked bipartisan backlash on Capitol Hill, where lawmakers are deeply skeptical of Putin. Trump omitted committing the NATO’s “Article Five” during a meeting in Brussels late last month, before pledging to support the requirement during a press conference last week with Romanian President Klaus Iohannis. The administration has gone back-and-forth over lifting sanctions on Russia. Gary Cohn, director of the White House National Economic Council, said last month that the administration wouldn't weaken Russia sanctions, adding that, "If anything, we could probably look to get tougher." Cohn's comments were a clarification of earlier remarks in which he said the president didn't have a position on Russia sanctions. The administration has also sparked concern over reports that it could hand back two diplomatic compounds in the United States to Russia.

– Both sides of the aisle came together in the Senate on Thursday to overwhelmingly pass legislation that puts new sanctions on Russia while limiting President Trump's ability to remove them, the Hill reports. "Any idea of the president that he can lift sanctions on his own for whatever reason are dashed by this legislation," CNN quotes Sen. Chuck Schumer as saying. The legislation, which was passed by a 98-2 vote, seeks to punish Russia for its meddling in the US election and actions in Ukraine and Syria. NBC News reports the sanctions target Russian individuals who give weapons to the Assad regime, violate human rights, or are involved in the defense and intelligence industries. They also target Russia's shipping, mining, and railway industries. If the legislation passes the House, it would head to Trump for signing. The White House hasn't weighed in on the legislation but says it's "committed" to the existing Russian sanctions. The Trump administration had considered lifting Russian sanctions in the past, and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson opposed the new legislation, worrying it could hurt the US' ability to have a "constructive dialogue" with Russia. Regardless, GOP senators believe Trump would sign it, with Sen. Bob Corker saying: "Look, this bill is going to become law." The two dissenting votes were Sen. Rand Paul and Sen. Bernie Sanders. Sanders says he's worried the legislation, which also includes sanctions against Iran, could hurt the Iranian nuclear deal.

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The Republican presidential candidates are debating for the fourth time in the 2016 nomination contest, this time in Milwaukee, as they compete to narrow down the wide-open contest. Republican presidential candidates John Kasich, Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, Donald Trump, Ben Carson, Ted Cruz, Carly Fiorina and Rand Paul take the stage during Republican presidential debate at Milwaukee... (Associated Press) Republican presidential candidates John Kasich, Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, Donald Trump, Ben Carson, Ted Cruz, Carly Fiorina and Rand Paul take the stage during Republican presidential debate at Milwaukee... (Associated Press) Donald Trump, left, speaks as Ben Carson watches during Republican presidential debate at Milwaukee Theatre, Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2015, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) (Associated Press) Rand Paul speaks during Republican presidential debate at Milwaukee Theatre, Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2015, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) (Associated Press) Here are the latest developments (all times local): ___ 8:24 p.m. Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul says low interest rates are hurting poor families. Asked about rising income inequality during the main-stage Republican debate, Paul says the Federal Reserve is partially to blame by keeping interest rates low. He says that "destroys the value of currency." Paul also argues that income inequality is worse in cities and states with Democratic leaders, saying "if you want less income inequality, move to a city with a Republican mayor or a state with a Republican governor." ___ 8:20 p.m. Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush is attacking the Democrats' stewardship of the economy. Bush says: "Hillary Clinton has said that Barack Obama's policies get an 'A.' Really?" He adds at that one in 10 people aren't working or have given up looking for work. Bush says one in seven people live in poverty and one in five are on food stamps. Bush adds: "That is not an 'A.' It may be the best that Hillary Clinton can do, but it's not the best America can do." ___ 8:14 p.m. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz says he wants to reduce the number of federal regulators, who he says descend "like locusts" and hurt economic growth. Cruz is touting his plan for a 10 percent flat personal income tax and a 16 percent business tax during the fourth Republican presidential debate in Milwaukee. He calls his proposal "bold and simple." Cruz calls economic growth under President Barack Obama "a disaster" but says "it doesn't have to be." He says the economy can be turned around, adding, "We have done it before and with leadership we can do it again." ___ 8:12 p.m. Ohio Gov. John Kasich is opening the Republican debate by reminding voters he's the only acting executive on stage and telling them he's the only candidate who knows how to balance the federal budget. To get there again, he says he'd freeze discretionary spending and cut Medicare growth without eliminating benefits. He often points to his experience balancing the federal budget while in Congress in the 1990s. He says he "stepped on every toe" in Washington to get to a balanced budget. Kasich says it's a moral imperative for politicians to create an environment that promotes job creation and helps lift people out of low-wage jobs. ___ 8:10 p.m. Sen. Marco Rubio says he wants an America with more welders. During the main-stage Republican debate, Rubio says people are working hard, but the economy is not providing jobs that pay enough. The answer, he says, is to reform taxes, ease the way for businesses and make higher education more accessible, particularly for vocational training. Rubio says: "Welders make more money than philosophers. We need more welders and less philosophers." ___ 8:07 p.m. The two leaders in the race for the GOP nomination oppose raising the minimum wage. Billionaire developer Donald Trump says during the prime-time Republican debate that he opposes a $15 minimum wage, enacted Tuesday in his home state, New York. Trump says we can't raise the wage "if we are going to compete with the rest of the world." He says American wages are too high. Retired surgeon Ben Carson agrees. Carson says, "People need to be educated on the minimum wage." He says that every time it is increased, unemployment goes up. Carson says he appreciates having worked as a lab assistant early in life, and says the experience gave him more than was reflected in the wage. He says, "I am interested in people being able to enter the job market." ___ 8:05 p.m. The fourth prime-time GOP presidential debate is underway, with the first question, about minimum wage, going to billionaire Donald Trump. It's the first time fewer than 10 top candidates are sharing the debate stage. At center are the two leaders of the pack, Trump and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson. Arrayed around them are former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina, Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and Ohio Gov. John Kasich. The audience features prominent Republicans, including new House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin. ___ 7:20 p.m. Each of the four Republican candidates onstage is making a very different closing argument about why he is the best qualified candidate to be president. Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal says he's the only candidate in the crowded field with a record of cutting the size of government. Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum says he's the candidate who will fight for working families. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee says he'll never forget his humble upbringings and will re-energize belief in the American dream. And New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is making the case that he's the best positioned to defeat Hillary Clinton and unite the country. Those statements bring the undercard debate to a close. ___ 7:10 p.m. Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal says someone needs to go to prison over scandals at Veterans Affairs hospitals. He cited problems at the VA when asked during Tuesday's undercard Republican presidential debate how to restore a sense of pride in the military. He says all veterans should get the health care they want, no matter what hospital they want to go to. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee says the United States has broken its promises to veterans and "they'd sure appreciate a better paycheck." New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie says the best way to reconnect the American people with those in the military is to "give them a commander-in-chief who respects the military and everyone who wears the uniform." And former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum says President Barack Obama hasn't stood behind the troops. Santorum says Obama gets in and out of military conflicts "based on what the polls are saying." ___ 7:05 p.m. Chris Christie and Rick Santorum have a shared distaste for the Federal Reserve. The New Jersey governor and the former Pennsylvania senator both argued during the undercard Republican debate that federal interest rates have been kept low to support President Barack Obama. Christie says the Fed should be audited and "should stop playing politics." Santorum says low interest rates are "hurting seniors." Fellow candidate Donald Trump made similar claims recently. At the time, White House spokesman Josh Earnest insisted the Fed acts independently, saying the administration "goes to great lengths" to ensure the Fed can make decisions solely on the economy's interests and to prevent those decisions from being influenced or even tainted by politics. ___ 6:45 p.m. One thing the four Republican presidential candidates in the undercard debate can agree on is that none of them wants to name a Democrat in Washington they can work with. All four dodged the question during Tuesday's debate in Milwaukee. Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal declines to answer, saying it's a silly question. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee uses his time to praise veterans. Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum says the federal government needs to get out of the infrastructure business. And New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie says: "I'll tell you the thing that disturbs me the most about the Democratic Party is they're not standing behind our police officers in this country. They're allowing lawlessness." ___ 6:32 p.m. Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal has turned his attacks to New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. But Christie just wants to go negative on Hillary Rodham Clinton. An energized Jindal criticized Christie's record in New Jersey during the undercard Republican debate, arguing he had grown social programs like Medicaid. Jindal said he had the strongest conservative record on the stage, adding, "Records matter." During the exchange, Christie kept his focus on the Democratic front-runner. He said the Republicans need to field a candidate that can beat Clinton, noting that he has won as a conservative in a Democratic state. He also joked that while he gets called a lot of names in New Jersey, "liberal is not one of them." ___ 6:28 p.m. Chris Christie says if he's president, China will have no doubt the United States "means business," whether fighting cyber warfare or projecting military strength. Speaking about China's efforts to build islands in the South China Sea, Christie says, "the first thing I'll do with the Chinese is I'll fly Air Force One over those islands. They'll know we mean business." Christie, continuing to turn attacks toward Democratic front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton, says the Obama administration has a "weak and feckless" foreign policy toward China. He says he'd beef up the United States' ability to fend off cyberattacks. __ 6:25 p.m. Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum says Wisconsin workers should ask Republican presidential candidates opposed to the Export-Import Bank "why we're tying one hand behind their back and saying go out and compete." Santorum defended his opposition to the 2008 federal bailout for automakers when asked during Tuesday's fourth Republican candidates' debate whether he stood by that position. Santorum says "I'm a capitalist, not a corporatist." He says the auto industry and unions would have survived without Washington picking winners and losers. Santorum's defense of the Export-Import Bank comes after General Electric Co. announced in September it was shutting down a plant in Waukesha, not far from the site of Tuesday's debate in Milwaukee, and blamed Congress' refusal to fund the Export-Import Bank. Santorum referenced GE shedding jobs in the U.S., but did not reference the nearby plant facing closure. ___ 6:14 p.m. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has a message for his fellow Republicans on the debate stage: Stop the infighting — Hillary Clinton is the real enemy. And to voters, he says: "Hillary Clinton's coming for your wallet, everybody. Don't worry about Huckabee or Jindal, worry about her." Christie's jab at Clinton follows a back-and-forth between Bobby Jindal and Mike Huckabee over their records as governors. Jindal is accusing Huckabee of growing the size of Arkansas' government during his tenure. Christie's comments on the exchange are reminiscent of an earlier debate during which he called out Carly Fiorina and Donald Trump for an extended exchange over each other's records. Looking into the camera, he says: "If you think Mike Huckabee won't be the kind of president who will cut back spending, or Chris Christie, or John Kasich, wait till you see what Hillary Clinton will do to this country. She will drown us in debt. She is the real adversary tonight." ___ 6:20 p.m. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal are bumping heads on budgets. Jindal is declaring during the Republican undercard debate that "there's only one of us that has actually cut government spending and you're looking at him." But Huckabee is quick to push back. He is touting his own record and says, "it's just not accurate to say nobody else up here has ever cut." Jindal responds that spending and taxes went up under Huckabee's watch. ___ 6:10 p.m. Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal says the United States is "on the path to socialism." Jindal said Tuesday during the Republican undercard debate in Milwaukee that the most important question facing voters in the upcoming presidential election is whether people are willing to cut the size of the government to grow the economy. He says, "It's not enough just to beat Hillary Clinton, we have to change the direction of our country." He says under President Obama there is "record dependence" on welfare programs. Jindal is struggling to break through in the crowded Republican field, and has not been on the main stage in any of the four GOP debates. ___ 6:07 p.m. Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum says better job training for people coming out of high school is key to strengthening the manufacturing industry. Santorum says he visits a manufacturing company once a week and finds open jobs with no one to fill them. He says too many politicians, including his fellow Republicans, wrongly think every high school graduate needs to go on to college. He says, "we need to provide opportunities for them to go to work out of high school." ___ 6:06 p.m. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee is calling for more manufacturing in the United States. Huckabee says that if we can't "feed ourselves, fuel ourselves and fight for ourselves," there is no freedom. Huckabee continued his call to create a "Fair Tax" that would eliminate federal income and investment taxes and replace them with a 23 percent federal sales tax. He also says he would abolish the Internal Revenue Service. Huckabee was on the main stage in the previous Republican debates, but was bumped to the early event tonight due to low polling numbers. __ 6:05 p.m. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie says if he's elected president, he'll "fire a whole bunch of IRS agents." The line delivered Tuesday in response to the first question of the fourth Republican undercard debate drew applause from the audience in Milwaukee. Christie is trying to have a breakout night after being taken off the main stage. He competed with the frontrunners in the first three debates. Christie says he wants to make the tax code fairer by getting rid of all deductions except for home interest and charitable donations. He says his plan would make it so income taxes can be filed in 15 minutes. ___ 6:01 p.m. The first question of the undercard debate goes to New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. He is asked what concrete steps he would take to create jobs. He responds with a story about a woman who approached him in New Hampshire and said she is experiencing anxiety about paying her bills. Christie and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee were relegated to the undercard debate for the first time, because they failed to garner 2.5 percent in the four most recent national polls. Also onstage are Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum. Not on the stage at all, for the first time: South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham and former New York Gov. George Pataki, because they failed to get 1 percent support in any one of those four polls. ___ 4:44 p.m. GOP presidential candidate Ben Carson is trying to move on from scrutiny over his autobiography. Just ahead of the debate Tuesday, Carson's Twitter team posted a video filmed on his way to the venue in Milwaukee. In it, Carson says: "It really is not about me, it's about America. It's about what are we going to do for the kids, for the next generations. And I think if we start working together and stop allowing the purveyors of division to prevail, we're going to be just fine because we are the United States of America." Carson has generally avoided criticizing his rivals in previous debates. But his rivals have not been shy about taking shots at Carson. Billionaire developer Donald Trump has pointedly listed the questions about Carson's claims about what he has described as a violent past. Trump and Carson are the leaders in the wide-open contest for the Republican presidential nomination and will be standing next to each other at center stage Tuesday night. ___ 4:23 p.m. GOP presidential candidate Marco Rubio is getting debate night help from a new political group called "Baby Got PAC." That's a super PAC funded by John Jordan, a wealthy California winery owner, and named after a popular 1990s song by rapper Sir Mix-A-Lot. He and Rick Wilson, a Florida Republican admaker, put together a 60-second commercial that will air Tuesday on Fox News channels, including Fox Business News, which is co-hosting the GOP debate in Milwaukee. The spot compliments other Republican presidential hopefuls but promotes Rubio as the strongest potential opponent to Democratic frontrunner Hillary Rodham Clinton. The ad quotes media reports that Clinton supporters — including former President Bill Clinton — view the 44-year-old Florida senator as her toughest potential general election opponent in a field of 15 candidates. Jordan formed his own super PAC to spend money on the presidential race, and is putting up roughly $100,000 of his own money. He said other donors have already expressed interest in helping out, and he has several other ads already prepared. Super political action committees can take unlimited amounts of money from contributors but cannot coordinate with the candidates they seek to help. Asked about the PAC's name, Jordan says: "You have to be different to stand out. Why not have a little fun with it?" ||||| (CNN) Welcome to the CNN live blog, where we'll be bringing you all the best moments from the debate -- on the stage, on social media and behind the scenes. Your host for the evening is CNN political reporter Tal Kopan, who will also be bringing you insights from the whole CNN political team, both in Milwaukee and Washington, D.C. ||||| Most political reporters do their best to remain objective. But those covering the fourth Republican debate will be typing a highly partisan message onto their laptops. That is, at least, if they want to access the Internet. The Republican National Committee, which handles debate logistics for the party, made “StopHillary” the official Wi-Fi password at the Milwaukee Theatre in Wisconsin. The password was noted on Twitter by journalists including Benny Johnson, a reporter for the Virginia-based Independent Journal. The Republican National Committee’s account responded to Mr. Johnson’s post with the applause emoji. “Stop Hillary” has been a refrain of the committee since at least April, when it aired a 30-second attack ad accusing Hillary Rodham Clinton of being secretive, referring to her personal email account and Benghazi. ||||| “Debates need to focus on the issues, and that goal was accomplished tonight. Our candidates, not the moderators, were at the center of tonight’s debate, and they were all treated with fairness and respect," RNC Chairman Reince Priebus said. | Getty RNC hails 'well-run debate' It would appear that the Republican National Committee was more pleased with Tuesday's Fox Business/Wall Street Journal debate than the last go-around with CNBC. “Debates need to focus on the issues, and that goal was accomplished tonight. Our candidates, not the moderators, were at the center of tonight’s debate, and they were all treated with fairness and respect. Thanks to a well-run debate, the country was able to see our diverse field of talented and exceptionally qualified candidates exchange ideas for how to reinvigorate the economy and put Americans back to work," Chairman Reince Priebus said in a statement, hammering the Democratic Party and Hillary Clinton in particular. “One of the great things about our party is that we are able to have a dynamic exchange about which solutions will secure a prosperous future," the statement continues. "That doesn’t apply to Hillary Clinton and the Democrat field, who would rather continue the same old tired policies that have stalled economic growth during the Obama presidency. Americans want the country to change course. Our candidates offer that change, and Hillary Clinton and the Democrats only bring more of the same." In the spin room, Donald Trump repeatedly praised the proceedings and the moderators as "very elegant." "The moderators were terrific. They were very elegant. It was a very elegant evening," he told MSNBC. The Democratic National Committee blasted out its own response within minutes of the debate's conclusion, slamming Republicans for their economic proposals. “Sometimes I think that the Republican candidates forget it’s not just Republicans who are watching these debates. Each time they reveal their terrible positions and pander to their Tea Party base, they convince more voters that it is indeed the Democratic Party and our nominees who have their backs and will go to the mat for them to ensure the economy works for everyone," Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz said in a statement, adding that the party is looking forward to its own debate on Saturday night in Des Moines, Iowa.

– As the eight top GOP candidates looked to make an impression in Tuesday night's debate in Milwaukee, here's a look at some of their lines earning attention, via Politico, CNN, the New York Times, and the AP: Ben Carson: "Thank you for not asking what I said in the 10th grade. I appreciate that," he said when asked about the scrutiny of his life story. "I have no problem with being vetted; what I do have a problem with is being lied about." He then pivoted to say that while he told the truth, Hillary Clinton "lied" about Benghazi. Donald Trump: "We are a country of laws, we need borders, we will have a wall, the wall will be built," he said, praising a court ruling against President Obama's immigration plans. Later: "If Putin wants to go and knock the hell out of ISIS, I am all for it," he said, declaring that the US can't be the "policeman of the world." (He got much feistier in a spat with Kasich.) Jeb Bush: "Hillary Clinton has said that Barack Obama's policies get an A. Really?" he said, referring to the president's economic programs. "It may be the best that Hillary Clinton can do. But it's not the best that America can do." Later, rebutting Trump on his views about Russia and ISIS: "That's like a board game. That's like playing Monopoly, that's not how the world works." Marco Rubio: "Welders make more money than philosophers. We need more welders and less philosophers," he said, calling for more vocational training in the US. Later: "I've never met Vladimir Putin, but I know enough about him to know he's a gangster." Ted Cruz: "We're tired of being told it's anti-immigrant," he said of the media's characterization of Republican views on immigration. "It's offensive." He added that if "Republicans join Democrats as the party of amnesty, we will lose." At another point, he drew applause with the line, "You think defending this nation is expensive? Try not defending it." Bonus Cruz flub: "Five major agencies that I would eliminate: the IRS, the Department of Commerce, the Department of Energy, the Department of Commerce, and HUD." John Kasich: "I've done it twice, I'll do it thrice," he said of balancing the budget. Later, rebutting Cruz's statement that big banks should be allowed to fail: "When a bank is ready to go under, and depositors are ready to lose their life savings, you just don't say, ‘We believe in philosophical concerns.'" Carly Fiorina: "It is crony capitalism at its worst," she said of Obamacare. Later, playing off a remark that Trump made about meeting Putin, she said she, too, had met him: "Not in a green room for a show, but for a private meeting." Rand Paul: "Hey, Gerard, we might want to point out China's not part of this deal," to moderator Gerard Baker during a rant by Trump against China in regard to the TPP deal. At another point: "You can be strong without being involved in every civil war around the world."

PORT WASHINGTON, Wis. (AP) — Dustin Diamond, who played Screech on the 1990s TV show "Saved by the Bell," has been charged with stabbing a man at a Wisconsin bar. Diamond was charged Friday with felony second-degree recklessly endangering safety, disorderly conduct and carrying a concealed weapon. He appeared Friday afternoon in Ozaukee County court, where bail was set at $10,000. Port Washington police say they responded at 11:15 p.m. Thursday to a report of a stabbing at a bar. The criminal complaint says Diamond, who lives in Port Washington, told police he accidentally stabbed a man while defending his fiancee from two men harassing her. The victim was not seriously injured. His fiancee also faces a disorderly conduct charge. Diamond's agent declined comment Friday. No attorney was listed in court records. ||||| Dustin Diamond Screech Arrested For Allegedly Stabbing Man With a Switchblade 'Saved By the Bell' Star Dustin Diamond -- Screech Arrested For Allegedly Stabbing Man With a Switchblade EXCLUSIVE  a.k.a. Screech is behind bars ... after he was arrested in Wisconsin for allegedly stabbing a man with a switchblade -- TMZ has learned.The Port Washington Police Department says Diamond was arrested early Friday morning for possession of a switchblade, reckless endangerment and carrying a concealed weapon.Cops tell us Screech allegedly stabbed a guy after getting into an argument late Christmas evening that quickly escalated-- the bar owner says it was over pics they were taking of Diamond -- and then the actor bailed from the bar.According to court docs ... the victim suffered a 1/2 inch wound under his armpit and bled heavily -- but he didn't notice it had even happened until moments later.Officers located Dustin and his girlfriend in his car not long after ... and the knife was in his ride. Dustin's girlfriend was booked on a disorderly conduct charge.Cops tell us the victim suffered non-life threatening wounds ... and he's already home recovering.Diamond is claiming self defense ... saying he and his girlfriend were attacked in the bar. The actor appeared in court Friday morning and his bail was set at $10K.We got video moments before the stabbing ... and you can clearly hear people freaking out.

– The misadventures of Screech don't take a break during the holidays. Dustin Diamond, known for playing the geeky character on "Saved by the Bell," was arrested early this morning after a man was stabbed in a Wisconsin bar with a switchblade, the AP reports. Diamond was charged with felony reckless endangerment, disorderly conduct, and carrying a concealed weapon, though he insists the stabbing happened accidentally as he was defending his girlfriend, who was supposedly being harassed by two men (and whose own disorderly conduct charges may be forthcoming). The Port Washington Police Department says that officers responded to an 11:15pm call about a stabbing at the Grand Avenue Saloon, but by the time they got there, the suspect and his female companion had left the scene, fox6now.com reports. Police tracked down the white SUV said to have fled the bar and took Diamond and his 27-year-old girlfriend into custody, as well as the alleged stabbing weapon, which they say was in the vehicle. The male victim, described by court documents as suffering a half-inch wound with "substantial bleeding" under his armpit, is said to not be severely injured and is now recovering at home. Meanwhile, TMZ is showing what appears to be a video of Diamond at the bar right before the stabbing, in which "you can clearly hear people freaking out about the knife." Diamond's bail was set at $10,000 this afternoon in Ozaukee County court. (We wish we could at least recommend Diamond's sex tape—but no.)

Story highlights Police say the boy removed a handgun from his mother's purse He fired one shot, striking his father The bullet apparently exited through the father's hip and hit the mother (CNN) A 3-year-old boy shot his father and pregnant mother over the weekend inside a hotel room in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Police say the boy removed a handgun from his mother's purse Saturday and fired one shot, striking his father in the lower backside. The bullet apparently exited through the father's hip and hit the mother in the right shoulder. She is eight months pregnant, said Officer Simon Drobik of the Albuquerque Police Department. The father was treated and released from the hospital while the mother was hospitalized in stable condition. The condition of her unborn child is unknown. The boy and his 2-year-old sister, who was also in the hotel room, are under the care of the Children's Youth and Families department. They were not injured in the incident. Drobik says the case has been sent to Albuquerque District Attorney's Office, which will determine whether the parents will be charged with criminal negligence. Police did not identify the family. Mom fatally shot when son, 2. grabs gun from her purse in Walmart ||||| .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A toddler shot both of his parents on Saturday after reaching into his mother’s purse for her iPod, but found a loaded handgun instead, according to Albuquerque police. Both people are expected to survive. The 3-year-old boy fired one shot, which struck his father in the right buttock. The bullet went out of his hip and then hit the woman, who is eight months pregnant, in the arm, said Albuquerque Police Department officer Simon Drobik, a spokesman. The family, which also includes a 2-year-old girl, was living in the room at America’s Best Value Inn near Menaul and University where the shooting occurred, Drobik said. The man and woman each confirmed the story, but the two children won’t be interviewed until a later date because of their age. A 9mm handgun was found inside the motel room. The shooting took place around 2 p.m. in a second floor room of the motel at 2018 Menaul NE. Drobik was the first person on scene. He said he placed a tourniquet, which all APD officers carry, on the woman’s arm and he said she appeared seriously injured. She remained in a hospital Saturday night. The state Children, Youth and Families Department took custody of the children for at least 48 hours, Drobik said. He said police will recommend that the parents be charged with felony criminal negligence. Police didn’t release their names on Saturday. “The child did the damage, but it was because of the negligence of the adults that the child was able to do this,” Drobik said. “If you are going to be a gun owner, you need to lock it up and keep it safe, especially around children.” ||||| ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) – Albuquerque Police said a 3-year-old boy got a hold of a gun, and shot his dad and a pregnant woman. It happened inside a motel room in northeast Albuquerque. The shooting happened inside a room on the second floor of the America’s Best Value Inn, off Menaul Boulevard around 2 p.m. Saturday. Police said a woman had a loaded gun inside her purse, and a toddler got a hold of it. KRQE News 13 was on scene as a man was hauled off in an ambulance. Albuquerque Police said a father was shot in his lower back by his 3-year-old son. “That’s scary, you need to keep your guns put up and you need to have locks on them,” said Robb Robillard, who was in a motel room on the bottom floor when the shooting happened. An APD spokesman said the toddler got his hands on a loaded gun from inside a woman’s purse. “It’s a very tricky situation when you’re dealing with children, so that’s why we need to talk to the adults and find out what happened,” explained officer Simon Drobik, of the Albuquerque Police Department. Drobik said the toddler fired a shot, hitting his dad. Investigators said the bullet went through the man’s hip, hitting a pregnant woman in the room. She was hit in her shoulder. “I was the first on scene, put a tourniquet on her arm, and they rushed her off to the hospital,” said Drobik. Police said a 2-year-old girl was also in the room. The children were not injured. “I came out of the room and saw police officers downstairs and I came down the stairs and saw a whole bunch of cop cars,” Robillard recalled. Robillard was surprised to hear the shooter was a 3-year-old. He said parents should be more careful with guns. “I think everybody should have the right to own them, but you need a lock them too, especially when kids are around,” he said. Police said the parents will be all right. Animal Control arrived on scene and took two pit bulls out of the motel room. Investigators searched the motel room for hours, trying to piece together what happened. Police said it’s a scary situation that could have been deadly. APD wants to remind people that carry guns, to keep them locked up and away from children. Drobik said police recovered the gun inside the motel room. The father was released from the hospital Saturday, while the woman is still at the hospital being monitored. Police said she is eight months pregnant. The Children Youth and Families Department has custody of the two children on a 48-hour-hold. Police said the parents could face felony criminal negligence charges for having a loaded gun near kids. The case will be forwarded to the District Attorney’s office. Hearing from @ABQPOLICE on motel shooting in NE #ABQ more details to come @krqe http://t.co/7aXCQ1XZWV — Gabrielle Burkhart (@gburkNM) January 31, 2015 Animal control showed up to take a pit bull from the scene. We'll keep you updated with info @krqe http://t.co/z9tpod0lsn — Gabrielle Burkhart (@gburkNM) January 31, 2015 Motel scene off Menaul where @ABQPOLICE say a man and woman were shot. Two children in the room uninjured. http://t.co/DM76XSxtr5 — Gabrielle Burkhart (@gburkNM) January 31, 2015

– A 3-year-old New Mexico boy going for an iPod in his mom's purse instead found a loaded handgun and managed to shoot both of his parents with one shot in the motel where the family was living, reports the Albuquerque Journal. The bullet hit the father in the right buttock, exited through his hip, and hit the mother—who is eight months pregnant—in the right arm. The father was treated and released, adds CNN, while the mother required a tourniquet and was hospitalized in stable condition. Police are recommending the pair be charged with felony criminal negligence. "The child did the damage, but it was because of the negligence of the adults that the child was able to do this," says the cop who was first on the scene. "If you are going to be a gun owner, you need to lock it up and keep it safe, especially around children." A 2-year-old daughter was also in the room; she and the 3-year-old are currently in state custody. Animal control also took custody of the family's two pit bulls. "That’s scary, you need to keep your guns put up and you need to have locks on them," another guest at the America’s Best Value Inn tells KRQE.

By Natasha Chen Quick Facts: Hershey Company suing for Reese's and Mr. Goodbar trademark infringement. Medical marijuana dispensary using names Reefer's and Mr. Dankbar. Similar lawsuit also filed in Colorado where marijuana was also legalized. The Hershey Company has filed a federal lawsuit against Seattle Conscious Care Cooperative for trademark infringement, citing issues with their pot products called Reefer’s Cups and Mr. Dankbar. At the Conscious Care Cooperative location in North Seattle, the logos on the doors resembled that of the Sonics. Online a logo of theirs also resembles the logo of the Sounders FC. Items for sale included many snacks and sweets that looked like Goldfish crackers, Gummy Bears, Cap’n Crunch and Rice Krispie treats. An employee at the center said they do not have a comment on the lawsuit. She said the Reefer’s Cups and Mr. Dankbars in particular were sold out months ago. She also stated they were not their products, but products obtained from a vendor. Jeff Beckman, a spokesperson for The Hershey Company, told KIRO 7 they also filed a similar lawsuit in Colorado. Beckman said: “The Hershey Company’s trademarks are iconic and among our company’s most important assets. They are recognized by consumers around the world, and our company has spent as many as 120 years building the trust and equity in these iconic brands. Consumers depend on our brand names to represent a level of quality and dependability. These entities have used Hershey’s trademarks, without authorization, to trade on Hershey’s goodwill and reputation, and to draw greater attention to their products; these unauthorized uses of Hershey’s trademarks also make the products more appealing to children. We have always vigorously protected our brands and will continue to do so whenever we believe that others have infringed on these valuable intellectual assets.” The Hershey Company is suing to stop Conscious Care Cooperative from selling the products, to destroy any remaining inventory, to recall all existing products in question, to correct their advertising, to account for all gains and profits from selling the items, and to pay damages and attorneys’ fees. Connor von Difloe, whose family owns a business near the dispensary, said he feels The Hershey Company should take legal action. He said he wasn’t able to tell when his friends were eating pot candy. “I've seen them eating chocolate. I'm like, 'Oh, what are you eating?' They're like, 'It's a marijuana chocolate bar.' I'm like, 'Oh. OK,'” von Difloe said. Down the block from Conscious Care Cooperative, another medical marijuana dispensary, New Millenium, also sells a few food products infused with pot. New Millennium manager Blake Absher said they do not carry Reefer’s Cups or Mr. Dankbar, but they do sell pot gummy candies and brownies made by a brand called Cap’n Cosmic. The logo for Cap’n Cosmic resembles the one for Cap’n Crunch. Absher said, “It's enticing to use recognition from imagery to make a little bit more money. But in the time of social media sharing, it's hard to keep that isolated.” Absher said he feels the lawsuit is in preparation for the recreational marijuana market, where such trademark infringement issues will be a bigger problem. KIRO 7 reached out to other food companies whose brands may have been the inspiration for some of the pot products. A spokesperson for Pepperidge Farm responded, saying, “We were not aware the dispensary was selling this product and will get in touch with them to ask they stop using Goldfish crackers or anything confusingly similar to Goldfish branding.” Want to talk about the news of the day? Watch free streaming video on the KIRO 7 mobile app and iPad app, and join us here on Facebook. ||||| SEATTLE -- A national candy company is suing a Seattle marijuana cooperative for using the names and designs of its popular brands to sell cannabis products. The Hershey Company filed a complaint for trademark infringement and dilution in U.S. District Court on Tuesday against Conscious Care Cooperative and claims the cooperative's actions have "tarnished" the chocolate company. According to the lawsuit, the cooperative is selling cannabis products using names, marks and designs that are imitations of Hershey's Reese's and Mr. Goodbar. Some of the cooperative's product names that imitate Reese's include "Reefer's Peanut Butter Cups" and "Kush Peanut Butter Cups." The packaging on those products resembles the design of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, which was first introduced in 1928. The package design for the cooperative's chocolate candy "Mr. Dankbar" closely resembles Mr. Goodbar. "I think it's just a simple market strategy - mimicking brands that are pre-existing," said Vivian McPeak who is the Executive Director of Seattle Hempfest. McPeak said there's "a little" controversy within the cannabis movement as to whether or not candy should be sold as a form of medicine. "Some people in the cannabis movement have some concerns whether candy is the appropriate way to deliver medical marijuana because of the propensity for children to get ahold of it," said McPeak. The safety of children is also a concern of The Hershey Company that fears consumers may inadvertently ingest the cooperative's products thinking that they are ordinary chocolate candy. In a statement, company spokesman Jeff Beckman said, "Consumers depend on our brand names to represent a level of quality and dependability. These entities have used Hershey's trademarks, without authorization, to trade on Hershey's goodwill and reputation." "This is a time - a new frontier, a lot of changing policies within our country right now and I think these are issues that we're going to be grappling with as the cannabis industry grows up and moves to the next level and becomes a more mainstream commodity," said McPeak. The Conscious Care Cooperative has two shops in North Seattle and Greenwood, but workers at both locations declined to comment. According to the complaint, the cooperative sold the products at its retail locations and online. The Hershey Company filed a similar lawsuit in Colorado on Tuesday that was against a company that's manufacturing and selling marijuana products that also use The Hershey Company's trademarks.

– Walk into a shop that sells legal marijuana, and you're likely to come across products such as "Reefer's Peanut Butter Cup" or "Mr. Dankbar." Get it? Hershey does, and it's not amused. The candy giant has sued marijuana cooperatives in Seattle and Colorado for hawking products that look awfully similar to some of its well-known brands, reports Seattle's KOMO News. "This is a time—a new frontier, a lot of changing policies within our country right now, and I think these are issues that we're going to be grappling with as the cannabis industry grows up and moves to the next level and becomes a more mainstream commodity," says the executive director of the Seattle Hempfest organization. In the meantime, attention Quaker Oats: A reporter for KIRO 7 strolled to a another co-op in Seattle and found a product called "Cap'n Cosmic" that looks a lot like a certain breakfast cereal. (Click to read about how Times' columnist Maureen Dowd discovered that aforementioned new frontier when she ate a marijuana candy bar.)

House Speaker John Boehner on Thursday dismissed President Barack Obama’s jobs plan as “a poor substitute” for “the policies that are needed to put America back to work,” even as he echoed the president’s call for a special congressional committee to exceed its deficit-reduction goal of $1.5 trillion over 10 years. In a speech at the Economic Club of Washington, Boehner prodded the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction to set the groundwork for tax reform that would lower the corporate rate and close loopholes — the preferred GOP method for cleaning up the nation’s tax system. Tax increases, Boehner said, are not an option as they seek to close a gaping $14 trillion budget hole. Text Size - + reset Boehner economic speech POLITICO 44 “The Joint Select Committee can tackle tax reform, and it should,” Boehner said. “It’s probably not realistic to think the Joint Committee could rewrite the tax code by Nov. 23. But it can certainly lay the groundwork by then for tax reform in the future that will enhance the environment for economic growth. The committee can develop principles for broad-based tax reform that will lower rates for individuals and corporations while closing deductions, credits, and special carveouts in our tax code. And I hope it will.” In a statement that referred to Boehner only in its headline, the White House countered Thursday by arguing that the president has a solid plan. “Any plan to grow the economy and create jobs should be measured by whether it puts money in the pockets of middle class families, puts teachers, police officers, firefighters and construction workers back to work, and invests in our small businesses so they can grow and hire,” Press Secretary Jay Carney said. “The president’s plan meets that test.” The speaker also threw his weight behind entitlement reform, something that House Republicans did in their own budget, authored by Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), chairman of the House Budget Committee. Tax reform has long been the House Republicans’ preferred tool of economic growth, and it has been part of the overarching narrative of this Congress. And Boehner has said that House Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp (R-Mich.), also a member of the supercommittee, was working on restructuring the tax-code. ||||| House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) criticized President Obama’s jobs plan in an economic address in Washington on Thursday, calling it “a poor substitute for the pro-growth policies that are needed to remove barriers to job creation in America.” In a speech to the Economic Club of Washington, Boehner outlined the Republican plan for job creation and urged the deficit-reduction supercommittee to lay the groundwork for an overhaul of the tax code. At the same time, he restated the GOP’s long-held opposition to tax increases to bring down the deficit, saying they are “off the table” and not “a viable option” for the supercommittee. ADVERTISEMENT Boehner indirectly criticized the tax proposals in Obama’s jobs plan, saying they would only make the tax code “more complex” at a time when both parties want to simplify the system. “It strikes me as odd that at a time when it’s clear that the tax code needs to be fundamentally reformed, the first instinct out of Washington is to come up with a host of new tax credits that make the tax code more complex,” Boehner said. “It’s probably not realistic to think the Joint Committee could rewrite the tax code by November 23. But it can certainly lay the groundwork by then for tax reform in the future that will enhance economic growth and enhance the environment for economic growth.” “The committee can develop principles for broad-based tax reform that will lower rates for individuals and corporations while closing deductions, credits, and special carve-outs in our tax code,” Boehner said. While opposing tax increases – including allowing the George W. Bush-era tax cuts to expire – he voiced support for closing tax loopholes, which could include tax breaks for oil and gas companies that Democrats have been clamoring to scrap for years. Boehner couched his address in bipartisan rhetoric and said some of Obama’s proposals, which he didn’t specify, offered “opportunities for common ground.” But his speech is likely to significantly dim expectations for passage of many elements of the president’s plan. In pushing for comprehensive tax reform, Boehner criticized the kind of temporary tax credits that are central to Obama’s proposal. Obama is proposing a combination of infrastructure spending, temporary tax cuts for businesses and individuals, free trade agreements and an extension of unemployment insurance as a way of boosting job growth, which slowed to a halt in August. Acknowledging the economy had stalled, Boehner declared job creators across the country to be “basically on strike” and placed the blame for the nation’s economic woes squarely on Washington and the policies of the Obama administration. “The problem is not confusion about the policies, ... the problem is the policies,” Boehner said. “The anger many Americans have been feeling in recent years is beginning to turn into fear ... fear of our future.” “What we need to do is to liberate our economy from the shackles of Washington. Let our economy grow!” Boehner said. “The instinct in government, always, is to get bigger, more intrusive, more meddlesome. And that instinct is at direct odds with the things that make the American economy move.” The Speaker cited excessive regulation, higher taxes and too much spending as a “triple threat” to job creation. He spoke at length about rolling back regulations, which is the cornerstone of the House GOP’s fall agenda. Boehner referenced the recent federal raid of the Gibson Guitar factories in Tennessee and touted the House passage on Thursday of a bill aimed at blocking a move by the National Labor Relations Board to prevent Boeing from relocating a plant to South Carolina. Boehner urged Obama to call a Cabinet meeting and direct his secretaries to report to him on policies that are inhibiting job growth. “The members of the president’s Cabinet are not doing their jobs if they aren’t constantly focused on removing impediments to job growth,” he said, drawing a rare round of applause from a lunchtime audience that listened quietly to most of his speech. “If they’re not focused on that, they should be fired.” While acknowledging skepticism across Washington about the deficit supercommittee, Boehner said he was “optimistic” it could succeed in its charge of finding $1.5 trillion in deficit reduction. He did not say whether he agreed with lawmakers and outside groups who are calling on the panel to expand its mandate, and he said it was too soon to say whether the committee would be involved in finding offsetting cuts to pay for a jobs bill, as Obama has proposed. On taxes, Boehner stuck to his insistence that aside from closing loopholes, they should not be increased. “Tax increases I think are off the table and I don’t think l they are a viable option for the Joint Committee,” he said. “It’s a very simple equation. Tax increases destroy jobs. And the Joint Committee is a jobs committee. Its mission is to reduce the deficit that is threatening job creation in our country.” Democrats quickly criticized his speech, which lasted just longer than 20 minutes. “Speaker John Boehner and House Republicans think the answer to our economic challenges is more of the same failed policies to protect the ultra wealthy at the expense of the middle class,” said Rep. Steve Israel (N.Y.), chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “Speaker Boehner and House Republicans refuse to make billionaires and Big Oil pay their fair share so we can help small businesses create real middle-class jobs.” This story was posted at 1:02 p.m. and has been updated.

– John Boehner took his first swings at the Obama jobs plan today, calling it “a poor substitute for the pro-growth policies that are needed to remove barriers to job creation in America.” Boehner criticized the "host of new tax credits" it proposes, which he complained would “make the tax code more complex” at a time when members of both parties are pushing to simplify it, the Hill reports. Boehner delivered his remarks to the Economic Club of Washington. He said the tax system needed to be reformed, and called on the deficit “supercommittee” to do it. “It’s probably not realistic to think the joint committee could rewrite the tax code by Nov. 23,” he conceded. “But it can certainly lay the groundwork.” He reiterated that Republicans remain staunchly opposed to tax increases, and warned the committee against them. Boehner said he wasn't opposed to "reasonable" spending on infrastructure, notes Politico. “But if we want to do it in a way that truly supports long-term economic growth and job creation, let’s link the next highway bill to an expansion of American-made energy production,” he said. “Removing some of the unnecessary government barriers that prevent our country from utilizing its vast energy resources could create millions of new jobs.”

POPE FRANCIS URGED the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics to feel compassion for children, notably victims of war, migration and homelessness in his Christmas Eve mass but also those “not allowed to be born”. Addressing a 10,000-strong crowd late last night, the pontiff urged worshippers to celebrate “authentically”, by acknowledging “the fragile simplicity of a small newborn” and “the tender affection of the swaddling clothes”. “Let us allow the child in the manger to challenge us, but let us also allow ourselves to be challenged by the children of today’s world,” he said, speaking in St. Peter’s Square. Many children have died this year while attempting the perilous Mediterranean migrant crossing to Europe which has claimed more than 5,000 lives in 2016 alone. Thousands of traumatised Syrians including children meanwhile left the former rebel enclave of Aleppo this week after four months of suffocating siege. Advertisement Children are “hiding underground to escape bombardment” or “on the pavements of a large city, at the bottom of a boat overladen with immigrants”, the pontiff said, before reiterating his opposition to abortion. “Let us allow ourselves to be challenged by the children who are not allowed to be born, by those who cry because no one satiates their hunger, by those who do have not toys in their hands, but rather weapons,” he said. And in an echo of his well-established criticisms of materialism, Francis also urged the faithful to avoid indifference, “when Christmas becomes a feast where the protagonists are ourselves, rather than Jesus”. The pope, who celebrated his 80th birthday a week ago, has made simplicity and modest living the hallmarks of his papacy. Today, Francis will deliver his fourth Christmas message to the faithful massed in St. Peter’s Square. © – AFP 2016

– Pope Francis has wished Christmas peace for people scarred by wars and those who lost loved ones to terrorism that he says is sowing "fear and death" in many cities and countries, reports the AP. Speaking from the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica Sunday, Francis cited those suffering through the Syrian war, especially during the "most awful battles" in Aleppo. He pressed the international community for a negotiated solution. The pontiff emphasized the plight of children, notes the Journal, with a strong reference to abortion. "Let us allow ourselves to be challenged by the children who are not allowed to be born, by those who cry because no one satiates their hunger, by those who do have not toys in their hands, but rather weapons," he said, urging Christians to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ "authentically." The pontiff urged Israelis and Palestinians to abandon hate and revenge. He also lamented that in Nigeria "fundamentalist terrorism exploits even children," a reference to child suicide-bombers. He decried conflicts and tensions in Africa, eastern Ukraine, Myanmar, the Korean peninsula, Colombia, and Venezuela. Tens of thousands of faithful entering St. Peter's Square endured long lines for security checks. Sunday marked Francis' fourth Christmas message as pope.

Get Boston Globe's Political Happy Hour newsletter , your afternoon shot of politics, sent straight from the desk of Joshua Miller. Since leaving the State House corner office, Deval Patrick has largely evaded the limelight of national politics. But the former Massachusetts governor and civil rights lawyer is making his position known on Donald Trump’s divisive pick for attorney general, Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama. In a letter Tuesday to the Senate Judiciary Committee, Patrick recalled a 1985 voting rights case (recently highlighted by the Washington Post) in which he defended three Alabama residents against what he called “an act of extraordinary quasi-judicial activisim” by Sessions, then the U.S. attorney for the state’s southern district. Patrick’s team eventually won the case, but, in his letter Tuesday, Patrick called it “a cautionary tale.” Advertisement “I believe it demonstrates what can happen when prosecutorial discretion is unchecked, when regard for facts is secondary to political objectives,” he wrote, later adding, “In a republic based on law, this is not the kind of risk any of us should accept in our attorney general.” Patrick was not the only one to protest Sessions’s fraught record dealing with race. His letter came the same day as the NAACP staged a sit-in at the Alabaman’s office in Mobile, and as more than 1,100 law school professors from across the country wrote a public letter opposing the Sessions nomination. In 1986, the Republican-controlled Senate Judiciary Committee rejected Sessions’s nomination to be a federal judge over his history of comments on race. “Donald Trump was not my candidate, but he is my president-elect,” Patrick wrote Tuesday, adding that he would not blindly oppose everything Trump does and believes that presidents are entitled to a cabinet of his choosing “within bounds of basic preparedness and qualifications.” But Sessions’s nomination was a line too far in a time when the country needs healing, Patrick said. “At a time when our Nation is so divided, when so many feel so deeply that their lived experience is unjust, Mr. Sessions is the wrong person to place in charge of our justice system,” he wrote. Advertisement You can read Patrick’s letter in-full here, as published by the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund. ||||| University of MinnesotaArchive-It Partner Since: Jun, 2006Organization Type: Colleges & UniversitiesOrganization URL: http://www.lib.umn.edu Founded in 1851, the University of Minnesota is both the state land-grant university, with a strong tradition of education and public service, and the state's primary research university, with faculty of national and international reputation. It is one of the most comprehensive public universities in the United States and ranks among the most prestigious. University publications, faculty papers, and records of academic and administrative offices are held centrally by the University Archives and their digital counterparts are accessible through the University Digital Conservancy, both units of the University Libraries. ||||| Sen. Jeff Sessions looks on as Donald Trump speaks during a national security meeting with advisers at Trump Tower on Oct. 7, 2016, in New York. (Photo: Evan Vucci, AP) WASHINGTON — More than 1,100 law professors are urging the Senate to reject the nomination of Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions to serve as attorney general in President-elect Donald Trump's incoming administration. The group, which represents 170 law schools in 48 states, expressed its opposition Tuesday in a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee, asserting that the Republican senator would "not fairly enforce our nation's laws and promote justice and equality in the United States.'' Professors, who included Harvard Law School's Laurence Tribe and University of California-Irvine's Erwin Chemerinsky, referenced the Senate's 1986 rejection of Sessions' nomination for a federal judgeship, due in part to Sessions' past, racially charged statements. "Nothing in Sen. Sessions' public life since 1986 has convinced us that he is a different man than the 39-year-old attorney who was deemed to racially insensitive to be a federal district court judge,'' the professors' petition states. During the contentious Senate hearing in 1986, Sessions was grilled about a number of remarks, including one in which Sessions referred to the Ku Klux Klan as "okay until I found out they smoked pot.'' Sessions also was criticized then for his role in a failed Alabama voter fraud prosecution. Sessions' opponents have alleged that as U.S. attorney in Mobile, the prosecutor launched the case against black voting rights activists as a way to intimidate minority voters. "Some of us have concerns about his misguided prosecution of three civil rights activists for voter fraud in Alabama in 1985 and his consistent promotion of the myth of voter-impersonation fraud,'' the professors said. Read more: The statement comes a week before Sessions is scheduled to appear before the Judiciary Committee for confirmation hearings. Sessions' spokeswoman Sarah Flores called the criticism "business as usual for the same far-left academics who trot out letters opposing just about any conservative or Republican who’s nominated to a key position by a Republican president. "Jeff Sessions enjoys wide support from law enforcement organizations to civil rights leaders to victims’ rights organizations and many others,'' Flores said. "He will be confirmed with both Democratic and Republican votes to be the next attorney general.'' Last month, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the nation's largest group of top police leaders, the National Association of Police Organizations and a coalition of more than 100 former U.S. attorneys offered their endorsement of Sessions to serve as the nation's chief law enforcement officer. University of California Berkeley law professor Ty Alper, one of the 1,140 law school faculty members to joint the petition, said Sessions' unstinting support of anti-immigration measures and his questioning of such things as the human contribution to climate change "have struck a nerve.'' "We know that this is an uphill battle,'' Alper said. "But we hope that the volume of voices will give senators some pause.'' Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/2hPJ6UO

– Some 100 law professors in support of Sen. Jeff Sessions' nomination for attorney general appear to be in the minority. More than 1,200 law professors have sent a letter to Congress in an attempt to convince the Senate Judiciary Committee to reject the nomination, noting Sessions "will not fairly enforce our nation's laws and promote justice and equality," per the Washington Post. The letter mentions his support for a border wall, attempt to prosecute black civil rights activists for voter fraud in 1985, and "repeated opposition to legislative efforts to promote the rights of women and members of the LGBTQ community" but focuses on the Senate's rejection of his nomination to a federal judgeship in 1986 after Sessions allegedly said the KKK was "okay until I found out they smoked pot," per USA Today. A rep for Sessions says such claims are "tired, recycled, hyperbolic" and "have been thoroughly rebuked and discredited." A former chairman of the US Commission on Civil Rights adds Sessions is "a man of great character and integrity with a commitment to fairness and equal justice under the law." But "nothing in Senator Sessions' public life since 1986 has convinced us that he is a different man than the 39-year-old attorney who was deemed too racially insensitive to be a federal district court judge," states the letter, signed by professors from 176 law schools in 49 states. In a separate letter, former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick—who represented the activists in the 1985 case—suggests Sessions' "regard for facts is secondary to political objectives," per Boston.com. (NAACP's president was just arrested at Sessions' office.)

DENVER (AP) — A man arrested in the shooting death of a 19-year-old Colorado woman told investigators she hired him to kill her, court records said. Joseph McDaniel Lopez, 22, said he responded to a Craigslist ad titled "I want to put a hit on myself," KMGH-TV reported. Court records say he described how he and Natalie Bollinger exchanged text messages and he picked her up at her apartment in Broomfield, north of Denver, last December. Lopez said he tried to change her mind. They then drove around while discussing how he would be paid. They eventually stopped the car at a spot where he shot her. He said Bollinger provided the gun, which he took along with her purse. Bollinger was found dead Dec. 29, a day after her boyfriend reported her missing. He also reported his Glock 9mm pistol was gone as well. An autopsy found she was shot in the head and had a potentially lethal amount of heroin in her system. Investigators connected Lopez to the case through more than 100 text messages the two exchanged on the night she died. He was arrested late Thursday. "Just because we have a suspect in custody, doesn't mean the investigation is over," Adams County Sheriff Michael McIntosh said Friday in announcing the arrest. Lopez told investigators that when they arrived at the spot where Bollinger was shot, she "knelt down on the ground and that he knelt down along her left side and slightly in front of her," court records said. He said they said a prayer, he got up and closed his eyes and fired the fatal shot. He told officers the gun was still in the trunk of his car. Investigators did locate a weapon, but McIntosh said it's too early in the investigation to tie it to Bollinger's death. The affidavit does not include any evidence of Lopez's claims or how much heroin was in Bollinger's system. The autopsy notes she had a history of heroin and meth use. Investigators say some of her family and friends reported she had a history of suicidal thoughts, but other said she was happy and looking forward to attending school. Lopez remains jailed. No bond has been set. It wasn't immediately known if he had an attorney to speak on his behalf. Craigslist officials did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment on Saturday. ___ Information from: KMGH-TV, http://www.thedenverchannel.com ||||| The man charged in the shooting death of 19-year-old Natalie Bollinger allegedly told Colorado investigators she hired him to kill her. Joseph Lopez, 22, was arrested last week and charged with first-degree murder. According to an arrest warranted obtained by PEOPLE, Lopez told police that he responded to an ad that Bollinger allegedly posted on Craigslist, entitled “I want to put a hit on myself.” Bollinger was reported missing days after receiving a protection order against a man she alleged was harassing her. She was found dead in a wooded area late last year. An autopsy also revealed she had a “potentially lethal level of heroin” in her system at the time of her death. “Just because we have a suspect in custody doesn’t mean the investigation is over,”Adams County Sheriff Michael McIntosh told reporters on Friday, adding that Lopez is the sole suspect Bollinger’s slaying. • Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter. Joseph Michael Lopez Adams County Sheriff's Office According to the arrest affidavit, detectives uncovered more than 100 text messages between Lopez and Bollinger. The affidavit alleges that Lopez told police that “he was pretty sure that he knew what we were there for” and that “he was sure it had to do with the girl he talked to on Craigslist.” Lopez said that he spotted the Craigslist ad in late December. He allegedly said he contacted the teen, pretending to be an experienced hired killer. Lopez allegedly said he agreed to meet with Bollinger and kill her after the two spoke via text. Courtesy of Broomfield Police Dept. He allegedly arranged to pick her up at her apartment on December 28, 2017. The affidavit states that they discussed payment. Bollinger allegedly wanted to be killed “on her knees… executed from behind,” reads the affidavit. Lopez alleges Bollinger provided him with the gun he used to end her life. He claims that he tried to change her mind, but she insisted. Bollinger was reported missing by her boyfriend; he also claimed his gun went missing. At first, Lopez allegedly said he had a change of heart, and that he dropped Bollinger off at her apartment where she shot herself. Later, he allegedly confessed, telling investigators Bollinger “knelt down on the ground and that he knelt down along her left side and slightly in front of her.” • For more compelling true crime coverage, follow our Crime magazine on Flipboard. He allegedly told cops the two prayed before he pulled the trigger with his eyes closed. He left, grabbing the girl’s purse and the gun, the affidavit alleges. Investigators claim several people who knew Bollinger said she had expressed suicidal thoughts in the past. Still others said she never would have ended her life, and that she was excited about the future. Lopez is being held without bond. It is unclear whether he has entered a plea or retained counsel. ||||| Breaking News Emails Get breaking news alerts and special reports. The news and stories that matter, delivered weekday mornings. A Colorado man accused of killing 19-year-old Natalie Marie Bollinger told police he shot her after he replied to her Craigslist ad seeking a hitman — for herself, investigators said in court documents obtained Monday. But before the killing, the man, Joseph Michael Lopez, 22, tried to talk her out of suicide, he told Adams County deputies, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by NBC News. After he failed to change her mind, they went for a drive and stopped by the side of the road, where they said a prayer together as Lopez knelt on the ground beside Bollinger and shot her once in the back of the head with a 9mm firearm, according to the affidavit. Lopez said he used a gun that Bollinger gave him, which she said he could keep as payment, according to the affidavit. The body of Bollinger, who lived in Broomfield, was found Dec. 29 in an unincorporated area of Adams County, east of Boulder, Broomfield police said. Lopez was being held without bail Monday in the Adams County Jail on suspicion of first-degree murder pending a court hearing Wednesday, according to court records. Investigators said Lopez told them last Thursday that he was browsing the "Women Seeking Men" section of Craigslist when he stopped on an "unusual post" with the title "I want to put a hit on myself." The Adams County Sheriff's Office wouldn't confirm that such an ad had been placed, a spokesman told NBC News on Monday. According to the arrest affidavit, Lopez said that he replied to the ad because he had suffered from depression and suicidal thoughts when he was in high school and thought he could help. But Bollinger couldn't be persuaded, he said, telling investigators that she said she wanted to be executed from behind so she wouldn't see the gun and that she "wanted it to happen quickly," according to the arrest affidavit. Joseph Michael Lopez, 22, was held without bond pending a first-degree murder charge in the death of Natalie Bollinger, 19, of Broomfield, Colorado. Adams County Sheriff's Office Friends and relatives told investigators that Bollinger had a history of suicidal thoughts, according to the affidavit. But they said they had found no suicide note or any other communication indicating that she wanted to take her own life, it said. In fact, the affidavit said, she had applied for a job on Dec. 28, the day before she was killed. Adams County Sheriff Michael McIntosh said Friday, when the arrest was announced, that Lopez was tracked down through dozens of text messages on Bollinger's cellphone. "A 19-year-old's phone, there's a lot of data there," McIntosh said. When investigators called to arrange an interview, Lopez "made the comment that he thought he might know why" they were calling, McIntosh said. According to the arrest affidavit, "Joseph Lopez did tell us that it was eating away at him and that several times he felt like just calling the police himself and confessing to shooting Natalie Bollinger." McIntosh said Friday that no one else is believed to have been involved.

– A man in custody in Colorado has confessed to fatally shooting 19-year-old Natalie Bollinger, but he claims her death was still suicide, according to arrest documents seen by NBC News. According to an arrest affidavit, Joseph Michael Lopez, 22, told investigators that he shot the teen after answering a Craigslist ad in the "Women Seeking Men" section titled: "I want to put a hit on myself." He claimed he answered the ad because he had suffered from depression and thought he could help the teen, but he ended up shooting her after he couldn't talk her out of the "suicide." Lopez, who's being held on suspicion of first-degree murder, said he prayed with Bollinger before shooting her with a 9mm gun that she'd given him. He said she told him he could keep the gun as payment. Bollinger's body was found Dec. 29 in a wooded area in Adams County, east of Boulder. The previous day, her boyfriend told police that she was missing and his Glock 9mm pistol was gone, the AP reports. According to an autopsy, she had a "potentially lethal" level of heroin in her system when she was killed. Days earlier, she had sought a protection order against a man she said had been stalking her, People reports. Investigators connected Lopez to the case through more than 100 text messages exchanged on the night she died. Police haven't confirmed whether the ad seeking a hit man was actually placed. Friends and relatives say Bollinger had suicidal thoughts in the past, but some say she'd been happy recently and had applied for a job the day before she died. (This man's teen wife was murdered in front of him—at his request.)

Aaron and Dana, microphones in hand, visit Myers at a sanitarium but fail to provoke an obvious response from him. Their mention of Laurie does spark some kind of awakening, though, because soon enough Myers has escaped and is on the warpath, out for revenge. His main target? Laurie, who has moved to a fortified home out in the woods, and is played with edgy brilliance by Curtis, sporting a wild mane of gray hair. Having never quite gotten over 1978, Laurie has become somewhat of a crazed hermit, waiting with shotgun in hand for the day her old nemesis comes home. That reversal should be the key to Green’s pitch. The old dynamic of Carpenter’s film is being flipped, in a way: Now Myers is the prey, and Laurie the hunter. But that’s not really how the story progresses—instead, as Myers rampages toward town, the action shifts to Laurie’s estranged daughter, Karen (Judy Greer), who has rejected her mother’s apocalyptic outlook, and Laurie’s granddaughter, Allyson (Andi Matichak), who very much resembles 1978 Laurie. Allyson is out on the town with her friends, one of whom has a babysitting gig; to her, Laurie is just a kooky grandma, and Michael Myers no more than a creepy bedtime story. As Myers reaches Haddonfield, Allyson and her pals are placed squarely in his sights, and Halloween becomes just another slasher film, though Green assembles some expertly tense sequences. This is a project that’s been attempted before: In 1998, there was Steve Miner’s Halloween H20, also starring Curtis, set 20 years after the original and similarly focused on an ultimate showdown between Myers and Laurie. That was even more horror-by-numbers; Green’s film has a little more artistry to it. But still, all his best tricks are borrowed from Carpenter, right down to the chilling, minimalistic score (composed by Carpenter himself, along with Cody Carpenter and Daniel Davies). The reason the first Halloween felt so bold was its simplicity—imagine making a horror movie about a stranger murdering a bunch of other strangers and just titling it after the scariest holiday! Green’s Halloween, like many other imitators, can wring plenty of stress from a scene of a babysitter checking behind the closet door for a boogeyman. In its portrayal of Laurie, the film has the potential to dig beyond homage, but she’s largely sidelined from the action until the denouement. Other new twists on the old tale, like a loopy psychiatrist played by Haluk Bilginer to replace the departed Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasence) of the original, are gratingly self-referential. In its last 30 minutes, Halloween finally stops playing the hits and tries something really different. I won’t spoil beyond that, but it works. Curtis’s performance is genuinely poignant and restrained, mostly avoiding the twitchy clichés that Laurie’s post-traumatic stress might encourage. Dumping the hacky sequel concept that Laurie’s related to Myers makes her motivation simpler and crueler; this is a revenge tale for each character, and once Green starts telling it from both sides, the film sings with purpose. Halloween takes its time warming up, but when Curtis grabs the reins, it does more than enough to justify its curious existence. We want to hear what you think about this article. Submit a letter to the editor or write to letters@theatlantic.com. ||||| Horror movie fans are a special audience sub-genre. They’ll travel to drive-ins in the middle of the Mojave for a good thrill. They are especially loyal to the Halloween franchise that has been creating goosebumps, heart palpitations and heebie-jeebies for 40 years. They don’t care if the latest hike around the jack-o’-lantern is not as good as the original John Carpenter screamfest or even any kind of acceptable re-boot of that 1978 classic at all. Nor do they care if, after all these years, Jamie Lee Curtis is too long in the tooth to keep screaming her head off every time Michael Myers shows up with a brand new hatchet. He’s been burned, stabbed, shot, drowned and beheaded before, and nothing has kept him down yet. No, Halloween addicts just want more—and so do I. Unfortunately, this one doesn’t deliver the goods with any new ideas or fresh suspense. It just lays there, like leftover pumpkin. Subscribe to Observer’s Entertainment Newsletter Endangered turkeys, rabbits and Santa Claus have never done for Thanksgiving, Easter and Christmas what Jamie Lee Curtis has done for Halloween! Now, 40 years to the Halloween night the first movie took place, she returns to the blood-stained lawns of Haddonfield, Illinois where, as Laurie Strode, she was the only babysitter in town who escaped a massacre by the insane serial killer in a fright mask that started it all. HALLOWEEN ★★ (2/4 stars) Directed by: David Gordon Green Written by: David Gordon Green Starring: Jamie Lee Curtis, Judy Greer, Andi Matichak Running time: 109 mins. Four decades have left her almost as demented as her tormenter, and she has spent the years cautiously—becoming a crazy town eccentric estranged from her mother Karen (Judy Greer) and her granddaughter Allyson (Andi Matichak). Never mind. She’s been out of her mind with terror, permanently unhinged by paranoia and dread while preparing her house for the inevitable return of Michael Myers. A master of self-defense, she has a hiding place under her floor like a bomb shelter and an arsenal of automatic weapons that outnumber the Republicans in the U.S. Congress. Smart girl, because, predictably, he escapes again from a fool-proof insane asylum and heads for Haddonfield faster than you can say “Bates Motel.” David Gordon Green, who made such past horrors as Pineapple Express and Our Brand Is Crisis, is not an imaginative director, so the result is a disappointing collection of the usual familiar cliches, including kids too stoned or drunk to use common sense when the floor creaks in an empty house, victims who lose their cell phones before danger strikes, and an assortment of dumb cops and naive psychiatrists who say things about the monster like “Remember, he’s the property of the state—he mustn’t be harmed!” Michael no longer creeps around in the bushes waiting to pounce. On the safest night of the year, when everyone thinks he’s only another Trick-or-Treater wearing a Michael Myers costume, he just walks right into people’s houses, slashes their throats, and stomps their heads in without interference. There are a few gory scares here and there, but the thrills are uneven and the setups all have a tired feeling of déjà vu. Sadly, Michael Simmonds’ camerawork for Halloween circa 2018 also lacks the clarity and beauty of the original cinematography that made the 1978 Halloween one of the best-photographed horror flicks of all time. That the contrived script leads up to a final showdown between the indefatigable girl and the indestructible ghoul comes as no surprise. But in 40 years, what once seemed creepy now just seems campy. I’m sorry to report that in the 2018 Halloween, the howls sound more like giggles than screams. ||||| 'Halloween': This Time, Laurie Strode Is Locked And Loaded Enlarge this image toggle caption Ryan Green/Universal Pictures Ryan Green/Universal Pictures Trauma is not neat and pretty to deal with; it is not easily diagnosed, it does not vanish on its own, and its lingering effects can touch those around us. In the latest sequel to the long and winding Halloween series, trauma plays an important role in the narrative arc of famed final girl Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis). You might remember her from the original 1978 John Carpenter film, which saw her screaming, running, discovering her friends brutally murdered, then fending off a serial killer to protect the kids she was babysitting. The 2018 sequel picks up several decades later, and while it largely conforms to the retro thrills of the "serial killer on the loose" subgenre, it makes something interesting out of Laurie's earlier experience. In this film, trauma and survivor's guilt are not swept under the rug, as often happens in sequels. Instead, Laurie's experience shapes her behavior and her relationship with both her loved ones and the wider world. Horror movies have lightly toyed with a character's trauma for dramatic effect before. In Neil Marshall's The Descent, Sarah (Shauna Macdonald) tries to cope with the loss of her family in an accident by reuniting with friends and taking a girl's trip. Things go terribly wrong on the group's cave-diving adventure, and the memory of her daughter as well as her survivor's guilt haunt her as she fights off cannibalistic monsters. Wes Craven's Scream features Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) struggling to cope with her mother's murder. When a similar killer starts attacking her classmates, it brings her worst fears back to her doorstep. But in this present-day Halloween, directed by David Gordon Green, trauma is no mere plot device; it's the film's explicit subject. Laurie has become a virtual hermit, closing herself off from a world that saw her more like a freak show than a survivor. She's quick to shut out journalists looking to make a sensational story out of her experience. In this timeline, which skips all of the other sequels, Laurie arms herself in case serial killer Michael Myers returns. She teaches her daughter how to survive, how to shoot, and when to seek shelter in the family panic room. She's trying to inoculate her daughter from fully inheriting her trauma, as when young women are taught to walk to their cars with their keys between their fingers. This Halloween sets out to explore the emotional cost of seeing a monster in every shadow. Laurie's insistence that her daughter Karen (Judy Greer) learn to protect herself and check around every corner causes a rift in their relationship: Karen resents her mother for the survivalist training and for exposing her to secondhand paranoia. She settles for a passive husband and refuses to train her own daughter Allyson (Andi Matichak) the way her mother raised her. She naively considers her mother's trauma to be hers alone and actively tries to separate Laurie from spending time with her granddaughter. In the movie, trying to break the cycle of fear leaves them vulnerable to the man who caused the fear in the first place. We see why Karen has so forcefully pushed Laurie out in one especially tense dinner scene: A visibly shaken Laurie shows up late to meet the family at a restaurant, upsetting the shallow pleasantries. Granddaughter Allyson tries to calm her, while daughter Karen becomes confrontational, angry that her mother has shown up at all. Curtis' performance here is moving — she's clearly uncomfortable within seconds of sitting down at the table. She keeps looking past the others nervously, while Karen's body language telegraphs her frustration at the challenges of caring for someone struggling with mental health issues. Trauma manifests in ways we can't control, often at times when it isn't appropriate to cry or scream. Laurie's instability in these moments is palpable, and helps explain why she took such drastic measures against a (likely supernaturally driven) killer. Laurie's story could have gone any number of ways. She could have buried her trauma, reliving it only in nightmares. She could have moved to another part of the world. If it's disappointing to see Laurie Strode turned, here, into a gun-toting survivalist in a standard revenge plot, the actress' own words may shed some light on that decision. At Austin's Fantastic Fest screening last month, Curtis told the crowd, "Laurie Strode went back to school on November 1st with a bandage on her arm. She left school on the 31st, this dreaming, intellectual, going-off-to-college girl. And she came back on the first of November a freak, where everybody talked about her. Nobody helped her. And that's what I think was the reasoning behind going back to the original trauma. And I'm really glad they did." It would have been nice if more women could have had some say in the narrative trajectory Laurie has taken, instead of film's all-male screenwriting trio of Green, Danny McBride and John Fradley. However, this Halloween highlights a question that horror films so often ignore: How does a genre that unleashes so much violence on its characters grapple with post-traumatic stress disorder, trauma and grief? Horror filmmakers will always terrorize their characters in the moment, of course — but here's hoping we'll start to see more films willing to explore the lingering costs of living with fear every day. While this latest Halloween may not accomplish everything it sets out to do, it amply demonstrates how difficult it can be to move on from the ghosts of traumas past. ||||| New ‘Halloween’ stays true to splatter movie traditions Even before Michael Myers starts with the stabbing and the bashing and the strangling and the hammering and the stomping, “Halloween” is one ruthlessly efficient killer of a movie — and I’m grateful for that. Director and co-writer David Gordon Green’s bloody good splatter film is a direct sequel to John Carpenter’s 1978 horror classic, picking up the story some 40 years after the events of that film. That means they’ve killed off “Halloween II” and “Halloween III: Season of the Witch” and “Halloween H20” et al., pretty much wiping the slate clean, so here’s all you really need to know: Four decades after the masked boogeyman Michael Myers killed three people in the town of Haddonfield, Illinois, on the night of Oct. 31, survivor Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis, yes!) is now a tightly wound, wild-eyed grandma, obsessed with the imprisoned Myers and convinced he will one day escape and track her down and try to finish the job. Come on, Laurie, give it up. You’re talking crazy. It’s not like the sixtysomething Michael Myers is really going to break out and somehow track her down in the dead of night — or is he? Laurie lives in a remote house deep in the woods — a house equipped with multiple security cameras, floodlights, a panic room hidden beneath the kitchen and a number of booby traps. She also has enough firepower to arm a small militia. If and when Michael comes for her, she’ll be ready! Her fixation on Myers led to the breakup of two marriages, and also caused Laurie to lose custody of her daughter Karen (played by Judy Greer as a grown-up) when Karen was just 12. These days, Karen spends very little time with her increasingly paranoid and delusional mother, but Laurie remains close with Karen’s teenage daughter, the plucky Allyson (Andi Matichak). MORE FROM RICHARD ROEPER Urgent but emotional, ‘The Hate U Give’ reflects the realities of right now ‘First Man’ brilliantly depicts rise of Neil Armstrong, step by giant step In a particularly ill-conceived — some might even say idiotic — plan, authorities decide it’s a good idea to take Michael out of the facility that has kept him in check for 40 years and put him on a bus with a bunch of other mentally ill prisoners on Halloween night. And just like that, Michael Myers is once again on the loose in Haddonfield, methodically killing random strangers in a number of creatively gory ways. (First, of course, he has to retrieve his mask, which just happens to be — well, I won’t give it away other than to tip my cap to the screenwriters for the clever set-up.) Haluk Bilginer is the creepy Dr. Sartain, who is in charge of Michael’s care and is fascinated by (and maybe even overly fond of) his subject. (When Laurie meets Dr. Sartain, she says, “So you’re the new Loomis,” referencing the late great Donald Pleasance’s character from the original.) Like most of the cops and many of the civilians — from a couple of earnest podcasters to, yes, a babysitter, to a number of Haddonfield locals — Dr. Sartain makes some really bad and dumb choices, but that’s what we expect of supporting players in a slasher movie, right? We’re supposed to be calling them out for opening a closet door or leaning too close to a seemingly dead adversary or calling out “Who’s there?” while walking toward the danger instead of running away like a cartoon character. The ubiquitous Judy Greer is strong as Laurie’s daughter. Veteran character actor Will Patton is a welcome presence as the only Haddonfield cop who remembers the Babysitter Murders. Nick Castle (the original Michael Myers) delivers chills as the masked killing machine, even though we never see his face. And Jamie Lee Curtis is badass terrific as Laurie, who lived through those horrific events all those years ago but was robbed of having a real life. We also get some choice callbacks to the original film, including one sequence so obvious (and yet so fantastically satisfying) we’d be surprised if they hadn’t figured out a way to make it happen. Director Green isn’t trying to reinvent the squeal. “Halloween,” the 2018 version, is the B-movie sequel “Halloween,” the 1978 version, has always deserved. ‘Halloween’ ★★★ Universal Pictures presents a film directed by David Gordon Green and written by Jeff Fradley, Danny McBride and David Gordon Green. Rated R (for horror violence and bloody images, language, brief drug use and nudity). Running time: 106 minutes. Opens Friday at local theaters.

– Four decades after she first encountered Michael Myers, Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) meets the killer for what is said to be the final time in David Gordon Green's Halloween, a follow-up to John Carpenter's 1978 horror classic that overrides all the other sequels that have come before. According to critics, it's worth the fright. "Halloween, the 2018 version, is the B-movie sequel Halloween, the 1978 version, has always deserved," writes Richard Roeper at the Chicago Sun-Times. "It's one ruthlessly efficient killer of a movie." Actors Nick Castle, Judy Greer, and Will Patton earn his praise, while Curtis is "badass terrific," to boot, he writes. Though the film "may not accomplish everything it sets out to do," Monica Castillo appreciated that it embraced trauma and survivor's guilt as an "explicit subject" as opposed to ignoring such real-life struggles. Aiding this story line, Curtis delivers a "moving" performance, her character's instability "palpable," Castillo writes at NPR. Rex Reed was not impressed. Green "is not an imaginative director, so the result is a disappointing collection of the usual familiar cliches," he writes at the Observer. "There are a few gory scares" but the film is missing "any new ideas or fresh suspense," he adds. "It just lays there, like leftover pumpkin." Green's "best tricks are borrowed from Carpenter," but the director jets out on his own for an "excellent final act," in David Sims' view at the Atlantic. "This is a revenge tale for each character, and once Green starts telling it from both sides, the film sings with purpose," he writes, also applauding "fantastic work" from Curtis. Prefer movies that are scary bad? Browse this list.