text
stringlengths 48
15.9k
| target
stringlengths 14
7.39k
| feat_id
stringlengths 40
40
| evaluation_predictions
sequence |
---|---|---|---|
Pensioner benefits including free TV licences, bus passes and help with heating bills could be cut under government plans to limit welfare spending. Iain Duncan Smith warned existing protections for a raft of benefits would have to ‘disappear’ once the government sets a limit on the £100billion welfare bill. The state pension will be specifically excluded, but the Work and Pensions Secretary made clear that additional payments made to pensioners would not be exempt from any future squeeze. Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith said most ringfences protecting benefits would have be removed . There is growing tension in the Cabinet over where up to £12billion in benefit cuts should fall. Chancellor George Osborne has made clear the pain should be felt by working-age claimants. But the Lib Dems and even some senior Tories are dismayed at the reluctance to consider cuts to pensioner perks. David Cameron has vowed to honour his 2010 election pledge not to cut pension benefits including the winter fuel allowance, free TV licences and bus passes. Mr Duncan Smith is understood to be among urging that a commitment to leave universal pensioner benefits untouched until 2015 should be reviewed after the next election. In the Autumn Statement Mr Osborne announced details of a new cap on total welfare spending. At the start of the Parliament the government would have to set a limit on the amount which will be spent on benefits each year, currently around £112billion, and if it is breached ministers would be hauled to explain themselves to the Commons. Pensioner benefits including the free bus pass could be included in the welfare cap . Giving evidence to MPs yesterday, Mr Duncan Smith revealed that pensioner benefits would be included in the welfare cap raising the prospect of them being cut if spending ran out of control. ‘We need maximum flexibility with the cap. Pretty much all existing ringfences will have to disappear,’ he said. The new welfare cap will include most benefits within the control of ministers, but will not include Jobseekers Allowance or the state pension. While the idea of limiting total spending has proved popular with the public, the government has face criticism over what this might mean for individual benefits. In December Mr Cameron admitted that maternity and paternity pay for new parents would be included in a new cap on welfare spending. The cost of the benefits, which are paid to mothers and fathers who take time off work to look after their children, is set to exceed £2.5billion a year within four years as more parents take them up. But within hours of the the Prime Minister confirming that they will be covered by a new, overall cap on most welfare spending the Treasury was forced into a pledge that it would not cut them in the next Parliament. Chris Leslie, Labour’s shadow Treasury minister, said: ‘There are clearly major divisions within the Government over whether to cap pensioner benefits. ‘One minute Downing Street are ruling it out and the next Iain Duncan Smith is ruling it in. It is time for the Government to come clean over what exactly they are going to do with pensioner benefits.’ A government source said: 'We have been very clear that the state pension will not be included in the welfare cap. 'We will announce more details about what will be included in the cap in our manifesto.' | Iain Duncan Smith says almost all ringfences will have to 'disappear'
Work and Pensions Secretary says welfare cap needs 'maximum flexibility'
David Cameron wants to repeat pledge to protect pensioner benefits . | ec590bd8bd9a4be5bb5eb5af13cd84f008e31c18 | [
0,
368,
13454,
2468,
56,
560,
167,
1393,
441,
8,
610,
13,
6323,
7,
3,
5,
21539,
49,
1393,
379
] |
More than 957,000 immigrants who crossed the U.S. border illegally have received work permits since Barack Obama became president, a shocking report revealed on Monday. The Center for Immigration Studies uncovered documents through a Freedom of Information Act request, showing that more than 5.5 million new work permits were issued to aliens overall from 2009 to 2014. That was more than the number of green cards – lawful permanent residence authorizations – and temporary worker admissions in those years. The organization called it 'a huge parallel immigrant work authorization system outside the limits set by Congress that inevitably impacts opportunities for U.S. workers, damages the integrity of the immigration system, and encourages illegal immigration.' The 5.5 milliion number also includes 1.8 million work permits given to to immigrants with temporary visas or visa waivers. And two-thirds of those held visas that did not permit employment in the United States. Scroll down for video . CART BEFORE THE HORSE? Obama has promised to mainstream 5 million illegal immigrants this year but nearly 1 million of them already have green cards . ALREADY WORKING: NEarly 1 million illegal immigrants haev gotten green cards since 2009 . 'USA BUILT BY IMMIGRANTS': Border town residents in Texas protested against militarization of the border and the deportation of ilegal immigrants on August 24, 2014 . More than 470,000 aliens on tourist visas have received the work permits since 2009; another 532,000 went to foreign students. The Obama administration gave more than 156,000 to dependents of guest workers and students, although deferal law prohibits it. 'Inexplicably,' wrote Center for Immigration Studies director of policy studies Jessica Vaughan. is 1,200 new work permits were issued to aliens who were denied asylum, were suspected of using fraudulent documents, were stowaways, or were refused at a port of entry.' Alabama Republican Senator Jeff Sessions called Monday for 'a full investigation.' 'This massive increase in the labor supply has occurred simultaneously with a steep drop in family incomes and a sharp rise in the number of Americans pushed out of the workforce,' he said. 'All jobs gains since the recession have gone to foreign workers, while the slack labor market has depressed median family incomes almost $5,000 in that time.' Sessions backs a GOP effort to hold up Department of Homeland Security funding past February 27 unless Obama drops his plan to mainstream 5 mllion or more illegal immigrants by guaranteeing them they win't be deported through at least January 2017. The president's plan also calls for green cards and work permits for most of them – but Monday's report suggests many already have the documents. A Gallup poll published on January 29 found that only 7 per cent of Americans want U.S. immigration policy changed in a way that would admit more immigrants. RIO GRANDE: Texas Parks and Wildlife wardens were pulled in to help other police agencies patrol the southern US border and keep immigrants and drugs from crossing into America . Alabama Republican Senator Jeff Sessions, shown Jan. 29 at the confirmation hearing for Loretta Lynch to replace U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, says he supports Homeland Security's 'legal' functions but opposes its activities that he considers unlawful . BIG DAY: Obama introduced his 2016 budget on Monday and warned Republicans not to interfere with his immigration plans . Sessions said a House of Representatives bill pending on the Senate floor 'fully funds every lawful activity of DHS; what it does not fund is outlaw behavior.' Work permits can be used as one of multiple documents needed to obtain driver's licenses and federal benefits. Vaughan said the documents her organization obtained 'indicate that the executive branch is operating a huge parallel immigrant work authorization system outside the bounds of the laws and limits written by Congress.' 'It inevitably reduces job opportunities for Americans.' CIS FOIA Records in Immigration uploaded by DailyMail.com . | 957,220 illegals who crossed into the US without legal permission received work permits between 2009 and 2014 .
The Center for Immigration Studies received evidence through a Freedom of Information Act request .
Overall, 5.5 million immigrants who aren't entitled to green cards got them during Obama's presidency .
Those included people on tourist and student visas, and their dependents . | bd8c6334901170d302bc5171110ed6ca1e62cd0e | [
0,
368,
161,
14079,
4683,
12,
12430,
7,
1879,
45,
2464,
12,
1412,
3,
5,
1166,
21,
24123,
6536,
3
] |
(CNN) -- Patience, it is said, is a virtue. If that's the case, then the scientists involved in the European Space Agency's Rosetta mission have been very virtuous indeed. After all, the men and women involved in the project have waited most of their scientific careers -- through years of planning and construction, not to mention the 10-year journey of the Rosetta spacecraft -- to see the Philae lander land on Comet 67P Churyumov Gerasimenko. And now they can enjoy the fruits of this amazing adventure, which has landed (albeit a little bumpily) and has been returning data. Rosetta was an enormously ambitious and technically risky project. However, overall, it has been a great success so far, with a number of "firsts" for ESA that have not been achieved by any other space agency -- it has chased a comet across the solar system, rendezvoused and then achieved orbit. Landing a probe on the surface like this has been a huge challenge: working in a low gravity environment with poor knowledge of the nature of the comet surface. It was unclear even if it would it be a solid body or a loose collection of material. And there are plenty more challenges ahead. For a start, although data has been collected from the orbiter since August, and the first images are now being received from the lander, it will take many more months and possibly years for Rosetta to realize its full scientific legacy. However, even as the initial excitement over the technical success fades, we will gradually begin to understand the building blocks of the solar system. It is this reality that really speaks to the value of such a project. Comets are pristine material largely unchanged since the planetary system was formed. It is thought that they may be the origin of most of the water found on Earth, and could even have brought complex organic molecules -- the potential raw material for the emergence of life -- to its surface. Just as the Rosetta Stone was the key to unlocking the secrets of Egyptian writing, so the Rosetta space mission will answer some of the fundamental questions about our origins. This potential is being unlocked not by a single-nation space agency, but one that is a collaboration of 20 countries, including European Union, non-EU and several former Soviet Union countries. Yet while it has just celebrated its 50th birthday, the ESA has often operated in the shadow of NASA. For example, the media frequently talk about NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, with little or no acknowledgment of the partnership with ESA. (From a European perspective, it has therefore been particularly welcome to hear the generous acknowledgment of the Rosetta achievements by NASA leaders). All this means that while ESA has had significant successes in the past, the extent of the Rosetta's success represents a timely "coming of age." And, in a world that often seems to be mired in conflict, Rosetta is not just a technical and scientific success, but also a political one. Space research is one of the best examples of peaceful international cooperation and of the ability of humans to do marvelous things when they work together towards a common goal. I am not the only one to have worked on several successful space projects during my career, and to have made many friends around the world as a consequence, often in countries that would have once been regarded as political rivals (or even some that still are). China, a major space power in its own right, is a great example of this -- the ESA and China are currently planning a first joint space science mission as the basis for future collaborations. And this might be the biggest lesson that we can learn from Rosetta -- that as future plans for space research and exploration missions inevitably become more ambitious (and more expensive), the need for agencies to work closely together will increase. If they are smart and forward thinking, then politicians and governments will do what they can to enable this, because if they are successful, we might finally realize the goal of so many of us in the field of achieving truly global cooperation in space, cooperation that will benefit all of humanity. | Rosetta space mission a huge success: Martin Barstow .
Project was enormously ambitious and technically risky: Barstow .
Mission shows benefit of agencies collaborating, he says . | 9ab1d04a1e7fcc2d85ad37aa9077734078a563d4 | [
0,
368,
331,
65,
118,
4759,
45,
8,
15607,
49,
437,
1660,
3,
5,
7963,
10669,
19,
46,
10933,
11
] |
By . Matt Chorley, Mailonline Political Editor . PUBLISHED: . 07:30 EST, 13 August 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 09:47 EST, 13 August 2013 . Unions have tightened their grip on Labour and are now responsible for three-quarters of all big donations to party coffers. The Unite union, which went to war with Ed Miliband over plans to curb union influence, gave £722,195 from April to June this year. New figures reveal that even the Lib Dems have raised more from individual non-union donors than the Labour party since the election. Red Ed: Five of the biggest trade unions accounted for three-quarters of the total donations to Labour coffers in the three months to the end of June . The revelations will heap further pressure on Mr Miliband, who has faced growing criticism for his failure to set the political agenda in recent weeks. A new opinion poll shows 40 per cent of people now back David Cameron and George Osborne to run the economy, compared to just 24 per cent for Mr Miliband and shadow chancellor Ed Balls. The Labour leader is caught between trying to widen the appeal of his party while relying increasingly on trade unions to bankroll his campaign for Number 10. Most people use their will to leave money to family and friends, charities or the church. But one mystery woman decided to donate more than half a million pounds to whoever was in power. Joan LB Edwards bequeathed a sum of £520,000 to the party in government at the time of her death. But with the Tories and Lib Dems in coalition, the two parties had to share the cash. As the larger party, the Conservatives received £420,576 while the Lib Dems had £99,423. The unusual arrangement meant the money was destined for a political party rather than the government. Last year it emerged dead Britons had left the Treasury £54,000 to help pay off the ballooning national debt from beyond the grave. The Electoral Commission today released details of all donations to political parties over £7,500. In the three months to the end of June, . Labour received a total of £3,136,447 in such donations, of which 72 per cent . came from five of the biggest unions. Unite gave £772,195, the GMB £485,830, UNISON £458,080, USDAW £411,147 and the Communication Workers’ Union £143,121. Labour stressed that the figures did not include smaller donations, and said union money accounted for 25 per cent of total donations since the start of the year. Over the period Labour reduced its overdraft facilities by £2.5 million and took out two new loans of £1.22 million each with the Co-operative Bank and Unity Trust Bank. The party had outstanding loans of £12.79 million at the end of June. By contrast, the Tories are recorded as having £2.6 million of loans but have access to overdraft facilities of up to £10.13 million. Tory party chairman Grant Shapps said: ‘Despite Ed Miliband’s promise of change, these independent figures prove his Labour Party is still dominated by the trade unions. ‘They choose the candidates, pick the leader and remain Labour’s biggest donors - providing three quarters of the party's money. ‘Until Ed Miliband stops taking his union paymasters’ cash, he will be too weak to stand up for hardworking people. ‘Instead, he can only offer what the union barons want in return for their money - the same old Labour policy of more spending, more borrowing and more debt, exactly what got us into this mess in the first place.’ In the money: David Cameron's Conservatives received most in donations overall, while Nick Clegg's Lib Dems had more in donations from non-union sources than the Labour party, lead by Ed Miliband . The UK Independence Party was buoyed by donations more than doubling to £160,000. It included a single payment to its Tiverton and Honiton branch worth £50,000, the second highest payment to a local association of any party. UKIP has grown hugely in the last year, picking up an extra 15,000 members. Last month Unite general secretary Len . McCluskey aid out a £63billion shopping list of left-wing policies he . says Labour must adopt or lose millions in funding. He . said the Labour leader had to be ‘bold’ and reverse the coalition’s . benefit reforms, halt spending cuts and borrowing billions to build . 1million extra homes. Labour’s reliance on union backing means it now raises less from individuals than Nick Clegg’s Liberal Democrats. In the latest three months, the Lib Dems raised £801,000 from non-union donations while Labour received only £730,000. Since the 2010 general election the Lib Dems have raised £6million from individuals compared to £4million for Labour. And Mr Miliband has struggled to widen the supporter base, with only 305 individual Labour donors, compared to 1,077 for the Lib Dems. Even with the union barons bankrolling the party, Labour still received less than the Conservatives. David Cameron's party received a total of £4,116,006, including major donations from businessmen. The largest gifts to the Conservatives were £280,770 from co-treasurer and hedge fund boss Michael Farmer and £263,600 from investment banker James Lupton. Labour said the Tories received £1,042,970.93 in the last quarter from donors who attended private dinners with Mr Cameron and other senior ministers. It included £694,370 from donors in the financial sector. Sadiq Khan MP, Labour’s Shadow Justice Secretary, said: 'The Tories have raked in over £1 million from private dinners with David Cameron and senior Ministers in the last quarter. 'And more than two thirds of that comes from the City – the bankers and hedge fund bosses whose taxes David Cameron cut. 'Hardworking families are seeing their living standards squeezed, with prices rising faster than wages. Meanwhile David Cameron shows how out of touch he is, standing up for the millionaires who fund his party.' Meanwhile, the new figures show the Ministry of Sound gave £65,000 to the Lib Dems, just weeks before the nightclub's boss James Palumbo received a peerage from Nick Clegg. The superclub firm made a donation of £50,000 to the central party on June 6, and on June 30 a further £15,000 was given to the Bermondsey and Old Southwark local association of Lib Dem deputy leader Simon Hughes. | Five biggest unions responsible for 72% of £3,136,447 given in April-June .
Nick Clegg's Lib Dems raise more from non-union sources than Labour .
Woman left £520,000 to the governing party - Tories and Lib Dems split it .
UK Independence Party sees donations double to £160,000 .
Dinners for Tory donors and Lib Dem peerage for nightclub backer . | 91ee054713dca0335d3cba2e23eaa3fd3a48d12d | [
0,
368,
5638,
6731,
7021,
7,
33,
230,
1966,
21,
386,
18,
19973,
7,
13,
66,
600,
10712,
12,
1088
] |
The family of a mother who was found beaten to death by her husband six hours after a neighbor called 911 for help have filed a lawsuit against the city of Denver. Loretta Barela's heartbroken relatives said in a federal lawsuit filed on Monday that the 44-year-old might have survived if dispatchers had sent police sooner. A neighbor called 911 around 2am on November 18, 2012 to report seeing a shirtless Barela being punched and dragged across the street by a man. When police failed to arrive after 45 minutes, the neighbor called 911 again. Attack: Loretta Barela, left, was beaten to death by her husband Christopher Perea, right, in November 2012. A concerned neighbor called 911 at 2am but her body was not discovered until 8.15am . Scene: Officers showed up at the home an hour after the first 911 call but knocked on the couple's door, pictured, but left after no one answered. Perea called cops himself hours later to report the killing . Officers finally arrived around 3am and knocked on the front door and shone lights through a window but left when no one answered. Eventually, Barela's husband, 41-year-old Christopher Perea, called authorities to say he believed he had killed his wife. He said her body was 'cold' and that her jaw was 'stiff'. Her beaten body was found inside their home around 8.15am. Perea was arrested and later convicted in her murder. 'I just want to know why they didn't do anything about it,' he daughter Marie Cruz said to 9news at the time. 'She is tiny. She's only 90 pounds getting beaten by a man.' The lawsuit names the city of Denver, four 911 employees and two officers, who they say failed to thoroughly investigate before leaving 18 minutes after they arrived. At the time, Fox31 reported that police sources said they can only kick in a door when it appears to be an emergency, but it was unknown how much the officers knew. Heartbroken: Her daughter, left, and sister, right, said after the attack that they wanted to know why officers failed to help Barela. The family has now filed a lawsuit against the city, dispatchers and police officers . The lawsuit also says that the dispatchers ignored the urgency of the neighbor's calls reporting a life-threatening emergency. At least one dispatcher resigned. 'Somebody can find another job but you can't replace my mom, you really can't,' her tearful daughter told Fox31. The case was among several recent problems at the 911 center. In April 2012, a 911 caller reporting a threatening situation was told Denver police wouldn't take a report unless he returned to city limits. He returned to Denver and was killed within blocks of the earlier incident. And this April, Denver police officials said they were delayed saving a woman after a dispatcher who failed to relay information to officers about the gravity of the situation. In that case, Kristine Kirk frantically called 911 saying her husband Richard was hallucinating after eating marijuana-infused candy and was getting a gun from a safe. Failed: In another Denver case, Kristine Kirk, left, called 911 saying her husband Richard, right, was threatening to shoot her after eating marijuana-infused candy. She was shot after a slow police response . She was shot dead more than 12 minutes into her 911 call. Officials made several changes to their response policies after Kirk's killing, including requiring dispatchers to give certain calls, such as those involving weapons, the highest priority. The new rules also give officers more authority to decide how to respond to calls in which a person is in imminent danger. The suit says the cases show 'a widespread custom or policy of failing to identify and/or prioritize situations involving imminent danger or a life threatening emergency'. City Attorney Scott Martinez said late on Monday that he had not seen the lawsuit and he could not comment. | A neighbor called 911 after seeing a man hit Loretta Barela and drag her across a Denver street in November 2012 .
When officers failed to respond, the neighbor called 911 an hour later .
Police arrived at the house but left after no one answered the door .
Barela's husband Christopher Perea, 41, himself called police at 8am to say that he believed he had killed his wife .
Her family are now suing the city of Denver, dispatchers and the officers . | 33724cb829b92f312c9c14bde229639869b54914 | [
0,
368,
1060,
384,
845,
8410,
10669,
1386,
15,
521,
429,
43,
13928,
3,
99,
17648,
277,
141,
1622,
2095
] |
Chelsey Carlson called the police after she said her husband, Staff Sargent Robert Carlson, punched her in the face and fired gun shots at her from the upstairs window of their house. He's now in jail -- serving eight years in prison for assault with a deadly weapon. Before this incident in 2012, Carlson served 28 months in Iraq and a year in Afghanistan. Carlson is not alone: As many as nine percent of recent retuning veterans have been arrested, according to a study by the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. CNN's Jake Tapper was granted exclusive access to the Haynesville Correctional Center in Virginia, which houses a program geared specifically toward veteran support services. Many veterans say they didn't know about the resources provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs to help make their transition back into civilian life easier. The program ay Haynesville is one of the first of its kind -- and some veterans say it is providing them the guidance they didn't receive during their time in the military. "I got out blind, not knowing all that was out there, not knowing that the V.A. could assist with housing or medical or dental or anything like that," Jimmy Jackson, who was honorably discharged from the marines, said. "I didn't know any of that. I just got out and figured that was the end of my service." Jackson spent time in the facility because he forged checks after his military service concluded. "I was struggling really bad," he said. "I needed the money right then and there." The facility offers a series of services to help veterans help transfer the skills they obtained in the military, including a veterans' benefit coordinator, anger management courses, job training and substance abuse counseling. 5 ways to honor veterans beyond Veterans Day . Drug and alcohol violations are chief among the common crimes for which the 75 veterans serve time in dormitory 5-A OF the correctional center. Archie Tyler, who served in the army in Afghanistan for five years, told CNN's Tapper he took drugs to deal with "some of the sights and stuff I seen over there." "By us being here I actually kind of got back some of those military values," he said. "Now I'm actually on the right track." Rasheedah Martin, a counselor at the facility, says the biggest challenge facing the group is post-traumatic stress disorder. Part of her job, she says, is reaching out to the community to let veterans know that their facility can help. Veterans say these support services and peer workshops set their facility apart from the rest of the prison community. Some even called the facility a "brotherhood." "I got a college degree since I've been here and did really well," Desert Storm veteran Donald Young said. "Guys tended to be supportive of that whereas before they were anywhere from indifferent to mocked it and would get in the way of it." The program is still too new to fully assess its success, but early numbers suggest that the rate of offenders who return to prison after spending time in the facility is lower than average. But when it comes to fighting stigma about seeking mental health in the veteran community, there's still a long way to go. "Don't be too proud to help. Help is out there," Young said. "We laid down our lives for the country. There's people who are willing to do the same for you, for your health and your betterment." Hagel wants to give some Vietnam veterans a second chance . | Haynesville Correctional Center helps veterans with a criminal record adjust to civilian life .
Veterans say the program provides them guidance they never received in the military .
Support services include anger management courses and job training . | ea4066475e228c4cda2fcdece65a0e8f68b345b0 | [
0,
368,
810,
10,
282,
186,
38,
4169,
1093,
13,
1100,
3,
60,
17,
202,
53,
13391,
43,
118,
10195
] |
By . Jill Reilly . PUBLISHED: . 06:38 EST, 20 April 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 17:04 EST, 20 April 2012 . Road to recovery: Lyam Baker, 15, has finally been diagnosed with Cyclical Vomiting Syndrome - a physical condition that causes sufferers to vomit several times a day . A teenager who used to vomit up to 15 times a day, spent six months on a psychiatric ward before her mother finally convinced doctors she had a physical condition, rather than a eating disorder. Lyam Baker, 15, shrank from a healthy size 12 to a size zero within months after developing Cyclical Vomiting Syndrome - a physical condition that causes sufferers to vomit several times a day. But medics believed the teen was purposely making herself sick - and held her on a mental health ward for months before her mother finally convinced them she was suffering from CVS. The condition caused Lyam, from Birmingham, West Midlands, to vomit up to 15 times a day - and at her worst, she weighed just six and a half stone. Her mum, Carol, a nurse, desperately tried to convince doctors that her daughter was not suffering from an eating disorder . But medics didn’t realise that Lyam was actually suffering from the rare condition, which started after she got scared on a school camping trip. Ms Baker said: 'Lyam’s illness very quickly took over our lives. 'Her vomiting cycles were furious and frequent and she spiralled downwards quickly, and her weight declined rapidly. 'She went from being a bright, bubbly . girl, to constantly being exhausted and a shell of her former self- it . is a very lonely illness. 'I . painfully watched my daughter withering away while the doctors kept . insisting she was doing this to herself - she said she wasn’t and I . believed her. 'I had to fight and fight to get the doctors to listen to me - I don’t want any other family to have to go through what I did.' Weight loss: Lyam, shrank from a size 12 to a size zero within months - she missed almost two years of school with sickness episodes, which can be triggered by feelings of stress or excitement, occurring on an almost weekly basis . Painful memories: Lyam's backbone protrudes in this photo taken when she was gravely ill - she is now slowly putting on weight and back at school . Onset: Lyam first developed the condition following a school camping trip when she was 13 - after worrying that teachers would leave the pupils alone . Lyam first developed the condition following a school camping trip when she was 13 - after worrying that teachers would leave the pupils alone. She got so stressed that she started . vomiting - and for the next 18 months, continued to suffer horrendous . vomiting episodes that could last for up to five days - where she would . be sick up to 80 times in a week. The . condition meant that bright Lyam missed almost two years of school with . sickness episodes, which can be triggered by feelings of stress or . excitement, occurring on an almost weekly basis. Ms Baker said: 'Every time Lyam had another episode, she would be admitted to hospital for a few days and then discharged. 'Everyone . kept telling me it was a psychiatric issue, but I could see that it . wasn’t. The consultant called in the mental health team and eventually . admitted her to a psychiatric unit. 'While Lyam was there, staff would take away her vomit bowl, and even hold her against the wall in a bid to break the cycle. 'There . had been a brief mention of CVS when Lyam first started being sick - . but doctors seemed to totally disregard it for months. 'I . was so worried they would never discover what was wrong with her, I . used to cry myself to sleep at night. I thought I was going to end up . planning her funeral.' CVS is characterised by recurrent, prolonged attacks of severe vomiting, nausea and lethargy, with no apparent cause. Vomiting persists at frequent intervals, 5-6 times per hour at the peak, for periods ranging from hours to10 days or more. It most commonly lasts for between 1 and 4 days and the sufferer is generally in good health between episodes. There is no diagnostic clinical or laboratory tests for CVS itself - it can be diagnosed when other condition have been eliminated. Who gets CVS?It is thought that anyone can potentially get CVS. Sufferers are more likely than average to have a family history of migraine, and/or travel sickness sometimes.What triggers a vomiting episode?For many with CVS there is nothing obvious that starts an attack, for others some specific 'triggers' can be identified which may initiate a CVS episode. Physical stress is one of the most common triggers. Going without food for too long and sleep deprivation can also act as physical triggers. When does it start?The onset of CVS can occur from infancy to adulthood. It most commonly develops between the age of 3-7 years and it can persist from months to decades. It affects males and females equally. Source: cvsa.com . It . was only after almost 12 months on the ward that specialists eventually . realised that there was something physically wrong with Lyam - and were . able to give her medication in a bid to control the vomiting. Ms Baker added: 'Lyam’s symptoms have subsided recently - she now hasn’t had an attack for a few months. 'She is slowly putting on weight again, and is able to go back to school. 'I am finally getting my daughter back. It’s very painful to talk about, but I need people to be more aware of CVS. 'We . don’t know exactly why her condition has improved suddenly, it could . just be a hormonal balance - but we’re hoping she won’t have to suffer . again. 'We need people, . and medical professionals especially, to be more aware of this . condition and hopefully sufferers will be able to be diagnosed more . easily. 'I don’t want any other family to go through what we have done.' Dr Robin Dover, from the Cyclical . Vomiting Syndrome Association, said: 'No-one really knows for sure what . causes CVS, although in the last couple of years, there has been . research carried out which suggests it may be caused by genetic changes . that can be inherited. 'It’s . difficult to say how many people suffer from the condition, because . diagnosis is so complicated and many people are never properly . diagnosed. 'However, . studies carried out in Australia and the UK suggest that somewhere . between 0.1 and two per cent of the population can be affected at some . point in their lives. 'There . are no tests to diagnose CVS, and therefore it is always a case of . eliminating every other possible cause of sickness before a diagnosis . can be made. 'Similar symptoms of vomiting can be caused by a range of problems from a brain tumour to kidney abnormalities. 'But . often the most hurtful thing that happens is that patients are told . that they have mental health issues - it can be torturous for the . sufferers and their families, and often ends up delaying a proper . diagnosis.' Brighter future: Lyam and her mother Carol: 'I am finally getting my daughter back. It's very painful to talk about, but I need people to be more aware of CVS,' said Lyam's mother . | Lyam Baker, 15, suffers from Cyclical Vomiting Syndrome - a physical condition that causes sufferers to vomit several times a day .
Rare condition started after she got scared on a school camping trip . | 91dc81454a0787dfecdcb796db19f836c76276d3 | [
0,
368,
120,
12223,
5225,
265,
10731,
6,
10725,
65,
2031,
118,
12223,
28,
6400,
14758,
1489,
15212,
155,
53
] |
By . Paul Thompson . UPDATED: . 07:34 EST, 1 September 2011 . A 90-year-old woman had part of her leg bitten off after an 8ft-long alligator lunged at her as she walked in her Florida garden. Margaret Webb was saved from a grisly death by a neighbour who saw her fighting for her life as the gator tried to drag her back into the water. Officials said the elderly victim suffered severe leg trauma during the horrific attack and the remains of her limb were amputated at hospital. Survival: Margaret Webb, 90, of Copeland, Florida, was saved from a grisly death after an 8ft long alligator lunged at her as she walked in her garden . Ms Webb had been walking in her garden when the alligator surged out of a 14ft deep canal that runs alongside the bottom of her garden. Before she had time to run away the gator had surged up the grass and clamped its powerful jaws on her leg. Ms Webb was able to dig her fingers into the ground and hold on until neighbour Dwain Daniels, who was driving past, saw her in trouble and dashed to her rescue. Mr Daniels was able to grab Ms Webb and managed to fire several shots at the gator. He believes he hit the gator, which slipped back into the water. Inspection: Ms Webb had been walking in her garden when the alligator surged out of a 14ft deep canal that runs alongside the bottom of her garden . Ms Webb was airlifted from her home in Copeland, Florida, to hospital where she remains in a critical condition. '(Her neighbour) looked over saw the lady on the . ground half in the water, wheeled around and jumped out of his truck to . come to her aid. It appears he was able to pull her away from the gator' Jayson Horadam, . Florida Wildlife Commission . Wildlife officials praised the heroic actions of Mr Daniels, who had been driving past in his pick up truck when he witnessed the attack. 'He looked over saw the lady on the ground half in the water, wheeled around and jumped out of his truck to come to her aid,' said Jayson Horadam, Captain of Law Enforcement for Florida Wildlife Commission. 'It appears he was able to pull her away from the gator.' Snap: Before Ms Webb had time to run away the alligator had surged up the grass and clamped its powerful jaws on her leg (file picture) Surgeons at Lee Memorial Hospital in Fort Myers were unable to save Ms Webb's mangled leg and had to amputate the limb. An 18-year-old boy had part of his arm bitten off by an alligator last year while swimming in a canal near where the latest attack took place. Gabriella Ferraro, a spokeswoman for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, said: 'I believe there was an amputation.' Two licensed wranglers searched for two hours in an attempt to find the gator. Alligator attacks are rare, but often prove deadly. There were five alligator attacks on people in Florida last year. | Margaret Webb, 90, was at her garden in Florida .
Neighbour grabbed her and fired shots at alligator .
Webb is in a critical condition in hospital after attack . | 0d89b7431ff655c21bc42be7e841e6cfe0614b45 | [
0,
368,
120,
18,
24024,
26,
16689,
1620,
115,
6,
2777,
6,
13,
638,
4343,
232,
6,
2599,
6,
47
] |
Northern Territory Labour Party leader Matthew Gardiner has left Australia to reportedly join the fight against the Islamic State militants in the Middle East. The Australian Federal Police has confirmed it is investigating the case after the former NT union official and senior NT Labor party figure, left the country. It is understood the 43-year-old, who recently resigned as NT United Voice union secretary, was heading for Iraq or Syria where he plans to join Kurdish militants. Gardiner, who has an army background, was allowed to leave the country because he was not on any watch list, ABC reports. Scroll down for video . NT Labour Party leader Matthew Gardiner has left Australia to reportedly join the fight against the Islamic State . The AFP would only confirm Gardiner was the subject of an active investigation. 'The AFP is aware of this matter,' an AFP spokesperson said on Sunday. 'As this matter is part of an ongoing investigation it is not appropriate to comment further.' A union spokesperson would only confirm Mr Gardiner had recently resigned, and said any further questions should be put the AFP. Mr Gardiner is also head of the NT Labor Party, though his status in this role remains unclear. Around 90 Australians are understood to have travelled to the Middle East to join militant causes . Gardiner reportedly headed to Iraq or Syria where he plans to join Kurdish militants and fight against IS . A federal Labor spokesman said opposition leader Bill Shorten was aware of reports regarding Mr Gardiner, but no statement would be made until they were confirmed. Mr Gardiner, 43, reportedly served as an Australian Army combat engineer in Somalia in the early 1990s. Attorney General George Brandis has received an AFP brief on the Gardiner case. A spokesperson for Mr Brandis said Australians who join militant causes overseas face imprisonment should they survive and return. The Australian Federal Police has confirmed it is investigating the case of Gardiner who left the country . Gardiner reportedly headed to Iraq or Syria where he plans to join Kurdish militants and fight against IS . 'If you fight illegally in overseas conflicts, you face up to life in prison upon your return to Australia,' the spokesperson said. 'It is illegal to fight in Syria for either side of the conflict. 'It is illegal to fight for a terrorist organisation anywhere, including in Iraq.' Australians who wanted to oppose the actions of the Islamic State group should instead donate to humanitarian groups operating in affected areas, the spokesperson said. Around 90 Australians are understood to have travelled to the Middle East to join militant causes. | A former union official has left the country to join fight against IS .
It is understood Matthew Gardiner headed to Iraq or Syria to join Kurdish .
The Australian Federal Police has confirmed it is investigating the case .
The 43-year-old was allowed to leave the country because he was not on any watch list, report says .
A spokesperson for Attorney General George Brandis said: 'If you fight illegally in overseas conflicts, you face up to life in prison' | e731fdd6619d9121834f153ba140b5e1ecbbc80f | [
0,
368,
3,
7359,
7021,
2314,
11,
2991,
3,
7359,
9836,
1088,
2320,
9771,
3121,
26,
4899,
65,
646,
2051
] |
By . Wills Robinson . Second chance: Benefits cheat Gerald Baalham, 41, was accused of 'spitting in the face' of staff at Culford School in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk . A school IT technician who was given his job back despite stealing £56,000 in benefits has used a staff credit card to purchase thousands of pounds worth of computer equipment to sell on eBay. Gerald Baalham, 41, was given a second chance by management at the £20,000-a-year Culford School in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, after he was convicted of fraud last year. But he has now been accused of stabbing his fellow employees in the back after spending £32,000 on computers and then selling them over the internet. He also snapped up £1,000 worth of computer equipment for himself at the school’s expense. The judge at Ipswich Crown Court accused him of 'spitting in the face' of those who had kept him on, after he was given a 26-week suspended prison sentence for benefit fraud last year. Judge David Goodin accepted Baalham had become trapped in a 'vicious cycle' of dishonesty which he had found hard to break. The technician did not use the money to fund and extravagant lifestyle and was shocked when he was informed of all the full amount he had used. Judge Goodin said: 'It’s plain that you were in my judgement ill. You were under stress and you were dealing with a great deal more than your particular personality was able to deal with.' Baalham was given a two-year suspended prison sentence, after he was found guilty of abusing his position as head of the IT department. He also ordered Baalham to attend a Thinking Skills programme and gave him a 13-week curfew between the hours of 8pm and 6am. Robert Sadd, prosecuting, said Baalham was in charge of IT at the independent school and was not a teacher. Mr Sadd said the benefit fraud for which Baalham had been given a suspended prison sentence last year related to his failure to notify the authorities of a change in his circumstances while claiming Disability Living Allowance. He said that when he was quizzed by police about the computer equipment fraud he had expressed surprise at the amount involved. Claire Furlong, defending, said Baalham had been a technician at Culford School and was 'out of his depth' when he was promoted to head of department. Miss Furlong branded his scam 'unsophisticated' and said he had committed the offences after getting into debt. She said Baalham had suffered a mental breakdown and contemplated suicide. Stabbed in the back: He was given his job back at the £20,000-a-year boarding school despite being convicted of benefits fraud last year . | Gerald Baalham, 41, kept his job at Culford School in Bury St Edmunds .
Returned as IT technician despite his benefits conviction last year .
Purchased £32,000 worth of equipment and then sold them over the internet .
Also spent £1,000 pounds on himself at the school's expense .
Judge David Goodin accused him of 'spitting in the face' of his employers .
He was given a two-year suspended sentence at Ipswich Crown Court . | 972bf8674dcc13199aad8ffe68ea25af692cc8b4 | [
0,
368,
120,
11970,
2344,
17730,
28431,
2659,
138,
1483,
6,
8798,
6,
65,
261,
871,
998,
895,
12,
1242
] |
(CNN) -- The blast was so catastrophic, it destroyed Marty Marak's home, killed his dog and leveled houses for blocks around. But he had no time for panic or grief. Marak darted right toward the danger, even as the threat of a second explosion loomed. Like the rest of the firefighters in the town of West, Texas, population 2,800, Marak is a volunteer firefighter. He doesn't get paid to battle flames or save lives; he actually runs a heating and air conditioning company. What we know about the explosion . But he risks his life just to help his tight-knit central Texas city. On Wednesday night, the valor of the volunteers was put to the ultimate test. Firefighters were already battling an enormous blaze at West Fertilizer Co. when an earth-shaking explosion blasted windows and walls off homes. Rolling fireballs leaped into the sky, and residents 50 miles away felt the force of the blast. West Mayor Tommy Muska, also a volunteer firefighter, said "it was a like a nuclear bomb went off." Deadly fertilizer plant blast devastates Texas town . The explosion devastated Marak's family. "It demolished both the houses there, mine and my mom's, and it killed my dog," Marak's wife, Cheryl, told CNN's Piers Morgan. But Marty Marak took off, trying to extinguish the blaze before it could trigger a second explosion at a nearby fertilizer tank at any moment. A flood of other volunteers also scrambled to the scene, including firefighters and emergency medical personnel from hundreds of miles away, the Texas Department of Public Safety said. With her house annihilated, Cheryl Marak took cover in her brother's home, about two miles away from town. For hours, she wondered if her husband was still OK. "For all those people who are still there ... responders that remain ... you just worry about everybody," she said, her voice cracking. What is anhydrous ammonia? The dread was amplified when the director of the city's emergency management system said two EMS personnel and possibly three firefighters were killed. Finally, shortly before midnight, Cheryl Marak was able to speak with her husband and hear he was OK. "I'm begging him to come home, to let me come and get him ... but he said he can't. He's going to stay with his guys," Cheryl said. So the excruciating wait continued. Rep. Bill Flores, whose district represents the town of West, said the courage of Marak in the face of loss isn't uncommon. "That's just the way that we Texans are wired," he said. "Even though we face our own personal tragedies from time to time, we still know that we have to go help others -- and then assess our own tragedies later on." | All firefighters in West, Texas, are volunteers .
Marty Marak runs a heating and air conditioning company as his day job .
He kept fighting the blaze even after the blast killed his dog and destroyed his house .
Firefighters and medical workers from hundreds of miles away also came to help . | e4b112a36e40de0813288baa5e54a6949a33a8c9 | [
0,
368,
120,
18,
115,
8038,
15,
26,
1244,
6,
2514,
6,
2074,
3547,
6192,
6,
19,
3,
9,
6662
] |
BEIJING, China (CNN) -- The world will soon see an "explosion" of swine flu cases as the H1N1 virus spreads rapidly around the world, a top World Health Organization official said Friday. Spread of the H1N1 virus is entering an "acceleration period," WHO official says. Spread of the virus is entering an "acceleration period" and it is certain that there will be more cases and more deaths, said Dr. Shin Young-soo, the organization's regional director for the Western Pacific. "Most countries may see a doubling of cases every three to four days for two months until peak transmission is reached," he said at a symposium in Beijing, China. "At a certain point, there will seem to be an explosion in case numbers. I believe it is very likely that all countries will see community-level transmission by the end of the year." More than 1,490 people around the world have died from the virus since it emerged this spring, Shin said. Swine flu is the first influenza pandemic in more than 40 years. So far, it has caused mostly mild illness, but Shin warned "the virus has a sting in its tail" because it is very infectious and "has the potential to cause more serious disease." Any widespread resistance to antiviral drugs, expected to be available this fall, could make the situation worse, he said. The virus so far has shown itself to be unpredictable, Shin said, so the public needs to be prepared. He called for accurate and timely public health messages and early treatment of severe cases. The public needs to comply with these health messages, and everyone needs to be able to recognize symptoms early and get timely medical care, he said. "We will only be safe when we have applied these lessons in every country dealing with this virus," Shin said. "We need to learn quickly since, as I believe, it appears that this pandemic will get worse before the situation gets better." | Spread of the virus is entering an "acceleration period," official says .
Countries may see a doubling of cases every three to four days, he says .
More than 1,490 people have died from the virus since last spring .
H1N1 is the first influenza pandemic in more than 40 years . | 0c4eaf7c5263b7a6be99c4d4fb75d1e6707b05d8 | [
0,
368,
454,
536,
567,
536,
6722,
19,
16436,
7313,
300,
8,
296,
3,
5,
1537,
145,
1914,
591,
2394
] |
The family of a 22-year-old Chicago woman gunned down by an . off-duty police detective are suing the city and the officer in connection with . her murder. At around 1am on March 21, Rekia Boyd was shot in the head . by Det. Dante Servin as she stood with friends outside a property in Chicago’s . Lawndale neighbourhood. According to James Montgomery the family’s lawyer, Servin . pulled up to the group in an unmarked vehicle and told them to ‘shut up’. Gunned down: Rekia Boyd was shot and killed during an argument between a group she was standing with and a Chicago police detective . A verbal altercation then began between one of Boyd’s . friends and Servin which culminated in the Chicago policeman firing a volley of . shots at the group. As the friends scattered Boyd was hit in the head and . 39-year-old Antonio Cross was struck in the hand. Almost 24 hours after the shooting, Boyd died in Chicago’s Mt. Sinai Hospital while Servin escaped arrest by claiming that Antonio Cross had . approached him with a gun and that he fired in self-defence. '(He) rolls the window down and says, ‘Hey guys, keep the . noise down.’ At that point, one of the offenders comes at him as he’s sitting . in his car,' said Chicago Fraternal Order of Police spokesman Pat Camden . Tragic: The Chicago Police have admitted that Rekia was an innocent by-stander . 'The offender has a weapon in his hand. The officer announced he’s . police – ‘Drop the gun! Police!’ 'The offender continues to advance on him, at that point, . the officer fires, in fear of his life.' While Chicago Police maintain that Cross was armed and that . the shooting was justified, distraught members of Boyd's family told NBC Chicago that he . was carrying a cell-phone. Gathering evidence: Boyd was with a group of friends around 1 a.m. near 15th Place and Albany Avenue when off-duty Chicago Police Det. Dante Servin pulled up in an unmarked vehicle . Furthermore, Cross has been charged by police with misdemeanor . aggravated assault and to date no weapon has been recovered from the scene. ‘Rekia Boyd was shot . and killed on March 21, 2012, without any legal justification,’ Montgomery said . during a press conference on Friday 6 April to announce the legal action . brought by the family against the city and Servin. ‘Her young life was snuffed out by an aggressive, . intimidating police officer who provoked the confrontation and when met with a . verbal rejoinder took the life of an innocent young woman.’ Distraught: Martinez Sutton (left) and family attorney James Montgomery (right) speak at a press conference on Friday April 6 and announce legal action against the City of Chicago . ‘The police spokesperson publicly claimed that the officer . fired in defence of his life when a man approached his vehicle and pointed a . gun at him. ‘Incidentally, no gun was ever found.’ While Chicago Police have not denied that Boyd was an . innocent bystander, Servin, who lives on the same block as the shootings has . not commented. At the end of March a protest of 200 people took to the . streets of Chicago to raise awareness of Boyd’s death and the fact that . Servin has not been charged. Unsatisfied: Family attorney James Montgomery demands answers from the City of Chicago and Detective Servin . ‘This young beautiful . girl dead in the streets. Why?’ said Boyd's brother, Martinez Sutton in an interview with ABC. ‘All we want to know is what happened?’ While Sutton and Darian Boyd, another brother of the victim . have set up a website and petition to seek justice for their sister, several . witnesses have reported that they believe that Servin was drunk when the . shooting occurred. Speaking of an apparent history between Servin and the local . community in the Lawndale area, Darian Boyd, the victim’s oldest brother was . reported to have made comments to news outlets about the detective’s attitude. Killed: A picture from Facebook shows Rekia Boyd (right) with an unidentified friend . ‘He basically said, ‘What do I have to do to get some peace, . quiet and respect…shoot someone?’ With no party denying that a verbal altercation took place . between Antonio Cross and Detective Servin, the victim’s family are pushing the City of Chicago for answers. The Boyd family lawyer James Montgomery said the shooting happened simply because . someone "mouthed off" to the officer. Independent Police Review Authority chief administrator . Llana Rosenzweig said in a statement that they have identified several . witnesses and gathered evidence from the scene. Investigation: Chicago Police maintain that one of the group Boyd was with produced a firearm which is disputed by witnesses . According to local CBS News Servin is still working with the Chicago Police . Department while his actions are investigated. 'I couldn't believe it,' Martinez Sutton said during the Friday . April 6 press conference. 'I saw a news story about a 22-year-old woman . who had been shot in the head. I was like, I feel sorry for that family. I come . to find out, we were the family.' | Innocent bystander Rekia Boyd is fatally hit by stray bullet to the head fired by police detective .
Chicago Police statement said that Detective Dante Servin was approached by a man carrying a gun .
No firearm has been recovered from the scene . | abb688d91169c0f8c06f74339635afd893579ed1 | [
0,
368,
1060,
2335,
2538,
16,
8,
819,
3,
5,
57,
3715,
2095,
23959,
3,
5,
374,
17,
5,
309
] |
Paris, France (CNN) -- A tape of a man claiming to be Osama Bin Laden threatening France appears to be authentic, the French Foreign Ministry said Thursday. Bin Laden warned France to get its troops out of Afghanistan and not to oppress Muslims at home in a tape broadcast by the Al-Jazeera network Wednesday. "If you want to tyrannize and think that it is your right to ban the free women from wearing the burqa, isn't it our right to expel your occupying forces, your men from our lands by striking them by the neck?" the speaker demands, in reference to recently passed French legislation barring women from covering their faces in public. "This message only confirms the reality of the terrorist threat against which the French authorities have taken and continue to take appropriate measures," the ministry said in a statement Thursday. "French authorities are fully mobilized to secure the release of seven hostages kidnapped in Niger on September 16. These statements by Bin Laden will not affect our assessment of the situation of our hostages and obviously will, therefore, not erode our efforts to secure their release. France will continue to fight against terrorism alongside its partners," the ministry said. Five French nationals were kidnapped last month along with a person from Togo and one from Madagascar. A photograph of them was posted September 30 on a website linked to al Qaeda. French authorities are treating the Bin Laden message "very, very seriously," CNN counterterror analyst Paul Cruickshank said. An opposition lawmaker Wednesday urged "contempt towards these terrorists. "All of this is derisory, contemptible. We must take this message for what it is but we must stand together in France, all French, whatever the circumstances and whatever our differences," said Francois Loncle, a Socialist Party member of the foreign relations committee of the National Assembly said on RTL radio. The demands of the speaker on the tape are clear. "The only way to safeguard your nation and maintain your security is to lift all your injustice and its extensions off our people and most importantly to withdraw your forces from Bush's despicable war in Afghanistan," the speaker says. The tape is audio only. The speaker does not appear. CNN was not able to confirm that it is really Osama Bin Laden, the head of al Qaeda. But fake Bin Laden tapes have never been broadcast, U.S. intelligence experts say. "As you kill us, you will be killed. As you imprison us, you will be imprisoned, and as you threaten our security, we will threaten your security and the initiator of the injustice is the true aggressor," the speaker says. The France's terror alert level is red, the second highest, authorities say. It did not change immediately in response to the new tape. Paris has been on edge lately, with the Eiffel Tower having been evacuated twice. Al Qaeda has issued a series of threats against France in the past, and French citizens have been killed by groups in Africa claiming affiliation with Bin Laden's group. Bin Laden is still providing strategic direction to al Qaeda from a base somewhere in Pakistan, Cruickshank said. "He is still involved in actual plotting... signing off on (an) operation, Western intelligence authorities believe," he said. But there have been only two successful attacks on the West since September 11, 2001, he pointed out. Commuter trains in Madrid, Spain, were bombed in March, 2004, killing 191 people. Public transport in London, England, was bombed in July, 2005, killing 52, plus four suicide bombers. France has 3,750 troops in Afghanistan, according to NATO's International Security Assistance Force. French lawmakers approved a ban on full-face veils in September, citing security concerns and saying they violated women's human rights. The ban is scheduled to come into effect in the spring. | NEW: The message only "confirms the terrorist threat," the Foreign Ministry says .
Bin Laden threatens France on the tape, which was broadcast Wednesday .
He warns Paris to get its troops out of Afghanistan .
France must show "contempt" towards the threat, an opposition lawmaker says . | 338c004c7a49cbcb6c34f350e09d66ee4e74bbd5 | [
0,
368,
4874,
13,
388,
3,
14655,
12,
36,
411,
7,
265,
9,
7617,
23019,
3,
14390,
1410,
3,
5
] |
(CNN) -- We all know what happens when urban sprawl gets out of control: Commutes back up, smog thickens, and concrete suburbs gobble up green spaces. The oceans are growing crowded, and governments are increasingly trying to plan their use. But what about "ocean sprawl"? Until recently, no one gave that idea much thought. But the oceans, like the land, have gotten crowded, and now scientists and policy makers are looking for ways to plan ocean development -- with the aim of preventing our public-owned seas from turning into sprawling, watery versions of Houston, Texas, or Atlanta, Georgia. "The oceans are kind of the last frontier for use and development," said Amanda Leland, ocean policy director at the Environmental Defense Fund, an advocacy group. "Even in the 1970s we thought that the oceans were limitless resources of fish. We know today now that fisheries are collapsing all around the world." In an attempt to address this and other crowding problems, governments are for the first time devising comprehensive plans for their marine waters. The Obama administration on June 12 announced a task force devoted to federal ocean planning. By September, the group must recommend a national policy on the subject that's designed to protect ocean ecology, address climate change and promote sustainable ocean economies. A handful of states, including Massachusetts and Rhode Island, are charting similar courses. Massachusetts on June 30 published a draft plan for its coastal waters, which is scheduled to be finalized by the end of the year. One of the state's main aims is to make space for two ocean wind farms -- taking up 2 percent of the state's waters -- without angering fishing industries, killing whales or harming ecosystems. Internationally, several European countries, including Denmark, Belgium, the United Kingdom and France, are pioneering the new field, said Fanny Douvere, a co-principal investigator at UNESCO's Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission. Ocean advocates say these planning processes are urgently needed and have been a long time in coming. One reason it's taken so long is that people can't see that the oceans are filling up, said Sandra Whitehouse, a marine biologist and senior adviser at the Ocean Conservancy, an environmental group. "The majority of the ecosystem is under the water," Whitehouse said. "So it's out of sight, out of mind. We're only looking at the surface." Beneath the water, though, overfishing has caused some fish stocks to collapse. By one report, wild fish could disappear by mid-century. The energy sector threatens to take up large chunks of water. Shipping lanes cross the paths of endangered whales. Fish farms are growing in some countries. Climate change is altering ocean chemistry. And power lines, reefs, lobster traps and sunken ships compete for seafloor space. In Europe's North Sea, expanding industries have tried to claim three times the amount of ocean space than is available, said Douvere, of UNESCO. What happens on land also affects the oceans. A 2003 report by the Pew Oceans Commission says that each year, coastal development destroys 20,000 acres of estuaries and near-coast fish habitat. Furthermore, pavement on land creates "expressways" for oil and other pollutants to run into the ocean. "Every eight months, nearly 11 million gallons of oil run off our streets and driveways into our waters -- the equivalent of the Exxon Valdez oil spill," the report says. When the renewable energy sector started trying to move into the sea, the situation went from crowded to unmanageable and without a clear plan, said Whitehouse, of the Ocean Conservancy. "There's a lot of pressure to be able to harness this energy," she said, "but it's very important that this be done in a proactive and comprehensive way, because we also have so many important economic aspects of our oceans." Since there are new uses but not new space, planning is necessary, said Charles Ehler, another co-principal investigator at the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission. He added, "There's not enough space for everything, and there are going to have to be trade-offs that are made." Current efforts focus on broad public interest rather than specific conflicts, Ehler said. Until now, the ocean primarily was divvied up in a sort of "free-for-all" in which "whoever gets there first gets the access," he said. Leland, of the Environmental Defense Fund, said the patchwork of federal agencies managing the oceans in the United States contributes to the problem. More than 140 federal laws govern the ocean's use; and six federal departments, along with dozens of agencies, are in charge of implementing those laws, according to the Pew Oceans Commission report. Charles M. Wahle, a marine ecologist and senior scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, said Obama's ocean-planning efforts are a complete shift in thinking. "We're acknowledging that we want and need to use the ocean in a lot of different ways," he said. "They all have standing, and we need to figure out a way to allocate them fairly and sustainably." He added, "Fifty years from now, you should be able to go to a place [in the ocean] and know what will be happening there." There are skeptics of the shift. Commercial fisheries are hampered by current regulations and could be further harmed if the ocean is divided up among too many groups, said Jim Ruhle, president of Commercial Fishermen of America, an industry group. "We make our livelihoods from that ocean, and we want to make sure that we have reasonable plans in effect to allow that to take place," he said. Some other fishing groups oppose new ocean uses, like offshore wind energy, entirely. Despite this new emphasis on planning, there's still a chance that ocean waters could go the way of haphazard cities. "The proof will be in the pudding," said Wahle, of NOAA. But he said it's exciting that so many groups are on board for a new way of thinking. "If we do our jobs right, overall, the oceans will be healthier, ecosystems will be more productive, people will derive more services and benefits and value from those ecosystems," he said, "and industry will be able to plan and commit and invest in ways that actually work." | The oceans are growing crowded, and some scientists worry about "ocean sprawl"
For the first time, governments plan ocean use in a comprehensive way .
Advocate says oceans are the "last frontier for use and development"
President Obama creates task force to map out the future of the oceans . | c200567020c1f00ac9b79901146119a2aa9a8789 | [
0,
368,
1459,
2842,
33,
10839,
120,
906,
3,
5,
7087,
18408,
497,
1459,
2842,
33,
10839,
120,
906,
11
] |
The selfie craze has even reached the animal kingdom, it appears. Students at Durrell Wildlife Park in Jersey have revealed these amazing images captured life in the park from the animal's point of view. Cameras were installed in animal proof boxes and put in enclosures as part of the project. Scroll down for video . While a female played with the camera, a grumpy looking male silverback called Bodongo sat grumpily in the background. The pair came up with a tossed a camera into the gorilla enclosure after encasing it in a reinforced box. The box contained raisins, so the gorillas lifted the box over their heads to shake out the food and in the process recorded themselves and their family members. They even managed to sum of life in the gorilla enclosure perfectly - while a female played with a camera, a grumpy looking male silverback called Bodongo sat grumpily in the background. Created by American students Eloise Sherrid and Zoe Lohmann, they are part of an art project the pair developed. 'They are from an ongoing video project Zoe and I are working on to promote the Trust's conservation methods and education programs,' Sherrid told Dailymail.com. 'We're both very passionate environmentalists, so as artists we decided to put our skills to use helping Durrell get recognition for the extraordinary work they do around the globe.' Sherris admitted that the gorilla picture was a particularly tough one to capture, and at one point the she was shouted at by Bodongo, the silverback, for getting too close to his son. 'I was too aggressive with my attempts to film the baby, Indigo, so his father shouted at me a few times to back off.' Jon Stark, a Senior Ape Keeper at Durrell, did an experiment a few years ago where he tossed a camera into the gorilla enclosure after encasing it in a reinforced Pelican box, so the pair used this approach. 'Together we recreated the scenario with HD video, and were able to record the silverback, Badongo, his mate Kahili, and their son Indigo. 'The box contained raisins, so the gorillas lifted the box over their heads to shake out the food and in the process recorded themselves and their family members.' Female orangutans Annette and her offspring Jantho seemed keep to try and eat the raising hidden in the camera box. Kea, the parks 'miracle' orangutan, born to a mother who had been declared 'infertile' was also part of the experiment. 'Some of the animals, like the Livingstone fruitbats, were very comfortable being filmed up close with keeper supervision,' the pair said. 'To get to the hard to reach places, we mounted a GoPro camera to a broom handle and raised it up to the ceiling to capture them hanging from an angle not usually accessible by humans. 'The bats actually reached out a few times and tried to climb onto the stick.' The pair also went to Sorel Point, where the photographed sheep. The team created a range of cameras for the project, ranging from a protected camera for orangutans and gorillas to a pole camera for sheep. 'On this occasion we also got to meet the local flock of sheep, who were decidedly more interested in finding out if our camera equipment was edible than they were impressed by our repeated arm brandishing and attempts at scaring them off.' They are now working on editing the video footage from the experiment, which is set to be released later this year. 'We've found that documenting animals and humans really isn't that different,' they said. 'We have collected many great and memorable moments. 'However, we have also collected about 30 hours of footage along the way and are facing the daunting task of sifting through it all and finding just the right pieces to create our final collection of videos. ' | Students at Durrell Wildlife Park in Jersey put cameras into animal proof boxes .
Boxes were filled with raisins to capture the animal's attention, and then thrown into enclosures . | ef9c89b4398468f5500ebedc846b83b63f3c4142 | [
0,
368,
1383,
9534,
280,
16,
8,
2447,
45,
8,
2586,
31,
7,
500,
13,
903,
3,
5,
12148,
7
] |
Jerusalem (CNN) -- An Israeli man accused of having 21 wives and fathering 49 children was charged Sunday in a Tel Aviv court with multiple counts of sexual assault, rape, sodomy and enslavement. Goel Ratzon, 60, was arrested last month. Authorities charge that he lived in a compound with the 21 wives, having convinced them that he was omnipotent. All the wives tattooed Ratzon's name and picture on their arms and the children's names are all derivatives of his name, according to the court papers. Ratzon married his first wife in 1972, added a second wife in the early 1980s, and from 1991 added another 19 wives, according to the indictment. He persuaded the women that he had the power to heal and curse, through which he gained "complete control of their lives, desires, thoughts, emotions and actions," the court papers say. Ratzon spoke in court for first time last week, saying he was innocent, that everything was done with consent, and that any women who wished to leave could do so, Israeli media reported. The indictment charges that the defendant "captured the women in a 'pseudo-family' structure that revolved around the worship of his image, making the birth of his children a supreme goal that the women must aspire to, and all this was to glorify him while serving and fulfilling all his needs." Ratzon demanded that his wives and children completely obey all of his orders and has stringent rules and had a penalty system if they disobeyed him, the indictment alleges. He also "abused his wives by trampling their self-worth and cut them off from any outside social contact including their families, and by this enslaved them to him and his desires," the court papers say. The indictment includes allegations of rape and sodomy of two of his daughters, sexual assault of another daughter, and rape, assault and sodomy of four other girls. Beyond the mental and physical control Ratzon had over his wives, he effectively controlled all of their finances, the indictment says. The women deposited major chunks of their social security payments and salaries into the family's account, paid for all of his living expenses and bought him all his property and anything he demanded, authorities charge. Ratzon's cult has been known to the authorities for about 10 years, they said, but it was only about six months ago they succeeded in convincing one of the women to file a complaint. That brought about his arrest last month. CNN's Shira Medding contributed to this report. | Goel Ratzon, 60 accused of living with 21 wives .
Ratzon allegedly controlled women in a cult-like structure .
Indictment says authorities knew of his cult for 10 years . | 2aa2b70c48482d3249b8352a861e20c3416b8259 | [
0,
368,
1060,
388,
11970,
13,
578,
1401,
28908,
6,
2353,
53,
9526,
502,
3,
5,
216,
399,
7,
76
] |
Sport in schools has slumped despite Coalition promises to create an Olympic legacy through education, new figures have suggested. Pupils spend less time in sport and PE lessons now than four years ago despite a drive to ‘inspire a generation’ to become more active following the London 2012 games. The average number of minutes of PE offered to pupils in England has dropped to well below two hours per week, according to a survey by the Youth Sport Trust. Scroll down for video . The drive to ‘inspire a generation’ to become more active following the London 2012 Olympic Games is failing . Students spend less time in PE lessons like gymnastics now than they did four years ago (posed for picture) Pupils aged five to seven spend just an hour and 42 minutes per week in PE lessons – nearly 25 minutes less than in 2010. The findings, coupled with soaring obesity rates among youngsters, paint a ‘bleak and worrying’ picture, according to Baroness Sue Campbell, chair of the YST. The figures prompted head teachers to warn of an ‘inactivity crisis’ and call on ministers to make school sport a ‘real priority’. The Coalition came under intense pressure over its strategy for delivering an Olympic legacy after it scrapped £162million of ring-fenced cash for school sport. It also allowed schools to drop a target to offer at least two hours of PE a week and agreed to the sale of some school playing fields against the advice of its own panel of experts. In a partial U-turn, the Government unveiled a £150million-a-year PE and sports premium for primary schools, which David Cameron last year committed to continue funding until 2020. The apparent decline in school sport emerged in the biggest survey of its kind since the Coalition controversially scrapped an annual national study on sport provision, last undertaken in 2009/10. Responses from 1,392 primary schools and 554 secondaries showed that five to seven-year-olds spend an average of 102 minutes in PE lessons – compared to 126 minutes in the 2009/10 survey. Among seven to 11-year-olds, 114 minutes are spent in PE – down from 127 minutes recorded four years ago. A similar drop was seen among pupils aged 11 to 14, although levels of sport appeared to rise among 14 to 18-year-olds. The survey also showed a decline in the number of links between schools and community sports clubs since 2010. Sebastian Coe was rewarded for his success in organising the 2012 Games by being appointed the Prime Minister’s Olympics legacy ambassador in August 2012. The average number of minutes of PE offered to pupils in England has dropped to well below two hours per week since that time . Great Britain's Tom Daley training at the Aquatics Centre in the Olympic Park in London in July 2012. A study shows pupils aged five to seven now spend nearly 25 minutes less per week in PE lesson than in 2010 . The YST admitted it was difficult to make direct comparisons with the 2009/10 Government study, which had covered virtually all schools in the country, but insisted its data was ‘statistically reliable’. The charity launched a manifesto yesterday calling for more lesson time to be devoted to PE and ‘sustained competitive sport in schools’. Baroness Sue Campbell, chair of the Youth Sport Trust, said the level of physical activity in primary schools paints a 'bleak and worrying picture' Baroness Campbell said: ‘Reversing the growing levels of physical inactivity amongst young people is a seismic challenge. ‘With one in three children leaving primary school obese or overweight, and less than one in five meeting the minimum recommended guidelines for physical activity, it is a bleak and worrying picture.’ The charity also pointed to research suggesting that plenty of physical activity can lead to improvements in academic achievement. Baroness Campbell went on: ‘We have set out where we believe any future government should focus its efforts if we are to stand any real chance of reversing the worrying trends that are leading to increasing sedentary lifestyles amongst young people.’ The Department for Education said that last year it commissioned its own survey of 586 primary schools which showed their pupils spent an average of 122 minutes each week doing PE, up 13 minutes on 2013. A DfE spokesman said: ‘As part of our plan for education, we want children to get into the habit of playing and enjoying sport – both in lessons and after school. 'That’s why we are giving primary school headteachers over £450 million of funding to spend on improving PE – and our own research shows they are using it to deliver more and better sport. ‘Our findings show that primary schools are delivering more than two hours of PE each week, and it has increased by an average of 13 minutes in the last year; 83 per cent of schools also reported an increase in participation in after-hours sports since the introduction of the funding. ‘We are pleased that the Youth Sport Trust’s own figures show that PE lesson time has actually increased for pupils in years 10 to 13.’ | Pupils spend less time in sport and PE classes now than four years ago .
Government said 2012 games would 'inspire a generation' to get active .
Minutes of PE offered to pupils has dropped to below two hours per week .
Students aged five to seven spend just an hour and 42 minutes per week in PE lessons – nearly 25 minutes less than in 2010 .
Figures have prompted head teachers to warn of an ‘inactivity crisis’ | 682aec5e0d2c424f35b6f21187c5720a98bd2a5a | [
0,
368,
5638,
3130,
24,
14614,
1492,
705,
97,
16,
2600,
11,
11012,
5182,
3,
5,
37,
5638,
3,
18797
] |
By . Anna Edwards . PUBLISHED: . 18:16 EST, 16 July 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 02:25 EST, 17 July 2013 . Carved open with its structure cut to pieces, it's hard to believe that this is the once mighty Ark Royal. Especially when the reason it has been torn apart is that workmen begin scrapping it to make tin cans and razor blades. These exclusive first pictures show how the top half of the former Royal Navy flagship has been carved open by heavy machinery. Scroll down for video . The HMS Ark Royal lays at a scrapping facility in Izmir, Turkey, as its pieces are ripped apart for recycling . These exclusive photos show how workers have began cutting open the top half of the former flagship of the Royal Navy . About 80 staff from ship recycling firm Leyal began scrapping the 22,000-tonne warship just over a month ago near Izmir in West Turkey and are expected to take a further seven months to complete the job . The interior of the once-mighty Ark Royal lies exposed in the Turkish sun as the scrapping process steps up a gear . About 80 staff from ship recycling firm Leyal have been dismantling the 22,000-tonne warship for about two weeks at a scrapyard near Izmir in west Turkey. The company - which also scrapped HMS Invincible two years ago - is expected to take a further seven months to complete the job. According to Leyal, a handful of British tourists have made holiday detours to visit the yard and watch from afar as nuts, bolts and strips of steel are ripped off and carried away by lorries. One Turkish woman also said she had been sent to collect a piece of the Ark Royal to send back to a woman in the UK. She did not want to be identified. The light aircraft-carrier will be stripped down and eventually turned into everything from bridge foundations to cooking utensils . The ship had been decommissioned as part of spending cuts following the 2010 defence review . The rust-streaked ship left the UK for the final time when it was waved off in May 2013 - and now its future lies in the scrapheap . Bids to turn the ship into a nightclub, casino and even an artificial diving reef off the coast of Devon had all been rejected - so now it is being turned into scrap . It comes a month after a tugboat dragged the Ark Royal to shore on the last leg of its 2,000 mile journey from Portsmouth. The light aircraft-carrier will be stripped down and eventually turned into everything from bridge foundations to cooking utensils. The vessel - which led forces during the invasion of Iraq in 2003 - was sold to Leyal by the Ministry of Defence for a reported £2.9m. The ship had been decommissioned as part of spending cuts following the 2010 defence review. There had been bids to turn the ship into a nightclub, casino and even an artificial diving reef off the coast of Devon, but all were rejected by the MoD. A JCB and a worker in the Leyal scrapping yard in Izmir, Turkey. Workmen have begun scrapping it to make tin cans and razor blades . Slung on the scrapheap The Leyal scrapping yard is awash with remnants of the once mighty warship . Some of the parts of the Ark Royal lay in the dust as workmen begin the arduous task of dismantling the huge ship . At 210m long it was capable of carrying 22 aircraft and had a complement of 1,051 - but now it is destined for razor blades and tin cans . The rust-streaked ship left the UK for the final time when it was waved off by hundreds of flag-waving Britons at Portsmouth Harbour on May 20, 2013. It had served the UK for more than a quarter of a century since being built by Swan Hunters Ship Builders' yard at Wallsend, North Tyneside 1978, at a cost of £320million. At 210m long it was capable of carrying 22 aircraft and had a complement of 1,051. As well as leading the invasion of Iraq in 2003, the huge ship also saw service in Bosnia. Tourists have made detours to visit the yard and watch as nuts, bolts and strips of steel are ripped off from the famous vessel . A lorry leaves the Leyal scrapping yard, where tonnes of metal will be torn apart, before being recycled and reborn into a new handy object . The front of the Leyal scrapping yard in Izmir. Their task of shredding the boat apart comes a month after a tugboat dragged the Ark Royal to shore on the last leg of its 2,000 mile journey from Portsmouth . Elsewhere, during the 2010 Eyjafjallajokull volcano eruption, Prime Minister Gordon Brown sent the ship to to rescue stranded holidaymakers across the English Channel. HMS Ark Royal was the fifth vessel to have the name. The first was a 38-gun ship dating back to 1587. It was built for Sir Walter Raleigh and achieved fame fighting against the Spanish Armada. The latest Ark Royal was going to be named Indomitable - in line with her sister ships Invincible and Illustrious. However, this was changed due to the overwhelming public reaction to the loss of its heritage name.. The mighty vessel is to be officially replaced by the new and more capable HMS Prince of Wales by 2016. Mighty powerful: As well as leading the invasion of Iraq in 2003, the impressive ship also saw service in Bosnia . | Aircraft-carrier will be stripped down and turned into everything from bridge foundations to cooking utensils .
Vessel - which led forces during the invasion of Iraq in 2003 - was sold by the Ministry of Defence for a reported £2.9m . | 6d2e4553e4b67e46e7cb483e8d338fac4492f2b4 | [
0,
368,
1933,
504,
149,
8,
420,
985,
13,
8,
1798,
3671,
10662,
19241,
65,
118,
3,
19619,
539,
3
] |
A rescue dog with droopy skin was given a £1,000 facelift to stop him from completely losing his sight. Rock, a two-year-old dog, was left in difficulty after his folds of skin meant his eyelids and forehead had began to curl into his eyes, leaving him in danger of going blind. Staff at Woodside Sanctuary in Plympton in Devon decided the only option was to operate on Rock, giving him a partial facelift and restructuring his eyes. Rock the bloodhound was given a £1,000 partial facelift and eye restructure after his droopy skin condition was causing his forehead and eyelids to fold into his eyes and leaving him at risk of going completely blind . The animal is now recovering and has found new owners who will adopt him once he is fit enough to be released. Helen Lecointe, manager at Woodside Sanctuary in Plympton, Devon, said Rock was already suffering from the condition - known as entropion - when he was brought to the home. She said: 'We immediately saw that he was suffering from a nasty condition. 'Anyone who's had a lash in their eye will be sure to understand how painful this must have been 24/7. 'Rock is a lovely boy and, although he's feeling rather sorry for himself right now, his future wellbeing has been massively improved. 'We're extremely grateful to all the donors who enabled this to happen so quickly.' Rock is pictured at the sanctuary before his surgery, with his saggy folds of skin falling around his eyes . Following surgery Rock had to wear a collar to stop him scratching his face, and is now recovering . Animal lovers donated £1,000 to the sanctuary to fund the necessary surgery. John Hicks and his family fell in love with Rock while looking for a companion for their deerhound, Sage. Mr Hicks, 45, of Saltash, Cornwall, said: 'We've already got three cats and two dogs and wanted another big dog as a companion for our deerhound. 'We looked at three dogs beforehand at Woodside and the ones that got on with us and our dog didn't get on with cats whereas Rock gets on with everyone and everything. 'He is really friendly and, although he's got a presence, he is a big softy.' The number of operations to remove excess dog skin has increased by more than 80 per cent in four years. Linzi Saunders, from Woodside Sanctuary is pictured with Rock as he continues to recover from the surgery . Criticisms have been raised about the over-breeding of pedigree dogs following a BBC documentary in 2008 that exposed health problems among some of the most extreme cases. After the documentary experts called for breeds of dogs which displayed health problems, such as entropion, to be dropped from the show but the Kennel Club did not comply with the demand. In 2012 tests were launched at Crufts to check for conditions like this to ensure these breeds were not rewarded and to discourage breeding them for the characteristics that can cause them such discomfort. Ms Lecointe said: 'Like many wrinkle faced pedigrees, Rock is the result of ill-considered genetic breeding and the folds in his face were making his problem even worse.' Dawn Cornish, deputy manager of the sanctuary, said: 'Whilst Bloodhounds are highly prone to this condition, in Rock's case it was more severe and it was vital that he received this operation.' Dr Gert ter Haar, of the Royal Veterinary College, said the number of procedures had risen rapidly in the last few years. He said: 'We do not undertake these operations unless there is a medical reason to do so. 'We find some of them have excessive skin folds which can cause severe infections. It can cause blindness and if the folds cover the nose they cannot breath.' | Rock the bloodhound suffered from droopy skin that threatened his sight .
The folds of his skin caused his eyelids and forehead to curl inwards .
Experts decided only solution was to carry out a £1,000 worth of surgery .
Rock had a partial facelift and eye restructure to safeguard his sight .
He was a rescue dog and animal lovers donated to pay for his operation .
Animal is still recovering but will be adopted by a family once released . | f6d264be21262d563dda5b36b846f71d80e496b1 | [
0,
368,
2527,
13,
3,
9,
1717,
26219,
65,
7546,
376,
3,
5,
3120,
6,
3,
9,
192,
18,
1201
] |
(CNN) -- "Flowers of War" has a multitude of advantages over its rivals in the Oscar race for best foreign language film. Most obviously, it stars Christian Bale, who plays an American pretending to be a priest in order to survive the brutal 1937 Japanese invasion of Nanking, China. Moreover, Bale's character, and several others, speak English, making the film much more accessible to Academy voters. Lastly, it's the official category submission from China, which just so happens to be the most promising unrealized market for blockbuster Hollywood films. But the Oscars can also be very political, in every possible way. Including the literal sense. Last week, when Bale was roughed-up on camera while attempting to visit Chen Guangcheng, a blind activist who had been under house arrest in China for documenting his country's population-control measures, the Dark Knight actor reminded western audiences of China's less-than-stellar human rights record. If that wasn't enough, Chinese authorities responded strongly to the scuffle, saying that Bale "should be embarrassed" by his actions. "He was not invited to create a story or shoot film in a certain village," said a spokesperson for the Chinese government. "I think if you want to make up news in China, you will not be welcome here." Think voters might now be tempted to view "Flowers of War" in a different light? The Zhang Yimou film wasn't the race's favorite to begin with -- "Iran's A Separation" looks to be the frontrunner -- but this public-relations controversy and China's belligerent response could have a severe impact on the war film's Oscar prospects. Hollywood's interest in access to China's restrictive market is now counterbalanced by a temptation to stick up for Batman. Didn't the Chinese see the Hong Kong scene in The Dark Knight? In the real world, who cares? China has broader interests than a golden statue. But make no mistake: China covets an Oscar that would legitimize its booming movie industry -- "Flowers of War," with a budget of nearly $100 million, is its biggest project ever -- and despite two previous nominations in the category, the country has never won the trophy. Now with its spotlight film's most visible star at odds with the government, the chances of a Chinese Oscar could be dead on arrival. See the full article at EW.com. CLICK HERE to Try 2 RISK FREE issues of Entertainment Weekly . © 2011 Entertainment Weekly and Time Inc. All rights reserved. | Christian Bale plays a pseudo American priest in his new movie "Flowers of War"
The movie is nominated for an Oscar in the best foreign film category .
Bale engaged in a scuffle while filming and he is now at odds with the Chinese government .
China has never won a trophy and now has less chances of winning an Oscar this year . | a215e95f247268f0dae9dc58010c092aeddd85e7 | [
0,
368,
814,
96,
15390,
277,
13,
1602,
121,
4811,
2826,
4011,
15,
6,
113,
4805,
46,
797,
17582,
53
] |
Argentina has made a formal complaint to its neighbour Uruguay after the country's president called his female Argentine counterpart an 'old hag'. The famously candid Jose Mujica had no idea his microphone was switched on when he attacked Cristina Fernandez . de Kirchner, 60, moments before a press conference. He was heard loudly: 'That old hag's worse than the cross-eyed one,' referring to Ms Kirchner's late husband and former Argentinian president Nestor Kirchner. The 77-year-old added: 'Cross-eyes was more of a politician, she's just stubborn.' Complaint: Argentina has made a formal protest after Uruguay's President Jose Mujica (left) referred to Argentine President Cristina Kirchner as an 'old hag' Meeting: This picture shows Mr Mujica meeting with Ms Kirchner and Nestor Kirchner (left) in Buenos Aires in 2008. Mr Kirchner died of heart failure in 2010 . Pouring scorn on his colleague, who has spoken out repeatedly to attack Britain over The Falklands, 77-year-old Mr Mujica then accused of failing to act appropriately when meeting the pope. Ms Kirchner presented the Argentinian Pope Francisco with a flask to drink traditional 'mate' tea when she visited last month. Mr Mujica said: 'She actually went to the Pope, who has lived 77 years, to explain what is tea and what is a thermal flask.' Argentina's foreign minister Hector Timermanmade a formal protest to the Uruguayan government about Mr Mujica's 'outrageous' remarks about the country's current and former presidents. Remarks: Mr Mujica was also overheard referring to late Argentine President Nestor Kirchner as 'cross-eyed' In a statement handed to Uruguayan Ambassador Guillermo Pomi he stressed Argentina's 'profound unease with the terms' used by Mr Mujica. He said: 'It is unacceptable that such outrageous comments, which offend the memory of a deceased person who cannot defend himself, have been made by someone Kirchner considered her friend.' Relations between the two South American countries have deteriorated in recent years as Ms Kirchner has restricted imports and limited access to foreign currencies, measures which have hurt Uruguay's exports and tourism industry. Nestor Kirchner accused Uruguay of 'stabbing Argentina in the back' in 2007 after president Tabare Vazquez restarted operations at a pulp mill on a river bordering the two countries which Argentina had blockaded. In 2002 Uruguayan president Jorge Batlle accused Argentinians of being 'a bunch of thieves,' a comment for which he later apologised during a trip to Buenos Aires. Mr Mujica, a former guerrilla who took office in 2010, last night insisted he had not spoken publically about the Kirchners at the event in Uruguay and would not be offering clarifications. He made headlines in June 2012, when his government made a move to legalize state-controlled sales of marijuana. He reportedly said that by regulating the $40 million-a-year illegal marijuana trade in his country the government could take it away from drug dealers. Tension: Ms Kirchner attempted to hand Mr Cameron a package last June marked 'UN - Malvinas' but the Prime Minister refused to accept it . Tensions between Britain and Argentina have risen under Ms Kirchner's rule, with the president continually asserting her country's claim to sovereignty over the Falkland Islands. Her ambassador to London caused anger when she dismissed a recent referendum on the islands' future - in which residents voted overwhelmingly in favour of remaining British - as a 'publicity stunt.' Last June David Cameron was involved in an . extraordinary stand-up row with Ms Kirchner over the future of the future of the islands - which are known as the Malvinas by Argentina. Ms Kirchner appeared to . attempt to thrust a package stuffed with documents about her country’s . claim to the British territory into Mr Cameron’s hands at the G20 summit . in Mexico. To her fury, the Prime Minister . refused to accept it – and insisted that she respect the views of the . islanders, who want to remain British. | Jose Mujica did not know microphone was switched on at time .
'Cross-eyed' comment referred to late Argentine president Nestor Kirchner .
Argentina's foreign minister makes formal protest over remarks . | cbc25fc28d4befd80491df38d807eec4d7055cce | [
0,
368,
120,
16621,
10854,
4159,
354,
2617,
141,
150,
800,
112,
18701,
47,
17785,
30,
116,
3,
88,
17263
] |
Independence could leave Scots facing higher mobile phone bills if they use their phone south of the border, the UK Government will claim. Ministers are to publish the latest in a series of papers examining the impact of a Yes vote in next year's independence referendum. The paper will suggest independence could impact on mail services and costs, and could make programmes to roll out high speed broadband across the country more expensive. Scots may also have to pay international roaming charges if they make a mobile phone call south of the border . People close to the border could also incur extra charges if their mobile phone is connected to a mast on the other side of the border . It says mobile phone users may have to pay international roaming charges if they make a call in England, Wales or Northern Ireland. It also warns that people close to the border could inadvertently incur these charges if their mobile phone connected to a mast on the other side of the border. UK Consumer Minister Jo Swinson said: . 'The UK's integrated infrastructure connects people and communities, . creates jobs and supports trade. 'The Government is committed to . maintaining world class postal and broadband services. 'This includes . continuation of a six-day-a-week postal delivery service and the . provision of broadband to rural areas. 'The rural broadband programme . will deliver investment of £100.8million to Scottish communities that . depend on getting connected. 'If Scotland left the UK, posting a letter or making a call could cost more - and there could be less choice for customers.' The UK Government believes that by being in Britain Scotland benefits from 'world class services and economies of scale' that support the postal service, with its uniform pricing all over the UK, and investment in broadband. The Tory-Liberal Democrat coalition has allocated £530million over the spending review period for its rural broadband programme, designed to help roll out high speed internet services to more remote communities. Scotland is to receive just over £100million of this, with the UK Government saying the country 'benefits disproportionately' compared to its share of the population. But it warns that independence would mean Scotland would no longer benefit from this, adding this would 'inevitably' drive up the cost of delivering broadband in such areas. The UK Government also argues that if Scotland left the UK it could impact on the cost of sending letters and parcels between the two countries. At the moment, it says economies of scale across Britain help support six day a week postal deliveries, with customers paying one price to post something, regardless of where they are. The cost of posting letters and parcels could rise in an independent Scotland, the Government has warned . Communities Minister Jo Swinson said there may be less choice for consumers in an independent Scotland . This is part of the Royal Mail's universal service, with the UK Government saying the supporters of independence should set out if these levels of service would be maintained following a Yes vote. The Scottish Government said successive Westminster governments had 'substantially weakened' Scotland's communications infrastructure. A spokeswoman said: 'Since 2002, more than 400 Scottish Post Offices have closed and plans for privatisation of Royal Mail threatens jobs and the operation of the universal service obligation whilst people across rural Scotland regularly struggle with the lack of mobile phone coverage as the current system fails to deliver for Scotland. 'Independence will provide an opportunity to properly support the postal network with access to our fair share of UK assets, and as the Federation of Post Masters have recognised, the Scottish Government has an excellent record of supporting rural post offices. 'Both the Royal Mail and the Federation of Post Masters are clear that there need be no disruption to services and that independence could offer real opportunities for the network. 'Similarly the UK's claims fail to recognise key changes in the telecoms market. Currently, the fragmentation of mobile and broadband initiatives, and the reserved nature of telecoms policy and regulation, prevents us from realising the economic benefits that could be achieved through improving digital connectivity - something highlighted in our proposals for future regulation published in February. 'However the UK Government should acknowledge that the EU is looking to remove roaming charges completely and they are widely expected to be abolished well before 2016. 'Independence could ensure that the regulatory and policy regimes are better aligned to achieve this.' | Scots face international roaming charges if they call in England or Wales .
Report says Yes vote could increase cost of mail and broadband services .
Minister warns funding for broadband may be cut if Scotland leaves UK . | ef5effbad377af5be980da625a855a435406adab | [
0,
368,
5778,
56,
5443,
8,
1113,
13,
3,
9,
2163,
2902,
16,
416,
215,
31,
7,
12315,
20037,
3
] |
Only a handful of people were able to speak on a proposal that could make the tiny Massachusetts town of Westminster the first in the nation to ban all sales of tobacco products when boos and shouts from the crowd shut down the public hearing Wednesday night. Sixty or more residents in the packed Westminster Elementary school gymnasium were registered to share their opinions. Some among the audience of several hundred toted signs opposing the ban; some had participated in a rally earlier. Scroll down for video . Only a handful of people were able to speak on a proposal that could make the tiny Massachusetts town of Westminster the first in the nation to ban all sales of tobacco products when boos and shouts from the crowd shut down the public hearing Wednesday night . Residents listen during a public hearing in Westminster, Massachusetts . But amid shouts of 'America!' and 'Freedom Now,' Board of Health chairwoman Andrea Crete gaveled the hearing to a close just 25 minutes into it instead of taking comments. 'The crowd's getting out of control and the room's filled to capacity,' she said. 'We don't want any riots.' Crete and the two other board members were escorted out by police, and the crowd dispersed. She said the board would accept written testimony until Dec. 1 and would vote later. She didn't specify a date. 'I'm disappointed that we didn't get to have the hearing,' she said. 'We're trying to save lives and prevent children from being future users.' Westminster Board of Health chairman Andrea Crete, right, is swarmed over by media, after she shut down the meeting on the proposed tobacco ban after the crowd became unruly . Citizens hold signs at the Westminster Board of Health meeting on the proposed tobacco ban, at the Westminster Elementary School, Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2014, in Westminster, Ma. A public meeting on a central Massachusetts town's proposed first-in-the-nation ban on tobacco and nicotine sales ended early Wednesday because officials say the crowd was getting too unruly to continue. (AP Photo/Worcester Telegram & Gazette, Steve Lanava) Joyce McGuire, a Westminster resident and nonsmoker who opposes the ban, also was disappointed the hearing ended early. 'I think people are really angry because they feel this is being shoved down their throats,' she said. And with the proposal drawing national media attention, she added, 'I think we all feel really embarrassed. I don't think this is the way our town is.' The decision rests solely with the board, which says it is fed up with bubblegum-flavored cigars, electronic cigarettes and other new products that appeal to young people. Board members say the easiest course of action is to enact a total ban on all sales within town lines. A resident waves a US flag (L) and a second holds a sign reading 'What's Next?' while shouting, after the chairwoman of the Board of Health . One supporter, nonsmoker Vicki Tobin, said earlier that she'd like to keep cigarettes out of sight — and mind — of her three young boys. 'I just think it's a great step in a positive way to promote a healthy town, a healthy lifestyle,' she said. Shopkeeper Brian Vincent, whose country store on Main Street sells $100,000 worth of tobacco products a year, said he's collected at least 900 signatures on a petition against the ban. He said smokers will simply make their purchases in other towns and probably buy their gas and groceries there as well. A resident waves a US flag while disrupting the town hearing . 'Having other adults decide what legal item we're not allowed to consume just makes you wonder: If this passes, what could be next? Sugar? Bacon?' he said. Tobacco industry groups also have called the proposal a 'bad policy' that would harm local employers. The American Lung Association said Westminster would be the first community in the U.S. to take such sweeping action. | Sixty or more residents in the packed Westminster Elementary school gymnasium were registered to share their opinions but only a few spoke before boos and shouts shut the hearing down .
The decision rests solely with the board, which says it is fed up with bubblegum-flavored cigars, electronic cigarettes and other new products that appeal to young people .
At least 900 have signed a petition against the ban . | 731c56ba7d1726a74332e10d43edcfab831f2c76 | [
0,
368,
17944,
1511,
13,
25804,
6,
9777,
6,
12,
4514,
66,
1085,
13,
16025,
494,
3,
5,
2086,
13
] |
Lord McAlpine is taking landmark legal action against internet gossips who falsely branded him a paedophile. Lawyers for the Tory peer warned Twitter users ‘we know who you are’ and urged them to come forward voluntarily or face being pursued through the courts. His action is intended to stop so-called ‘trial by Twitter’ and, if successful, could radically change the way the internet is policed and make those using social networks more directly accountable for defamatory comments. Lord McAlpine, the former Tory party treasurer wrongly accused of being a child abuser following a botched Newsnight report, yesterday agreed a £185,000 compensation settlement with the BBC – funded by licence-payers. Scroll down for video . Battles: Many have apologised to the Tory peer but his legal team has said that people have destroyed his reputation . ITV’s This Morning and Sally Bercow, . wife of the House of Commons Speaker and a prolific Twitter user, were . next in the firing line. Lord McAlpine’s lawyer Andrew Reid . said those suspected of defaming the peer would receive a letter before . action was taken telling them they had 48 hours to respond. He said . there was a ‘very long list’ of people to whom letters would be sent. Lord McAlpine, 70, said no amount of . compensation could repair the damage to his reputation from being . branded a paedophile. He told the BBC: ‘There is nothing as bad as this . that you can do to people.’ Describing his revulsion at the false . accusations, the former Thatcher aide said: ‘It gets into your bones, it . makes you angry. And it gets into your soul. You just think there’s . something wrong with the world.’ Twitter gaffe: Speaker's wife Sally Bercow arrived at the Vaudeville Theatre to watch a performance of Uncle Vanya last night. She is facing a legal claim by Lord McAlpine after joining a frenzy of paedophile speculation and is yet to contact them to apologise . The fiasco began on Twitter when Iain . Overton, managing editor of the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, . which jointly produced the Newsnight report, sent a Twitter message . saying: ‘If all goes well we’ve got a Newsnight out tonight about a very . senior political figure who is a paedophile.’ The message prompted a maelstrom of . internet speculation about the man’s identity, despite Newsnight’s . decision not to broadcast a name that night, November 2. On November 4, Mrs Bercow tweeted, . ‘Why is Lord McAlpine trending? *Innocent face*’, a reference to the . fact the peer’s name was being repeatedly mentioned on Twitter. Mrs Bercow later apologised on Twitter . but Lord McAlpine’s lawyers said she had not approached them to make a . personal apology to the peer. Mr Reid told Radio 4’s World At One . programme: ‘Very sadly, we are going to have to take action against a . lot of people. 'The next person on our list is in fact the This Morning . programme, run by ITV, where Phillip Schofield managed to embarrass the . Prime Minister... and then destroy my client’s reputation.’ Schofield confronted David Cameron with a supposed list of paedophiles live on air last week. The Newsnight investigation into child . sex allegations at the Bryn Estyn children’s home in North Wales in the . 1970s was a joint project with the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, . which is also being sued by Lord McAlpine. Neither organisation contacted the peer to allow him to respond to allegations he was involved in the abuse. Tweet: Sally Bercow was ordered to pay £15,000, which was donated to charity, after posted the above tweet . BBC director general George Entwistle resigned over the fiasco and Mr Overton quit his job over his disastrous Twitter message. Lord McAlpine’s lawyers said anyone who had made allegations on social media should contact them or face a legal battle. Mr Reid said: ‘Let it be a lesson to . everybody that trial by Twitter or trial by the internet is a very nasty . way of hurting people unnecessarily and it will cost people a lot of . money.’ As part of yesterday’s settlement, the . BBC agreed additionally to pay Lord McAlpine’s legal costs. The bill . could approach £100,000. Catalyst: The crisis for Lord McAlpine was all started by Newsnight's 'shabby' investigation into abuse at a Welsh children's home . Watch the video here . Newsnight carried a full, on-air . apology for the broadcast a week later and Lord McAlpine’s World At One . interview was carried across BBC news broadcasts yesterday. In the interview, he said he was . ‘conscious’ that his £185,000 settlement would be paid by . licence-payers, and not directly by those who made or authorised the . programme. The Bureau of Investigative Journalism . published an apology to Lord McAlpine on its website ‘for the extent to . which its contribution to the Newsnight broadcast on 2 November fell . short of the high standards it expects and for any incorrect speculation . about the identity of the politician that may have been encouraged by . the Bureau’s Managing Editor’s tweet in advance of the broadcast’. Dressing down: Schofield and members of the team behind the stunt have been chastised by ITV management . Ambush: This Morning presenter Phillip Schofield presented prime minister David Cameron with a list of alleged paedophiles but has now been disciplined by ITV after a complaint by Lord McAlpine . Legal action: Lord McAlpine's solicitor Andrew Reid (left) has warned that anyone who named the Tory peer on Twitter could be sued. Guardian columnist George Monbiot (right) has offered 'an abject apology' for identifying the former Thatcher aide online . Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article. | Tory peer 'terrified' by BBC's false implication that he abused children .
Terms of the agreement will be announced in court in a few days' time .
And lawyers will sue ANYONE who named him on Twitter . | 8b3985f442e48c9f6b8070eb0b3b2e3008c48e52 | [
0,
368,
3794,
63,
11409,
2809,
3038,
19240,
630,
19,
838,
15754,
1281,
1041,
581,
1396,
29517,
7,
3,
5
] |
Rory McIlroy has been named the 2014 Race to Dubai European Tour Golfer of the Year after a stunning season on both sides of the Atlantic. The Northern Irishman won the Race to Dubai and topped the PGA Tour money list, as well as winning the Open Championship and US PGA Championship as he reclaimed the world No 1 spot. The 25-year-old also won the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational and the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, and adds the honour to the Golf Writers Trophy he was awarded last week. Rory McIlroy visited the Coolmore Racing Stud at Ballydoyle in Ireland on Monday . McIlroy poses with the Claret Jug after wining The Open at Hoylake in July . McIlroy, pictured here at the Ryder Cup, reclaimed the world No 1 spot after a brilliant season . McIlroy also played in all five sessions as Europe won the Ryder Cup at Gleneagles, claiming three points as the United States were defeated 16.5-11.5 . 'To be named the European Tour's Golfer of the Year for a second time is a huge honour and one I am extremely proud of,' he said. 'If I had won any one of those four titles it would have been a good year, but to win all four, to win The Race to Dubai, and to be part of another fantastic European victory in The Ryder Cup, means it is a great one. The Northern Irishman has been named the 2014 Race to Dubai European Tour Golfer of the Year . 'This award is a very nice way to round off the year. The European Tour has always been good to me, so it is always special to be recognised in this way. Hopefully I can have more years like this one and win the award again.' The award is decided by a panel comprising members of the Association of Golf Writers and commentators from television and radio and McIlroy has been awarded the honour for the second time after also winning in 2012. European Tour chief executive George O'Grady said: 'The 2014 season will go down as one of the greatest in the European Tour's history, and it will be defined by Rory McIlroy's astounding accomplishments on the global stage. McIlroy celebrates Europe's 2014 Ryder Cup triumph at Gleneagles in Scotland . McIlroy finished runner-up to Lewis Hamilton in the 2014 Sports Personality of the Year Awards . 'Europe's performance to retain the Ryder Cup and Martin Kaymer's dominant victories in the US Open and Players Championship on the US PGA Tour alone would have made it a year to remember for European golf, but Rory's victories in four of the biggest championships on our international schedule will ensure the story of this season is retold for many years to come. Quite rightly, therefore, it is Rory who receives our Golfer of the Year Award for 2014. 'Rory is a fine ambassador for the game of golf and a loyal supporter of the European Tour, as he has shown with his backing of the Irish Open next year, so we are all very proud of his success, not only during this year but across his career to date.' The 25-year-old won the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth in May . | Rory McIlroy recognised for stunning season on both sides of the Atlantic .
Northern Irishman won the Race to Dubai and topped PGA Tour money list .
McIlroy also clinched the Open Championship and US PGA Championship .
Twenty-five-year-old was part of successful European Ryder Cup side .
McIlroy's exploits also saw him reclaim the world No 1 spot . | a353660f302cf489489f8c13ea2f07762798a68e | [
0,
368,
120,
18,
31657,
1611,
3351,
4319,
49,
2158,
651,
3038,
196,
40,
8170,
65,
118,
2650,
8,
1412
] |
By . Helen Pow and Lydia Warren . PUBLISHED: . 08:51 EST, 28 August 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 09:06 EST, 28 August 2013 . The father of kidnap victim Hannah Anderson has quit his job in Tennessee so he can move to San Diego to raise her in the city where she lived with her mother and brother before their murders. Brett Anderson revealed he told the company, which builds cellular phone towers, that he needed to move from Nashville for his daughter, who was rescued from the clutches of suspected murderer and kidnapper James DiMaggio two weeks ago. 'I'd hoped that Hannah would be able to return to Nashville with me, but I agreed that it was important not to uproot her at this time from everyone and everything she knows and finds to be comfortable, safe and familiar,' Anderson told People Magazine. 'There is no way I will give guardianship of my daughter to anybody – she needs her father and I need my daughter. Support: Brett Anderson, pictured with his daughter and kidnapping victim Hannah last week, has quit his job in Nashville to move to California to be with her in the city where she grew up . 'As a result, I called my company today and informed them of my decision to move back to San Diego, and my resignation. Hannah and I will be moving into a home together, and she is as excited as I am to be a family and continue our healing together.' Christina and . Ethan Anderson, 8, were found slain at the home of James Lee DiMaggio, . who police allege set it ablaze earlier this month. DiMaggio . was killed by FBI agents August 10 in the Idaho wilderness, ending a . six-day search that spanned much of the western United States and parts of . Canada and Mexico. But on Tuesday, DiMaggio's sister fiercely defended her brother, claiming there is no evidence pinning him to the alleged murders and that he 'gave his life to protect' Hannah. Tragic: Christina Anderson, left, and 8-year-old Ethan Anderson, right, were murdered earlier this month . In her first . interview since the story broke, Lora DiMaggio asked Piers Morgan: 'Do . you believe everything a 16-year-old tells you?' suggesting Hannah, who . police say was abducted by her much older family friend after he . tortured and killed her mother and brother, may not be telling the . truth. 'I . think Hannah got herself into a situation she couldn't get herself out . of and my brother gave his life to protect her,' she explained, adding . 'there are lots of holes in the case. Lots of misinformation.' Lora described how Hannah had stayed at her home just three weeks before the horrible events and that the girl weeping in TV interviews was 'certainly not the girl who stayed at my home.' 'I remember telling my brother "she is trouble, watch out for that one,"' she said on CNN's Piers Morgan Live on Tuesday night. 'She wasn't very gracious and was wearing very heavy eye make up.' Sister: James DiMaggio's sister Lora DiMaggio, pictured, has fiercely defended her brother claiming there is no evidence pinning him to the alleged murders and that he 'gave his life to protect' Hannah Anderson . Trouble: 'I remember telling my brother "she is trouble, watch out for that one,"' Lora DiMaggio, right, said of Anderson on CNN's Piers Morgan Live . Lora added her . brother had told her Hannah was 'very upset' her mother and 'she blamed . her mother for her father moving to Tennessee.' She described DiMaggio as 'one of the kindest people you've ever met' and said a troubled childhood brought the two together. 'He was my best friend, my brother, father, the person I would call for advice in life, love and everything,' she said, insisting that the authorities had not contacted her and would not return her calls asking for more information. 'The only fact is that some bodies were found on . his property,' she said. 'If there is evidence, as his only living . family member, I think they could share a little bit of that with me.' Kidnapped: James Lee DiMaggio, left, was known . as 'Uncle Jim' to Hannah Anderson and her brother Ethan. Police say he . murdered Ethan and Hannah's mother before kidnapping Hannah . The interview comes days after Hannah Anderson's mother and young brother were laid to rest. The service last Saturday for Christina Anderson and eight-year-old . Ethan Anderson at the Guardian Angels Roman Catholic Church in Santee was open . to the public. The Los Angeles Times reported that Reverend Kevin Casey told . the memorial gathering that the community was 'touched by this evil and we can . never be the same again.' Guardian Angel Roman Catholic Church . in Santee made arrangements to accommodate more than 1,000 mourners for the two slain residents. Together again: Hannah Anderson touches a family picture as she attends a memorial service for her mother Christina Anderson, 44, and her 8-year-brother Ethan last Saturday . Saying goodbye: Hannah wept while sharing a private moment with the image of her mother and brother . Smile: Hannah and her father Brett (left) greeted loved ones who attended the memorial . Tears: Hannah and her family took their places in the first row and joined in a rendition of Amazing Grace . Before the start of the service, Hannah Anderson 16, and her family greeted mourners and embraced family and friends. Hannah, . dressed in a black and white outfit with a Starbucks iced coffee in . hand, was pictured positioning a photo of her mother and brother and . weeping as she stood behind the easel. 'We . are here to pray for Tina and remember her and for Ethan. Ethan doesn't . need prayers. He is already an angel in heaven. And that is our great . belief,' Father Kevin Casey said at the opening of the service, CNN reported. 'We are touched by this evil and we can never be the same again,' the cleric told the assembled congregants. One big family: Members of the extended Anderson and Saincome families are seen in this June 2011 photo. Seated from left are Christina Anderson, Hannah (reclining), James Lee DiMaggio and Ethan Anderson (on the floor) Authorities have declined to discuss a . possible motive in the deaths and haven't addressed other details of . the case, including how Hannah was treated by DiMaggio during the . ordeal. Investigators have said DiMaggio set fire to his home using a timer, giving him a 20-hour jump on law enforcement. It was reported that DiMaggio's sister had requested paternity tests to determine if the suspect fathered the children, however she denied this to Piers Morgan. Hannah's father, Brett Anderson, gave his DNA to investigators to confirm Ethan's identity. DiMaggio . named Hannah's grandmother, Bernice Anderson, as the sole beneficiary . of his employer-issued life insurance policy, making her eligible to . receive $112,000. During an . emotional interview on the Today Show last week, Hannah offered more . details of her relationship with DiMaggio, whom she called 'Uncle Joe.' Survivor: Hannah said she will tell her entire story eventually, but now is not the time to do it . Public appearance: In this August 15, 2013 photo, Hannah Anderson arrives at the Boll Weevil restaurant for a fundraiser in her honor to raise money for her family . The . teen tearfully defended herself over letters and texts she had sent to . her kidnapper, saying that the 13 messages the two exchanged on the day . of her abduction were regarding arrangements to pick her up from cheer . camp. Authorities have also said that letters from Anderson were found at the home. Hannah said that they were written about a year ago when she was having trouble getting along with her mother and she sought advice from DiMaggio. The girl broke down in tears when talking about her slain brother and mother. 'He had a really big heart,' Anderson said of Ethan, adding that her mother was 'strong-hearted and very tough.' | Brett Anderson: 'She needs to be somewhere safe and familiar'
Hannah was rescued two weeks ago after family friend James DiMaggio allegedly killed her mother and brother, 8, and kidnapped her .
DiMaggio was shot dead by authorities who found them in Idaho .
His sister has defended him and suggested authorities should not trust Hannah's account . | 146e1ebfdb13049076d43b43ada719fa5c584597 | [
0,
368,
2353,
13,
4984,
29,
9,
5341,
7584,
21412,
11825,
65,
10399,
112,
613,
16,
12976,
3,
5,
216
] |
Scooby Doo has been on UK screens for more than 44 years . By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 00:00 EST, 5 December 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 09:03 EST, 5 December 2013 . Classic cartoons Tom and Jerry and Scooby Doo have been named the TV programmes that parents secretly most like to switch channels to watch. The nostalgic favourites - alongside Postman Pat and Fireman Sam - are popular with parents of young children because they remind them of their own childhood, according to a study. A survey of 500 parents of children aged four to 10 revealed the shows much loved among parents. A survey has revealed that the US cartoon series Scooby Doo was named the favourite cartoon among 23 per cent of parents . Horrible Histories and Mickey Mouse Club House were also hailed as the top TV shows that parents secretly love. The survey by internet content provider Viral Spiral revealed that the US cartoon series Scooby Doo was named the favourite cartoon among 23 per cent of parents, followed by Peppa Pig and Postman Pat, both on 22 per cent. The next favourites were Tom and Jerry (21 per cent), Fireman Sam (20 per cent), Sponge Bob Square Pants (17 per cent) and Art Attack (14 per cent). Other children's shows that parents secretly love include Thomas the Tank Engine, Mickey Mouse Club House and Bob the Builder. Damian Collier, head of Viral Spiral said: 'Our survey has revealed that parents secretly love many of the shows that their children watch. Other favourites included Tom and Jerry, Fireman Sam, and Sponge Bob Square Pants . Postman Pat - another of the favourites - has been on UK TV for more than 30 years alongside Fireman Sam who has graced UK screens for 28 years . 'Parents even admitted that they often change the channel to watch their favourite cartoons and kids shows. Creating TV shows and content for young children is as much about meeting parents desires for nostalgia and fun as it is about entertaining children.' The majority of children's programmes which adults love to watch are steeped in history and nostalgia. Scooby Doo has been on UK screens for more than 44 years while Tom and Jerry has been broadcast since 1960. Even Postman Pat has been on UK TV for more than 30 years alongside Fireman Sam who has graced UK screens for 28 years. Peppa Pig who also hit the top spot is a relative newcomer but has still been on our screens for 9 years. One in three parents said sentimental recollection played a big part in their enjoyment of current children's shows because they remembered watching them as a child. A large proportion of parents also said the shows gave them with a break from often depressing adult TV programmes. | Nostalgic favourites said to remind parents of their own childhood .
Other popular cartoons included Postman Pat and Fireman Sam .
Scooby Doo has been on UK screens for more than 44 years . | 278d9bfb282d9797944b2fb359842d220c143e29 | [
0,
368,
3719,
13,
2899,
1362,
13,
502,
9742,
662,
12,
335,
5111,
8,
1267,
231,
1858,
859,
1362,
3
] |
By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 11:05 EST, 30 September 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 11:08 EST, 30 September 2013 . When David Neeleman founded JetBlue airlines in 1999, he sought to ‘bring humanity back to travel’ with a classless seating structure. But now the airline seems to be going against it’s mission by unveiling today the new 'Mint' class – a first-class section set to debut next year on flights between New York and Los Angeles and New York and San Francisco. The new section will feature lie-back seats, customized amentities kits and a tapas-style inflight menu in an attempt to attract a higher-paying clientele who wouldn't normally fly the budget airline cross-country. Scroll down for video . New class: JetBlue announced today the new 'Mint' class which will be offered on flights from New York to Los Angeles and New York to San Francisco . But airline experts some question whether or not this move will alienate the company’s core customer. ‘This is seismic because now…JetBlue is saying some passengers are going to be more important that others,’ Henry Harteveldt, a travel analyst with Hudson Crossing, told USA Today. ‘This move is not one that comes with guaranteed success, nor is it one that comes without risk to the brand. There is a chance that some customers may look at this and say JetBlue is selling out.’ But the company defends it’s position to shake up the seating structure. JetBlue CEO Dave Barger says Mint was . a response to the customers they were losing to American, United, Delta . and Virgin America – airlines that offer premium cabin experiences. Coming soon: The move has come as a surprise to some industry experts, since the brand prides itself on treating passengers equally . Barger is confident the new class won’t be re-creating the brand since coach will be getting upgrades as well. The first flight with the new Mint section will take off from John F Kennedy International Airport on June 15, 2014 en route to Los Angeles. The new section will feature ‘suites’ with lie-flat suites which have their own door for privacy. The new seats will be the longest and widest on domestic flights. Before take-off, those in Mint will be offered a drink and once in the air, they can have a cocktail and hors d'oeuvre. From there, passengers may choose to watch TV from their own personal 15-inch flatscreen, or perhaps take a nap. There’s a button they can press to notify flight attendants if they want to be awakened for a meal. Perfect for snoozing: The new 'Mint' class will have lie-back seats for passengers to take a nap on the long cross-country flight . The meal itself will be a tapas-style menu, and passengers can choose from three of the five available plates. Other features include an in-flight amenities box by Birchbox, with different boxes for male and female passengers. Products can be used in-flight, but some of the gifts are meant to be taken home like lotion and shampoo samples. Perhaps to make up for the massive upgrades in first-class, those flying in coach will also be getting an upgrade next year. ‘We wanted to make sure everyone on the airplane got an upgrade,’ said Martin St George, JetBlue’s senior vice president of marketing and commercial strategy. ‘We wanted to make sure our core customer didn’t think we were walking away from them. Privacy: Mint passengers have their own door they can close for privacy and a button that signals flight attendants they want to be awakened for a meal . So coach will get a whole lot comfier with softer and roomier seats, even though the airline already offers more room in coach than any other domestic airline. On the flights with the new Mint class, those in coach will be able to help themselves to a new self-service snack bar where they can get free soft drinks and munchies. Other upgrades include power outlets at every seat, an increase from 36 to 100 channels of live TV, and free inflight WIFI. While not every passenger will be equal on JetBlue flights next year, Jami Counter of SeatGuru thinks customers will respond well to the improvements. ‘It’s certainly not a revolution. It’s only limited to these routes. I think they’re very aware of what they stand for and are very true to their brand, so in no way does this in my mind take away from the experience in the back.' | New 'Mint' class will be offered on the New York to Los Angeles and New York to San Francisco routes early next summer .
The new class will feature lie-back seats, a personal 15-inch television and a door for privacy .
Other features include a tapas-style in-flight meal and a customized amenities kit .
To soften the blow to coach customers, those in the back of the plane will also be getting upgrades .
Coach upgrades include softer and roomier seats and a new self-service snack bar . | 32ab6a844364182de05a8c14556d39ddc301b1ec | [
0,
368,
853,
56,
1451,
11761,
18,
1549,
6116,
6,
8444,
3,
9,
297,
2197,
11945,
11,
3,
9,
5011
] |
By . Ashley Collman . and Lydia Warren . PUBLISHED: . 17:01 EST, 27 February 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 21:16 EST, 27 February 2014 . A 28-year-old groom has been formally charged following the wedding-night crash which killed his bride, 25, as they left their reception. Ryan Quinton had a blood-alcohol level of 0.114, above the legal limit in Georgia of 0.8, when he sped off with new-wife Kali Dobson on the night of December 29. Quinton swerved to miss a stray dog in the road and lost control of the Pontiac Firebird he was driving. Dobson wasn't wearing a seat belt, so when the sports car careened off the road she was ejected and it rolled on top of her - crushing her to death. Scroll down for video . Charged: Ryan Quinton, 28 (left), was formally charged on Wednesday following the wedding-night crash that killed his new-wife Kali Dobsen (right) as they left their reception . Quinton swerved to miss a stray dog in the road and lost control of the Pontiac Firebird he was driving . Off-road: Quinton says he swerved to miss a dog in the road, and lost control of the sports car he was driving . In addition to losing his wife just hours after getting married, Quinton is now facing criminal charges over her death. On . Wednesday Quinton was charged with driving under the influence, . vehicular homicide, reckless driving and failure to maintain lane. He was released from jail after posting $25,000 bond. After the crash, he ran to the road where, with his clothes torn and covered in blood, he flagged down help. Chris Thomas told Channel 2 that he was driving along Ball Ground Highway when he spotted Quinton wearing a shredded tuxedo and stumbling along the road. Heartbreaking: Kali Dobson is pictured on her wedding day in Georgia - just hours before she was killed . Devastated: Ryan suffered minor injuries in the crash, but still had to undergo treatment at the hospital . Sudden loss: Quinton was booked Wednesday night and released on $25,000 bail. Above, his wife on their wedding day . Tragic: Quinton was distraught after the wreck according to witnesses who said he looked 'scared to death' 'His shirt was all torn up and he was . bleeding,' he said. 'He had blood all over his face and blood coming out . of his hands and stuff and just looked bad. And it scared me to death.' He comforted the sobbing man as they waited for emergency responders. He held the Quinton's hands and they prayed together. 'There was nothing that could be done,' Thomas said after returning to the crash site. 'The car was on top of her. You couldn't even see her.' Scene: The couple were driving along this highway when Dobson was ejected form the vehicle and the sports car rolled on top of her . After the tragedy, distraught friends and family visited the spot where Dobson had lost her life. 'Some bridesmaids showed up and then things got really, really sad and hopeless for a minute,' witness Chris Thomas told Fox5. 'It was horrible all the way around. And tragic. 'Me and my wife were discussing it, and I said, "I bet it was the most beautiful day of her life". 'What . should have been the greatest, most beautiful day of their lives is the . end of one and what could very well be something hard for this young . man to get over. I pray that he will.' Dobson wasn't wearing a seat belt, so when the sports car careened off the road she was ejected and it rolled on top of her - crushing the bride to death . Happier times: A Facebook image shows Dobson's engagement ring. The couple were married December 29 . Friends and relatives expressed their heartbreak on Facebook pages and shared photos of the couple grinning and dancing at the reception just hours before the tragedy. Their wedding photographers, Still Pearl Photography, also shared stunning images of the beautiful bride before her vows and dancing happily with her new husband afterwards. Patsy Jordan, a Cherokee School Board member, who once worked with Dobson’s mother, told the Marietta Daily Journal that the community is still stunned by the tragedy. 'It’s traumatic,' Jordan said. 'Just to think she just got married and started on her beautiful journey of life and it just ended so suddenly. It was just hard to wrap my brain around something like that.' Jordan said Dobson, who had sisters and was close to her new sister-in-law, had a beautiful singing voice. Following his wife's tragic death, Quinton has been charged with driving under the influence, vehicular homicide, reckless driving and failure to maintain lane . Harrowing: Chris Thomas was driving along the road when he saw Quinton stumbling along looking for help . Venue: The couple had married and held their reception that day at nearby Wheeler House, pictured . 'Kali was just an absolutely beautiful, beautiful girl,' she said. Nearby Wheeler House, which held the couple's wedding and their reception, passed on their thoughts to the heartbroken families. 'Our . thoughts and prayers are with the Dobson and Quinton families,' the . company wrote on its Facebook page. 'May Kali and the love this . beautiful couple shared never be forgotten.' See below for video . | Kali Dobson, 25, was killed after the sports car her new husband Ryan Quinton, 28, was driving rolled on top of her .
The two had got married just hours before, and were leaving their reception at the time of the crash .
Police revealed on Wednesday that Quinton had a blood alcohol content of 0.114, above the Georgia legal limit of 0.8 .
He was formally charged with driving under the influence, vehicular homicide, reckless driving and failure to maintain lane . | 1c5c9f4193d566b30aa0a679593314d3b31a018d | [
0,
368,
18,
22106,
5740,
23,
531,
115,
739,
47,
3,
7,
3138,
326,
28,
126,
18,
22106,
5740,
23
] |
An imam associated with al Qaeda ‘hid in plain sight’ at London’s notorious Finsbury Park Mosque, posing as a firebrand imam and community leader while secretly engaged in a ‘global campaign to spread terror’, a New York court heard today. Prosecutors told how Abu Hamza, the 56-year-old former nightclub bouncer on trial in lower Manhattan, used the mosque as a base from which to try make hundreds of converts to his creed of violent jihad. They said in their opening statements on Thursday that Hamza would send his recruits as far afield as the western United States and Afghanistan in the cause of killing non-Muslims, prosecutor Edward Kim told a courtroom in Manhattan. Without his trademark: The court has ordered that Abu Hamza, seen here in a court sketch from Monday, could not wear his hook for security reasons but is allowed to wear a prosthetic that allows him to write and take notes . Denied: Hamza asked to give his opening statement himself but the judge ruled that he could not . ‘For Abu Hamza, his cause was war and it was all-consuming,’ said prosecutor Edward Kim on the first day of testimony. ‘His goals were clear, simple and . vicious. All able-bodied Muslims had a duty to wage war against . non-Muslims – a duty to kill. This duty was violent, global and . mandatory.’ Dressed in a . light blue smock and alternating between scribbling notes and peering . intently through his spectacles at evidence on a computer screen in . front of him, Hamza was a far cry in court from the fiery preacher who . for years spouted hatred for the West and America in particular. His . signature hook hands had been removed for security reasons, replaced by . a pen-holding prosthetic on his right arm that allowed him to take . notes. Although Judge . Katherine Forrest denied his request to give the defense’s opening . statement himself, Hamza replied politely to her on the sole occasion he . was asked to speak yesterday in response to a technical question about . his case. Known figure: Hamza, who was arrested under the name Mustafa Kamel Mustafa, was arrested in the UK and served a different sentence there before being extradited to the United States (pictured in 2003) He listened quietly as the prosecution painted a damning picture of a man who did far more than simply praise terrorism. ‘Abu Hamza didn’t just talk the talk, he walked the walk,’ said Mr Kim. ‘He was a trainer of terrorists who used the cover of religion so could hide in plain sight in London.’ The . jury heard that when police searched the mosque’s attic they found a . stockpile of military equipment including gas masks, knives, flak . jackets and chemical warfare suits. They . were also told that Hamza, a former nightclub bouncer who was born in . Egypt, sent two men to establish a terrorist training base in Oregon and . another to become an al Qaeda fighter in Afghanistan. Mr . Kim also outlined how Hamza offered ‘crucial resources and guidance’ to . a ‘terrifying’ 1998 kidnapping of tourists in Yemen in which four of . them, including three British travelers, were killed. Hiding in plain sight: The prosecution alleged that Hamza used his role as an imam at the Finsbury Park mosque to recruit jihadists that then were order to carry out missions in the northwest United States and Afghanistan (pictured in 2003) Hamza . not only provided a satellite phone that was used by the hostages to . talk to negotiators but the gunmen spoke with him during the kidnapping, . ‘seeking his direction’, the court heard. Mr . Kim told jurors they will hear testimony from one of the surviving . hostages, Mary Quinn, who visited the Finsbury Park Mosque two years . later so she could confront Hamza. In a recorded conversation the court will hear, Hamza told her that the kidnapping was ‘justified’, said the prosecutor. Hamza, who was extradited to the US in 2012, denies 11 charges. If found guilty, he faces a life sentence. Defense . attorney Joshua Dratel said Hamza had simply been a devoted imam and . community leader who had worked to rebuild Afghanistan after the Soviet . invasion, but by creating schools for girls rather than supporting the . Taliban. He even compared . him to Nelson Mandela and George Washington – both men, said Mr Dratel, . who once been regarded as terrorists or rebels but who were now . considered ‘icons’. Hamza . only espoused ‘outrageous’ views as imam at the mosque because he wanted . to reach the entire Muslim community and not be regarded as a . ‘sell-out’, the court heard. ‘He’s not a follower of Osama bin Laden, he’s not a follower of anyone but the Koran,’ Mr Dratel told jurors. ‘He said a lot of harsh things. These are views not acts.’ The . defense said MI5 and Scotland Yard had actually appealed for Hamza’s . help in providing a ‘moderating influence’ on Britain’s Muslim community . and ‘he had acted on that’. ‘They approached him repeatedly to help keep the situation under control,’ said Mr Dratel. The case continues. | Abu Hamza is on trial in New York and the prosecution gave their opening statement on Thursday morning .
Said how the former imam 'hid in plain sight' while running the Finsbury Park mosque in north London .
Charged that Hamza recruited men to travel to the United States and Afghanistan to carry out jihad missions .
He asked to give his own opening statement but the judge denied him . | d4ec6488d26b5a672eeb96ab887272f694c0ee6b | [
0,
368,
1060,
1614,
65,
5563,
24,
15392,
5845,
1629,
228,
59,
2112,
112,
7970,
21,
1034,
2081,
3,
5
] |
Indiana Pacers star Paul George has drawn fury from his team after he appeared to defend ex-NFL player Ray Rice in the beating of his wife — and said Rice should be allowed to play again. The Pacers forward on Thursday took to Twitter to opine on the Rice controversy, in which a shocking video shows the former Baltimore Ravens running back knocking his now-wife Janay unconscious in a hotel elevator. 'If you in a relationship and a woman hit you first and attacking YOU…Then you obviously ain’t beating HER,' George wrote to his nearly 900,000 followers. 'Homie made A bad choice!' He added, 'I . don't condone hittin women or think it's coo BUT if SHE ain't trippin . then I ain't trippin.. Lets keep it movin lol let that man play!' he . wrote. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO . Indiana Pacers forward Paul George drew fury over Twitter on Thursday after he posted comments in ex-NFL running back Ray Rice's defense . This tweet, which was posted and then deleted from George's feed, infuriated his team . This tweet was also deleted not long after it was posted. George eventually posted an apology for the controversy . Disgraced NFL player . Ray Rice was caught on video beating his no-wife Janay (right) unconscious. He's been suspended indefinitely . Pacers boss . Larry Bird fumed that George's comments were 'thoughtless and without . regard to the subject of domestic violence and its seriousness in . society.' 'We . have talked to Paul to strongly express our displeasure and made it . clear that the NBA and the Pacers organization will not condone or . tolerate remarks of this nature,' Bird said in a statement. 'Paul understands that he was wrong and why his tweets were so inappropriate and is very apologetic." In the same statement, George apologized for his 'insensitive tweets.' 'They . were obviously without proper understanding of the seriousness of the . situation and I sincerely regret my poor choice of words,' said George, who's missing the upcoming NBA season after breaking his right leg playing for Team USA. Forward Paul George will likely miss the entire upcoming NBA season after breaking his right leg playing for Team USA . Fury: Pacers president Larry Bird called George out for his ''thoughtless' comments and apologized for the blunder . Shockingly, George is not alone among those who support Rice's actions — and think his indefinite suspension from the NFL is too great a punishment. A number of Ravens fans say they still support Rice, many of them women. 'There's . two sides to every story,' said Bailey, a 23-year-old waitress from . Baltimore who was wearing a black, rhinestone-decorated jersey with the . white No. 27. Baltimore Ravens fan Bailey says she doesn't agree with . domestic violence, but to her, |Rice's attack 'wasn't that . big of a deal' Holly Laucht wears a Baltimore Ravens' Ray Rice jersey as she tailgates before the Ravens' NFL football game . against the Pittsburgh Steelers . Some fans say Rice's punishment was too harsh . 'I . saw the video. That's their personal business, and it shouldn't have . affected his career. I don't agree with domestic violence, but she's . still with him, so obviously it wasn't that big of a deal. Everyone . should just drop it.' The . team, meanwhile, has started a Ray Rice Jersey Exchange policy, . allowing fans to trade in their Rice jersey for another player on the . Ravens. They will also no longer be selling ray Rice jerseys. Caught on tape: The Rices can be heard shouting obscenities at each other, and Janay . appears to spit in the face of the three-time Pro Bowl running back . The sickening video shows Rice knocking out his then fiancée . Janay Palmer with a single punch in the elevator in February . | Indiana Pacers forward Paul George posted and then deleted a series of tweets commenting on the Ray Rice controversy .
In at least two of the comments, he seems to defend Rice — and goes so far as to say Rice should be allowed to play again .
Rice, a former Baltimore Ravens running back, has been suspended from the NFL indefinitely after being caught beating his wife unconscious . | 4b00140f79b2231e69d69a56f93a29279c3fcded | [
0,
368,
10657,
45,
11790,
277,
2213,
1838,
3080,
3,
5,
1838,
3080,
845,
8279,
16869,
225,
36,
2225,
12
] |
Rome (CNN) -- At least one girl has died and half a dozen are injured following a bomb blast outside a school in the southern Italian city of Brindisi, Italian officials said Saturday. Officials have given conflicting accounts of the number killed and injured. Daniela Buccoliero, an official at the Prefecture of Brindisi, a local office of the Interior Ministry, told CNN one 16-year-old girl had died and another six students are injured, two of them seriously. Brindisi Mayor Mimmo Consales and Fabiano Amati, regional minister for Italy's Civil Protection agency, said there had been two deaths as a result of the blast. Amati said the scene shortly after the explosion was "dramatic." "There were school back packs and notebooks everywhere. Many windows of the nearby buildings were broken," he told CNN. Amati said the police had found three gas cylinders at the site that were detonated with a remote control. The device was concealed behind a trash can by a wall 50 meters from the entrance of the school, he said. "It's an attack on all Italians because schools are considered a secure area," Amati said. "It's the first time in our country that a school is under attack." Consales told CNN one of the girls had died in surgery from the wounds she sustained in the blast. Another of the injured is in very serious condition, he said. Italy's Prime Minister Mario Monti said the government was determined to combat crime and unite the country. He expressed the government's "deep sorrow, dismay and outrage" at what he called a "most grave and heinous crime" in a statement from the United States, where he is attending the G8 summit. Monti was informed of the blast during the night, and has been in close contact with Italy's president, interior minister and other local authorities since. He has ordered the country's flag to be displayed at half-staff Saturday and for the next three days, and sent a message of condolence to those directly affected by the blast. Italians gathered in front of the Pantheon in Rome and at Plebiscito square in Naples late Saturday to protest the violence and to show support for its victims. Three days of mourning were declared in Brindisi, where schools will be closed through Tuesday. The explosion occurred early Saturday as students were arriving at the school, which offers vocational training, Italy's ANSA news agency reported. It is not yet clear why the school was targeted or who carried out the attack. Police chief Francesco Cirillo told CNN that the motive is under investigation and that no one has claimed responsibility. Nichi Vendola, governor of the Puglia region where Brindisi is situated, said: "It could be either a mafia or a political terrorism attack. It's too early to say. It's an unprecedented event." The Francesca Morvillo Falcone school is named after the wife of a prominent anti-mafia judge, which has fueled speculation that the organized crime group might be behind it. It has been 20 years since Falcone was assassinated in Palermo, Sicily, in May 1992. The school is located near both the tribunal and the city's tax collection agency. Italy's tax collection agencies, called Equitalia, have been targeted by mail bombs, Molotov cocktails and suicides in front of their offices in recent months, with the incidents occurring in the cities of Rome, Livorno and Bologna, respectively. Italy's interior ministry said this week that it would start to deploy soldiers outside some government buildings because of the current tensions. The local anti-racket commission of Mesagne, a town in Brindisi province, issued a warning last week of heightened threats by both organized crime groups and anarchists against government agencies. An anti-mafia march that scheduled for Sunday will go ahead as scheduled. Journalists Livia Borghese and Barbie Nadeau and CNN's Joseph Netto contributed to this report. | NEW: Italians gather in Rome, Naples to protest the violence .
Prime Minister Mario Monti says the government is determined to fight crime .
Six students are injured, two of them seriously, a government official says .
It is not yet clear who is responsible or why the school was targeted . | fb539035f2dfc9b3562189da51d7d16f73fca8c8 | [
0,
368,
1060,
10,
486,
709,
80,
3202,
65,
3977,
11,
985,
3,
9,
9611,
7532,
3,
5,
13686,
7
] |
(CNN) -- Space shuttle Discovery launched just before midnight Friday on a mission to the international space station. Space shuttle Discovery lifts off late Friday from Kennedy Space Center in a photo from iReporter Alan Walters. The crew of seven astronauts includes one from Mexico and another from Sweden. One of those seven, Nicole Stott, will remain on the station as a flight engineer, while astronaut Timothy Kopra is to return home aboard the shuttle. Also on board: The Leonardo logistics module, science experiments and the Combined Operational Load Bearing External Resistance Treadmill (COLBERT), named for fake newsman Stephen Colbert of Comedy Central's "The Colbert Report." Colbert won an online poll conducted by NASA to name the newest space station compartment, but Colbert and the space agency compromised to give the moniker to the treadmill. The new compartment was given the name Tranquility. NASA astronaut Cady Coleman said the treadmill is an essential addition to the space station. Watch shuttle launch » . "We have the treadmill now to keep them healthy, which is really part of being able to come home in one piece. So it is an essential part," Coleman said. iReport.com: Discovery lights night sky . Discovery's liftoff, originally set for Tuesday, had been postponed three times -- first for bad weather, and twice more while mission managers checked out indications of a faulty valve. | Space shuttle Discovery launches just before midnight Friday .
Discovery is scheduled to fly to international space station with a crew of seven .
Logistics module, science experiments, Stephen Colbert treadmill also aboard . | 002a083c3893b1fde734280b9eec28d428a02d2b | [
0,
368,
628,
2478,
17581,
2650,
3083,
29,
2436,
14277,
3,
5,
15971,
30059,
15562,
63,
27235,
845,
26896,
19
] |
Germany last night declared that . Britain would be forced to scrap the pound and join the euro – as David . Cameron returned home empty-handed from crisis talks in Berlin. In a highly-provocative intervention, . German finance minister Wolfgang Schauble suggested the UK’s struggling . economy meant the pound was doomed, and urged the Prime Minister to . back Europe’s ailing single currency. Mr Schauble said the euro would . emerge stronger from the current crisis – leaving Britain on the . sidelines unless it signed up. He said Britain would be forced to join . ‘faster than some people on the British island think’ – despite a pledge . by Mr Cameron never to do so. Loggerheads: Despite this show of apparent friendliness, David Cameron and Angela Merkel made no progress yesterday . Clash: The leaders acknowledged their disagreement over a financial transactions tax . Bond spreads as they stood overnight: The yield for troubled governments has become worryingly high . Tory MP Philip Davies suggested Mr Schauble was ‘living in cloud cuckoo land’ and should concentrate on resolving the crisis. He added: ‘Rather than telling us . what to do he should be listening to what people in Germany want – I’m . pretty sure they would rather have the Deutschmark back than bail out . Greece and Italy.’ But Jean-Claude Juncker, head of the . powerful Euro Group of eurozone finance ministers, said Britain was in . no position to comment on the crisis as its deficit was twice the . European average. The Conservatives have long promised a referendum on repatriating powers from the EU, but have not yet delivered one. Angela Merkel's comments today make a referendum less likely, as her 'limited treaty change' will not have to be approved by countries outside the euro, including the UK. The Coalition's 'referendum lock' commits the Government to holding a public vote the next time Britain is supposed to sign up to a new treaty which would hand more power to Brussels. But if the eurozone countries try to solve the debt crisis by closer economic integration, the UK will have no say - even though this could have a massive impact on Britain. Although no referendum will be held, there is nothing to stop the Government from trying to repatriate powers by itself, but without a popular mandate it will be taken less seriously by other EU countries. He said he was ‘not in favour of being dictated to by countries that are doing worse than us’. Mr Schauble’s comments came as Mr . Cameron arrived to a hostile reception in Berlin for talks on the . eurozone crisis with German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Senior members of . Mrs Merkel’s ruling coalition voiced their irritation at London’s . ‘lecturing’ over the crisis. Leading German magazine Der Spiegel ran a prominent feature describing Britain as the ‘dis- eased empire’. And Rainer Brüderle, head of Mrs Merkel’s coalition partners, said: ‘Britain can’t be freeloaders in the eurozone.’ The deputy leader of Mrs Merkel’s . party, Michael Meister, criticised Britain for lecturing the eurozone on . what steps it should take while not actively contributing towards a . solution. He also warned Mr Cameron against . catering to nationalist sentiment on the euro, saying turmoil in the . single currency area could have a devastating impact on countries . outside the eurozone and on London’s financial industry. Mrs Merkel flatly rejected Mr . Cameron’s key demand to allow the European Central Bank to pump in . hundreds of billions of euros to prop up the euro and prevent a new . recession. But in a sign of growing nervousness . about the crisis, the ECB yesterday intervened to buy up Spanish and . Italian government bonds to prevent market speculation driving interest . rates to unsustainable levels. The German Chancellor also made clear . she would press ahead with EU treaty reforms, even if they are opposed . by Britain – although she said she was prepared to show ‘tolerance and . forbearance’. Berlin has drawn up secret plans designed to bypass the threat of a British referendum on treaty reforms. Greeting: Mr Cameron and Mrs Merkel met in Berlin yesterday for crisis talks on the future of the EU . Meeting: Earlier, Mr Cameron held talks with EU president Herman Van Rompuy, right, in Brussels . Talks: Mr Cameron also met with Jose Manuel Barroso, right, president of the European Commission . A leaked German memo stated: ‘Limiting . the effect of the treaty changes to the eurozone states would make . ratification easier, which would nevertheless be required by all EU . member states (thereby less referenda could be necessary, which could . also affect the UK).’ The bond yields of troubled eurozone governments have remained stubbornly high today. Both Italy and Spain are hovering around the seven per cent barrier at which repayment costs are considered to be unsustainable. These were the 10-year bond yields of European countries at 2pm today. Italy - 6.77% . Spain - 6.48% . France - 3.56% . Greece - 28.88% . Portugal - 11.42% . Ireland - 8.38% . UK - 2.22% . Germany - 1.90% . The memo will add to fears that . Germany wants to use the eurozone crisis to create a European ‘super . state’ with its own tax and spend policies. Last night a Downing Street source . insisted that all 27 member states had to agree to treaty changes even . if they only affected the 17 eurozone members. He said there would be no . need for a referendum as long as powers were not taken from the UK and . handed to Brussels. Mrs Merkel is determined to establish . a new European Monetary Fund with powers to intervene directly in the . economies of member states. Former prime minister Sir John Major . last night spoke out about the ‘undemocratic’ drive towards greater . fiscal union in the eurozone. He warned of the danger posed by EU . plans to impose a new tax on financial transactions, which he described . as a ‘heat-seeking missile’ targeted at the City of London. Mr Cameron yesterday rejected German . calls for an EU-wide tax. But he was silent on previous demands for the . repatriation of powers to Britain. At a joint press conference with Mrs Merkel the pair admitted they had made ‘no progress’ on key fault lines. Protest: Thousands took to the streets of Barcelona ahead of Spain's general election this weekend . Tory MP Mark Reckless last night said . there would be an unanswerable case for a referendum in this country if . the eurozone decided to press ahead with treaty changes unilaterally. He said: ‘I have no objection to them pressing ahead with creating a . Europe of 17 but we would have to reconsider our own relationship with . that. ‘It would be them leaving us rather than us leaving them – and that would be a very good basis for a referendum.’ Former Tory leadership contender . David Davis yesterday called on Mr Cameron to exploit the crisis to . demand the repatriation of key powers in areas such as employment . rights. Clash: Italy has seen riots after installing an EU-approved technocratic government this week . Demonstration: Marchers in Milan yesterday targeted banks to express their anger at the financial crisis . But Downing Street last night played . down expectations of a major repatriation of powers. Ministers are . instead focusing on securing an opt-out from the financial transactions . tax. Despite the tensions Mr Cameron and . Mrs Merkel attempted to put on a show of unity for the cameras . yesterday. Mr Cameron said: ‘It’s a good relationship. We have strong . agreement on key issues about action the European economy needs to . take.’ But he added: ‘It is obvious that we . don’t agree on every aspect of European policy, but I am clear that we . can address and accommodate and deal with those differences.’ Close: Mrs Merkel and France's Nicolas Sarkozy want to exclude Britain from talks on the eurozone's future . City of London: Mr Cameron is concerned that a financial transactions tax will hit the UK . By ALLAN HALL . Germany’s press has made much of the British prime minister’s differences with Angela Merkel. The media has hardly been the best of friends with Mrs Merkel of late, but it is firmly on her side when it comes to dealing with the ‘old enemy’. Bild carried the headlines ‘Briten . zittern vor Deutschlands Euro-Plänen’ – ‘Britons tremble before . Germany’s euro plans’ – and ‘Europa spricht deutsch, Herr Cameron! Was . wollen die Engländer eigentlich noch in der EU?’ – ‘Europe speaks . German, Mr Cameron! What do the English actually want in the European . Union?’ Financial Times Deutschland wrote: ‘He wants Britain to have a say in the financial crisis, but he doesn’t want his country to have to pay for it. ‘He wants to prevent a core Europe (of Germany and France) from forming, but at the same time he is unwilling to contribute to deeper European integration. Great Britain is lacking a constructive approach. ‘That’s why the government in London shouldn’t be surprised that it is hearing an increasing number of European countries sigh words like: Things would be a lot easier if we didn’t have the Brits.’ Conservative Die Welt added: ‘Britain is fighting for its future in Europe more vigorously than it has in a long time. The Continent, from which Britain always tried to keep its distance, is unmistakably heading toward a future of more integration, right in front of Albion’s front door. ‘Cameron is constantly talking of “repatriating” powers back to the United Kingdom from Brussels. ‘Does he have nothing else to say about the future of Europe than the constant mantra of a Little Englander? ‘Does he not know about the new treaty negotiations that would be necessary in such a case – at a time when Europe has bigger things to worry about than the concerns of British euroskeptics?’ And the influential business journal Handelsblatt criticised Mr Cameron – but also warned that Germany needs Britain in the EU. ‘Why should the Chancellor worry just now about the British who have so little to offer?’ it asked. ‘If Cameron strews sand into the German efforts toward EU reform, the 17 eurozone countries will do it themselves. ‘But Germany remembers more than Frenchmen the complicated outsider role of the British – and their meaning in European history. ‘Would it be intelligent to marginalise it, to do without its weight with regard to foreign policy? How would it stand without its defence capabilities? Would there be a domestic market without it today?’ | Finance minister's astonishing claim comes despite deepening crisis that threatens the existence of the single currency .
Cameron and Merkel ignore disagreements over eurozone solution as they describe their 'strong friendship'
German Chancellor says EU needs 'limited treaty change' which won't trigger a referendum in Britain .
PM was in Berlin today to discuss repatriation of EU powers and 'Tobin tax'
UK is pressuring Germany to allow euro bank to print more money .
Senior Tory calls for 'permanent, universal opt-out' from European laws . | 84f510b1e98b4009e2fd68d388b99b1ef6115ede | [
0,
368,
2968,
4747,
6323,
26513,
11756,
2296,
845,
7190,
133,
36,
5241,
12,
7346,
8,
3,
8861,
11,
1715
] |
By . Francesca Infante . PUBLISHED: . 20:59 EST, 27 February 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 09:57 EST, 28 February 2013 . Vegetarians have reacted with horror to plans by Britain’s biggest crisp maker to start selling smoky bacon and roast chicken crisps that will contain meat for the first time. In what may be a surprise to many, neither of the varieties of crisps made by Walkers contain real bacon or real chicken - but instead rely on artificial flavours. The move to real ingredients is thought to be an attempt to shake off the ‘junk food’ label - but has been greeted with horror by vegetarians who have been tucking into the snacks for years. Change: Walkers plans to start selling smoky bacon (left) and roast chicken (right) crisps that will contain meat . Earlier this month Walkers - part of international food giant Pepsico - tipped off the Vegetarian Society that within weeks their previously meat-free flavours ‘will now contain extracts of meat.’ The news has sparked controversy among vegetarians who can no longer enjoy their favourite flavour crisps and are urging the company to reconsider. In an online forum one wrote: ‘Whether this is simply a publicity stunt planned by the marketing department to cause public outcry, or whether Walkers think this change in ingredients will increase their profits, I will certainly be contacting them to let them know how I feel, and urge you to do the same.’ Another also encouraged fellow veggie consumers to revolt, they wrote: ‘The more people that e-mail them, the more likely they will be to reconsider the new ingredients.’ Flavouring: The change will now be promoted by former England footballer and presenter Gary Lineker next month. He is pictured here in 1998 with model Kelly Brook . The row has caused Walkers customer . services to wade in to try re-assure vegetarians that their products . will continue to be ethical. In . a letter to one complainant they said: ‘I am really sorry that you will . no longer be able to enjoy Walkers roast chicken and smokey bacon . flavoured crisps. ‘I can . understand your concerns over this matter however; we are using only . free-range chicken and freedom food pork to ensure the highest standard . of animal welfare.’ Unmistakably Cheese & Onion including cheese from Somerset . Definitively Prawn Cocktail with Vale of Evesham tomatoes . Classically Ready Salted with salt from Cheshire . Distinctively Salt & Vinegar with real British vinegar . Undeniably Pickled Onion with real British vinegar . Deliciously Sour Cream & Chive with sour cream from Dorset . Tantalisingly Tomato Ketchup with Vale of Evesham tomatoes . Famously Worcester Sauce blended in Britain . Smoky bacon with RSPCA Freedom Food pork . Roast chicken with free-range chicken . The change will now be promoted by former England footballer and presenter Gary Lineker next month. In other changes, the firm is to use cheese from Somerset and the salt and vinegar flavour will have real British vinegar. Packets of sour cream and chive crisps with sour cream from Dorset have already been slipped onto shelves as part of a trial by the Leicester-based firm. In 2007, U.S. snack food company Mars was . forced to abandon a move to use animal rennet in its Mars bars bars . after it was bombarded with complaints from vegetarians. Walkers could . not be contacted for comment last night. Last year Walkers was slammed by customers who counted as few as five whole crisps in a packet of their newest brand, Walkers Deep Ridged. Things got so bad that the BBC’s Watchdog programme launched an investigation after receiving a number of complaints about the pitiful amount of crisps in the multipack bags. Their investigation found a maximum of 13 crisps in bag and a minimum of 11. But other consumers also contacted the show to report that they had seen as few as five crisps in their multipack bags. Walkers were quick to hit back at the criticism claiming that their deep ridged crisps were more prone to breakage and were protected by being sold in slightly bigger packets – giving the false impression that there were less crisps in them. But that didn’t stop angry customers taking to twitter to voice their frustration. Nicole Bourcine wrote said: ‘#crispgate I just opened a bag had 6 whole crisps and some bits. Bring back smiths and golden wonder!’ | Move to real ingredients has been greeted with horror by vegetarians .
Walkers tries to re-assure vegetarians that products will still be ethical .
Change will now be promoted by presenter Gary Lineker next month . | a6c179a1382c214948887a0c18d5f136b09f679e | [
0,
368,
12008,
7,
56,
3480,
3604,
21,
166,
97,
3,
5,
13521,
7,
56,
456,
3014,
3,
7,
51
] |
By . Tom Mctague, Mail online Deputy Political Editor . The Queen may be forced to appoint an Australian-style ‘governor general’ to rule in her name in Scotland if the country votes for independence next month, it has been claimed. Constitutional experts fear independence could throw up divided loyalties for the Queen if there was a clash between Scotland and the rump-UK in the future. One solution would be to appoint a ‘governor general’ in Edinburgh to act in the Queen’s name. This could lead Scotland to eventually ditching the Royal family and becoming a republic within the European Union, claim experts. The Queen - inspecting the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders at the gates to Balmoral earlier this month - may have divided loyalties if Scotland voted for independence . Latest polls show support for independence has grown from 39 per cent to 43 per cent in a month, with just four weeks before the historic September 18 referendum . Sir Peter Cosgrove was sworn in as Australia’s twenty sixth Governor-General in March this year. The retired senior army officer represents the Queen in Australia and is the Commander-in-Chief of the country’s Defence Force. In the day-to-day running of the country the Governor-General acts as the country’s head of state and is appointed by The Queen on the advice of the Australian Prime Minister. Like the Queen in the UK, the Governor-General has the power to appoint a Prime Minister if an election has resulted in a ‘hung parliament’. He also has the power to dismiss a Prime Minister where he or she has lost the confidence of the Parliament. The claim comes as a new poll shows rising support for independence with just a month to go before the referendum on September 18. A YouGov poll for the Times puts support for independence at 43 per cent, with 57 per cent backing the Union, once undecided voters are taken out. Earlier this month just 39 per cent said they were preparing to vote Yes - with 61 per cent for No. Scottish Nationalist leader Alex Salmond has insisted that the Queen will remain head of state in an independent Scotland. But his party is split on the issue. The SNP’s John Mason yesterday called for a referendum to replace the Queen as head of state in Scotland. He said: ‘The present queen is very popular, but the mood of society may change when she leaves the throne.’ Scotland Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill has also raised the prospect this year of a referendum on the Royals. He said it was ‘for the people of Scotland to decide’ on the Queen’s role. However, Robert Blackburn, professor of constitutional law at King’s College London, said the Queen may need to change her role if the UK split. He said: ‘Politically, the Queen could find herself in difficulties if she received contradictory advice on her royal duties or public utterances on matters of common interest, particularly in foreign or diplomatic matters, where the British and Scottish governments might happen to be at loggerheads. ‘One solution would be to establish an office of governor-general in Edinburgh to act in the Queen’s name.’ Stephen Haseler, director of the Global Policy Institute in London, added: ‘Alex Salmond has overcome the issue of the monarchy initially by saying “Look, we will keep the Queen”.' But Mr Haseler added: 'But of course the Queen won’t be around for very long, and my absolute conviction is that once the Queen goes the Scots won’t wear Prince Charles, and they will go for a republican system within the European Union.’ The Queen has not intervened in the debate on independence, but has previously publicly praised the union. Earlier this month the Queen conferred the honour of Knight of the Order of Australia on the country's Governor-General, Sir Peter Cosgrove. Sir Peter represents the Queen in Australia and is the head of the Australian defence force . First Minister Alex Salmond has vowed to keep the Queen as Scotland's head of state after independence . In a speech she gave to MPs on her Silver Jubilee in 1977 she said: ‘I number kings and queens of England and of Scotland, and princes of Wales among my ancestors and so I can readily understand these aspirations. ‘But I cannot forget that I was crowned Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. ‘Perhaps this jubilee is a time to remind ourselves of the benefits which union has conferred, at home and in our international dealings, on the inhabitants of all parts of this United Kingdom.’ | Experts fear independence could throw up divided loyalties for the Queen .
Solution could be to appoint representative to act in the Sovereign's name .
Claims Scotland may eventually ditch Royal family and becoming a republic .
Comes amid growing support for independence ahead of September 18 vote .
Support for independence up to 43% with 57% backing the Union . | d83548501029ce729817e5ce1fec97425e2ac1df | [
0,
368,
5492,
7,
504,
380,
21,
12315,
65,
4503,
45,
6352,
399,
3151,
12,
8838,
399,
3151,
16,
3
] |
When most people think of breast surgery, they envisage augmentations or reductions. But another cosmetic procedure is on the rise among women desperate for 'perfect' breasts. Areola reduction surgery is aimed at women who are unhappy with either the size or shape of their areolae, the brown or pink area surrounding the nipple. Women who are insecure about the size or shape of brown or pink area surrounding their nipples are resorting to surgery . Some women believe their areolae are too wide, raised, non-circular or uneven in colour and are now resorting to surgery to tackle the problem. The procedure is performed by removing a circular area of the outer area of the areola and bringing in the skin around it to reduce and tighten it. Absorbable stitches are used inside the areola to reduce the diameter. In many cases, surgeons will use a permanent stitch which they place deep in the breast tissue to prevent the areola from widening after surgery. One woman who is considering surgery said her nipples has been compared 'Hob Nob biscuits' Helena, 33, who lives in London, who had been hiding her nipple insecurity for years was ecstatic when she heard about the surgery. She said ‘As soon as I hit puberty I . realised my nipples were unlike other girls. They just got bigger and . bigger – and they were much darker than my friends’ nipples. ‘Getting changed for swimming was mortifying – I was worried everyone was looking at me. ‘My first boyfriend jokingly compared . them to Hob Nob biscuits. He meant it fondly but that description stayed . with me – and I’ve never been able to move on from it. I’ve felt . self-conscious with every man I’ve ever undressed in front of. ‘They have also been compared to . Scotch pancakes. They are so disproportionately large - it makes me so . paranoid. Leteysha Grace, of MTV's The Valleys, was so upset by comments about her breasts that she's now considering nipple reduction surgery . 'I don’t feel at all sexy with my top off. I can’t imagine how . any man could find them attractive. ‘My friend told me her nipples got . larger and darker when she was pregnant and breastfeeding. The very . thought fills me with fear. ‘I’d never heard about nipple reduction surgery before - I thought I was stuck with them. ‘Now that I know it exists I’m going to save up to have it done.’ The surgery involves removing skin from the outer area of the areola . And Helena is not alone - Leteysha Grace, of MTV's The Valleys, is considering the surgery after suffering at the hands of bullies. Leteysha was horrified by the onslaught of abuse she received on Twitter after she appeared topless in a Zoo magazine shoot. Speaking to Heat magazine, she said: 'I'm having my nipples corrected because I'm not happy with the way my boobs look. 'I can't even take my bra off during sex. I don't know if I'll still have sensitivity after the surgery, but, to be honest, I don't really care.' However, a loss of sensation isn't the main issue with this type of surgery. Miles Berry, co-author of The Good Boob Bible explains: 'If too much skin is removed, scars can stretch so expectations are a key part of preoperative discussions. The average areola is approximately 4.5 . cm in diameter. Sometimes an enlarged areola is caused by the natural . sagging of breasts due to age or breast-feeding . 'However, I feel the trend is growing and results are usually very good, if the above points are taken into consideration.' Plastic surgeon Dr. Yannis Alexandrides, founder of clinic 111 Harley Street, said of the surgery: 'Women who are self conscious because they have large areolae, need not worry because there is a simple correction that can be performed under local anaesthetic. 'An average areola is approximately 4.5 cm in diameter. Sometimes a large areola goes together with natural sagging of breasts due to age or breast-feeding. 'If you want to have a breast reduction or a breast lift done, the areola may be reduced at the same time to the desired size. An areola reduction can also be performed without additional surgery. 'Through an incision in the outer part of the nipple of the areola, the pigmented skin around the nipple or areola is removed. This procedure may leave a small scar around the areola. 'An areola reduction does not cause any problems with future breast feeding.' Dr. Yannis Alexandrides said: 'Women who are self conscious because they have large areolae need not worry because there is a simple correction that can be performed under local anaesthetic' | Women now resorting to surgery to alter size or shape of the areola - the darker area surrounding the nipple .
Performed under either local or general anaesthetic .
Leaves minimal scarring .
Lateysha Grace from MTV's The Valleys is considering it . | c40526ce12fbabe4b220908480a31b4cba9d5e57 | [
0,
368,
8602,
3979,
19,
3,
8287,
44,
887,
113,
33,
24357,
28,
893,
8,
812,
42,
2346,
13,
70
] |
By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 17:39 EST, 5 February 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 19:16 EST, 5 February 2014 . Charge: Michael Douglas McDowell has been charged with 10 years probation after falsifying a military record and being married to two women at once . A man who claimed touted his Purple Heart and wore military medals has plead guilty to impersonating a public servant. Michael Douglas McDowell, 57, spent years living in Fort Worth, Texas pretending to be a general but he has now been sentenced to five years’ probation for the crime. That wasn't the only deception that he is now in legal trouble for, as he has been charged with bigamy because he married one woman while still legally married to his estranged wife. The bigamy charge led to a second five-years of probation. 'For the better part of 15 years, this defendant perfected the art of stolen valor,' Tarrant County assistant district attorney Joshua Ross said in a statement. 'The lengths to which he was willing to go were prolific; including wearing an officer’s uniform and medals, as well as obtaining purple heart license plates, none of which was earned. He even wore a uniform to his marriage to a woman who believed him to be a military officer, and who was not aware of his other marriage. 'Considering those in uniform rarely ask for anything more than an occasional ‘thank you,’ Michael McDowell’s actions are profoundly offensive.' According to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, the first tip off to his fictitious personal history came when he offered the local police chief a tour of the White House or Pentagon. Falsified: Police have released photos of all of the fake documents that he used as props . Fooled: McDowell wrote a fake obituary for his father, that General David Petraeus commented on in 2011 . Officer Halstead told the paper that he became suspicious because McDowell reeked of cigarette smoke and was wearing an ill-fitting suit- two things that he thought were not befitting of such a high-ranking military man- prompting him to have some of his deputies look into his background. During the investigation, they were led to a fake online obituary for his father, who he claimed was a Brigadier General at the time of his death but had in fact died more than two decades earlier never having served in the military. The ruse got passed General David Petraeus- before resigning as CIA director amid extramarital affair allegations- who posted a message on the online obituary. Michael McDowell had completely fabricated not only his own military service record, but also his father's who died in 1985 in California and not in 2011 in Seattle as he wrote online. Trickery: McDowell married his second wife wearing the fake uniform (left) and was arrested in 2013 (right) That didn't stop Petraeus from offering his condolences to Michael and his then-fiancée Christy. 'General McDowell was a great man and leader, and I am confident that you will accomplish even more than he did in his lifetime,' Petraeus wrote of the deceased. 'Thank you for your devout and faithful service to your country and for being a great man that leads by example.' | Michael McDowell, 57, claimed for years that he was a General who had earned a Purple Heart for bravery .
Has now been proven a fraud who even lied to his second wife- and he married her before divorcing his first wife .
Charged with bigamy and impersonating a public servant, and has been sentenced to 10 years probation . | b82c5d9e85ce574c6fb0327a392dac1338192524 | [
0,
368,
120,
7142,
26,
12,
335,
203,
28444,
21,
256,
6075,
1014,
3,
9,
452,
14620,
3,
5,
2457
] |
Alarming: Thefts of valuable ¿green¿ catalytic converters from cars have more than doubled over the past three years . Thefts of valuable ‘green’ catalytic converters from cars have more than doubled over the past three years, new figures reveal. Criminals are ripping out the anti-pollution devices from cars and vans because they contain increasingly precious and sought-after metals such as platinum and palladium - leaving motorists with repair bills of thousands of pounds. Soaring scrap metal prices have seen thefts increase ten fold in some areas. Altogether almost 25,000 thefts were reported to police forces across the UK between 2010 and the first half of this year. Police say 4x4 vehicles and vans are particularly at risk because they are easy to crawl underneath. The scale of the increase is revealed in a BBC investigation (must credit). Figures from 40 UK police forces revealed thefts UK had more than doubled from 3,957 in 2010 to 8,947 in 2012. But some parts of the country saw an even more significant rise. In Bedfordshire (up from 31 to 340) and South Yorkshire (up from 15 to 177) thefts increased more than ten-fold. And they more than tripled across Cheshire, Greater Manchester and Leicestershire during the same period. Dyfed-Powys in Wales has seen a 27-fold increase from just 2 thefts in 2010 to 55 in 2012.Catalytic converters reduce poisonous gases from the vehicle’s exhaust system. James Goodson, a senior analyst with British Transport Police, says rises in the global price of platinum have fuelled the illegal trade. He said: ‘We’ve seen that in the past metals such as platinum and palladium are affected by the changes in the market. That would be reflected at scrap metal dealer level by the dealer offering a better price for that material. ‘We’ve identified that when there are increases in the price of these metals and materials then we often see an increase in levels of theft reported to us.’ Det Supt Alison Evans, national co-ordinator for the National Metal Theft Task Force, said organised criminals were behind the increases in theft: ‘We have had depots and fleets being hit, and that suggests a level of pre-planning that isn’t involved in your spontaneous type of offending.’ She added: ‘We know from our intelligence from the arrests we’ve made that most of the people we have arrested are UK residents. There is an element of Eastern European involvement but a lot of these people are people who trawl around the country in order to attack particular locations that have been identified as vulnerable.’ Det Supt Evans said: ‘Catalytic converters can be processed through some scrap metal dealers, but they need to have a particular piece of equipment to be able to do that. ‘ . In another twist, police say some catalytic converters are exported directly in containers to emerging economies where they are either reused or broken down. Easy target: Police say 4x4 vehicles like this Nissan X-Trail are particularly at risk because they are easy for crooks to crawl underneath . New laws that came into force on 1 October banned cash payments for scrap metal with the aim of making it easier to trace people selling stolen metal. Among the victims are Jonathan Elvidge whose fleet of delivery vans was targeted by thieves just before Christmas 2011. Fifteen of his vehicles were stripped of their catalytic converters when his depot was raided one night. Mr Elvidge said the thief managed to saw through and remove all 15 catalytic converters within 45 minutes: ‘The cost to the business was significant. I mean keeping the vehicles on hire and bringing in new vehicles would have cost us £15,000 to £20,000.’ But he stressed: ‘The real cost is the lost revenue in the stores, which we estimate will be in excess of £100,000. So the real risk to the business, was going out of business.’ Up to 600 jobs were put at risk by the thefts, he added. Modern cars are fitted with catalytic converters to reduce harmful emissions of hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides into the atmosphere. They contain a ceramic honeycombed core coated with metals such as platinum, palladium and rhodium. The metals act as catalysts and convert the harmful gases into water vapour and less harmful emissions. A Department of Transport spokesman said it was not illegal to drive without a catalytic converter but you could be stopped by the police and prosecuted for breaking the law on harmful emissions. Most vehicles will also fail an MoT test without a catalytic converter. The police and AA say that to help foil the thieves, catalytic converters can be uniquely marked in acid with a serial number. Motorists are advised to keep their cars in garages or park in well-lit areas. Most converters are bolted on - but they can also be welded. Firms with fleets are advised to obstruct access to high vehicles by parking cars with lower ground clearance round them and to install CCTV cameras. | Figures from 40 UK police forces revealed thefts UK had more than doubled from 3,957 in 2010 to 8,947 in 2012 .
Police say 4x4 vehicles and vans are particularly at risk because they are easy to crawl underneath .
The anti-pollution devices from cars and .
vans contain increasingly precious and sought-after metals .
such as platinum and palladium which can be sold . | bd8849e15f93d771d0a9bb698d4dd22121467ef4 | [
0,
368,
5638,
6731,
14806,
7,
13,
3435,
1712,
9,
14991,
20908,
7,
45,
2948,
43,
72,
145,
1486,
26
] |
By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 16:15 EST, 13 October 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 02:46 EST, 14 October 2013 . A Jackson family confidant has revealed that the family matriarch, Katherine Jackson, couldn't stand her son's close friend Elizabeth Taylor. Stacy Brown writ . es in the New York Post that Katherine Jackson was jealous of the woman Michael Jackson referred to as his 'surrogate mother'. Brown claims that on visits to Michael Jackson's Neverland ranch, his mother would refuse to sit anywhere Taylor had rested. Close friendship: Michael Jackson and Elizabeth Taylor had a friendship that spanned more than 30 years . Beat it: Katherine Jackson reportedly couldn't stand Elizabeth Taylor and refused to even sit in chairs where she had been . 'I’m not sitting where she sat,” he alleges she would say. 'She’s stolen my son away.' Michael Jackson and Elizabeth Taylor formed an unlikely friendship when she attended one of his concerts. According to ABC, Taylor walked out halfway through, and later he called her almost in tears. She assured him that she left because of bad visibility and not because she disliked his performance. The phone call turned into a three-hour conversation which in turn became a friendship that spanned more than three decades. Surrogate mother: Jackson made Taylor (seen here together in 2000) the godmother of his two eldest children . Grandmother: Katherine Jackson, seen here with Prince Michael Jackson, now has custody of her son's children . Taylor married her seventh husband Larry Fortensky at Jackson's Neverland ranch in 1991. And in 1997, Jackson presented Taylor with a song called Elizabeth, I Love You, which he performed at her 65th birthday party. When his two eldest children Prince Michael and Paris were born, Jackson made Taylor and not his mother their godmother. When Jackson died in 2009, Taylor was wracked with grief. Child stars: Neither Jackson nor Taylor, seen here in 1988 with Liza Minnelli and Whitney Houston, had a regular childhood . 'My heart...my mind...are broken,' she wrote on Twitter the day after he died. 'I loved Michael with all my soul and I can't imagine life without him. I don't think anyone knew how much we loved each other. The purest most giving love I've ever known. Oh god! I'm going to miss him.' Taylor was not present at Jackson's media-thronged funeral. she claimed that she didn't believe Michael would want her to share her grief with millions of others, but a report in the National Enquirer says it's because the Jackson family refused to invite her. According to the Enquirer's source, at the time 'Elizabeth Taylor was crushed. She’s still crying.' | A confidant of the Jackson clan says Katherine Jackson was jealous of her son's friendship with Elizabeth Taylor .
He claims the Jacksons refused the invite Taylor to Michael Jackson's funeral . | 401b57e4ad4a2416be8aaf4b5911a57666f387bb | [
0,
368,
1060,
1844,
10,
28311,
7714,
47,
23022,
13,
160,
520,
31,
7,
3,
31,
3042,
3822,
342,
2039
] |
New figures have revealed that poultry accounts for more than half of all the meat bought in Britain . If you’re sitting down with the family for a roast chicken with all the trimmings today, you are not alone. Poultry now accounts for nearly half of all the meat bought in Britain, new figures reveal. It means an end to our reputation as a red meat-eating nation that led the French to nicknaming us ‘les rosbifs’ (the roast beefs). Instead, a steady rise in sales of chicken coupled with a fall for beef, pork and lamb has led to a change in this country’s daily diet – and we now eat 2.2 million chickens a day. Industry figures for shop-bought meat show that in March last year chicken accounted for 46 per cent of the total. Ten years ago it made up just a third of meat bought. If the trend continues, this year chicken will pass the 50 per cent benchmark for the first time, according to the trade body, the British Poultry Council (BPC). The figures relate to meat bought in shops to be eaten at home rather than restaurant meals, ready meals and takeaways. Poultry is considered by some experts to be healthier than red meat and it has emerged unscathed from public health scares such as BSE, foot and mouth and horsemeat contamination. And with 70 per cent of all chicken in the UK being home-reared, it also satisfies those who prefer to buy British. But increasingly, the biggest factor could be the the meat’s relatively low price, according to retail industry analysts Kantar. Lamb prices, for instance, have doubled over the same period and beef has gone up by 50 per cent. The BPC has even warned that home-reared chicken is becoming so popular that the UK could run out of space to produce enough birds. A BPC spokesman said: ‘Poultry prices have only risen very slowly in the last 20 years, way behind other food commodities.’ | New figures reveal poultry accounts for nearly half of all meat bought in Britain .
Seventy per cent of all chicken in the UK is home-reared .
British Poultry Council warns country could run out of space to produce birds . | a93cde4f346b9b4162e98a5eb194dd81cf6871ae | [
0,
368,
5638,
43,
5111,
24,
27254,
3744,
21,
2111,
985,
13,
66,
3604,
2944,
16,
7190,
3,
5,
1908
] |
(OPRAH.com) -- I'm on the hunt for a new best friend. Not that I'm replacing my old ones, mind you. BFFs aren't like cell phones, traded in for an upgrade every two years. Best Friends Forever are, well, forever. They send you flowers for your professional successes. They spend $160 on a dress they may not even like (but, of course, say they love) so they can perfectly match the flowers as you walk down the aisle. They drive uptown at 1 a.m. to bring you a clean T-shirt when your father is dying and you've spent 48 hours in the same tank top you were wearing when you learned you had to fly home from vacation to say goodbye. But one of the best things about best friends is that they aren't romantic partners. I don't have to pick only one for as long as we both shall live. So now that I've moved 800 miles away from my be-there-whenever-I-need-them friends -- which makes it a lot harder for them to physically be here whenever I need them -- I'm in the market for a new addition to the list. A new old friend. So how do I do that? What does it mean to not dive but rather cannonball into a sea of best friend prospects? In the few months I've been on the prowl, I've learned it means doing exactly what I would do to find a husband or a job. It's about putting myself out there. Easier said than done? Perhaps. But if it were simple, I'd be out drinking coffee with my very own Monica and Phoebe instead of watching them in reruns from my couch. Oprah.com: Why sitcoms can teach us something about friendship . My first foray into the girl-dating market starts with the woman behind the counter at a boutique downtown. I met her six months ago, and she was the perfect mix of friendly and sarcastic (we shared great banter about the tragedy of Chicago weather making it hard for girls to dress up as candy-stripers and Superwoman on Halloween). My husband tried to convince me to ask for her number, just to see if she wanted to have lunch sometime. I was too shy at first, but now I'm in my I'll-find-a-best-friend-or-die-trying phase. I've returned to her store five times, and she's never again been behind the register. I guess she's the one that got away. Now I've got my eye on another sales clerk. She works at the shop around the corner, my pop-in store when I need a wardrobe fix. After two years of dispensing fashion advice, she knows just the type of sweater I like. Definitely promising. But every time I build up the nerve to actually say some variation of "I need a best friend. You seem nice and might be able to get me a discount. Want to get a drink sometime?" there's another salesgirl with her, and I'm just not ready to deliver my first pickup line in front of an audience. Oprah.com: Are you a good friend? Take the quiz! Approaching an unsuspecting salesclerk might be advanced friend-dating anyway, and I'm still in Friendship 101. But in just the first couple months of my quest, I've developed some hard-and-fast rules. 1. Facebook is your friend. The funny thing about social networks is that people you've met only once, people whose last names you may not even know, will request your friendship or accept your request. If you took a look at my list of "friends" in Chicago, you wouldn't believe I ever spent a moment alone. I'm Facebook friends with the friend of a friend of a friend I met at a birthday party last year, and the woman who sold me my wedding dress, and the girl I randomly made paella with in a cooking class nine months ago. In each case, we liked each other enough to become virtual friends, but had yet to take our relationship offline. My rule of thumb, which I offer to you, is this: If we can be Facebook friends, we can be face-to-face friends. To that end, the "Facebook message" system is a good one. If you hardly know this person, messaging via Facebook is less intrusive or -- I'll just say it -- less stalker-ish. When you've established a bit of banter, then you can start emailing directly. But to start, let whatever network connected you -- be it Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, what have you -- be the medium through which you establish communication. Oprah.com: How to change your Google reputation . 2. Make the first move. Here's where finding a best friend isn't like dating. I know it's the 21st century and plenty of women are asking men out, but let's be honest, most of us are waiting for him to call. Men know this and usually take the initiative. But when two potential female BFFs are hoping to connect, then what? Who makes the first move? The answer: You. If you think she's the one, just call. Or email. Or Facebook message. Whatever. Just do something. Because we're all busy, and we all say "we should get together!" and we all forget to reach out, however much we really, truly, intended to. So stop sitting around waiting for her invitation. Shoot her an email. Five bucks says her response starts with "So good to hear from you!" 3. Tell your friends that you're in the market for new ones. People love playing matchmaker, but romantic setups can often blow up in your face. He didn't call, she thought they hit it off, they're both calling to see what happened and blame you for what went wrong. Setting up two potential friends, however, is much less of a minefield. If it works out, great. If it doesn't, there's generally no harm done. The setter-upper feels much less pressure, and if her two buddies can be friends themselves, even better! But here's the catch -- you need to tell people you're on the hunt. When I announced to my entire world that I was looking to make some new friends, suddenly my mother-in-law's mother-in-law's neighbor's daughter knew someone I just had to meet. When I finally said to an old friend, "I've lived here for two and a half years, why am I just hearing about these girls now?" She said, "I figured you already had your own group." Lesson learned. Your friendship search might be one of the central focuses of your life, but it's not really something anyone else thinks about. People are busy focusing on their own lives, their own friendship quests or romance quests or peace-and-quiet quests. That doesn't mean they don't want to help you -- it just means you need to ask. 4. Make the second move too. Two months into my hunt, I've been on my fair share of friend-dates. They go swimmingly, and then we say goodbye and "We should do it again!" and go on our merry ways. And then a few weeks or a month passes and I think, "Whatever happened to Sarah? Or Jane? Or Hillary?" Because one fun dinner does not a BFF make. So I've accepted that not only do I have to set up the first outing, but quite often the second one too. Maybe even the third. At that point, if she's still not reaching out, it's time to reevaluate the situation. But until then, swallow your pride and push the issue. Yes, the rules of friendship call for reciprocation -- both parties should equally reach out to the other -- but until you've established a true relationship, rules don't apply. 5. Join, join, join. A book club, a quilting group, a poker game, a dance class. Figure out what you're interested in, then sign up for whatever recurring event is offered. It's not just that organized gatherings are surefire places to meet new people, it's also that Cardio Hip-Hop is held every Thursday night, so the woman who looks like BFF material will be there next week and the week after that. Consistent face time is key to building relationships, and if that comes with a side of booty blasting, all the better. Subscribe to O, The Oprah Magazine for up to 75% off the newsstand price. That's like getting 18 issues FREE. Subscribe now! TM & © 2011 Harpo Productions, Inc. All Rights Reserved. | If you can be Facebook friends, you can be face-to-face friends .
Setting up two potential friends is much less of a minefield than romantic pairings .
Figure out what you're interested in, then sign up for a club or weekly group . | a0a27f39a469114c5146829fca946351e8083fea | [
0,
368,
200,
1565,
19,
29,
31,
17,
7966,
3222,
5,
1648,
803,
33,
29,
31,
17,
7966,
3222,
5
] |
(CNN) -- Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg, Apple's Steve Jobs and Microsoft's Bill Gates have done it. So have Al Gore, George Lucas and John McCain. Those heavyweights and many more were all speakers at the annual D: All Things Digital conference, which begins Tuesday in Rancho Palos Verdes, California, near Los Angeles. Created in 2003 by tech columnists Kara Swisher and Walt Mossberg of the Wall Street Journal, the conference is a yearly showcase for tech industry leaders along with bold-face names from business, entertainment and politics. Over the years, the conference has become known for both its consistent roster of influential Web and tech figures and its relatively exclusive nature: It's held at a luxury resort. Attendance is limited, with past events being held to 500 attendees. (CNN.com will be attending the conference, dubbed D9 because it's in its ninth year, and reporting whenever its speakers make news). Scheduled speakers include Twitter CEO Dick Costolo, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, Walt Disney Co. President and CEO Robert A. Iger and Groupon founder Andrew Mason. Tech, Web and social-networking companies have been known to roll out new features and gadgets at the conference. Much of the speculation this year is centered on whether Microsoft will leap into the tablet computer field, aiming to compete with the Apple iPad, RIM's PlayBook and various Android devices. Steve Sinofsky, president of Microsoft Windows, is scheduled to speak at the conference, and Bloomberg cites anonymous sources saying he'll be exhibiting new tablet software. The emerging mobile-payment space might also get some attention. Google's Eric Schmidt and Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, now CEO of Square, are both scheduled to speak. Both of those companies made announcements last week about apps designed to let people make and receive payments using their mobile phones. Past D: All Things Digital conferences have produced some buzz-creating moments. In 2007, Jobs and Gates sat down for a joint interview. In a particularly amusing segment (in retrospect), Gates expounded on his ownership of a tablet computer and how such handheld slates could emerge in the future. Jobs, who would roll out the iPad just over two years later, just listened and smiled before vaguely predicting more "post-PC devices." Last year, Zuckerberg's appearance at D8 brought him attention for all the wrong reasons. In an interview with Swisher and Mossberg, he grew sweaty and visibly uncomfortable with questions about Facebook privacy issues, ducking some of the questions entirely. The interview might have been a low-water mark at a time when Facebook was under attack over privacy and security concerns. Zuckerberg's image would rebound in the following months with some smoother media outings, news of his generous charitable donations and, perhaps ironically, "The Social Network," the fictionalized movie about Facebook that many predicted would cast him in a negative light. | The D: All Things Digital conference begins Tuesday in California .
Tech conference was started in 2003 by technology columnists from Wall Street Journal .
Twitter, Disney, Netflix and Google leaders are among those set to speak . | b09a448be4482cd70477a9ecef1aafc20ee3cfc7 | [
0,
368,
120,
2162,
7215,
560,
1376,
4071,
21269,
6409,
32,
40,
32,
6,
11894,
4071,
20142,
4498,
1222,
7
] |
(CNN) -- Andriy Shevchenko's agent admits it is highly unlikely the AC Milan striker will stay at the San Siro beyond the end of the season. Shevchenko has made just two Serie A appearances in a disappointing season for Milan. Shevchenko returned to Milan on loan from Chelsea last summer but has disappointed since his move back to Italy. The Ukraine striker has found himself mainly on the substitutes' bench, making just two league appearances this season, and agent Fabio Parisi believes his client will not be in Italy next season. "Shevchenko is a player on loan at Milan from Chelsea and I think he will return to London," he told www.Calciomercato.it. "Frankly, I don't think it's possible that the Rossoneri will decide to keep him. I don't know what kind of rapport he has found with coach(Carlo) Ancelotti and his team-mates, the only problem is that he is a player on loan and, given how the season has gone, I think Andriy will return to Chelsea. "It does depend on who will be the coach and what he wants to do -- but I don't think the doors of Italy will re-open for him next season. "Anyway, Sheva will decide on his own, he's quite calm, he doesn't need anyone's help. However, another country seems to me the more likely option." Shevchenko admitted at the end of March that he would probably return to London but, after scoring for Ukraine against England and providing a crucial assist against Lecce, the 32-year-old claimed earlier this month that he hoped to still be at the San Siro next season. | Andriy Shevchenko unlikely to stay at AC Milan next season claims his agent .
Ukrainian Shevchenko returned to San Siro on loan from Chelsea last summer .
However he has played only two Serie A matches in a disappointing campaign . | 174f981c82c5b075e55fc59eb15326dca9521303 | [
0,
368,
3102,
845,
275,
52,
23,
63,
451,
208,
524,
18994,
56,
59,
1049,
44,
14556,
1909,
8,
414
] |
The recent ruling to reform the New York Police Department's controversial 'stop-and-frisk' tactic has already led to a sharp rise in shootings, new figures reveal. In the month after the policy was ruled unconstitutional shootings spiked nearly 13 per cent while gun seizures fell almost a fifth, the figures show. In the 28 days up to September 8 there were 140 shootings across the city, compared with 124 over the same period last year, according to NYPD statistics. Police stop and search an African American motorist in Brooklyn: The recent ruling to reform the New York Police Department's controversial 'stop-and-frisk' tactic has already led to a sharp rise in shootings, figures reveal . The shocking rise in gun crime has emerged days after the federal judge who ordered an overhaul of the stop-and-frisk strategy refused to delay it pending an appeal by the city. U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin said such a delay would send 'precisely the wrong signal.' She had ordered changes in August after finding the program discriminates against minorities. Police have stopped, questioned and sometimes patted down about 5million people over a decade. Dismissing the suggestion that reforms of the 'stop-and-frisk' strategy be delayed, Judge Scheindlin wrote: 'Ordering a stay now would send precisely the wrong signal. 'It would essentially confirm that the past practices, resulting in hundreds of thousands of stops - overwhelmingly of minorities - that resulted in little or no enforcement action or seizure of contraband were justified and based on constitutional police practices. 'It would also send the message that reducing the number of stops is somehow dangerous to the residents of this city.' But with figures showing the number of gunshot victims up 9 per cent over the same period last year following the ruling on August 12, that's the message implicit in the latest statistics on gun crime on NYC. Seizures of firearms are also down, with 239 taken by police between August 10 and September 8, compared with 289 over the same period last year, according to the statistics seen by the New York Post. And gun charges have fallen by more than 15 per cent from 492 last year to 417 this year. Sources blamed Scheindlin's ruling for the disturbing trends. A police department source told the Post that police are reluctant to stop and search because 'they're scared of being sued.' 'They feel as if the city is not going to indemnify them in lawsuits,' the source said. 'They never stop and frisk old white guys like me': U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin ruled the tactic unconstitutional last month after finding the program discriminates against minorities . Judge Scheindlin has not commented on today's statistics, but on Tuesday she criticised 'certain high-level city officials and pundits' who have misinterpreted her ruling. She said she did not order an end to the stop-and-frisk program but instead insisted that it be carried out legally. And she defended her remedies, which include the appointment of a monitor to ensure the program's legality and of a facilitator to conduct meetings with interested parties in neighborhoods where frequent stops occur. She had also ordered some officers to wear cameras. She said the vast majority of the overhaul won't be implemented until the monitor and the facilitator meet with the community, the police department and other stakeholders to create sensible solutions. 'In short, the only activity at this stage is discussion between the monitor, the facilitator and the parties to develop the remedies,' she said. 'No other specific relief is imminent, much less ordered.' Michael A. Cardozo, the city's top lawyer, said in a statement that the city remains committed to reversing Scheindlin's rulings as quickly as possible. He noted that the city has asked the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan for an expedited appeal so police officers are not in limbo. 'We cannot afford such delay, as public safety is of paramount concern to the mayor and the police commissioner,' he said. | Judge Shira Scheindlin ruled on August 12 policy must be reformed .
Shootings now up nearly 13 per cent compared to same period last year .
The number of gunshot victims is now up 9 per cent, NYPD figures show .
Statistics revealed days after Judge Scheindlin refused to delay decision . | 9cc288fde21ada45728a40b2d98779319fd0a834 | [
0,
368,
1060,
5076,
1775,
31,
7,
15202,
3,
31,
7618,
18,
232,
18,
89,
13261,
31,
9075,
1225,
65
] |
David Cameron today challenged the Emir of Qatar to stop the flow of cash to ISIS - following bombshell allegations in Parliament that the country is 'siphoning off' funds meant for the World Cup to fund Islamic terror. The Prime Minister held talks with the Qatari leader Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Than amid increasing concerns over the wealthy Arab state's links to Islamic extremism and the deadly conditions migrant labourers are forced to live in. Qatar is part of the military coalition against the militants, but elements within the wealthy state have been accused of bankrolling the militants. David Cameron greeted the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, at Downing Street today amid growing concerns over the wealthy country's links to extremism . Mr Cameron was challenged in the House of Commons today to raise the issue of ISIS funding with Qatar's leader . During Prime Minister's Questions, Mr Cameron was asked whether he agreed with the US assessment that Qatar was 'a permissive jurisdiction for terrorist finance'. Mr Cameron said: 'I will be talking to the Emir very shortly, and of course we will discuss all these issues, particularly how we can work together to combat extremism.' He added: 'It really does matter that we work with all our allies to ensure that extremist and terrorist groups do not get the support that they seem to be. The exchange came after ministers were called on to investigate reports that British companies were being short-changed on World Cup construction contracts - with funds being siphoned off to Syria for ISIS. Downing Street insisted 'no issues' would be 'off the table' during the meeting with the Qatari leader at Number 10 this afternoon . Asked earlier this week whether Mr Cameron would challenge the Emir on reports that elements in his country have channelled funds ISIS, the Prime Minister's official spokesman said: 'I'm sure the PM will talk about the work being done by both countries in terms of tackling terrorism. 'Qatar is part of the coalition of countries participating in airstrikes against Isil in Syria. All countries are taking forward anti-terror financing work consistent with the UN Security Council Resolution in August. 'I'm sure they will discuss a range of issues to do with combating terror in that region.' The Emir is in London for a three-day state visit to Britain, beginning today. The country has rejected accusations that it is funnelling cash to ISIS . Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani were welcomed to the UK by the Queen at Buckingham Palace . The spokesman added that Mr Cameron would also raise concerns about conditions for stadium construction workers. The spokesman said: 'He will be discussing that with the Emir. The Qatari authorities themselves have in recent months announced a series of changes and reforms. 'I'm sure there will be an opportunity for the Prime Minister to ask how that is going and to continue to make the offer of UK expertise and learning from our experience of construction of the various pieces of infrastructure associated with the London 2012 Olympics.' Allegations of corruption during the bidding process for the 2022 tournament have also dogged Qatar and the high death rate on match sites has sparked international condemnation. The spokesman said the question of whether Qatar should host the World Cup was 'a matter for Fifa', adding: 'The right thing to do is, where and if we can be of assistance to Qatar as it develops its infrastructure ahead of that tournament, to offer it.' Owned by Qatar: The Shard, Britain's tallest building, is just one of several London landmarks owned by the rulers of the oil-rich gulf state . During the talks in Downing Street, Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond signed a cultural agreement with his counterpart Khalid Mohammed al-Attiyah, which officials said was in 'recognition of our long-standing friendship' with Qatar. Qatar last night refuted was claims that money for UK firms working on World Cup 2022 venues is being siphoned off to ISIS extremists. The country's Prime Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani told MailOnline it is a 'serious allegation' which the government 'refutes completely'. Labour MP Steve Rotheram raised the cases in Parliament ahead of David Cameron holding talks with the Emir of Qatar tomorrow. Qatar controversially won the bid to host the 2022 World Cup, despite widespread concern that soaring temperatures will make games impossible to play. Several British construction firms have won contracts to work for big Qatari firms on building venues in the country. However, Mr Rotherham claimed that companies have had money withheld which has been redirected to Islamic extremists in Syria. In a statement, the Qatari Prime Minister said: 'It is a serious allegation and it is one we refute completely. 'Let me be clear, for the avoidance of doubt, we will stand shoulder to shoulder with our allies in the Middle East and around the world to face down the terrorist threat.' Earlier in the Commons, Mr Rotherham, the MP for Liverpool Walton, called on ministers to examine the allegations. Speaking during Foreign Office question time, Mr Rotheram said: 'There are accusations that some UK companies are being short-changed on contracts associated with the construction of World Cup venues in Qatar and even claims that some monies unpaid are being siphoned off to Syria and into the hands of Isil.' He told Foreign Office minister Tobias Ellwood: 'Can you look urgently to these allegations and can you offer support to UK firms regarding their reimbursement by the Qatari royalty, government or businesses?' Mr Ellwood replied: 'I was in Doha last week and I raised this very issue. They do what is called a kafala system which has now been upgraded, which you may be aware of. 'It is being replaced to give greater rights to migrant workers - there's 1.3 million in Qatar - but also giving responsibilities to the employers as well to make sure they look after these.' In August Qatar denied supporting ISIS militants, insisting that 'determined, collective action' was needed to end sectarian violence in Iraq and Syria. And officials including Qatar's director of intelligence told the BBC that the country only supported moderate rebel groups in Syria and 'had nothing to hide'. It is claimed British firms working on Qatar World Cup venues have been denied money which has been redirected to ISIS extremists . Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, the Emir of Qatar, is visiting London this week to promote economic investment in Britain . But this week a US government official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Washington believes Turkey is partnering with Qatar in providing support to Islamist factions and militias in Libya. At the weekend Tory MP Stephen Barclay told the Sunday Telegraph: 'It remains unclear whether money is still flowing from Qatari nationals. 'There is clear evidence that Qatari nationals have been instrumental in the financing of Sunni terror groups and the Prime Minister should not avoid tackling this issue head on with the Emir.' | Cameron today challenged the Emir of Qatar to stop the flow of cash to ISIS .
Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Than is in Britain for three day state visit .
Qatar has denied supporting ISIS militant extremists in Iraq and Syria .
Critics want them to do more to stop the flow of money to terrorists .
Labour MP Steve Rotheram raised allegations over World Cup funding .
He called on Foreign Office to investigate claims cash is being 'syphoned off' | 43c063eede4ebff70773c6c59df4ce6406f73c6c | [
0,
368,
5725,
5923,
3271,
1955,
18501,
2428,
21936,
23,
2488,
451,
19030,
10903,
603,
2701,
5845,
9,
26,
901
] |
(CNN) -- Nick Price is not one to shy away from a battle. He is a hardened warrior -- a man who has fought on the golf course and on the soil of his beloved Zimbabwe. He lost his father when he was a child before watching his friends die during the Rhodesian war. And yet now, at the age of 56, he remains philosophical about his life -- one in which he emerged to become one of the greatest to have ever played the game of golf. "I'm so grateful to my family for instilling values since an early age," Price told CNN's Living Golf. "I've carried them through me throughout this time. "I lost my father when I was 10 and sometimes that has an adverse effect on the family but for us it brought us closer together. "It was a huge time in my life. I went to the military for a year-and-a-half and all those things shape you. "You can't go through life without help and support. I've had a great time. "When you think of how I started playing golf I still have to pinch myself every now and againt because this is my life." Price, who will captain the international team at this week's Presidents Cup at Muirfield Village, Ohio, has taken the long road to the top. Born in South Africa and raised in Rhodesia, before it became Zimbabwe, Price spent his time as a child hitting plastic balls at tomato cans. It was only in 1974 at the age of 17 when he won the Optimist Junior World title at Torrey Pines in San Diego that he realized he could make a career in golf. From there he was catapulted to stardom -- winning three major titles and claiming 15 PGA wins during an illustrious career which saw him stay at No.1 in the world in 1994 for 43 consecutive weeks. But there is one victory away from all of his personal success which stands out -- the victory of the international team over the U.S. at the 1998 Presidents Cup at Melbourne. The tournament which pitches a U.S. team of 12 against a team of non-Europeans has been held every two years since 1994 and includes two rounds of foursomes, two rounds of four balls and a singles finale. For a man who has played in five of these tournaments, Price is only too aware of how glorious victory would be, especially following the 19-15 defeat two years ago. And yet the prospect of beating the U.S. brings up conflicting feelings for Price, who says he could "never repay the country for what it has given me." "Our three kids were born here and I've just had the best time ever here," said Price, who lives in Florida. "Honestly, I sometimes get recognized more often here than I do in my own home country, which is kind of sad. "I had more awards and everything given to me in this country than I did in my own country, which hurts a lot. "What has happened in the country in the last 33 years is not what we all expected." History is not on Price's side -- the U.S. has dominated the competition, losing just once and being held once in the previous nine editions. The international team boasts an array of talent including Masters champion Adam Scott, four-time Major winner Ernie Els, Argentina's two-time Major winner Angel Cabrera and South Africa's Louis Oosthuizen. Price believes that victory for his side is vital if the competition is to recapture the imagination of the public with the dominance of the Americans leaving several golf fans disillusioned with the dual. But while he expects passions to run high, Price wants his men to keep their cool against Tiger Woods and co. "I'm a big one for confrontations," said Price. "I keep telling my guys, 'let's go out and win this cup.' "I don't want to see them become enemies for one week -- what I want to see is great competition. "I want to see them go out there and want to beat each other and look at each other in the eye after you've finished and say 'congratulations, you played better today.' "I don't want people coming up with excuses and walking off the greens while the other player is putting. "To me that brings the whole game into a very sad state." The U.S. team boasts a wealth of talent and experience with the likes of Phil Mickelson, Brandt Snedeker, Jason Dufner lining up alongside world No.1 Woods. Price realizes his team faces a difficult challenge to triumph in Columbus, Ohio but says he will do all that he can as captain to inspire his men to a momentous victory. "Being captain is a doubled edged sword -- it can hurt you and it can help you a lot," he said. "I'm trying to be a captain that is going to be very supportive of my team but not over captain them and there's a very fine line between that. "You want to give the guys advice. I'm certainly not in the Seve Ballesteros type -- running out over the course and saying 'hit here and do this' but that was Seve, that was the way guys expected when he was captain. "I just want them to know I'm going to be there to support them in anything they need to know or need to use me as a sounding board. I'm going to be there." | Nick Price will captain the international team int the Presidents Cup .
Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Brandt Snedeker all set to feature for U.S. team .
Adam Scott, Jason Day, Ernie Els amongst big names for international side .
International team have won just once -- back in 1998 . | 14d235eb877c49fad959d1c87ed1227666fe583b | [
0,
368,
5725,
49,
7486,
5312,
65,
3,
13973,
30,
8,
4319,
503,
11,
30,
8,
4484,
13,
112,
11479
] |
(CNN) -- Australia said Wednesday that it has chosen a Dutch company to carry out the next phase of the underwater search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, which mysteriously disappeared five months ago this week. Australian Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss announced at a news conference that Fugro Survey will use two vessels for the search in the southern Indian Ocean, where the Malaysian plane is believed to have gone down after it flew off course and dropped off radar. The two ships will be equipped with towed deep-water vehicles and will also use side-scan sonar, multi-beam echo sounders and video cameras in the search, Australian authorities said. Fugro, which has operations in the Western Australian city of Perth, is engaged as a single, private contractor to search for the missing plane -- and if it successfully locates it, to positively identify and map the wreckage. The operation, which is expected to begin in September and last as long as a year, will slowly scan some 60,000 square kilometers (23,000 square miles) of the ocean floor, looking for any sign of aircraft debris. 'No simple answer' It's not yet clear exactly how the deep sea search will play out. While the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, which is overseeing the underwater search at Malaysia's request, has developed the overall strategy, the independent contractor will be responsible for day-to-day operations in the search zone. "We are still ... working out the details of the techniques to be used, which will vary depending on the topography of the ocean floor," ATSB Chief Commissioner Martin Dolan said Wednesday. "So there's a range of possibilities. We haven't gotten the full detail of our search plan because we have to do that on a collaborative basis with Fugro. So there's no simple answer." Australia now estimates a yearlong underwater search will cost $48 million. According to Truss, the amount of money Malaysia will contribute to the next phase is yet to be agreed. He said he expects to discuss that with his Malaysian counterpart later this month. When asked if China, which had the greatest number of passengers on board the flight, would contribute financially to the next phase, Truss said Beijing hasn't "indicated an intention to assist in that way." Mapping the ocean floor . Some 1,800 kilometers (1,100 miles) off the coast of Western Australia, a pair of survey ships continue their efforts to give search teams a better understanding of what lies thousands of meters below the surface in one of the most uncharted, remote places on the planet. The Chinese Navy's Zhu Kezhen and the Australian-contracted Fugro Equator have covered roughly 60% of the priority search area, which the ATSB says is the most likely resting place of MH370. A Malaysian survey ship is on schedule to join them this month, and underwater mapping is expected to wrap up in September. According to the ATSB, the data collected by survey ships is being converted into detailed topographical maps. So far, it says, those maps show ocean depths ranging from 1,500 meters to nearly 5,000 meters (roughly one to three miles), and wide-ranging terrain that includes everything from flat, sloping surfaces, to rugged terrain like mountains, ridges and cliffs. David Gallo, an oceanographer and director of special projects at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, who was involved in the search for Air France Flight 447, said that a high level of detail is critical to make sure the search is carried out effectively and safely. "You have to know where you're going or you'll end up impacting the bottom," he said. "We're looking at less than a handful of tools that can work in this depth and that are available, so you really don't want to risk anything." One of the most challenging spots, Gallo pointed out, is at the southern end of the search area, where he expects to see pockets of terrain up to 7,000 meters deep (four miles). "The south side of that Broken Ridge is a monstrous wall... almost two miles top to bottom, almost vertical," Gallo explains, adding that there are only a few pieces of equipment worldwide that would even have a chance of reaching such extreme depths. A slow, painstaking search . According to ATSB tender documents, Fugro is required to begin the search no later than one month after signing the contract, and will be required to search all 60,000 square kilometers within 300 days. The towed side-scan sonar devices will each be attached to one of two ships, the Fugro Equator and Fugro Discovery, with a cable, and will be capable of transmitting some data to the surface in real time. According to the ATSB's Dolan, that data will be analyzed by experts on the survey ships and on shore in Australia. Woods Hole's Gallo said each type of search system has its strengths and weaknesses, noting that towed systems work well on flat terrain and cover ground quicker. In more rugged areas, a drone which hugs the bottom will likely do a better job, albeit at a slower pace of around 65 square kilometers (25 square miles) a day. For the most extreme terrain, Gallo said, search teams may need a remotely operated vehicle (ROV), steered from a surface ship with a tether. Malaysia has already partnered with American and Australian contractors to supply additional search equipment, including a towed side-scan sonar and ROV. It's not yet clear how these will be integrated into the larger, Australian-run operation. Where to start? Where the search teams begin their work will depend on what the underwater maps show. "If there's a chunk of fairly smooth terrain and fairly shallow, you could get a lot of ground covered early on, which raises spirits a little bit," Gallo said. But there's a lot of ground to cover. The area search teams hope to tackle over the next year is four times the size of the search zone for Air France 447, which went down in the mid-Atlantic in June 2009. And with a greater area to search, and multiple search assets involved, the operation becomes far more complex. "The worst thing that we could do is have a ship show up with technology, have them go over the spot...and you write that spot off forever," Gallo said. But he added that he is completely confident in the ATSB's ability to manage the overall operation, saying that if the wreckage of MH370 is in the designated search zone, it will be found. Are they looking in the right place? There is far less confidence about whether search teams are looking in the right spot. The search for MH370 continues to focus along the seventh arc, the so-called "partial handshake," which experts believe was the last signal sent between the Malaysia Airlines plane and a communications satellite operated by Inmarsat. "What I'm a little concerned about... is that there still seems to be some confusion about Inmarsat data and how it's being interpreted," said David Soucie, a former safety inspector at the U.S Federal Aviation Administration and author of "Why Planes Crash." In late June, the ATSB announced it was moving the priority search area several hundred kilometers southwest, the second major shift of the search zone along the arc. That move was based on analysis of the satellite data and a review of aircraft performance limits, including speed and altitude, by an international group of experts. That analysis also made a series of assumptions, "in order to define a search area of practical size," the ATSB's June report said, including that the plane was flying on autopilot for a long period of time until it eventually ran out of fuel and crashed. Not making that assumption, the report said, "would result in an impractically large search area." No guarantees . The ATSB has said that the Inmarsat data will continue to be reviewed during the next phase of the search, acknowledging that there is still a chance the hunt may be extended outside the 60,000 square kilometers designated as the priority area. "The haystack is a big chunk of terrain in the Indian Ocean," Gallo of Woods Hole said. "And even though the haystack is huge there's no guarantee that the needle is in that haystack." Soucie agreed, however, he adds the ATSB is going about the search in a smart way: "Am I confident they will find the airplane in that area? No. But if it were my search, I would be doing exactly what they're doing." Despite a potentially vast search zone, Dolan said late last week that he's cautiously optimistic that search teams will find the missing plane. "We're doing this, in a large part, because we want to give some certainty to those who are grieving the loss of their loved ones," he said. "And we're fully committed to doing that." MH370 departed Kuala Lumpur for Beijing early on the morning of March 8 carrying 239 passengers and crew members. On March 24, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak announced that the flight had ended in the southern Indian Ocean. To date, no trace of the plane has been found. Australia: MH370 likely on autopilot with unresponsive crew in flight's final stage . For families of the missing, a hole in the clouds, an empty space on earth . MH370 families seek $5M for investigation, reward . | NEW: Australia says amount of money Malaysia will contribute not yet agreed .
Authorities choose the Dutch firm Fugro Survey to carry out the Indian Ocean search .
The firm will use two vessels to scour 60,000 square kilometers of ocean floor .
MH370 disappeared from radar five months ago; wreckage hasn't been found . | a0c8e9b0eb6a8169d89ac34ab58163d1e60207fd | [
0,
368,
5725,
789,
845,
34,
65,
3934,
3,
9,
10098,
349,
12,
2331,
91,
8,
416,
3944,
13,
8
] |
By . Jack Doyle . PUBLISHED: . 19:22 EST, 30 January 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 02:25 EST, 31 January 2013 . Senior police last night condemned moves to allow foreign officers to take charge of British forces, a change which they said reflected a ‘paramilitary’ and European style of policing. Ministers are expected to open up the top ranks to candidates from countries such as the US, Canada and India to combat what they called an ‘insular and closed culture’. At the same time, middle managers from industry and the military will be allowed to enter the police at the rank of superintendent after intensive training. Open door: Under the new proposals Ministers are expected to open up the top ranks to candidates from countries such as the US, Canada and India to combat what they called an 'insular and closed culture' But the plans sparked fury among chief officers and staff associations. The Association of Chief Police Officers insisted there was no shortage of talent in the police and worried that existing officers would be frustrated in their efforts to seek promotion. Sir Peter Fahy, Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police, said: ‘All chief constables have served on the beat, experiencing the reality of day-to-day operational policing with the public. ‘This is the model used by other countries who have followed the British system such as the US. ‘The direct entry officer class model tends to be followed by paramilitary police forces such as the French CRS or the Italian Carabinieri.’ Relaxing the rules will end the historic principle that all officers enter the police at the rank of constable. Those hired to become superintendents will undergo intensive training so they can be on the job within 15 months. Plentiful: The Association of Chief Police Officers insisted there was no shortage of talent in the police and worried that existing officers would be frustrated in their efforts to seek promotion . In addition, some graduates and other high-potential recruits will be fast-tracked to the rank of inspector. This could halve the amount of time it takes someone to reach the rank of chief constable – from around 25 years today. In theory it means someone who joins the police aged 19 could reach the top rank in their early 30s. The Home Office said applicants for the top jobs would most likely come from countries with similar policing systems such as Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the US. Warning: Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police Sir Peter Fahy said: 'All chief constables have served on the beat, experiencing the reality of day-to-day operational policing with the public' It justified the measures on the grounds that new recruits could bring in experience of other working cultures. The policy document which contained the proposals stated: ‘When all the senior leaders in a sector have had only minimal exposure to other working cultures it may lead to a relatively insular and closed culture among those who reach the top of the organisation.’ The changes will help lure the ‘most talented people’ to join the police and attract the ‘brightest and best’, officials said. Policing Minister Damian Green said it would be ‘years not decades’ before a foreign national took charge of a force in England and Wales. He compared the moves to the decision to recruit a Canadian, Mark Carney, as the next Governor of the Bank of England. Derek Barnett, president of the Police Superintendents’ Association accused ministers of not valuing or trusting senior police leaders. He said: ‘The Home Secretary’s proposals send out a very strong message that the senior leadership of the police service isn’t valued or trusted or else she wouldn’t be wanting to bring in foreign police chiefs. ‘Bringing people in at superintendent level, inexperienced, unqualified, will bring some risks with them.’ In 2011, a row broke out within Government over the appointment of the Metropolitan Police Commissioner. Some senior Tories pushed for the hiring of Bill Bratton, the former head of the New York and Los Angeles police departments, but Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe, the former Chief Constable of Merseyside, was appointed. The overhaul of recruitment rules was proposed by Tom Winsor in his review of police pay and conditions. They are likely to come into force later this year. Mr Green said bringing in new recruits would also allow forces to recruit more ethnic minority officers to senior ranks. He said: ‘The issue of choosing our police leaders is of the highest importance to the future of the police. There will be a relatively small number of people coming into the police from other backgrounds, increasing the diversity of the police.’ | Ministers expected to open talks with candidates from US, Canada and India .
Those from other professions will be able to enter police as superintendents .
Association of Chief Police Officers said enough talent in British forces . | 37dd826d619b20fcb63c6c45fa33ba32e96c916e | [
0,
368,
12152,
12,
539,
95,
420,
13799,
12,
4341,
45,
1440,
224,
38,
8,
837,
6,
1894,
11,
1547
] |
(CNN) -- Cuba President Raul Castro removed two longtime government leaders loyal to his brother Fidel and promoted younger technocrats, according to state-run media and a U.S. analyst. The communist government's state council announced Thursday the removal of Jose Ramon Fernandez Alvarez as vice president of the council of ministers, according to state-run Granma. Fernandez, who is in his 80s, was the U.S.-trained head of the Cuban military force that defeated the U.S.-backed invasion at the Bay of Pigs, said CNN analyst Carlos Alberto Montaner. Also removed from office was Jose M. Miyar Barrueco, who was minister of science, technology and environment, Granma reported. Miyar is considered the last Fidelista -- or loyalist to former Cuban president Fidel Castro -- in Raul Castro's government, Montaner said. Miyar was Fidel Castro's personal secretary, Montaner said. "Publicly, Raul did not feel too comfortable with Miyar," Montaner said. "Raul is completing the government with people who are close to him." Fernadnez and Miyar were assigned to other government posts, Granma said. Replacing Fernandez is Miguel Diaz-Canel Bermudez, an engineer in his early 50s who comes from the Communist youth party, Montaner said. Diaz-Canel who, was minister of higher education, Granma said, was replaced by First Deputy Minister Rodolfo Alarcon Ortiz, Granma said. As president, Raul Castro has been creating a communist government of technocrats rather than political leaders, Montaner said. Raul Castro replaced his brother, who was battling health problems, as president in 2008. | Cuban President Raul Castro replaces two longtime officials loyal to his brother Fidel .
Removed is Jose Ramon Fernandez Alvarez, who led military forces in winning Bay of Pigs .
Also out is Jose M. Miyar Barrueco, who was Fidel Castro's personal secretary . | ab02047ebe4d12b21219e51928471c611657c9c6 | [
0,
368,
120,
18,
19971,
789,
2440,
3641,
45,
828,
6,
538,
6098,
845,
3,
5,
12225,
232,
457,
6
] |
(CNN) -- A disabled tanker ship collided with a bridge linking Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and Kittery, Maine, on Monday, closing the heavily used span to traffic. The 470-foot Harbour Feature was carrying tallow oil when it hit the aging Sarah Long Bridge stretching over the Piscatagua River. The crew of the Portuguese-flagged ship reported a rupture of up to 12 inches above the waterline, the Coast Guard said. But there was no indication of any leaking cargo. No injuries were reported. Around 6 p.m., the vessel was pulled off the bridge and safely moored at the state pier on the New Hampshire side, said Coast Guard spokesman Robert Simpson. The matter is under investigation, Coast Guard spokesman Adam Stanton said. The bridge, which was built in 1940 and normally carries about 14,000 vehicles per day, sustained some damage, said Bill Boynton, a spokesman for the New Hampshire Transportation Department. The ship apparently was disabled when it drifted into the span, the Coast Guard said. But it was unclear why that was the case. The ship was carrying tallow oil, which can be used for biofuels, in cooking or for making soap. | Ship drifted into heavily used span linking Portsmouth, N.H., and Kittery, Maine .
The ship carrying tallow oil sustained damage above the water line, no cargo leaking .
The Sarah Long Bridge, built in 1940, was damaged . | 6ee55423aa295144d690403eb0b0933971d20e86 | [
0,
368,
17944,
18,
89,
521,
11918,
24454,
3,
16772,
47,
6771,
3,
17,
18912,
1043,
116,
34,
1560,
8
] |
Guilty: Andrew Summerfield (pictured at an earlier hearing) mutilated his own dog with a meat cleaver and repeatedly shot it with an air rifle . This is the thug who shot his own dog 10 times, stabbed it eight times with a meat cleaver, then left it for dead with a noose around his neck. Vets had to put the bull terrier down, but traced owner Andrew Summerfield, 43, from its microchip. He faces a possible jail term after he was convicted in his absence at Colchester Magistrates Court, Essex, of two offences of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal. The court heard Summerfield shot the dog, called Barney, 10 times with an air rifle and stabbed it eight times with a meat cleaver before attaching a noose and leaving it for dead along the A12. Summerfield, of Colchester, did not attend court but the trial at Colchester Magistrates Court went ahead yesterday in his absence. Brenda Pearce, chairman of the bench, said she was satisfied Summerfield was guilty of two offences of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal. She agreed Summerfield’s actions were so serious he is likely to go to prison. A warrant was yesterday issued for his arrest. She said: 'We are satisfied that Mr Summerfield was in possession of the dog at the time the injuries were caused. 'More importantly, the micro-chip links the dog to him, which is damning.' On July 10 last year police were called to reports of a stray dog walking along the southbound A12 at junction 28. Sgt Arin Andrews, of the Stanway Policing unit, was the first on the scene. He described how he found Barney with massive head wounds, with a blanket of blue bottle flies around it and maggots eating its flesh. He said: 'The dog had a cord around its neck and massive head injuries. Weapon: Police found this air rifle, used to shoot the dog 10 times, and a meat cleaver at Summerfield's house . 'It was actually cutting into its neck, causing it to be distressed and we were certainly concerned about the animal’s suffering' Police traced the dog to Summerfield’s address using a microchip found by the vet after he put Barney to sleep. Officers arrived at the home of the father-of-two, alongside RSPCA inspector Steven Craddock. Mr Craddock said when they arrived they found an air rifle, which was confiscated. But when they took the rifle out, they also found a meat cleaver. Cruel: Summerfield stabbed the dog eight times with this meat cleaver and then left him for dead along a road . Summerfield then told officers he had sold the dog the day before for £10, because it had bitten his finger and killed a duck. He did not attend the trial but had denied the charges, saying he acted in self-defence when the dog became very aggressive and started foaming at the mouth. But Lynne Shirley, acting for the RSPCA, said weapons experts’ tests showed it would take 150 seconds for a shooter to fire ten reloaded rounds at a sitting target. She added: 'If it was an act of self-defence, his actions were certainly disproportionate.' | Police found the dog with massive head wounds, flies around it and maggots eating its flesh .
The cord around its neck was cutting into its flesh and it was distressed .
Vets put it to sleep but traced Andrew Summerfield via its microchip . | c9c819a08d8c74f1aa11942421c0a22a34d47ffc | [
0,
368,
120,
3,
21217,
3,
189,
76,
122,
5954,
5550,
1846,
6,
8838,
6,
3,
51,
13780,
920,
112
] |
(CNN) -- After a day of recovery for battered regions of the Midwest and South, a line of storms stretching from Illinois to Louisiana will bring the threat of tornadoes and severe weather Friday, forecasters said. Areas most at risk for twisters are southern Indiana, southern Ohio, most of Kentucky, central Tennessee, northeastern Mississippi and northwestern Alabama. The storms are forecast to rapidly develop around noon ET Friday. The most likely window for tornadoes will be between 4 p.m. and 8 pm. ET Friday, according to CNN meteorologist Sean Morris. There is the potential for widespread damaging wind gusts, large hail and violent tornadoes in some areas. Storms will begin to weaken during the late evening as they move eastward toward the Appalachians. The severe weather threat will diminish overnight Friday into Saturday morning, Morris said. The tornado outbreak that began Tuesday night left 13 dead across Kansas, Missouri, Illinois and Tennessee and battered parts of Kentucky as well. The latest death was reported in Kansas, where authorities said 53-year-old Richard Slade died Thursday from injuries suffered when a tornado struck Harveyville on Tuesday night. Slade had been airlifted to a nearby Topeka hospital after being pulled from the wreckage of his home. The decision was made to take him off life support, officials said. National Guard troops helped police and sheriff's deputies direct traffic and patrol streets in stricken areas of Missouri and Kentucky, while those who survived began the task of cleaning up. In Harrisburg, Illinois, where the highest death toll occurred, a tree smashed in the front window of Chris and Alice Retzloff's home before dawn Wednesday. But their neighbor's house was "pretty much gone," Chris Retzloff told CNN's "Starting Point." "Our damage was minimal compared to this," his wife added. "We have a basement, and we went in our basement and huddled together with our dogs and the sirens went off," she said. "The wind was just immense, the sound, and then the next siren went off, and there was just this incredible pressure that we all had on us." Four women and two men died in Harrisburg, about 30 miles north of the Kentucky border. The tornado that struck it had a preliminary rating of EF4, the second most powerful on the rating scale, according to the National Weather Service. The twister appeared to have been on the ground for several miles, said Harrisburg Mayor Eric Gregg, and the path of destruction was about three or four football fields wide. Sheriff's deputes said about 100 people were injured and between 250 and 300 houses were damaged or destroyed. This Just In: Harrisburg's path of destruction . Darrell Osman lost his mother to the storm. After the twister struck, he ran to her house, only to find nothing left. "Her house was literally gone," Osman said. He found his mother in an ambulance, but she passed away later at a hospital. In Washington, the White House said President Barack Obama called the governors of six states affected by the storms -- Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Tennessee, Kentucky and Indiana -- "to offer condolences and assistance as necessary." One person died in each of three towns in southern Missouri where the twisters struck -- Buffalo, Puxico and Cassville -- while another three died in two east-central Tennessee counties, authorities in those states reported. A smaller tornado caused significant damage in the music resort city of Branson, Missouri. The city's entertainment district, which boasts 50 theaters, had five or six damaged; of the city's 200 hotels, 15 had significant damage, Branson Mayor Raeanne Presley said. But she told CNN, "We'll be open for business in short order, and we will be helping those who suffered damage to rebuild." Presley took cover with her family in the basement before immediately going out to survey the damage. Tourist town of Branson, Missouri, hit . An EF2 tornado smashed at least seven miles of the city's commercial strip, leaving 33 people hurt, most with minor to moderate injuries. The city's convention center and an attached Hilton were damaged, as was a portion of Branson Landing, a large shopping and entertainment complex. City Administrator Dean Kruithof said about five or six of the city's roughly 40 theaters were damaged. iReport: Branson Hilton windows blown out . Two tornadoes were confirmed in Tennessee's Cumberland and DeKalb counties, between Nashville and Knoxville. The one that struck Cumberland County, where two people died, was an EF2 with top winds of around 125 mph, the weather service reported Thursday evening. The remaining fatality was from an EF1 twister with top winds around 90 mph, according to forecasters. CNN's Logan Burruss, Kara Devlin, Joe Sutton and Phil Gast contributed to this report. | Storms are forecast for Friday afternoon from Illinois to Louisiana .
"The wind was just immense," survivor recounts from Wednesday storms .
Harrisburg, Illinois, is among the hardest hit by earlier storms, with at least six deaths .
13 killed in storms across Kansas, Missouri, Illinois and Tennessee . | 9cf18320a10cf9c3649fbbc2fdfba3996f60da1a | [
0,
368,
689,
13,
5536,
7,
18887,
45,
7659,
12,
15625,
56,
830,
5888,
13,
29578,
15,
7,
11,
5274
] |
When you've got a daunting list of tasks that need to be done, time can seem to flash past in the blink of an eye. And now a study has found that having goals that are in conflict - such as working late to impress the boss and making time for your family - can make time seem to pass even quicker. The researchers say being under pressure can lead to anxiety and make us think we are short on time - but reducing stress could be a solution. In fact, simply breathing deeply and saying 'I'm excited' was found to improve a person's coping skills and slow down a person's perception of time. Study by Duke University in NC found conflicting goals make time go fast. People who had multiple things to do and were stressed (stock image shown) felt more pressed for time . The research was carried out by Professor Jordan Etkin from the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. With her colleagues she looked at what makes us feel pressed for time, and how that affects our behaviour. Managing things on your to-do list, and thus your work-life balance, can often make time seem to pass extremely quickly. The conclusion was that having goals in conflict, such as perceiving exercise to get in the way of family time, made people anxious, leading them to think they were short on time. A study has claimed that the fragrance of lavender can have a positive effect on how trustworthy a person seems. The researchers say that the scent of the plant promotes relaxation, which can help create mutual trust between two people. And they say their findings could have important implications in areas such as team sports and negotiations. The study was carried out by Dr Roberta Sellaro and Dr Lorenza Colzato from Leiden University in the Netherlands and published in the journal Frontiers in Psychology. Dr Colzato told MailOnline said that the effect was likely due to the calming effect of lavender. This hypothesis is supported by the fact that, from an anatomical point of view, the olfactory nerve is connected to the medial prefrontal cortex a brain region that '“controls” the way we trust others,' she said. As a solution to the problem, Professor Etkin and her colleagues said breathing exercises could restore people's sense of time. In the experiment half of participants that had said they had conflicting goals were told to take 11 seconds over a breath, while the other half who did not were told simply to count to 11. The slow breathers reported less anxiety and a longer view of time than the counting group. Similarly, conflicted subjects told to repeat aloud 'I am excited!' also reported that they felt like they had more time available. 'Goal conflict is often about perception,' Professor Etkin said. 'In many situations, we don't have to feel that conflict. The simple tactics identified in my research can help manage that experience.' In their experiments, Professor Etkin and her colleagues studied people who saw their goals as competing, and those who saw little conflict. In the first experiment, subjects were asked to list two goals that were 'in conflict with one another,' while a control group listed two goals with no mention of conflict. Then the researchers recorded their perceptions of available time. Participants who considered conflicting goals felt they had less time. This held true regardless of whether the conflict involved money or time. In the study the researchers found conflicting goals affected the behaviour of people. For example they were more likely to be impatient or spend money, such as paying for quick delivery (stock image shown) Another experiment asked participants to choose between two cars, drawing on prior research that identified safety and pollution as two big consumer concerns. Participants who were told that the car with the worst survival rate was the most eco-friendly - putting two valued goals in conflict - reported feeling more stress and having less time than those offered a car that was clearly superior in both categories. The researchers also found the stress of competing goals made consumers less willing to wait and more inclined to pay to save time. In a twist on the car experiment, participants were told their chosen car was not ready and were asked how long they'd be prepared to wait. Those in the high-conflict group were willing to wait fewer days than those with less conflict. In another scenario, subjects with goal conflicts were willing to pay 30 per cent more for expedited shipping of a DVD. | Study by Duke University in NC found conflicting goals make time go fast .
People who had multiple things to do felt more pressed for time .
In the study they found this affected their behaviour .
For example they were more likely to be impatient or spend money .
Learning to reduce stress could help us get more time back .
The researchers say taking deep breaths could help alleviate the problem . | 448f329a2abecc72a936636dbc083411a2c2f574 | [
0,
368,
810,
12902,
4129,
53,
1766,
143,
97,
281,
1006,
3,
5,
9165,
435,
24,
578,
1766,
24,
33
] |
By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 12:39 EST, 12 April 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 12:46 EST, 12 April 2013 . A life without cell phones, iPads or WiFi may seem a daunting prospect to many of us, but in the town of Green Bank, West Virginia, where every electronic device is banned, the residents like it that way. The remote town of just 147 people in the Allegheny Mountains falls in the National Radio Quiet Zone, where wireless is banned across 13,000 square miles. The ban is in place to minimize disturbance next to the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, home to the world's largest steerable radio telescope. While it may seem like an undesirable destination for today's tech-savvy citizens, many people are moving to the area as they believe it is better for their health. Silence: Residents living near the National Radio Astronomy Observatory in the National Radio Quiet Zone in Green Bank, West Virginia are banned from using phones or wireless devices to lower interference . Diane Schou is just one of the residents who believes she suffers from electromagnetic hypersensitivity, or EHS, which leaves her in pain whenever she is exposed to radio frequencies. Schou explained to Slate that before she and her husband escaped to Green Bank in 2007, she lived in Cedar Falls, Iowa, where she suffered headaches, twitching muscles and chronic pain. She first noticed the pains in 2002 when a wireless provider put up a tower near their farm. 'I was extremely tired, but I . couldn't sleep at night,' she told Slate. 'I got a rash, I had hair loss, my . skin was wrinkled, and I just thought it was something I ate, or getting . older.' She soon began to connect the pains with . triggers - mobile phones, driving past signal towers - but the phone . company dismissed her claims, even though she has no doubt of the cause. 'I'll say, "Oh, I have a headache," and then someone's cellphone will ring,' she said. Relief: Diane Schou, pictured with her husband Bert, said that whenever she is exposed to radio frequencies she suffers headaches, twitching muscles and chronic pain, but these have eased in Green Bank . They found out about the Radio Quiet . Zone in 2007 and when they visited, she immediately began to feel better . - so they sold half of their farmland and made the move. In their new home, they use a landline . and an Internet-connected computer which does not have WiFi. They have . struggled to find a refrigerator with low enough emissions, so fill up . on ice instead. Zone: The area is 13,000 square miles and 147 people live in the town of Green Bank . 'Life isn't perfect here,' she said. 'There's no . grocery store, no restaurants, no hospital nearby. But here, at least, I'm healthy. I can do . things. I'm not in bed with a headache all the time.' While she is not alone - she believes 36 others like her have moved to the area to escape electronics - the condition is not recognized by the World Health Organization. Around five per cent of . Americans believe they have EHS, but the WHO has not connected the symptoms . with exposure - and there is only brittle scientific evidence. 'EHS has no clear diagnostic criteria and there is no scientific basis . to link EHS symptoms to EMF (electromagnetic field) exposure,' the WHO states. 'Further, . EHS is not a medical diagnosis, nor is it clear that it represents a . single medical problem.' James Rubin, a psychologist at King's . College London, added that he has carried out extensive studies but . found sufferers could not always tell when there were blasted with . electromagnetic frequencies compared to harmless ones. 'It is definitely the case that some . people experience symptoms that they attribute to electromagnetic . frequencies,' he told Slate. 'But is it really these frequencies causing . the symptoms? At the moment, we can say that there simply isn't any . robust evidence to support that.' Rural: Schou said that other residents were not very welcoming to EHS sufferers but she has no choice . Other residents of Green Bank are also skeptical of those who say they have EHS, Schou said. They are reluctant to rent out their homes to them in case they ask for special treatment. She added that after she asked the town to remove florescent lights at the community center, she has had packages stolen from her porch and was told: 'We don't want your kind here.' Although she said she sometimes feels discriminated against, she said she has no plans to move. 'I can be outdoors. I can go to church, I can attend some celebrations, I can be with people,' she said. 'Living here allows me to be more of a normal person.' | Wireless electronics are banned in Green Bank, West Virginia .
It is in the National Radio Quiet Zone, which was set up to minimize disturbance around the National Radio Astronomy Observatory .
Town has just 147 residents, including people who believe they suffer from 'electromagnetic sensitivity' which leaves them in pain . | 8cd789cd917ee01dbbbe7fff12eb0299b6ecb5e0 | [
0,
368,
2797,
13,
1862,
1925,
6,
1244,
5382,
6,
33,
18168,
45,
338,
7219,
42,
5419,
1904,
12,
1364
] |
David C. Novak became chairman of the board at Yum! Brands on January 1, 2001, and chief executive officer on January 1, 2000. Yum! Brands's CEO, David Novak talks to CNN's Maggie Lake in The Boardroom. He also serves as president of Yum, a position he has held since October 21, 1997. Mr. Novak previously served as Group President and Chief Executive Officer, KFC and Pizza Hut from August 1996 to July 1997, at which time he became acting Vice Chairman of Yum. He is a director of J.P. Morgan Chase. Novak is a member of the Yum! Brands Executive committee. In his spare time Novak is a keen golfer and has even played a round with golf legend Tiger Woods. E-mail to a friend . | David Novak was made CEO of Yum! Brands in January 2000 .
He is a director of Global financial services firm J.P. Morgan Chase .
A keen golfer, Novak has teed off with Tiger Woods . | 64c3f4b04f8ba41618bde6de0226b7f202396024 | [
0,
368,
4071,
6,
1955,
17259,
157,
6,
1632,
13404,
13,
1476,
44,
25248,
55,
4688,
7,
30,
1762,
1914
] |
Michael Jace, who played a Los Angeles cop in TV's "The Shield," has been arrested in the fatal shooting of his wife, police said Tuesday. Police found April Jace, 40, shot to death in her south Los Angeles home Monday night, Los Angeles Police Det. Lyman Doster said. Michael Jace, 51, called 911 to report that his wife had been shot, Det. Dean Vinluan said, adding that he "was on the phone with the operator." Neighbors who heard gunshots also called 911, he said. "At this moment, the motive of the murder is believed to be domestic violence," a police statement said. Investigators detained Jace at the couple's Hyde Park-area home Monday night and booked the actor on a homicide charge early Tuesday, according to Doster. Jace was booked into a Los Angeles jail with bail set at $1 million. CNN has been unable to find the name of any lawyer Jace may have hired to defend him in this homicide case. He is not expected to appear in court before Thursday, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County district attorney said. Two children were in the home when their mother was shot, Vinluan said. The children, whose ages he would not reveal, were taken to a police station and then handed over to a representative of California's Department of Children and Family Services, he said. Investigators have found no reports of domestic violence between the husband and wife at their south Los Angeles residence, LAPD Det. Iasparro said. A woman described as a close friend of his first wife said in a sworn statement that she witnessed Jace physically abusing his wife in 1997. The declaration was in court records from Jace's 2005 custody case concerning his son with Jennifer Bitterman. Jace "choked and hit" his wife and "slammed her against the wall while (their infant son) screamed in his crib next to her," Maria De Le Vegas said in the sworn declaration obtained by CNN. Jace "was raging and out of control, and seeing the extent of his anger was one of the most terrifying things I have ever seen," she said. Jace appeared to be suffering severe financial strain in recent years, according to court documents obtained by CNN. The actor filed for Chapter 13 bankruptcy in March 2011, citing $500,000 in debts and an annual income of around $80,000 from residuals from his TV and film work, the documents said. Jace had defaulted on the $411,000 mortgage on the south Los Angeles home where his wife died, according to the documents. His bankruptcy case is still active, according to his lawyer. He married April Jace in June 2003, a year after divorcing his first wife, with whom he shared a son who is now a teen. The FX police drama "The Shield" was the biggest and longest-running role in Jace's 22-year acting career. He appeared in 89 episodes as Julien Lowe, who started as a rookie officer in an inner-city Los Angeles police precinct in 2002 and rose through the ranks to become a detective before the series ended in 2008, according to the Internet Movie Database. He acted on several episodes of "Southland," another TV drama about Los Angeles police, between 2009 and 2012. Jace often played a law enforcement or military officer on television shows. He is credited with roles in "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," "Private Practice," "The Mentalist," "Burn Notice" and "NYPD Blue." He had the title role of Michael Jordan in the 1999 TV movie about the NBA star, "Michael Jordan: An American Hero." Jace played Officer Brown in Russell Crowe's 2009 film "State of Play," and he portrayed a Black Panther member in the 1994 blockbuster movie "Forrest Gump." April Jace had worked for the past year as a financial aid counselor at Biola University, a private school in La Mirada, California, according to the school. "We are obviously shocked and saddened by this terrible news, to lose a wonderful colleague, mother and friend," Biola President Barry Corey said in a written statement. "April's radiant personality brought great energy to the financial aid office," financial aid director Geoff Marsh said. "Her love for helping students and families and her great work ethic earned the respect and love of her coworkers. Her smiling face and helpful spirit will be missed by all." Photos: Shocking Hollywood crimes . | No known domestic violence between Jace and his wife, LAPD says .
Jace was under financial stress, fighting to keep his home, court docs say .
Jace called 911 to report his wife was shot, a detective says .
Playing an LAPD detective in "The Shield" is Jace's biggest and longest-running role . | 63a01dc84edbc6aabe822e6cf136328c85632b90 | [
0,
368,
120,
10195,
7556,
2457,
2215,
565,
6,
11696,
6,
2538,
12,
1687,
16,
3414,
3144,
4975,
234,
2089
] |
A group of cannibal seals have been blamed for a mystery wildlife slaying which saw the bodies of 80 others wash ashore. Police launched an investigation when the carcasses of dozens of harbour seals first appeared on the North Sea coast five years ago with 'corkscrew' wounds on their skin. They were the victims of a batch of larger rogue grey seals, scientists have revealed, after previously blaming the deaths on sharks in Greenland. Predators? A batch of rogue grey seals have been fingered as the culprits of more than 80 seal pup deaths across the North Sea coast (file image above) The animals washed up in a sea colony near Blakeney Point, Norfolk, and in the waters of the Firth of Forth and St Andrews Bay, their bodies partially eaten. Investigators considered other factors such as boat propellers and other sea life before discovering the animals had been killed by the larger species . Keepers even watched one of the creatures killing five smaller seals at the Sea Mammal Research Unit in St Andrews. The animal left wide, slashed cuts known as spiral or corkscrew wounds on each of the victims. There are only two species of seal permanently residing in Britain. They are the Grey Seal and the Common or Harbour seal. Both spend much of their time in the sea but come ashore to breed and moult. The animals, which often co-exist in patches of water along the coastline, can be difficult to tell apart - especially when their coats are wet. Grey seals have a more distinctive face with hooked noses. They are also larger than the Common seal, with an adult male the largest land- breeding animal in Britain. 'Scottish Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead said: . 'The clusters of ”corkscrew seal” deaths were unusual and worrying,' said Scottish Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead. 'In common with many of the creatures that live in our seas, seals are animals that are loved by the public. 'It is very important that we understand what caused these unusual deaths and we now have important evidence that natural predatory behaviour is likely to be the main cause, rather than ship propeller injuries as we first thought. 'This provides some reassurance for the shipping industry . 'This information will help to inform regulators, developers and others enabling them to take it into account in their activities. 'Marine Scotland will continue to monitor our seal population for further injuries and any evidence about the causes.' More than 80 harbour seals and pups were killed in the slaying. The species (pictured above) is slightly smaller than the grey Seal . | Carcasses of 86 harbour pups and seals washed ashore five years ago .
Investigators thought the animals had been killed by boat propellers .
Sharks in Greenland were also suggested as culprits for the deaths .
Marine experts have the revealed pups were killed by larger grey seals . | 1c522a3564bfbf48c897d52af1a18408aeab842b | [
0,
368,
585,
65,
5111,
8,
5678,
13,
2775,
717,
6179,
3,
9,
13303,
3,
5,
21166,
7,
43,
5111
] |
History beckons for Manchester City this season. Manuel Pellegrini’s side have a glorious opportunity to become England’s first domestic Treble winners and make themselves immortal. But they are not the only club for whom greatness is possible. Arsenal could end their nine-year wait for a trophy in spectacular fashion by doing the Barclays Premier League and FA Cup Double. If they were to land both pots, it would be for a record-breaking fourth time. Pellegrini and Arsene Wenger have to remember this when they prepare for the second leg of their respective Champions League ties with Barcelona and Bayern Munich. The Champions League is an obsession for all managers but an obsession cannot cloud the big picture for City and Arsenal. Time for a rest? Manuel Pellegrini may consider giving Yaya Toure (left) a break in the second leg in Barcelona . Break time? Mesut Ozil (centre) and Per Mertesacker (right) could benefit from a rest in Arsenal's tie with Bayern . With that in mind, Pellegrini should consider not taking his key players — men such as Vincent Kompany, Sergio Aguero, Yaya Toure and Joe Hart — to the Nou Camp on March 12. Similarly, Wenger would be better served leaving his top men at home when he heads to Munich 24 hours earlier. As hard as that might be to hear, consider this: no team in the history of the Champions League have ever overturned a 2-0 home defeat away in the second leg. City had enough trouble laying a glove on Barcelona at home, so what realistic chance do they have of scoring three away? Take a look at the assignments Arsenal and City have either side of their second legs, and the argument for making changes becomes even more compelling. City face Wigan in the FA Cup at 4pm on the Sunday before travelling to Spain. After flying back in the early hours of Thursday morning, they then head to Hull for a Saturday lunchtime kick-off in the Premier League. The Manchester derby is also looming on the horizon. Arsenal’s demands are even more intense. They play Everton at home in the FA Cup quarter-final, then go to Munich before visiting Tottenham the following Sunday. After that, their next two Premier League games are away to Chelsea and a home date with... Manchester City. Everything changed in the final moments of the first legs. Had City and Arsenal been in the position of needing to overhaul a one-goal deficit, this topic would not have been open to debate. Pellegrini and Wenger would have gone full strength and all other competitions would have played second fiddle. The goals from Dani Alves and Thomas Muller, however, turned the situation upside down for both sides. Winning the Champions League this season can no longer be the priority, not when you have given two of the best sides in the world a two-goal start with home advantage. Anything is possible in football, but there comes a time when you have to be realistic. And it would be calamity if either side lost an influential player chasing an almost impossible cause. Leave him out? Sergio Aguero (back) is likely to be fit for City's second leg at the Nou Camp . And him? Joe Hart is likely to start in goals for Manchester City at Barcelona despite being 2-0 behind on aggregate . Main man: Lionel Messi opened the scoring from the penalty spot against City at the Etihad . Glimmer of hope? 10-man Arsenal went down thanks to a masterclass from Toni Kroos (bottom) No hope: Kroos' thunderbolt found the back of the net to hand Bayern the lead at the Emirates . Game changers: Martin Demichelis was dismissed for City (right) while Wojciech Szczesny (left) was sent off . For City to get through against Barcelona would require a performance like no other and the physical effects would be huge. I’ve played at the Nou Camp and the pitch is so big it can feel like you are playing on your own, as your team-mates are always so far away. It is a draining, stamina-sapping experience trying to keep up with the best possession team in the business and it would be a nightmare for Pellegrini if City compromised their hopes of winning the title with a tired performance at Hull. That game has now almost become bigger than Barcelona and similar sentiments apply to the north London derby. We have reached the stage of the season where draws feel like defeats in the title race. There is no margin for error. To win the title, you need your best players available for the biggest games. Manchester City and Arsenal can maximise their chances of that by giving their main men an evening off in the middle of March. The reward could be a Treble or a Double. Experienced: Sportsmail's Jamie Carragher (back, centre left) trains at the Nou Camp in 2007 . Massive: Rafa Benitez celebrates Liverpool's 2-1 win over Barcelona in 2007 . Get in: Craig Bellamy celebrates as Liverpool came from behind to snatch the win in Catalonia . Stop this red-card rule from ruining our game . Two stupid mistakes ruined two brilliant Champions League games this week and turned contests we have waited all winter for into glorified training sessions. Both Martin Demichelis and Wojciech Szczesny deserved to be sent off under the present laws, regardless of what Manuel Pellegrini and Arsene Wenger believe. But the time has come for football’s governing bodies to make a rule change that will benefit the game. Referees should be given the discretion to not send off a player for a foul if he is the last man in the penalty area. It is ridiculous that teams can be punished three times — a red card, a penalty and a suspension — for one offence. Red cards given to players who are making genuine attempts to tackle frustrate me the most. It is grossly unfair that the slightest misjudgment of timing can be penalised so harshly. Bang to rights? Lionel Messi was hauled down by Demichelis, resulting in a penalty . Stonewall? Arjen Robben hits the deck in Bayern's clash with Arsenal that saw Szczesny sent off . Raging: Arsene Wenger (left) was unahppy with Robben, while Manuel Pellegrini (right) blasted the Swedish ref . There can be no complaints about a red card if you are the last man and you foul a player outside the box. In those cases, the opposing team only get a free-kick, which does not replace the goalscoring chance in the way a penalty does. If a foul is committed in the area, a penalty would be sufficient punishment. There are, of course, offences in the area that have to carry a red card. If a striker is fouled when about to put the ball into an empty net or a defender handles on the line, they have to walk because they have stopped a certain goal. But being stopped from having a goalscoring opportunity is a completely different matter. It should never be assumed that just because a forward is through on goal he is going to score. This week, I spoke to two players who have taken penalties all through their career. Both have also found themselves running through on goal countless times. They agreed that taking a penalty is easier than going through on goal. People argue that defenders would feel they could get away with heavy fouls in the area if the laws were changed to end red cards for mistimed tackles. But they are missing the point. That isn’t my argument. I’m talking about genuine attempts to get the ball. If someone tackles with excessive force, it is a red card. No question. Fair? Michel Platini (left) and Pierluigi Collina admit that some clubs are unhappy with the current red-card rule . Game over? City face a massive task to overturn the two-goal deficit at the Nou Camp next month . I met Michel Platini and Pierluigi Collina recently at UEFA’s headquarters and they said clubs are unhappy with the rule of a straight red when there is a genuine attempt to play the ball. It is an issue that must be addressed. We don’t want to see glamour fixtures ruined in the future by technicalities. I used to find training sessions when the focus was attack versus defence bad enough. Having to sit through games that turn out that way is even worse. My top-five penalty takers . Mesut Ozil showed how not to take a penalty against Bayern Munich. From the length of his run-up to the hesitation before he struck the ball, you never thought he would score. With this famous five, though, you would put your mortgage on them every time. 1 Rickie Lambert — It is assumed that Matt Le Tissier is the greatest penalty taker to play for Southampton but Lambert’s record of 32 successful kicks in a row puts him into first place. It’s an incredible record. Lethal: Rickie Lambert (centre) has a perfect record when taking penalties . 2 Matt Le Tissier — If only he had gone to a major tournament with England, maybe we wouldn’t have suffered so many shootout defeats. He never gave the goalkeeper a chance from 12 yards and his statistics of 48 out of 49 stands up to the closest scrutiny. Legend: Matt Le Tissier was another Southampton striker with an impeccable record from the spot . 3 Jan Molby — Steven Gerrard moved on to 37 successful spot-kicks for Liverpool at Arsenal last week and is closing in on Big Jan’s club record of 42 from 45. Molby scored a hat-trick of penalties in one game against Coventry. Just like that: Jan Molby rolls home a penalty for Liverpool against Queens Park Rangers . 4 Ray Stewart — His inclusion in this list is a must. The West Ham United defender had an incredible record from 12 yards, scoring 81 of his 86 attempts. Mark Noble has been impressive for the current West Ham squad but he has some way to go to match Stewart. Easy: West Ham United defender Ray Stewart managed to score 81 of 86 penalties during his career . 5 Leighton Baines — Leighton is a quiet and unassuming lad but he has nerves of steel when faced with a penalty. He’s scored 15 of the 16 he has taken for Everton and there was never any doubt he would score in the FA Cup tie against Swansea last Sunday. Deadeye: A man of many talents, Leighton Baines has also proven his class from the spot . | Both Arsenal and Manchester City could each have historic seasons .
But Champions League obsession could cloud clubs' judgment .
Manuel Pellegrini should consider not taking his key men to Nou Camp .
Arsene Wenger's side have a similarly tough task as they travel to Bayern .
Plus, who makes my top-five penalty takers of all time? | db48b9315bd28a2843dc55e60d3647309b879c2b | [
0,
368,
22358,
2743,
21630,
276,
693,
18363,
23,
11,
1533,
7,
35,
15,
101,
9369,
43,
12,
1423,
48
] |
(CNN) -- A pen and a phone may not seem too dangerous, but in the hands of President Barack Obama and congressional Democrats, they have proven to be devastating. Just four years ago, when Democrats controlled Congress, Obama called then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and turned over our country's health care policy to the Democrats. And then with his pen, he signed one of the most damaging pieces of health care legislation into law. Obama has promised us he'll use that pen and phone again to unilaterally drive his job-destroying agenda -- and he's expected to repeat that promise in Tuesday night's State of the Union. And for every American family that is being crushed by the President's failed economy and his disastrous health care law, the stakes couldn't be higher. State of GOP: Misguided and obsessed . As we enter the election year, it's clear that the Republican House is the only remaining check and balance on an increasingly unpopular president and an increasingly unpopular government health care system. No matter how many times Obama unilaterally decides to delay certain parts of Obamacare, the fact remains that the law is not working and will only get worse with time. The climate has become so toxic for Democrats that Reps. Jim Matheson and Mike McIntyre -- two of the most vulnerable Democrats in the country -- recently announced their retirements, taking two seats completely off the board for House Democrats. Remember, Matheson held the most Republican district of any House Democrat in the country and McIntyre's district wasn't far behind. Obama, the pain and fear must be named . These aren't the only tragic blows for House Democrats. Bill Owens from New York recently announced his retirement too, leaving open a district in which Republicans are in a solid position to win. And one of their prized recruits, Pete Festersen in Nebraska, dropped out of his race just weeks after announcing. Seems the toll of Obamacare and Obama's anemic approval ratings are proving insurmountable for both incumbents and candidates. This year's State of the Union is a defining test for Obama . In contrast, Republicans have had a string of recruitment successes. Our pickup opportunities are all over the country, from California to New Hampshire. We have top-tier candidates like Air Force veteran Martha McSally in Arizona, son of Cuban exiles Carlos Curbelo in Florida, and former Democrat Evan Jenkins in West Virginia -- who was so tired of Obama's "war on coal" that he switched parties to challenge vulnerable Democrat Nick Rahall -- just to name a few. Obamacare is not going away as a political issue. The failures we've seen so far are just the beginning, and the consequences aren't just political. Bottom line, the American people don't need a pen and a phone. What they really need is a job and a paycheck. 7 things you didn't know you didn't know about the State of the Union . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Greg Walden. | Rep. Greg Walden says Americans need jobs, not empty words .
Walden: Obamacare is not going away as a political issue .
Walden: The Republican House is the only check and balance on an unpopular president . | bfb7c06dbf263c26ccada52dc9b89b23e1b9e08a | [
0,
368,
1060,
7144,
5,
6006,
9762,
15,
739,
11,
4794,
3038,
1570,
17,
63,
60,
2162,
70,
6576,
7
] |
By . David Kent . Mario Balotelli has posted a photo of himself posing with what appeared to be a gun on Instagram. The Italian striker can be seen pointing the gun at the camera in the photo, which was accompanied with the message 'big kiss to all the haters'. The 23-year-old later deleted the post. The move has angered Balotelli's employers AC Milan but vice president Adriano Galliani admits the club are powerless to stop players using social networks. Controversy: Mario Balotelli posted a pictured of himself with a gun on Instagram before deleting it . Head boy: Mario Balotelli rises above Gary Cahill to score the winner for Italy against England . VIDEO Milan chief defends Balotelli over World Cup exit . Pumped up: Mario Balotelli celebrates scoring against England at the World Cup last month . Drowning his World Cup sorrows: Mario Balotelli looked to be having a great time frolicking in the sea with his fiancee Fanny Neguesha in Miami . Galliani said: 'I have my own ideas about social networks and I've tried many times but our lawyer has always stopped me, saying that it would violate individual rights. 'In contracts it's written what players can and cannot do, but we can't do anything regarding their private lives. We do it vocally but that's not enough.' The incident is the latest in a long history of controversies involving Balotelli, who in 2011 during his time at Manchester City was caught throwing darts at a youth team player. In the same year, former Chelsea defender Ashley Cole was forced to apologise to Tom Cowan, a sports science student on work experience at Chelsea's Cobham training ground, for shooting him with a air rifle. Balotelli is currently on holiday in Miami with fiance Fanny Neguesha after Italy crashed out of the World Cup in the group stages. Balotelli scored the winner in a 2-1 win for Italy against England on June 15. | Striker later deleted the post from the picture sharing site .
Balotelli threw a dart at a youth team player during time at Manchester City .
Balotelli scored the winner against England at the World Cup . | 90fc5a955838146c056b9bcfd3cb43072cf734ed | [
0,
368,
10,
14082,
2659,
3171,
7999,
3489,
3,
9,
1202,
13,
2448,
3,
2748,
53,
28,
125,
4283,
12
] |
By . Craig Mackenzie . PUBLISHED: . 09:08 EST, 17 August 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 09:08 EST, 17 August 2013 . It was a a blow but the record had to go sometime. More than 500 Alpine horn players today broke the world mark for the largest number of people playing the instrument. Clad in traditional Swiss costume, they gathered in the Swiss region of Zermatt, home to the Matterhorn mountain to perform a piece specially composed for their wooden horns. Open air concert: A total of 508 alphorn players break the world record for the largest ensemble of people playing the instrument, on the Gornergrat in front of the Matterhorn mountain near Zermatt . Horn section: Men and women blow their instruments during the concert 10,000ft up a mountain near Zermatt . Big noise: A giant alphorn is paraded at the Gornergrat Mountain, as the players get ready to perform in the concert . Blow us down: Two men get to grips with the alphorn as they prepare to help break the world record . Instruments: A selection of alphorns are placed on the ground after the concert which saw a four-year record broken . The 508 players took a record set in 2009 when 366 musicians played a concert. They performed on the Gornergrat ridge, more than 3,000 metres (10,000ft) above sea level. The instrument, known as an alphorn and traditionally used for herding animals, can be up to four metres long. It has to be propped up on the ground and its player usually has to stand up to sound it because of its size. Noisy group: The alphorn players blow hard on the Gornergrat in front of the Matterhorn mountain near Zermatt . Start: A flag drops to indicate the beginning of the concert in front of the Matterhorn mountain. The record was held by 366 musicians in 2009 . Hard work: One of the alphorn players rests his instrument on a shoulder before the concert begins . Playing along: reading from music the players blow their instruments in the shadow of the Matterhorn mountain . Ready when you are: Conductor Gilbert Kolly leads 508 alphorn blowers playing together and establishing a new world record for largest group performance . | 508 musicians play a concert 10,000ft up a mountain in the shadow of the Matterhorn to beat four-year-old record . | 23b03e2dfd9a5915fe875bf0e4e9e02d37071059 | [
0,
368,
1368,
356,
16,
2464,
21,
8,
2015,
381,
13,
151,
1556,
8,
5009,
3,
5,
1537,
145,
2899
] |
LONDON, England (CNN) -- A blogger believed to be the target of the attack that brought down Twitter Thursday has told CNN the cyber assault was politically motivated and timed to coincide with the one-year anniversary of the Russia-Georgia conflict. Cyxymu's Twitter account was said by Facebook's security officer to be the target of Thursday's attack. "Cyxymu" has identified himself to CNN as "George," and the owner of the Twitter, Facebook and LiveJournal accounts named by Facebook's security officer as being the target of a coordinated online attack. George told CNN in an e-mail his username is "the name of my home town, the capital of Abkhazia (Sokhum) written in Russian and typed in Latin letters." He confirmed he is 34 years old and based in Tbilisi, Georgia, but declined to give further information which may reveal his identity. George told CNN his blogposts may have "irritated" someone enough to incite a cyber attack. His recent posts include: "How Russia was preparing military agression (sic) against Georgia, how they were training soldiers and mobilizing military equipment, what kind of provocations were carried out by the separatists prior to the war." "Seems somebody did not like such a chronicle of events," he told CNN. "I was also writing about all reforms implemented in Georgia in recent times so that all people outside Georgia could have proper information." He said the main purpose of his blogs was to promote the resumption of relations between the Abkhazian and Georgian people. "I assume the above-mentioned could irritate those who are the authors of the given cyber attack and who will never accept the idea of the United, independent, democratic and prosperous Georgia," he said. Twitter -- a micro-blogging site where users post 140-character messages to their followers -- went down for around two hours Thursday. Twitter said the site's blackout was caused by a "denial-of-service attack," which likely means a hacker used a number of infected computers to send enough automated requests to the site to overwhelm it. Facebook and LiveJournal, a blogging site, also experienced problems. In a statement, Facebook said the attack, "resulted in a short period of degraded site experience for some visitors. No user data was at risk and the matter is now resolved for the majority of users." Facebook security officer Max Kelly told CNet news Thursday the attack was designed to silence an outspoken blogger known by the username, "cyxymu." "It was a simultaneous attack across a number of properties targeting him to keep his voice from being heard," Kelly told CNet. "We're actively investigating the source of the attacks and we hope to be able to find out the individuals involved in the back end and to take action against them if we can." The Georgian government has confirmed it's investigating potential links between the attacks and the user in Tbilisi, Georgia, according to Shota Utiashvili, head of the Department of Information and Analysis at the Ministry of the Interior. Although they had no details yet, the spokesman said there were suspicions that the attack may have come from Russia, but it will take "some more time" before they could reach any conclusions. The Interior Ministry could not confirm the user's identity. Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at computer security firm Sophos told CNN it was unlikely the attacker intended to cripple Twitter, or to cause widespread disruption. "I suspect that whoever did this didn't really want to bring down the likes of Twitter and cause problems for those other sites, they just wanted that material off because they objected to what it was saying, perhaps for a political reason," he said. Cluley said Thursday's attacks started with a spamming campaign, called a "joejob," which is designed to tar a victim's online reputation by appearing to be the source of a wave of spam. "The first thing they did was they started spamming out e-mails, using his name, pointing to Web pages he has on those Web sites," Cluely said. "Some people have speculated that the 'denial-of-service' happened after people received these e-mails and clicked on the links. But I think that's poppycock. I don't think many people would have clicked on the links. "I think that instead what happened is that whoever had a vendetta against it took it one stage further and decided to launch a 'denial-of-service' attack against his pages, hoping of course that the pages would be taken down and he'd been taken off these sites." Cluely said "denial-of-service" attacks were reported last year when Russia deployed troops to South Ossetia to repel Georgian forces. "We saw a series of denial of service attacks coming both from Russia and from Georgia a year ago when the conflict took off." Read more about recent conflict in the region . "It's not unusual now, when there's a tense part of the world where there's conflict happening, for hackers to take matters into their own hands and to take potshots like this," he said. "But in this case, it looks like that collateral damage was all of Twitter." | "Cyxymu" is username of a 34-year-old pro-Georgia blogger named "George"
Facebook security officer names "cyxymu" as the target of cyber assault .
Twitter went down for two hours Thursday after "denial-of-service" attack .
"Denial-of-service" attack coincides with anniversary of Russia-Georgia conflict . | be226a65cdb3627d86ae6a822e7e2f522114d9cb | [
0,
368,
1060,
14837,
6400,
226,
63,
51,
76,
845,
3211,
47,
22937,
11361,
11,
97,
26,
12,
21095,
28
] |
By . Lucy Waterlow . The image of the perfect housewife who kept a spotless home, had her husband's dinner ready as soon as he walked through the door from work and single-handed raised the children - while still always managing to look fashionable and beautiful - is a well-known stereotype from the 1950s. Media, advertising and role models like Barbara Cartland all served to enforce the view that the place for post-World-War-Two women was in the home. So what was life like for these women who were expected to achieve with aplomb, and without complaint, the part of domestic goddess? Immaculate look: January Jones, left, plays perfect housewife Betty Draper in Mad Men but many real women of the era wouldn't have had time to look as groomed as she does . Drawing from her own experiences and those of other women from the time, grandmother and historian Sheila Hardy from Suffolk reveals the daily reality in her book '1950s Housewife Marriage And Homemaking In The 1950s'. Just reading the list of chores that had to be carried out every day as outlined in one chapter will make modern women need a lie down (in a bed easily made thanks to the invention of the duvet and fitted sheets, luxuries 50s housewives didn't have). How to make the bed alone with the layering of sheets takes up a number of pages and this was not a task to be shirked: 'It was a slatternly housewife indeed who left her bed unmade throughout the day,' Hardy writes. Duty: Women were expected to get up and make their husband's breakfast, even if they had a job of their own to get to . Then there was breakfast, lunch and dinner to be cooked, laundry and ironing to be done and trips to the shops to be made. Fifties housewives wouldn't get everything need under one supermarket roof but would instead visit 'their own parade of local shops, which would have included a post office, butcher, greengrocer, grocer, newsagent, baker and dairy. In many places there would also have been a fishmonger, possibly a fried fish shop, and invariably a draper who also sold knitting wool, and a chemist.' Hardy writes that at the time: 'Books, magazines, films and, later, television programmes tried hard to reinforce the idyllic picture of the perfect stay-at-home housewife who took care of the home, raised the children, cooked nutritious meals, and provided a haven of calm for her hardworking husband when he returned at the end of his working day.' They were also encouraged to look the part when their husband returned from work, ensuring they had 'bathed, perfumed and dressed in smart clean clothes, complete with fresh frilly apron, ready to spend a cosy and possibly romantic evening with him.' But she says in reality it was impossible for women to meet this ideal. Making a bed in the days before duvets and fitted sheets: 'It was a slatternly housewife indeed who left her bed unmade' 'They would have their husband's evening . meal ready but it was doubtful if they would have had time to run a . comb through their hair, let alone wash their face and apply make-up,' she writes. She adds: The women who might take Miss Cartland’s advice or heed that given in magazines were those who most probably had some help in the house. If all your washing went to the laundry from whence everything, including your husband’s shirts, returned beautifully ironed, and if you had an obliging Mrs Mopp who came, perhaps not every day but certainly more than once a week, to scrub, clean and polish, then like Mrs Dale whose diary was broadcast daily, you too could strive to be the perfect housewife.' Despite the idea that all women at the time were homemakers, many in fact were juggling their homes with jobs of their own. Hardy said career women who do this today with the help of appliances like vacuum cleaners and dishwashers have it easy compared to their predecessors. 'Modern women complain of pressure, but many 1950s women worked and still came home to do the domestic chores,' she said. But while sexism and inequality was rife, Hardy said not all housewives were 'downtrodden doormats' but were 'tough and ultra-organised'. While the men may have earned the money, they took charge of how it was spent balancing the household finances with military precision. 'The vast majority of stay-at-home wives were given a sum from their husband's weekly pay packet and were expected to run the house, and feed and clothe themselves and later the children, out of it,' she writes. Sheila Hardy's book reveals what life was really like in the 50s . 'In some households the man handed over his unopened pay packet to his wife who then gave him back what amounted to his pocket money. 'Others allotted varying amounts into tins or jars to cover the rent, bills for the utilities, insurance policies or to pay regular installments on essential items, such as the gas cooker. 'Another receptacle was earmarked for storing the shilling pieces needed to feed the gas and electricity meters.' Hardy reproduces list of household items made by women of the time and receipts that were kept to keep books balanced in her book, offering a unique insight into the lives lived by families decades ago. Aside from the domestic lives of women in the 50s, Hardy's book also looks at the popular fashions. As like today, magazines such as Vogue were a port of call for anyone seeking the latest fashion advice and the Queen and her sister Princess Margaret were style icons along with actresses Doris Day and Grace Kelly. Women were able to make the most of the increased availability of fabrics like nylon and no outfit was considered complete without hat and gloves. Hardy writes: 'For summer the hat would have been close fitting: a Juliet-style cap, or a simple stiffened band some 5in or 6in wide in a material that matched or toned with the dress.' She adds: Gloves were considered much more than simply items to keep your hands warm in winter. The 1950s women had been brought up by mothers who considered that ‘no lady left the house without her gloves on – not put on as she walked down the street – but put on in the hall before she checked in the hall mirror that she was fit to face the world!’ As they couldn't afford to buy new dresses very often, 50s women were encouraged to make do and mend and creating dresses from patterns was the norm. A 1950s Housewife Marriage And Homemaking In The 1950s by Sheila Hardy, £14.99, published by The History Press . | Author Sheila Hardy reveals the daily reality for 50s housewives in recent book .
Keeping an both immaculate home and perfect appearance was an ideal most never achieved .
'They would have their husband's evening meal ready but it was doubtful if they would have had time to run a comb through their hair,' she writes .
Many also had jobs as well as carrying out all household chores . | c51597b58a13118b50471339ec5134e9b2f2b639 | [
0,
368,
1060,
17162,
451,
173,
9,
6424,
63,
817,
7,
8,
733,
13,
8,
10247,
7,
629,
22106,
3
] |
Two days after being sacked as England's one-day cricket captain, Alastair Cook put his troubles behind him to return to sporting action – and duly showed his prowess by scoring two superb centuries with ease. The only problem was that he was doing so with a dart not a bat in his hand – and, in a far cry from the pristine surroundings of Lord's, the audience he was playing to was full of drunk punters wearing Christmas jumpers…as well as a couple of reindeer in the stands. The 29-year-old, who is still England's Test captain, took to the Alexandra Palace stage in north London on Monday evening, shortly before the start of day five of the World Darts Championship, for an entertaining 'challenge' match with England fast bowler James Anderson. Jimmy Anderson (left) took on Alastair Cook (right) in a one-leg challenge at Alexandra Palace . VIDEO Cricket meets Darts: Cook vs Anderson . And, in spite of his recent woes, Cook enjoyed a rare moment of sporting triumph in this one-leg shootout. 'I was nervous up there,' admitted Cook, who held his stag party a few years ago at Ally Pally with a group of mates. 'I scored a 100 up there – and it's the first time I have done that on TV for a while. It was amazing up there but my legs were shaking.' Knowing how keen the players are on their arrows during overseas Tours, the England and Wales Cricket Board approached the Professional Darts Corporation a few months back to arrange this special invitational match. Cook competed in the challenge match just days after being stripped of England's one-day captaincy . England bowler Anderson makes his way to the stage after being introduced at Alexandra Palace . The England Test captain celebrates a victory on stage against his team-mate Anderson . What the English cricket authorities could not have anticipated was that the match would take place days after the decision to demote Cook from the World Cup squad and strip him of the captaincy because of his poor scoring form. Nonetheless, Cook, who is 30 on Christmas day, still turned up to participate. He did the full walk-on, wearing a T-shirt with 'Alastair 'Bed n Breakfast' Cook' emblazed on his back. Anderson rightly used the moniker 'The Swinger'. Cook admitted to being nervous on the Alexandra Palace stage to the point where his legs were shaking . Anderson and Cook regularly play darts while on a cricket tour with England . In the practice room beforehand, Cook had achieved a 13-dart leg and he brought that form to the oche. Throwing with his right, despite being a left-handed batsman, Cook scored a 100 and 140 – and despite missing seven darts at double 13 he eventually sealed the match with a double 11 attempt. Cook might not be playing at the Cricket World Cup in Australia and New Zealand in February – but perhaps the World Cup of Darts in Frankfurt in the summer would be a viable option instead. The pair shake hands after their contest on Monday night at the World Darts Championships in London . | England cricket team-mates play each other in darts challenge .
Alastair Cook and Jimmy Anderson play darts while on tour with England .
Cook got the better of Anderson on the Alexandra Palace stage .
Cook was sacked as England's ODI captain after dismal series in Sri Lanka . | 22c729c5b2e6901e02fd5e5b94db4740be7f1b5e | [
0,
368,
2789,
2300,
14268,
901,
9,
15303,
6176,
5146,
12,
18096,
227,
271,
27614,
13,
2789,
31,
7,
80
] |
Most landlords prepare themselves for some less-than-appealing personal remnants when a tenant leaves, so when this man found more than £600,000 hidden under a bed, it was this shock of his life. Ma Guangdi was cleaning up after one of his former tenants in an apartment in Dongguan, Guangdong Province, China when he made the surprising discovery. Underneath one of the beds, he found 6.33million Chinese Yuan in cash, stacked in carton boxes and left behind. Cashflow: The money, a total of 6.33million Yuan (£616,000), was taken to a bank where it has been frozen pending investigation . Shock discovery: Landlord Ma Guangdi was cleaning up after a tenant who had just disappeared into thin air when he found the money . Some deposit: The money being counted at a bank in Dongguan, Guangdong Province . The tenant had been out of reach for several months and after he stopped paying rent, Mr Ma went round to clear out the flat. The former tenant had rented this apartment for several years, but after his contract ran out in may he has been out of reach and didn't continue paying the rent,’ Ma Guangdi said. However it was not until recently that Mr Ma had time to go and clean out the apartment, where he and his friends discovered the huge stack of cash. Hidden away: The cash was neatly stacked inside several cardboard boxes which Mr Ma found when he lifted the mattress . Treasure hunt: The door to the apartment owned by Mr Ma and the building in Dongguan, Guangdong Province . High numbers: The fortune has now been placed in a safety bank account and remains frozen while police investigate the former tenant . ‘When we moved away the bed mattress, we saw that there were four carton boxes under the bed. Each box was fully stuffed and sealed up.’ When Mr Ma tore one corner of the box he was shocked to find that it was filled with bundles of cash. Mr Ma called police who took the money away to be counted, with the local bank valuing the cash to 6.33million Yuan (£616,000) The fortune has now been placed in a safety bank account and remains frozen while police investigate the former tenant. | Chinese man finds £616,000 hidden under former tenant's bed .
Ma Guangdi found the money several months after occupant left . | 8c23ce1056e3e44628085753954b6ac81d8e4577 | [
0,
368,
14759,
12902,
4357,
4201,
17030,
6214,
152,
16,
1723,
5697,
365,
3,
9,
1953,
3,
5,
37,
540
] |
By . Alex Greig . PUBLISHED: . 23:23 EST, 18 August 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 01:02 EST, 19 August 2013 . In a move that is being widely condemned, Texas gubernatorial candidate Greg Abbott on Sunday thanked a supporter who tweeted that Democratic State Senator Wendy Davis is a 'retard Barbie'. '@GregAbbott_TX would absolutely demolish idiot @WendyDavisTexas in Gov race - run Wendy run! Retard Barbie to learn life lesson,' read a tweet sent to Abbott from @Jefflegal, an Abbott supporter. 'Jeff, thanks for your support,' wrote Abbott, the current Republican Attorney General of Texas. Opponents: Greg Abbott (left) thanked a supporter who referred to Wendy Davis (right) as a 'retard Barbie' Davis is said to be considering a run at the Governor's office next year. Abbott drew criticism from Democratic Governors Association representative Danny Kanner, who said in a statement to Politico: . 'These disgusting attacks against Wendy Davis have no place in the political discourse and they say a lot more about the Republican men launching them than her. 'Clearly, they know that Wendy Davis offers the kind of real change that Texas voters want and are scared to death of her because of it.' Davis has maintained a dignified silence on the matter. Think before you tweet: The offending messages written by Abbott and Rutledge . Conservative: Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott is planning to run for the office of Texas Governor next year . Democratic State Senator Davis, who earlier this year gained national fame after mounting an abortion-related filibuster, would challenge Abbott if she decides to run for Texas governor. The Senator has not yet announced her candidacy but has already been called 'abortion Barbie' by Redstate's Erick Erickson and 'retard Barbie' by Rutledge. Twitter debacle: Jeffrey Rutledge wrote the offending tweet on his Twitter account, which is littered with references to 'godless jackasses' and 'retards' Twitter feed: Rutledge's feed is an ongoing rant against liberal 'retards' Texas Democratic Party chairman Gilberto Hinojosa said in a statement to My San Antonio: . 'That Greg Abbott would thank a supporter for calling Senator Wendy Davis a "Retard Barbie" is absolutely disgusting and disturbing. This is what Republicans think about women - that a Harvard law school graduate, State Senator, and a long time fighter for Texas families deserves such inappropriate slander. 'Greg Abbott endorses such disrespect. The people of Texas deserves so much better than this from their public officials. And the women of Texas deserve leaders who respect them as human beings.' The author of the original tweet, Jeffrey Rutledge, is an attorney whose Twitter account is littered with the word 'retard' and snarky insults directed at liberals. | A supporter of Texas Governor General Greg Abbott's tilt at Governor tweeted that Democrat Wendy Davis is a 'retard Barbie'
Abbott thanked the man via Twitter for his support .
State Senator Davis is considering running for the position of Governor next year .
She was recently referred to as 'abortion Barbie' by journalist Erick Erickson . | 61fc18062035f23d0d4c522eb961b92861754dd9 | [
0,
368,
8994,
10154,
2146,
11859,
31592,
145,
5100,
3,
9,
380,
49,
113,
27975,
24,
10021,
1015,
13644,
24571
] |
Hidden since the Romans ruled Britain, this extraordinary sculpture was perfectly preserved for 1,900 years beneath a busy street. The carvings on the 26in high eagle are so crisp that when archaeologists unearthed it last month they feared it was a much later copy rather than an original Roman relic. But experts at the Museum of London Archaeology confirmed that the sculpture from a high-ranking official’s tomb dates from the 1st or 2nd century AD, and is one of only two statues of its type in the world. The other was found in Jordan in 1937. The sculpture features an eagle grasping a writhing serpent in its beak and is thought to symbolise the struggle of good against evil. It came out of the ground 'covered in soil and unrecognisable' in September in the last few hours of an excavation that had lasted several months . The eagle signifies a force of good in Roman art. It is also a symbol of Jupiter, chief of the Roman gods, who was one of the most popular of the time . The fact the creature is eating a snake shows it has triumphed over evil and death, Michael Marshall, Roman finds expert at MOLA told MailOnline. In Roman art eagles are often depicted carrying the souls of Roman emperors to the gods - making the mortal divine. This makes the newly discovered eagle a suitable subject for a sculpture placed in the mausoleum of a rich Roman Londoner, Mr Marshall added. Archaeologists also unearthed foundations . of a mausoleum on the east London site and believe that the statue, . dating from the first or second century AD and made from oolitic . limestone from the Cotswolds, once adorned it. The sculpture was pulled from the site on the Minories, a street in the City of London that is close to the Tower of London. It came out of the ground 'covered in soil and unrecognisable' in September in the last few hours of an excavation that had lasted several months. It is said to be in such good condition that archaeologists could not believe it is 1,900 years old and were initially hesitant to announce the find until it had been seen by several experts. The sculpture features an eagle grasping a writhing serpent in its beak and is thought to symbolise the struggle of good (the eagle) against evil (the snake). It also has details such as the forked tongue of the snake and the individual feathers of the eagle. The object, which is 65cm tall and 55cm wide, is thought to have been placed in an alcove at the mausoleum, which likely belonged to a wealthy Londoner . The sculpture was discovered in the final hours of a dig at a London building site (pictured) which will be the location of a 16-storey hotel . Mr Marshall told MailOnline there is currently no evidence to suggest the sculpture was painted, but many statues of the time were. Experts carefully examine the statue to check for any microscopic flakes of paint that might remain on it. Paint rarely survives on such statues, but Mr Marshall said that as the item is in such good condition, it is the 'best bet' of finding paint flakes if it was indeed painted. Michael Marshall, finds specialist at Museum of London Archaeology (MOLA), told MailOnline there are many candidates to whom the tomb might have belonged as there was an influx of wealthy Romans living in Briton at the time who were officials, merchants and army officers. The sculpture was probably chosen to please the god Jupiter and depict the triumph of good over death and evil, but it was also a way for wealthy families to show off and commemorate the dead, he said. The item could also have played a protective role if the person was a member of the 'cult of Jupiter' which was incredibly popular at the time, Mr Marshall added. Such a statue, that depicts the symbol of the god could 'help ensure the person was safe after death,' he said. Images of eagles and serpents are typically Roman and the discovery has helped experts understand what the cemeteries and tombs outside the city walls looked like. It was already known that a celebrated school of Romano-British sculptors worked in the Cotswolds, but only a few fragments of their work have been previously found. Reverend Professor Martin Henig, a leading expert in the field, said that the object was 'the finest sculpture by a Romano-British artist ever found in London and amongst the very best statues surviving from Roman Britain'. The sculpture was found on the Minories - a street in the City of London close to the Tower of London and Aldgate Tube station. It was unearthed at a building site that is being prepared for the building of a 16-storey hotel. The find also lies in an area that is thought to be the location of Roman cemeteries, near London's Roman wall, which is shown on the map . Mr Marshall, added: 'The eagle is a classically Roman symbol and this new find provides a fascinating new insight into the inhabitants of Roman London and demonstrates their familiarity with the iconography of the wider classical world. 'Funerary sculpture from the city is . very rare and this example, perhaps from inside a mausoleum, is a . particularly fine example which will help us to understand how the . cemeteries and tombs that lined the roads out of the city were furnished . and the beliefs of those buried there.' MOLA . project manager Louise Davies said it was an archaeologist's dream to . find such a beautiful sculpture, adding: 'The fact that we found it on . the last day of the dig was a real bonus.' The object will go on display for six months at the Museum of London from tomorrow. The eagle was found near foundations of a Roman mausoleum, (pictured right) where it is thought to have been kept and is a rare example of funerary sculpture that could shed light on how the cemeteries and tombs that lined the roads out of the city were furnished and the beliefs of those buried there. MOLA Conservator Luisa Duarte cleans the sculpture (left) Caroline . McDonald, senior curator of Roman London at the Museum of London, told . MailOnline: 'What I love about this discovery is what it reveals about . London 1,900 years ago. 'Here . is a city of around 30,000 people where the mechanics of life are . intertwined with the mythical. One Roman Londoner climbs the social . ladder and leaves a family rich enough to mark their passing with an . extraordinary piece of art. 'Meanwhile . this magnificent eagle protects the deceased, frozen in an eternal . struggle to hold evil at bay. It is money and magic captured in stone. I can’t wait to see it on display at the Museum of London for the public to see.' Eagles killing snakes were popular subjects in Roman art. Left is a reconstruction of the eagle and serpent sculpture found at Keynsham Roman Villa, Somerset, which is the only other significant fragment of a similar Roman sculpture found in Britain. Right, is a find from Khirbet et Tannur, Jordan, (on show at the Cincinnati Art Museum collection,) which is the nearest comparison to the Minories eagle and serpent sculpture . | The 1,900-year-old sculpture was found in the City of London by Museum of London Archaeology experts before a site's redevelopment into a hotel .
It is thought to symbolise good triumphing over evil and archaeologists believe it was the centerpiece of a Roman mausoleum .
Reverend Professor Martin Henig, an expert in the field, said that the object is 'the finest sculpture by a .
Romano-British artist ever found in London' | bd951d85a0004ffe3344d64240c8298ac1684d5d | [
0,
368,
10519,
753,
46,
3,
15,
9,
3537,
14304,
53,
3,
9,
3,
210,
30922,
53,
30890,
16,
165
] |
Beijing, China (CNN) -- Flags lowered to half-staff Sunday across China and at the nation's embassies and consulates around the world to mourn the victims of deadly mudslides in northwestern Gansu provice. The mudslides killed 1,239 people and 505 are still missing, the state-run Xinhua news agency said Saturday. But residents of hard-hit Zhouqu County told CNN they believe the toll is much higher. Meanwhile, in southwestern China, already inundated by heavy downpours all summer, new rain-triggered landslides Saturday left at least 38 people missing, Xinhua said. Thousands of people and vehicles were stranded as roads become impassable in Sichuan province. The only highway linking Wenchuan County to Chengdu, the provincial capital of Sichuan province, was submerged under 13 feet of water. About 10,000 residents have been evacuated, Xinhua said. The county government has designated schools and office buildings of township governments as temporary shelters. Students in Zhouqu will start the fall semester 10 days late because some schools were buried or suffered severe damage. Power had been restored to about 76 percent of affected homes, Xinhua said. Vegetables became available for the first time in nearly a week, the news agency reported. The Chinese government has banned public entertainment -- including movies, karaoke online videos and music -- on Sunday in remembrance of those who perished in Gansu province this week. Sunday is the seventh day since the Zhouqu mudslide and, according to some Chinese traditions, the seventh day after a death is the height of the mourning period. Large-scale national displays of mourning, however, are rare in China, though it held three days of mourning after a massive 2008 earthquake in Sichuan and a one-day mourning after a quake in Yushu earlier this year. China has been drenched by heavy rains and floods since the end of May. More than 400 million people in 28 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions have been affected. | NEW: Death toll rises to 1,239 .
At least 38 people are missing in fresh landslides in Sichuan province .
China has been hit hard this summer's torrential rains .
Flags will fly at half staff and no public entertainment will be allowed Sunday . | 3d7fe690b69edf02c193d22dffe221b1b740ccf3 | [
0,
368,
3412,
18,
18728,
3,
6347,
40,
9361,
16,
3457,
24411,
17980,
7,
76,
7985,
5781,
1914,
357,
3288
] |
By . Ryan Gorman . PUBLISHED: . 00:15 EST, 17 December 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 02:13 EST, 17 December 2013 . Jealous rage: Lewis Atwood punched his mother in the faces several times because she didn't have a Christmas ornament with his name on it . A Michigan man punched his mother in the face several times Friday night in a jealous rage surrounding the decoration of their Christmas tree. Lewis Atwood, 33, viciously attacked Sandra Atwood, 58, because he saw an ornament with his brother’s name but none with his, according to an affidavit. Pasco Township Police responded to a 011 call from the Atwoods’ home after a 911 call with no one on the line but shouting and a women yelling ‘you are hurting me’ was heard, the affidavit posted to The Smoking Gun said. Mr Atwood punched his mother in the face ‘four or five times’ while decorating the tree with her, his girlfriend and brother. He had been drinking to the point of intoxication and became angry when he noticed his brother had a personalized ornament but he didn’t. He became enraged and pushed his way through the small crowd to his mother, then began pummelling the poor woman. She suffered a bloody nose, swollen eye and swollen lip, he had minor injuries to his knuckes and hands ‘consistent with this type of assault,’ the report said. He was booked on a charge of domestic violence and sent to jail. MailOnline was not able to confirm if he is still in custody. | Lewis Atwood pummeled his mother's face Friday night while decorating their Christmas tree .
He was intoxicated and flew into a jealous rage after seeing an ornament with his brother's name on it . | 9b57176837dc9b1b98d49caec7a05c8af2864cc0 | [
0,
368,
1060,
388,
4930,
4513,
112,
2039,
16,
8,
522,
633,
648,
3,
5,
216,
47,
6663,
12,
8
] |
By . Kerry Mcdermott . PUBLISHED: . 06:18 EST, 2 July 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 07:32 EST, 2 July 2013 . From a black and white toilet seat to a life-sized family of Friesians in her front garden, this pub landlady has spent 17 years and £10,000 turning her home into a shrine to the humble dairy cow. Muriel Edwin, 62, from Hulland Ward in Derbyshire, said her fondness for cow-themed trinkets 'snowballed' over the years from the odd clock or pair of slippers into a staggering collection of more than 2,000 items. The widow's hoard has now grown so large that almost every inch of her flat above the Black Horse pub is now stuffed with cuddly toys, pictures, ceramic figurines, and even a cow-shaped kettle. Cow crazy: Derbyshire pub landlady Muriel Edwin, 62, has spent around £10,000 on cow memorabilia - including these three life-sized ceramic models . Passion: The widow is so obsessed with collecting cows that every room of her flat above the pub is stuffed with pictures, cuddly toys, clocks, mugs and slippers . Mrs Edwin's collection - which includes three life-sized ceramic cows and a calf on her front lawn - is now so well known she has even had a coach-load of tourists knock on her door to ask for a tour of her home. 'My obsession . started off with a mug here and a pair of slippers there and it just . snowballed when I moved into the pub,' said Mrs Edwin - who said her fondness for cows once earned her the nickname 'Moo'.'I've just always loved cows, and have spent thousands and thousands on them over the years - well over £10,000. 'But it's my hobby, it makes me happy and it's not hurting anyone - so I keep on collecting,' she said.'My nickname used to be Moo and my maiden name was Brown, so you can imagine the "how now brown cow" jokes I used to get.' Moo-mania: Muriel's much-loved cow memorabilia dominates her home above the Black Horse pub . Milk with your tea? Even the landlady's kettle features a nod to her favourite animal . Obsession: From black and white mugs to miniature bovine ornaments, the 62-year-old's home is a shrine to the humble dairy cow . During the 17 years Mrs Edwin has . lived at the Black Horse pub, she has . crammed her three bedroomed flat above the pub with Britain's largest . cow collection.She said; 'My home is full of them, there is still space to sit when the family . come round, but only just. They have started creeping down into the pub. It's no good having them and not showing them off.' The widow even has a cow print toilet seat - and two spares in a box, just in case one should break. 'Thousands and thousands have been spent . on them over the years- £50 here and £100 there, it all adds up,' she . said of her collection. 'It just snowballed': Everything from clocks to crockery to bed spreads and even a toilet seat are emblazoned with cows at Mrs Edwin's Derbyshire home . Hobby: The hearth in front of Mrs Edwin's fireplace is home to enough cows to fill a farmyard . Mrs Edwin said the family of ceramic cows standing proudly outside the pub - each of which cost around £1,000 - had become a 'landmark' in the village. 'I fully accept that if I move house, not all of the cows would be able to come with me, but I could never get rid of the big ones outside, which my husband bought me. I don't expect any new neighbours would like them, but they would just have to put up with it. 'The amount of times the big cows have been photographed is out of this world. Kids love them, adults love them- I've even had whole coach parties spot the cows outside and come upstairs to see my collection.' Mrs Edwin said she has no plans to change the name of the pub to what some might say would be a more appropriate title; the Black Cow. 'You have to keep some things separate. They aren't work related, the cows are the switch off mode,' she said. 'I love the quirkiness of it, and it's nice at the end of the day to be surrounded by the cows, which are completely different from my work.' | Muriel Edwin, 62, has filled her Derbyshire home with cow-themed trinkets .
Widow's collection even includes a £100 cow-print toilet seat . | 92b232ae09738cc9a39c10714c94c040ca740a89 | [
0,
368,
120,
18,
7473,
21485,
5718,
11943,
1322,
521,
26,
63,
4159,
14018,
4857,
3757,
65,
1869,
300,
3996
] |
A New York City plastic surgeon pleaded guilty to killing a former model during a botched liposuction procedure on Wednesday in return for only two-months behind bars. Dr. Oleg Davie, 53, ignored the medical records of Isel Pineda which showed she'd undergone a heart transplant in 2004 performed by TV's Dr. Oz and falsified forms after her death to cover up his mistakes prosecutors said. The disgraced surgeon pleaded guilty to a charge of criminally negligent homicide and falsifying records after originally being charged with manslaughter for Pineda's death in 2012 which would have carried a prison term of up to 15 years. Death: Isel Pineda should never have been on the operating table having had the transplant in in 2004, making it unsafe for her to be given anesthesia . Pineda, 51, paid $3,200 for the procedure, described in online ads as being to 'lose the wobble'. She went into cardiac arrest before leaving Davie's office. Paramedics tried to revive her but she was declared dead at Coney Island Hospital. Guilty: Oleg Davie, 52, pleaded guilty to a charge of criminally negligent homicide . 'You knew she had a heart condition but you performed the surgery anyway, didn’t you?' prosecutor Patrick Cappock asked in Brooklyn Supreme Court. 'Yes,' Davie answered. According to The New York Post, Davie, who surrendered his medical license last year, was unapologetic to the victim's family when he left the courtroom on Wednesday. 'What happened here is tragic but not criminal,' said his lawyer, James DiPietro, who added that the deal was 'inherently fair'. He noted that his client would have faced 15-years behind bars if he had decided to fight a manslaughter charge. Instead he admitted to changing Pineda's records after she died and admitted he did not speak to her cardiologist despite knowing she had undergone a heart procedure. Davie, who was on probation at the time of Pineda's surgery for 'professional misconduct' deleted all mention of her heart transplant and medication after the unsuccessful SmartLipo operation. Paperwork found in Pineda's purse by her boyfriend suggested Davie knew about her heart disease and resulting life-saving operation that made her unsuitable for liposuction. Tragedy: Isel Pineda died before she left Dr. Davie's New York City practice in 2012 . On it were details of the diagnosis and the anti-rejection rejection drugs she was taking. 'This woman should not have been operated on — period,' a top plastic surgeon told the New York Post. 'You don’t screw around with people like this. If he knew she had a heart transplant, he should have shown her the door.' Davies appeared to have ignored the health issues when filling out Pineda's patient history form, on which he clearly marked 'no' where it asks whether she had ever been hospitalized. Heartbreak: 'She was stunning. She would walk into a room and the music would stop,' said Pineda's ex-husband . He wrote that she had a 'mid-chest, old, well healed' scar, describing it as resulting from 'skin surgery' to remove a 'cyst'. Pineda's scar would have stretched from the neck to her navel. And while her family believe she didn't tell them she was having lipo due to embarrassment, she was never shy about discussing her heart transplant. Last year her ex-husband, Jeffrey Mayer said, 'She was stunning. She would walk into a room and the music would stop,” adding that seeing Davie “brought all the pain and all the realness back.' | Dr. Oleg Davie pleaded guilty Wednesday to reduced charges after facing 15 years for manslaughter .
Former model Isel Pineda, 51, had undergone a heart transplant in 2004 performed by TV's Dr. Oz .
She died of a cardiac arrest before she left Davie's practice in 2012 .
Davie, 53, knew her medical history but changed her records after she died to cover up his error .
Is facing a sentence of up to two months and five-years probation . | 41edcafa87dc98d41ae71967b051ad102358974a | [
0,
368,
1060,
896,
2343,
12177,
411,
5772,
878,
5914,
3,
30827,
26,
10945,
12,
7738,
53,
1798,
825,
27
] |
By . Emily Allen . Pressure to avoid offending minorities has caught up with Britain’s 150,000 users of sign language for the deaf, according to a Government-funded report. It found that younger deaf people have changed the way they give the sign to say someone is gay, or to describe Chinese, French and Jewish people. The old gesture that meant gay – a flicked limp wrist – is now considered offensive among some users of British Sign Language, researchers at University College London said. Evolving: Britain's young deaf community have adapted signs they use so they don't offend other cultures . Similarly it is no longer acceptable among politically correct deaf people to give a slanted eye sign to indicate something Chinese, nor to mime a hooked nose to mean a Jewish person. Over three years, scientists at the Deafness Cognition and Language Research Centre at UCL filmed the signs for more than 100 words used by 250 people in eight cities. Centre director Professor Bencie Woll said: ‘The younger deaf community doesn’t use these old signs because of a clear process of political correctness, in the same way that the hearing community no longer calls gay people “pansies” or “queer”.’ Young deaf people have also dropped the sign of twirling an imaginary moustache for France, said the researchers. They sign a gay person with an upright thumb on one hand in the palm of the other, wobbling from side to side, and India is signed using the triangular shape of the subcontinent. Professor Bencie Woll, director of DCal, said that the changes to sign language were much like the changes to spoken English . She said the change in sign language . has been faster because when signers began to communicate over the internet . they could see for the first time how 'foreign signers referred to . themselves'. Young deaf Britons have changed the way they sign certain words, including gay, Chinese and Jewish . British Sign Language (BSL) is the preferred language of between 50,000 – 70,000 people within the UK. Within Britain the most common form of Sign Language is called British Sign Language (BSL). Sign Language is a visual means of communicating using gestures, facial expression, and body language. Sign Language is used mainly by people who are deaf or have hearing impairments. Records exist of a sign language existing within deaf communities in Britain as far back as 1570. British sign language has evolved, as all languages do, from these origins by modification, invention and importation. Thomas Braidwood, an Edinburgh teacher, founded 'Braidwood's Academy for the Deaf and Dumb' in 1760 which is recognised as the first school for the deaf in Britain. His pupils were the sons of the well-to-do. His early use of a form of sign language, the combined system, was the first codification of what was to become British Sign Language. She told the Guardian: 'The younger deaf community . doesn't use these old signs because of a clear process of political . correctness, in the same way that the hearing community no longer calls . gay people 'pansies' or 'queer',' she said. 'But what the hearing community . doesn't understand about sign language is that even though the . traditional signs are now considered offensive, they are not producing a . real-life insult when they are used because they are not just visual . representations of a concept.' The revelation follows a study by the British Sign Language Corpus Project which has been studying how deaf people use sign language. They have filmed and interviewed 249 deaf people from . eight cities across the UK. Dr Kearsy Cormier, who was in charge of the three . and a half year project, hopes that deaf children will benefit from the findings. She said it would give deaf people a better understanding of regional variations in sign language. An online dictionary is expected to be created following the research. However, there are concerns among the deaf community about these changing signs and new political correctness. Gwilym Morris, from the deafness cognition and language research . centre (DCal) at University College London, told the newspaper: 'We are nervous about this being seen as . another example of political correctness because the changes are more . about evolution rather than dictat of some body that approves language.' Those who took part in the survey, which was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council, were filmed in pairs and had to recount a personal experience, engage in a 30 minute conversation and participate in an interview on language awareness and attitudes. They also had to elicit 102 signs known to vary across the UK. | Today the only acceptable way to sign China is .
to indicate the shape of a Mao jacket, while the sign for a Jew is to make the shape of a beard .
Rather than flicking a limp wrist, a gay person is signed with an upright thumb on one hand in the palm of the other, wobbling from side to side .
It is no longer acceptable to point to the middle of their foreheads as the sign for India - instead they make the triangular shape of the subcontinent . | 7f1c41303cf3f9aa52f7a05cc06552dbc81e41b0 | [
0,
368,
1320,
24,
3679,
16998,
19,
230,
1702,
12130,
859,
128,
1105,
3,
5,
6365,
1612,
19,
3,
9
] |
By . Daily Mail Reporter . Artist Tracey Emin’s controversial unmade bed caused outrage when it was included in the 1999 Turner Prize exhibition. Now it is going under the hammer and is expected to reach up to £1.2million after its owner, multi-millionaire art collector, Charles Saatchi, decided to sell it. My Bed - complete with soiled sheets, empty vodka bottles and cigarette butts - is worth nearly ten times more than what Mr Saatchi bought it for in 2000. Despite disagreeing with his politics, Ms Emin sold the bed for £150,000. My Bed - complete with soiled sheets, empty vodka bottles and cigarette butts - is now worth nearly ten times more than what Charles Saatchi bought it for in 2000. He paid £150,000 but it is now set to fetch up to £1.2m . The piece is a ‘confessional self-portrait’ that was created in Ms Emin’s Waterloo flat in 1998 after the artist suffered a bout of severe depression accompanied by excessive drinking and bouts of casual sex. The 50-year-old artist told The Telegraph the sale feels ‘like the end of an era. Saatchi’s had this Nineties thing in his house like a time capsule. Now it’s historical.’ Last weekend, David Maupin, Emin’s dealer in New York, who sold the bed to Saatchi, said he thinks the estimate of £800,000 to £1.2 million is too low for such a significant work. ‘It’s historic,’ he said. ‘It’s priceless.’ My Bed is going to be sold at auction this summer, when Christie’s offers Tracey Emin’s My Bed from Charles Saatchi’s collection. The bed is a 'confessional self-portrait' which was created in the Waterloo flat of Tracey Emin (pictured) in 1998 after the artist suffered a bout of severe depression accompanied by excessive drinking and bouts of casual sex . | Unmade bed caused outrage when it featured in 1999 Turner Prize exhibition .
It is expected to fetch up to £1.2million when it is auctioned in the summer .
'My Bed' now worth ten times more than what Charles Saatchi paid in 2000 . | b3faca461fce106b412690dbe90907ec5fe55b41 | [
0,
368,
1060,
768,
12501,
5417,
1138,
144,
1436,
1500,
12,
1789,
499,
7499,
3,
5,
499,
7499,
19,
230
] |
(CNN) -- Unfancied Switzerland inflicted the first big shock of the World Cup by consigning European champions Spain to a surprise 1-0 defeat in Durban. It is a nightmare start for Spain, which arrived in South Africa ranked as the second best team in the world. It will surely now have to win its next two group games to avoid an embarrassing exit before the knockout stages. Gelson Fernandes' 52nd minute strike for the Swiss came completely against the run of play, and will hardly be remembered as one of the tournament's finest, but despite pouring forward in the game's dying stages Spain could not salvage a point. The Swiss now share top spot in the group with Chile, which produced an impressive display to beat Honduras 1-0 in Wednesday's early kickoff. Jean Beausejour grabbed the only goal of the game, bundling home a cross from Mauricio Isla, but Chile could and should have scored more after squandering a host of chances. Switzerland 1-0 Spain . A spirited rearguard action earned Switzerland one of its most famous victories at the World Cup as it held on for a 1-0 win over Spain. Coach Vicente del Bosque will have plenty of soul searching to do after Spain dominated possession but struggled to create any clear cut chances. In a labored opening half, it was Spain defender Gerard Pique who forced the first save of the match as he twisted free in the penalty area before having his shot smothered by Switzerland goalkeeper Diego Benaglio. Barcelona striker David Villa was next to get a sight of goal as he drew Benaglio before curling a chip wide of the post but the Swiss negotiated their way to the break without conceding. With the second half seven minutes old Switzerland shocked Spain by scoring with its first attack of note. Blaise N'Kufo released Eren Derdiyok who took a tumble over the onrushing Iker Casillas, but as the ball squirmed loose Gelson Fernandes prodded it into an empty net. Spain responded by introducing Liverpool striker Fernando Torres but it was Villa who had the next chance, racing onto a through ball from Andres Iniesta only to be thwarted by Benaglio. Then as Villa turned on the edge of the area the ball ran free to Iniesta, who struck the ball narrowly wide of the far post. Torres then blazed wide from just inside the area before Real Madrid midfielder Xabi Alonso crashed a venomous shot against the bar from 20 yards out. As the Spanish launched numbers forward they left gaps at the back and Derdiyok nearly put the game beyond their reach as he wriggled past Carles Puyol in the box before prodding a shot against the foot of the post. Torres blasted a volley over the bar in the closing stages but Switzerland duly held on to claim three points and register its first ever win over Spain. Spain's defeat means it now has no margin for error in the next two games against Honduras and Chile. After the game Del Bosque told AFP: "We tried to play. They played very far back and tried to counter-attack. They defended very well. We were playing to win and this victory has escaped us. We may not have shown our true personality as a team. "It's not a good sign to start off in this way but we have an obligation to cope with that and face the next two games trying to win. That'll be our goal for the next two matches. "Of course, you can lose in football, but I feel we'll try to get even. We must really give everything. It's pointless standing there with our heads hanging low. The next matches will be good." Chile 1-0 Honduras . Chile kicked off its first World Cup campaign in 12 years with a comfortable 1-0 victory against unfancied Honduras on Wednesday, but needed a fortuitous first-half goal to triumph in South Africa. The South Americans, who qualified second from their region behind Brazil, dominated the Group H opener in Nelspruit against a 38th-ranked team who scraped the final place in the CONCACAF zone. But for all its silky skills and intricate passing, coach Marcelo Bielsa was left frustrated on the sidelines as Chile could not translate its possession into goals as Honduras -- playing at soccer's showpiece event for the first time since 1982 -- defended stubbornly. The breakthrough came in the 34th minute when Jean Beausejour bundled the ball into the net after a low right-wing cross by Mauricio Isla. The forward claimed just his second international goal in 28 appearances, though television replays suggested the ball went in illegally off his arm after deflecting off a sliding Honduras defender. The Central Americans had another slice of poor luck in the first minute after halftime when Gary Medel was brought down by Edgard Alvarez on the edge of the penalty area -- but the referee ruled it was not a foul despite the Hondurans' appeals for a spot-kick. Chile playmaker Alexis Sanchez should have made it 2-0 just after an hour, but screwed his shot wide after a superb burst through the defense had put him clear on goal. Waldo Ponce then inexplicably stooped to head the ball straight at Honduras goalkeeper Noel Valladreas from close range when it seemed easier to score, having been set up by a well-worked free-kick. Chile had the ball in the net again with 15 minutes to play, but Jorge Valdivia was ruled offside after teammate Sanchez clearly used his hand to set him up -- for which he should have been booked by referee Eddy Maillet of the Seychelles. On Tuesday, Honduras became the first nation to select three brothers in a World Cup squad, with striker Jerry Palacios called up to replace the injured Julio Cesar de Leon. He was an unused substitute against Chile along with the younger of the trio, Johnny, while midfielder Wilson started the game and was booked shortly before the only goal. | Switzerland inflict a shock defeat on one of the World Cup favorites Spain .
Gelson Fernandes grabs the only goal in a match Spain dominated .
Spain is now facing an uphill task to qualify from Group H .
Jean Beausejour scores only goal as Chile beat Honduras 1-0 in Group H opener . | c1a7f776bd3c7ed1779acd13633f756ce2835ee0 | [
0,
368,
1150,
3802,
6336,
7,
12527,
16,
89,
2176,
17,
166,
8700,
13,
8,
1150,
3802,
57,
975,
6732
] |
Every morning Sportsmail brings you the biggest gossip and headlines on the continent, giving you your early morning fix from the biggest leagues across Europe. Nani has rejected the opportunity to return to parent club Manchester United because he is enjoying resurrecting his career at Sporting Lisbon, claim Portuguese newspaper O Jogo. Having recently been voted the best player in Portugal in a fans' poll, Nani is finding his form and his footballing feet again in Iberia and does not want to head back to the North West of England. Portuguese paper O Jogo claim Nani has turned down the opportunity to return to Manchester United . Mundo Deportivo claims Eric Abidal will return to Barcelona as director of football for schools after retiring . In Spain, Mundo Deportivo lead with the headline: 'Abidal returns to Barca'. This refers to former Barcelona full back Eric Abidal, whom the paper reports has agreed to return to the club as director of football for schools once he retires from playing with Greek side Olympiacos. Mundo also reveal that ex-Arsenal defender Thomas Vermaelen will make his Barcelona debut in the cup against Huesca on December 3. Meanwhile, AS believe Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo is 'Super favourite for the Ballon d'Or' ahead of Barca's Lionel Messi. FIFA will announce the three finalists for the award on December 1, with Ronaldo and Messi both expected to head-up the shortlist. Cristiano Ronaldo is the 'super-favourite' to lift the Ballon d'Or ahead of Lionel Messi, say AS . Luis Suarez's autobiography is being serialised in Sport and he says he 'was taken out of Guantanamo (Bay)' Sport lead on extracts from Luis Suarez's autobiography, with the headline 'My clandestine move to Barca'. Revealing his move from Liverpool to Spain had to be done in secret, he explains: 'Everything had to be in hiding, it was a sting operation. Luis Enrique (the manager) told the team that they had taken me out of Guantanamo (Bay) - I was a released prisoner. I was treated worse than a criminal.' Also, Real centre back Raphael Varane has pledged his future to the club in Marca, declaring: 'I'm only thinking about Madrid.' Raphael Varane has told Marca that he 'is only thinking about Real (Madrid)' despite interest from Chelsea . The Frenchman, who has been courted by Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho in the past, believes Real can get even better and that they 'have the quality to keep the ball or play on the counter attack.' In Italy, Corriere dello Sport's headline is 'Tevez for life'. They claim Juventus are ready to offer former Manchester United, Manchester City and West Ham United striker Carlos Tevez a new long-term contract if he is willing to commit to the club. In Italy, Corriere dello Sport are reporting that Juventus are ready to offer Carlos Tevez a new long-term deal . VIDEO Allegri delighted with Tevez impact . While in France, L'Equipe lead on the fact that the Africa Cup of Nations has 'fallen victim' to the Ebola virus outbreak on the continent. Morocco were stripped of the tournament having refused to host it and now the competition's future for next year remains up in the air. In France, L'Equipe focus on how the Africa Cup of Nations has fallen 'victim' to the continent's Ebola crisis . | Portuguese paper O Jogo claim Nani has rejected the chance to return to parent club Manchester United from Sporting Lisbon .
Mundo Deportivo is reporting Eric Abidal will return to Barcelona .
Spanish paper says he will come back as director of football for schools .
AS believe Cristiano Ronaldo is 'super favourite' for Ballon d'Or .
Luis Suarez's autobiography is serialised in Spanish paper Sport . | 56fec59d3cd1e80b7b81456a84a2d3d263afa54d | [
0,
368,
934,
10,
15206,
23,
15092,
7,
1004,
12,
1205,
12,
4208,
1886,
9145,
907,
3,
5,
19491,
32
] |
Belgrade, Serbia (CNN) -- A gunman went on a shooting spree in the Serbian town of Velika Ivanca on Tuesday, killing at least 13 people, including a small child, according to Police Chief Milorad Veljovic. The town lies roughly 25 miles south of the capital, Belgrade. Are you there? Share your story with CNN iReport. The man, in his 60s, entered five houses and shot six men, six women and one child dead. Twelve of the victims died immediately, another died at a Belgrade hospital, Serbian news agency Tanjug reported. Two people remained hospitalized, one of them likely the suspected shooter, Tanjug reported, citing Veljovic. Veljovic said the gunman attempted to kill his wife and take his own life, according to Tanjug. It was not immediately clear whether the man's wife survived. Investigators don't know what sparked the killings, Veljovic said. Serbian broadcaster B92 described the man as a veteran of the Serbian-Croatian war in the 1990s who had lost his job a year ago. Neighbors said the man had never seemed violent, B92 reported. Serbia has a low murder rate, nearly on par with that of Sweden, according to the World Health Organization. With 1.2 intentional homicides per 100,000 inhabitants in 2010, Serbia's murder rate was one-quarter of that of the United States. | NEW: The shooting suspect is a war veteran who never seemed violent, a broadcaster reports .
The man goes house to house, killing occupants; six women, six men and one child die .
Murder is rare in Serbia, according to the World Health Organization . | 07da13842a7b35364c441c91379608d03bdb51a3 | [
0,
368,
120,
18,
24024,
26,
4740,
348,
4279,
7,
44,
709,
1179,
151,
16,
11670,
5561,
27,
2132,
658
] |
By . Snejana Farberov . A married mother of four from Massachusetts was found lying in a pool of blood in her driveway after police say she was brutally stabbed by her husband, who yelled out, 'die, b****, die' as he was being led away in handcuffs. The Plymouth district attorney's office says police responded to calls of a stabbing in the town of Rockland Wednesday night. When officers arrived, they found 52-year-old Patricia Langley prostrate on the ground outside her Rockland home suffering from fatal knife wounds. Her husband, 56-year-old Richard Langley, was arrested at the scene after admitting to the stabbing. According to court documents, Langley told police he killed his wife for cheating on him. Scroll down for video . Domestic tragedy: Richard Langley, 56 (right) is accused of stabbing to death his wife and the mother of his children, Patricia (left) in the driveway of their home . The . 56-year-old father of four recounted how he returned home from a . shopping trip to Walmart Wednesday and found 'sexual' text messages on . his wife's cell phone, which caused him to fly 'off the handle.' He confronted his wife about her alleged infidelity, but she refused to address the matter, which made Langley furious, Boston Globe reported. But . during his interview with police, the man accused his slain wife of . being the aggressor, saying that she pulled a kitchen knife on him, . which he ultimately wrestled out of her grip and used to stab her at least . twice. After he allegedly . plunged the knife into Patricia Langley's chest, Richard Langley kicked . her as she lay bleeding in the middle of the driveway on a quiet . suburban street. While . neighbors who flocked to the scene after hearing Patricia’s screams used . towels to stop blood from pouring from her fatal wounds, Richard . Langley reportedly sat on the stairs puffing on a cigarette. The court papers stated that the man repeatedly asked those around him, 'Is she dead yet?' reported Boston Herald. Patricia Langley was begging for help and saying she could not draw a breath. When one of the neighbors asked her who stabbed her, Richard Langley reportedly chimed in declaring, 'I did. I stabbed her.' When . officers responded to a 911 call, a dying Mrs Langley . told officers: 'My husband stabbed me. He killed me.' In custody: Langley, 56, appeared crestfallen in court, keeping his gaze down as a judge ordered him held without bail Thursday . Shocking discovery: Neighbors in Rockland, Massachusetts, found Patricia Langley, 52, fatally stabbed in her driveway on Moncrief Road after hearing her screams . The woman was rushed to a hospital where she was pronounced dead. As . he was being handcuffed, the 56-year-old suspect once again confessed . to the killing, telling Rockland police Sgt. Peter Chernicki, ‘I stabbed . the b****.’ When police . searched the couple's home, they found a pool of blood in the living . room, where they recovered the presumed murder weapon. The family dog . was locked in a bedroom. Langley was ordered held without bail Thursday. He is due back in court July 11. Plymouth District Attorney Timothy Cruz told the Patriot Ledger the stabbing death was 'one of the most vicious' cases his office has . ever handled. At around 7.30pm Wednesday, neighbors in the small, tight-knit community of about 17,000 heard a woman's screams coming from the driveway outside the Langley family's one-story home on Moncrief Road. Several nearby residents rushed to the scene, only to discover Patricia Langley lying covered in blood on the ground. They tried to stop the bleeding, but to no avail. Police say her husband, Richard, did not attempt to flee and was standing nearby when officers arrived, boasting that he stabbed her. Mrs Langley worked as a special education . teacher's aide at Rockland Public Schools. The woman and her husband . have three grownup daughters and a son. Happier times: The Langleys pictured here in September 2012 with their three daughters and a son . Salt of the earth: Mrs Langley worked as a special education teacher's aide and was active in her community and church . According to Mrs Langley’s Facebook page, last month the family celebrated the graduation of one of their daughters. Both spouses lived in the 180 block of Moncrieff Road in Rockland for at least two decades. Richard Langley, a burly man known to everyone as Rick, worked as a general manager for a local glass company. The couple's acquaintances in Rockland say they have never heard any sounds of fighting coming from the Langleys' home. Patricia Langley was described by her friend and neighbor Laurie Nigro as a kind and selfless woman and a great mother who was active in the local school system, WCVB reported. | Richard Langley, 56, charged with murder in stabbing death of his wife, 52-year-old Patricia Langley .
Neighbors heard Mrs Langley's screams and found her covered in blood in her driveway in Rockland, Massachusetts .
Mr Langley told police he found sexual text messages on wife's phone and flew into a rage .
'I stabbed the b****' he told authorities of the mother of his four children .
Witnesses reported seeing Richard Langley kicking wife's body as she lay dying and hearing him inquire, 'Is she dead yet?'
The husband did nothing to help save Patricia Langley's life and instead was smoking a cigarette in his blood-spattered clothes .
Victim worked as special education teacher's aide while her husband was manager at a glass company; Langleys have three daughters and a son . | ad4c9a99e79d357bde01cab372a7a9f2091b2dae | [
0,
368,
17944,
2335,
435,
12267,
16,
2201,
13,
1717,
16,
160,
16860,
3,
5,
5076,
497,
9065,
18,
1201
] |
By . Steve Nolan . PUBLISHED: . 13:48 EST, 2 May 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 01:50 EST, 3 May 2013 . Tragic: AIK goalkeeper Ivan Turina pictured during a training session in Stockholm, died in his sleep last night . Fans of Swedish football champions AIK have been paying tribute to the team's goalkeeper who died in his sleep at his Stockholm apartment. Croatian Ivan Turina, 32, was known by his club, who he played for 89 times since signing from Dinamo Zagreb, to have a congenital heart problem. AIK confirmed his death in a statement adding that there are thought to be no suspicious circumstances. Hundreds of the club's supporters . visited the team's Karlberg training ground after news of Turina's death . broke, with many laying flowers and scarves at a makeshift shrine . dedicated to the fans' favourite. The goalkeeper was father to one-year-old twins and his wife is currently pregnant with the couple's third child. A . statement released by AIK said: 'It is with great sorrow and shock that . we can confirm that goalkeeper Ivan Turina passed away on the night . between Wednesday and Thursday. 'Ivan died suddenly in his sleep and at the moment no crime is suspected. 'AIK Football thoughts go out to Ivan's partner and two daughters and his other relatives and friends. 'The club has informed the team and other employees about what happened. 'We ask all to respect all parties and allow them to mourn in peace.' AIK chairman Johan Segui told Swedish . newspaper Expressen: 'We knew that he had a congenital heart problem but . he was completely healthy.' Tributes: Fans flocked to AIK's training ground today to lay flowers and scarves in tribute to the club's goalkeeper . Paying respects: Fans look at tributes placed at a makeshift shrine earlier today . Striker Henok Goitom, who lived next door to Turina, said he was told of the news by the goalkeeper's mother-in-law. He said: 'His wife's mother rang hysterically on my doorbell. 'Yesterday was an ordinary day. Today, Ivan is dead, it's a shock. The AIK supporters loved him. 'It's a slap in the face for everyone but we are united as a group and we're trying to help everyone in AIK and his family. The popular player had recently extended his contract with the club to 2016. Mourning: Both AIK and Croatian flags were flying at half mast at AIK's training ground today . Flags at the training ground flew at . half mast as red-eyed players and staff spoke quietly with the assembled . media and supporters. Turina kept 35 clean sheets in his time at AIK and won a single cap for Croatia when he played against Hong Kong in 2006. He also turned out for top flight clubs in Poland and Greece as well as for Dinamo Zagreb in his native Croatia. He played against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium in a Champions League Qualifier in 2006. It is unclear whether AIK's next league game against IFK Gothenburg on Monday will go ahead as planned. Shock: Croatian goalkeeper Ivan Turina was found dead at his Stockholm apartment this morning . Fans' favourite: Turina pictured in action for Dinamo Zagreb in a 2006 Champions league Qualifier against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium . | Ivan Turina was found dead at his Stockholm apartment this morning .
His club, AIK, were aware that he had a congenital heart defect .
A statement said that there are no suspicious circumstances . | 08ecebf1caac181b52326525f6d72d04e9c67018 | [
0,
368,
934,
10,
27,
2132,
7538,
77,
9,
3977,
16,
112,
2085,
336,
706,
3,
5,
37,
1886,
5899
] |
By . Nadia Gilani . Last updated at 8:21 PM on 8th December 2011 . Top scientists are designing a self-controlled navigation system that will pilot the next Mars Rover - an artificially intelligent 'sat nav' that will drive the hi-tech vehicle. Except, of course, on Mars, there are no GPS satellites to guide it - so it will be smart enough to do the whole thing itself. It should speed up the vehicle immensely - sending a radio signal to Mars to control a vehicle takes more than half an hour. Independent: The new navigation system will allow a Mars Rover to find its way around the Red Planet all by itself . Since the 'Seeker' navigation system will save so much time, it will allow a rover to find its way around the Red Planet - covering at least one kilometre a day. The system will perform a range of key actions completely unaided by Mission Control or GPS-type technology including: working out the precise location of the rover on Mars, identifying particular sites to visit on the planet and detecting and avoiding hazards. It will also be able to navigate its way back to previously visited sites. It will take the team of experts from Britain, France, and Canada seven months to complete the project, which is part of the European Space Agency’s (ESA’s) StarTiger initiative, which tackles space-related challenges. Early developments of the system were unveiled by the team based at the Science & Technology Facilities Council (STFC) in Swindon at STFC's 7th Appleton Space conference today. The event organised by RAL Space sees . leading experts from across the globe sharing the very latest . developments in current and future space . exploration. Self-controlled: The system will be able to identify specific sites to visit and detect hazards . Project director, Kim Ward of RAL Space said: 'The keys to Seeker’s success will be imagination, application and team work. 'With radio signals to conventional rovers taking at least 30 minutes to travel between Earth and Mars, Seeker’s ability to work autonomously in hostile terrain will be crucial to extending our understanding of our planetary neighbour.' David Willetts, Minister of State for Universities and Science, said: 'Space captures the imagination of so many people, and it’s excellent to see UK experts playing such a significant role in the groundbreaking StarTiger initiative. 'The Seeker project has the potential to transform our exploration of Mars and make an important contribution to the international body of knowledge on the universe around us.' The Seeker team includes experts from STFC's Rutherford Appleton Laboratory Space, IT developer SciSys, global defence and security company BAe Systems, and electronics engineering company Roke Manor Research - all in Britain. Scientists from LAAS, the leading research unit specialising in information science and technologies in France and MDA Space & Robotics in Canada also form part of the team. | Vehicle will be able to find its way around the Red Planet - covering at least one km in a day . | a7a209fd1d797180ed926f54521c8f5f882353aa | [
0,
368,
8789,
358,
56,
4487,
8,
416,
11856,
21608,
3,
5,
37,
358,
56,
1097,
44,
709,
604,
676
] |
GENEVA, Switzerland (CNN) -- The World Health Organization on Wednesday raised its pandemic alert to 5, its second-highest level, warning of widespread human infection from the swine flu outbreak that originated in Mexico. Patients wait at a hospital Wednesday in Mexico City. The swine flu outbreak began in Mexico. Dr. Margaret Chan, the U.N. agency's director-general, said the decision to raise the alert on the 6-point scale indicated that all countries should "immediately" activate pandemic preparedness plans. "This change to a higher phase of alert is a signal to governments, to ministries of health and other ministries, to the pharm industry and the business community that certain actions now should be taken with increased urgency and at an accelerated pace," Chan said. The announcement came as the number of confirmed cases increased rapidly across the world. The WHO and national governments have confirmed 148 cases in nine countries. Most of those cases are in the United States, where the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed 91 cases. The figures include seven deaths in Mexico and one in the United States. More than 2,700 other patients worldwide are believed to be suffering from the virus that government officials call by its technical name, 2009 H1N1. The first cases of the virus were detected in Mexico, where health officials suspect swine flu in more than 150 other deaths and roughly 2,500 illnesses. As of late Wednesday, 99 cases had been confirmed -- up from 26, Mexico's health secretary reported. An eighth fatality was also confirmed. iReport.com: "Regular life" in Mexico with masks . The additional cases and fatality were not immediately confirmed by WHO . Researchers do not know how the virus is jumping relatively easily from person to person, or why it's affecting what should be society's healthiest demographic. Many of the victims who have died in Mexico have been young and otherwise healthy. The outbreak has prompted Mexican authorities to order about 35,000 public venues in Mexico City to shut down and restrict restaurants to serving only take-out meals. All nonessential government offices and private business were ordered to close between May 1-5, with only skeletal staffing allowed when necessary, Mexico's health secretary announced Wednesday. Mexican officials said it was too soon to determine what kind of economic impact the decision would have on the country. Germany and Austria became the latest European countries to report swine flu on Wednesday, while the number of cases increased in the United Kingdom and Spain. Peru reported its first case late Wednesday. Yet Chan reiterated the WHO's recommendation not to close borders or restrict trade in response to the outbreak, saying the world "is better prepared for an influenza pandemic than at any time" in history. Watch how the U.S. is preparing for the worst » . "We need to maintain a level of calmness so that we will continue to manage this in a rational manner," she said, adding that pork is safe for consumption as long as it is cooked properly. President Obama downplayed the possibility of closing the U.S. border with Mexico, where the recent occurrence of the deadly virus began. "It would be akin to closing the barn door after the horses are out," Obama said during his Wednesday evening news conference. Obama said he'll be looking to health officials for guidance on how to handle travel between the two countries. The $1.5 billion Obama requested from Congress to help fight the outbreaks will help health officials monitor and track the virus and replenish the supply of anti-viral drugs, he said. Watch President Obama caution Americans on swine flu » . Swine influenza, or flu, is a contagious respiratory disease that affects pigs. When the flu spreads person to person, instead of from animals to humans, it can continue to mutate, making it harder to treat or fight, because people have no natural immunity. Symptoms include fever, runny nose, sore throat, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. The WHO's "Phases of Pandemic Alert," which has been in existence for five years, characterizes phase 5 as a human-to-human spread of the virus into at least two countries in one WHO region, signaling that a pandemic is imminent. The highest level, phase 6, is defined by community-level outbreaks in at least one other country in a different WHO region, according to the agency. About a quarter of the U.S. stockpile of anti-viral drugs will be distributed to states by Sunday, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said. Watch how U.S. officials are reacting to the virus » . U.S. officials also are asking scientists whether additional measures to screen for flu symptoms were needed at U.S. ports of entry, she said. Already, customs officers have asked 49 people to submit to tests for the H1N1 virus, she said. Of those tests, 41 have been negatives and the remaining eight have not yet come back. Researchers in the United States have already taking steps to crack the genetic code of the virus behind the swine flu outbreak in order to produce a vaccine, U.S. officials said Wednesday. The U.S. government is distributing 25 percent of its stockpile of antiviral medications Tamiflu and Relenza to all states, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said Wednesday. Health officials stress that the medications are effective only if taken in the early stages of the infection. Learn more about swine flu and how to treat it » . The 91 confirmed cases in the United States includes the country's first swine flu fatality: a 23-month-old child visiting from Mexico who died Monday at a Houston, Texas, hospital. A U.S. Marine in California is the military's first suspected case of swine flu, and three military family members in San Diego have confirmed cases, the CDC said. As a precaution, the military is banning travel to Mexico for nonessential personnel. Mexican officials also said they believe they may have found "patient zero" -- the first case of the global outbreak -- in the small mountain village of La Gloria. Edgar Hernandez, 5, survived the earliest documented case of swine flu. He lives near a pig farm, though experts have not established a connection between that and his illness. Edgar has managed to bounce back from his symptoms and playfully credits ice cream for helping him feel better. In the United States, at least 74 elementary, junior high and high schools have closed across the country due to confirmed or probable cases of swine flu, the Department of Education said Wednesday. Another 30 schools have closed as a precautionary measure, Department of Education spokesman Massie Ritsch said. Governments around the world are scrambling to prevent further outbreak. Some countries, such as China and Russia, have banned pork imports from the United States and Mexico, though the WHO said the disease is not transmitted through eating or preparing pig meat. Several other countries, such as Japan and Indonesia, are using thermographic devices to test the temperature of passengers arriving from Mexico. Egypt reportedly is considering culling all pigs although there have been no reported cases of swine flu there. Common seasonal flu kills 250,000 to 500,000 people every year worldwide, far more than the current outbreak of swine flu. But there is a vaccine for seasonal flu. CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta and Barbara Starr contributed to this report. | NEW: 99 cases confirmed in Mexico, up from 26 earlier Wednesday .
Some government offices, private business in Mexico to close from May 1 to 5 .
Researchers conducting complete genetic sequencing of the H1N1 virus .
World Health Organizations reports 148 cases in 9 countries . | 85659ea6c258447041e7a278c8680bf0db2b2669 | [
0,
368,
5685,
12,
305,
19,
511,
18,
6739,
222,
593,
6,
6337,
13,
14047,
936,
7952,
3,
5,
20989
] |
(CNN) -- At the heart of a $600 million complex of Miami condominium and office towers, a network of holes in the ground has provided new insight into the people who were there first. The holes lay out the foundations of a prehistoric settlement of the ancient Tequesta tribe at the confluence of the Miami River and Biscayne Bay. The Tequesta lived in what's now metro Miami until the 1700s, and the holes held pine posts that framed their thatched buildings. "We got to the point in recent months where we realized this wasn't an isolated circle or structure but a whole complex of buildings," said archaeologist Bob Carr, whose company was hired to conduct a historical analysis of the building site. The settlement is likely to have been home to hundreds of people, perhaps as many as 1,000. "In some ways, I would say it's probably the best-preserved prehistoric town plan in eastern North America," Carr said. Since October, his team has unearthed several thousand holes carved into the limestone that makes up Miami's bedrock. In addition to the circular layouts, the team found linear structures Carr said may have been boardwalks for the waterfront settlement. The site also houses the foundations of the Royal Palm Hotel, one of the resorts built by legendary Florida developer Henry Flagler in the late 19th century. But the post holes and various pieces of pottery recovered at the site over the years date back to 500-600 B.C., Carr said. The discovery means a new hurdle for the Metropolitan Miami complex, which is nearing completion after more than a decade of work. The site is slated to house Met Square, a residential/retail building with a movie theater, but city officials still have to sign off on the final plans. "This is the last element of a very extensive downtown development project, all of which has been hugely successful," said Gene Stearns, a lawyer for the Metropolitan Miami developers. The developers have proposed cutting out a section of the limestone, rebuilding a Tequesta structure on top of it using the original post holes and putting it on display in Met Square. The structure would be paired with a model of the native village based on the layout Carr's team has discovered, Stearns said. "The point of it is to create knowledge -- not just to save things but to understand them," Stearns said. The company's plan would allow the public to learn more about the site than they would if the site were simply preserved as is, as another Tequesta site nearby -- the "Miami Circle," identified in 1998 -- has been, he said. But the plans will need to be approved by Miami's Historic Preservation Board, which meets on February 14, and then the City Commission. Met Square "is a critical element of the entire plan, and the developer needs to meet the schedule," Stearns said. "It's already been delayed for the years it took to do this analysis, and it's time here to move on." Ryan Franklin of the Archaeological and Historical Conservancy told CNN Miami affiliate WFOR he is concerned that the historic integrity of the site could be lost, even with the proposal to display a section. "If you have a book and you tear out a chapter, you lose the integrity of the book," he told the station. "You might have this part of it, but you lose part of the story." The Tequesta lived in south Florida for roughly 2,000 years, Carr said. But they had disappeared by the time Britain took control of Florida from the Spanish in 1763, with the remnants of their population believed to have migrated to Cuba, he said. 8 very old sites in the New World . 10,000-year-old house, other ancient finds unearthed . | Miami dig lays out "a whole complex of buildings" in a prehistoric town .
But they're on the site of a whole new development in the works .
Developers have proposed preserving a section of the site as part of their project .
Miami historic preservation officials will review the plan next week . | df2ce1e9b4a12785645bca921ff03d7ecced30c9 | [
0,
368,
6574,
139,
8,
151,
113,
4114,
132,
166,
3,
5,
37,
8034,
8260,
91,
8,
3361,
7,
13
] |
By . Mario Ledwith . PUBLISHED: . 14:54 EST, 25 December 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 11:03 EST, 26 December 2012 . The first installment of American vampire series Twilight was the most counterfeited DVD over the festive period. The film industry's anti-piracy organisation FACT seized hundreds of thousands of illegal copies of the The Twilight Series: Breaking Dawn - Part 1. Starring Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner, the film is part of a romantic fantasy series based on the novels of Stephanie Meyer. Stars: Actors Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson who star in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1, which was found to be most counterfeited DVD in Britain . Entwined: Kristen Stewart stars as Bella Swan and Robert Pattinson as Edward Cullen in the hit film series . Illegal street and market sales of the film easily outstripped sales of all other counterfeit films in Britain, highlighting its popularity. It is the first time in four years that a Harry Potter film has failed to be the most pirated film at Christmas, according to the annual counterfeit chart. Other fakes highly in demand include: Avengers Assemble, The Hunger Games and Brave. FACT say they believe the case of Anton Vickerman case in May has led to a huge decline in online piracy crime. Public: The private lives of Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson have been in the spotlight after it was alleged the couple split-up then got back together after she had an affair . Pushed out: It is the first time in four years a film in the Harry Potter film series has not been the most counterfeited title at Christmas . Popular: Avengers Assemble, left, and Brave, right, have also proved popular on the black market, ranking second and fourth on the counterfeit list respectively . Vickerman, from Gateshead, who operated surfthechannel.com and offered links to infringed movies, was jailed for four years. FACT spokesman Eddy Leviten said : 'This year has been quite a turning point. People who thought they could get away with running a piracy site have found they could end up in prison. 'There have been other cases where defendants changed their pleas to guilty-partly because of this case and partly because of things we have been doing to tackle online piracy. 'There is still a problem in Britain with pirated DVDs being sold by Chinese criminals, but this form of crime is much diminished. 'We have seized more than 500,000 in the last part of the year compared with 800,000 in 2011 and more than 1million in 2010.' 1. Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1 . 2. Avengers Assemble . 3. The Hunger Games . 4. Brave . 5. Ice Age: Continental Drift . 6. The Amazing Spider-Man . 7. The Lorax . 8. Dark Knight Rises . 9. Ted . 10. Men in Black 3 . | First time in four years a Harry potter film has not been most counterfeited .
List compiled by film industry's anti-piracy body FACT .
Body says court cases have led to decline in online piracy . | e9e3b310b84e26a419841a3dc1656fb109a18a74 | [
0,
368,
814,
939,
6,
37,
12119,
2242,
180,
4711,
10,
11429,
53,
21903,
3,
18,
2733,
1914,
47,
167
] |
Chelsea playmaker Oscar has praised Cesc Fabregas' impact at Stamford Bridge - and already feels his partnership with the Spaniard can guide Chelsea to the Premier League title. Fabregas arrived in a £30million deal from Barcelona this summer and was seen by some as a replacement for Oscar in attacking midfield - but instead the pair started Chelsea's two opening games together before the Brazilian missed out at Everton through injury. And Oscar is already pleased with the way things are going, holding the belief that the similarity between himself and Fabregas makes them the perfect partnership to power Chelsea's midfield. VIDEO Scroll down to see Oscar's Brazilian show boat . Perfect pair? Oscar is enjoying playing alongside Cesc Fabregas in Chelsea's midfield this season . Pass master: Oscar reckons that he and Fabregas are very similar - and that helps Chelsea to win games . In and out: Oscar started in Chelsea's two opening games but injury ruled him out of the trip to Everton . 'Maybe it’s the way Fabregas plays,' Oscar told Chelsea magazine. 'He plays very similarly to me – but we have worked very well together in the first games of this season and we also get on very well. He came into the team and immediately he fitted in very well. 'Coming deeper to get the ball is something that I’ve always done, but it is also something that the manager likes me to do and, in the same way, Fabregas and Willian also do it. Impressive: The Brazilian playmaker looked back to his best against Burnley in Chelsea's opening game . Club and country: Oscar identified Willian as another player who likes to drop back to find space . 'We have been switching positions a lot and we hope to perfect that as the season goes on because it has been working very well for the team.' Chelsea have won all three of their opening games in the Premier League and this weekend come up against the league's only other side boasting a 100 per cent record - Swansea. But Oscar believes that even after an international break that sees him and Brazil team-mates play against Ecuador in Rio de Janerio at 2am UK time on Wednesday, the Blues will be ready to resume their title charge when they return to action at Stamford Bridge on Saturday. 'I think that we are looking very good at the moment. All the players are at a high level, but now we have to continue playing well because every one of us wants to win the Premier League this season.' The latest edition of Chelsea magazine is on sale now - you can download a digital version to view on your tablet HERE. | Cesc Fabregas arrived at Chelsea in a £30million deal this summer .
There was talk he could replace Oscar as Chelsea's chief playmaker .
But the pair started the Blues' opening two games together .
And Oscar believes the similarities of the two make them great partners .
He says they have been switching positions for the good of the team .
Oscar and his Brazil team-mates face Ecuador at 2am on Wednesday . | f6ff03106aaba2d5f9f3b42546b5a8b1a32456e3 | [
0,
368,
14373,
577,
8337,
13892,
19,
5010,
28,
8,
194,
378,
33,
352,
3,
5,
13892,
845,
3,
88
] |
Nairobi, Kenya (CNN) -- Two suspected ivory poachers were in custody and three others were killed by Kenyan authorities in the past week in a pair of incidents, the Kenya Wildlife Service said Monday. Five elephants also were killed in the incidents, the wildlife service said in a statement. In the latest skirmish, a suspect was killed Sunday night while exchanging gunfire with wildlife rangers on the outskirts of Meru National Park in Isiolo County, the statement said. Another was arrested in the town of Isiolo. The rangers ambushed the suspects, who allegedly were using axes to hack off an elephant's tusks after shooting it to death, the wildlife service said. "A major operation has been under way since dawn to arrest more suspects on the run," the statement said. "They are believed to have sustained injuries from last night's shootout." Authorities recovered two AK-47 rifles, 30 rounds of ammunition and 16.5 kilograms (36 pounds) of ivory after the incident in the Garbatulla District of Isiolo County, the wildlife service said. Four magazines also were recovered -- three for AK-47s and one for an M-16. A wildlife ranger was injured in the right shoulder during the exchange of gunfire. Abdi Gimbe, who is based at Meru National Park, was initially treated at a hospital but later was flown to Nairobi for treatment. Another poaching suspect was in custody in the town of Voi, near Tsavo East National Park, after an incident Tuesday, the wildlife service said. The suspect, arrested Saturday, was being questioned about the killings of four elephants in the Galana Ranch area and an illegal firearm found in his possession, authorities said. Two of the suspect's alleged accomplices were shot when exchanging fire with wildlife rangers and three others escaped, the wildlife service said. An AK-47 rifle was recovered. Authorities recovered two pieces of ivory buried in sand and five more pieces in the suspects' possession, the statement said. The suspect arrested Saturday had walked some 100 kilometers (62 miles) from the scene of the incident, and was found with a G3 rifle and three rounds of ammunition, the wildlife service said. | Suspects exchange fire with wildlife agents in two incidents .
Five elephants are killed, Kenya Wildlife Service says .
More than 16 kilograms (36 pounds) of ivory recovered, wildlife service says . | c373227ecd08645361793503a55c2d9fc7b67ab6 | [
0,
368,
120,
10195,
1977,
9,
1703,
7,
130,
4792,
16,
192,
15935,
3,
5,
9528,
17926,
7,
92,
130
] |
(CNN) -- Tough economic times are taking a toll across the spectrum of business and individual activity -- and the country's institutions of higher learning are no exception. Andy Warhol is one of the artists in Brandeis University's acclaimed Rose Art Museum. Brandeis University, in Waltham, Massachusetts, will be taking an extraordinary step to preserve its educational mission -- the school's board of trustees voted Monday to close its acclaimed Rose Art Museum. The university will sell every one of the approximately 6,000 items in the museum, opened in 1961. "These are extraordinary times, we cannot control or fix the nation's economic problems," university president Jehuda Reinharz said. "We can only do what we have been entrusted to do -- act responsibly with the best interests of our students and their futures foremost in mind." University spokesman Dennis Nealon said that the move to sell off the museum's exhibits was "a very hard and painful decision" but a necessary one for the school's survival. He said the decision, which calls for the museum to close in the summer, will not affect the university's "commitment to the arts and the teaching of the arts." The facility will become a fine arts teaching center with an exhibition gallery and studio space, he said. The museum's collection includes iconic paintings by such luminaries of American art as Andy Warhol, James Rosenquist, Robert Rauschenberg, Jasper Johns, Alex Katz and Roy Lichtenstein. Nealon said most of the museum's acquisitions are paintings and sculptures. The school has not undertaken a recent appraisal of the works, Nealon said, adding that the process may take as much as two years to complete. Brandeis, founded in 1948, is the only non-sectarian, Jewish-sponsored university in the country. | Brandeis trustees vote to close Rose Art Museum, sell collection .
University spokesman says "painful decision" necessary for school's survival .
Collection includes iconic paintings by Warhol, Johns and Lichtenstein .
Brandeis is the only nonsectarian, Jewish-sponsored university in nation . | bba8306fb1b5eb74b9fbac0bcc4d1c4268b6b1dc | [
0,
368,
120,
3168,
5088,
1261,
3312,
56,
36,
1916,
326,
3,
5,
37,
7071,
31,
7,
1232,
963,
10331
] |
Washington (CNN) -- For months now, the GOP has been complaining about Barack Obama's class warfare: He's pitting the wealthy against the middle class. He's unfairly asking the rich to pay more taxes. He's dividing the country along economic lines for his own political agenda. But wait. Has anybody looked at what's going on in the GOP lately? Can it be that class warfare is alive and thriving among Republicans? Sure looks that way. How else to explain Rick Santorum calling the president a "snob" for emphasizing the importance of a college education? And when Santorum says that John F. Kennedy's speech about the absolute separation between church and state made him want to "throw up," he's not exactly aiming for the academic theologians. In the meantime, Mitt Romney -- that establishment fellow -- is out there on the trail talking about his wife driving "a couple" of Cadillacs. Not to mention the fact that he knows the owners, not the drivers, of NASCAR teams. Contrast that to Santorum's venture into the Daytona 500: His campaign is sponsoring a car, not hobnobbing with team owners. Looks like the GOP is driving around some circular tracks of its own, wouldn't you say? In many ways, this detour into class distinctions isn't surprising; it's actually been percolating for years. Remember when Republicans first spoke about the "Sam's Club" members of their party -- that is, their working-class, socially conservative demographic? They were onto something. In fact, the less-educated, white voters have been shifting toward the GOP for some time -- and have given the party much of its grass-roots energy. So in scurries Rick Santorum, trying to differentiate himself from Romney and fill the populist void. As it turns out, it's pretty easy: He's the guy from blue-collar Pennsylvania, the grandson of a coal miner. And Romney is a member of the business elite, a platinum card-carrying member of the GOP establishment, son of a scion of the party. Better yet, Romney keeps reminding voters (inadvertently) that he's not like them, each time he tries to connect with the Average Joe. "It may be important for a voter to be able to relate to a president," a senior Santorum adviser told me. "But it's more important for a president to be able to relate to that voter." So Santorum is trying to relate to every anti-Romney voter. In Michigan, for instance, evangelicals could account for as much as half of the GOP primary electorate. And Santorum figures he's getting them pretty well locked up with his church-and-state talk. As for those who self-identify as strongly conservative, he figures he's handing them red meat with his chatter about Barack Obama's snobbery -- and Romney's flip-flopping on conservative issues. "We have a long and storied track record of fighting for conservative causes compared to the other candidate who is running here in Michigan at the top of the polls," said Santorum. "We have a clear difference between someone who has fought in the trenches of the country for conservative causes." Santorum's attacks on Romney just expose the huge chasm within the GOP between the old elite and the new insurgents. And no matter who becomes the nominee, one faction will be disappointed, and disaffected. The question that remains: whether their dislike of Obama can bring the unity that has so far eluded them. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Gloria Borger. | Gloria Borger says now it's the Republicans who are playing class warfare .
She notes that the GOP criticized President Obama for "class warfare" on taxes .
Rick Santorum is trying to make the case that he represents middle class, she says .
Borger: Santorum trying to differentiate himself from Romney, who is much richer . | 2bc9b4272ffcd2c6743875757677a314ad98dcf0 | [
0,
368,
5492,
10,
11066,
1051,
235,
2781,
3088,
2753,
3,
9,
96,
7,
29,
32,
115,
121,
21,
8943
] |
The United States cannot solve Iraq's problems with military force, President Barack Obama reiterated in a series of interviews taped on Friday that aired across several networks on Monday morning. Only Iraqis can resolve the violent conflict tearing apart in their country, Obama said, and in order to do accomplish this, they must find a way to ignore their sectarian differences for the common good of their homeland. 'If they can't, there's not gonna . be a military solution to this problem, Obama told CNN's Kate Boulduan. 'There's no amount of American . fire power that's gonna be able to hold the country together, and I've . made that clear to [Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki] and all the other leadership inside of . Iraq.' The U.S. can't go in and occupy every country in the Middle East facing turmoil, president Obama said in a series of interviews that aired on Monday morning . ¿Unless we are prepared to stay indefinitely in all these various countries, something that we can¿t afford, and it would involve over time accusations that we were occupying these countries,¿ Obama told Morning Joe co-host Mika Brzezinski, ¿at some stage, they¿re gonna have to take responsibility for working together' The U.S. neither has the resources nor the responsibility to be the world police in the Middle East, President Barack Obama emphasized in the interviews. ‘Unless . we are prepared to stay indefinitely in all these various countries, . something that we can’t afford, and it would involve over time . accusations that we were occupying these countries,’ Obama told Morning Joe . co-host Mika Brzezinski,‘at . some stage, they’re gonna have to take responsibility for working . together.’ America's military cannot run around the world playing 'whack-a-mole' with extremist . groups, the president has repeatedly said throughout the last several . days. ‘Keep in mind that our goal in . Afghanistan was to decapitate Al Qaeda, which had carried out 9/11. That . has been accomplished. Now Afghanistan is a sovereign country that is . gonna have to deal with its own security,’ Last month the president announced that he would significantly draw down troops in Afghanistan by the end of the year. The president has made clear that he would not put boots back on the ground in Iraq. On Thursday Obama announced that the U.S. would deploy up to 300 military advisors to help train, advise and support the Iraqi army but made clear that the forces would not engage in combat with the Islamic radicals violently attempting to conquer the country. Obama also dispatched Secretary of State John Kerry to the region to meet with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and other foreign leaders. The two met for roughly two hours this morning in Baghdad, and Kerry said afterward the meeting was productive. According to the Associated Press, Iraqi officials familiar with the meeting said Maliki again asked the U.S. to launch air strikes against ISIL, and, once again, he was rebuffed. Kerry reportedly cited civilian casualties as an area of concern. President Obama has been credited with making similar remarks last week to members of Congress asking about air strikes. Oceans apart: Secretary of State John Kerry and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki met face to face in Baghdad on Monday. The two government officials didn't appear to be on very friendly terms at a photo-op, but Kerry said the 100 minute meeting went well . Kerry, center left, flew to Baghdad this morning to meet with Maliki, right, and Iraq's other leaders to personally urge the Shiite-led government to give more power to political opponents before a Sunni insurgency seizes more control across the country and sweeps away hopes for lasting peace . The discussion between the two government officials was not expected to be friendly, given that Washington lawmakers have floated suggestions that the Iraqi premier should resign as a necessary first step toward quelling the vicious uprising. Nor . will it likely bring any immediate, tangible results, as Maliki has . shown no sign of leaving, and Iraqi officials have long listened to — but . ultimately ignored — U.S. advice to avoid appearing controlled by the . decade-old specter of an American occupation in Baghdad. Still, . having suffered together through more than eight years of war — which . killed nearly 4,500 American troops and more than 100,000 Iraqis — the . two wary allies are unwilling to turn away from the very real prospect . of the Mideast nation falling into a fresh bout of sectarian strife. 'The support will be intense, sustained, and if Iraq's leaders take the . steps needed to bring the country together it will be effective,' Kerry said after the meeting. Kerry also met with influential Shiite cleric Ammar al-Hakim, who . heads a leading rival Shiite political party; Parliament Speaker Osama . al-Nujaifi, one of Iraq's highest-ranking Sunnis; and Foreign Minister . Hoshyar Zebari, a Kurd. Kerry, center, greets the crew as he boards a plane at Jordan's Queen Alia International Airport in Amman this morning . A general view from a helicopter carrying Secretary of State John Kerry, shows Baghdad, Iraq as of this morning. Islamic extremists have still been unable to get close to the country's capitol city despite destroying neighboring towns . Even before U.S. troops left Iraq for good at the end of 2011, a merciless Sunni insurgency was pounding the country with car bombs, roadside explosions, suicide bombings and drive-by assassinations, mainly targeting the Shiite government, its security forces and Shiite pilgrims. Since the start of this year, and peaking this month, ISIL has overtaken several cities in Iraq's west and north, and over the past weekend was controlling several main border crossings between Iraq and Syria. The three-year civil war in Syria — where Sunni rebels are fighting to overthrow President Bashar Assad, whose Alawite sect is an offshoot of Shiism — emboldened Iraqi insurgents who regularly traverse the porous border to gain recruits, funding and weapons, and battlefield confidence. Years of political instability in Baghdad fueled anger against the Shiite-led government from Sunnis who felt powerless and saw their leaders targeted by al-Maliki's security forces. A senior State Department official told the Associated Press the insurgents' recent march on Baghdad has been slowed, although concerns remain that ISIL will attack the golden-domed Shiite shrine to the Imam al-Askari in Samarra. That city, in Sunni territory in north-central Iraq, was the site of a 2006 bombing that triggered the worst of the war's sectarian fighting. Last week, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid declared that Iraq is currently in a civil war. Iraq is the third stop on Kerry's trip to the Middle East. The Secretary of State, center, his staff and bodyguards are pictured here boarding a plane in Jordan this morning . Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, second right, greets Kerry, left, upon his arrival to Baghdad . Kerry's meeting in Baghdad today comes after an announcement by President Barack Obama on Thursday that the U.S. would send up to 300 military advisers to Iraq but no combat troops . The official, who spoke to AP before Kerry's meeting, said the secretary of state would not ask Maliki to resign, as some in the U.S. and Sunni Arab states in Mideast have demanded, because 'it's not up to us.' However, Kerry was expected to urge al-Maliki to quickly create a new government that is far more sensitive to Sunni and Kurdish demands for jobs, power and a fair legal system. Currently, Baghdad is operating under a lame-duck government, as a new parliament that was elected in April has not yet selected its Cabinet ministers. It took more than nine months to seat a new government the last time Iraq underwent the process, in 2010. This time around, the State Department official said, Maliki and other Iraqi officials cannot risk exacerbating the political instability, and further inflaming the insurgency, by stalling a new and more inclusive government. Both President Barack Obama and Iraq's top Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, also have urged Maliki to quickly form an inclusive government that promotes the interests of all of Iraq's ethnic and religious groups. The State Department official briefed reporters on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to be named in discussing the negotiations. He described al-Maliki and other Iraqi officials as anxious about what, if any, additional help the U.S. might provide to help curb ISIL after Obama this week said he would send about 300 special forces troops to Baghdad to advise and train local security forces. Obama did not rule out the possibility of also launching airstrikes against the insurgents, but that is not expected anytime soon, if ever, and he has adamantly said he will not send combat forces back to Iraq. Kerry greets U.S. Marines as he arrives at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad . A CBS News/New York Times poll released . this morning found that Americans are divided about how they want the president to handle the situation. Half . of Americans believe that U.S. does not have a responsibility to . provide military assistance to the ailing country, while 42 percent said . the U.S. was obligated to intervene. Likewise, . 50 percent poll-takers said they believe the ongoing situation in Iraq . will not increase the threat of terrorism in the United States, compared . to the 44 percent who thought it would. | President Barack Obama is standing firm in his decision not to deploy combat troops to Iraq .
The country's problems can't be solved by military might alone, he said, in interview that aired on CNN, CBS and MSNBC this morning .
'There's no amount of American .
fire power that's gonna be able to hold the country together,' Obama told CNN .
Secretary of State John Kerry is in Iraq meeting with government leaders, including Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, delivering the Obama administration's message in person that Iraqis must come together in order to save their country from despair .
A new poll shows that more Americans than not believe the U.S. is under no obligation to give Iraq military assistance . | e7e15c419d7ee40d6f94624ee33ebffbf3a16434 | [
0,
368,
939,
13,
8917,
4874,
26,
30,
1701,
24,
3,
2378,
26,
640,
633,
5275,
30,
2089,
1379,
3
] |
(CNN) -- I approached Baalbek on a hot, dry day out of Beirut, down a broken road where children played, oblivious to passing cars. I pulled up by a small hut on the outskirts of the city, where I'd been told to ask for Abdul Nabi al-Afi. There he was, a slim, cheery, weather-beaten man who offered me coffee. I was sweating from the heat, but Abdul found Lebanon cold at this time of year and he was wearing a blazer over two pullovers. I sat down to hear how this former sergeant in the Lebanese army had found himself guardian of one of the most extraordinary sights in the region. Treasure beneath rubbish . Twelve years ago, Abdul had retired from the military and returned to the Beqaa Valley -- a broad, green swathe running for 120 kilometers through eastern Lebanon -- and his home in Baalbek. "Many Palestinian refugees had moved here in the time I'd been away," he said, "and I saw they'd been throwing their rubbish into an old quarry." At a loose end, Abdul started removing the garbage from the site near his home. As he did, he uncovered an ancient object -- the largest single stone ever carved, lying at the bottom of the quarry. It was a huge piece of limestone, longer than a school bus and estimated to weigh more than a thousand tons. Carved by the Romans more than 2,000 years ago, the monolith had been intended for the nearby temple complex of Heliopolis. Now a Lebanese flag flies at one end of it, and, over the cafe Abdul has set up nearby, a sign trumpets: "La Plus Grande Pierre dans le Monde." Three gods . Traveling in the Middle East, I'd heard of Baalbek but not of Heliopolis. As we stepped down into the old shallow quarry, Abdul pointed to the huge white columns of an abandoned temple visible on the horizon between two concrete housing blocks and loops of telephone wire. "In those days Baalbek was known as Heliopolis," Abdul said. "Our temple was the biggest ever built by the Romans. "Here they worshiped not one god but three: Jupiter, Venus and Bacchus. Today Heliopolis is a UNESCO World Heritage Site." Abdul receives no government assistance for his upkeep of the quarry and the monolith so, as I was leaving, I bought a guidebook from his shop for $7. Would he ever leave Baalbek, I asked as we shook hands. "I can't," he said. "The quarry would go back to the way it was. I won't let that happen." Iran: time for travelers to return? "Die Tempel von Heliopolis" I drove on through the scruffy outskirts of modern Baalbek, parked my car and bought a ticket for ancient Heliopolis. A group of young German men marched into the ruins ahead of me. They weren't the first: German students have been coming to Baalbek for more than a century. Before World War I, the Kaiser, an ally of the Ottoman Turks who then ruled here, sent his best archeologists to excavate and secure the ruins. A drawing of their proposed reconstruction pinned to the ticket booth reads: "Die Tempel von Heliopolis, Ba'albek." At the combined size of several football pitches, the three temples of Heliopolis were built on a scale much larger than anything seen in Rome. Shrine to Ba'al . The complex was actually constructed on top of a shrine to the Canaanite god Ba'al. To build it, the Romans had first to create a vast plateau above the valley. That alone must have been an extraordinary undertaking. During the Christian era, the temple complex was quarried for buildings including the Hagia Sofia in Constantinople (the new Roman capital) and the rest was roofed over to create a church of dimensions not seen again until the building of St. Peter's in Rome. When Islam came to the Beqaa Valley, the steps of this church were hacked away to create an inaccessible Muslim fortress held in 1175 by the mighty Saladin. Crusaders besieged it several times but never broke through. Today the complex still towers over this low-rise city. The occasional tourist wanders through in the company of a guide -- like Abdul, always well wrapped up against the sunshine -- but you can have it to yourself most of the time. Six top beers from the Middle East . Vanishing tourists . With civil war raging in its eastern neighbor, Syria, and security always fierce in Israel to the south, tourism has dropped off drastically in Lebanon in recent years. Nature has also played a destructive part. Inching away from Africa, the Arabian tectonic plate has caused three earthquakes at Heliopolis, bringing columns and pediments crashing down. Yet still it somehow stands, huge and white, an ancient marble enclave within modern Baalbek. The temple wins the crown for most impressive archeological site in the region, but there's much more to see. At Hermel there's a mysterious pyramidal tower thought to have been built 3,000 years ago -- no one knows why. Lebanese white . Lebanon may be dry but it isn't, so to speak, necessarily dry. Château Ksara (+961 88 134 95), founded in 1857 by Jesuit priests, created one of the first white wines in Lebanon. "Until recently we received 7,000 visitors a year," Sabah, who works in the visitor shop, told me. "This valley still produces more than six million bottles of wine a year," she continued. "We sweep the car park every day. We're optimistic." Everything might be slightly falling apart in the Beqaa Valley, but then this strife-torn region often has to rely on the goodwill of people such as Abdul to maintain its world class tourist attractions. Nevertheless, the valley exudes calm. It's seen a lot of history and knows it'll see more. Now, when the most recent chapter of that history has scared most people off, could be a good time to go. Baalbek is approximately 85 kilometers east of Beirut. Lebanon-R-Us is one local company offering tours of the city and its sights; +961 76 513 800. The monolith and Abdul's cafe are located near the eastern entrance to Baalbek -- look for signs. No set opening times or entrance fee to the site. To visit ancient Heliopolis, look for signs within Baalbek pointing to "The Ruins"; open 8:30 a.m. until 30 minutes before sunset; children under eight free, adults $8; guides are hired from around the ticket office, at the southeastern end of the temple complex, and cost around $14 an hour. More information on visiting Baalbek can be found on the Baalbeck Municipality official website. | World's biggest carved monolith found in Lebanon -- beneath a rubbish heap .
Temple of Heliopolis was size of several football fields .
Travelers have many sights entirely to themselves . | bf5a93e6a87fa2d421dca78c64a092fc73dff21e | [
0,
368,
312,
3478,
15,
7,
15,
7637,
397,
288,
435,
9336,
12759,
22641,
3,
5,
28508,
445,
15975,
491
] |
A pregnant mother who thought she was expecting a small seven pound baby ended up giving birth to a daughter who tipped the scales at huge 14 pounds. Alisha Hernandez of Alamosa in southern Colarado went into labor on Monday and gave birth to Mia Yasmin Garcia by caesarean section at the San Luis Valley Hospital. But Miss Hernandez and midwives who helped deliver the baby were shocked when baby Mia arrived looking a lot larger than they first thought she would be. Mia Yasmin Garcia shortly after being born by cesarean section who shocked hospital staff when she weighed in at almost fourteen pounds . Alisha Hernandez of Alamosa in southern Colarado went into labor on Monday and ended up giving birth to Mia Yasmin Garcia by caesarean section at the San Luis Valley Hospital . After being weighed it was revealed that the newborn tipped the scales at 13 pounds, 13 ounces and measuring 22 inches long . Her father Francisco Garcia said: 'They're all shocked that they're seeing a baby like that. Even in the San Luis Valley, they were like whoa! They opened their eyes like they've never seen a baby like that' And after being weighed it was revealed that the newborn tipped the scales at 13 pounds, 13 ounces and measuring 22 inches long. Her father Francisco Garcia told 9News: 'They're all shocked that they're seeing a baby like that. Even in the San Luis Valley, they were like whoa! They opened their eyes like they've never seen a baby like that. The nurse, she was shocked. She's like "Come here! Come here! Come here!" I went and I'm like, what happened? She's like, well check out this! I checked it, and it was 13 pounds and 13 ounces.' But Miss Hernandez and midwives who helped deliver the baby were shocked when baby Mia arrived looking a lot larger than they first thought she would be . Shortly after her birth, baby Mia was flown to a Denver-area hospital after suffering from low glucose levels and having trouble breathing . Mr Garcia explained that all of the couple's other children were all born at normal weights and even the combined weight of their twins at birth was lower than Mia . Doctors hope Mia can join her parents and four older sisters Britney, Ximena, Yulissa and Yuliana at home within the next week . Mr Garcia explained that all of the couple's other children were all born at normal weights and even the combined weight of their twins at birth was lower than Mia. He also added that the newborn would be the couple's last child together, even though they had 'tried their best' to have a boy. Shortly after her birth, baby Mia was flown to a Denver-area hospital after suffering from low glucose levels and having trouble breathing. Baby Mia's weight shocked midwives and her parents when she was born at the San Luis Valley Hospital in Colarado, pictured . But doctors hope she can join her parents and four older sisters Britney, Ximena, Yulissa and Yuliana at home within the next week. Last year, a mother in Utah also gave birth to a 14lb baby boy, who was dubbed America's biggest baby of 2013. Joel Brandon Jr., nicknamed J.J., was born by caesarean section at Timpanogos Regional Hospital in Orem, weighing in at 14 pounds and measuring 22 inches long. His mother, Sara Brandon, said she was stunned by how big J.J. was when she delivered him at 38-and-a-half weeks, as a previous ultrasound predicted he was going to be 11 pounds. Baby Joel Brandon Junior, who was born last year weighing 14 pounds, the same as baby Mia, in Utah. He is pictured with his mother Sara . The largest baby ever recorded was born in Canada to mother Anna Bates in 1879, a boy weighing 23lb 12oz, who died 11 hours later. In 2005 a Brazilian woman gave birth to a 17lb baby boy named Admilton dos Santos. He was mother Francisca’s fifth child and it is thought that his size was caused by gestational diabetes. | Alisha Hernandez went into labor expecting a small seven pound baby .
Gave birth to baby Mia Yasmin in southern Colarado by caesarean section .
Parents and hospital staff were shocked at just how big baby Mia looked .
Was weighed and was revealed she tipped the scales at almost 14 pounds . | 8ac12b38e3db0fff02897a4e1c468dec3e7ec43b | [
0,
368,
7473,
3,
17,
15437,
8,
2643,
7,
44,
1179,
7051,
6,
1179,
3,
7906,
7,
11,
11297,
1630
] |
By . Becky Barrow . PUBLISHED: . 17:47 EST, 1 October 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 03:37 EST, 2 October 2012 . High rates: Mortgage repayments have hit a three year high for at least 1.5m families . Families are being hit by the highest mortgage repayments in more than three years, according to figures released yesterday. The standard variable rates that at least 1.5million families are on now average 4.27 per cent – a level not seen since March 2009. Homeowners are automatically moved to SVRs at the end of their initial deal – such as a two-year fixed loan or a three-year tracker. Tomorrow, Santander, the country’s second biggest mortgage lender, will increase its variable rate from 4.24 per cent to 4.74 per cent, hitting 400,000 customers. The upward move comes despite the Bank of England having kept its base rate at an historic low of 0.5 per cent since March 2009. A Santander customer with a £150,000, 25-year loan will be forced to find an extra £42 per month – £504 a year. Many homeowners are trapped on an SVR because they do not have enough equity in their properties to secure a more competitive deal. The Bank of England figures published yesterday show the average variable rate has risen steadily this year. In March 2009 it was 4.06 per cent but then fell as low as 3.82 per cent before returning to a 42-month high of 4.27 per cent. Halifax, Yorkshire Bank, the Co-op and Bank of Ireland have all increased their rates in recent months. David Hollingworth, from the mortgage adviser, London & Country, said: ‘No SVR is safe at the moment. There is every chance that there will be other banks and building societies which increase their rates in the next few weeks and months. ‘Lenders are still feeling the pressure. The SVR is something that they can easily change.’ It . is not known exactly how many homeowners are on an SVR deal, but the . number has increased sharply since the base rate was cut to 0.5 per . cent. A spokesman for the . Council of Mortgage Lenders said it is wrong to assume that banks could . borrow money to hand out in mortgages at the Bank of England’s base rate . of 0.5 per cent. Possible increase: There is a risk that other banks and building societies will follow Santander and increase the rates for mortgages . ‘People tend to assume that the cost of funds to lenders equates to the base rate, but this is not the case,’ she insisted. A Santander spokesman said the fact . that its borrowing costs had been rising steadily was behind the . decision to increase its SVR. Put your question to one of our mortgage experts. Call 0800 073 9999. ‘This . move is prompted by several factors,’ he added. ‘Most notably, the fact . that for the last three years the amount it costs us to provide . mortgages and the rates we offer our savings customers have been . increasing despite the base rate remaining static. ‘Indeed, for some time the correlation between base rate and mortgage and savings rates has been weakening.’ Homeowners . will be forced to spend more than £300million extra on their monthly . loan payments over the next year due to the higher rates, according to . the consumer group Which?. | Major mortgage lender Santander will increase its variable rate with 0.5 per cent on Wednesday . | f297bc25b1673441eecf0e1b1578b75096f8c649 | [
0,
368,
5638,
504,
1348,
7660,
1917,
43,
3,
23310,
19983,
120,
48,
215,
3,
5,
20922,
22945,
7,
1560
] |
Manchester City are considering a move for Southampton striker Jay Rodriguez despite closing in on a £30million deal for Wilfried Bony. City are wary of interest from Liverpool and Tottenham – who are both monitoring Rodriguez closely – and are keen to beat them to his signature. Rodriguez has a significant new contract offer on the table from Southampton, who are urging him to extend his stay on the south coast. Manchester City are considering a bid for Southampton striker Jay Rodriguez . Southampton are adamant they will not sell Rodriguez, but an offer over £20m will tempt them into letting him talk to another club. The 25-year-old has no intention of making a decision on agreeing to those terms with the club until he is back fit and playing again. Rodriguez has been out since April after rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament in a Premier League match against City. The injury wrecked his chances of going to the World Cup with England, which he looked certain to after earning his first call-up to the national team that season and being on a run of scoring five goals in four games before the devastating blow. Last season, he netted 17 times in 40 games in all competitions and was in the best form of his Southampton career since his £6m move from Burnley in 2012. City manager Manuel Pellegrini believes Rodriguez would be a useful addition to his squad . Rodriguez, seen here playing against Arsenal last January, has been out since April through injury . City are also closing in on the £30m signing of Swansea City striker Wilfried Bony . City have already agreed a transfer fee with Swansea for Bony – starting at £25m but which could rise with add-ons – and terms with the player who is set to earn £100,000 per week on a four-year contract. But they will not let that stop them beating their rivals to one of the most coveted English forwards in the Premier League. Rodriguez is close to a return to football and is set to play in some Under 21 games for Southampton ahead of returning to the first team. Saints hoped he would be back playing last month but there was a slight delay on his recovery. | Manchester City weight up offer for Southampton's Jay Rodriguez .
Premier League champions are aware of interest from Liverpool and Spurs .
Rodriguez has a significant contract offer on the table from Southampton .
City are also closing in on £30m deal for Swansea striker Wilfried Bony .
Click here for latest transfer news . | 71b5f5bd85145640865fdd6ddf40ac5624584120 | [
0,
368,
1696,
462,
30,
8,
953,
45,
28165,
3,
5,
896,
33,
615,
63,
13,
1046,
45,
15131,
11
] |
A mother whose four-year-old son was starved, scalded, beaten with a hammer and then buried in a shallow grave has been sentenced to at least 20 years in prison for her role in the boy's death. Stephanie Sloop, 31, was given 20 years to life behind bars for Ethan Stacy's 2010 death. Sloop pleaded guilty to aggravated murder and obstructing justice under a deal with prosecutors in Farmington, Utah. Scroll down for video . Stephanie Sloop, 31, (pictured in court on Monday) sobbed as she said she was responsible for the murder of her son Ethan. She was sentenced to 20 years to life behind bars for her son's death . Stephanie Sloop, charged with aggravated murder in the death of her son, Ethan Stacy, enters the courtroom in Farmington, Utah, on Monday . Sloop sobbed in court as she admitted she was completely responsible for her son's brutal death, following days of starvation and torture at the hands of her husband, 'because I was his mommy'. Prosecutors said Sloop failed to stop her husband and Ethan's stepfather, Nathan Sloop, from abusing her son and didn't call for help. They asked that she spends the rest of her life in prison. The 31-year-old fidgeted today as the court heard details of the little boy's brutal torture. A medical examiner testified that Ethan died from a combination of too many over-the-counter medications, aspiration pneumonia and severe burns, likely caused from hot water in a tub. Aspiration pneumonia is caused by an inhalation of foreign materials into the lungs, potentially vomit, or as prosecutors suggested, fecal matter that the boy allegedly was forced to eat. The burns would have required skin grafts and weeks of hospital treatment, doctors said. Watch more from inside court at Standard Examiner . Four-year-old Ethan Stacy was beaten beyond recognition with a hammer by his stepfather and buried in a shallow grave in 2010. His mother failed to stop his torture and abuse . Nathan Sloop confessed to wrapping the body in garbage bags and putting him in a shallow grave he dug on the mountainside. The boy’s body and items used to bury it were put in the hole in layers. A hammer was used to disfigure the boy. Stephanie Sloop bought lighter fluid, a shovel and some gloves at a hardware store beforehand. The day the boy was buried, Nathan Sloop sent a text message to his wife, which was shown in court: 'Baby can you get antioxidant vitamins please. That would be great. I can’t wait to take you to Happy Sumo. Memories. Love you!!!' Days later, they called police and reported Ethan as missing. Nathan Sloop ultimately led police to where the boy was buried. Sloop's lawyer told the court that she suffered from 'battered wife syndrome' and had a prescription medication addiction while her son was being abused, the Salt Lake Tribune reported. Ethan’s father, Joe Stacy, was present in the courtroom to watch his ex-wife be sentenced. He said that he had been 'broken up' by his son's death. Nathan Sloop (right) stands next to his attorneys during his court appearance appearance in February where he was sentenced to life in prison for murdering his four-year-old stepson . Nathan Sloop, 35, was sentenced in February to 25 years to life in prison for the murder of his four-year-old stepson. Sloop buried the child on Powder Mountain in Weber Country, Utah after he left the child's face disfigured by hammer blows and his grave sprinkled with dog food. Sloop was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for the murder and one to 15 years for aggravated assault by a prisoner for attacking a David County jail officer. Sloop, 35, had pleaded guilty but mentally ill. A number of other charges were dismissed as part of a plea deal, which also spared him from the death penalty. Sloop’s attorney, Richard Mauro, said his client’s mental illness coupled with a high number of prescription painkillers and other medications Sloop was taking at the time led to his indifference to the child’s life. Previous court documents show Sloop was prescribed 4,146 pills in an 11-month period. Among the prescriptions were Lortab, Valium, Percocet, Xanax and an antihistamine. Ethan Stacy is seen here with his biological father Joe Stacy who was present in Utah for his ex-wife's sentencing on Monday . | Stephanie Sloop, 31, was sentenced on Monday to 20 years to life behind bars in Utah for her son Ethan Stacy's 2010 death .
Sloop sobbed and said she was responsible for her son's death following days of torture at the hands of her husband 'because I was his mommy'
Sloop failed to stop her husband and Ethan's stepfather, Nathan Sloop, from abusing her son and didn't call for help .
Ethan died from medications, aspiration pneumonia and severe burns, likely caused from hot water in a tub .
It is believed that the boy was forced to eat fecal matter by his stepfather .
Nathan Sloop sentenced in February to life in prison . | e73f7b73ce23813e8aa61d28fee09a807f94c8da | [
0,
368,
7142,
7142,
26,
12,
44,
709,
460,
203,
1187,
6448,
21,
262,
6736,
472,
4710,
31,
7,
2735
] |
Russell Crowe watched his South Sydney team come away with the gong after demolishing Super League champions St Helens in an embarrassingly one-sided 2015 World Club Challenge. Crowe's decision to put rugby league before the Oscars paid off as he watched his beloved Rabbitohs follow up their 2014 NRL title triumph and their recent success in the NRL Nines to claim a first world crown with a 39-0 rout of Saints. Putting Langtree Park ahead of the red carpet in Hollywood, Crowe arrived by helicopter at nearby Haydock Park racecourse to join the sell-out crowd of 17,980 and witness a further demonstration of the gulf that remains between the NRL and Super League. South Sydney Rabbitohs co-owner Russell Crowe (right) chats to Sam Burgess before kick-off . Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook is hit hard in a double tackle from Isaac Luke (left) and Glenn Stewart . Luke Thompson can find no way through the Rabbitohs defence as Jason Clark puts in a strong tackle . Bath's union convert Sam Burgess, hero of their Grand-Final success, sat next to the Hollywood actor and director to cheer on his twin brothers George and Sam as the Rabbitohs became the sixth NRL winners of the World Club Challenge in the last seven years. Their seven-try triumph also completed a 3-0 whitewash of the cream of Super League following earlier wins by St George Illawarra and Brisbane Broncos over Warrington and Wigan respectively. Whereas Wigan and Warrington at least pushed their opponents all the way, Saints were given a rude awakening as Souths demonstrated their class from the start. Keiron Cunningham's men trailed 24-0 at half-time and the final score meant a third crushing defeat for Saints, who went down 44-6 to Melbourne in 2000 and 38-0 to Sydney Roosters in 2003. Just like Warrington and Wigan before them, Saints conceded early, with former Manly forward Glenn Stewart marking his debut with a second-minute try, touching down a grubber kick from the excellent Adam Reynolds, who went on to kick five goals from seven attempts. Luke Keary is mobbed by his team-mates as the Rabbitohs back crosses for his side's fifth try . Saints tried to rally but were met by a stone wall as the Rabbitohs demonstrated the smothering defence that is so typical of the NRL, whose teams appear determined to prove that every lost cause is one worth retrieving. Souths illustrated their scrambling defence early on to prevent Saints centre Mark Percival scoring what looked a certain try while prop Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook was also turned on his back over the line. The visitors, conversely, were clinical in their execution. Centre Dylan Walker turned the Saints defence inside out to finish off a break by Reynolds and full-back Greg Inglis showed his class in taking a return pass from Bryson Goodwin to score a third try. St Helens forward Mose Masoe gets an offload away following a crunching hit from the Rabbitohs pack . George Burgess carries powerfully into the St Helens defence as the NRL champions dominate proceedings . Crowe speaks to the media prior to this side's 2015 World Club Challenge clash against St Helens . Percival went close again without any joy and there was no way back for the Super League champions once winger Joel Reddy touched down John Sutton's speculative kick on the half-hour mark. It was damage limitation when stand-off Luke Keary went in for a fifth try six minutes into the second half and Souths simply picked off their opponents to add further tries through substitute Chris McQueen and Reddy while Reynolds wrapped up the scoring with a meaningless drop goal. St Helens never threw in the towel but the Australians had an answer for everything thrown at them as Crowe began the celebrations and Super League went back to the drawing board. | St Helens trailed 24-0 at half-time to the NRL champions .
South Sydney Rabbitohs scored tries through Glenn Stewart, Dylan Walker, Greg Inglis, Joel Reddy (two), Luke Keary and Chris McQueen .
Adam Reynolds kicked five goals from seven attempts for the Sydney side .
Bath's union convert Sam Burgess sat next to Russell Crowe in the stands . | 393853a103211aaf48cba8f2d654588d9d43aa89 | [
0,
368,
1013,
7476,
20504,
235,
107,
7,
1369,
6352,
18,
632,
3,
52,
670,
13,
2788,
7,
3,
5
] |
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- A U.S. military helicopter crashed in southern Iraq early Thursday morning, killing all seven U.S. soldiers on board, the military said. A U.S. Chinook helicopter, similar to this British Chinook, crashed in Iraq, the U.S. military said. Officials have not determined the cause of the crash, but do not suspect hostile activity. "Based on our initial reports, it is accurate to characterize this as an accident," said Maj. John Hall, a U.S. military spokesman. The CH-47 Chinook was part of a four-aircraft convoy that was flying from Kuwait to Balad in northern Iraq. The chopper went down about 62 miles (100 km) west of Basra. The other helicopters in the convoy did not sustain damage, Hall said. The names of the soldiers were not released pending notification of next of kin. The CH-47 Chinook is primarily used for transporting troops, supplies and artillery. Meanwhile, two parked car bombs detonated in western Baghdad Wednesday in quick succession, killing eight people and wounding 25, an Interior Ministry official said. Baghdad was also struck by a series of roadside bombings that killed two and wounded 16, the official said. The bombs detonated in two cars parked near each other outside a hospital in Harthiya district shortly before noon (0900 GMT), the official said. It was the second twin car bomb attack in Baghdad this week. On Monday, two car bombs detonated in central Baghdad, killing 12 and wounding 37. Five roadside bombs struck the Iraqi capital on Wednesday, one of which targeted the head of New Baghdad's district council, the official said. The council leader's driver was killed, while he and his security guard were wounded in the attack. Another roadside bomb in eastern Baghdad killed an Iraqi policeman and wounded five other people. Two other roadside bombings in the Iraqi capital wounded nine Iraqi soldiers and civilians. Elsewhere on Wednesday, an assistant to the governor of Nineveh province was gunned down as he was leaving evening prayers in central Mosul, city police said. Shamel Younis was walking outside the mosque when gunmen in a car shot and killed him, then fled the scene. The new U.S. commander in Iraq said Tuesday that security in the country has improved, but is still in a "fragile state." "As we've said many times, everyone is encouraged by the progress that has been made here in Iraq, but we still have a lot of work to do," said Gen. Ray Odierno, who took command of U.S. forces in Iraq on Tuesday. Watch change of command ceremony » . Odierno replaced Gen. David Petraeus, whose tenure saw a reversal in the country's rising violence. "It's a proud moment for me to be given the responsibility to take command of Multi-National Force-Iraq and continue the mission here in Iraq as we move forward," Odierno said in Tuesday's handover ceremony in Baghdad, which was attended by Defense Secretary Robert Gates. "We are in a fragile state now. What I want to do is build it to a more stable state. And I think we're in the process of doing it. It just takes some time, and it's slow," Odierno said. Odierno said he is "encouraged" by the growth of Iraqi security forces and the national police. "We're starting to see signs of some other of the governmental capacities begin to grow, which I think is extremely important," he said. CNN's Jomana Karadsheh and Cal Perry contributed to this report. | NEW: Military spokesman characterizes initial reports point to an accident .
NEW: Other choppers in the convoy did not sustain damage, spokesman says .
U.S. military: CH-47 Chinook helicopter crashed 62 miles (100 km) west of Basra .
Twin car bombs outside Baghdad hospital kill eight, injure 25 . | b1899533bd0f9e610c2e655d3c1d52f8260140a2 | [
0,
368,
6417,
7,
20,
17,
106,
920,
16,
8282,
8055,
107,
14677,
2875,
6,
9357,
2641,
151,
11,
9699
] |
Kiev, Ukraine (CNN) -- Several dozen protesters picketed a cultural center in Kiev, Ukraine, on Saturday as part of continued demonstrations against a controversial regional languages bill. At least 12 people have joined a hunger strike over the past two weeks in protest of the bill, introduced in May by the ruling Party of Regions. One student was hospitalized Saturday in life-threatening condition after seven days on hunger strike, according to Kiev Mohilyan Academy, where the young woman studies. In total, four protesters have been admitted to clinics for treatment over the past three days, Ukraine's health ministry and the protest movement said. The protesters fear that the future of the Ukrainian language will be severely undermined by the bill, which aims to provide regional status to the 18 languages spoken by ethnic minorities in Ukraine, including Russian, Romanian and Tatar. Under the bill, minorities would be able to have their mother tongue taught in schools and use those languages in official documents, among other benefits. The architect of the bill -- parliament deputy from the ruling party Vadim Kolesnichenko -- says such legislation is necessary if Ukraine wants to become part of the European Union. "We've had many checks on the human rights issues in Ukraine by European organizations -- and they noticed many violations. Minority languages has been one of them. Our bill is written in full compliance with the European charter for minority languages, which is aimed at preserving minority languages and protecting them," Kolesnichenko said. The bill doesn't stipulate that Ukraine may have several official state languages -- something which can be changed only through a nationwide referendum. However the opposition insists that providing even a regional status to the Russian language -- widely spoken in 13 regions of the country by roughly 20 million people -- would severely undermine the development of the Ukrainian language. The protesters fear that should the use of Russian be legalized, nobody would want to learn Ukrainian. Parliament sessions in recent months on the controversial bill have erupted in fistfights between Ukraine's legislators as deputies opposing the bill clashed with those from the ruling party. Earlier this month, the bill passed the second hearing in the Rada with 248 deputies voting for it. The opposition claims the vote was rigged and called on President Viktor Yanukovich not to ratify the bill and prevent it from becoming law. The president hasn't yet responded to those demands. "We issued an ultimatum to the authorities to abolish this bill. There has been no intention or even a hint from President Yanukovich that he could do so. That's why our hunger strike would continue for weeks or months -- as long as we are alive," said Oleksandr Mishura, a member of the protest movement. Valeriy Shevchenko traveled to Kiev on Saturday all the way from a village in Western Ukraine to participate. "We have to defend our language and our culture -- the two things most dear to us," he said. While protesters continue their standoff, the government is producing few comments on the matter. The final say is with Yanukovich, who is still weighing whether to put his signature on the bill, but promises to respect all sides of the conflict. But Ukraine's leader already said that if the crisis is not resolved, a dissolution of parliament and an early ballot cannot be ruled out. | Protests, including a hunger strike, have been ongoing for the past two weeks .
The bill aims to provide regional status to the 18 languages spoken by minorities in Ukraine .
Protesters worry the Ukrainian language will be undermined by the bill .
The bill's sponsor says the legislation is necessary if Ukraine wants to join EU . | 7b88ff806ccb7be8dc6f186f3aae7d7ad1cdfce1 | [
0,
368,
4973,
277,
1432,
15,
17,
2779,
1530,
16,
30713,
6,
11897,
6,
38,
294,
13,
2925,
10686,
7
] |
(CNN) -- Celine Dion is putting her music career on hold indefinitely because of her husband's cancer and her own illness, the singer announced Wednesday. Dion's Las Vegas residency shows and plans to tour Asia in the fall have been taken off her schedule, according to a statement posted on her website and social media accounts. Dion, 46, must "focus 100% of her attention on her husband Rene, their family, and associated health issues," the statement said. Rene Angelil, 72, underwent surgery to remove a cancerous tumor from his throat last December. He stepped aside as his wife's manager in June because of the illness. "It's been a very difficult and stressful time for the couple as they deal with the day-to-day challenges of fighting this disease while trying to juggle a very active show business schedule, and raise their three young children," the statement said. Dion is suffering from "an illness that has caused inflammation in her throat muscles, and has not been able to perform any of her scheduled shows in Las Vegas since her last show on July 29th," the statement said. Dion's shows at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace have been one of the hottest tickets in Las Vegas since she returned to the Strip three years ago. Her residency, which has included about 70 shows a year, is on hold "until further notice," the statement said. "I want to devote every ounce of my strength and energy to my husband's healing, and to do so, it's important for me to dedicate this time to him and to our children," Dion said. "I also want to apologize to all my fans everywhere, for inconveniencing them, and I thank them so much for their love and support." Dion and Angelil began a romantic relationship when she was 19 and he was 45. The couple, along with their three sons, live in Las Vegas, where Dion has been performing for three years. The singer briefly retired from performing in 1999 when her husband was battling throat cancer. CNN's Carolyn Sung contributed to this report. | Celine Dion's Las Vegas residency shows and Asia tour are off her schedule .
She will "focus 100% of her attention" on her husband, their family and her own illness .
Her husband has a cancerous tumor removed in December .
Dion suffers "an illness that has caused inflammation in her throat muscles," a statement says . | f037c7dd52fb6878ab6c6518bada010817e20600 | [
0,
368,
120,
18,
8215,
26,
1064,
747,
2043,
106,
65,
474,
160,
723,
1415,
30,
1520,
3,
5,
2043
] |
One of the world's largest hotel chains has today launched an innovative new device that lets guests unlock their hotel rooms with their smartphones. Starwood Hotels and Resorts, which owns and runs 1,162 hotels worldwide, unveiled the feature at 10 Aloft, Element and W hotels. It is planning to expand the technology, which works via a Bluetooth connection, to 140 more of its properties by the middle of next year. Starwood Hotels and Resorts, which owns and runs 1,162 hotels worldwide, have unveiled an innovative smartphone feature that unlocks hotels doors using Bluetooth technology . The facility is set to revolutionise the check-in process as it means that busy travellers can now by-pass the concierge desk altogether and head straight to their rooms. As well as meaning an end to check-in queues, the new facility could eventually mean the end for key cards and traditional room keys. Hilton Worldwide is the only other hotel chain to publicly acknowledge plans for mobile room keys - which it plans to roll out at the end of 2015 at its US properties including Hilton, Waldorf Astoria, Conrad and Canopy hotels. The move comes after Marriott International launched the ability for guests to check in through a smartphone app at 330 of its North American hotels last year. The facility is set to revolutionise the check-in process as it means that busy travellers can now by-pass the concierge desk altogether and head straight to their rooms . Mobile check-in is already being offered to travellers at the main check-in counter at the Marriott Marquis Times Square hotel in New York . A guest at the Marriott Marquis Times Square hotel in New York after using the mobile check-in facility . By the end of this year, the programme will be live at all 4,000 Marriott hotels worldwide. When a room becomes available, a message is sent to the guest's phone. Traditional room keys are pre-programmed and waiting at the front desk. A special express line allows guests to bypass crowds, flash their IDs and get keys. InterContinental Hotels Group is testing express check-in at 60 hotels. ‘Guests want this because it makes their lives simpler,’ said Mark Vondrasek, who oversees the loyalty program and digital initiatives for Starwood. ‘The ability to go right to your room, gives them back time.’ The innovations are still being tweaked as hotels scramble to catch up to airlines. Fliers today can already use their phones to check in, select seats and as a boarding pass. Hotels envision a similar relationship, with guests ultimately ordering poolside drinks via an app. Marriott International launched the ability to check in through its app at 330 North American hotels last year . Guests who like personal interaction can still opt for a more leisurely check-in, and the hotel companies insist the move isn't about cutting jobs. Brett Cowell, vice president of information technology for Hyatt, which is testing permanent keys for frequent guests at six hotels, explained the decision to introduce the new streamlined check-in process, saying: ‘If you're at the end of a long day, you might want a little less of a chatty experience. ‘But if you're showing up at a new resort, you may want to know what the pool hours are.’ Starwood’s new smartphone facilities require the phone to actually touch a pad on the outside of the door to open it, which the company say prevents guests accidentally unlocking their doors if their smartphones are in their pocket. By the end of this year, the program will be live at all 4,000 Marriott hotels worldwide . Also, an additional security measure means that only one phone can be linked to a room at a time. If two people are staying in the room, they still need to get a traditional key for the second guest. Hotels are currently trying to get more travellers comfortable using their mobile apps to purchase suites, spa treatments and room service though their phones and tablets. It is also hoped that smartwatches will soon be able to perform the same functions, while guests can also use apps on their iPads that are capable of requesting a wake-up call from staff. Marriott guests made $1.25bn in bookings last year through its mobile app, according to George Corbin, senior vice president of digital for the company. Guests who like personal interaction can still opt for a more leisurely check-in, and the hotel companies insist the move isn't about cutting jobs . The new facilities could eventually mean an end to check-in queues, key cards and traditional room keys . Starwood's app to unlock hotel rooms currently requires Bluetooth data connection. Each hotel room needs to have a new lock that can communicate with phones. The top 15 hotel companies have more than 42,000 properties worldwide with a combined 5.2 million rooms, according to travel research firms STR and STR Global. Many hotels have made updates over the past few years, but they remain the minority. Marriott says it is holding off on smartphone keys until all the potential bugs can be resolved. ‘If there was ever a moment that matters,’ Corbin says, ‘it's the moment when you go up to your door and the key doesn't work.’ But for the frequent business traveller, this might just be the time-saver they are looking for. Bruce Craven spends about 100 nights a year on the road, traveling between his California home and New York where he does executive training programs and teaches at Columbia Business School. He's been testing Starwood's smartphone room key since March. ‘If you're traveling all the time, little things can take on a symbolic importance,’ Craven said. ‘This is one less thing that I need to think about.’ | Starwood Hotels and Resorts is the first chain to uses the facility .
Feature currently available at 10 Aloft, Element and W hotels .
Marriott International launched check-in app at 330 of its US hotels last year .
Move could eventually mean the end of key cards and traditional room keys . | 3e4b2e14303f98774874b8d643361a907cd4d804 | [
0,
368,
1407,
12502,
7,
1595,
2801,
338,
11401,
748,
3,
5,
2042,
2037,
13300,
11,
8220,
7,
19,
8
] |
Corporal William Savage was one of three British soldiers killed instantly when their Mastiff 2 vehicle was destroyed by an IED on April 30, 2013 . Three British soldiers were killed instantly when their armoured personnel carrier was destroyed after it struck an improvised explosive device (IED), their inquest has heard. Corporal William Savage, 30, from Penicuick, Midlothian; Fusilier Samuel Flint, 21, from Edinburgh; and Private Robert Hetherington, 25, from Edinburgh died after their Mastiff 2 was destroyed on April 30, 2013. Senior coroner for Oxfordshire Darren Salter, said the men were killed on Route 611 in the Nahr-e-Saraj district. A post-mortem on the three men concluded that they would have been deeply unconscious virtually instantly and virtually unaware of what had happened to them. Mr Salter said the Mastiff was designed to resist attacks from IEDs. The hearing heard that he trio, whe were all from B Company, 2nd Battalion, Scottish Regiment, were the first people to be killed inside the second evolution of the Mastiff since it was deployed in theatre in 2009. The inquest heard that the vehicle the three men died in had been damaged in another IED attack in May 2009. Despite the earlier damage and an ongoing problem with the locks on the rear of the vehicle, it had been declared battle-worthy shortly before the . Mr Salter said he would consider the level of protection afforded by the Mastiff when subjected to such an attack; whether there were any defects with the vehicle on the morning it went out on patrol; whether it should have been possible to detect he IED before it exploded and whether there was any intelligence available before the attack. The Royal Military Police made inquiries to the Afghan National Police about this incident, but no one was arrested over it. The Mastiff, a protective patrol vehicle, had been from Forward Operating Base Ouellette to another base at Lashkar Gah Durai and was on its way back again when the attack happened. It was one of four vehicles in the patrol. The driver of the Mastiff, Fusilier Paul Howell, said in a statement that the regular locks to the rear doors had been faulty, and he had reported them twice. He told the inquest that on the day in question, though they were stiff, they were fully sealed when closed. Fusilier Samuel Flint, left and Private Robert Hetherington, right, were singing the Dizzee Rascal song Baseline Junkie in the moments before their vehicle was destroyed by the powerful blast . The three men were the first to be killed in the Mastiff 2 vehicle, which had been first deployed on the battlefield in 2009. The men's inquest heard that the vehicle, pictured, was designed to withstand IED attacks . Extra battle locks were not deployed, but they were not supposed to be when the vehicle was in open desert, only when there were potential public order situations, he said. He said in his statement that there were 20 ammunition tins under the seats in the rear, which was normal. Shortly before the blast, two of the dead men had been singing a Dizzee Rascal song as they sat at the rear of the vehicle. The three men were all flown to Camp Bastion followed the blast but they were all decalred dead shortly after arrival. The inquest heard that the dead men, were those who were sitting nearest the rear doors of the vehicle at the time of the explosion. They were travelling between Forward Operating Base Ouellette and Patrol Base Lashkar Gah Durai, when the bomb struck. The four-vehicle column had been told the night before the patrol that the road they were travelling was relatively quiet with normal civilian activity. Friends and relatives of the three soldiers stood silently as their bodies were brought from RAF Brize Norton . Members of Cpl Savage's family, including his wife Lyndsey (holding a red rose) stood as his body and the body of this two comrades were repatriated after they were killed in Afghanistan in April 2013 . Blast survivor Fusilier Scott Bell told the hearing Fusilier Flint and Private Hetheringgton were singing the Dizzee Rascal song Baseline Junkie moments before the blast, which occurred some time in the late morning. Fusilier Bell said: 'I felt a really hard thud like I had been in a car crash. 'There was a lot of dust everywhere.' The soldier noticed Fusilier Flint was still in his seat, Private Hetherington was slouched forward and Corporal Savage, aged 30 years, appeared to be sitting up. Fusillier Paul Howell, who was driving the Mastiff, said his 'mind went blank' for a while before waking up to see the front wheels blown off the vehicle. He said: 'I noticed the back doors were open. It was then that I noticed I was in pain.' Several other soldiers who were injured in the explosion recalled hazy memories of the incident. Sergeant Saiasi Vono, who was in a Husky vehicle ahead of the Mastiff, said he saw a 'thick cloud of dust and smoke' behind them. Sergeant Vono lead a team back to the damaged vehicle and climbed inside, calling to Corporal Savage, who did not respond. The three fatally injured soldiers and their colleagues were pulled from the wreckage as the convoy waited for a helicopter to take them to hospital at Camp Bastion, where they were declared dead. Post-mortem examinations revealed all three died from blast injuries caused by an explosion. Two forensic pathologists who carried out the examinations said there was nothing that could have been done to save the men, who would all have been unaware of what happened. The inquest continues and is expected to last a further two days. Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article. | WIlliam Savage, Samuel Flint and Robert Hetherington died instantly .
The three men were sitting in the rear of the Mastiff 2 armoured vehicle .
The vehicle was destroyed when it struck an IED on April 30, 2013 .
The rear doors of the vehicle where torn off by the powerful explosion .
Coroner Darren Salter heard no-one has been arrested over the attack .
Scroll down for video . | 4706c9d750fd25b233f05186669166e18e9acafd | [
0,
368,
1060,
4301,
106,
49,
845,
386,
2390,
10838,
130,
4792,
8361,
116,
70,
6664,
17,
5982,
204,
1689
] |